Season Highlights 2017

Another salmon fishing season has come and gone but as usual, it has been a full of memorable days spent on the river bank. In fact, is there a such a thing as a bad day spent fishing and enjoying the countryside? I'm not sure there is.

A cracking 20lb spring salmon being returned to the River Tay in March.

On a personal level, my season went pretty well considering the doom and gloom surrounding salmon fishing at the moment. I had a decent season catches wise for my efforts but what was really pleasing was the average weight of fish caught. Out of 20 salmon landed, the average weight was 10.1lbs. I can't wait to do it all again in 2018 but in the meantime, please enjoy reading about my season's run down and some of the highlights of 2017.

My season started off with an opening day outing on Tayside to fish at Murthly 2. This was quickly followed by another day on the Tay at Lower Kinnaird. My good pal, Bill Cook was in the right place at the right time to land a lovely January springer of around the 9lb on the fly.

Daniel with his first ever salmon. An Opening Day springer from the Dee.

The opening days of the River Dee salmon fishing season were spent on the Park beat with Philip Black and Sean McGarry. We didn't have to wait long for the first fish and once again, Park produce the biggest fish on opening day for the second year running with a 14lber from the Cellar Pool caught by Philip's son-in-law. It was his first ever salmon. Not a bad way to opening your account!!

Sean McGarry with his first of the season from Park.

Not to be outdone, I managed a cracker of around 10lb not long after Sean.

My first fish of the season came on the 3rd February from the Cellar Pool. It was a beauty of around 10lb and was taken on a 1 1/4" Monkey tube. I landed it shortly after Sean McGarry returned a belter of around 16lb from the same pool. Hopefully we have the same good fortune at Park when we return in 2018 for the opening days again.

My second fish of the season was caught during a flying visit to Ballogie on St.Valentine's Day where I was fortunate enough to land a nice springer around the 7lb mark from the famous Bridge Pool. It was taken on a Willie Gunn tube. I lost another not long after landing this fish. Not bad for just 1 hours fishing!

A nice springer from the Bulwarks at Ballogie in March

A fresh run 9 lber from Lower Inchbare at Ballogie.

My second fish from Lower Inchbare. A lovely 7lber which fell victum to a Monkey tube yet. 

March saw my annual three day trip to Desside to fish the Ballogie beat. I had a great trip this year and managed to land three lovely, fresh fish for my three days. The first came from the Bulwarks and this was followed by 2 springers the following day from Lower Inchbare. All three were take on a Monkey fly.

A fresh springer from the Boat Pool at Carlogie during a lunchtime cast in March. Monkey Fly did the damage again!

Probably one of my favourite photos I took this year. A Monkey Fly wedged in the scissors of a fresh run springer. 

My good run continued and I was lucky enough to land another fish during a short stint on the Dee again but this time at Carlogie. There was a good run of fish entered the Village and Boat pools as I arrived at the beat and within three or four cast I struck silver with a nice wee fish of around 6lb which was expertly netted by ghillie, Sean Stanton. Again, the Monkey did the damage.

A 20lb beauty from the River Tay at Stobhall. Copper Salmon did the business this time.

Probably the top highlight of my season was landing an absolute brute of a springer from the River Tay at Stobhall on the 24th March. It was hooked in Tam's Corner on a 30g Copper Salmon lure. It was weighed in the net at exactly 20lb and was covered in sea lice! What a feeling landing such pristine looking springer in March whilst in the company of legendary Tay ghillie, Bob Anderson.

Enjoying the luxury of the Tulchan C fishing hut.

Philip Black with a cracker from the Spey at Tulchan in April.

Like two peas in a pod. Philip's second of the afternoon at Tulchan. Both fish were approx. 17lbs!

Although I didn't land any fish during the month of April, a particular highlight of mine has to be our annual day on the River Spey at Tulchan. The Spey is a magical place any time of year but when the fish are the quality of the ones my pal Philip landed then it makes it all the more appealing. Looking forward to returning again in 2018 for hopefully more of the same.

A nice fish or around the 9lb mark from the Bend at Commonty in July.

I had to wait until 4th July for my next salmon to be banked after a spell of loosing a few fish prior to landing this one. A memorable loss was a fish hooked during the evening in June at Ballogie. It was well into the teens of pounds and after a hard, dogged scrap it manged to evade capture by taking my line round a rock and snapping the leader. Still, the fish pictured was more than welcome and it was also the first fish I had landed on Commonty for a while too. It weighed roughly 9lb and was caught using a small fly on light tackle. My pal Philip also landed a nice brace of fresh fish that day too.

A 12 lber from the Bulwarks at Ballogie. My first ever fish on a hitch tube. What a way to catch a salmon. Highly addictive!

Another stand out from my 2017 season was the experience of catching a salmon on the hitch fly. I was introduced to this exciting method by Sean Stanton during an evening on the Dee back in June. The takes are so visual and watching the fly skate across the surface only to then get engulfed by a salmon is a sight to behold. The fish pictured above was caught during a lunchtime cast in the bright sun but it couldn't resist the hitch tube. The hitch is certainly a method I will be using much more of in 2018.

A slab of a summer salmon estimated at 15lb caught by my good friend Charlie Robertson from Jock Rae at Carlogie in July.

Again, not a salmon caught by me but the image of this salmon is wedged in my mind. It was a perfect specimen of a summer salmon and was caught by my good friend, Charlie Robertson during a day on the Dee at Carlogie in July. It was landed from Jock Rae almost immediately after he had released a smaller fish minutes before.

My first River Don salmon of the season.

Not the biggest or prettiest fish I've ever caught but this was my first salmon of the season from the River Don. A lively grilse about 6lb taken in a peaty water from the Upper Wood pool at Manar. A small Cascade doing the business this time.

A.H.E Wood's rod room at Cairnton.

Fishing isn't always about catching fish and during the summer I made a visit to the famous Cairnton beat of the River Dee. Cairnton was made famous by A.H.E Wood as it is where he perfected the "greased line" method of fishing and also where he caught upwards of 3000 salmon to his own rod over the course of his tenancy there. A tour round his old rod room was a particular highlight of the day and it was fascinating to see his old flies and rods but especially the old catch records.

An 18lber from the Boat Pool at Carlogie after a good lift in water levles. 

My next memorable fish was an 18lber I caught from the Boat Pool at Carlogie in August. The water had went up the night before and was heavily peat stained. There was two fish landed in the morning and there seemed to be one or two on the move through out the day. Despite this, I didn't have a touch until after 6pm when I had a thumping take from a hefty fish just under the wires. It made some awesome runs and it certainly got a good tune out of my Hardy Cascapedia reel. It took a UV orange and black snaelda fished deep. Was a good way to sign off my day.

A 12lb cock salmon showing off his tartan coat.

A 15lber taken on a large Red Frances tube.

By the time September came round there was a distinct lack of fresh fish evident in all rivers. Having said that, the pools were stacked full of older fish but getting them to take was a complete different ball game. It was so frustrating knowing you were covering fish on every cast but nothing you presented to them made them want to take. I did manage to strike lucky a few time though and was fortunate enough to land a couple of beauties during a few hours visit to the Dee. One was conservatively estimated at 12lb and the other 15lb. Again, it wasn't really the quality of fish that was pleasing, it was more the size of them. Good sized fish seemed to be more abundant than the smaller grilse were.

A grilse from the ADAA water at Kemnay. 

Another particular highlight was finally landing a salmon from the Aberdeen and District Angling Association water on the River Don. I hadn't really spent much time on the club water this year but after a good rise in levels I ventured out for an hour or two and managed to tempt a grilse from the tail of the Dooker pool. It was also pleasing to land another Don salmon.

A cock fish around the 7lb mark on my first few casts of the morning  on the Dee.

A belter of around 18lb landed on my very next cast after returning the fish pictured above.

October is usually the most prolific month for me in terms of catches and this year was much and much the same as previous years. I had some good days on the river and a couple of fish in particular stand out. I was fishing the Dee at Ballogie and started my day off in the Top Gannets. I had only made about three casts when I landed an old cock fish of around 7lb. It was quickly released and I made my way out to the same spot to recast. My very next cast in the same lie produced another take but this time it felt like a much bigger fish. After a dogged scrap, a cracker of around 18lb was beached. Both fish were landed before 9.30am and both were taken on a Black Snaelda. Apart from a lost fish just before 5pm that was the lot for my day but it was good to sign off my Dee season with a couple of salmon.

A cracker of around the 18lb from the Chapel Pool at Manar. My last salmon for the 2017 River Don season. 

The last Saturday in October signals the end of the salmon fishing season for most of us who work during the week. At Manar, this day is always when the BBQ gets fired up and we celebrate another salmon fishing season coming to an end. I fished the beat from top to bottom that day as I wanted to make a short video showing off the beat and what the pools were like etc. I had fished the entire beat bar the Chapel Pool without a touch but the Chapel Pool is always a good bet to produce the goods. I was about half way down the pool when I had a thumping take! It took off like a rocket and it became apparent that this was a good sized fish. After a hard fight, I managed to beach the fish and, going by measurements and taking into account the large kype etc I estimated it to be in the region of 18lb. The fish was quickly returned and what better way to end my Don season than with an 18lber. Just like I signed off the Dee season.

Looking upstream to the old dyke at Morphie on the North Esk. 

My final highlight of the 2017 season was my first ever trip to fish the North Esk where I fished the Morphie beat. This beat is well known to many anglers due to the prolific catches it is capable of producing. Sadly, I could only lose a couple of fish that day but it was great to say that I have fished on such a hallowed stretch of water and to finally have fished the North Esk.

Returning a 10lber to the River Don in October.

The close season is time to tidy up the gear and refill the fly boxes ahead of the new season arriving again in spring. I have some good fishing planned again next year and have been busy at the vice tying up my favourite patterns in preparation for this. I'll look forward to sharing my stories for anyone who is interested in following my fishing season as it progresses. I'd just like to sign off this post by thanking all my pals who I share my days on the river with and to the ghillies who have helped make this another memorable season. Here's to more of the same in 2018! Tight lines. 

River Tay - 20lb Salmon

I had a day's fishing on the lower beat at Stobhall last Friday. The water had risen a few days before due to snow melt and was sitting at just over 5ft on the beat gauge when I arrived in the morning. With the river sitting at the level it was my fly rod was left in the car and I rigged up my spinning outfit. I opted to fish with the reliable Tay lure, a 30g copper Salmo. There are few better lures for tempting salmon than the salmo. Even during summer when river levels are much lower they are very effective.

A fresh run 20lb salmon from the River Tay. 

Out in the boat with Bob fishing Tam's Corner.

I was to fish in the boat with legendary River Tay ghillie Bob Campbell for the morning session. We set off up to fish Lower Eels Brig and Tam's Corner. We fished down through Lower Eels Brig without an offer and we moved into Tam's Corner. We were just about at the end of the pool when the rod buckled over and I lifted into a solid fish. It didn't do much in terms of runs but it felt like a hefty fish. It stayed deep and only showed itself twice when it was thrashing about on the surface trying to spit the hook. Bob motored the boat into the bank and I played the fish for several more minutes before Bob slid the net under fresh springer. He quickly removed the hooks and weighed the fish in the net. It was bang on 20lb and was covered in sea lice. After a few photos it was set on it's way and took off no problem. It doesn't get much better than a fresh run 20lb springer!

Ready to be released back into the river.

Looking down Bellymore to the Linn Head where the Tay squeezes through narrow gaps in the rocks. 

In the afternoon I was fished down in the famous Linn Pool with ghillie, Ernie. The Linn Pool is an awesome bit of water where the whole of the river Tay passes through a few small gaps in the rock faces. This creates a pool believed to be 125ft deep in part with currents flowing in various directions which cause the fish to hold up until the decide which way there are to go. These numerous currents give the angler time to catch one or two of them and when the conditions are right, sport can be fantastic.

Looking across to the big house overlooking the Linn Pool from Bellymore.

With 5ft on the gauge, the pool was sitting at a decent height. We fished from a small man made island called Bellymore and covered both sides of it.Every cast you were just waiting for the line to go tight such is the reputation of the Linn Pool and despite seeing one or two fish splashing about, they were not playing ball and nothing was tempted. At least this gives me a good excuse to return and try to catch a salmon from this famous pool.

Looking upstream to the Linn Head from Bellymore.

Looking across to the Greenbank from Bellymore.

I really enjoyed my day at Stobhall again and it was great to land such a fantastic specimen of a fish. Catching a 20lb salmon is what many anglers dream of and to get one fresh off the tide in March is as good as it gets for me. Although it was caught using a spinner, which some people turn their noses up at, you really have to fish to the conditions when out on a river as large as the Tay just to ensure you give yourself the best chance of catching fish. I would have loved to catch this fish on a fly but given the water heights, I was more than happy to do as the ghillie told me and fish the way we would have the most chance of catching something. After all, this is why I pay my money to go salmon fishing - to catch fish. The method I use to catch them matters little to me in such conditions and I left the beat with a huge grin on my face due to sheer delight of catching that fish. I am feeling very lucky this season so far as I have caught some lovely fish so far. Hopefully there are plenty more to follow during the rest of the season.

Stobhall - River Tay

Back in November I booked a day on the Stobhall beat and this including fishing the famous Linn Pool. Conditions on the day were good despite the water a bit on the low side for the Linn Pool to fish well but I couldn't wait to get stuck in. I set up both fly and spinning rods and various tactics and lures were utilised on the day.

The mighty Linn Pool. This was my first glimpse of the beat as I made my way down to the hut. Not bad!

I was to fish the Linn Pool first with Ernie the ghillie and fellow rod Steve. Ernie took us across in the boat to Bellymore which is a man made spit situated pretty much in the middle of the pool. It certainly makes fishing the pool much easier. I started off spinning with a Toby Salmo at the end of the island and worked my way down as Ernie suggested fishing in a clock like fashion. This worked well and it allowed me to fish cover large areas of the pool. There were one or two fish splashing around in the pool and Steve had an offer on a Salmo which didn't stick unfortunately but I didn't get a touch. Ernie suggested giving the Major's Cast a harl so it was back into the boat and off upstream. 

About to get aboard the boat and head across to Bellymore.

Looking towards the Linn Head from the point of Bellymore.

One in a million snap! A nice springer jumps out the water just as I was taking this photo of the pool.

Looking across to Taymount House from Bellymore.

Looking up Bellymore in the Linn Pool. Was a few fish showing here.

I sadly never got any photos of the Major's Cast as I was in the boat but Ernie took me up to the neck of the pool and we harled it down it's length. I changed tactics for this pool and put on a Vision 110 Kinkuro and cast it out the side of the boat. Ernie also had a couple of rods out and the lures were all fishing different depths. Harling is all down to the boatman's skill and ability to get the lures all working at the same time and it is good to watch how it's done. It really is an art and it's a very effective way to cover such a large river like the Tay when fishing from the bank just isn't going to be enough. About half way down the pool and my rod buckled over and I lifted the rod out of the holder ready to set the hook but as I lifted the rod, the fish let go and the opportunity was gone. Still, it was good to know that the lure was fishing as it should be and it instilled a bit of confidence going into the afternoon session after lunch.

A lovely fishing hut over looking the River Tay.

The interior of the well equipped fishing hut.

I spent lunch time talking with Trout and Salmon writer and expert angler, Jim Coates and his pal Iain Wood of Atholl Sporting. It was good to share thoughts and ideas about salmon fishing and it was also good listening to their stories of fishing rivers that I haven't had the pleasure of fishing before. The hour passed in no time so it was back to the fishing and what pools to concentrate on.

Looking upstream in the Finford Stream.

A lovely view looking over the Finford Stream.

First run down the pool with the fly rod and a 1.5" Gold Willie Gunn.

I was to start my afternoon off in the Finford Head and then have a run through Tam's Corner. This was a lovely stretch for fly fishing so I decided to put the spinning rod away for a while and give the pool a good going over with the fly. A Willie Gunn was my choice of fly and I fished on on a F/H/S1 shooting head with a 10ft 4ips tip. My first run down the pool was fruitless but I felt the fly was fishing nice enough to give it another run through before trying the spinning gear again. I changed flies and put on a 1" Monkey and decided to give the fly a bit of extra movement this time by slowly retrieving it as it swung round in the current. Again, this seemed to be fishing well but the fish remained elusive and I fished down the pool twice without seeing a splash.

Looking upstream form Finford Head in Tam's Corner.

Second run down Finford Stream with the spinner this time.

I went back up to the top of Tam's Corner and fished it down through into Finford Stream for the last half hour with a Vision 110 in the hope of covering a fish which didn't fancy taking the fly. I could cover a good bit more water with he spinning gear too but try as I might, the fish just weren't interested in my offerings and I called it a day a 5pm without a touch for the afternoon.

Head ghillie, Bob does a bit of harling with one of the guests.

It was great to fish on one of the best and most famous beats on the River Tay. The Linn Pool is something else and it was quite daunting at first to be honest. It's deep and unpredictable with currents going upsream and down which seems to make the fish stop off in it for that wee while longer giving anglers the chance to land one of them. The Major's Cast was another fine pool and it was good to get some excitement during the morning whilst out haling. The rest of the beat that I saw fished the fly really well and you were just waiting in anticipation for that line to go tight and all hell breaking loose! The ghillies Bob and Ernie were most welcoming and they knew the beat inside out. Their knowledge and skill with the boats is great and they do their utmost to put you onto a fish and  I will look forward to returning again next Spring when hopefully the conditions are a bit more favorable and the fish are in the mood for getting their photograph taken!