Neil

Thanks for the PM John, now replied........ Neil.

Hi Snatcher, As Richi said the kayak lads are making base camp at Sandhead. We are going to concenrtate our efforts in the Ardwell area, avoiding the stronger tides of Drummore and the obvious hazzards of the Mull Head it's self. No doubt you'll see a few of us around as some are staying for the whole week and others returning again for the following weekend. A trip out from Port Logan is on the cards one evening and if the weather permits we hope to get out from Garlieston for a few hours as well. I think it could be a busy weekend........... Neil.

For safety reasons people will be reluctant to tell you how far you can go offshore. What I can say is that for me, one to three miles is normal, four to five miles would be a carefully planned trip with settled weather. It really depends on the type of boat and your average paddling speed. Certainly for your first few trips, and to build up experience, I would stay closer to the shore. Your ground is similar to mine and there's loads of marks within a mile from the shore that hold codlings. Neil.

Give Hammond a phone and tell them what you want, They will taylor you a suit in your size and make it from a material of your choice. They will send you out some swatches of material listing their properties and suitability for your requirements. http://www.hammond-drysuits.co.uk Neil.

Hi Jon, I had a Malibu XL, I moved it on to my brother. It is a good boat. A bit wet at times when loaded but scupper bungs would have sorted that out. He has rigged it now with hatches and flush mounts,it's a great boat for two. It's downfall is it can be a pain to paddle in any wind. I found it to quite swift on the water if you had two decent paddlers on board as well. Neil.

Good looking line up of stock on that site Richi, have you used them before ? There's a couple of bit's and pieces on there I could do with. I might give thema try. Neil

Your certainly in the middle at Biggar. Dunbar would be your nearest mark on the East Coast. Don't launch at Dunbar though, go down to Torness power station and launch at Skateraw Harbour. There's plenty good fishing close in on the reefs around the sation. For the West coast your nearest decent marks would be in Wigtown Bay, plenty species to target in here and some good sheltered launch sites. Brighouse bay offers the most sheltered access and the fishing can be quite good around the Ross Island Marks. Further along there's Mossyard which will put you onto some good marks and again a decent launch site. Watch for the tides on the headlands in Wigtown bay, although not as fierce as some marks in the Solway and Luce Bay, they can still be a little tricky on bigger tides. I have fished all these marks a few times so if you need any info before a trip just give me a holler. Neil.

Hi Scotsgun, Where are you based ? There's plenty kayakers up here. It's just that we keep all the good marks a secret. Send me a photocopy of your passport to prove you are now a resident and I will give you some top secret marks............ Neil.

I think everyone that's been on holiday in the UK this summer has been sh*t on by the weather. I had a crap week with wind and rain, never got the kayak out. Let's hope it settles down a bit for the autumn. At least you got out and wet a line. Nice Pollock there by the way. Neil.

Steve, You can camp at Thorntonloch, behind the caravan park. Speak to the couple in reception that run the site, they will sort you out. There's usually a few campers and surfers there at weekends. You mentioned Kirkudbright as an alternative. Brighouse bay is your answer for that mission, cracking camp site and an easy, safe launch for the Kayak. Loads of ground to explore around here as well. Just watch the headlands on the bigger tides for some of the rips, they flow at fair rate at times. Plenty different species to catch, well worth a go. Neil.

To be honest Steve the general rough ground fishing at St Abbs is poor. There's Pollock and Wrasse inshore round the Head but it gets deep quick if you go offshore and apart from the reef in front of the harbour you will struggle for decent Cod fishing. What species do you want to target ? Give me an idea of what your looking for and I will help you out. You will also be charged to launch at St Abbs. I'm afraid that goes against the grain for me with my Yak. Coldingham bay is a free put in but if the gates closed at the top of the hill it's a bit of a climb. You might be better to base your self a wee bit further North and camp at Thornton loch. That will place you in a better position for covering some decent ground. Neil.

I seen this on the sea forum, might be of interest, look how far off shore they caught it. http://www.thesun.co.uk/article/0,,2-2007330553,00.html Neil

You would be suprised how many false alarms the Lifeboats have to attend. I was in the same situation a few weeks back. I was out fishing out from Berwick upon Tweed early one evening when I heard the ILB contact Humber coast guard on Ch 16. I wondered where they were heading for. I soon realized they were coming to visit us. Within minutes they were along side us. They told us a concerned Police Officer had seen us fishing and thought we were in difficulty. I knew a couple of lads on the ILB and we had a bit crack before they returned to the station. After that I felt bad about it ,I cut our trip short, and went ashore. The next morning I phoned Humber CG to discuss what had happened and asked them if there was any way this could be prevented as this has happened to me before. The answer in short was NO. I am registered with CG66, I phone our local coast watch tower when they are there, and phone the CG at all other times. The Humber CG was sympathetic as well. He does a bit of shore diving and has had 4 call outs himself over the years, all of them false with good intent. He told me the procedure was to launch the ILB first then contact anyone that might be in the area. If someone reports a kayak in difficulty in a certain area and you have been eliminated from the search, then who's to say there's not someone else in difficulty that you don't know about. They still have to search the area. The one comforting thought is that these guys are there when we need them. Offshore membership is easy and you can pay by DD. I have been a member for years, but if I was paying for the times they have launched I think I would still be owing them a few quid.. Neil

Hi Rob, A few decent size fish you had there. The cod fishing has been good this year so far. Let's hope it lasts. Are you NE Scotland or NE England ? Neil.

Plenty Plaice there Simon. No monsters though, we had around 18 Plaice from the shore this morning , the majority were undersize. About 4 of them were over the pound mark but still a bit on the thin side. I think they will need to feed up a bit more yet before it's worth making the trip. It might be worth waiting until the Autumn when they run the Mussell beds again in numbers, at least then they are well fed and there are more silver fellars around to fill the gaps as well. Neil.

The lack of leaves on the second last picture prove that it's still April. That aside, those pics look like an extract from the summer. You had some great weather. Great to see those creels in action, I bought a few of those off e-bay during the winter. Going to try for a few prawns this summer for the BBQ. Cracking Pics. Neil.

Looks like it will be a shore trip now Simon. There's a fair bit of SW forecast for there tomorrow so I will just take the chesties in place of the Kayak. I will still let you know how it goes though. Yes, Steven is still at it, the liite B*gger ended up with 30 species last year, dabbling around with his little hooks. I will try to give him a whipping this year though. Neil.

Keep us posted on your outings mark. I'm still alive but the kayaks have been hung up for 6 weeks now, been so busy with work ... I hope to get out soon, infact I might give the spring run of Plaice a go this weekend if the weather is kind. Neil.

That was sneaky wee trip Mark. Well done on wetting a line and getting a good result. No signs of any Smoothies down there yet ? Neil.

It is a Scupper Pro in the video clip. It was taken in late November and was a bit cold. Not me I hasten to add, but dangerous Brian in action again. We had a few attempts, one successful, but not on film. Brian used thigh straps but it was difficult to keep your legs in them when you went over. Good fun and good re-entry practice, every time it goes wrong.... Neil...

Tried it recently but it was bit cold, we managed a roll but got excited and forgot to stop when upright.... Neil...

I'm sure it was about £34.00 plus £9.50 for next day return carrier. To be honest I can't remember. It was certainly worth it anyway. Often wondered about getting one of the latex waist bands fitted to a pair of stocking foot breathable waders? Neil.

Been there, bought mine from ebay. One small problem, there's different ankle diameters in latex boots. I bought a pair and never checked, guess what ?, they were the wrong size. They have to match the trouser leg diameter. I have a pair of Yak Khamsin's . I sent them off to http://www.hammond-drysuits.co.uk/home.asp they made a top notch job of bonding the correct boots on. With the correct cag sealed to them they make a good alternative to a dry suit. No more wet feet, that's for sure. Neil.

I stumbled upon your web pages a few days back Gary. I found you through a link from http://www.fliesonline.co.uk/ It looks good, you certainly have the weather for the job over there. Try Boat fishing Monthly for advertising, seems to be more Kayak friendly. Neil.

That seems right Martin. Your wrist cuffs won't have a velcro closure on them though, like the latex suit has ? I think....