• Menu
  • Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to footer

Alba Game Fishing

Fishing trips throughout Scotland

Header Right

Orvis Endorsed guides, Orvis, fishing guide, Scotland
UK +44 7734 810 706   USA TOLL FREE 800-972-0408

Mobile Menu

  • Home
  • About
    • About Home
    • Why Alba Game Fishing
    • Team – Fishing Guides throughout Scotland
    • Videos
    • Fishing Tackle
    • Blog
    • 2020 Fishing and Touring in Scotland Brochure
  • Packages
    • Packages Home
    • Salmon Fishing Scotland
    • Trout Fishing in Scotland
    • Pike Angling
    • Corporate Events
    • Saltwater Fly Fishing – Sea Fishing Trips in Scotland
    • Fishing Gift Vouchers in Scotland, UK
    • Grayling Fishing
    • Bespoke Luxury Vacations in Scotland
  • Corporate Fishing
    • Corporate Incentive groups fishing in Scotland
    • Fly Fishing Experience Days Team Building
    • Corporate Trout fishing near Aberdeen
    • Learn to fly fish in Scotland
  • Partners
    • Scott Mackenzie Fly Rods
    • Barrio Fly Lines
    • Eolach Food
    • 4×4 Hire Scotland
    • Links
    • Chasing Fins Fishing guide Northumberland
  • Bespoke Vacations
    • Hidden Gems Mixed Fishing & Touring Vacation in Scotland
    • Macnab challenge in Scotland
    • River Tweed Fishing Lodge September/ October
    • Fishing vacation, staying in Fishing Lodge in Scotland – Perfect Staycation
  • Fishing Accommodation
  • North American Guests
  • Basket

UK +44 7734 810 706  

USA TOLL FREE 800-972-0408

  • Home
  • About
    • About Home
    • Why Alba Game Fishing
    • Team – Fishing Guides throughout Scotland
    • Videos
    • Fishing Tackle
    • Blog
    • 2020 Fishing and Touring in Scotland Brochure
  • Packages
    • Packages Home
    • Salmon Fishing Scotland
    • Trout Fishing in Scotland
    • Pike Angling
    • Corporate Events
    • Saltwater Fly Fishing – Sea Fishing Trips in Scotland
    • Fishing Gift Vouchers in Scotland, UK
    • Grayling Fishing
    • Bespoke Luxury Vacations in Scotland
  • Corporate Fishing
    • Corporate Incentive groups fishing in Scotland
    • Fly Fishing Experience Days Team Building
    • Corporate Trout fishing near Aberdeen
    • Learn to fly fish in Scotland
  • Partners
    • Scott Mackenzie Fly Rods
    • Barrio Fly Lines
    • Eolach Food
    • 4×4 Hire Scotland
    • Links
    • Chasing Fins Fishing guide Northumberland
  • Bespoke Vacations
    • Hidden Gems Mixed Fishing & Touring Vacation in Scotland
    • Macnab challenge in Scotland
    • River Tweed Fishing Lodge September/ October
    • Fishing vacation, staying in Fishing Lodge in Scotland – Perfect Staycation
  • Fishing Accommodation
  • North American Guests
  • Basket

News

Advanced salmon fishing techniques for Scotland

February 23, 2021 //  by Stewart Collingswood

Salmon Fishing in Scotland – Advanced tip and techniques

Scotland has much to offer the salmon angler. In this article, I will describe in detail, the Salmon fishing techniques we use throughout Scotland. 

Introduction 

I have fished all over Scotland for 45 years, and been a professional Orvis Endorsed Guide for 16 years. In 2004 I founded Alba Game Fishing and we have grown to become Scotland’s foremost provider of fishing trips. We offer tailored fly fishing experiences for every species, throughout all geographic areas of Scotland. 

I decided back in 2004 to quit the corporate world as CEO of a software company in Edinburgh, swapping my suit and Oliver Sweeney shoes, for more appropriate  Tweeds and wellies. My idea and ethos for the company, was to create a new type of fishing experience, with focus on customer service, blending fishing with other elements like, delicious lunches, professional photography, high end tackle and transport in quality vehicles. There are a few companies now offering this type of service, we were the first, and we’ve always tried to fine tune everything we do and improve continuously. Now as I write this in 2021, we have superb team of 20 guides, located through out Scotland, a huge stock of premium fishing tackle and waders and carefully researched fishing venues throughout Scotland.  

Overview of Salmon Fishing in Scotland

  1. Choosing the right river/ at the right time
  2. Preparation for the day
  3. Get into the right mindset
  4. Reading the river
  5. What fly lines to use, flies and sink rate tips to select?
  6. Techniques and how to fish the fly
  7. Playing and releasing a fish effectively
  8. Photography 

Choosing the most appropriate river, and at what time?

How can you predict when the best time is to target each salmon river? The answer is you can’t. You can, however make an educated guess. By studying each river, and how it fishes at differing water levels, and marrying that with fish catch returns and historic data, you can start to draw some fairly accurate conclusions. This allows us to offers our clients educated choices and the best opportunities, value and experience. Salmon rivers, are of course, an ever changing equation and need constant monitoring, for example, the river can change completely after a heavy flood, so constant monitoring is needed. Your finger needs to be on the pulse.

salmon, Atlantic salmon, fishing, speycasting, catch and release, River Tay, Cock Salmon,
Autumn Salmon on the River Tay

How to price a days salmon fishing correctly?

I often get asked “how much is a day’s salmon fishing?” which is similar to the question… “how much is a ticket for the FA Cup?” Or “How much is a car?” To price a days salmon fishing, you need to start asking the following questions, to try work out the best options:

What date do you want to fish?

How many anglers and non anglers?

Where will you be based? (if your staying in Fort William don’t ask for a day trip on the Tay)

What is your expected budget? (A champagne beat on the Spey, doesn’t cost lager money)

What experience do you have of Spey casting? (Often none is the best – this way you don’t have to undo bad habits)

What is your main motivation for booking a trip? (Believe it or not, some guests want to focus on scenery, service and the all-round Scottish experience rather than a guaranteed catch)

A client made an enquiry for a salmon fishing day in August. He requested a day on the River Dee. I asked him where he was staying. He said Perth. I asked why the Dee? He said because a friend in the States said it was the best river. I explained the Lower Tay would be a heck of a lot closer to Perth, and more productive in August (and less expensive)and steered him to the Scone Palace fishings at Fishponds. Luckily the day worked out, he caught and released a grilse of 6lb and a salmon of 13lb both on the fly. It doesn’t always work out like that, but it’s great when it does.

How to prepare for a salmon fishing day

My Dad was a Lieutenant Commander in the Royal Navy and one of his well-used mantra’s was “proper planning and preparation prevents piss poor performance”. His wisdom is embedded in my psyche and underpins everything we do. Starting a day ill-prepared often leads to failure and time spent planning is time seldom wasted.

I confess I do like order, and am obsessive about detail. I like to spend time checking and preparing gear. It’s a vital discipline in the guiding game and trained into our team. A well organised fly box, containing confidence patterns that are appropriate for the river you are targeting. The correct sink tip/ leaders, you wouldn’t want to arrive on the river Thurso in summer, armed with only with 10ft/12ft poly leaders, when what you need are 5ft/6ft instead. Equally don’t turn up to the Tay with a 5ft leader for a 580grain line and a 15ft rod. 

Spare life vests and sunglasses in case guests forget there’s (they always do) Check all hook, clip off excess nylon. Freshen up leaders. Check the rod and reel for damage, have plenty of tackle to cover varying scenarios. Bring spare waders.

Best-Salmon-Fishing-Tackle.jpg
Home made fishing rod section holders

© Alba Game Fishing 

Best way to store tube flies

We use a lot of tube flies on the Big 4 rivers, the Tay, Dee, Tweed and Spey and I learned a great way to store them and get more into a box. Tube flies, Collie dogs, Snaeldas and sun rays are a bit of a nightmare to store, they get damaged, tangled and lose their shape when they get bashed around in storage. 

I learned a useful tip from John Richardson, one of our fly tyers. You’ll need a box of clear plastic straws, 8mm and a cheap heat sealing machine. The whole set up can be bought for under £30.00 and it’s a real game changer. Importantly, when you take the flies out of the tube, they are in a perfect shape with no damage and they also dry out on the straws too.

Best-Way-To-Store-Salmon-Flies.jpg

© Alba Game Fishing 

Have the right Mindset when salmon fishing

Whilst having the right salmon fishing tackle, and techniques are vitally important, you can throw everything in the bin if you don’t turn up with the right mindset.

Salmon fishing can be a frustrating business, and it’s definitely not for the faint-hearted. My Dad used to say, “Persistence beats resistance” this is salmon fishing in a nutshell. 

Buffalo Bill goes fishing

I met an angler on the river once from London, called Bill. He had been to Farlows a few days before the trip, and splurged his credit card on the very best rod/ reel/ line/ and waders. Even his underwear was made by Patagonia (he told me). Everything on him looked brand spanking new. He charged into the water, like a buffalo sending shock wave out across the water, let alone the noise, every fish in the pool would have scattered. He then flailed away, thrashing the water into a foam, casting repeatedly in the same spots and clumping around the river bed with the finesse of an elephant. It was grim to watch, and we quietly went as far away from him as possible, making a mental note to avoid everywhere he had been. When we arrived in the hut at lunch time, Buffalo Bill had ran out of steam, and was sat in the hut, on his phone and trying to conduct business from the sanctuary and tranquility of the hut, everything we had all come to the river to escape from. The point is, that anyone hunting for for wild salmon should treat the challenge with respect and quietude, in a similar way to stalking a Stag. You have to move with stealth and focus, and enjoy and the connection with your environment. You have to switch the devices off. To reconnect with your proper haunt, you need to disconnect the devices. 

Your mindset should be like a hunter, relaxed and focused. It’s almost a zen like state, with pure focus and a clear head. I promise you, if you try this, you will catch more fish, it gives you confidence, and that is a vital component when salmon fishing. 

Cast within your boundaries 

Also don’t over stretch your cast. Fish within your limits. A 60ft cast with delicate presentation will defeat a 80ft cast with a heavy landing. More than everything, you must quietly believe that at any moment, each cast might catch a fish, and stay true to this belief. For every cast that doesn’t catch a fish, and there will be many, just quietly shift focus on to the next cast. Stay focussed, stay positive and treat the salmon with the respect it deserves.

How to read a salmon river?

Now we are starting to get into the nitty gritty. Reading the river is so important and this helps you understand where the salmon lies are and at what river heights. I fish the River Teviot in winter for grayling and whilst this is one of my great passions, I am also using this time to work out where all the salmon lies are. The Teviot is also a great salmon river in it’s own right and sometimes a worthy alternative when the Tweed is unfishable.  The salmon lies are easy to spot in gin clear water and you can spot the depressions in gravel behind boulders, the resting spots that still offer good oxygen and the deeper channels where fish might run and get protection from predators. 

I cannot stress enough the importance of gleaning knowledge from the resident ghillie. Treat these professionals with respect they deserve, and they will look after you too. Respect their knowledge, they live and breathe the river every day and they know where the fish get caught. A good ghillie will also understand where fish will be on differing river levels. Yes you can usually work this out if your a competent salmon angler, but there’s always spots that will take you by surprise. The ghillie will know where they are. Equally if you have a guide, who fishes a river regularly he too will know the spots, but you can be sure he’s also learnt some from the relationship with the ghillie.  

What lines, flies and poly leaders to use on salmon Rivers?

It can be confusing deciding what fly line to use on a salmon rod. And knowing the differences between Standard Spey, Skagit, Short Spey (Scandi), Spey and Shooting head lines can be a challenge.

Standard Spey Lines

When I learned to Spey cast all those years ago (1980″s) my tutor insisted in using a 65ft head Spey line. This is known as a Standard Spey line in Scotland. In fact in the 1980’s we were still probably 15 or 20 years away from the advent of Scandi, Skagit and Shooting head lines. Learning on a 65ft head Spey line is a great way to learn the basics, and a great examiner of your technique. These lines also offer the best presentation and land with more delicacy than the shorter and more aggressive head Scandi, and Shooting head lines.

Short Spey Lines (Scandi)

Spey Lines with a short head are sometimes referred to as Scandi Head lines, they have a shorter length head than a spey line. The weight of the head is to the rear of the line, for example 43ft in length (as opposed to 65ft) Scandi lines come integrated (better) and looped to a running line. The head as a longer more graduated taper and therefore better for presentation. However they are  not ideal for throwing heavier sink tips, poly leaders leaders and heavy flies. They are also easier to cast than a standard spey and ideal for smaller flies.

Skagit heads

have a more aggressive taper and a lot more mass at the tip of the flyline. The Skagit head is ideal for heavier sink tips and Skagit Heads of varying sink rates can be attached loop to loop, (similar to polyleaders, but balanced to the Skagit Head)  and large weighted flies.

In simple physics mass moves mass, therefore a heavier head Skagit will turn over heavier tip and your fly with a lot more easier than a Short Spey Line. These are also easy to cast, and your guide can get you up and running safely and quickly for an enjoyable day on the river.

Shooting Head salmon lines

Have a short, denser section of fly line attached to a thin running (shooting) line offering minimal resistance, and drag on the head in flight. Once you get the head outside the rod tip,(get the right level of overhang) send the cast and the heavier shooting head pulls the thinner running line through the guides. Choosing a running line can be as important as the head. Ideally pick a running line that is easy to handle and does not suffer from too much memory. 

Here are some benefits of a shooting head system:

  • Quick loading, requiring minimal false casting.
  • Effective in confined spaces or when back cast room is limited.
  • They punch well through the wind.
  • Like a Skagit, Shooting heads provide more mass, handling heavier or larger flies easily
  • Basically a shooting head allows you to cast further, with less effort.
  • Flexibility of loops to loop different heads quickly, without changing over spools / reels.

Why does a salmon take a fly?

You will sometimes hear guides and ghillies say that fly presentation is more important than choice, and whilst this is true, it shouldn’t be ignored that fly choice can be the game changer. let’s start by asking why a salmon takes a fly? After all as soon as they enter freshwater, they do not feed, so why would they feast on a bunch of thread and feathers? Here are a few reasons we’ve worked out:

Curiosity

A salmon has no hands, so if something interesting appears in front of it it might be tempted to ‘mouth’ the object out of curiosity

Aggression

Spawning fish are territorial and aggressive at time. A fly might just piss off the salmon  enough to force it to grab the fly out of aggression 

Pavlov’s Conditioned Response

A salmon fly might resemble a food source that it fed on in the ocean, I.e. a sun ray (sand eel) and Shrimp pattern Red Francnsnaelda

X factor

Nobody can explain this one. Your client completely flops a cast, the fly lands in a heap with the tippet like a bowl of spaghetti, the salmon takes the fly!?

Consider also which colour flies work well in different water colours, if the water is peaty and dark brown like some of the West Coast spate rivers then often the patterns differ to the clearer rivers. 

The difference between Versileaders/ Polyleaders

Selecting the right Versileaders, Sink Tips or poly leaders is as important as fly choice and presentation. If you’re not fishing the flies at the right level, you’re not in the game. 

Let’s define the name firstly, that’s easy. Versileaders refers to the Rio range of tips, and Poly Leaders are the Airflo brand. These are essentially tapered leaders which are either coated with a tungsten material of varying densities, or a plasticised material for floating. A sink tip is generally a faster sinking tips, looped on to the end of a fly line.

Rio verse leaders. Various sink rates

Common sense applies to what tip to use with what rod and line. For example a # 8 weight Scandi line is going to struggle to cast the very heavy sink tips or Versileaders, and there will be some hinging on the cast stroke. This is because the Scandi head tapers and there is no mass at the end to move the heavier tip.

Here is the range of Versileaders and sink rate offered by Rio for Salmon/ Steelhead:

Rio-Versileaders-Salmon.jpg

Best tippet material for salmon

No one tippet is the best, fact. It depends on the colour tint of the water you are fishing and the topography of the river. In most cases I use Maxima as its tried and tested and has a degree of stretch/ elasticity, which in my opinion is better than fluorocarbon tippet which is brittle and more likely to snap under sudden strain. I use 15lb breaking strain for the bigger rivers (0.37mm diameter) and 10lb (.30mm) for the smaller spate waters. It comes in clear, Chameleon (brown) and Ultragreen. Here are some scenarios to help understand the thought process into what tippet to choose.

River Tay – Open Bankside with no trees – clear day light cloud cover and water running clear – Maxima Clear

River Spey – Closed banksdide surrounded by trees, water running peat coloured – Maxima Chameleon 

River Tweed – Sunny day, clear water – Maxima Aquagreen 

What you are looking for is the line most invisible in the water and against the skyline. Be tactical, think it through and don’t be a one trick pony. 

DSC_3378.JPG
Maxima, if it isn’t broken, don’t fix it!

© Alba Game Fishing 

Techniques to fishing a Salmon Pool

Now assuming you have all the aforementioned components in place, you’re approaching a pool and ready to go.

Approach the pool with caution and stealth, think very carefully about where the salmon lies are and your approach. Stay quiet and stealthy. You are stalking a wild beast that has made an incredible journey and is a miracle of nature, so show it the respect it deserves.

Wading in a salmon pool

You should wade only deep enough to give you an anchor point for your spey cast. Avoid deep wading and disturbing fish. I see it all the time, anglers almost standing as deep as where the fish would run. If you can fish a pool from the bank without wading I would always recommend this. If you do need to wade, go slowly and easy, like you were sniper approaching a vantage point. Also never wade somewhere you can put your fly through first. 

fishing, voucher, gift ideas, scotland, unique experience, Christmas, birthday
Wade safely, wear a life vest

Be your salmon fly and imagine in your minds eye the fly swimming under the water. It’s vital that you are swinging the fly with control of the fly at all times, and that there are no belly’s in the line and drags. The fly should swing even and true and you should target the pool with precision and optimism. On occasions a skated fly or a fly cast across the stream and ripped back quickly will work if fishing a sun ray or a hitched fly, but be aware of the technique you are fishing and the method you are using and stay in control.

How to set the hook

After each cast, take a gentle step downstream and allow the fly to swing approx 3 ft below where it was before. Casting a fly repeatedly in the same spot will not convince the salmon to take the fly and this also allows you to cover more water and search out those “taking fish” 

Don’t strike – When good tactics induce a take, you have to discipline yourself to react in the correct way. This can be harder for trout fishers, as they are used to “Striking” when they feel a take. 

It can take a lot of investment in time, money and effort to create the moment when a salmon takes, so don’t mess it up at this stage. Let the fish take, turn back to its lie and then set the hook properly with side pressure and a grip of the line on the handle or by holding the reel. Once you have hooked a fish like this, let the clutch take over, play the fish, and you have a very good chance of landing it, because the hook is set properly. 

Adopt the right tactics

Stay alert and focused to land the fish. Adrenaline will be coursing through you, and senses are working overtime. Stay calm and focused and take as much time as the fish needs. It sounds silly to say this, but play the fish, don’t try and rush it into the net. Some fish come quickly, and others fight like demons, its not often size related and some of the best fights off a salmon have been smaller fish. When retrieving line back on the reel try to do so in a smooth efficient manner, pump the rod smoothly and retrieve on the way down. 

It pays to plan ahead and look for slacker water to land the fish. Side pressure is more effective than the rod raised to the sky, and this helps steer the fish to where you would aim to land it. If shallow gravel is nearby, netting a fish is impossible, beach the fish instead. If you have a bit of depth, net the fish, then keep it in the net under water while you compose yourself and unhook the fly and plan for a quick photo.

Capturing the perfect salmon fishing photograph

When fishing catch and release, you would want a good photo, but good pictures require planning. It’s a good idea to ensure your camera settings are correct and in place, before you cast a line. There’s nothing worse than fiddling around with your camera while the poor fish waits, and is put through more stress. 

Wrap your forefinger and thumb around the knuckle of the tail and avoid bending the tail against the body. This will put less strain on the tail muscles when you lift the fish up. Rather than gripping the tail you are simply forming a sold loop with your finger and thumb and avoiding squeezing too much. It’s worth also washing your hands in the river prior to handling, do this when the fish is resting in the net, it will help remove bacteria from your skin and transferring it to the fish. All too often I see fish in November with skin disease and the areas of the fish impacted are where hands of anglers have been during grip and grin photos. Finally cup your hand gently under the belly of the fish and find the centre of gravity, again do not squeeze the belly of the fish, simple lift it up from the net and minimise the time out of the water. I can rattle off a few photos in a matter of seconds with good planning and then be looking to release the fish.

Perfect-Salmon-Scotland.jpg
A Scottish salmon released carefully

A quick photo before release © Alba Game Fishing 

The correct way to release a salmon

Finally, feeling elated and bursting with excitement, the final act of kindness and respect, is releasing the salmon back to its environment, safely and without fuss. Using the same method of holding the fish you adopted for catch and release, hold the fish under water in the stream so that oxygenated water runs through its gills, allow the fish time to recover. You’ll know when this is, and it varies depending on how long the fish was played out and how strong the fish is. When the fish is ready, it will kick to get away from you. Seeing a these magnificent creatures swim safely back to their element is one of the most rewarding aspects of angling. The King of fish.

catch & release, salmon Scotland, fishing guide, salmon fishing secrets, ow to catch salmon in Scotland
A magnificent Scottish Atlantic Salmon, ready for release.

So there you have it, front to back, the process of preparing for a day, approaching the water and fishing a pool, catching and releasing. I hope 2021 presents many exciting salmon fishing opportunities for us all, and we can get out on the rivers again and enjoy freedom, open space, camaraderie and good sport. Tight lines and have a great season.

Category: News

Salmon Fishing on the River Tay – a comprehensive guide

December 16, 2020 //  by Stewart Collingswood

River Tay beats – from Estuary to Loch Tay

This is a comprehensive guide to the different beats on the River Tay system, starting at the estuary and ending at Loch Tay.

Almondmouth beat, is the closest salmon fishing beat to the city of Perth, and one of the most prolific salmon beats on the river Tay. Salmon can accumulate here in big numbers, ready to run one of the River Tay’s main tributaries, the River Almond.

Lower Redgorton beat accommodates 6 anglers, and is 1.35 miles long. This is excellent fly fishing water, with 20 named pools. This salmon beat is timeshared, however rods do occaisionally become available.

Waulkmill is owned by Scone Palace, and located on the North bank of the Tay, close to the Palace. The beat is split to ‘Goldcastle’ and ‘Waulkmill’. Fishing rights are shared with the owner on the opposite bank. So Waulkmill and Goldcastle are fished on alternative days. There are 22 named salmon pools on the beat, a good hut and access is easy. Boat fishing is also available for people with mobility issues. 

salmon tackle, rod rack, river tweed, River Tay, River Spey,
Home made fishing rod section holders

Salmon beats near Scone Palace

Upper Redgorton is a beat fished from the south shore of the Tay and the fishing starts at the Sochie Burn and runs up to the Craigs. There’s a small and iconic old hut on this beat and it shares fishing with Fishponds in that there’s a rotation system in operation, (split to Fishponds and Knowesbank) in that on Monday, Wedesday and Friday Fishponds fishes the upper part of the beat from the Fishponds hut to the Craigs, and on Tuesday, Thursday and Sat Upper Redgorton have access to these pools. Knowesbank is the lower section from the Fishponds hut to the Sochie burn. 

river tay, salmon, fishing, fly fishing, Atlantic Salmon, scotland, holidays, vacations, alba game fishing
A first salmon for our guest on the Fishponds beat

Fishponds beat, in my opinion the is one of the best summer/ autumn salmon beats on the River Tay. The best of the fishing is from late July onwards, when big runs of grilse arrive, and the salmon numbers multiply. In August 2020, Fishponds had 71 salmon caught and released, and this was remarkable considering it was lightly fished due to covid. I enjoyed some outstanding days there, fly fishing. One day in August we hooked 8 fish on the fly, and landed 5. The fly pattern was a red Francnsnaelda.

Fishing hut, River Tay, Lower scone, Fishponds, Land Rover HSE
The impressive fishing hut on the Fishponds beat of the Tay

Benchil Beat on the tay

Downstream from the village of Stanley is the Benchil  beat. It is the next beat upstream of “The Craigs” on Fishponds, and accommodates 4 rods on double bank fishing. There are 10 named salmon pools, including Skellies, Aitken Head, Plain Water, Ship Linn, Long Shot, Tail of Shot, Ewelundie, White Craigs, Little Shot and Todholes. Benchil shares fishing in the Spring with Catholes, on a rotation basis. In Autumn, there are two boats available, and 1 full time Ghillie. 

salmon, Atlantic salmon, fishing, speycasting, catch and release, River Tay, Cock Salmon,
Autumn Salmon on the River Tay

Catholes is the next salmon beat upstream. It is located approx 6 miles upstream of Perth, and the tidal water. This is a short beat, at only 1000 yards of double bank fishing. Accommodating 4 rods and 13 named River Tay salmon pools, including The Slap, The Pot, Gean Tree, Little Cast, Catholes Stream, Black Stones, Back Dam, Lucknow, Eric’s, Geoff’s, Freddie’s Woodside and The Little Head.

The Pitlochrie beat is located near the village of Stanley, and accommodates 4 rods. There are only nine named salmon poolsl. Two boats are provided, and there’s decent anchored fishing from the boat. Pitlochrie fishes four rods, and has a hut situated overlooking the Wash House. There are productive low water pools, the  ‘Corner Pool’, the ‘Dyke’, ‘Kirkie’ and the ‘Woodside’. ‘Horsey’ is a good high water salmon pool. 

Upper Scone Beat River Tay

Upper Scone beat is an excellent spring beat. This is located upstream of Benchil. Upper Scone accommodates 6 fishers. The beat has two boats, two ghillies, and fishes in rotation with Pitlochrie and Benchil. This is a timeshared beat, and occasionally rods are let on an ad-hoc basis. 

Burnmouth salmon beat, is accessible through the village of Stanley. This is small sized beat, primarily best for Spinning. There are two boats on the beat and a full time Ghillie called Geordie Stewart. 

salmon, River Tay, River Earn, River Ericht, River Tummel, fresh, Atlantic Salmon, catch and release, Autumn, Cock fish
A River Tay salmon released carefully

Stobhall has double bank fishing, downstream of the River Isla. There are 29 named salmon pools. The most famous pool is the Linn Pool,. There’s also ‘Stank End’, ‘Kill Mou’ and ‘The Major’s Cast’ pools. The Stobhall beat sit next to historic Stobhall Castle and Taymount House. This beat has a rich salmon fishing history, and is famous for catching some huge salmon.

Taymount beat on the River Tay

Taymount is one of the most famous salmon fishing beats on the river Tay. The beat is divided into upper and lower sections, alternating with Stobhall. The Linn Pool is an excellent spring pool, especially when the waters high. There are 6 rods available to let, 2 ghillies in residence, 2 boats and 1 hut per beat. 

Ballathie is a well known and productive salmon beat on the River Tay and is adjacent to Ballathie House Hotel. The hotel offers excellent accommodation, and dining near the river. There are two double-bank beats, 1.25 miles long. The beats are fished on alternate days, by 6 rods, with 2 ghillies, 2 boats and 1 hut per beat. Ballathie begins with the ‘Bridge Stream’ pool, a long stream which and ideal fly water with a deeper channel on the inside, making it easy to fish. The rest of the beat, is quite flat as the river runs over a shelf of sandstone rock. There are many holding lies for salmon in this half mile pool. Ut can also be highly productive in lower water, as it may hold fish waiting to run upstream.

fishing, voucher, gift ideas, scotland, unique experience, Christmas, birthday
Salmon Fishing on the Tay at Murthly

Cargill Beat River Tay

Cargill is a highly productive salmon beat on the Tay, located near Ballathie. The beat fishes alternate days, and shares the fishing with Ballathie. In 2021 Cargill anglers will fish upper Beat on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, and the lower Beat on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.  On week 1-11 there will be one Ghillie, and thereafter 2 ghillies. There’s a well appointed hut. Access to the beat is easy. Some of the pools on Cargill beat are legendary, like the ‘Pot Shot’, ‘Rumbling Stone’, ‘Cobble Croy’, and ‘Clocksden’. 

Islamouth one of the Tays best beats

Islamouth could be argued as the most famous salmon fishing beat on the River Tay. This is mainly because it is located at the junction of the River Isla. The best beat on the River Tweed is also at the junction of two main flows, the Tweed and Teviot.

In low water the fish will accumulate at the junction. The salmon will then progress up the River Isla when the levels are sufficient. This is some of the best fly fishing water on the tay. In high water conditions, spinning is sometimes allowed. There is an excellent fishing hut, 2 ghillies and 2 boats. 

Meiklour and Upper Islamouth is a lovely middle Tay beat, with 1.7 miles of fishing. The beat allows access to both banks. There are two boats and 2 full time ghillies. There is also an excellent fishing hut, located beside the bridge over the Tay. 

Middle River Tay Beats

The Kerkcok beat offers 2.25 miles of double bank fishing. Kerkock has a 5 year Catch return average of 132 salmon. The beat can accommodate up to 10 rods. In 2013 a 45lb salmon was caught here on a Devon Minnow, it was 49 inches in length. This has been the largest Tay salmon in the last 20 years.

Delvine/Burnbane beat is located just downstream of the Caputh Bridge, and offers 1.5 miles of fishing. There is a new fishing hut with improved facilities. Fishing can be from the bank or boat, and fly fishing and spinning are permitted. 

Glendelvine beat is perhaps the most famous beat on the Tay. In Autumn 1922 Georgina Ballatyne caught a 64lb salmon. This is still the current UK record. You can stay in Miss Ballantyne’s old cottage on the banks of the Tay. The cottage sleeps 6.

Murthly 1, Stenton and Murthly 2 beats are split as follows. Beat 1 is split between the Top Water (five rods) and Low Water (five rods). Beat 2 splits to alternate days on Stenton (three rods) and the Top Water (five rods. This is some of the finest fly fishing water on the Tay, with spectacular scenery to boot. The 5-year catch return average stands at 318 salmon and 17 sea trout. 

Newtyle Salmon Fishing beat River Tay – Dunkeld

Newtyle is located downstream of Dunkeld. This salmon beat is located close to Birnam Wood, where you can see The Birnam Oak from Shakespeare’s play, Macbeth.

Newtyle has 12 named salmon pools, and the fishing is from either bank. The left river bank is accessed by a short boat trip from Andy the ghillie. The Newtyle fishing hut is iconic. It was formerly an old cricket hut, before being used on a curling pond. Finally it was relocated again to the banks of the River Tay, to become the iconic fishing hut that it is. The hut has survived many epic floods, and the heights of high water, are still marked on the alls. At time of writing(February 2021), there has been a small flood, 8 inches of water in the hut. This qualifies as a “spring clean” The Head Ghillie Andy Gunn does an excellent job running Newtyle. There’s a variety of fishing for everyone, with streamy fly water, deeper pools and pools that fish in all river levels.

salmon fishing, river Tay, Orvis, Alba Game Fishing, Hidden Gems Vacation, Scotland
The River Tay on the Newtyle beat – what a backdrop!
Dunkeld House Hotel Beat

The Dunkeld House stretch of the Tay, accommodates 8 anglers, with fishing on the left hand bank only. The beat runs between Thomas Telford’s bridge in Dunkeld, and the new bridge over the A9 road to Inverness. There are two boats, and bank fishing is permitted. Salmon are often taken fly fishing from an anchored boat. ‘Harling’ is also a successful technique. This is where the boat is manoeuvred over salmon lies by the ghillie. Dunkeld House beat has spectacular views. It is located in prime “Big Tree” country. The ‘Gauge pool” is very picturesque, located opposite Dunkeld Cathedral.

Dalmarnock beat is located upstream of the bridge over the A9 road to Inverness. There are 3 miles of fishing, with 15 named salmon pools. It’s possible to fly fish or spin this beat and the beat is available for let on a daily or weekly basis. A superb fishing hut is easily accessed from the A9. This is a great beat, but worth appreciating that it’s close to the A9, so lots of traffic noise.

Dalguise Beat on the River Tay

Dalguise beat is located upstream, near the village of Dalguise. A beautiful and scenic salmon fishing beat, offering 9 named salmon pools, and a mixture of fly fishing and spinning water. Easily one of the best fishing huts on the Tay, that can accommodate up to 7 rods. Lunches can be provided and the Head Ghillie Moray McFarlane is friendly and knowledgable and always happy to offer guests an end of day dram from a selection of Malt Whisky. There is also the option of a boat and this can give access to some unique spots. 

River Tay, salmon fishing, Spey Casting, Scone Palace, harking, Spin casting, Mackenzie fly fishing, salmon fishing, Orvis guide, alba game fishing
A big Autumn River Tay cock Salmon, from the Dalguise beat

Lower Kinnaird is downstream of the River Tummel, it offers some spectacular fly fishing in iconic and famous salmon pools, including ‘Ferry Stream’, ‘Plantation’, ‘Swimming Pool’, ‘Island Stream’, ‘Green Bank’, ‘Ash Trees’, ‘New Pool’, ‘Fir Trees’, ‘Kindallachan pool’ and the ‘Guay’. ‘Head Ghillie Martin Edgar has managed Lower Kinnaird for the last 10 years. Martin is a real gentleman, and one of the better River Tay ghillies.

river tay, salmon, Stewart Collingswood, fishing, fly fishing, Atlantic Salmon, scotland, holidays, vacations, alba game fishing
The River Tummel at Kinnaird

Upper Kinnaird is also owner by Kinnaird Estate. This is a good section of water to target in high water. There are 17 names salmon pools including ‘Middle Pool’ & ‘Mikes Run’ on the River Tummel. This river Tummel stretch of the beat is classic fly fishing water, amidst some truly spectacular scenery. It is Right hand bank fishing on the Upper Kinnaird beat and left hand bank fishing on the river Tummel. Access is easy with little walking involved.

Upper River Tay Beats

Weem beat on the River Tay, offers 1 mile of private salmon fishing on the following named salmon pools ‘Twin Trees Pool‘, ‘Deep Holding Glide’, ‘The Groins’, ‘Substation Pool’, ‘Island Pool’ ‘Tail and ‘Bridge Pool‘.

Edradynate Beat River Tay

Edradynate and Upper Grandtully offer some of the best salmon fishing on the upper river Tay. This stretch of river runs between the village of Grandtully and the town of Aberfeldy. There are 6 notable salmon pools,. The ‘Tom-an-Droighne’, ‘Cluny’ Ferry’, ‘Poltewan’, ‘Glide’, ‘The Pot’ – and the ‘Church Pool’ have produced some very big salmon over the years. There are two miles of left bank, and two miles of right banks fishing. You can fly fish and spin cast here, and there is a boat available.

The Lower Grandtully beats

Findynate beat is a smaller salmon beat, consisting of three named salmon pools. One of the pools, the ‘Findynate’ is 300 yards long, and a first holding spot for salmon that have ran through the Grandtully Rapids. 

The Lower Grandtully fishing is made up of two beats. Findynate beat holds 3 rods, fishing on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. Cloichfoldich beat accommodates 3 rods on Tuesdays Thursdays and Saturdays.  

Bolfracks, is a beat downstream of Aberfeldy and with the following pools, Neils, Dalrawer Island, Bolfracks House, Haugh and Home Farm, which famously produced a 28lb salmon two years ago. 

Lower Farleyer , The Lower Farleyer Beat is the downstream half of what used to be called The Farleyer Beat, now split into Upper and Lower. This salmon beat is located near Aberfeldy and offers right hand banks wade fishing using fly or spinning rod. 

catch & release, salmon Scotland, fishing guide, salmon fishing secrets, ow to catch salmon in Scotland
A magnificent Scottish Atlantic Salmon, the ultimate prize.

Upper Farleyer is one of the best salmon fishing beats of the Upper River Tay system. This is located near Aberfeldy. The beat has one of the most iconic fishing huts, which features in the book “Fishing Huts”

This is wonderful fly fishing water, fished from left hand bank. The salmon can gather here, prior to running one of the main tributaries the River Lyon. The beat is 1.25 miles long 

Category: NewsTag: Beats, fly fishing, ghillies, map, overview, River Tay, Salmon, spey casting

Orvis Clearwater 10ft #2 weight – review

November 25, 2020 //  by Stewart Collingswood

Is this the best value euronymphing rod?…read on..

The Orvis Clearwater 10ft 2 weight nymphing rod, was a nymphing rod I eagerly awaited, and due to limited stocks I had to get two shipped over, from Orvis in America. I was like a kid in a sweetie shop when they arrived, but sadly the rivers were too high to fish, so I had to wait a few weeks till the levels dropped.

The day finally came when I was able to assess this rod, on the River Tweed. The river level was decent, and the wind not too strong. This was September, and a beat I fish regularly for salmon was empty, so a quick call to the Ghillie and I was on my way.

A 40 cm Grayling on the Clearwater

I’m very conscious to avoid disturbing salmon fishermen, after all, they pay premium. If a salmon angler is on the opposite bank, I’ll have a quick chat and explain where I was thinking of fishing and check if that works for him/ her.. Quite a few beats on the Tweed are single bank fishing, and this means that the fishing rights are divided on opposite banks, so a good deal of common courtesy, common sense and good manners are required.

Not that rivers ever get busy in Scotland, its rare to encounter another angler but if you do, just work with him, and remember they are paying top dollar to fish for salmon and Sept to October is prime time.

grayling, flies, tungsten bugs, grayling fishing, fly box, best flies, Scotland, nymphs, jig heads,
Double Hook up Grayling- the Clearwater managed to land them both!

Fall in love with the Clearwater?

Anyway back to the Clearwater….it didn’t take long on my first outing to fall in love with this rod. I quickly got into the groove with it, and it started to make my 3 and 4 weights feel rather insensitive. The first fish I hooked was a lively 12 inch grayling and it felt like a 2 pounder, the soft rod absorbing the pressure and protecting the grayling’s delicate mouth. The Clearwater has a mid flex action and playing a fish allows the rod to bend right through the blank. This first grayling session on the River Tweed with the Clearwater, produced around 20 fish, and mainly because the rod performed so well and gave great sensitivity and feel.

After 30 sessions fishing on Scottish rivers, I am happy to report this is a rod I now wouldn’t be without. It’s a superb tool. In fact, the Clearwater 102-4 is in my opinion the best value nymphing rod I have fished with, at a meagre £239.00 it’s an absolute steal. For that money, you get a 4 piece rod, sectioned rod-tube and 25 year guarantee.

The best fun you can have, fully clothed for £239?

How does the Clearwater compare to the Sage ESN 10ft 2 weight?

If you’ve fished with an ESN it’s safe to say the SAGE is the ultimate nymphing rod, I have never enjoyed fishing a rod so much. It’s not just my opinion, but that of many of my fellow guides. But you should keep in mind the Sage is £950.00 GBP and the Orvis £239. The Orvis comes with a solid 25 year guarantee, and Orvis are always great to deal with when rods encounter any problems. The SAGE is covered by a lifetime, original owner warranty against defects in materials or workmanship.

Where the Sage and Orvis rods differ is as follows:

Rod weight comparison Sage ESN vs Clearwater

The Orvis feels a little tip heavy compared to the Sage, the blank certainly has a thicker diameter, and you should try to balance the rod carefully to counter this. I find the Orvis Mirage reel or Sage ESN reels both work well. If like me, you use a Sage ESN reel, then its perfectly balanced on the 10ft Clearwater without any of the Sage counter weights. That balance comes from using a minimal amount of backing and a nymphing line (low diameter).

Tip recovery Sage ESN vs Clearwater

The SAGE wins this particular battle hands down, and this is partly due to the blank and also due to the action of the rod. The Sage has a beautifully designed tip section, if you flex the rod, you’ll see it bends towards the tip, whereas the Clearwater bends through to the middle of the rod. However when playing a fish, the SAGE will bend through the middle of the blank as well, how they do that, I don’t know, but that’s how it is in the real world. Considering these differences, keep in mind the Orvis is almost a quarter of the price, and offers exceptional value. The Orvis still performs remarkably well, and if you are looking for a rod to begin your Euronymphing journey, this is it. The SAGE is also a more accurate casting rod, and when fishing three flies with a total weight of perhaps 2 grams, it delivers the flies to target with real accuracy. You’ll get less tangles with the ESN when fishing a 3 nymph rig, due to smooth stroke of the rod ti, whereas the Orvis there’s a degree of wobble in the rod tip, and this results in a few more tangles.

ESN reels, euronymphing, trout fishing, nymphng, French nymphing, Scotland
Sage ESN and Orvis, difference in cork handles

However all that said, the casting of the Clearwater that is a joy. When Euronymphing you can feel the weight of the nymphs on the back cast with a slight pause before pitching them upstream into the drift. It helps you get into a rhythm of effortless casting tangle free. This is something I always struggled with with other rods, feeling a little detached and sometimes missing the timing.

Aesthetics Sage ESN vs Clearwater

Both rods look great. Naturally the Sage has the edge. The cork on the Clearwater is standard grade, and if like me, you tend the attach your flies to the cork handle when walking to a different pool, you’ll find the handle can break up if not careful. The cork on the Sage is superior as are all the finishing and finesse of the rod. Nether rod has a clip for the fly, which is bloody annoying! I will probably install small rubber bands to both rods, or the cork will not last very long! The black nickel aluminum reel seat on the Orvis, is down locking and very effective. The SAGE has a Stealth Black anodized aluminum down-locking reel seat. The Orvis has a fighting butt.

Feel of the Sage ESN vs Clearwater

This is where the differences are les obvious. The SAGE has the edge, and the Orvis offers brilliant value here. You really can feel everything that’s going on with both rods. It’s easy to differentiate between snags, takes, stop takes and when you pick up a twig. The Sage does feel like a ninja weapon, perfectly balanced and in tune with all the elements. The Orvis come close and for the money, you couldn’t complain.

My Euronymph set up is a 20ft length of 8lb Amnesia (colour Sunset) nylon, leading to a length of indicator tippet terminating in a tippet ring and on to a cast of two/three flies.

To avoid tangles I keep a nice open-arc loop when casting and keep it as smooth as possible. It’s noticeable that you do get more tangles with the Orvis, as the tip oscillates more on the cast stroke.

Orvis, clearwater, 10ft, 2 weight, nymphing rod, euronymphing
Orvis 10ft 2 weight nymphing rod, cork damage from clipping nymphs on to handle

Playing a fish, a joy on the Clearwater

Downstream strikes were forgiving if you were rather heavy and connected with a bigger fish. The softness of the rod, cushions any sudden surprises like hooking a large trout that explodes into action. Playing a fish is a real joy, smaller fish still manage to put a bend on the rod, and you can really feel what’s going on during playing the fish. One of my trips using the Clearwater was on the River Teviot and after several grayling I hooked a salmon. I was using two grayling nymphs on 3.6lb tippet and managed to steer a 6lb salmon to the net. Any sudden lunges the fish took were easily soaked up by the flexibility of the rod and the smooth reel I was using (an Orvis Mirage LT)

grayling,flyfishing, flytying, fishing, flyfishingaddict, catchandrelease, flytyingjunkie, euronymphing, troutfishing, graylingfishing, flugfiske, czechnymphing, flyfishingjunkie,fliegenfischen,fluefiske, nymphfishing, nymphing, graylingcandy, flytyingaddict, troutcandy, pescamosca, frenchnymphing
The Clearwater 10ft 2 weight, bent into a decent grayling on the Tweed

As the nymphs tack downstream bouncing along the river bed, you can actually feel this through the blank, every little tick, I’d recommend putting your index finger on the blank gently as they track downstream.

Conclusion SAGE ESN vs Clearwater rods

Both rods are fantastic. If you have deep pockets, and are a nymphing maniac like me, get the SAGE. If you fish occasionally and are looking for great value, go for the Orvis. I take both rods with me on a days fishing and happily switch from one to the other.

So in summary, for a rod that retails for £239.00 GBP this offers exceptional value and I heartily give it a Highly recommended “Best Buy” rating and 5 Stars.

If you are new to Grayling fishing/ Euronymphing and want a guided grayling fishing day using the Clearwater or Sage ESN rods, please get in touch

Stewart Collingswood, Founder Alba Game Fishing

Category: News

Fishing for your Mind’s Sake

November 6, 2020 //  by Stewart Collingswood

Post Lockdown Breaks for Better Mental Health

River Tweed, Fishing Guide, Spey Casting, 5050 on the water, ladies fishing, Orvis, alba game fishing,
Salmon Fishing on the River Tweed in Autumn

2020 has been a difficult year for all of us, in so many ways. Dealing with a pandemic and the seismic shift in our day to day routines were hard enough, let alone being told by an inept government what we should and shouldn’t do. On top of everything, our being restricted to travel overseas, whilst in my view, essential to control spread of the virus, was something that didn’t sit well with many people.

In the UK we work very hard, and our rewards are simple enough, no I don’t mean red wine, chocolate, or binging on Netflix. I’m talking about our overseas holidays, for some relaxation and sunshine. 

A holiday abroad – Pre Covid of course!

Escape from the noise, go fishing!

Sometimes the pace of life is hectic, and noisy. I mean noisy in the sense we are surrounded by a constant drip feed of communication, coming at us via email, tablets, phones, TV radio and adverts churning out a non-stop conscious babble. The pressure of work too can be overbearing, deadlines, long hours, stress and managing work relationships, can all take its toll. By the time our holiday arrives, We’re knackered. It’s as if we need a few weeks of meditation to help us wind down and prepare us. In the lead up to our escape, frantic tying up of loose ends and working long hours to complete deadlines takes its toll, leaving us totally frazzled, emotionally and physically.

And then escape! The vision of Tim Robbins in the Shawshank Redemption as he emerges from the sewage pipe and holds his hands up to the skies – freedom, TIME OFF! (albeit in the pissing rain)

A familiar Lockdown evenings entertainment

We as humans are super stoked about escaping for overseas holidays and rightly so, we deserve it, life is too short! and it’s great to get a break. A break from not just, day to day life, but the vagaries of the British weather.

And then Lockdown. Travel restrictions, and cancelled overseas trips.

July 202 onwards, staycation busy

Then in July, travel restrictions were eased, and this led to a very busy period through to October for our Orvis Endorsed fishing guiding company Alba Game Fishing in Scotland. What we lost with inbound American/ overseas visitors, we made up for in UK guests looking for a workable alternative to a holiday abroa. There was a huge appetite for people to escape to enjoy freedom, fresh air and a sense of well being on the river. 

river tay, salmon, Stewart Collingswood, fishing, fly fishing, Atlantic Salmon, scotland, holidays, vacations, alba game fishing
The River Tummel

Nearly all the guests that came fishing post lockdown, confirmed they were indeed substituting a sporting break in Scotland for their holiday abroad. In fact not just fishing, the whole of Scotland was overrun with people escaping the cities. If you were lucky enough to head to the far North and drive anywhere near the NC500 it was rammed! Guest houses and hotels were full as were camp sites and camper van parks. People were sleeping in cars in lay bys and everyone wanted to be outside, enjoying the fresh air and there were very few places left where you could actually escape people.

Overcrowding in Durness – Staycationers

Where in Scotland can you escape crowds?

This is where the river and lochs of Scotland were winners. It seemed to me the only place you could enjoy the countryside and escape the crowds. River beats are privately owned so usually free from public access. Yes there is a right to roam in Scotland, but you wouldn’t see a camper van with 6 folk frying sausages and throwing a frisbee in a River Tay beat car park. The Ghillie would send them packing with some solid advice! 

River Tay, Salmon Fishing, Fly Fishing, Spey Casting, Scone Palace, Best Beats, Tactics, Atlantic Salmon, Spin Casting,
Space, freedom, and sanity!

Our days with guests allowed them to really enjoy getting away from it all, with space, freedom, safe social distancing and relaxation. Open space, room to breathe and a place to really disconnect, to reconnect with the real you.

river tay, salmon, fishing, fly fishing, Atlantic Salmon, scotland, holidays, vacations, alba game fishing
Simon came to Scotland when the trip to Bahamas was cancelled
A new way to deliver trips – safely

We quickly had to find a new way to deliver trips safely. For the safety and comfort of guests and our guides. All of our guides completed a Coronavirus Infection prevention course with the World Health Organisation and with that in place we then applied common sense procedures that didn’t require much fuss. For example

  • We met guests at the venues to avoid car pooling
  • No handshakes, high 5’s or hugging. 
  • We temporarily stopped serving lunches and guests brought there own
  • We carried bottles of hand sanitiser made by our local Gin company, any time we handle a rod, hands are thoroughly sanitised first 
  • Safe distancing (easy when you are fishing)
  • At the end of a day, all the rod handles and points of contact are cleaned down with alcohol

All of the above measures are carried our without any fuss. There are more layers to it and you can read them here, but for the main part its easy to stay safe and not cause a fuss. Our fishing days carried on pretty much as normal.

fishing, voucher, gift ideas, scotland, unique experience, Christmas, birthday
Chris changed plans and caught his first ever Scottish salmon

How did we maximise our time during lockdown?

What an opportunity lockdown was for us. No seriously! An opportunity to gear ourselves up for future success. Time is our most precious commodity and here was a chance to waste not a moment. We managed a fishing tackle audit of the entire stock and purchased 20 new crewsaver life vests. Our fly tyers were kept busy tying some highly effective patterns. This proved to be time and money well spent. John Richardsons Red Francnsnaelda signature tune fly had almost 20 salmon this year. It was a fly to fall back on, when the going got tough. As well as a huge investment in superb salmon patterns, we filled several fly boxes from some of Scotland’s best trout and grayling fly tyers, like Davie Mcphail, Cuillin Rae and Billy Scott.

grayling flies, tungsten, bugs, nymphs, jog hooks, barbless, weighted nymphs
Barbless Grayling bugs, nymphs and jigs, Tools of the trade in Scotland.

On the tackle front, we added some new Sage LL trout rods, our favourite being the 9ft 4weight. The new Orvis Mission and Clearwater salmon rods were a superb addition, and guests were able to try before buying these superb rods. The 14ft 9 weight Mission was a particular favourite and perfect salmon fishing on the River Tweed and the River Tay.

salmon tackle, rod rack, river tweed, River Tay, River Spey,
Home made fishing rod section holders

Lockdown took us to new levels…of Nymph fishing

Perhaps the sexiest addition to stock is the purchase of the Sage ESN (European Style Nymphing) rod and reels, and the new Orvis Clearwater 10ft 2 weight nymphing rods. These are the real deal and I am in the process of writing a full review on both of these rods.

Clearwater, Orvis, 2 weight, nymphong rod, euronymphing, Czech nymphing, grayling fishing,
Orvis Clearwater 10ft 2 weight

This has taken nymphing for trout and grayling to a new level. A superb rod, and well done Orvis.

After a review of our stock of waders, we added 5 pairs of waders and boots to stocks, and now carry 35 pairs of Orvis Clearwater, Encounter and Sonic waders and 36 pairs of Orvis boots. We have various sizes all the way up to few pairs of size 15 boots, that were launched with a bottle of champagne cracked on them, as they slid down a runway to the river, in front of crowds of cheering people. 

Post lockdown fishing for everyone – beginners to experts

When an enquiry comes in to us, often the enquiry is misaligned to what the best fishing is for that time of year. For example we get requests to take groups sea fishing in December when the  sea is souped up and fishing is extremely slow as most of the bait fish have departed and the herring and mackerel are long gone, taking the bigger predators with them.

We also get enquiries from people simply looking to “go fishing” and with an open mind. No matter what category any enquires fall into, we really do try and recommend experiences that will deliver the best according to the time of season, river levels, and ability of the clients. 

Many of the “just go fishing” guests were encouraged to fish for salmon this year. Covid has been cruel in many ways, but a blessing for salmon stocks. With restaurants closed for the main part and commercial fishing curtailed, there were certainly record numbers of salmon returning to the rivers and we capitalised on this and had a bumper year.

For the trout anglers, post lockdown fishing in the lochs was fantastic and it was hard to fail. Catching free rising trout in the rivers and lochs and using nymphing techniques.

For the sea fishing anglers, we delivered some exciting shore fishing and boat trips, fly fishing in the saltwater for Pollack and sea bass. 

sea fishing, near Edinburgh, chartered boat, Orvis guide, pollock on the fly
A Berwickshire pollock

Then of course when the river are too high and the sea too windy, we have fantastic pike fishing on offer, on a private loch (lake) south of Edinburgh. 

Good Mental Health, the solution is ….go fishing

Look lets not beat around the bush, Covid and lockdown affected most peoples mental health. I know being stuck in the house with my lovely family led to some rising tensions and arguments over….well nothing really! 

On a personal note, I decided to stop drinking and exercise more during lockdown and this helped me greatly. But I couldn’t help feeling trapped. The thought of not getting away to new spaces, the outdoors and fishing were taking its toll. There was a palpable air of tension everywhere. 

Land Rover, discovery, River Spey, salmon fishing, fishing guide, Pitchroy
Escape to the tranquility of the River Spey

This all changed, as soon we were all allowed out on the river again in July. I never quite realised how much I missed doing what I do, and how privileged I was. To spend time in beautiful places with guests has to be one of the best jobs in the world. The most rewarding aspect of all of it was helping people relax and get into a good mental space. You could see how grateful our guests were, to be in the outdoors and enjoying the river. No tension, no babble, just the sounds of nature, the calming effect of the water and occasional moments of excitement when a fish was hooked or landed.

Hunter gatherer instinct

Perhaps it’s that fishing taps into the primal “hunter gatherer” instinct that lies deep in our brain make up. Instincts forged by our ancestors and sometimes dormant in many people, due to the pace of normal life. When we fish, we awaken those instincts and I believe this is brain nourishment, exercise and a great stimulant, that results in well-being. It’s easy to become focussed in the moment when fishing, and that by default shuts down the stream of conscious noise. I’ve always understood that fishing for me, is a form of therapy, meditation and promoter of positive thinking. Only when we let go of the noise, and shift our focus into the moment, the nuances of tempting a fish, do we truly disconnect and relax.

As we wind down what has been a weird and wonderful 2020, I know that 2021 will be another challenge. With recent news of a vaccine, it looks positive and hopeful that our American and overseas guests return. We will help everyone to reconnect with nature, space, relaxation, and a sense of well being. The fishing is an added bonus.

Our motto going in to 2021 is to Disconnect to Reconnect! Good health and be safe!

Category: News

Techniques for Grayling fishing in Scotland

November 5, 2020 //  by Stewart Collingswood

Euro Nymphing for Grayling in Scotland

In Scotland, we are blessed to have 30,000 lochs filled with wild brown trout and iconic salmon rivers like  the River Spey, River Tay, River Tweed, and River Dee. Scotland also has world class grayling rivers, the fish thrive here in the clean water, and rich feeding.

The introduction of grayling to Scottish waters

Grayling are not a native species in Scotland. They were introduced to the River Clyde from Derbyshire (East Midlands of England) in the mid 1800’s, and then by enthusiasts and anglers to the River Annan, Ayr, Earn, Nith, Tay, Teviot and Tweed, where they thrived in the clean water with rich feeding, and spread to some of their tributaries like the Jed water, Ale, Leader, Ettrick and Lyne Water.

grayling, euronymphing, scotland, river Teviot, river tweed, sage ESN, Sage ESN reel, LTD net
Scottish Grayling

I am founder of Alba and a fishing guide in Scotland

Winter brings the end of the trout and salmon fishing season, and the opportunity to switch to a different quarry. My focus from October is the Lady of the Stream, the Grayling. The Grayling is a true wild fish, and member of the Salmonid family, Latin name (Thymallus thymallus), it’s one of my favourite species to fish for.

What do Fishing Guides in Scotland do in the Winter?

Scotland has some of the finest Grayling rivers in Europe. There are two main rivers we target in the winter, the River Annan in South West Scotland, and The River Tweed system in the Scottish Borders region. Both of these rivers hold massive stocks of wild Grayling, and are within easy reach of my hometown of North Berwick (near Edinburgh). Most of my winter, off-season days, are spent in front of an iMac or with my son, and in between, I steal time to go and explore the rivers and go fishing.

Winter Grayling, Grayling, Fishing, River Tweed, Tungsten Bugs, Orvis Helios 2, Alba Game Fishing, Lady of the Stream, New Zealand Strike Indicator
First Grayling of the day, third cast on a shrimp pattern

I caught my first Grayling when I was 11 years old. That was 47 years ago. I was a skinny wee lad, standing on a bridge on a tributary of The River Tweed, called the river Leader. As I stood on the bridge starting down into the pool below, I was surprised and excited to spot a huge fish moving upstream, it was in fact a big grayling.

Uncle Jimmy’s Fly Rod- a snooker cue

I don’t know where my interest in fishing came from. Nobody in our family fished. I had inherited my Uncle Jimmy’s 11ft 6inch Daiwa Whisker fly rod. The Whisker was a big floppy sea trout rod, too heavy for trout and designed for single hand sea trout fishing in smaller rivers. I loved it nonetheless, and its length proved useful when steering bugs and nymphs into awkward spots, as little casting was required. I think in 1973, I pioneered my own form of what’s now called Czech or Euronymphing, without even realising! I had a secondhand Leeda LC100 fly reel, bought from F&D Simpson tackle shop in Edinburgh, with money I had saved from washing cars. A small plastic 35mm film case was my fly box, and it was filled with home tied weighted shrimps, all very crude, but highly effective.

A Leviathan of a Grayling falls

It was September 1979, I was standing on the road bridge in the town of Earlston, on the River Leader. I peered down and spotted a huge leviathan of a fish move slowly upstream. Scuttling down to the riverbank, I positioned myself 50 yards upstream of where I thought the fish might be, and began to work my way downstream, methodically covering the water.

In those days that section of the river was free from undergrowth, nowadays it’s as wild as the Amazon rainforest. Half way down the pool, the nymphs that were ticking along the gravel bed stopped and I tightened into a very big fish.  After a frantic fight, where I managed to steer the fish away from fallen trees and other snags, I was delighted and surprised to see a huge Grayling shimmering in the net. This magnificent silver and iridescent fish, temporarily out of his element, huge dorsal, remains a memory that will stay with me forever, and laid the foundations of a lifetime fascination with this species. The fish weighed a few ounces under 3lb, my first ever grayling! A specimen when you consider the UK record is 4lb 4oz.

Winter Grayling, Grayling, Fishing, River Tweed, Tungsten Bugs, Orvis Helios 2, Alba Game Fishing, Lady of the Stream, New Zealand Strike Indicator
Glad to see this cracking 42cm grayling in the net

How do grayling feed, are they easy to catch?

The Grayling is a soft mouthed bottom feeder, and their mouth is downturned towards the diet of nymphs, larvae and shrimp. They will occasionally take a dry fly, extending their body almost to a vertical position in the water column to do so.

Good grayling can throw the hook easily. The combination of a huge sail like dorsal fin and soft mouth, allows them to evade capture frequently. It pays to play these fish carefully, with a soft, forgiving rod. I prefer a two weight.

Best rod length and weight for Grayling?

The best rod for nymph fishing for grayling is a 10-11ft rod 2 or 3 weight. We favour the Orvis Clearwater, and Sage ESN are the rods we like to use.

What type of flies/ nymphs are best for grayling?

As you can see from the box of Grayling candy below, you’ll need a variety of nymphs in different weights. These nymphs should represent Caddis larvae, RyacohilaIa, Ephemerid nymphs and shrimp patterns. Then you have the dirty side of the box, the weighted salmon eggs, and squirmy worms, which have their place and work effectively in the right conditions. I  split nymphs up by weight, 4mm, 3.5mm, 3.0mm sized bead heads, and so on. A small inexpensive set of digital pocket jewel scales in a good way to weigh the nymphs.

The body mass of the fly also needs to be considered, as bulky flies don’t sink quickly and get dragged by current.

When you come to fish a run, select a nymph which bounces along the bottom. If that doesn’t happen by the end of Area 1 (see above), switch to a heavier nymph. Jig head hooks are more effective, because as the nymph bounces along the bottom, the hook is turned upward, so less likely to get snagged.

Get down, deeper and down

The heavier 1 gram jig heads will sink quicker in higher water. On days where the water is low and clear, it definitely pays to go down to the smaller, more imitative  nymphs.

grayling, tungsten jigs, flies, nymphs, euronymphing, Sage ESN, Sage fly fishing
One good box of grayling nymphs in different weights

One, Two or Three Flies when fishing for Winter Grayling?

I prefer fishing a team of three nymphs, and using a small fly on the top dropper. This is because this is because if you are fishing a pool with a uniform bottom, the flow of water just below the surface is faster than on the riverbed. This means that in faster current, there is less resistance causing drag, and do not want the top dropper imparting drag on the two bottom flies.

I use a weighted Caddis pattern on the point fly, when fishing a 3 fly cast. There are two droppers above that, each 12 inches apart. The middle dropper catches more fish when fishing a team of 3 flies, like this. If you pick a mid-weight nymph, like a 3.5mm bead, you’ll find that the nymph is presented at a perfect level just above the anchor pattern.

Best tippet material for grayling?

I cannot stress enough, the importance of choosing the right tippet material, when fishing for grayling. I use  Fulling Mill Materclass and Lazer Shogun monofilament at the business end. Both of these tippet materials are supple and strong for there small diameter.

Fishing the wrong diameter of tippet could have disastrous effect. The greater the diameter of the tippet material, the more drag this creates in the current. This means the flies take longer to sink, or the flies can get dragged by the water resistance of the tippet. Lazer Shogun is highly effective, at 0.14mm diameter offering 2.9kg breaking strain. Another factor to consider, is that 5X is less likely to tangle when casting, than 7X, so keep this in mind on days where there is more wind.

grayling, flies, tungsten bugs, grayling fishing, fly box, best flies, Scotland, nymphs, jig heads,
A fine looking grayling from the Tweed

Best Waders, Boots, and Clothing for a days Grayling fishing

When fishing for grayling, you are often doing a lot of walking, so it’s best to travel light. I carry a small pack containing tippet, flies and spare indicator material.

I use a “Living the Dream’ landing net, clipped to my Orvis Pro Wading jacket via a magnet. I carry only one box of carefully selected nymphs, and a bottle of water. I don’t eat when I’m fishing, I’m too engrossed, and days are short enough to fish the 6 hours with focus and determination.

Some Grayling anglers swear by neoprene waders when fishing in the winter, as they are warmer. The downside with neoprene is that they are cumbersome, and difficult to walk in. I prefer lightweight waders and multi layers of thermal leggings. The Patagonia Capilene thermal leggings are unbeatable, and I wear underneath a pair of Patagonia Nano puff leggings. Both are very light and allows easy movement when walking to the next pool. I would also recommend the PosiGrip Tungsten studs on wading boots with Vibram soles. This not only delivers good grip on the river bed, but also when scrambling around the river bank and ascending a Bankside after a wade. You need to be surefooted when wading in the Winter months, as a dip in the icy water can really spoil your day.

Winter fishing can be hard on the hands, so fingerless gloves are essential. I also carry a pair of warmer thermal gloves (with fingers) which I change into, when walking between pools.

Keep safe and warm when wading in rivers

If you’re a beginner reading this, make sure your wading belt is very tight! If you do fall in, and your belt isn’t tight, you risk your waders filling with water, and drowning. You should also wear a good auto – inflate life vest.

Over the years, I’ve suffered cold feet when winter wading, and once your feet get cold, your core temperature drops. That was until I started wearing two pairs of Patagonia Merino wool socks, they are thin enough to  are thin enough to double up.

grayling, flies, tungsten bugs, grayling fishing, fly box, best flies, Scotland, nymphs, jig heads,
Fish the right flies and you can get lucky and get two at once!

Remote rivers with few people

When fishing in Scotland for Grayling there are seldom other anglers. You can walk 10km of a river and not see another soul. Grayling can shoal, but often don’t, so move around to find fish. Stay positive, often it will surprise you were fish get caught. The photo below shows ideal Grayling habitat. A strong current on the far bank and a lovely seam running on the nearside, with a gravel bottom. In an even current like this, these Grayling can use that dorsal fin in the current to their advantage, and put up a hard fight.

grayling,flyfishing, flytying, fishing, flyfishingaddict, catchandrelease, flytyingjunkie, euronymphing, troutfishing, graylingfishing, flugfiske, czechnymphing, flyfishingjunkie,fliegenfischen,fluefiske, nymphfishing, nymphing, graylingcandy, flytyingaddict, troutcandy, pescamosca, frenchnymphing
Steering a good grayling to the slacker water with side pressure

Grayling can sometimes shoal, usually when the frosty weather sets in. However if your hunting big fish, they are nomadic, and spread out.  When you hook a big grayling it will surprise you the power it has, using its large dorsal fin and the current it can be hard to shift them. As Grayling have soft mouths, it’s best to try and steer them towards slacker water (see photo above), and if relevant, away from the shoal.

Winter Grayling, Grayling, Fishing, River Tweed, Tungsten Bugs, Orvis Helios 2, Alba Game Fishing, Lady of the Stream, New Zealand Strike Indicator
River Tweed Grayling – try to minimise handling and if try a pic like this, be prepared to miss the moment as the fish leaps back into the river.

Techniques for Euro nymphing for Grayling

Orvis, clearwater, 10ft, 2 weight, nymphing rod, euronymphing
Orvis 10ft 2 weight nymphing rod

Euronymphing, or straight line nymphing, is a method where you are casting mono to propel the flies to the target. The thinking behind this, is that with no fly line outside the tip of the rod, there is less resistance and a great sensitivity and awareness of subtle takes.

A 10-11ft 2-4 weight rod is ideal for this method, and gives you better control of the flies.

The technique is to pitch your flies upstream and aim for a drag free drift, holding your rod tip up and suspending your dropper nymphs up while letting the tail nymph bounce on the bottom. Your sight indicator should be just above the water line and visible enough to see subtle takes. The takes come in different guises. The ‘Stop Take’ is when the nymph just stops progressing downstream. It pays to strike as this is a subtle take and can be easy to miss. When a grayling takes with more gusto, the rod lunges over, as the fish grabs the nymph and turns. Then sometimes there are subtle takes, indicated by a small pluck on the line. This is where a sensitive rod, like a 2 weight wins, it helps define the different takes and therefore delivers a bigger percentage of hook ups.

Casting with nylon, how to avoid tangles

When Euronymphing, you are relying on the nylon to project your flies upstream. if you’ve never fished this method before, it can be tricky casting two or three flies and avoiding tangles. Find a technique that works for you and try to get into a routine that works. One of my tops tips for avoiding tangles is that if you are fishing three flies, you should see three visible rings on the surface when the nymphs land. If not, stop immediately and check your cast. Usually two of the flies are tangled, and stopping immediately makes freeing the flies a lot easier than fishing on and magnifying the mess.

When trotting the nymphs down a run, strike downstream, this will have a greater chance of more secure hook ups. Fish face upstream (obviously) so as the nymph is hoovered up, a swift downstream strike sets the hook often on the scissors rather than the front of the mouth (precarious).

euronymphing, nymphing, grayling fishing, fly fishing, Scotland, River Teviot, River Tweed, Tungsten bugs, jig head, barbless flies, Effective zones, tactics for grayling
How to Euronymph for grayling

This is why I prefer a 2 weight 10ft rod, firstly because I can feel everything as the nymphs tack down on the bottom. Secondly I find casting with nylon only,  easier, and thirdly, when into a big fish, the rod is very forgiving and sudden lunges by a running big fish are soaked up in the blank.

I highly recommend the Sage ESN 10ft 2 weight and the Orvis Clearwater 10ft 

You can read a review of both rods here.

How to read a river for Grayling

A common question asked is how to read a river? This is very subjective, and dependant on both the river and the water levels and conditions, that said, here are a few tips.

Start by asking yourself, where do you think an abundance of food will be channelled to? Some of the best grayling spots are close to, somewhere a grayling could take cover during a flood. Grayling like uniformity, and a gravel bottom.

Sometimes foam in the surface is a great indicator to how food is channeled. Try to visualise the river bed and when exploring beats, draw a map in your minds eye based on how your flies fish.

Battleships, the hunt for grayling

When I find a likely spot to prospect, I try and draw a map in my minds eye of where the fish are likely to be. I then cover all likely spots, like prospecting for a hidden destroyer in a game of battleships.

If you find fish and catch a few, sometime the grayling can get spooked and head upstream. Rest the pool for a bit, walk upstream and sometimes the action begins again.

Be aware also that as the river level rises fish are less likely to stay in the same runs. Often in higher water, the fish will drift into the seams where slacker water is. Try to think like a fish, where would they go to get food, where could they get shelter in higher water. In a spate, fish are often taken close to the bank, in calmer water that normally is un-fishable.

An Ideal Grayling Leader Set up

When nymphing there are various methods of leader set up.  I’m not saying my leader construction is better than anyones, but this leader set up is very effective, and importantly catches fish. When you construct a leader in this way, you can really feel what’s going on, as the nymphs track downstream on the riverbed.

I’m not a fan of tapered French leaders, as they are thicker than my set up and thus prone to wind resistance. I prefer therefore, to fish fine and delicate.

What fly line to use…if any?

First of all I use a low diameter fly line, like Mastery Nymph line. I never have any of the fly line out of the end eye, and if that happens, its because I have a big running fish on. If that happens, (firstly I’m a happy man) and secondly, I want the fly line to be low diameter, so that it doesn’t drag in the current and add more resistance.

euronymphing, nymphing, grayling fishing, fly fishing, Scotland, River Teviot, River Tweed, Tungsten bugs, jig head, barbless flies, leader construction, tactics for grayling
Euro nymph Leader Construction

On the end of the fly line, I tie using a perfection loop to 20ft length of Amnesia 8lb memory free nylon (available in three colours). This is attached with a three turn dropper knot to a 18 inch length of indicator tippet. I use the Rio indicator tippet or simply a length of Amnesia (fluro colour which is marked at intervals with a permanent black marker) both work well. Where the three turn dropper knot (attaching indicator tippet to 20ft length of Amnesia) I snip off only one of the tags, leaving the visible tag sticking out. I then tie the again with a single granny knot so the short length of tag sticks out at 90 degrees. This is another useful sight indicator. The sight indicator is then terminated with a 2mm dropper ring. To that, I then tie the leader, which varies in length according to the conditions. usually about  8ft with two flies. the heavier jig fly on the point. I tend to fish tippet about 0.16mm for heavy flows/ rivers/ fish and 0.10mm diameter for finer fishing. Naturally the finer tippet has less resistance, so gets the flies down quicker.

The best rivers in Scotland for Grayling

The best grayling rivers are located in the south of Scotland. The River Tweed has a healthy stock of grayling throughout the system, and the tributaries like the River Teviot, River Leader, Gala Water, Ale, Jed Water, River Ettrick and The River Whiteadder all hold stocks of grayling. I have caught grayling in all of these tributaries, and sometimes they are worth exploring when the main River Tweed is in spate.

In the South West, the River Annan is a superb grayling river. It rises Annanhead Hill and flows through the Devil’s Beef Tub, Moffat and Lockerbie, reaching the coast at Dumfries and Galloway.  This is a smaller river than the Tweed both in size and flow, it holds a good population of grayling and some real specimens. Whilst down in Dumfries and Galloway, the River Nith is a great salmon river, but holds grayling too and in my opinion gets less grayling pressure than the Annan.

Further North, the River Tay and River Tummel hold good grayling shoals, as does the River Earn

The River Clyde holds a good population of Grayling, though it’s not a river we focus on, as there are equally productive rivers, closer to home.

Summary

Winter in Scotland can be a dark and dreary affair. The devastating effect Christmas has on your wallet, the weather, lack of sunlight and following a football team as mediocre as I do. Grayling fishing is a great way to keep your angling skills sharp, fine tune your fishing skills and prepare for the trout and salmon season ahead.

Take my advice, get out in a Scottish Winter and fish for grayling it’s good for your soul, mental health and sharpens your saw!

I hope this article helps you and whets your appetite to target the Lady of the Stream. Tight Lines and keep those grayling wet when releasing.

If you are looking to join us for a grayling trip, please go here.

==

Written by Stewart Collingswood founder and Head Guide of Alba Game Fishing

Alba deliver fishing trips and bespoke fishing vacations throughout Scotland for the last 16 years.

Category: NewsTag: euronymphing, grayling, nymphing, river fishing

A beginners guide to Salmon Fishing

June 15, 2020 //  by Stewart Collingswood

Everything you need to know about getting started with salmon fishing

This is a comprehensive no-nonsense guide to getting started, if you’re looking to learn how to fish for salmon.

So you want to get into salmon fishing but don’t know where to start? Hopefully this guide will help. This is a simple guide to help you get started. I’ve based the knowledge in this article on 16 years as a professional salmon fishing guide throughout Scotland.  

River Spey, Spey Casting, Ghillie, Ballindalloch, Salmon Fishing, fly fishing, fishing guide
Salmon fishing on the River Spey with a Ghillie

It can be daunting starting out, where to go, what equipment to use, how to read a river, How to fish for salmon, what is the river etiquette? What Spey casts to use? How much do I tip the Ghillie? The insights are here, please read on:

Let’s break his down into a step by step guide, beginning with:

Tactics for fishing for salmon

The first thing to understand is that salmon do not feed when they enter freshwater. They have two things programmed in their brain, reproduction and survival.

Why a salmon takes a fly nobody really can be certain. It’s thought to be a combination of aggression, curiosity and a conditioned response from when they fed in saltwater. 

Make no mistake, salmon fishing is a dark art. You need resilience as blank days are frequent, and determination to keep moving your flies through the pools with method, focus and a clear strategy. Usually you would cast your fly down and across and try to keep a steady swing on the fly, letting the current do the work. As you work through a pool, imagine you are playing battleships and draw a picture in your mind of the river as a god, and your prospecting all the squares hunting a fish. Work through the pool by casting and then taking a step downstream.

If at first you don’t succeed, try doing what the Ghillie told you in the beginning

My best advice is listen to the experts, when you arrive at a river, speak to the ghillie, his advice is invaluable. Remember he lives and breathes his beat of the river, knows where the salmon lies are and importantly at what water level where to fish. Ask him also what tip to add to your fly line (sink rate or floater) and what fly. If you’re a beginner, get him to show you the correct knot for the fly. I recommend a double turle, for salmon fly in doubles (two hooks). Most of all keep it simple, persistence beats resistance and don’t overcomplicate your casting or try too hard to reach that extra few feet. Often fish can be a rod length or two away. Don’t make too much disturbance when wading. 

What equipment to use for salmon fishing in Scotland? 

Most rivers in Scotland are fly fishing only, and some allow spinning like the Tay and the Tweed. The sensible thing to do is to ask yourself, do I want to fish one of the big rivers? The River Tay, The Dee, Spey and Tweed, or a smaller spate river, like the River Ericht, Orchy or Alness.

River Tay, salmon fishing, Scone Palace
Happy Guests Fishing Fly and Spinning rod

Salmon Fishing Seasons in Scotland

Salmon Fishery DistrictStart of Rod SeasonEnd of Rod Season
1. Annan25th February15th November
2. Argyll11th February31st October
3. Arnisdale11th February31st October
4. Ayr11th February31st October
5. Beauly11th February15th October
6. Bladenoch11th February31st October
7. Brora1st February15th October
8. Caithness

Forss11th February31st October
Thurso and Stroma11th January5th October
Wick11th February31st October
Dunbeath11th February15th October
Berriedale11th February31st October
9. Carron11th February31st October
10. Clyde and Leven11th February31st October
11. Conon

River Alness and Alt Graad11th February31st October
River Conon and Balnagown11th February30th September
12. Cree1st March14th October
13. Crowe and Shiel (Loch Duich)11th February31st October
14. River Dee (Aberdeenshire)

River Dee1st February15th October
River Carron and River Cowie11th February31st October
15. River Dee (Kirkcudbright)11th February31st October
16. Deveron11th February31st October
17. Don11th February31st October
18. Doon11th February31st October
19. Eachaig1st May31st October
20. Esk

River Bervie25th February31st October
River North and South Esk16th February31st October
21. Findhorn11th February30th September
22. Fleet (Sutherlandshire)25th February31st October
23. Fleet (Kirkcudbright)25th February31st October
24. Forth1st February31st October
25. Girvan25th February31st October
26. Glenelg11th February31st October
27. Helmsdale11th January30th September
28. Inner (Jura)25th February31st October
29. Irvine and Garnock

River Irvine25th February15th November
River Garnock25th February31st October
30. Kishorn11th February31st October
31. Kyle of Sutherland11th January30th September
32. Laggan and Sorn (Islay)25th February31st October
33. Loch Long (Luingi and Elchaig)11th February31st October
34. Lochaber11th February31st October
35. Lossie25th February31st October
36. Luce25th February31st October
37. Mull11th February31st October
38. Nairn11th February7th October
39. Ness15th January15th October
40. Nith25th February30th November
41. North and West

Hope and Polla12th January30th September
Grudie or Dionard11th February31st October
Inchard11th February31st October
Laxford11th February31st October
Inver11th February31st October
Kirkaig11th February31st October
42. Northern

River Halladale12th January30th September
Kinloch (Kyle of Tongue11th February31st October
Naver and Borgie12th January30th September
Strathy12th January30th September
43. Orkney Islands25th February31st October
44. Shetland Islands25th February31st October
45. Skye11th February15th October
46. Spey11th February30th September
47. Stinchar25th February31st October
48. Tay

Tay15th January15th October
River Earn1st February31st October
River Eden5th February31st October
49. Tweed1st February30th November
50. Ugie10th February31st October
51. Urr25th February29th November
52. Wester Ross11th February31st October
53. Western Isles

Loch Roag11th February16th October
East Lewis11th February31st October
Clayburn25th February31st October
Fincastle25th February31st October
Resort11th February31st October
Mullanageren25th February31st October
Howmore25th February31st October
54. Ythan11th February31st October
The salmon season in Scotland, key rivers

Salmon fishing Equipment for Big 4 rivers – The Tweed, Tay, Spey and Dee

A 14ft or 15ft Fly rod, is a perfect size to cover a big river, don’t go any smaller, because if you get into a big fish, you’ll struggle to control it. You don’t need to spend the earth, a Shakespeare Oracle Scandi 15ft rod will set you back £100.00, and its a pretty decent spey rod, certainly good enough for a beginner to enjoy learning the fundamentals of Spey Casting. The Scandi version is my pick (there are other Shakespeare Oracles) is that Scandi (short Spey) lines are easier to cast for beginners.

If you’re looking for a robust, great value salmon reel, the Vision Deep ticks many boxes. It will set you back about £80.00 can take a battering, has a decent drag and great line capacity. It does what it says on the tin.

Salmon Fly Lines

So what salmon fly line is best for a beginner? If your setting out, do not use a long head Spey line, i.e. 65ft, opt for a Short head Spey line(sometimes called Scandi lines). These are easier to cast and I can tell you that in my years as a guide I have got literally thousands of people casting lines like this good enough to cover fish in under 30 minutes of tuition. You cannot go wrong with an Arflo Rage Shooting head kit. For £79 this gives you a running line/ short spey line and tips, floater, intermediate and sink tip. This will cover most scenarios and this is an extremely easy line to cast. If you’ve heard about lines called Scandi or Skagit, then this line sits somewhere in between. Take it from me, it’s easy to cast, and hugely versatile.

So there you have it. A complete, fly rod, reel and line for £280.00.

Spate rivers: If you are looking at fishing smaller rivers, then use similar equipment to above but come down to an 11ft 8 weight. This will help you fish in tighter spaces and still give you enough clout to play a bigger multi-wintered fish. 

Tippet. Go for Maxima. 15lb for bigger rivers and 10lb for the spate rivers. This line is reliable and tried and tested. It stretches when a fish lunges on a run, and it comes in two colours. Chameleon for peat stained water and Ultragreen for clearer rivers. It also changes colour when the line degrades and oxidises, going a pale pink colour.

What are the best value breathable waders?

River Tay, Salmon Fishing, Fishing holiday, Fly Fishing, Spey Casting, Mackenzie fly fishing, Orvis Endorsed guides, Scone
The lower River Tay at Fishponds

Waders are an item you should be careful buying. Many people buy cheap and pay the price.. many people buy expensive and pay the price too. I cannot see past the Orvis Clearwater waders, they offer excellent value for money, and I would recommend trying them on with thickish socks and wading boots. Make sure you try bending down and standing up and all legs movements are easy and unrestricted. Get the Orvis Clearwater wading boots too, they are superb value, the waders and boots will set you back £368.00 but often Orvis offer deals and discounts, don?t be afraid to contact your local store and ask.

So in summary, £650.00 will get you properly set up, and enable you to be tooled up for a day on the river. (Excluding flies and nylon tippet)

River Tay, Salmon Fishing, Fly Fishing, Spey Casting, Scone Palace, Best Beats, Tactics, Atlantic Salmon, Spin Casting,
The Lower River Tay

Which river in Scotland is best for salmon fishing for beginners?

This depends where you live, but make sure you select a beat with a good Ghillie, preferably one who holds a casting qualification like SGAIC and therefore can give casting tips and tuition. If you want a more dedicated (one on one) guide for the day, then pay the extra and get a good one. You can meet the guide at the river, use your own gear and he or she can take you through the fundamentals and various casts. This can be invaluable in the beginning, so bad habits don’t set in. Salmon casting can also be physically taxing when you set out. First off you are using muscles and movements that are strange and alien to the norm. Having a guide and casting instructor can help you understand how to put less effort in and more technique, this can save you damaging muscles and getting a repetitive strain injury.

Guided Salmon, Salmon fishing in Scotland, Best salmon fishing Scotland, Salmon Fishing River Spey, Salmon Fly Fishing Scotland, Orvis, Albagamefishing, Speycasting,
Salmon Fishing guide River Tay

The River Tay at Fishponds is one such beat, a gem of a Ghillie in Iain Kirk, a casting instructor and rod designer for Mackenzie Fly Rods, he’s always willing to help. Its good water for learning and relatively inexpensive in the earlier parts of the season (spring and summer)

Ghillies – The dos and don’ts

Whilst were on the subject of ghillies and guides, it’s customary to tip them. This is the right thing to do and as a general guide, anything from £20-£50 depending on the day you’ve had is the norm. Some grilles are very helpful and get involved and work hard to keep you right, others will show you the pool and hide in the hut, there’s no right or wrong, that’s the way to is, this will help you decide how much to tip. Tipping isn’t mandatory, but if you don’t give them a “handshake’ don’t expect the same level of service next time or any worthwhile help. Ghillies never forget! 

River Dee, Aberdeen, Banchory, Ballater, Orvis, Deeside, salmon Fishing, Aberdeenshire, Spey Casting, Fly Fishing, Learn to Spey Cast
A honeymoon couple learning to Spey cast on the River Dee

Hire a guiding company to take you out, they will provide you with quality fishing tackle, waders, boots, life vest and rain jacket. Well we do that certainly!

Rather than but all the gear and then discover its not for you, you may want to consider hiring a guiding company for your first trip. They will provide you with quality fishing tackle, waders, boots, life vest and rain jacket. This will set you back approx £375.00 for a full day including dedicated guide with you all day, permit, tackle and VAT. Our team of professional fishing guides include SGAIC casting instructors, so if you want to try various combinations fo rods and lines and learn various Spey casts, we can help.

Stewart Collingswood, Orvis Endorsed Guide/ founder Alba Game Fishing Ltd

Category: News

The Best Fishing staycations in Scotland

May 26, 2020 //  by Stewart Collingswood

Safe and isolated locations to practice social distancing when fishing

As Scotland emerges from the Covid pandemic, people are looking to escape to the outdoors post – lockdown and enjoy some new found freedom again. Here are my top fishing trips in Scotland, that allow you stay safe, enjoy the open air, marvel in gorgeous scenery and know you are being looked after by a team of guides that understand how to stay safe post Coronavirus (Covid-19)

First of all all of our guides have completed this course by the World Health Organisation, which reassures you that we know how to stay safe, and help you relax and enjoy your fishing in the outdoors, risk free.

Covid training, fishing guide, safety, Coronavirus
Our team have all completed this course
Post Covid Safety Procedures

Salmon Fishing on the River Spey – Safe Isolated, Great for scenery and fresh air

The Spey beats are never crowded and from what we hear, all estates have now got post lockdown procedures in place. Ideal for experts or beginners – Fly Fishing Only.

We usually fish either the Gordon Castle beats, or Ballindalloch Estate. Both have excellent fishing. If you prefer to stay in self catering accommodation there are a wealth of options in Speyside. You can meet the fishing guides at the beat hut every day and we will have all your fishing tackle and waders ready for you. All safe, all sterilised, all good to go.

River Spey, Spey Casting, Ghillie, Ballindalloch, Salmon Fishing, fly fishing, fishing guide
Salmon fishing on the River Spey with a Ghillie

These beats look to be set to open tentatively on June 1st and we are now able to take bookings going forward. The River Spey salmon season runs from 11th February to 30th September. To understand the conditions please see this article.

Salmon Fishing River Tay – ideal for bank fishing, experts or beginners (spin casting allowed)

Situated a few miles from the market town of Perth, the lower River Tay will be a great choice for the summer and autumn fishing on the Tay. We fish the Scone Palace beats, and one thing is for sure, there is plenty of open space, fresh air and great scenery.

River Tay, Salmon Fishing, Fly Fishing, Spey Casting, Scone Palace, Best Beats, Tactics, Atlantic Salmon, Spin Casting,
The Lower River Tay – overcrowding never an issue

We can meet guests at the hut or if they prefer at the entrance gates of Scone Palace and then follow the guide to the beat from there (10 mins) All the fishing tackle will be set up prior to arrival and waders ready to put on. The rods, waders and tackle will all have been sterilised and handled with rubber gloves. We will maintain good social distancing rules and enjoy a relaxing day in fabulous scenery.

Salmon Fishing, Fishing hut, River Tay, Spey casting, Scone Palace, Fishponds,Alba Game Fishing
The superb hut on the Tay at Scone – overlooking the water

Salmon and Trout Fishing River Whiteadder

The Whiteadder is somewhat of a Hidden gem of a salmon and trout river, it is one of the main tributaries of the River Tweed and starts in the Lammermuir Hills, before flowing into the Tweed near Berwick. If conditions are right, this is a brilliant river. To get an idea of the size of the river watch this short video, you can see that after high water the river starts to settle back and clear. Not only can you catch salmon in this river, but excellent there’s also excellent sport for brown trout and sea trout fishing too. Your fishing permit covers all three species. This is not a crowded place and its rare to see another angler when fishing here. The photo below shows it in low water level.

River Whiteadder – Low water

There are no beat huts here, this is wild fishing. Unlike the bigger rivers like the Tay and the Spey, where you can almost drive right to the river, there is a wee bit of walking involved. Occasionally, you can expect to be walking through nettles and undergrowth to reach the best spots, but everything is on the level. A moderate level of fitness is an advantage. The beats are wild in nature and do not have the manicured banks of the Tweed. But the scenery by far makes up for that. Fishing is generally with single hand 10ft 7 weight rods of and 11ft #8 weight switch rod. Fishing on the Whiteadder can also get lively in Autumn as large volumes of fish move into the river for spawning.

Salmon and Trout Fishing River Ericht

If you?re looking for adventure, wild scenery and a great day out, then this narrow spate river is one of the best small salmon rivers in Scotland. The River Ericht is formed from the collaboration of the the rivers Ardle and Blackwater. It runs into the River Isla, and eventually the River Tay. The river passes through some very scenic Perthshire farmland and was once used to power several textile mills in Blairgowrie.

You will not get the manicured banks of the Tay, this is very much scenic wild country, authentic, historic and breathtakingly beautiful. The River Ericht arguably the best spate river on the Tay system, meaning that it requires good water levels to bring the fish through. The fish counter on the river boasts a run of 8000 to 13,000 fish annually. 

salmon rivers, scotland, best, productive, Alness, Highlands, Spey Casting, Switch rod, Orvis, Mackenzie Flyfishing, Scenic,
Switch rods for wee spate rivers

Being an upper tributary of the Tay, and therefore relatively narrow, it is an excellent salmon river for single-handed fly rods. A 9 or 10ft #7 weight is perfect or a 10-11ft Switch rod, like the Mackenzie Atlas is ideal. 

Durness and Caithness – Saltwater fly fishing and trout lochs

If you are looking for real solitude, vast open spaces, dramatic light, stunning beaches, gin clear lochs and imperious landscapes, Durness and Caithness tick all the boxes.

We have some truly world class shore fishing marks here, near Sandwood Bay, that offer some of the most awesome shore Pollack fishing in Scotland. You can enjoy freedom, space and lively sport. In addition soak up the majestic scenery and disconnect (to reconnect)

Guided pollock fishing Scotland, pollock fishing, sea fishing guide,
Shore fishing for sea predators

Further north, in Durness are a group of gin clear freshwater trout lochs sitting on a. limestone fault and offering some of Scotland best trout fishing. I first fished these waters in 1987 and have been traveling north ever since. I’ve spent many holiday up here. The lochs are not easy, but the rewards are high. If you are lucky and hit the water when conditions are right, you have a real chance at specimen fly fishing for wild brown trout. True wild fish, genetically perfect. There is a choice to fish from a boat or the bank in these lochs, or indeed a float tube. I would recommend that post Covid, we avoid boat fishing as it’s very difficult to social distance in a two ro even three man boat, and stick to bank fishing or float tube. We have a stock of excellent breathable Orvis Sonic Waders in all sizes, boots with studs and Float tubes, so leave it all to us, we can help.

Wild brown trout, shetland loch, Alba Game Fishing, trout, catch and release
Perfection, a wild brown trout from Durness

Category: News

Fishing post Covid 19 – how to keep it safe

May 24, 2020 //  by Stewart Collingswood

A new and safer way to fish – Post Covid

Slowly we seem to be emerging from one of the worst pandemics in history and following a period of lockdown, we are no doubt all itching to stretch our wings, get into the great outdoors, breathe in the fresh air, and fish in beautiful locations. Fishing in Scotland, seems to be the perfect Staycation, and we have seen a rise in UK originating enquiries for this year.

Covid 19, coronavirus, safe fishing, isolated fishing, H&S procedures, safety
Latest Covid 19 cases June 2020

I’m certain that despite the collective urgency and desire to get out on the water, people will still need reassurance that everything remains safe and risk free. This article outlines the procedures we at Alba have set in place, and hopefully gives guests confidence to book and enjoy a fishing experience with us, stress free.

Firstly let me give you a bit of background. I am something of an obsessive. I’m the guy that uses a bit of loo roll to open the public bathroom door, rather than risk touching a germ ridden surface like that with bare hands. Just before Covid took hold, I went to Stockholm to see Simple Minds and my friend laughed at me for brining 6 pack of Milton anti-bacterial wipes and every time him or I touched a door handle or taxi door, out came the wipes! One of my clients from Hong Kong, a financial wizard and fishing regular, sent me 100 masks, and during Covid, the one or two times I’ve gone out, I’ve been masked and gloved. You might laugh at this, but I have a 4 year old boy at home. My number one priority is to keep him safe.

So the transition to added diligence and hygiene during Covid seemed pretty normal to me.

I want to ensure that when clients come to fish with us post Covid, its a nice relaxing experience, and that they know we are on the ball with keeping it safe!

fishing guide, fly fishing, trout, Scotland, High Five
High Five – We’ll be cutting out these for a while

I began to plan early how we would deal with emerging from Coronavirus and starting to run trips again. It was vital to ensure guests were safe and reassured and equally I need to protect my team.

Most of our Fishing guides have now completed a training course by the World Health Organisation on ” Infection Prevention and Control for Novel Coronavirus (Covid 19)

Covid training, fishing guide, safety, Coronavirus
Our team have all completed this course

I also spoke with one of our advisors and he had recently written additional rules for the local Angling Club, as follows:

EXTRA CORONAVIRUS RULES

These rules are to help ensure that not only you, but also other anglers, gillies and walkers, are protected as far as possible. They will apply to all past and future bookings made through FishPal.

1. Social Distancing. Always keep at least 2 metres away from ALL other people on the river (unless in your own household). In particular do not shake hands with anyone.

2. Do not share cars, boats, huts, tackle, nets, crockery, food etc with anyone else (unless in your own household).

3. No longer expect any ghillie to shake your hand, set up your equipment, make you cups of tea, or drive you round the beat. Do not hand any tip directly to the ghillie. Leave it where it can easily be found.

4. Bring your own food and drink and do not share.

5. Bring your own hand sanitiser and wipes and use regularly during the day, especially if you have to use any WC provided by the fishery (try to avoid if you can). Wash your hands regularly wherever possible.

6. Wear gloves when touching doors, gates, styles, fences or any equipment that is not your own.

In addition you must use your own common sense at all times to reduce the risk of cross infection. If in doubt, don’t do it!

Most of this I agree with, however Ive always been uneasy with the Government directive of 2metres. I mean that’s just over 6ft and if you are 6ft downwind of someone sneezing or coughing, your bang in the firing line.

So that led me to come up with this:

Alba Game Fishing Rules – fishing with Guests Post Covid – 19 (Coronavirus)

  1. When meeting greeting and saying goodbye to guests all handshakes, fist pumps and High fives suspended.
  2. When on the water, maintain a distance of 5 meters – be mindful of wind direction and strength.
  3. All fishing gear, i.e. rod handles, lines and reels, nets, will be cleaned thoroughly prior to the trip and will have not been used prior to your day for a period of minimum 5 days. All this will be done wearing the appropriate PPE, i.e. disposable gloves and face mask.
  4. If on a day involving casting tuition, the instructor will avoid hands-on demonstrations, and instead instruct demonstrate any casting techniques with a second rod which doesn’t leave his hand.
  5. We have suspended delivering fishing lunches until deemed to be safe to do so. Please bring your own food and drinks.
  6. Guests should make their own way to the fishing spot. We will provide each coordinates and in some cases meet in an easy location and you can follow the guide to the fishing hut from there.
  7. Guides will have disposable gloves and face masks at the ready, should they be needed for opening gates etc.
  8. Alba Game fishing has copious supplies of hand sanitiser gel, which complies with the requirements as set out by the World Health Organisation.
  9. Guides will no longer make cups of coffee, tea or drive guests around the beat.
  10. Guests are welcome to tip guides by leaving the tip in a place where the guide can pick it up without close contact.
  11. We will avoid sharing boats and if boats are required to transfer guests to the opposite bank, this will be done one at a time.
  12. Any guests who is unwell, has a fever, or a cough, or has been in contact with anyone in the previous 30 days showing symptoms like that, should refrain from going ahead with the trip. Alba Game Fishing will gladly re-schedule the trip to an alternative date.
  13. Stories, jokes, anecdotes and laughter still permitted – albeit, 5 metres apart
River Tay, Salmon Fishing, Fly Fishing, Spey Casting, Scone Palace, Best Beats, Tactics, Atlantic Salmon, Spin Casting,
The Lower River Tay – plenty of space to isolate

The Best Fishing staycations in Scotland

We have taken the time to select a number of fishing packages which lend themselves to open space, freedom, a chance to relax away from crowds and enjoy stunning scenery and memorable fishing. Please take a look at our new page here.

Category: NewsTag: coronavirus, Covid-19, fishing, fly fishing, risk assessment, safety procedures, scotland, staycation

  • Go to page 1
  • Go to page 2
  • Go to page 3
  • Interim pages omitted …
  • Go to page 5
  • Go to Next Page »

Footer

Packages

  • Salmon Fishing Scotland
  • Saltwater Fly Fishing – Sea Fishing Trips in Scotland
  • Trout Fishing in Scotland
  • Pike Angling
  • Corporate Fishing
  • Bespoke Luxury Vacations in Scotland

Explore

  • Corporate Fishing
  • Fishing Accommodation

Social

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Alba Game Fishing Copyright © 2021