Loch Etive | wild camp | fishing | midges!!

A couple of nights summer camping on a Loch Etive beach with only my boat and a campfire for company. Plagued by gurnards (in a good way) and by midges (in a not-so-good way!). I even managed some trout, including my first on the fly in salt water. Overall I had a really good time in a beautiful, isolated little spot.

[@johnhorner769]

Thanks for making the videos Doug, they are always a lovely way to relax awhile 👍

[@Corkwing-DougK]

Glad you like them! Editing them keeps me out of mischief too, especially on a long winter's night.

[@dondle2]

Thought that was the bonawe monster you hooked at the end. Nice video and great kit, all the best from N. Connel.

[@Corkwing-DougK]

Thanks 👍 Etive is definitely a favourite place to escape for a night or two, and there's a surprising variety of fish to catch - even if they're mainly small! Cheers, Doug

[@cameronwyllie7290]

So refreshing to see an angler wet his hands when going to handle fish pre release. Great videos, might see you on beach off Dunbar, I’ve upped the game from my hobie to a wee sib

[@Corkwing-DougK]

I'm gradually getting better at such things, although there's always more to learn. Good luck with the sib - I find them a better/easier platform to fish from and they can cover a fair distance too. On the other hand, there's nothing quite like gliding along silently on a flat calm sea👍 I find myself eyeing up packrafts, although I'd probably just kill myself if I tried to use one🤣

[@eastcoastshoreangler9308]

cracking watch and really good mixed bag of fish well done mate 🎣🎣👍

[@Corkwing-DougK]

Glad you enjoyed it - I get a kick out of mixing fresh and saltwater fishing and I'll probably do more this coming year. On the other hand I can do without midges - horrible things!!

[@ashleyhoward8926]

2:10 It's nice to see the life-long PT regime still going strong. Great variety of fish Doug, I'll have to get myself back up there for some light spinning up the top end. Strange to cast into sea weed for trout ! Very well done.

[@Corkwing-DougK]

Hi Ash, It's hardly exceptional fishing but it is great fun and I definitely get a kick out of mixing up freshwater and saltwater tactics - and Etive is a grand backdrop to it all🙂. Hope your own trip is going well!

[@alexandermcgowan4125]

Brilliant your videos are very good Doug

[@Corkwing-DougK]

Glad you like them! I've just been away for a couple of days chasing largish spurdogs, so we see if there's enough material for another one 🙂

[@anotherangleUK]

Lovely video, I really should get out on Etive on my Orkney but haven’t the courage to launch at Kelly's with 2WD. Maybe one day. Tight lines.

[@Corkwing-DougK]

I'm hesitant to sound too confident here as it's not my car below the HW mark! You definitely need to be comfortable with launching here but it shouldn't be a problem with a light boat like a Coastliner. Take a fork with you, just in case there is a lot of weed washed up on the beach (can be a real problem in autumn), and a decent length of rope to allow you to rope the boat out if you need to. The beach and shingle area are both pretty solid so the only problem I had with a 2WD car was a bit of wheel spinning when extracting the boat towards high water - solved by running at an angle rather than straight up the steepest bit of beach. Alternatively you could just rope the trailer out from the top of the beach.

[@anotherangleUK]

@@Corkwing-DougK Thanks Doug. I'll be prepared and maybe give it a try.

[@garrybryant4565]

Another great video Doug. Fantastic species trip, and unique. Fishing for Brownies, and catching Mackerel !! Don't think Napalm would work against those midges up there. Great to watch you in action👍

[@Corkwing-DougK]

Napalm may be a little extreme, although I frequently share the sentiment😁 I definitely get a kick out of the mix of fresh and saltwater, and it makes a pleasant change from endless mini-spurdogs over the winter months! Speaking of which, it'll soon be time to fire up the hot tent again. Not sure the appropriate emoji for that - thumbs down 'cos it's cold, dark and winter, or thumbs up for a cosy camp and no midges? Hard call!!

[@Savajam]

Made my day to see another video come up. As always the relaxed enjoyment of the boat, fish and environment are a delight to see. The midges are awful all over, they are even unbearable down here in Dorset! Thanks for sharing your adventures.

[@Corkwing-DougK]

Glad you enjoyed it - even if this poor old angler doesn't rate alongside his boat, the fish and their environment! 😢😢 I don't normally fish Etive over the summer but it is a lovely place to escape to, midges or no midges. We do get them here on the east coast of Scotland, but not in the colossal swarms that inhabit the west coast at times. I can remember a colleague at work having to take a day off after a bad attack - even the next day he looked like some ghastly pin cushion. The rest of us just laughed, but the sight has stayed with me for over 20 years!!

[@Savajam]

@@Corkwing-DougK I did a weeks kayaking out from a campsite near Arduaine, through the Coorrvreckan and out to the Slate Islands and the Monastery of St Brendan in my distant youth. It was an amazing trip. BUT it was always a race down to the kayak from the tent and paddle hard out to sea to escape the flying hordes. Still spent most of the time itching from their bites though.😞 Spent a while in St Andrews and like you said, no where near the numbers on the West.

[@Corkwing-DougK]

That would have been a fabulous trip despite the best efforts of the bugs - I did go through the Corrievreckan and around Jura a few years ago, but very definitely with an outboard doing the hard work! The west coast of Jura is beautiful but very rugged and almost completely deserted - certainly somewhere I'd like to visit again.

[@Carrera-gp9od]

Wow those midges ! Hellish little buggers !

[@Corkwing-DougK]

Insert your own expletive, but I loathe the wee XXXX equally as much as they love me! They can really spoil your day when they get going. If only I could do a deal with them - bribe them with a pint of blood every day if they'd just leave me alone 🙂

[@captainlandslide9874]

Lovely video, Doug. I must confess to not being a fisherman myself but, I find the content very relaxing to watch so keep up the good work 👍

[@Corkwing-DougK]

Thanks👍 - A lot of the time I'm not really a hardcore angler myself and it's often just an excuse to be out and about in beautiful surroundings. Cheers, Doug

[@captainlandslide9874]

You’ve hit the nail on the head there- it’s just the being out there, if nothing else. Unfortunately I live at the wrong end of the country to get there regularly. But I’m hoping to spend a week there early may ‘24. I am a novice boater too so won’t be doing anything too far out of my ability level. I’ve been watching too many of Donny Wilcox’s videos though! 😅

[@Corkwing-DougK]

Well I hope early May is kind to you! As a general rule, the further you get away from the open sea the less windy it's going to be - so the head of Etive or Leven can be almost flat calm whilst Oban is breezy. Etive in particular can vary hugely on the same day and it's always worth checking what it looks like around the next corner. Donny's videos show you what is possible but he and I find it much easier to grab a little weather window, and that makes a huge difference!

[@captainlandslide9874]

Yes you are both very experienced boaters, I wouldn’t have the minerals to go out in anything other than calm conditions, I’ve heard all about the races and Bonawe and Connel Bridge, as well as others. But I intend to stay within my comfort/safe zone. Camping in bad weather isn’t a problem as i am an experienced wild camp though! Hope I might catch you out there sometime 👍

[@thomaswislocki2804]

A double bacon sizzle..! My weekends complete, thanks Doug (my granda always had a full bowl of tobacco in his pipe when trout fishing at Lochearn.......Midge repellent hi!! )

[@Corkwing-DougK]

Well, I do like my bacon rolls! Your granda knew his stuff as a bit of smoke is pretty good at repelling them, at least when they're not out in huge, hungry, swarms. There comes a point though when your only option is to sup your brew of choice through a well armoured head net!!

[@marcuswilson9381]

Great to see such a variety of species, good video

[@Corkwing-DougK]

Cheers🙂 'Twas a bit of a half-hearted species hunt, as I failed to reach double figures - but fun nonetheless. Etive does throw up a very wide range of fish, with something like 50 species recorded, but most are just occasional strays caught by accident. You just never know though!

[@alantipple3684]

Great watch as always am heading up to etive in the couple of weeks hopefully the midges will have gone by then keep them videos coming 🎣🎣

[@Corkwing-DougK]

Have fun! - I think the midges will have thinned out a good bit towards the end of September but there will still be some around. With a little luck something like Smidge will be enough to keep them at bay, or you'll have just a light breeze which will also discourage them.

[@Mastiffmanoutdoors]

Hi Doug. Absolutely loving your videos. I watch a lot of outdoor KZbinrs and your channel is one of my favorites. I'm heading up to Loch Etive next week with my SIB and my fishing/camping gear. I plan on launching at Kelly's pier and heading north in search of a remote camping spot. I have a small 3.5 hp outboard. Are you able to recommend an area of the loch that would be a good camp spot? I appreciate you may want to keep your favourite spots to yourself. Any advice/pointers would be hugely appreciated. I'd also like to add, I'm a very responsible, leave no trace camper. Keep up the good work with your videos.

[@Corkwing-DougK]

Hi Craig, I do all my camping north of the River Kinglass/Barrs area as the loch is uninhabited from there until you reach the road at Glen Etive. I generally prefer to camp with the wind at my back, although the actual and forecast winds can vary a lot! The NE bank has a lot of beaches for about 2km along from Kinglass, and a lot of my camping takes place in this area. There are many other spots you can pull a SIB or kayak ashore between here and Glen Etive but most will be stony or bouldery and not always easy to find a tent pitch. The only real beach on the NW side is at Rubha Barr, and this is a bit spoilt with a big stone jetty bang in the middle of it - which you may find being used for forestry work if you're unlucky. There are one or two other sandy spots around here too. As you head up the loch towards Aird Trilleachan there are quite a few places you can tuck a SIB away, but not many where you can camp at the waters edge. You're usually scouting for one of the many old charcoal burners circles as these are excellent pitches, but usually a few yards inland and not always easy to spot. Aird Trilleachan would make a good campsite too, although I've never stayed there myself. There are 2 old piers just north of the holiday cottages at Barrs and these would make a decent stopping spot too - you can camp on either and there is a (relatively) clear area midway between them that you could land a SIB. If camping, I would try and take some firewood in with you. You'll probably be OK on the NW bank but the NE beaches don't generally have much driftwood and much of it is soggy or rotten. Etive doesn't have much tide but it does flow strongly around the Bonawe Narrows (stay over to the quarry side when going through these, to avoid sunken trees on the River Awe side). Wind varies hugely depending on which corner of the loch you're on and can funnel straight up the loch at times. Hope you have fun!

[@Mastiffmanoutdoors]

Hi Doug. I really appreciate you taking the time to not only reply to me, but to give me some great advice! Thank you so much! Ok going to take on board what you said and explore these areas. I will take some fire wood aswel. I feel that a camp fire would be awesome given the chance. Fingers crossed for a nice size fish that I can cook in the fire. Thanks again for your advice Doug!

[@richyiotp1]

Cracking stuff we were plagued by gurnards in auchenlarie last sunday

[@Corkwing-DougK]

I like gurnards a lot - quite a cute, feisty fish (and tasty) - but I could literally have caught hundreds of little ones. I've never seen anything like as many in Etive before, usually just one or twos. Interesting as a one-off, but not something I'd want to repeat every weekend!

[@DavidTYork]

Great session there Doug, and those midges looked awful. Just back from the hottest week I have ever had on Skye - which helped keep them at bay!

[@Corkwing-DougK]

Lying in my sleeping bag listening to the rain at 4 in the morning I knew I was in for a pasting as soon as I poked my nose out on such a calm morning. Body armour and headnet on before I even left the tent🙂 Glad you had a better experience on Skye, as it looks fabulous in sunshine. Anyway, the midges should start to thin out a little from now on, and then I can start complaining about a soggy, cold, winter!!

[@DavidTYork]

@@Corkwing-DougK indeed - I am hoping for one more trip up west before the end of the year if there is a kind weather window.

[@douglasthorburn5692]

Good to see you on the water Doug

[@Corkwing-DougK]

Thanks 👍 - and I was very glad indeed to be on the water rather than onshore for that second morning! Midges drive me crazy!

[@fullcircleangling]

Lovely video and a cracking mix of fish 👌🏻 can I ask what time of year this is please? Thanks

[@Corkwing-DougK]

Early August last year. Good luck with the midges if you give it a go🤣

[@fullcircleangling]

@@Corkwing-DougK cheers. Haha yeah they’re the trouble aren’t they!! Tight lines 🙋‍♂️

[@mboutdoors_uk]

Hi Doug, new subscriber! Lovely vids mate, on a bit of a binge! Truly amazing scenery you have up there, absolutely breathtaking stuff. ❤ Can I ask what system you use to anchor the boat in deeper water and then pull it back ashore when you’re ready to leave? I’ve seen it on KZbin before but I can’t for the life of me find it again 🤦🏻‍♂️

[@Corkwing-DougK]

Hi, and thanks for subbing👍 I've been asked this a few times and wrote up some notes on how I do it, which you can find at corkwing.co.uk/boat-fishing/setting-an-overnight-mooring/. I haven't done any YT videos specifically on mooring but my notes link to one video with more info and I think there are one or two others where I also show the technique. It works pretty well but I'd definitely recommend a bit of practice before relying on it overnight. Cheers, Doug

[@mboutdoors_uk]

@@Corkwing-DougK brilliant mate! Think even I should be able to do that 😜 Look forward to your next adventures, tight lines! 🫡

[@bobbyfischer6786]

Great video. And clearly a really nice guy. I wonder if they would be any less enjoyable if you omitted the name of the loch? I would argue that it wouldnt but there may be a benefit in ten years time when you look at the increase of traffic on the loch. Eventually it will end up like loch lomond. Great videos good on you, but it wouldnt be right not to mention this and im fully aware i'll be slated for it

[@Corkwing-DougK]

Fair enough point and I've no reason to slate you for it🙂 It is something I think about before I post a blog entry or upload a video, and there is a bit of hierarchy. So there are a few trips I don't even mention on my blog, at least in any identifiable way; places I'm vague about and don't post videos of (St. Andrews, for example); places which I'll video but not identify (almost all my freshwater fishing and some saltwater); and then very well known areas such as Etive, Dunbar, Luce Bay, etc., which I normally do identify to some extent. If I'm told about somewhere and asked to keep it quiet, I do. Looking specifically at Etive, it is an extremely well known venue for anglers across the UK (e.g. it has its own Facebook group and features very regularly in forums like World Sea Fishing). However, perhaps 98% of the angling effort is concentrated between Bonawe quarry and Oban airfield. This is largely because most of the rest of the loch has no roads and is hard to access except by water but also because fishing towards the head of the loch is generally for smaller fish. Over 90% of my videos are focussed on this remoter and relatively inaccessible area, and I go here more for the isolation and wilderness than for the fish (although they are still important to me). I really don't want to encounter other campers, boaters or anglers here, and rarely do. My most frequent encounters are actually with sea kayakers rather than other anglers, and they're generally very unobtrusive visitors. I've written about Etive for almost 15 years and posted videos featuring it for maybe 7 or 8 years now - they are well watched (at least from my little channel's perspective!) but don't appear to generate much additional activity on the loch. I've met several people around Taynuilt who watch my videos but only once in the last 10 years have I met anyone who's actually tried to emulate my shore fishing trips hiking down from Glen Etive. If I thought I was sparking any significant influx of visitors I'd simply delete my videos - after all I'd be spoiling my own fun, having the place more or less to myself. None of this really directly answers your point - would it detract from the videos if I didn't name the loch? I suppose not. Views might drop slightly, but this is not a commercial channel so that's more of an ego/conscience thing than a bread on the table problem 🙂. On the other hand, I'm not really a secret squirrel type. I've benefitted hugely from what others have shared and feel some responsibility to share in turn, hopefully in a positive way. Places like Etive need friends too, lest it gets turned into a giant fish farm or hydro plant, and I hope I contribute to some small way to arguing that it deserves appropriate protection from creeping industrialisation. So fair question and (I hope) a reasoned answer. It is something I think about, and the answer is different for different venues. I'm a minor player in Etive's story but I think the balance is in favour of building wider understanding of how beautiful and special the place is, and why bulldozers should be resisted. On the other hand, if I meet more than 5 anglers a year up there I'll probably change my mind 🙂 This is also (probably) my longest reply to any comment on the channel, so congratulations if you've made it this far!

[@bobbyfischer6786]

@@Corkwing-DougK everything you said i agree with. Its such a beautiful place. I have seen more visitors in recent years and in particular a lot of rubbish being left - sadly much of it by anglers (i also fish). Its amazing to see that people who you would think would have an appreciation of nature can choose to wilfully leave cans, bottles, plastic, broken glass, used baby wipes etc lying around. Let me be clear that im not implying you have any effect on this. That was the only reason i mentioned what i did and im glad you hadnt taken it as criticism of yourself. Like you i share an appreciation of the place and thoroughly enjoy your content. There is something very special and theraputic about spending a night or two on its shores. The stuff that makes you feel truly blessed to appreciate these simple things. Keep on keeping on

[@gingerbeerkid1967]

Nice 😊

[@Corkwing-DougK]

Thanks 😊 - for the most part it really was a very enjoyable little trip. Definitely quantity rather than quality in terms of fishing though!

[@chrisgfteam6932]

How do you that, anchor your boat out in the water? Is it an anchor bungee?

[@Corkwing-DougK]

It's effectively a form of pulley rigged against an anchor dropped below the low water mark. I don't think a bungee arrangement would work well enough in a tidal environment although I've not tried it. I've been asked about my overnight mooring setup a few times and wrote up some notes on how I do it, which you can find at corkwing.co.uk/boat-fishing/setting-an-overnight-mooring/. I haven't done any YT videos specifically on mooring but my notes link to one video with more info and I think there are one or two others where I also show the technique. It works pretty well but I'd definitely recommend a bit of practice before relying on it overnight. All at your own risk of course, so only do something you're comfortable with!! Cheers, Doug

[@chrisgfteam6932]

@@Corkwing-DougK thank you sir great work on the videos👍🏻

[@brynmitchell5774]

Do you not eat the fish because the fish farms create the parasite infestation on Etive?

[@Corkwing-DougK]

I'm not sure that the fish farms are responsible for the parasites you find in many of the sea loch fish, although they certainly cause other problems. Many of the internal worms that burrow into the flesh are (I think) passed on via seals, when the fish eat the seal poo. I don't know the source of the little red worms you find on the eyes and gills of many fish, but the sheer number of internal and external parasites definitely makes me very reluctant to eat my catch! Etive seems particularly bad but many other lochs also have problems. Cheers, Doug

[@ianfirkins6460]

What fantastic places sea lochs are….apart from the midges!

[@Corkwing-DougK]

Indeed - it's hard to believe how bad they can be unless you've experienced a full onslaught. Having been the family midge magnet for decades takes a toll too - if you fish with me you'll probably be fine, as the buggers will all be crawling over me and leaving you alone. Not that I'm bitter or anything🙄🙄

[@oliverphin8622]

Why dont you eat fish seems like a waste

[@Corkwing-DougK]

Hi Oliver - I definitely do eat fish all right, but much more so cod and haddock from the east coast of Scotland than from a west coast sea loch. Many of the bottom feeders in Etive pick up internal parasites and are pretty unappealing fare, whilst others others either have to be returned (spurdog) or aren't that great from an eating point of view, such as dogfish. I could have kept a few of the trout but they're not my favourite fish and I generally prefer to return them unless I actually need them on a campfire for dinner overnight.