Escaped to Side in Turkey for a week with the GF and of course the Rock Rover and a handful of fishing lures came along for the ride. Enjoyed the fishing in Turkey, despite the daytime temperature reaching mid to high 30s every single day. Mad dogs and Englishmen!
Side is as far East as I’ve fished in the Mediterranean and there was genuine excitement that I would catch something new. Especially as you get a few ‘foreigners’ that make it through the Suez canal from the Red Sea. I resisted the temptation to fish Isome and stuck to a mixture of lures from HTO and AquaWave. The fishing wasn’t easy in the crystal clear water but fishing in bright sunshine actually helped as it concentrated fish in the shadows. All of my fishing was around the old harbour.
I used a few different techniques. Both active methods like metals and jig-zag with the Spark 40, and slower presentations with Moebi, Ami, Knight Worms and HTO Stink Pot shads.
The end result was pretty good. Some of the best grouper game I’ve had in the Med and I was delighted with three new lure caught species – the Pharaoh Cardinalfish, the Yellowspotted Puffer and amazingly, Sand Whiting that I last encountered back in Australia. Other highlights included seeing a small Torpedo / Electric Ray in the shallows. Very cool.