River Dee 2009 season

ken@fishdee · #1 (**permalink**) 06-02-2009, 01:08 PM

Now finally I can write an update and post some pictures for you. I have been busy meeting and greeting visitors up and down the valley both by day and night in the hostelries of Deeside and it's great to see so many well known faces and friends of Deeside back enjoying the river and the valleys facilities.

Now to opening day, we had the ceremony at Ballogie and we had many visitors who were well entertained by Mr Clive Anderson and the team from Potarch Holly and Craig and staff, and Royal Lochnagar's Stewart Adamson providing first class hospitality. Here is regular visitor and huge supporter of the Dee-Mr Reid Hagelin, No Limits products and Global club of Flyfishers visiting from Norway as guest of ours for the event with Mr Paul Devlin, MD from the Glasgow Angling Centre another guest.

Here is the river Dee Board and Trust chairman Mr Ian Scott with 2 of the river Dee bailiffs Mr Luke Myatt and Mr Blair Forsyth with our biologist Mr Adrian Hudson with the beanie hat, just prior to the event commencing and guests arriving.

The guests arriving at the event and being piped in.

There were over 200 guests that arrived for the event.

Chairman Mr Scott addressing the audience thanking the assembled guests and hospitality providers and of course the guest speaker Mr Anderson.

Here is Mr Clive Anderson being presented with a Loop classic reel by myself on behalf of Mr Gareth Headland sales manager for Loop tackle (Sweden) and MD of St George's Sporting,England pictured and Somers tackle shop of Aberdeen,who were represented at the event by Mr Colin Craik.(not pictured)

I was fortunate to see and photograph Mr Mike Leach catch an opening day fish, One of two he had that day at Park,whilst visiting with Mr Ian Wood director of Fishpal and Mr Gareth Headland.

Mr Iain Wood and Mr Alan Morrison who were guests of mine in the evening prior to the next days fishing-Mr Iain Wood had a super 13lb fish from Sluie.

A delighted Mr Tony Black from Murthly and friend Mr Billy Davidson who between them accounted for 7 Springers at Little Blackhall and Inchmarlo on opening day on the fly.Pictures now on fishdee website http://www.fishpal.com/Scotland/Dee/Reports.asp?dom=Dee.

Mr Alan Morrison who was congratulating a very pleased Mr Jim Fisher following his capture of a 21 lb opening day Springer from Ballogie.Mr Fisher also had 3 other Springers over the next couple of days at Ballogie which is well upriver.Mr Fisher also had the largest opening Day Springer from the Tay this year and I am sure the Springers are settling in the pools of the Spey awaiting his arrival for opening day there.

Mr Tony Banks who finally managed to persuade me to part with my River Dee baseball cap as a momento from his fabulous opening days sport at Little Blackhall.I should point out in the afternoon whilst visiting the beat with Mr Headland and Mr Woods Tony remarked "Ken, I have had a day of 22 fish to my own rod and 2 days of 17 fish,but this day is by far the best days fishing I have ever enjoyed" I guess that statement is as good an endorsement and justification of value, for Dee spring salmon that I have ever heard,coming from such a renowned salmon fisherman.

Finally I would like to mention everyone but there were far too many to list but I should metion thanks to Mr Lawrie Hickman and the Guideline team and guests who arrived, including MD Stein,Andy and Aaron from T&S, RiverTweed guests including Bill McDaid,Grant Povey, GAC guests Paul Devlin and Duncan Egan.

Finally I am delighted to post this picture of a tranquil scene from Deeside which shows the natural beauty of Spring fishing at Park-compliments of Mr Keith Cromar the popular and experienced head ghillie.

ken@fishdee · #2 (**permalink**) 08-02-2009, 07:12 PM

We welcomed the 2009 River Dee salmon fishing season with a very well attended opening ceremony at Ballogie with over 200 people turning out on a cold and snowy day. This was to set the scene for the week's fishing conditions with snowfall a regular feature, ensuring the conditions were seen as winter fishing as opposed to spring fishing. The fresh run Salmon didn’t seem to mind the conditions and were very obliging in providing anglers with memorable sport. The total reported for the week on FishDee beats is 94 fish which is the best opening week for some time and is an encouraging sign for all those concerned with River Dee salmon fishing.

There have been some notable performances this week and it is appropriate to give thanks for the tremendous efforts shown by the talented anglers who descended on Deeside this week, equally matched by the dedication and expert knowledge provided by the River Dee Ghillies. On opening day we saw 11 fish reported from Lower Blackhall and Inchmarlo, with Tony Black from Murthly catching 8 fish in his 2 days on the River.

Carlogie and Ballogie saw well known faces to these beats arriving and it was no surprise to hear of excellent catches. Mr Tom Marshall took the honours with the first fish of the season from Carlogie, an 18 lb specimen which was netted by Ian Fraser. Tom, along with his talented angling wife Jean and nephew Billy recorded fish most days over the week. Jim Fisher took four fish for his 3 days including the biggest fish of the week at 21 lbs. Ghillies Archie Hay and Terry Paton had 2 fish each as did Blairs tenant Stuart Yeats. Visiting Ghillies Malcolm Newbould, Grant Povey also reported fine spring fish for their visits. I would be grateful if anglers would drop me a line commenting on their sport to ken@riverdee.org and attach any pictures that they may have, so that I can upload them to FishDee. Ken Reid, February 2009, ©FishDee Ltd.

Beat catches reported
(week ending 7th February)
SALMON: Middle Drum 2, Park 19, Lower Crathes and W Durris 8, Crathes 2, Invery 6, Banchory 7, Lower Blackhall 2, Little Blackhall and Inchmarlo 20, Middle Blackhall 1, Cairnton 4, Woodend 2, Sluie 4, Ballogie 8, Borrowston 1, Kincardine 3, Carlogie 3, Lower Dess 1, Aboyne Water 1.
Total: 94 Largest: Ballogie 21lbs
SEA TROUT: None reported
TROUT: None reported

After the encouraging start to the 2009 season it would be wise to exercise some caution as there is currently a considerable amount of grue coming down the river today, which can make fishing difficult if not impossible. There seems to be a quantity of fish below Aboyne and these fish will be found meandering very slowly upriver in the very cold water temperatures. The best taking times will be around the middle of the day when temperatures are at their highest. It is prudent to heed the wise advice of your ghillie as they know exactly the best tactics to use to ensure you are in with a chance of hooking a salmon. If you do not have the services of a ghillie then deep and slow are the recognised tactics with fairly big tube flies. The popular patterns include Willie Gunn’s, Black and Yellow and Ice Maidens, with the Monkey fly and Sunray shadow fished deep and slow also productive.

Now to weather conditions, we expect to have a continuation of cold weather, perhaps with not as much snow and with light winds forecast. Providing temperatures rise a little we shall see the problem of grue disappearing and anglers will have a good crack at the newly run fish. The maritime influence indicates spring tides peaking at 4.6 metres this week in Aberdeen which should encourage fish that want to run to enter the system. There is some good fishing availability on the River Dee and hopefully anglers able to visit will find some fishing to suit their requirements by clicking on the web link: http://www.fishpal.com/Scotland/Dee/...asp?dom=PalThe River Dee is free of the Gyrodactylus salaris parasite and all anglers should ensure they sign a declaration form prior to commencing fishing on their beat.

Please keep an eye on the catches page of FishDee and river levels page where you will be able to plan your visit accordingly. Please let me know how you get on as it makes writing this report a real pleasure. Tight lines, Ken Reid, © FishDee Ltd February 2009

ken@fishdee · #3 (**permalink**) 16-02-2009, 09:30 AM

FishDee week end report 15/2/2009

Catches

This was a quieter week than opening week, as a result of the freezing temperatures throughout Deeside, that fell as low as minus 18 degrees overnight. Essentially, when the temperatures get as low as this we start to have ice forming in the river. This leads to unfishable conditions as this “grue,” as it is known, makes it virtually impossible to fish effectively, as it lifts the line to the surface when we want the line to sink. These conditions effectively prevented fishing for the first 2 and a half days of the week on the river but there were still 44 fish reported for the week. These were well distributed with fish being recorded on 13 river beats up to 21lbs in weight.

Mr Greener with his fine Springer from Little Blackhall.

There have been some notable performances this week and it is appropriate to compliment the tremendous efforts shown by anglers who battled away stoically on Deeside, equally matched by the dedication and expert knowledge provided by the hardy river beat Ghillies. The distribution of catches from Ardoe to Aboyne water shows that fish are well distributed throughout the lower and middle beats. The top reporting beat for the week was Lower Crathes and West Durris, which reported a dozen spring salmon. This is a beat that offers anglers a wide variety of first class fly fishing water, and it can be one of the most reliable and desirable beats for spring salmon fly fishing anywhere in Scotland.

John Veitch with a nice Springer from the House Pool at Park.

I am very grateful to Ghillie Robert Harper who commented “Following the grue and ice on Monday and Tuesday, Mr Thorarinsson had great day here on Lower Crathes catching 4 salmon, the best two weighing 14 &15lbs. Mr Thorarinsson then fished Upper Crathes on Thursday, Friday and Saturday, where he added another two salmon, giving him 6 Springers for his week. With two days basically ruled out due to conditions this can't be bad. Considering it was really only at best 4 days fishing, we finished with 12 salmon and 95 kelts.” I met most of the party during the week in Banchory, and at the beat, and it was a real pleasure to meet such an enthusiastic group of regular visitors considering how difficult conditions were.

I would be grateful if anglers would drop me a line commenting on their sport to ken@riverdee.org and attach any pictures they may have which I can have hosted on the FishDee site. Tight lines, Ken Reid © FishDee February 2009.

Prospects

We see warmer weather forecast and the river level gauges are showing rising levels which should ensure anglers having splendid fishing conditions compared to the last weeks freezing temperatures. These warming air and water temperatures should encourage fish to be more active and it will be good to see what the catches are this week. There seems to be a quantity of fish between Culter and Aboyne with some big fish being seen in the river. The best taking times will be around the middle of the day when temperatures are at their highest. It is prudent to heed the wise advice of your ghillies as they know exactly the best tactics to use to ensure you are in with a chance of hooking a salmon. If you do not have the services of a Ghillie then deep and slow are the recognised tactics with fairly big tube flies. The popular patterns include Willie Gunn’s, Black and Yellow and Ice Maidens, with the Monkey fly and Sunray shadow fished deep and slow also being productive.

Martyn Robinson of Guide Flyfishing with a fine 12 lber.

We expect to have a period of milder weather with temperatures forecast at Banchory to be in the region of 6- 8 degrees Celsius or mid 40’s Fahrenheit and with light winds forecast and only the occasional light shower. The maritime influence indicates neap tides peaking at 3.9 metres this week in Aberdeen which should encourage fish that want to run to enter the system with snow melt expected to lift river levels to a nice height for fresh fish to run the system. There is some really good fishing availability on the River Dee for lower and middle beats, and hopefully anglers able to visit will find some fishing to suit their requirements by clicking at the web link. http://www.fishpal.com/Scotland/Dee/...ch.asp?dom=Pal

Willie Banks with a 36 Inch 18 lb Springer at Tilbouries today on a GWG with the river at 5 ft 9 Inches and rising!!The first of the season for the beat.

The River Dee is free of the Gyrodactylus salaris parasite and all anglers should ensure they sign a declaration form prior to commencing fishing on their beat. I anticipate that fish will continue to be caught between Aboyne and below Banchory, always allowing for weather conditions. Please keep an eye on the catches page of FishDee and river levels page where you will be able to plan your visit accordingly. Please let me know how you get on by dropping me an e-mail to ken@riverdee.org with any anecdotes and pictures. Tight lines, Ken Reid © FishDee February 2009.

ken@fishdee · #4 (**permalink**) 22-02-2009, 08:15 PM

FishDee week end report 22/2/2009

Recent Catches

This was a week that I thought that might be productive and this turned out to be the case with 22 FishDee beats reporting catches. These catches were distributed from Blairs beside Milltimber right up to Lower Invercauld at Ballater. There were 2 days effectively lost at the beginning of the week following an 8 ft rise in water due to snowmelt. There was a nice volume of snow in the hills which it was hoped would melt slowly to maintain a super river height for fishing, alas the temperatures soared and a massive amount melted and caused a big flood. We also had rising gauges on Saturday that dampened catches a little bit with anglers reporting that the river rose by 1 foot during the day at Lower Crathes. All is all we had excellent returns in between these 2 lifts of water with FishDee beats reporting 96 fish for the week. Park reported 23 fish, Lower Crathes reported 15 fish and Ballogie reported 11 fish.

A nice 8lb Dee Springer for Mr Jackson

I am very grateful to Mr Adrian Jackson who reported on his week “The week started cold and frosty and fishing was only possible on Thursday, Friday and Saturday. We spent the first part of the week breaking ice off the pools in anticipation of warmer weather allowing us to fish. Eventually the temperature increased enough for the grue to melt and allow safe casting. I managed to catch 2 Springers from the Bridge Pool on Thursday, one weighing 8lbs and the other weighing 15lbs within 10 minutes of each other. These gave very interesting fights, due to the amount of ice coming downstream, with some pieces in excess of 20ft long. The temperature of the water at this time was 0 degrees. Also around the same time William Addison from Lincolnshire caught a 10lb Springer from the Sands, this was his first Dee Springer and only the second salmon he had ever caught. On Saturday another member of the party Alek Krstenic had a 20lb Springer out of Gannets. For the 3 days fished we caught 5 Springers, 26 kelts and 1 baggot. Many thanks to Sean Stanton for all his help”.

A seal damaged fish at Ballogie

I also received correspondence from a delighted Mr Orazio Gatti from Milan who was fishing at Lower Crathes. Mr Gatti has very kindly drafted the following report “My name is Orazio Gatti and I live in Milano, Italy. I’m fishing the beautiful river Dee at Lower Crathes some years during the last week of April, but I went this year for the 1st time to fish the opening days of the season : the weather, as you know, had not been really good but with my friend Stefano we had pretty good fishing in Lower Crathes with 3 salmon and several kelts of really good size in 3 days.

Mr Gatti with a really fine Dee Springer

I want to wish you all the best for the new season and I thank the River Dee Management for the nice ceremony offered in Potarch and the good managing of the river that I would like to see applied also in other Scottish rivers. I’m sending you enclosed the picture of a beauty bright salmon that I had landed at Balbridie in the morning of February 4th on a Willie Gun Gold body Brass Tube of 1 ½ inches and the picture of Stefano enjoying the opening ceremony! I will be back for a week the end of April hoping that the good starting of the season will be followed by a great season on the Dee!” I would be most grateful if anglers would drop me a line commenting on their sport to ken@riverdee.org and attach any pictures so that they may be shared on this site.
Tight lines, Ken Reid © FishDee Ltd February 2009.

A close up of a Springer caught by Mr Gatti which is an excellent photograph.

Prospects

We will see a continuation of the mild weather for the next few days with temperatures forecast between 45 to 50 degrees Fahrenheit. There are no frosts forecast until Thursday night and the winds are from the west. These are likely to deplete further the reserves of snow in the mountains and we may have water levels that rise and fall a few times this week, how much is hard to predict but Park is 3 ft 6 inches and rising, and other gauges are indicating falling levels.

Now a word of advice, it is very important to take the wise advice of your ghillies, when conditions are tricky the difference between success and failure can very often be the ghillies input to you. If you do not have the services of a Ghillie then deep and slow are the recognised tactics with fairly big tube flies of 1- 3 inches. The popular patterns include Gold Willie Gunn’s, Black and Yellow tube fly, the ever popular and effective Monkey fly and Sunray shadow, fished deep and slow also productive. An angler is believed to have lost his fly line after being broken by a big fish.

The maritime influence indicates Spring tides peaking at 4.4 metres this week in Aberdeen on Friday, which should encourage fish that want to run to enter the system with snow melt expected to lift river levels to a nice height for fresh fish to run the system. River temperatures are in the high 30’s Fahrenheit which will encourage fish to run .There is some really good fishing availability on the River Dee for lower and middle beats, and hopefully anglers able to visit will find some fishing to suit their requirements by clicking at the web link. http://www.fishpal.com/Scotland/Dee/...ch.asp?dom=Pal

The river Dee is free of the Gyrodactylus salaris parasite and all anglers should ensure they sign a declaration form prior to commencing fishing on their beat. Please keep an eye on the latest catches and river levels page of FishDee where you will be able to plan your visit accordingly. Please let me know how you get on by dropping me an e-mail to ken@riverdee.org with any anecdotes and pictures.
Tight lines, Ken Reid @FishDee Ltd, February 2009

ken@fishdee · #5 (**permalink**) 01-03-2009, 07:01 PM

FishDee week end report 01/3/2009

Recent Catches

This was a week where there were reports of anglers having dramatic tussles with very big fish, with four fishers having their fly lines broken by big fish. The catches indicate there were good numbers of fish of 15 lbs plus being taken throughout the catchment with the biggest Springer reported to be 22lbs from Crathes. The FishDee beats reported 92 fish for this week, which has seen a continuation of consistent sport with over 325 for the month reported from FishDee beats.

I am delighted to report new FishDee beat Tilbouries reported five fish for the week, the best of which was the 20 lb stunner landed by Jack Ward, Mike Thornton had 2 beauties as did myself fishing there on Saturday. There were fish also reported in the upper river at Crathie and Lower Invercauld, where an 18 lb fresh fish was landed and then released.

I received an interesting e-mail report from Mr John Hickman fishing a lower Dee beat he reported “I enjoy reading your website every week, a party of 5 of us fished last week a lower Dee beat. We had 74 kelts and five fresh Springers and a 2lb Sea Trout in 3 1/2 days. My brother Peter who had never fished the Dee before had two of these Springers, and two of the others were caught by another angler in our party Ray who had never caught a salmon before. I caught a huge hen Kelt of 63 inches in length, in hind sight I wish I had got some scales for our Ghillie to send to the Dee Board as proof. So I know these stories of big fish are true” What an experience he has had with that fish.

Angler Sam Harris commented “Just thought I would let you know about the cracking day we had on the Knappach Beat, Saturday 21 February 2009. We met Ian Menzies at 9am and he showed us the ropes. I was fishing with my friend Mark Roxburgh from Edinburgh and my dad Derrick Harris, who came through from Inverness for the day. This was the first time we had fished the Dee and was our first day of 2009. We were impressed with the character of the beat for it being such a large river. The conditions were good and the weather was brilliant. We fished in the morning and Mark caught two well mended kelts and we saw some fresh fish. We had lunch in Banchory and returned to the river which had risen significantly. Approximately 3pm Dad caught a fresh fish of about eight pounds. Shortly after Mark and I both hooked fresh fish but both were lost. We fished until dusk had a few drinks and headed home. The day was brilliant and Dad was pleased to catch the first fish on Knappach beat for 2009.”

I would be most grateful if anglers would drop me a line commenting on their sport to ken@riverdee.org and attach any pictures so that they may be shared on this site.
Tight lines, Ken Reid © FishDee Ltd March 2009.

Beat catches reported
(week ending 28th February)
SALMON: Ardoe and Murtle 1, Altries and Lower Drum 1, Middle Drum 2, Tilbouries 5, Park 15, Lower Crathes and W Durris 10, Knappach 2, Crathes 5, Invery 9, Banchory 5, Lower Blackhall 4, Little Blackhall and Inchmarlo 4, Middle Blackhall 2, Cairnton 2, Commonty 4, Ballogie 4, Borrowston 2, Kincardine 4, Carlogie 2, Lower Dess 4, Birse 1, Aboyne Water 1, Monaltrie and Lower Invercauld 1, Crathie 2.
Total: 92 Largest: Crathes 22lbs

Prospects

We have a return to cooler wintery conditions forecast for midweek, with snowfall reported on Wednesday and Thursday. The forecast air temperatures are in the high thirties and low forties Fahrenheit, which is good for spring Fishing. I hope there is a good fall of snow on the mountain tops to provide a vital reservoir of snow to assist water levels throughout the spring. Neap Tides are forecast for the week, with tidal heights to be dropping back from 4.3 metres to 3.4 metres in Aberdeen. The river temperatures are approximately 38- 40 degrees Fahrenheit and are similar to current sea temperatures so fish should hopefully run the river. There are reportedly big fish about so make sure you check your tackle is sound prior to fishing if you don’t have a Ghillie to assist you. Anglers fishing with Ghillies will be advised what tactics to employ, and leader and flies to use. I stress the importance of taking your Ghillies advice as they know best how to cope with their beats conditions, and want to ensure the angler has the best opportunities to catch prized spring fish.

What are the prospects for the week? Well I guess the mountaineer needs the mountain for their sport and the angler fishing the Dee needs fish to be present. Happily I can report we have a fair number of fish throughout the system, albeit anglers would love there to be more. It is encouraging to report February catches of 327 fish from FishDee beats against a 5 year average of 198. There were some encouraging results for February with some beats reporting eye catching catches. Little Blackhall reported 32 against a 5 yr average of 10, Park reported 63 against a 5 yr average of 32, Lower Crathes reported 43 against a 5 yr average of 21 Both Ballogie and Invery reported 27 against respective 5 yr averages of 16. There is some really good fishing availability on the River Dee through March and April , and hopefully anglers able to visit will find some fishing to suit their requirements by clicking at the web link. http://www.fishpal.com/Scotland/Dee/...ch.asp?dom=Pal
The River Dee is free of the Gyrodactylus salaris parasite and all anglers should ensure they sign a declaration form prior to commencing fishing on their beat.

Please let me know how you get on by dropping me an e-mail to ken@riverdee.org with any anecdotes and pictures.
Tight lines, Ken Reid @FishDee Ltd, March 2009

ken@fishdee · #6 (**permalink**) 08-03-2009, 07:45 PM

FishDee week end report 08/3/2009

The FishDee beats reported 68 fish for the week to 23 lbs, with fish being caught and released from Middle Drum to Dee Castle. This was a quieter week than some of the weeks we enjoyed in February and follows a pattern replicated in many other Scottish Salmon rivers. This can be attributed to a real cold snap that put fish off the take for a few days.

I was delighted to receive an e-mail and pictures from Gordon Armstrong who is the World Spey casting champion and Ghillie from the River Ness. Gordon, a regular visitor to Deeside, is a very accomplished angler as well as being a dab hand at casting. He commented “I had a great few days at Crathes castle this week, catching two fish, one at 11lb and my largest ever Atlantic salmon of 22lb. It's great to see the Dee fishing so well and for the river to be making a steady improvement year on year. It is testament to all those involved in the recovery of the system. I have attached a few photos as I thought you would like to see them”. Regular visitor to Deeside Tony Black from Murthly visited Park on Monday and had 5 fish and a further fish from Borrowstone later in the week. I met him briefly on Monday and he is hugely enthusiastic about spring salmon fishing on Deeside. Ross MacDonald landed a beauty of 16 lbs on Saturday and I hope to have a picture of this fish on the FishDee website this week.

A portrait with the Champion-Gordon and the 22lb Salmon.

Gordons nice fish taken during the witching hour-Ghillie Cleeve Cowie looks on.

We also had the advance party of “Viking” visitors arriving with passionate Dee supporter Reid Hagelin, the owner of the well known Global Club of Fly Fishers. I met up with the party during the week in a Banchory hostelry where they were showing wonderful video footage of their fishing trips from 2008. It was an informative and entertaining night, hosted by Reid and Frede Hognestad, which concluded with a game of darts that saw 12 participants engaged in serious combat and much hilarity. There was a celebratory dinner held last night (Saturday) at the Potarch for the visitors from GCOF, as always Holly and Craig’s team provided really excellent fare and service to all the assembled guests. During the evenings events, Piper Mike Donald provided a moving lament to the memory of Rune Berger from GCOF, who was tragically drowned last year in Norway, there were quite a few tears shed by the assembled party. This week sees the “Viking” party size increase to 50 visitors, and I look forward to meeting them during the coming week.

Reid,Frede,Hasse and Gemma enjoying the competition-Killer Darts

Some Images of the very enjoyable dinner at the Potarch Hotel hosted by Reid Hagelin and the Global Club of Flyfishers-Norway.

Assembled Guests

Piper Mike Donald.

Reid and Hasse

Finally I would like to mention that the River Dee has contributed to the Homecoming Scotland 2009 campaign where you can visit the website http://www.homecomingscotland2009.co...s/default.html and send an e-card with a delightful picture of the “Roe Pot” at Little Blackhall. I would be most grateful if anglers would drop me a line commenting on their sport to ken@riverdee.org and attach any pictures so that they may be shared on this site.
Tight lines, Ken Reid © FishDee Ltd March 2009.

Prospects

We have a real mixed bag of a forecast with winds, rain, occasional snow falls in the hills and milder daytime air temperatures, so anglers should be prepared to deal with these changeable conditions. The river has had a substantial rise with levels on Sunday three to four feet above summer level; allied to river temperatures of approximately 38- 40 degrees Fahrenheit and spring tides, plenty of fish should run the river.

Feedback from anglers and Ghillies indicate the use of intermediate lines with sink tips, proving popular allied with short sturdy leaders and 2 inch copper tube flies like the Cascade, Tosh, Willie Gunn and Comet possibly likely to produce some offers.

It is important to spend time with your beat Ghillie to ascertain the best tactics to use to suit the conditions encountered on the water. Apart from the fact the ghillies know their beat intimately they are usually a real pleasure to spend time with on the river bank.

Ghillie George Murray at Craigendinnie-great company on the riverbank.

There is some fishing availability on the River Dee through March and April, and hopefully anglers able to visit will find some fishing to suit their requirements by clicking at the web link. http://www.fishpal.com/Scotland/Dee/...ch.asp?dom=Pal
The River Dee is free of the Gyrodactylus salaris parasite and all anglers should ensure they sign a declaration form prior to commencing fishing on their beat.

As always please let me know how you get on by dropping me an e-mail to ken@riverdee.org with any anecdotes and pictures about your experiences on the river.
Tight lines, Ken Reid @FishDee Ltd, March 2009

ken@fishdee · #7 (**permalink**) 15-03-2009, 07:58 PM

FishDee week end report 08/3/2009

The FishDee beats reported 67 fish for the week to 25 lbs, one less than the previous week, with fish being caught and released from Tilbouries to Lower Invercauld and Monaltrie. This was a difficult week with fish being observed running hard, some beats seeing a lot of fish and others not seeing many. Weather conditions were tricky with some extremely strong winds making fly fishing difficult. There were a good number of rods fishing with the Global club of flyfishing having 50 rods fishing from Banchory to Cambus O’May. Their party leader Reid Hagelin worked hard to keep all his guests entertained and there were a number of good nights out in the local hostelries where the guests ensured they enjoyed their stay on Deeside. This culminated in a very enjoyable 15 year anniversary dinner at the Potarch hotel on Saturday for the guests with many prizes awarded and firework display.

I am grateful to Fraser Mann who told me about his recent visit to Deeside where he had 3 days on Aboyne Water and 3 days at Crathes Castle. Fraser enjoyed success with 2 fish to 17lbs at Aboyne and 3 fish to 23 lbs at Crathes Castle. He was using a fly pattern developed and tied by stand in Ghillie Ian Bissett called the “Lummel’s Shrimp” tied on a plastic tube and fished on a heavy sink tip shooting head. Fraser excels as a sportsman and is a well known professional golfer who also has a real talent as a salmon angler. I have a copy of the fly pattern passed to me by Ian and it looks a very good fly so I expect to hear of further success for this pattern on Deeside.

Visiting Welsh Angler Leigh Hookes enjoyed his recent stay on Deeside with fishing at Craigendinnie with Ghillie George Murray. Lee commented “Caught my first Dee Springer, after three trips to the Dee, what a privilege to fish such a wonderful beat on such a beautiful river which was some of the best fly water I’ve ever seen or fished. George was fantastic, a real Ghillie, knowledgeable, friendly and patient, a real joy to fish with.”

Ross Macdonald, inventor of the very successful Park shrimp, had a 16 lb fish to this pattern and wrote the following to me “I got off the mark in style last Saturday with a fine fish, in the 16lb class, from the Durris Stream at Park . As you know, Keith Cromar is great company and certainly knows his water. He guided me onto the fish, which took right on cue. My advice for visitors-listen to the Ghillie”. This is sound advice to observe, for all anglers visiting Deeside looking for a spring salmon.

I would be most grateful if anglers would drop me a line commenting on their sport to ken@riverdee.org and attach any pictures so that they may be shared on this site.

Tight lines, Ken Reid © FishDee Ltd March 2009.

Prospects

As I write this column there has been a small rise in river levels with the river gauges indicating heights from 1ft 8 inches to 2 ft 1 inch. The river is in really good order with excellent clear water flowing throughout the valley with silver salmon now distributed throughout the catchment. The water temperatures are in the region of 36- 40 degrees Fahrenheit allied to air temperatures forecast for the next few days of 46-54 degrees Fahrenheit, ideal for spring fishing on Deeside. Now because anglers and Ghillies think that conditions are ideal doesn’t mean necessarily that Salmon will co-operate. That is perhaps one of the fascinating aspects of our sport and makes the Salmon such a highly prized catch. If it was too easy it wouldn’t draw visitors from near and far to Deeside to arguably the finest spring salmon river in the world.

Feedback from anglers and Ghillies indicate the use of intermediate lines with sink tips, proving popular allied to short sturdy leaders and 2 inch tube flies like the Posh Tosh, Willie Gunn and Monkey possibly likely to produce some offers sometime throughout the week. When conditions are tricky this is when the Ghillies can be of huge assistance as they are able to interpret conditions and offer advice to assist in encountering some sport.

There is some fishing availability on the River Dee through March and April, and hopefully anglers able to visit will find some fishing to suit their requirements by clicking at the web link. http://www.fishpal.com/Scotland/Dee/...ch.asp?dom=Pal

The River Dee is free of the Gyrodactylus salaris parasite and all anglers should ensure they sign a declaration form prior to commencing fishing on their beat.

As always please let me know how you get on by dropping me an e-mail to ken@riverdee.org with any anecdotes and pictures about your experiences on the river. Tight lines, Ken Reid © FishDee Ltd, March 2009

ken@fishdee · #8 (**permalink**) 22-03-2009, 08:12 PM

FishDee week end report 22/3/2009

Recent Catches

Weather conditions improved with air temperatures rising, and the fish catches followed suit, with FishDee beats so far reporting 99 fish caught with perhaps more to be reported in the next 12 hours. It was a productive week for some lower beats with Lower Crathes and West Durris reporting 18 fish and Park reporting 10 fish. It has been a difficult month so far with fish seeming to be running hard for the upper reaches and one or two areas seeing good sport and other areas not seeing as many fish. There has been a good level of bookings with FishDee this year, on top of last year’s excellent year, with bookings so far standing at 26 % up on last year so anglers are coming in good numbers to enjoy the river Dee, acknowledged as one of the top spring salmon rivers in the world. There are a lot of angling visitors to Deeside who are contributing significantly to the local economy and they enjoy the hospitality in the many hostelries on Deeside where they are made very welcome.

David Murray with a fine 26 lber from the Garden Pool at Monaltrie.

It is pleasing to report the continuation of big fish catches on the river Dee with a super 26 lb specimen being taken on fly at Lower Invercauld and Monaltrie by Mr David Murray. This continues the pattern of fish over 20 lbs being caught on the river every week so far this season. I have heard reports from both anglers and Ghillies that good sized fish are being seen from time to time as they travel upstream. I received a warm communication from a delighted Mr Stuart Maughn who commented positively “I just wanted to say what a great river you have up there. I fished there a couple of weeks ago on several beats but caught my first ever spring salmon on Lower Crathes with Robert Harper the Gillie. As a newcomer to the sport over the last 2 years this was a great day on a great river. Now I'm hooked I can’t wait until l get back up there in April. Keep up the good work.” Many thanks for the kind comments which will be appreciated by the river Ghillies who work hard to look after their guests throughout Deeside.

Mr Stuart Maughn with his recent capture at Lower Crathes.

I was delighted to meet Mr Chris Webster again on Friday, Chris is the director of the popular television programme Turus a Bhradain - currently being broadcast on BBC Alba, Sky channel 168 on Monday evenings at 8.30 pm and also being broadcast on the BBC I player. For those wanting to look at the six part series please look here is the on-line web link http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode...adain_The_Dee/ Chris was fishing on the Lower Dee at Park and had a very enjoyable day with some action. We had a discussion about the series and about how the rivers differ throughout Scotland. The programme is about many aspects of natural history, fishing and traditions which showcases the unique characteristics of our salmon rivers and catchments.

I would be most grateful if anglers would drop me a line commenting on their sport to ken@riverdee.org and attach any pictures so that they may be shared on this site.

Tight lines, Ken Reid © FishDee Ltd March 2009.

Prospects

We are seeing weather systems forecast to sweep through Deeside bringing cooler air temperatures, rainfall and moderate to strong westerly winds. Air temperatures will be ranging from 40 to 50 degrees Fahrenheit but there are no frosts forecast, current river temperatures are 38-44 degrees Fahrenheit depending where you are in the catchment, with the top river beats being marginally cooler than the lower beats. The maritime influence signifies rising Spring tides throughout the week peaking on Saturday at 4.4 metres in Aberdeen. The river is in good ply running crystal clear with measuring gauges showing heights of between 9 inches to 1 foot 2 inches. There is a good chance that we may see a rise in river levels as there is heavy rain forecast on Monday and this allied to the Spring tides will allow fish to enter the river and run throughout the catchment. It is difficult to pin point where the best sport will be seen as there is such a widespread distribution of salmon throughout the whole Dee valley. The best advice is to be patient and fish hard throughout the week as running fish may be encountered wherever you are fishing.

For anglers fishing without the services of a Ghillie current feedback from anglers indicate the use of intermediate lines with sink tips, proving popular allied to sturdy leaders and 1 to 2 inch flies with patterns like the Tosh, Gold Willie Gunn, and Monkey fly possibly likely to produce some offers. Some anglers are using copper tubes, some aluminium tubes and some plastic tube flies with others fishing dressed flies in the size 6-10 range. Please remember when conditions are tricky this is when the Ghillies can be of huge assistance as they are able to interpret conditions and offer advice to assist in encountering some sport from the salmon and sea trout migrating up river.

There is some fishing availability on the FishDee website, and hopefully anglers able to visit will find some fishing to suit their requirements by clicking at the web link. http://www.fishpal.com/Scotland/Dee/...ch.asp?dom=Pal please make sure you read the beat descriptions to ensure the beat suits your specific needs prior to booking.

The River Dee is free of the Gyrodactylus salaris parasite and all anglers should ensure they sign a declaration form prior to commencing fishing on their beat.

As always please let me know how you get on by dropping me an e-mail to ken@riverdee.org with any anecdotes and pictures about your experiences on the river. Tight lines, Ken Reid © FishDee Ltd, March 2009

ken@fishdee · #9 (**permalink**) 30-03-2009, 12:08 PM

Prospects

Current conditions see kinder weather forecasts than have been observed of late with air temperatures forecast to be in the low 50’s Fahrenheit and river temperatures in the high thirties Fahrenheit. Winds are forecast to be reasonably gentle gusting to 15 mph from the south west and little precipitation is anticipated for the next few days. We should see catches rise over the next few days as we go into April. The maritime influence shows high tides in Aberdeen falling from 4.2 metres today to 3.6 metres on Saturday.

The rises in water level will have washed a lot more of the Kelts downstream. Current feedback from anglers and Ghillies met on the river indicate the use of intermediate lines, proving popular allied to short sturdy leaders and 2 inch tube flies like the Park Shrimp, Gold Willie Gunn and Sunray Shadow possibly likely to produce some offers sometime throughout the week. It pays to listen to your Ghillie if you have got one to assist you and they might have some ideas up their sleeve that you have not considered.

There is some fishing availability on the River Dee through April, and hopefully anglers able to visit will find some fishing to suit their requirements by clicking at the web link. http://www.fishpal.com/Scotland/Dee/...ch.asp?dom=Pal

Raemoir trout fishery are offering an excellent opportunity for anyone wishing to try fishing, to visit their fishery venue in Banchory on Sundays throughout April and May where they will be given tackle and instruction completely free of charge and the opportunity to fish.This is a great way to shake of the winter blues and try out a new hobby for parents and children.

The River Dee is free of the Gyrodactylus Salaris parasite and all anglers should ensure they sign a declaration form prior to commencing fishing on their beat.

As always please let me know how you get on by dropping me an e-mail to ken@riverdee.org with any anecdotes and pictures about your experiences on the river. Tight lines, Ken Reid © FishDee Ltd, March 2009

Recent Catches
Last updated: Monday 30th March

A reduced volume of catches were recorded on FishDee this week with 48 fish reported between Tilbouries and Monaltrie& Lower Invercauld. There were difficult conditions on the river where there were 3 rises of water during the fishing week which made fishing very difficult indeed. The water temperatures were fluctuating quite dramatically as well, which contributed in putting the fish catches down. We are currently just short of the 5 years average for February/March combined and need 36 fish over the next 2 days to equal the 5 year average.

I am most grateful to have received this communication from Mr Mark Nesbitt who commented “Just a quick note on my week at Invery and Upper Crathes last week. Conditions were difficult to say the least. Blue skies, soaring water temperatures and fish running hard through the beat seemingly uninterested in anything I could throw at them. The beat finished the week with 4 fish and I managed one of them, a 6lber from the "S" pool caught on a self tied Monkey fly off an intermediate shooting head. Evidence of fish coming through kept spirits up and I fished hard all week with great anticipation.

My father joined me from Ireland on Friday and Saturday. He hooked a big brownie (estimated at 4lb) in the Signal pool on Saturday morning which we all had a laugh at…..trust an Irish man to come to Scotland for a Springer and catch a big brownie! The big brownie which was safely returned .The lack of fish in March this year will not put me off. Statistically it is still one of the best months on the lower river. We had a great stay in the Potarch Inn with Holly and Craig. This is a delightful little place to stay in a lovely setting on the banks of Ballogie. Many thanks to Karl Revel and Jim Turnbull who provided great support all week and kept spirits high.

I would be most grateful if anglers would drop me a line commenting on their sport to ken@riverdee.org and attach any pictures so that they may be shared on this site.

Tight lines, Ken Reid © FishDee Ltd March 2009.

ken@fishdee · #10 (**permalink**) 05-04-2009, 08:46 PM

Recent Catches updated Sunday 5 th April

The weather warmed up considerably during the week and this in turn encouraged fish to run and there was a slight upturn in catches with 96 reported so far from FishDee beats. We saw Park reporting 22 fish for the week with some nice sea liced fish landed. The biggest fish reported for the week came from Headinch and Cambus O’May, with a fresh sea liced 20 lber, which indicates some fresh fish are running hard throughout the catchment. This is in line with some of the observations reported from Ghillies and anglers, where some beats are seeing fish running hard and a few beats not seeing any at all. So it’s a case of being in the right place at the right time and you might encounter some good sport.

I was delighted to visit a few beats during the week and met Ghillies and anglers who seemed to be enjoying the improved weather and catches. I was fortunate to turn up and take some pictures for an angler landing a nice fish, but more of that next week when he sends his comments to me. I met a party of business men from Aberdeen one evening at Dinnet who were enjoying their visit to Dinnet and Deecastle beat, and Mr Graham Robertson commented “ Ken, I had a great day, have not fished since last July so to get a beezer of a fish was to say amazing, it was great to mock the lads at lunch, they have fished hard for 3 days with no fish. Ewan the Ghillie says it’s the nicest fish he has seen all season so far (a prime nine pounder) it was also an honour to release it back into the Dee, it took a minute for the fish to regain enough energy to get going then it took off like a bullet. Nice to put a face to a name.” I must thank the gentlemen for their very kind hospitality, and mention how delighted the guests were with the Ghillies Colin Espie and Euan Mellis, who had done a superb job of looking after them.

Graham Robertson and Ghillie Euan Mellis with Springer.

As always please let me know how you get on by dropping me an e-mail to ken@riverdee.org with any anecdotes and pictures about your experiences on the river. Tight lines, Ken Reid © FishDee Ltd, April 2009

Prospects for Week Commencing 17/03/08

The prospects for sport look encouraging for the week with steady river levels, along with better air and water temperatures. The weather forecast indicates some cloudy and breezy days with air temperatures in the low 50’s Fahrenheit and water temperatures in the mid forties Fahrenheit. Winds are forecast to be from the southerly directions and may gust to 20 mph at times. There is some rain forecast for the week, with today’s forecast suggesting heavy rain on Wednesday for the lower river valley and perhaps rain showers on other days. The maritime influence sees spring tides rising from 3.6 metres in Aberdeen to 4.3 Metres. The sea and river temperatures will be quite similar and this should encourage fish to run the river. It would be nice to see a big spring run coming into the system over the next few weeks.

With the daylight hours lengthening some anglers are starting earlier and finishing later than is observed in February and March. Some anglers were catching fish at 7.30 am where they were able to commence fishing before the traditional 9.00 am start with the Ghillies consent. If you are able to start early and fish later into the evenings then it may be productive for some but ensure you have the Ghillies permission to fish out with the traditional 9-5 fishing day. Deeside is welcoming the coming spring with flora and fauna a lot more active now. The trees are coming into bloom and there are some spectacular shows from the daffodils on the river banks, some of which traditionally were planted at good salmon taking lies.

More anglers are using floating lines with short sink tips and it was reported that fish were taking near the surface last week with Monkey flies apparently doing well. Again some feel any fly does well on the Dee so long as it is black and yellow. It pays to ask your Ghillie for advice if you have one to ensure you are giving yourself the best chance of sport. To finish this week I want to mention that on Sundays throughout April and May, if there is anyone interested in trying out fishing to see if they will enjoy it as a hobby should visit Raemoir fishery in Banchory, as instruction and tackle will be provided free of charge to anyone who wants to visit this venue and try to catch a fish.

The River Dee is free of the Gyrodactylus salaris parasite and all anglers should ensure they sign a declaration form prior to commencing fishing on their beat. As always please let me know how you get on by dropping me an e-mail to ken@riverdee.org with any anecdotes and pictures about your experiences on the river. Tight lines, Ken Reid © FishDee Ltd, April 2009.

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