Innholdsfortegnelse for October 2017 i Trout & Salmon

“It was often a close-run thing whether she herself would collapse into the tureen” THERE WERE MANY moments of light relief during the troubled early years at Delphi. The saving grace was dinner in the Lodge, where merriment was almost guaranteed. That big oak table witnessed a thousand tall stories and I was forever indebted to Constance Aldridge of Mount Falcon Castle, further north in County Mayo, from whom we had stolen the idea of having one huge, noisy table for dinner, rather than a series of smaller ones, which can result in embarrassed diners whispering to each other and trying not to overhear the conversations of their neighbours. In Connie’s case, she always presided at the head of her long table. During pre-dinner drinks (a time of day she…

Welsh Water is to spend £6.5 million improving sewage treatment to prevent pollution of Llyn Padarn, a home of rare char in North Wales, after years of court battles with Fish Legal. Acting on behalf of its member club, the Seiont, Gwyrfai and Llyfni Angling Society, Fish Legal fought two judicial reviews against Natural Resources Wales and Welsh Water, claiming that the near extinction of the char was a result of algal blooms and water deoxygenation caused by raw sewage. The court cases cost Fish Legal, which is funded by individual members and clubs, more than £325,000. Fish Legal chief executive Mark Lloyd said: “We are pleased to see that the regulator and the water company have finally come clean about the source of the pollution, despite nearly a decade…

Fish Legal has severely criticised the latest environmental impact assessment submitted by the developers hoping to build a power-generating tidal lagoon in Swansea Bay. To gain a marine licence, the developers must satisfy regulator Natural Resources Wales that the proposed lagoon’s turbines won’t threaten migrating salmon and sea-trout. Fish Legal has told NRW to reject the assessment, arguing that the developer has “reworked evidence”, been misleading and over-optimistic, failed to gather sufficient data and apply relevant scientific studies as well as the precautionary principle.…

Nine salmon were caught on this year’s Trout & Salmon Readers’ Holiday at Upper Floors on the Tweed. With rain a few days before the holiday, guests were greeted on Monday morning with a river running in very good condition and expectations for the three days were deservedly high. The optimism was rewarded with fresh fish encouraged into the beat by the good water levels and older fish stirred by the heavy rain. As well as great sport with salmon, the party also enjoyed tussles with hard-fighting sea-trout, to 8lb.…

“MSS will use genetics methods to assess the likely origins of the fish” OVER THE LAST few months I have been closely following the reports and have watched the published video footage of spawning activity and redds associated with the arrival of unprecedented numbers of pink salmon. At the time of writing, I’m aware that at least 18 Scottish rivers have reported pink salmon and more than 70 have been caught by rod-and-line, and netting. I appreciate that their arrival has stimulated much debate and recognise it has generated a wide range of views from those who see them as a potential fishing opportunity, to those who consider them to be a potentially significant threat to our freshwater and migratory stocks, particularly our iconic Atlantic salmon populations. The Scottish sector’s…

SO WHAT’S ALL the fuss about Muddlers? With their bulk, appendages and water-shifting properties, Muddlers demand attention. A well-tied and well-presented Muddler screams “eat me”! But don’t be fooled into thinking that they’re only of use on big, wild waters in a big blow. Muddlers have many more tricks up their sleeves, and can be put to good use on virtually any day of the season. Read on to find out how to get the most from this beautiful but deadly style of fly… EVERY DAY IS A MUDDLER DAY With a plethora of Muddler styles, shapes and sizes available to us these days, it’s not a case of whether to fish a Muddler or not, but more a case of which one. Big, flashy patterns can arrest the trout’s…

“THE WEAKEST KNOT in any tapered leader is the one that connects the final tippet section to the rest of the leader,” wrote Lefty Kreh and Mark Sosin in their best-selling and hugely respected Practical Fishing Knots. So it is strange that when anglers argue about which knot is the strongest the discussion almost inevitably involves the hook knot and not the line-to-line knot that is the weakest part of the set-up. Line-to-line knots are often more difficult to tie than hook knots and many anglers try to avoid tying them. The knots depicted here are used to join lines, form droppers and make loops in line. They work in monofilament lines made of nylon, co-polymer nylon and fluorocarbon. I have also looked at ways to avoid having to tie…

Q AS CATCH-AND-RELEASE becomes more popular on stillwaters, the benefit of spooning fish seems to have become a thing of the past. Isn’t this regrettable? Trevor Harrop, by email A. I HAVE written previously that catch-and-release deprives us of the chance to examine the stomach contents of the trout we catch. I realise you can use a small pump on live fish, but I don’t like the idea. My main concern is to give every fish the best chance to recover. I play trout hard to avoid a build-up of lactic acid and unhook them with as little handling as possible (see p76). This is especially important in the high water temperatures of summer when oxygen levels are lower, and keeping stress levels to a minimum can make the difference…

Ripplebox is a start-up project to create a new generation of fly-box that makes changing and organising flies of any type quicker and simpler. Designed by Joshua Richards and James Cadogan, and drawing on their shared interest in product design and fly-fishing, the idea began on a fishing tour of northern Scotland. After fumbling with traditional boxes and cold fingers they came up with a design that has evolved over 50 prototypes to deliver functional simplicity. The project is seeking backing through Kickstarter, a crowdfunding website. They hope to raise £17,500 by 20 September. The Ripplebox is made of five parts – a durable nylon latch, a tough polycarbonate case, a marine-grade stainless-steel pin and a unique silicone ripple – all designed and made in the UK. The 12 full-length…

IS YOUR HEART IN THE HEBRIDES? Sir Ian Botham scored a hat-trick of a sort at Scaliscro: he achieved a Macnab. In a year that has seen some top-quality Scottish sporting estates on the market, Scaliscro now joins them. Small by some standards at 5,570 acres, there is nevertheless an opportunity to acquire a 175-year sporting lease over an adjoining 5,000 acres to the north and east. There are red deer stalking, walked-up shooting, fishing for salmon, sea-trout and brown trout, an in-hand farm, and some three miles of coastline with sea fishing and lobster potting. The estate lies on the east coast of the Isle of Lewis, northernmost of the Western Isles – Uig is 11 miles away and Stornoway 22. On an elevated site overlooking Little Loch Roag,…

Dr Paul Brown was the kindest of men and the finest of fishing companions. “PB” to his many friends, he brightened up even the most hopeless day on the river. His infectious enthusiasm and boyish glee at our great good fortune to be going fishing never dimmed over many years. Whether pursuing wily Derbyshire Wye trout or mighty salmon on the Kola Peninsula and Norway, Paul always believed today was going to be the day. Spring days on Tweed, summer days and nights on Spey and Dee, autumn on the Teviot, Paul was the complete angler. We shared trips to Tierra del Fuego and British Columbia chasing, and occasionally catching, the fish of our dreams. In March this year we fished the Tweed at Lower North Wark. Fishing like a…

Tying the CCK IN FEBRUARY I received a message from Bryn Ockleford, who fishes the Ballyduff beat of the Cork Blackwater in Ireland. Bryn is great friends with the beat’s gillies, Jason Corcoran and his father Connie. I’ve not met him or Jason, but through social media we keep in close contact about all things salmon fishing. To my surprise, he and Jason asked me if I would design a salmon fly as a tribute to Connie on his 70th birthday. I’ve tied many flies since starting seven years ago and have given more away than I’ve kept for myself, but this was a whole new ball game. To give you a flavour of how seriously I took the request, you need to understand Connie. He is an Irish salmon-fishing…

Eggs from a pink salmon’s nest in the River Ness were excavated by the Ness District Salmon Fishery Board on September 4. Most had been successfully fertilised and had developed to the eyed-ova stage. Empty egg shells were also recovered suggesting that some fish had hatched, although this has yet to be confirmed. The excavation is part of research undertaken by several Boards into the viability of pink salmon establishing populations in Scotland (see page 46).…

Salmon & Trout Conservation UK is asking shoppers to take pictures of Scottish salmon products in supermarkets and post them on social media. It wants customers to question the origin of the fish, many of which S&TC believes come from polluting farms. S&TC UK head of science Dr Janina Grey explained: “There is no need to purchase the product, just take a picture of the packaging and upload it to social media.” If the salmon has no farm origin listed on the packaging, tag the supermarket and ask them why? For example: @tesco Which farm does this salmon come from? #salmonfarmreform @ SalmonTroutCons If the salmon comes from one of the farms listed on the S&TC UK website (www.salmon-trout.org/uploads/image/FarmList.jpg)that are in a confirmed high sea-lice region, tag the supermarket and…

The popular face of Farlows’ Pall Mall tackle-store, Brian Fratel (right), is to retire in October after almost 50 years’ service. During his career, Brian has met kings, queens, maharajahs and a Who’s Who of the sport. He is the named Royal Warrant holder for Farlows as well as its director of fishing. Always welcoming, Brian has spent a lifetime advising anglers on tackle, tactics and destinations. Farlows managing director Robin Philpot said, “Brian has been at the heart of Farlows for longer than most people can remember so his retirement is the end of an era. He will be missed by colleagues and customers alike but thankfully he has done a great job in helping to equip the rest of the Farlows team with the knowledge they need to…

“Most of us will draw our personal line in the sand on the killing of animals – sheep yes, elephants no, for example” NOTHING, ABSOLUTELY nothing, divides our sport more than catch and release. Most of us here understand the often deeply felt emotions surrounding the decision to kill or release a salmon. Many of us, having witnessed the way arguments for and against can soon degenerate in to an unedifying slanging match, choose the silent path, keeping our own counsel, while trying to do what we hope is the right thing. But not even a set of horse blinkers would be enough to isolate oneself from these confrontations today. The first time I became aware of growing ethical divisions was in watching a documentary film on salmon fishing in…

This summer I enjoyed my first salmon and sea-trout fishing trip to the River Avon at Tomintoul, Scotland, having desperately wanted to catch a salmon since taking up fly-fishing. I had a memorable week for a number of reasons. For the first three days, we caught nothing while other rods were catching sea-trout – we just couldn’t seem to get near any fish. Then, on the Wednesday, I slipped on a bank and smashed my rod in three places. On top of having caught nothing I’m embarrassed to say I fell into a mood and sat quietly eating my lunch. After swapping my rod tip and getting my head together for the afternoon I caught my first sea-trout and didn’t look back, netting eight more and losing others over the…

“Stick to overhead casting unless there is a very good reason to swap to the spey” Q A GILLIE HAS told me I can’t call myself a “proper” fisher until I’ve learned to spey-cast. What do you think? Jeremy Baker, via email A SPEY-CASTING CAN be great fun and at certain times and places has distinct advantages. But nobody should let that blind them to the fact that overhead casting has been the downfall of countless hundreds of thousands of salmon. Indeed, when I was a boy, it was the spey-casters who were viewed as eccentric exceptions to the norm. Even today, some of the most successful fishers I know will stick to overhead casting unless there is a very good reason to swap to the spey. Indeed, earlier this…

“It may now be taking a liberty to call it a nymph” NEWFANGLED TYING MATERIALS are thrust upon us with monotonous regularity. Our lives, we are told, will be incomplete and our returns severely compromised if we fail to adorn our flies with the latest VX-X-ray-UV Fritz, dyed in zero gravity, of course, to produce colours never before imagined. In truth, most of these products have been around for years, made originally as spangly trimming for cheerleaders’ outfits. Anyway, there ain’t no law against it, as I always reply when a fly-tying novice asks ‘’Can you use dog hair?’’ If you can strap it to a hook, and cast it once you’ve done so, then give it a go. If it pleases you, you’re halfway there. I am told Pseudo…

“I was amazed how easy it was to make effortless, efficient casts” REDINGTON HYDROGEN TROUT SPEY 11FT 3IN, 3WT £299.99 Also available in: 11ft, 2wt; 11ft 6in, 4wt. • Rio Trout Max Skagit, £34.99. Sizes: 225 grains, 250gn, 275gn. • Rio Scandi Short, £49.99. Sizes: 210gn, 240gn, 270gn. THE TROUT spey concept is new to the UK, having developed a strong following in America where extremely light double-handed rods make trout fishing among overgrown banks and on big, wide rivers easier. The heavier sizes of these rods are useful when swinging large streamer flies, an under-used tactic on UK rivers, while the lighter rods are suited to fishing what Americans call “soft-hackles“, which we know as Spiders. I tested the Hydrogen 11ft 3in, 3wt on the Welsh Dee. Confusingly, 3wt…

TEN WINNERS of this month’s competition will receive a fantastic Airflo Rage Shooting-Head Kit. With its powerful taper, this head sits between a skagit and a scandi, offering a combination of the best qualities of both lines. It is excellent where casting space is tight or where you need to turnover a large fly into a wind. The Rage kit offers excellent versatility, including three 12ft tips of different densities with loops at both ends for easy attachment. Switch between the floating, intermediate or fast-sinking tips depending on the conditions you’re faced with during the day. A Super Dri Ridged running line is also included, which will help you to achieve unbeatable distance. Choose from the 8/9wt 580 grain 40ft head, the 9/10wt 640 grain 41ft head and the 10/11wt…

“We fished almost all of Friday night and the skipper had a sea-trout. We toasted him – and the fish – to the stars” ON THE OTHER hand, there is always the Spey. It has hosted some good sport this season. Including some large fish. Which is very exciting. Last year, of course, I was not there because I was tussling with a simply enormous trout in Iceland and shoals of salmon flooded into the river from the far-off Atlantic to take the distilleries tour and to frustrate the local anglers by jumping over their leaders and ignoring their lures. But now we’re back and we are ready for some serious Spey action. Monday dawned warm and bright. What is ideal salmon fishing weather? Well, you have to ask yourself…

WHEN MARKUS PROPOSED fishing for Kerry bass I was sceptical. The scepticism didn’t relate to the stocks of these lovely fish, which in Kerry are present the whole year round. Nor did it relate to the fine team of anglers – Chrissi, Gardiner and local English resident Rod Robinson – Markus planned to assemble for the trip. The scepticism did, however, connect with my inexperience. It’s true that over the past four summers I’ve experimented with the fly-rods in Essex among estuary bass, catching plenty of fish along the way but also blanking sporadically and inexplicably. The size of those bass has been modest, with nothing over 3lb and the schoolies generally much smaller. I’ve fished on a benign, sheltered estuary that’s a world away from the environment offered by…

SOMETIMES YOU GET so near to fulfilling your dreams that you can almost taste it. But fly-fishing has always had an element of tease. As we approached the machair edge on the extreme western shore of West Ollay, and the flies, following the Di-3 sinking line, emerged from the depths, I saw a large grey shape. This is always a quandary-filled moment. If you can resist the temptation to act rashly or freeze, you must decide on a course of action to ensure a positive outcome, and there’s not much time to deliberate. I tend to assume it’s a good idea to continue doing whatever attracted the fish in the first place. So it was in this case. But - and it’s a big but - I was fishing the…

Tens of thousands of rainbow trout escaped from a fish farm into the Strule River in Northern Ireland on August 29. The Rocks Lodge Farm, owned by Scottish company Dawnfresh, is based at Newtownstewart and was flooded following heavy rain. Though the fish are sterile, they are likely to compete with native trout for food in the Strule (which downstream becomes the Mourne and Foyle). In the aftermath, some anglers were catching and killing up to 200 fish each, most of which weighed only ½ lb.…

■ MUCKING UP IRISH RIVERS Ulster Angling Federation is leading protests against a plan to build a giant pig farm that threatens the salmon rivers Roe and Faughan. The farm at Limavady would house 13,000 pigs, annually producing 50,000 tonnes of slurry and other waste contaminated with sulphuric acid, which developers are proposing to spread on nearby fields. Find out how to object to the farm at www.ulsteranglingfederation.com ■ MONEY FOR CLUBS Inland Fisheries Ireland, the Irish Government agency, is inviting clubs, communities, local authorities and fisheries to apply for a share of a two million euro fund earmarked to improve fisheries, promote angling and save wild salmon. Closing date for applications is October 13. Find out how to get a grant at www.fisheriesireland.ie/funding A similar scheme in England, the…

PINK SALMON ADVICE Having recently received the Angling Trust and Environment Agency (EA) advice on what to do if I catch a Pacific pink salmon I am not convinced that the recommendation to kill these fish and not return them to the river is the correct course to adopt. The EA note dated August 7 is not based on facts but speculation and beliefs, which could easily be wrong. The numbers said to have been caught by net fisheries are believed to be more than 200, but there’s no certainty. These fish have the potential, the EA says, to disturb the natural balance of our environment, not that they will. The EA believes that the White Sea region is the most likely origin of these fish, not that this is…

MULTI-TIP FLY-LINES have been embraced by salmon-fishers over the last decade. Affordable, practical and balanced, they allow us to quickly and effectively change the depth at which our fly is fishing to match each pool and different water conditions. This is achieved by adding different density sinking tips to a main floating belly. A multi-tip kit (eg, Rio Scandi VersiTip or Airflo Rage Shooting-Head Kit) might be supplied with a belly and three or four different tips: for example, floating, intermediate, Sink 3 (ie, sinks at three inches per second) and Sink 5. This month’s advice is about fine-tuning this casting “system” by offering additional fishing control and improved fly presentation. As well as the supplied tips that connect to the main belly of your line, consider carrying a selection…

“The fly’s maiden voyage produced four salmon and six sea-trout” THE SHEILA IS one of the unsung heroines of the Scottish hairwing tradition. I have featured several others over the years - Garry Dog, Hairy Mary, Stoat’s Tail, Munro’s Killer, Tosh, Crathie and Executioner. This breed of fly remains hugely popular and most of us have a favourite we reach for when conditions favour it. I thought it was high time I added Willie Matheson’s Sheila to the list of classics - it more than deserves its place. Willie is a highly respected gillie, whose family have been on the river since the 1880s. He has worked on the Beauly for 40 years. As a young man he began a week’s trial that has since evolved into possibly the longest…

Best known for its high-performance reels, Lamson is making a first foray into the rod market with its Centre Axis integrated rod-and-reel. The concept has been seen before, notably when Sage and Lamson worked together to produce lightweight rods with built-in reels. A standard separate fly-reel attached to a rod adds unhelpful weight below the hand. This weight works against the movement of the rod as you cast. To minimise these negative effects, as modern carbon-fibre rods have become lighter, modern fly-reels have become lighter, too. However, in theory, by moving the weight of the reel from beneath the hand to a central position at the bottom of the rod the effect of the reel's weight on the balance of the outfit is entirely removed. Interestingly, those tasked with the…

England & Wales BORDER ESK BUCCLEUCH ESTATES’ bailiff Peter Kinstrey told me there had been a decent run of salmon and grilse during August. Sea-trout sport was mixed, some anglers enjoying good catches while others struggled. On the Willow Pool, Jim Hunter had a 6 lb 8 oz salmon and a 4 lb 8 oz grilse on spinner. Patrick Laidler caught a 15 lb salmon and sea-trout of 2 lb 8 oz and 1 lb 8 oz. Dave Laidler had salmon of 12 lb, 5 lb and 14 lb and a 3 lb sea-trout. Alex Laidler landed a 12 lb salmon and a 3 lb sea-trout. On the Cauldron beat Dave Howen caught an 8 lb salmon, while Matt Arthurton and David Airey had 2 lb 8 oz sea-trout. Jack…