Tuesday 12 September 2017

Getting Wet and Cold by Peter Williams


It was early June 2017, we are on our annual trip to the far north of Scotland in search of Big Trout and we are already on the fourth day. What had become apparent over the first few days was the realisation that the north east area “Wick, Thurso and Dunnet Head” could have kept us amused for several days. There is so much great fishing to be discovered and engaged with despite the occasional windy day.  
1st Big Fish of 2017 a Heilan small'ish trout


We had great success with the mayfly hatches, 
                                  +
Michel the Big Fish specialist caught this 5lb trout off Heilan 
                                 &
All the pubs of Wick had been frequented.







However, we had booked eight months in advance into the Ben Loyal Hotel in Tongue for a nights break from camping. After a cosy night and venison steaks washed down with assorted ales and red wine we awoke to a wet Tongue morning. The forecast did not look good the south western British Isles were experiencing hurricane conditions and it was on the way north in a milder format. Despite this weather forecast we marched to one of our favourite Tongue lochs. Our Belgium Big Fish specialist decided not to risk wild camping and would make it a day trip there and back. He had an offer of a day salmon and sea trouting the following day and had took notice of the inclement weather on its way.

Even with our camping packs the walk took just over the hour mark. Two tents were erected in a strong wind before fishing commenced. As we started fishing the rain arrived, any sensible fish was not ‘looking up’ but hunkered down weathering the storm. After two hours one solitary small fish had been caught by Graham and the Belgium contingent said ‘au revoir’, and who could blame him?







After a full circular navigation of the loch I joined Graham in his one-man tent, or at least some of my body did whilst my legs were exposed to the downpour. We took solace by having a wee dram or two occasionally noting that ‘it might be clearing to the north’.



It never did. At least not until the following morning. My water-proof leggings did not live up to their description and once in my sleeping bag I could not get warm and shivered through the night. It had been too wet to cook so the liquid diet had sent the pair of us to sleep with a brief respite around 7pm for a few songs and a couple more drams before surviving a night of wind, rain and troubled sleep.


The morning was a drier affair but our spirits had sunk during the previous hours of deluge. We fished halfheartedly for two hours still wet and cold in a wind that still blew strongly. A change of clothes and a hot drink just an hour away was too much temptation away from a loch that did not look like it held any fish.



The small stream which we crossed on the way up was impassable with a torrent of tea coloured water pouring down the side of the hill. The campervan was a welcome sight and dry socks were a tonic. As we drove west and arrived at the small river where our friends were fishing, the day was pleasantly calm and fish were moving with the fresh water that ran down the many streams and ditches. 

Warming up at Sango Sands campsite 

We spent the rest of the day recovering from our ordeal of the previous night and arrived at the Durness camp site mid-afternoon.









Are we getting too old for wild camping? Yes and no. We had planned three “on the hill” camping trips for this holiday and had an awful experience on our first, and ,as it turned out, our last. The idea of wild camping is to be loch side when ‘it’ happens and fish throughout the night to insure you are ready for the ‘it’. We had seen this the previous year and had cashed in on being at the right place at the right time.

Predicting the weather forecast can be very hit and miss in the far north but the storm we camped through was not local but hit a large area so we should have aborted the idea earlier. So more like another ‘School Boy’ error by the Williams boys isn’t our first and won’t be our last!
I am ready to camp again when conditions suit as I have got over the trauma of 2017. Furthermore, I have still yet to use my jet boil which is already two years old!!


Wednesday 30 August 2017

Iceland 2017 movie link for those interested in what we do outside of Sutherland


Headed to Iceland in late July early August with Robin Williams joining the Big Fish gang.

The northern river is sensational fishing and the 2nd time I have visited we caught over 100 trout and char with the largest being 61cm but the 60cm in the film is  a good representative of the fish in these rivers.

The larger lakes in the south proved a lot harder with my usual tale of fish broken takes etc School boy errors as usual weak leaders and not taking the fish seriously after catching 35 small Char previously.

videos are poor but still learning and editing in Moviemaker very difficult you might have to type the link in

Big fish 2017 articles in progress!!

https://vimeo.com/231674208