Fun with Scorpions.

After what seems like an age my time off work finally coincided with some settled weather and I managed to get to the coast to take advantage of it. The past few weeks has provided meagre pickings and we have suffered a few blanks whilst hunting the canals, so I was just really keen to catch something. With this in mind I headed down to East Lothian to a scorpion and blenny hotspot. I was keen to continue my searching of the deep rock pools and gulleys at this mark as it can hold a surprise or two! It was low tide, calm and sunny  when I arrived I started fishing a Slug-Go mounted on a football jighead and began to jig it alongside the kelp. I was hoping to find some pollock lurking but after half an hour I decided to target the rock pools in the hope of some scorpions. I broke out my LRF kit, 7'10" Graphiteleader Corto EX rod, Shimano Technium 3000SFC reel, 6lb Sunline Super PE, 2' fluorocarbon leader and on the business end a 1.5g #10 Decoy Rocket jighead with a small tail section of pink Isome. I bounced the Isome along side the big boulders and crevices in the rocks and within minutes a long spined sea scorpion had dashed out and engulfed the lure. It was promptly landed and after a bit of spiky defiance it was released after a quick photo.

The first long spined sea scorpion of the day

It was great to get off the mark and with the sun on my back it was actually quite warm! I carried on searching the gulley and managed to tempt a succession of scorpions to attack my Isome section and with the weather so pleasant it was the perfect chance to play with my camera . A polarized lens filter got rid of the surface glare which allowed me to see down into the rockpools and I managed to get some nice photos of the fish in the water.

The polarized filter really helped see into the clear rockpools.

Such stunning colours on this fish, I would love a guitar painted in scorpion purple!

A close up of the little devil.

What a marvelous little fish!

Another scorpion seizes the lure, a real red finned beauty.

I love the gold highlights on this scorpion.

As I worked my way down the gulley I saw a fish about 8" in length gently cruising round the pool. At first I thought it was a small pollack but as I stalked it I could see it was actually a little ling! The smallest one I have ever seen and it was with fevered anticipation that I gently lowered my Isome into its lair. The fish turned around and came over to inspect the lure as it was gently twitching on the bottom, where upon it spied me and just totally disappeared into the rock strewn pool. It was a bit frustrating but exciting none the less as it was another unusual fish the mark has thrown up.

I then decided to move further down the coast to see if there were any bass about, this turned out as fruitless as my earlier pollock hunting and again after about an hour of working the slug go I turned my attention to the local blenny population.

The blennys were as obliging as ever and I had soon racked up a dozen or so on the Isome / jighead combo before I called it a day and headed back to Edinburgh.

Blennys, they always seem to have such a cheeky look about them!

Raaaahhhh! Watch your fingers!

It was great to be back fishing the sea again and even better to catch such wonderfully coloured fish , proving that they don't have to be big to be fun. As always I can't wait to get out again!

Tight lines, Schogsky.