A Tay Springer

Last week I had a day on the River Tay at Murthly 2. I was fortunate enough to land a nice salmon around the 6lb mark from the Burn thanks to the expertise of ghillie, Tony Black. My good pal Ade Warburton was also on the score sheet with an absolute beauty of around 12lb from the Tronach. He went out his way to put me onto a fish and we were duly rewarded with this little cracker.

A fresh run River Tay springer ready for release. 

River Tay Opening Day 2017

Thanks to a kind invitation from Tony and Philip Black I found myself fishing on the fantastic Murthly 2 beat of the River Tay on it's opening day which is January 16th. The river was sitting at 4ft 6in on the beat gauge but was running clear considering the rise the night before. Regardless of the river height it was just good to be out on the river banks again after the long winter months.

John Fyfe fishing down through Willie's.

The evening before the trip was spent sorting out all my fishing gear in anticipation of fishing the Tay on Opening Day. I had never fished the River Tay on Opening Day before and couldn't wait to get there. I set off at 6.30am to get through the Aberdeen traffic and I arrived at the gates to Murthly Castle at 8.30am where I was greeted by Philip Black and fellow Aberdonian, John Fife. I followed on behind John and Philip along the castle road down to the hut where toasted in the new season with a wee dram of whisky. After a good chat about how excited we were for the new season and how we fared in 2016 it was time to set the rods up and get out on the water.

The entrance to the long driveway which leads up to the fishing.

My first cast of 2017.

Philip showed us the pools on the beat and where to concentrate our efforts and I was to start of in the Meetings Pool. This was a lovely bit of water even though the levels were on the high side. The water an along the side of the an island where it met the flow coming down the far side of it. This created a lovely seam through the centre of the river and it was in this area where Philip pointed out as a good spot to pick up a fish. I firstly fished through the pool with a 30g Toby Salmo but I didn't temp anything. I had another quick run down the pool with my fly rod and a 2" Willie Gunn but again to no avail.

Looking out to the Meeting's pool. Can be a very productive pool.

The next pool down was Willie's. This was another nice looking stretch of water and I opted to begin in here with the fly. John was fishing the tail just in front of me and landed a wee kelt just as I was starting. About half way down the pool a kelt had a go at my fly but it didn't take properly. It was good to know the fly was fishing attractively though. By the time I fished out the pool it was lunch time so it was off back to the hut or a bite to eat.

Fishing the fly on the Tay. I had a good offer from a fish just of the point of the corner, It didn't stick unfortunately.

One of the well equipped fishing huts at Murthly 2.

After lunch we didn't do much fishing to be honest as we spent most of time chatting and catching up after the winter. Having said that, I did have a run through the pools again and despite my best efforts with the fly rod and Salmo I couldn't temp anything. At this time of year though, fish are few and far between but it was great to be out on the water again.

Fishing a Salmo down through the Meetings Pool.

I find myself heading back down to Tayside this weekend for another go so we shall see what happens there, but again, it's more of a social gathering than a proper fishing trip. Any fish caught will be a bonus.

Salmon Fishing Highlights 2016

Another salmon fishing season has come and gone this year and although it's been tough at times, it has however, on a personal level been a good one. Despite not fishing as much as I normally do and my local River Don having no water for most of the season, I finished up with 13 salmon landed and a I lost a good few along the way too. I also landed several good sized sea trout during the summer months with the biggest being 3lbs. The weights of salmon caught were 12lb, 15lb, 10lb, 10lb and 14lb which was very pleasing and the grilse sizes were also good with most fish ranging from 3-7lbs in weight.

A fresh run 10lb salmon from the River Spey back in June. One of many particular highlight from my fishing season in 2016. 

I'll happily admit that I am pretty obsessive in my pursuit of Atlantic salmon so every time I venture out onto the river I class that as a highlight but on this Blog post I have tried to single out a number of days which stuck in my mind for one reason or other. I have also included photos of the fish I have been fortunate enough to land this season.

Having lunch with good pals in the Lower Kinnard hut during our first outing of the season on the 16th January.

My season started off way back in January on the River Tay at Lower Kinnaird. The first trip of the season is always one I look forward to as it's spent with good pals I've met through the Salmon Proboards Forum. It was also the first time I had fished the beat and it was great water for fly fishing. The lunch was also memorable as was the numerous drams of home made gins which we all take along to share. Although none of us caught the coveted January springer we all crave, there were a few kelts landed to keep the enthusiasm going. Looking forward to January 2017 when we all start over again. More details and pictures of the day can be found here Lower Kinnaird Blog Post

Dougie Vipond makes the first cast under the stewardship of Waterside and Ferrar ghillie, Craig McDonald.

The 1st February signals the opening of the River Dee season and I always make a point of going to the Opening Ceremony. This year, the river was opened by Deacon Blue drummer, Dougie Vipond at the fabulous Banchory beat. It was well attended as it usually is and the weather was kind. It's always good to meet up with ghillies and fishing friends again and to look forward to what we all hope is a successful season. More details of the day can be found here River Dee Opening Ceremony

The biggest fish to come off the Dee on Opening Day. Me and my cracking 12lb sea liced fish from the Durris Stream at Park. 

I was lucky enough to get the opportunity to have a cast on opening Day thanks to my pal Philip Black who kindly invited me along to fish at Park. I didn't have to wait long for my first fish of the season when I landed an cracking fresh fish of around 12lb from the famous Durris Stream. The fish took a 2" Willie Gunn tube fished off and Intermediate line around 4.30pm. I was absolutely delighted to see the fish go into the waiting net of ghillie Keith Cromar. We were all buzzing and headed back the hut to celebrate with a dram or two. This fish turned out to be the biggest fish caught on Opening Day and it was also the first fish landed from the Park beat for which I received a bottle of Park Special whisky and a box of flies. Will be back in 2017 to see it there will be a repeat of this year. More detail and photos of can be found here Opening Day Salmon 2016

The amazing fishing "hut" on C beat at Tulchan. I could quite happily live in it!

Another highlight for me in the early season was fishing on the hallowed waters of Tulchan on the River Spey as part of Ian Gordon's group. It was great to fish such a wonderful stretch of river in such good company and it really was such an enjoyable day. I was lucky enough to have a cast on beats B, C and D during my day. More photos and my original Blog post about my day can be found here Tulchan Blog Post

Looking across to the famous Linn Pool on the mighty River Tay. What a place and one I am really looking forward to visiting again next season. 

The next highlight I have was when I went fishing at the Stobhall beat on the River Tay back in late March. I was to fish the famous Linn Pool and it was such a daunting place. The volume of water and the numerous currents which flow through the pool are quite incredible. Although I didn't land a fish for my day it was good to say that I've fished the pool but I did however have a brief encounter with a springer in the Major's Cast later on in the afternoon. I can't wait to return again in March 2017. I have attached a link to view my Blog post from my day Stobhall Blog Post

Charlie's first springer of the Tulchan Meet.

Charlie with his second fish of the day from Tulchan.

Early April saw me back at Tulchan C. I was fishing as part of another meet which was organised through Facebook. It was all guys I already knew from previous meets so it was good to see them all again. Although I didn't have any joy on the day, my good pal Charlie Robertson managed to land 2 cracking springers for his day. Both fish were fresh as paint and we were all delighted for him. Tulchan C Blog

What a great bunch to spend a day's fishing on the River Tay with. Roll on next year!

Although I wasn't having much luck with catching salmon on my trips, I can honestly say that I was really enjoying casting a line on places that were new to me. Another of these was a day on the Tay again but this time at Murthly 2. I was kindly invited down by ghillie Tony Black as part of a group I'm in. It's not often we can all get together with many of us living in all parts of the UK and Ireland so it was great to meet up the guys I spend a lot of time interacting with online. The craic was first class and the fishing was good too. I managed to hook a nice fish under the guidance of Tony's brother, Philip but unfortunately it threw the hook not long after hooking it. I couldn't make the return leg in October but by all accounts, another great time was had by all who attended and I will make sure I am available for any future meets in 2017. Murthly 2 Blog Post

Looking upstream towards the Hydro Dam at Pitlochry. Probably one of the most prolific spring salmon waters owned by an angling club.

At the end of April, I had a day booked on the Pitlochry Angling Club stretch of the River Tummel, which is a tributary of the River Tay. This is usually a prime time to be on this particular beat and I was eagerly looking forward to it on the run up to my day. An early start was required to get to the beat for 7am and I arrived to be greeted by two local rods who were very helpful and willing to share pool info etc. One of the rods did however inform me that the water was the lowest he'd seen it in 37 years of fishing the beat and this wasn't really ideal levels for success. There were a few fish splashing around the pools as expected but sport was thin on the ground and I landed nothing. Again, this was another beat I could scratch off my to do list and I'm glad to say I've fished it. I will also make a point of returning again soon. Have a look at the link for my original Blog post about my day Pitlochry AC Blog Post

All geared up and ready for another day on the River Don at Castle Forbes. 

The end of April also marks another highlight in my angling calendar, the Castle Forbes Proboards meet on my local River Don. Water conditions were as to near ideal as we could have hoped and there were two springer landed by my good friend Bill Cook. Unfortunately, no one else managed to winkle out a fish but it was good to see the Don show us what it can do in the Spring. My pal Paul Pritchard produce a cracking video of our day and it can be view by following the link Castle Forbes Blog Post

The famous Bargie Stone pool on Murthly 1. A pool that will forever be etched in the salmon history books. It is a lovely cast with the fly rod and the anticipation of hooking another monster fish is there at all times!

Next up for me was a day on the Murthly 1 beat on the River Tay. This beat shares it's pools with Glendelvine and this is the beat where Georgina Ballatine landed her record salmon all those years ago. It was a privilege to fish on such fabled pools and I'm glad I can say that I have fished the same water as she did. The day was also spent in great company and we shared many a laugh over a few dram and Donald the ghillie was on great form. No fish landed by myself but there was a nice fish landed by Paul McIntyre from the very pool where Miss Ballatine landed her fish, The Bargie Stone. More photos and a report can be read here Murthly 1 Blog Post

My first River Spey salmon from the Bridge Pool on Tulchan C. Not a bad place to open my account!

My Kitchen Sink shrimp which did the damage. Really was the perfect way to break my River Spey jinx. A cracking 15lb salmon caught on my own fly from Tulchan. Does it get any better than that?

My second fish of the day. A fresh run 10lber from Upper Bog caught just before finishing time.

I finished the spring with just the one fish but it was an opening day fish from the Dee so I was more than happy with that. Near the end of June I received an exciting call from my pal Paul Pritchard who was inviting me to fish with him at Tulchan C. This was an offer I could not refuse and I was more excited than a wee kid at Christmas at the thought of fishing there at a prime time in their season. I was very fortunate to land a cracking 15lb salmon just before 10am which took the pressure off right away! I also managed to land a fresh run 10lber just before 5pm. These incidentally were my first ever fish landed from the Spey and I was very grateful to Paul for his kind invitation. What a place to break my long standing Spey hoodoo and to land my first using my own fly pattern, the Kitchen Sink Shrimp was a perfect way to do it. to do it. Not only that, but to land tow fish for my day was the icing on the cake for me! More pictures and a detailed report can be found here Tulchan C Blog post

A fresh run 10lber for the Ballogie Flats taken on a small Monkey fly.

My next fish wasn't too far away and I was grateful to Sean Stanton, the head ghillie at Ballogie for giving me a day's fishing on his beat on the 5th July. The beat was beginning to pick away nicely and I was delighted to add to that tally by landing a fresh 10lber from the Flats which hammered a 1/2" Monkey tube. Ballogie Blog Post

As you can see the fishing for our trip was slow. The low water really hampered our chances but the drinks were flowing thick and fast!

Early August saw me back on the Dee but this time at Carlogie. I was fishing two days as part of a party hosted by good pal Ade Warburton. There were decent numbers of fish present in most of the pool but due to a prolonged spell of low water they were proving very difficult to temp. We found other ways of enjoying ourselves though and we all had a great time. Really looking forward to next year. Carlogie Blog Post

A small but very welcome grilse taken on the River Feugh in August.

As luck would have it, and just like last year too, the water rose the day after my fishing days were finished at Carlogie. I was off on holiday for the whole week and took advantage of the fact by fishing a day on the River Feugh which is the largest tributary of the River Dee. I soon hooked a fish which unfortunately came off but not long after I was in again and duly landed a small but very welcome grilse. This was also my first ever fish off the Feugh so I was delighted regardless of it's size or condition.

A small grilse from Ballogie taken on a Junction Shrimp Snaelda.

My next fish landed was from Ballogie. I had earlier lost a very good sized fish after playing it for several minutes but I was glad to hook another and get it landed. It wasn't a big fish of just around the 4lb mark but I really don't care what size the fish I land are!

My dad fishing the Little Turn. Excellent conditions for fishing but we had no luck on the day unfortunately. 

My Dad had not fished the Spey for nearly 20 years so we thought we'd have a go at the end of the fishing season. The Spey had been doing really well in the summer and I was hopeful my dad would see some sport. The Spey is a difficult river to tempt fish in September apparently and needless to say we didn't land any fish but it was still good to be out on the river with dad and he really enjoyed his day. More details and photos of our day can be viewed by clicking on this link. Wester Elchies Blog Post

My first fish after only 3 casts! A 7lber from the Top Gannets.

My second fish, this time from Middle Gannets. Not bad for just fishing for an hour. it's good to be in the right palce at the right time for a change!

October is always my most productive month of the season and this year was no different. For my week off I managed to do fairly well and landed a few fish. The first one was a lively 7lb hen fish from Ballogie and this was quickly followed by a 6lber. I captured both fish on my GoPro camera and as I was only fishing for an hour, it was very pleased to leave having landed two fish. To view my GoPro clip and to read the report of my day click on this link. Ballogie Blog Post and Go Pro Clips

My first fish of the day ready for release. A hen fish of around 7lb ready to be released.

My second fish of the day from the Ballogie Flats. This hen fish was around the 14lb mark. I captured the fight on my Go Pro camera and the clips can be viewed on my Ballogie Blog post on the link below.

My final fish of the day. A cock fish fish about 3-4lb from the Top Gannets. A nice way to round of my day.

As luck would have it, I was back on Ballogie a few days later and I was fortunate enough to land three fish for my day. The first fish was a coloured hen about 7lb from the Top Gannets. The second fish was a cracker of 14lb from the Ballogie Flats and my final fish of the day was a cock fish between 3-4lb from the Top Gannets. A great way to fish off my 2016 River Dee salmon season. Ballogie Blog Post

Bill's salmon from the Willows Pool at Kildrummy in low water conditions. A nice looking fish for the time of year and water levels.

I had a day on the lovely Kildrummy beat of the River don with my pal Bill Cook. The water was fairly low but there were fish present in the pools and Bill managed to land a nice fish around the 8lb mark. I didn't have any luck and could only lose a nice big fish from the Crooked Pot pool just before leaving for the day. It lead me a merry dance up and down the pool taking yards of line off my reel before finally freeing itself in the shallows opposite me. I didn't see the fish but it felt very heavy and it would have been good to land it just to see what size it was. It wasn't to be though but there is always another day.

My first River Don salmon of the season finally landed two weeks before the end of the season.

My second fish of the day. A 7lb hen taken on a Junction Snaelda.

The River Don was not keen to give up much fish for anglers this season and runs have been pretty poor these past couple of seasons to say the least. Having said that, the anglers who fished most days and put in plenty hours inevitability seemed to do ok but fish were few and far between this back end which is historically the most productive time on the River Don. From a personal point of view, it has never taken me so long to land a Don salmon and I was grateful to finally land not just one, but two for my day on the middle river in mid October. I was very pleased to have ended my season with a couple of Don fish to my name. Hopefully next season will see the beginning of a recovery for the Don as things have been pretty grim these last two seasons. I am always hopeful though and will be out on her banks come 11th February next year trying all over again!  River Don Salmon Blog Post


Well, that's my highlights from my fishing season just past and I hope anyone who took the time to read about them enjoyed it as much as I did reminiscing over the photos. I'm already planning my fishing for 2017 and have some good days booked up again. Hopefully it will be another good season for me again in 2017 and I will look forward to sharing my trips and photos here on my Blog for anyone who is interested in looking in. My attention now turns to tying flies and restocking the boxes in time for the new season ahead. I will do a few blog posts about the fly tying over the course of the winter since there will be no fishing to write about. Keep a look out for them and tight lines!

Murthly 2 - River Tay

I was invited down by ghillie, Tony Black, to fish on the famous Murthly 2 stretch of the River Tay as part of a group of like minded anglers who call ourselves the Salmon Nutters. Conditions were as close to ideal as we good have asked and there were good numbers of fish caught in the lead up to our day. Murthly is blessed with some of the best fly water on the Tay so fly fishing was first choice tactics for most. I chose to fish the pools first with the fly then again with the spinner afterwards. This is a method I often use on the Tay as I like to maximise my chances of landing a fish.

Team photo at Murthly 2.

We arrived at the beat around 8.30am and we were all treated to a sausage roll for breakfast kindly bought by Philip. This was accompanied by a good dram for some but I was happy to wash mine down with a coffee as I was driving. This was the first time most of us had met in the flesh after years of chatting on various Forums etc so it was good to finally put faces to the names and enjoy a bit of craic with, what have turned out to be good pals. After the rolls and drams it was down to business and Tony allocated us to our pools for the morning. I was to fish the upper part of the top beat under the stewardship of Tony's brother Philip. Philip is a fine angler himself and he made sure we all knew exactly where we were likely to pick up a fish.

Discussing tactics for the day ahead with Stuart, Gavin Kenny and Paul.

The top pool on the beat we were to fish was called the Tronach. This was a lovely looking pool and ideal for fly fishing. Philip started Colin in at the top with Kenny half way down the pool and myself in near the tail. The tail of the pool fished brilliantly but I didn't connect with anything so Philip suggested I headed down for a cast in the Greenbank with the spinner.

Looking up the Tronach from the seat on the South bank.

Looking downstream half way down the Tronach.

Good craic just before heading off for lunch.

The Greenbank was another nice bit of water but due to the high bank on the south side it wasn't the easiest place to fish the fly so it was to be covered with a Vision 110 to begin with. On arrival to the pool there were one or two fish showing which looked as though they were running so Philip suggested changing to a copper Salmo. I tied on the Salmo and made my first cast. I had no sooner started to wind when the line went tight and I lifted into a strong fish. First cast with the Salmo. We couldn't believe it! The fish stayed deep and pulled hard and but I managed to keep it under some sort of control. Just as I was gaining a bit of line back from the fish it somehow dropped off! I really thought I had it well hooked and there was still a good bend in the rod as I was playing it. Sadly, this tends to happen when fishing with tobys and there was nothing I would do differently if I had the time again. That's just part in parcel of fishing sometimes. Not long after I lost my fish, Philip's phone rang and it Paul, who was fishing further down stream, and he told us that he'd also just lost a fish. He was probably playing it the same time I had my fish on. I fished on down the rest of the pool but couldn't temp another springer to take the Salmo so I made my way back up to the top of the Tronach to have another run down it before lunch but unfortunately that proved fruitless as well.

Looking upstream into the Tronach from Greenbank.

Looking down the Greenbank into the Burn.

Lunchtime in the well equipped top hut at Murthly was once again provided for the lads by Philip and we munched our way through loads of sandwiches, crisps and cakes etc. Not to mention a large volume of drams as well! Paul was lucky enough to land an fresh run 10lber on a Salmo just before lunch to everyone was delighted for him. We sat and laughed our way through the lunch hour and had great time chatting about the forums and various pages we all know each other from. The company really does add to a good day's fishing and this was no exception but it was time to head back out onto the water and try again to land a mighty Tay springer.

The hut on the Top Water at Murthly 2.

After lunch I was to fish the Girnal pool along with Kenny, again with Philip as our ghillie. This was another good pool for the fly and there were also fish showing in it and they seemed to by lying in the pool which was encouraging. By this time though, are strong wind had built up which made deep wading and long casts difficult so I opted to persevere with the Toby. Kenny had an offer on the fly not long after starting which sadly didn't stick but it was a good sign that the fish were still keen. I followed him down the pool with the Salmon but neither of us could temp another fish into taking our offerings.

Kenny fishes the fly in the Girnal.

Fishing down the Girnal with a Toby Salmo.

Daffies out on the banks of the Girnal.

Stuart Norris spinning the Girnal.

After fishing the Girnal I decided to head back upstream for a crack in the pool opposite the hut. this was where Paul caught his fish in the morning and it certainly looked a great bit of water. I had first run down with the Toby before finishing off the pool with a Sunray Shadow. Neither method fooled the salmon though and it was time to call it a day and head back to the hut for a blether with the lads before heading home.

Spring has sprung on the banks of the Tay at Murthly.

Ghillie, Tony Black and Gavin Hunter doing some harling in the afternoon.

I really enjoyed my day on the Tay at Murthly. It was great to meet new pals and enjoy the banter in person just like we do when we are on line. I have met some cracking lads through various forms of social media and forum and I can honestly say I have made some good friends because of this and our passion for all things salmon fishing. I will really look forward to the next meet where ever or when ever that may be.
 In the mean time, why not check out the Facebook page  "Salmon Nutter Flies" and say hello or post a few photos of your tying. Maybe see you there?