Little Blackhall & Inchmarlo - River Dee

I was grateful to ghillie, Martin Robson for inviting me over to fish on the delightful Little Blackhall and Inchmarlo beat of the River Dee last week. The river was dropping away nicely after a rise the day before and was it carrying a peat stain. The river was sitting at roughly 1ft 4" on the Woodend gauge so tactics for the day were my 14ft Hardy Demon, floating line and a 10ft slow sink tip. My fly of choice to begin with was a #8 Cascade.

A nice touch to the fishing hut. A map of the beat hand drawn by ghillie, Martin Robson.

I arrived at the beat about 8.30am to be greeted by Martin and his springer spaniel, Fly. We discussed the current conditions over a cup of coffee and we planned out our tactics for the day ahead. Martin suggested we start off on the upper part of the beat and fish the Otter Stone down to the Laird's Cast covering all the usual lies as we went along. I started up in the Otter Stone whilst Martin fished the Fawn.

The well equipped hut on the Inchmarlo bank.

Looking downstream from the Otter Stone.

The Otter Stone is a nice bit of water and is often a good bet to pick up a fish or two in such conditions. Martin pointed out all the recent hot spots and where fish had been holding before making his way down river. I started off as I normally do fishing a short line and lengthening it out to a full cast before working my way down the pool. There were a few fish showing further down the pool and every now and again there were splashes upstream. The fished just seemed to be bombing through with the good water and occasionally showing themselves on their way by. It was good to see decent number of fish though and there is always a chance if your fly is in the water as they pass by. Unfortunately, I didn't temp any of them to take my offerings so it was off down to the Fawn.

Looking upstream from the Fawn.

Looking upstream from the tail of Fawn.

The Fawn is a cracking part of the beat and there were decent numbers of fish showing in here as they came through the white water below. I covered the pool as best I could and concentrated on the areas where the fish seemed to be showing the most. Try as I might though, nothing took any interest in my fly but again, it was pleasing to know I was covering fish. I just needed to figure out a way of getting one to take my fly. Easier said than done sometimes though!

Looking downstream into Laird's Cast just before lunch.

As there were a good few fish moving through the beat I decide to go back up and fish down through from the Otter Stone again in the hope I might intercept one of these running fish. All down the length of the pools there were fish showing every now and then but they just weren't interested. I tried heavier flies, small flies, fast sinking tips, full floating line but nothing would slow them down and take my fly. By this time it was nearly lunch so I made my way back to the hut for a bite to eat and to catch up with Martin and find out how he was getting on.

Just about to cross over to the opposite bank in the boat with Martin.

Fishing down the Fawn from the Little Blackhall side in the afternoon.

After lunch Martin thought it would be a good idea to fish from the Little Blackhall bank and cover the areas where the fish were lying in the Otter Stone and Fawn. Just really to give them something else to think about with a fly coming past at a differnet direction and angle. There were still one or two fish splashing about in these pools and we were confident that we were covering fish with every cast. I changed tactics and opted for a Sunray Shadow fished off a 10ft fast sink tip. Despite this confidence and the change of tactics, the results were the same as the morning. The fish seemed to have other ideas and we just couldn't temp any salmon although we each had encounters with greedy brown trout.

Looking down the Roe Pot from the hut on the Inchmarlo bank.

Fishing down the famous Roe Pot from the Inchmarlo bank.

The famous Roe Pot was next up and we crossed back over to fish it from the Inchmarlo bank. The afternoon was wearing on but there were a good few fish splashing about. I thought about changing tactics but decided to stick it out with the Sunray Shadow, purely just to try and induce a take from one of these fish. I cast it out square and stripped it back at various speeds and covered most of the pool in this way. I still couldn't get a fish to take my fly. It was very frustrating but at least I knew I was covering fish as I went through the pool and it was very pleasing to see such decent numbers of fish moving through the Dee again.As was the same the previous week when I was fishing at Carlogie. Time got the better of me and I had to call it a day at 5pm as I had other things to do in the evening. Although, looking at it again now, the evening might just have been the best bet for getting a fish.

The invite from Martin to fish here much appreciated. It was good to be out fishing at Little Blackhall and Inchmarlo again as it's a beat I always enjoy fishing. It was also good to see plenty fish around too. Catching them on the day proved difficult but Martin will do his utmost to put you onto a fish and with scenery and surroundings as nice as anywhere on the Dee, it really is worth having a go here. Current prices are only £45 per day and you certainly can't argue with that for a day's salmon fishing. For detail of the beat follow the link - Little Blackhall And Inchmarlo

Little Blackhall And Inchmarlo - River Dee

I had a day's salmon fishing on the Little Blackhall and Inchmarlo beat of the River Dee last Friday thanks to ghillie Martin Robson which was gratefully appreciated. Conditions were against us with low water and a blazing hot sun high in a cloudless sky and we stuck at it all but needless to say, the going was tough and I caught nothing for my efforts. Still, it was good to be out on the beat again and it's a beat I really enjoy fishing, especially the fabulous Roe Pot which is a joy to cast a fly on even in low water conditions.

I would usually write a report on my day's fishing but as there is nothing really to report on I won't bother on this occasion. Instead I'll just share a few pictures of the beat basking in the Autumn sun.

Fishing down the Otter Stone.

Another view looking downstream in the Otter Stone.

Looking upstream from the Fawn.

Fishing the top of the Roe Pot. A lovely cast.

Looking toward the Inchmarlo Fishing Hut.

Looking downstream in the Roe Pot from the Inchmarlo fhishing hut. A stunning view looking right down the river.

Fishing the House Pool.

Looking downstream in Floating Bank.

The sun finally sets behind the trees whilst fishing the Fawn.

Headinch And Cambus O' May - River Dee

Thanks to ghillie Craig McDonald I had a day on the scenic Headinch and Cambus O' May beat last Thursday. The water was in good order and had dropped away nicely after a rise earlier in the week. It was sitting around the 9" mark on the beat gauge and had a tinge of peat stain. At this height though every pool was fishable and I was to fish from the South bank as it was more suited to this height of water.

The beat gauge reading 9"

My set up for the day consisted of my 13ft Hardy Uniqua rod, Rio Scandi Floating Shooting Head and a 10ft slow sink tip. Due to the peaty colour of the river Cascades and Black Bear Flamethrower type flies were the choice of the day as the orange and yellow combo shows up well in the darker water.

Fishing down Peter Ogg and into Holly Bush.

Fishing down Holly Bush looking across to the hut on the far bank.

Craig suggested I start my day off in the Holly Bush and then fish down through Peter Ogg after I had done that. neither pool produced any salmon although I did briefly hook a decent sized trout which came to a Sunray Shadow just opposite the gauge but it came off as I wound my line onto my reel. Both pools fished very well though and one or two splashes from salmon kept the concentration levels up.

The hut which looks onto the Tassachd Pool.

Fishing down Tassachd. Was a few fish moving in here but none were tempted by my offerings.

The next pool I was to to try was Tassachd. This is a classic Dee salmon pool and fishes the fly beautifully. There were one or two fish showing in here too but tempting them was a different matter. I fished the pool down with a #9 Cascade first but without success and my second run down the pool was with a Sunray which also proved fruitless. After fishing these pools it was lunch time and a chance to regroup and plan for the afternoon.

Sheerless. Moved a couple of trout in here on a Sunray Shadow but no salmon.

After lunch Craig suggested giving Sheerless a cast as there had been a few fish showing in the pool earlier in the week. I was eager to fish Sheerless as I had never done so on my previous 3 visits to the beat. I opted to fish the Sunray first and I made my way down the pool varying the speed in which I stripped the fly in. Several different speeds produced the same result with the Sunray and I couldn't tempt any salmon but a greedy trout about 1.5lb took a liking to it and which was safely returned.

I was joined by Paul Pritchard later on in the day and as he had never fished the beat before he was eager to get going. He was to fish Tassachd and I headed up to the upper most pool on the beat which was Kate's.

Looking upstream from Kate at the top end of the beat.

Rockies looking downstream.

Looking downstream into Black Neuk and Bankie.

Kate is another nice piece of water and again, it's ideal for fly fishing. The views are not too shabby either! I fished my way down through the pool and continued on into Rocky without a touch but I did see a few fish showing half way down the pool. Try as I might, they just weren't interested in my fly.

The hut overlooking Glashan.

Fishing down the Glashan Pool. A really nice pool for the fly.

Paul Pritchard fishing the stunning Glashan Pool.

Next up was Glashan. This pool has to one of my favourite pools on the beat. It's a pleasure to fish and every cast you are just waiting for that pull from a salmon. Sadly, neither Paul or myself could get hold of an elusive Dee salmon but we gave it a good try. Paul decided to call it a day after a wee mishap involving his car so I headed off back down stream to give Tassachd another fling before heading home myself. Unfortunately, there was nothing doing down in Tassachd and I headed off home around 7pm with my first ever blank day on a Glen Tanar Salmon beat! :( 

The beat is one well worth visiting though and the amount of water available to just 3 rods is fantastic. Each and every pool is a delight to fish and the scenery is first class as well. The water did rises nearly 2" during the day and the heavy peat stain which darkened the water maybe didn't help my chance any either but despite not catching any salmon, it was a good day regardless. A couple of brown trout to show for my efforts wasn't what I was after but if catching salmon was that easy, would it be as addictive? Perhaps not. 

Invery - River Dee

I was lucky enough to get another day on the fantastic Invery beat of the River Dee last Friday. The water was sitting around 1ft 4in on the beat gauge and with news of a few fish about the day before, I couldn't wait to get going. My set up for the day was my trusty 13ft Hardy Uniqua rod, an AFS floating shooting head and a 6ft intermediate tip.

Ghillie, Karl Revel and Paul Pritchard outside the hut.

I arrived at the beat around 8.15am and was greeted by the ghillie, Karl who introduced me to the other rods who were over from Norway and Sweden. Karl informed me that I would be fishing over on the opposite bank and pointed out the most likely spots to concentrate my efforts on. As I had never fished the water from that side of the beat before I decided to start at the top and fish my way down through the pools.

Signal Pool looking into the Station Stream.

The first pool I was to fish was the Signal Pool. This is the upper most pool on the beat and no sooner had I started a few fish showed just opposite where I was standing. I covered them several times but I couldn't temp one to take my fly. I did however, hook a small trout which took a liking to my #10 Kitchen Sink fly. Apart from a few parr I didn't touch anything else so it was on to the next pool.

A stunning view looking upstream from the path which runs along the banks of the Dee.

The next pool down is the Station Stream. Like a majority of the pools on the beat, this fishes the fly very well and is a pleasure to fish from either bank. As temping as it looked though, I didn't see nor touch a fish as I fished the pool. I'm sure there would have been fish in the pool but the bright sun and a cloudless sky wasn't helping and this maybe put them down.

Looking upstream from the Station Stream.

Karl suggested giving the Kirk Pot a go since I was passing so that's just what I did. The Kirk Pot is a short but deep pool which looked like it could harbour a fish or two. On this occasion it wasn't giving up it's bounty so it was on to the next pool.

Looking upstream into the Kirk Pot.

I made my way down to the Holly Bush and Karl had told me to really give this pool a good go as there were fish hooked in here the day before. Unfortunately, they weren't landed but it was a good sign and I was eager to get in there. I waded out up at the neck of the pool to the broken water that Karl had pointed out and fished my way down the pool. As inviting as it looked though, the fish had other ideas and I fished through the pool without a touch.

Wading down the Holly Bush.

The S Pool. I didn't fish this pool but I just went down to take a photo.

Fishing down most of the likely spots in the morning proved to be fruitless apart from a small brown trout and several salmon parr. It was good to see plenty parr about down the margins which will hopefully bode well for the future. Given the current crash to fish stocks in the river, a healthy juvenile population is always a welcome sight. The lack of fish returning to the Dee is very worrying though. Juvenile fish are leaving the river in good numbers but once they are out into the North Sea who knows what's happening to them. The ever growing population of dolphins and seals ambushing the returning fish is, in my opinion a major factor in the decline of fish returning to the Dee. The narrow harbour entrance is perfect for these creatures to get their fill of salmon without much effort at all. Anyway, it was back over the river for some lunch down in the floating bank hut.

The Hut at Invery.

After a very entertaining lunch with Karl and the fellow rods, it was back to business so Paul and I made our way up to fish the top beat but from the opposite bank this time. I was to follow Paul down so we started at the top and fished our way down through all the pools just like I did in the morning. First up was the Signal Pool but, by this time the wind had really whipped up and it was raining quite heavily. In between showers, the good old Scottish midge was out in force and I think I spent more time fending these little buggers off than concentrating on the fishing! As a result, I fished down through the pool without an offer.

Looking upstream in the Killing Hatch with some welcome cloud cover.

Paul and I fished our way down through all the pools without so much as a pull but we were encouraged to see a few fish showing. Especially in the Greenbank where a good run of sea trout appeared to be moving through the beat. Try as we might though it just wasn't our day. Paul decided to call it a day but I went downstream to give Floating Bank a going over.

The Floating Bank. A lovely cast and there were a few fish showing in here too.

I always really enjoy fishing the Floating Bank whether it's from the Crathes bank or from the Tilquillie side. It's just a cracking pool to fish and there were a few fishing showing up near the rocks at the neck of the pool. I covered them several times but to no avail. I called it a day around 6.30pm and headed home to treat my midge bites!

Little Blackhall & Inchmarlo - River Dee

On Friday, I was delighted to accept a last minute invite from ghillie, Terry Paton to fish the Inchmarlo beat of the River Dee near Banchory on Saturday. With the water a good height and sitting around 2ft 2in on the Woodend gauge, Terry was confident that there was a great chance of getting a fish or two. We discussed tactics for the day over a cup of coffee in the hut and decided that getting down in front of the fish using sinking lines and tubes would be our best bet. I tackled up with my 14' 9" Guideline rod and my intermediate Scott MacKenzie shooting head. I attached a 6ft 5.6ips tip and to that, a Red Francis before changing to a pink Franc N Snaelda not long after starting.

The fishing hut on the Inchmarlo bank.

Terry suggest giving the top part of the beat a quick run through before concentrating on the area opposite the gauge on the Little Blackhall side slightly further downstream which I did without getting an offer so I changed fly over to a pink Franc N Snaelda to fish the next pool.

Ice House. The upper most pool on the Inchmarlo beat.

I moved on down to the next pools which were Holly Bush and Sandy Bay. These were where Terry had suggested I concentrate my efforts as they were at a good height and would give a good chance of getting a fish. I fished the first 20 yards or so without an offer but there was a few fish showing about mid stream just off a likely looking lie. Terry advised to cast as long a line as possible just to allow the fly to get down deeper as it came into the lie, which I did. As my fly swung round I began to fish it sink and draw and just as it past the lie, I had a thumping take. I lifted into, what was, a very strong and lively fish. After a few minutes and some acrobatics, I managed to beach a small cock fish which weighed roughly 5lbs. After a quick photo it was released to carry on his journey to the spawning grounds. I checked my fly and recast over the same lie as where I picked up the grilse minutes earlier. I must have only had 2 or 3 casts when I had another solid take. I lifted into a much strong fish this time and it felt a good bit heavier than the last one. It made several cracking runs off the reel and just when I thought I had it under control, it threw the hook. It felt like a good fish and I was disappointed to lose it, especially after keeping in good contact with it whilst it motored up and down the pool. Still, at least I knew my set up was doing the trick, so I dusted myself down and carried on through the pool but apart from a small brown trout, I didn't get another offer.

Holly Bush. Just expecting a pull on every cast at this height.

Sandy Bay. I got the fish (pictured below) in here and lost another. Excellent bit of water.

A cock fish around 5lbs taken on a pink Franc N Snaelda fished deep.

The next pool down was the Floating Bank. Terry also thought this would give a good chance of a fish but i fished through the pool without a touch and headed off back to the hut for some lunch.

Floating bank. Another lovely pool at this height of water.

After an extended lunch, I headed down to fish the famous Roe Pot pool and Terry went to fish the upper part. Terry said to start 50 yards or so above the wall as the top part of the pool was a bit heavy at this height. We'd seen a few fish show in here throughout the day so we knew they were there and confidence was high after a decent morning in the upper part of the beat.

The Roe Pot. I started in here after lunch. A good few fish about in here during the day.

A small Sea Trout which took a liking to the pink Franc N Snaelda too.

About 10 minutes after starting, as I was just below the wall, I had a very subtle take just off a boil about 20 yards or so out. I lifted into, what was a small fish which turned out to be a sea trout about 1lb. I quickly released it and cast over the same lie again. My fly was swinging round nicely when I had a cracking take. I lifted into a hefty fish which took off downstream like a steam train. It made some long, powerful runs and thrashed about on the surface a few times before it calmed down. I thought I had it beat and began to draw it into a gap in the bank but she had other ideas and was off on another long run down river. I followed her down this time and after a few more minutes, I manged to get in the water and tail the fish about 100 yards below where I hook it! I  removed the hook and quickly took a photo of the fish which I to be around the 14lb mark before slipping it back into the Dee. She swam off strongly and off to do the business on the redds in these next few weeks. The pink Franc N Snaelda was certainly doing the trick today.

The Roe Pot just above the wall which you can see on the left of the picture.

A hen fish about 14lb which also took the pink Franc N Snaelda.

Looking upstream in the Roe Pot. Very enjoyable pool to fish.

I fished on down through the rest of the Roe Pot without an offer but I did see a few fishing showing. It was around 4.30 by this time so I headed off back upstream to see how Terry had got on. Whilst standing chatting, head had a swirl at his Monkey fly as he pulled it across the pool which was encouraging so I went off up to the Holly Bush to give it another run through along with Sandy Bay. I had been fishing for 20 minutes or so when I saw Terry was into fish down in the Floating Bank. I wound in and grabbed my net out my car and headed off to help him out. After a few minutes I slid the net under a lively fish around 7lb which took a big, heavy Red Francis conehead. It was swiftly photographed and returned so I headed off back up to fish again.

Terry with his first fish which was around 7lb. Taken on a Red Francis tube.

I was not long back up to Sandy Bay when I noticed Terry was bent into another fish. I reeled in again and went down to assist. A short while later I netted his second fish in quick succession. This time a cleaner looking hen fish about 5lbs.

Terry's second fish of the afternoon. Also taken on the Red Francis.

That was to be the last action of the day but what a day! 4 Salmon, 2 sea trout and a lost fish with a few other offers and pulls in between. It's not often I am in the right place at the right time so I was very grateful to Terry for the last minute invite over to fish. A memorable final day on the Dee for 2014 which has been a season many won't be sorry to see the back of. I can't complain as I've done pretty well considering but roll on 2015. Fingers crossed it's a better one.