Winter Adventures on the Sea Lochs: Fishing for Skates and Rays

A fine wee daytrip to the Scottish west coast in search of skates and rays hiding in the sea lochs. Loads of rays turn up for the party, along with a few of their larger cousins. Even better, there was enough sunshine to drive away the mist and hint that spring might be on its way!

[@seanmichaelmcparlandfishing]

that fishing looks amazing some cracking fish well done , plenty of action

[@Corkwing-DougK]

Yup, it was good fun and hectic at times. Just nice to get out on a decent day too, as the last few weeks have been awful windy and wet. Cheers, Doug

[@seanmichaelmcparlandfishing]

it has not been the best weather for the fishing lately hopefully it will start getting better and i myself might be able to get out and catch some nice fish @@Corkwing-DougK

[@tattoedmat]

Fantastic

[@Corkwing-DougK]

Thanks - I could use a few more days like that, just to remind me what good fishing on a fine day feels like🤣🤣

[@Johnpir8978]

Brilliant days fishing Doug , been waiting patiently for the bad weather to clear to get my next corkwing fix lol

[@Corkwing-DougK]

The weather certainly hasn't helped but I've actually got afloat 4 or 5 days so far this year - this is just the first time I've really got the camera out. With a little luck better weather and more daylight will make it easier from now on! Cheers, Doug

[@Lavraki]

Looks like you were kept really busy on this trip Doug. Thanks again for reminding this really clapped out fair weather fisherman that there is fun to be had even in winter.

[@Corkwing-DougK]

I'm sure you also noticed the heavy breathing of this clapped out fair weather fisherman🤣🤣 Just as well there weren't any 200lb fish around! Plenty of fish around over winter - but the real challenge is getting the weather to make the most of very short days. I'd a flurry of activity at the start of January but my little Orkney sat idle for the next 6 weeks or so.

[@tomgray4378]

Another excellent video Doug, looks like you had a cracking day’s fishing, thanks for sharing 👍🏻

[@Corkwing-DougK]

It was certainly a good day, thanks. I was kept busy with fish, but I could still walk upright at the end of the day🤣🤣

[@patwilbourne]

Excellent as usual 😊 .. Tight Lines.. and thanks for sharing your experience..👍

[@Corkwing-DougK]

Thanks - I was just glad to get out again, as I've not had the Orkney afloat since early January. Longer days and better weather should open up a few more opportunities soon🙂🙂

[@ashleyhoward8926]

Quite a haul, not least the foul hooked biggy. Well done & thanks for posting.

[@Corkwing-DougK]

Thanks Ash - not sure I'd call it a biggie, but definitely more fun and less exhausting than a full grown version. If only Etive had a few more like that🙂 The skate were small by west coast standards whilst the rays were good sized compared to the rather skinny average I encounter. Go figure!

[@insertpienow]

Nice.... Thank you for Sharing...

[@Corkwing-DougK]

Thanks - it was just good to get out on the water, as the last few weeks have been a bit frustrating weather-wise!

[@chrisrichardson3964]

Nice days fishing

[@Corkwing-DougK]

I really enjoyed it, although skates and rays aren't my first choice of species - but every now and again it's great to have a blast with them 👍

[@garyroberts8502]

We're you up at etive this weekend?lots of weed on shore,thought it might be your car parked up,if it was you, passed us at cages heading back to your car about 2pm

[@Corkwing-DougK]

Hi Gary - that would have been me alright, coming back from an overnight trip. Fab weather but crap fishing for my part, so I hope you did better! Weed's not a problem when you're not first to arrive and some kind soul has done the hard work already😁😁 Cheers, Doug

[@garyroberts8502]

FAB WEATHER !!!? Haha I know what you mean but boy was it cold overnight,got stuck on weed blown up on shore,engine starter packed in as well as winch (both sorted now)you would have seen my boat parked up on a white yeti,went out on friends and caught lots of small spurs and whiting mid water,sorry to have missed you,but I watched you go by us and saw it was you 😊

[@Corkwing-DougK]

Tent stoves are marvellous in these conditions👍 Not sure about where you were fishing, but it was totally calm up the loch, and there's a big difference between 0 mph and even 3 mph in February. I was starting to boil around mid-day😁 On the downside I couldn't catch fish to save myself so it sounds like you did a lot better than me! I saw your boat on the shore but thought you were maybe killing time until the tide rose a bit (I came in pretty much at LW and it was very shallow). Glad to hear you got it sorted as boats can be a complete pain in the backside, especially if they've had a quiet winter to fester away.

[@gingerbeerkid1967]

Is that a leech/parasite bootom left of fish? At 6.13 Thanks for upload

[@Corkwing-DougK]

Yup - skate leeches👎 Same things you see me pulling off that ray at around 2.40. You find them on most skate and I usually remove them (and if you don't chuck them overboard they just attach themselves to the boat!). Glad I'm not a skate!