New Moon at Mangaf

Low tide. Nearly a full spring tide.
Weather:  High of 30^oC low of 19^oC, Sunny, Wind 8kph from SSW.  Sea calm.
New Moon (0%).  Oct 24 2014.
Sun rise 0554 Sunset 1709
Moon rise 0609 Moon set 1736
Fishing prediction from "Fishing Times Lite v1.2" app for iPhone was "Good".
Low tide 0540 (0.6m)  High tide 1210 (2.3m)  Low tide 1730 (1.1m)  High tide 2340 (2.7m).
MLWN 1.5m  MHWN 2.2m  MLWS 0.6m MHWS 2.7m.  Full Spring tide due 25th Oct.

Tidal data  for Mina Al Ahmadi : 29^o04.0'N 048^o10'E from "Tide Planner v4.3" app for iPhone.

Views at low tide after last week's rough seas.

1. Looking North

2. Underwater obstacles

3. Looking East to Fahaheel Sea Club marina entrance 

4. Rocky outcrops

5. Underwater obstacles

6. Rocky outcrops

7. Old Coast Guard vessel

From 6 a.m. to 7 a.m. the water was quite busy with needle fish and half beaks chasing the boobies, though not actually greeting the hook points attached on their bony mouths / "beaks". Switching to a white sparkly fly in this water of 1m depth, I then tempted this short-fin goatfish on to the line.

Short-Fin Goatfish (Upeneus oligospilus Lachner, 1954), 

with a 10g lead weight for comparison

Not having caught one of these before, I went to www.fishbase.us to find out what it was, from the Kuwait list of fish species. It turned out to be easy to ID with its bright yellow barbels.

Rough seas

North, Towards "Miral" Coffee Shop on Beach

(Caribou Coffee/Costa Coffee/ Red Bean etc.)

I was hoping to see a  high neap tide this morning but the wind did get up overnight, coming onshore from the northeast at 15-40 km/h. The sand was blowing around the buildings and off the beach with waves 1-2m ( moderate to rough).

Entry Point to Beach

Given that the beach was being over washed to the encroaching building edges and the small promontories/ piers were also being washed over, I decided to err on the side of caution and give the fishing a miss this morning. I don't need a storm surge making the water higher than last week's spring tide blocking access and compromising safety.

Towards Fishing Site

Sport Fishing Licences

I was 5 years in Qatar, from 2004 to 2005.  I was teaching students who had parents in the police force and other high-up roles and checked about licences for fishing. At no point was a requirement for a licence for sport fishing mentioned as being a required option or available. The number of fish did seem to decline close to shore due to netting in the final year.  This was because groups of low skilled workers were clubbing together to buy 25m long and 1m deep surface nets that they used to clean up fish wading through the shallows.
On arrival in the UAE, I was informed by the concierge at the Crown Plaza Hotel in Abu Dhabi that an Abu Dhabi Environment Agency licence was required.  This was purchased easily on a one year basis and required a form (the same one as for commercial purposes) to be filled out and a ID photo.  The online application requires the details from the Emirates ID card. When you book a hotel fishing trip in the UAE they sort this out for you. Abu Dhabi is not really organised for shore fishing with rod ans especially not for fly fishing, with a lot of the shore built on or fenced off by oil companies. 

For Dubai the licence is FREE (use the this link http://dubaifishingclub.com/page/how-to-get-fishing-license-in-dubai )

As far as I can tell, Kuwait doesn't required a sport fishing licence except for commercial fishing boats http://www.un.org/depts/los/general_assembly/contributions_fisheries/2012/Kuwait.pdf ) .

Getting too hot.

Today its 45C. I've been out a couple of times today. The breeze is strong and like a hairdryer set on hot. The only saving grace is that the forecast dust hasn't materialised.
There is therefore no way I'm going to stand outside and fly fish today, or in any temperature over 40C unless my legs are in glacial meltwater.  That situation should never arise on this planet unless climate change really goes awry.
Sensible fish will be in deep cool water and nowhere near the hot shore.  All that I have to look forward for the next weeks are rising temperatures until I hop on the 'plane to England and real dreary, cool, wet weather. Bliss!

Physics and Fly Fishing.

Objects moving in a fluid generate friction between the fluid and the object’s surface.  This viscous drag can be calculated using Stoke’s Law for a spherical object.

F = 6ph r v

Where F is the viscous drag measured in newtons (N), h (eta) is the viscosity of the fluid in newton seconds per metre squared (Nsm^-2), r is the radius of the object in metres (m), and v is the velocity of the object in metres per second (ms^-1).

This all got me thinking.  Temperature affects the viscosity of water.  In the winter the water will be more viscous than the hot summer months, especially in a shallow lowland lake or pond.  Flies will sink faster and be dragged through the water faster.  Now I understand that Stoke’s Law is for spherical objects and would only really apply to an “egg” fly but he principle will be still applicable to the other shaped flies as well as the fish, which will also be able to move through water at a faster speed in the summer months.

In salt water, the effect will be heightened, especially in tropical saltwater flats where in the summer months the salinity will increase further.  Do we adjust our fly fishing retrieve speed and counting for sinking to depth for the temperature?  Even within the water column the temperature will vary with depth. In the winter and summer there are temperature zones as their densities vary.  In the spring and autumn the mixing occurs in the water column and the zones disappear as everything gets stirred up.

I am aware that in NE England floating flies attached to sinking lies are prohibited and other flies have lead and brass (gold) head beads etc. added to allow rapid sinking.  That would imply that flies available are either floating or sinking.  With a floating fly and a floating line everything seems simple enough.  When adding in a sinking line you can buy slow sinking, medium sinking or fast sinking casting lines.  That is to say, they are all negatively buoyant.  In winter and summer however, they will be in different temperature water and therefore different density water so with sink at different rates.  Your fly will sink because it has a metal hook and may have lead or copper wire added or a metal head bead. 

Why are all hooks (that I’ve ever seen) made of metal?  Why not ceramic, or hard, clear plastic?  Does anyone make a neutrally buoyant fly that stays at the depth the sinking line drops to and goes no further?  With a floating line it could hover just below the surface.  With a sinking one it would not drop straight to the bottom and could be working its way down slowly with the line.  I don’t suppose for one minute that a dead insect or fish hurtles through the water to the bottom. They drift down slowly.

Is it about time the manufacturers redesigned the hook and fly for its position in the water column?

FatFisherman and Tackle Shops

FatFisherman Info
I have been in contact with http://www.fatfisherman.com/links_geo/middle_east/kuwait.html and have been asked to write an introduction for the page and provide an image of fishing to use on that page for Kuwait.
This has been put on the back-burner as I have yet to get around to it.  At the moment it seems like the water may finally be warming up (April has just arrived) and inshore fishing by fly may yet improve.
With that in mind I have been searching the web for information on fishing in Kuwait and thought that the following would be useful as a starting point.
Tides and weather -Kuwait
http://www.met.gov.kw/Forecasts/marine.php
The following link also shows the range of the tide, demonstrating the little tide and big tide effect of the Gulf.
http://www.tides4fishing.com/as/kuwait/kuwait
and
http://www.tides4fishing.com/as/kuwait/al-funnayhil
It also relates the solar and lunar effects to highlight fish activity for fishing times in the south and north of the country.
Deep Sea fishing link
http://www.fishfishme.com/blog/fishing-in-kuwait/
This link shows the variety of fish available
http://afishtec.com/

Many of the comments on forums are about where to get fishing equipment in Kuwait. Decathlon, the French sporting equipment chain has opened a shop in the Marina Mall in Kuwait (N29 20.449 E48 03.925 )and is well stocked with rods etc.  Nearby is (The Sultan Center), Salmiya (N29 20.520 E48 04.496) which has rods, reels, spinning/trolling lures and lead sinkers/weights.
Update - As of my visit of 10th Oct 2014, "The Sultan Center" Salmiya did have a much better selection of fishing gear than Decathlon, who have certainly let an opportunity slip by, given the extensive range they have in their French shops..

In Qatar, Carrefour at City Center mall was well stocked with line rods, reels, hooks etc. and their were tackle shops around Al Khor also (under the dark mark on the map).

There was a useful little shop for fishing and snorkelling supplies near the Qatar petroleum gasoline station just after the Gharaffa interchange beside the post box.

Carrefour in the Landmark Mall, Abu Dhabi was not as well stocked.  There were a few fishing shops tackle shops at the northern end of Hamdan Street grouped together around a block.

In Abu Dhabi the Environment Agency building is located at N24 27.797 E54 23.337 for getting your annual fishing licence - ID pictures required.  If hiring a boat from a hotel, they will sort a temporary licence for you.

After a visit to Bahrain (28th March 2014) I was located at the Ramada Palace Hotel and just 100m west beside the road junction opposite the Casablanca hotel was the Dasman Center.  This holds a branch of The Daiso.  This is a shop that stocks thousands of different items, among which are a small selection of hooks, weights  lures and other small items to do with fishing.  There is also a branch of The Daiso above the Gold Souq near the central post office in Abu Dhabi.  The Daiso may be connected with other Dasman Centers around the Gulf area.

For fish identification I would suggest http://www.fishbase.org/ and then go to the relevant country under all fishes or games fishes.  The following are the game fish links.

Kuwait http://www.fishbase.org/Country/CountryChecklist.php?c_code=414&vhabitat=sports&csub_code=

Qatar http://www.fishbase.org/Country/CountryChecklist.php?c_code=634&vhabitat=sports&csub_code=

UAE  http://www.fishbase.org/Country/CountryChecklist.php?c_code=784&vhabitat=sports&csub_code=

And with summer coming along......

 Kindle "Fishing Trip An Introduction to Fly Fishing and Trout"

Hardback version, glossy prints and paper with book box from Photobox 79-74GBP