Exploring our connection to nature…
We catch delicious lobster from our boats in North Berwick and Seacliff harbours on the east coast of Scotland. Our methods are sustainable - with no by catch and we try to reduce food miles by selling to local restaurants such as the ‘Lobster Shack’ and ‘The Rocketeer’.
We love what we do and can’t wait to share the experience with you on a tour or by supplying you with wonderful, sustainably caught Scottish Lobster.
“Every day on the sea is different. You never know what will appear in the creels - the variety of sea life just off our shores is incredible.”
Meet Jack…
This is Jack Dale founder of Seacliff Fishing whose family have been at Seacliff for 6 generations. They were tenant farmers ‘til Seacliff House burnt down when they were fortunate enough to buy the small estate. Seacliff Harbour was built about 1890 and used for Salmon Fishing and a private yacht. Jack started fishing commercially for lobsters in the 1980's from the harbour with a local character called George Hardiment and has been fishing ever since.
Jack is a founding director of the Firth of Forth Lobster Hatchery and we’d encourage you to go and have a look round there while you are in North Berwick. Seacliff Fishing continues to support the hatchery which is doing wonderful work releasing juvenile lobsters back into the wild.
“Lobster fishing on this coastline has involved varied success over the years, in the last few years fishing has been good, but we want to be ready for the poorer times. So at Seacliff Fishing we are interested in sustainability, education and diversification”
Meet John…
This is John McCarter, fisherman at Seacliff Fishing. John skippers most of the trips on Tosca. John has had a varied career from running a vintage motor-scooter company to becoming a fully qualified paramedic working for the Scottish Ambulance Service for the best part of a decade before becoming a full time fisherman. John is a fully qualified skipper and also helm and mechanic of the local RNLI lifeboat. So we hope that you can relax knowing you are in safe hands!
John loves the sea and really enjoys sharing his knowledge of the coast and islands around North Berwick.
“It’s hard to believe that so close to Edinburgh you can find yourself out in unspoiled nature. East Lothian has some of the most spectacular coastal scenery in Scotland.”
Meet Sam…
This is Sam Lowe (and first mate Jules!). Sam has been working with Seacliff fishing since 2014 when Jack first showed him the ropes. He now runs his boat ‘Forth Selkie’ out of North Berwick Harbour and fishes mainly fleets of 10 creels for lobster. When the fishing season is slower in the winter months Sam heads inland and has his own timber processing mill and is pretty handy with a chainsaw.
“Small boat creel fishing is great fun and can be really rewarding with a bit of effort. Although we all have our own boats - we work well as a team and always help each other out. ”