Barto Posted July 22, 2013 Report Share Posted July 22, 2013 I first went to the Shetlands some 3 years ago. I used to crew for John Keggie on Oberon and when he moved up to Cullavoe, I had an invite to go up and try it out. The fishing was, to put it simply, awesome. Moving forward to almost present day, I was reminiscing at the kent cod meet and an idea was born. There were many factors to consider around the trip planning. I had personal reasons as to when I could personally go but all things considered, a planned date of departure was formulated. As the year wore on towards the date, I became increasingly excited. There were many last minute changes, which saw the costs soar. Looking back, this could have been reduced. There were many phone calls between us concerning rigs and kit. On the day before departure, I headed up to Steve's (Luremans) house. The plan was to stay there and head off early. When I got there, I was amazed at just how much gear Steve had packed. What we had to appreciate was that we would be miles away from anywhere and if anyone had forgotten something or something had broken, we would need to be almost self sufficient. We went through all the kit checking and double checking. All the while there was the wonderful smell of dinner wafting around the house. That night, I could hardly sleep. I managed to beat the alarm clock and had all the bedding packed by about 4am. Steve put the kettle on and it was a hurried brew before we set off. We made great time on the motorway and I don't think we had to drop below 70mph at any stage. We had arranged to meet Lozz and Ben and some services near Aberdeen. We completed the last 40 miles in convoy. We arrived at the ferry terminal some 2 hours early. We parked the vans and walked over the road to a large shopping centre for some last minute bits. There was also a conveniently placed pub right across the road. We boarded the ferry on time and checked into our cabin. We then headed for the bar (as you do). We then went up on deck to say good bye to the mainland. The next morning we arrived in Lerwick. It was a shock to discover that we had left in high 20's and it was only 13 degrees here and windy. We stopped in a tackle shop and then headed further north. We caught the other 2 ferries to take us to Unst. The first thing that struck me when we arrived on Unst was the lack of traffic. There was nothing ! Any cars we did meet though, would all wave at us. The people were so friendly and nothing was too much trouble. When we got to the house we unpacked and decided to have a bit of a scout around. We headed to a launch spot that John Keggie had mentioned called Burra Firth. After sussing that out, we agreed to try a small stream that fed into the bay. Steve and Ben managed a small trout each on spinners. The next day, we launched from Norwick. The fishing initially, was very slow and we only managed a few very small fish. We gradually pressed on out into deeper water (230ft) and into the rips. This was where things really took off. The cod gradually increased in size. The greedy so and so's would eat anything that was dropped down. I managed to catch everything on a 6" red gill shad. Here is a picture of one of the fish. It was that big, it wouldn't fit in the tankwell !! The only fish we kept were the ones that were deeply hooked or had blown swim bladders. This was minimised because on the yaks, we were bringing them up slowly on lightish gear. The vast majority of the fish were returned fit and well. I kept a couple of the smaller ones for the ice box (yes really) !! To give you an idea of the size of the fish, we managed to get Ben to lie down next to them to give you an idea of the size. The smallest was 19lb. We asked a family who were in a caravan, on the beach if they wanted some fish. The bloke was an ex trawlerman. I said to him that obviously he would know how to fillet the fish properly. He gave me a wry grin and said "aye, I'll work for my supper". He then proceeded to fillet all of the fish for us. Clive, you are a star. There is a video of some of the fish that we caught and released which, when I have asked permission to use, I will post up. This is a photo of the average conditions. Force 5/6, 12 degrees and against a 3kt rip - snotty, especially on a yak. When I get a minute, I will post up some other photos just to wet your appetite, but what a hell of a trip !! niggle, Kingfisher 126, Stuie and 2 others 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wedger Posted July 22, 2013 Report Share Posted July 22, 2013 Please excuse the Aussie lingo............. BUGGER............... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Posted July 22, 2013 Report Share Posted July 22, 2013 I said before you went that I was looking forward to hearing how it went. Well it was worth the wait ! Thanks for taking the time to write this up and give us all a " taster " Cheers. Jim niggle 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted July 22, 2013 Report Share Posted July 22, 2013 sounds like an excellent trip that us mere mortals can only dream about. Well done that man :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Newboy Posted July 22, 2013 Report Share Posted July 22, 2013 Now I've seen everything.... Shetland in a Yak Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob Posted July 22, 2013 Report Share Posted July 22, 2013 Um, trail-away anyone? Great report, thanks! Rob Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maverick Martin Posted July 22, 2013 Report Share Posted July 22, 2013 Wow that sounds like an excellent way to dangle, thanks for sharing Martin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
great white Posted July 22, 2013 Report Share Posted July 22, 2013 Super report thanks and some terrific fish by anyones standards. Just reward for all your efforts Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
niggle Posted July 23, 2013 Report Share Posted July 23, 2013 Awesome thanks for sharing,a very rewarding trip.Well done Nige Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pirky Posted July 23, 2013 Report Share Posted July 23, 2013 Awesome ... nothing else to say is there?? Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lofty Posted July 23, 2013 Report Share Posted July 23, 2013 Barry likes to push the limits( not safety though) and I reckon this is the start of bigger things if I know him well enough Great photo with the double doubles Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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