The Tarvie lochs are
'warming to the task'
 THE Tarvie Iochs have suddenly come alive, with fish showing everywhere.Warmer weather at last has brought trout up to the surface three weeks later than usual after the long hard winter, which saw the lochs frozen over for almost three months. Now fish are taking quite freely on the top, with Black Pennel, Kate MacLaren and Greenwell's Glory the most killing patterns. Recent successful visits include: Neil Thompson with 18 in one session (the best 6lb) taken on an intermediate line and a Greenwell's Glory; Alan Gowans from Kingussie with a 9lb trout on a Goldhead Damsel; Duncan MacArthur also from Kingussie with a fish of 5lb 14oz. James Sinclair from Wick with a trout of 5lb 4oz; Kevin Hives with 12 fish in six hours best 6lb 12oz, 6lb 3oz and 5lb 4oz; the next day Kevin's father Bill Hives, not one to be outdone, hauled in a trout of 9lb. Between now and mid-June the dry fly fishing, the most exciting form of trout angling, is at its best; what could be more thrilling than watching a large rainbow engulfing your fly on the surface you know that seconds later your reel will start to sing! The opening of the brown trout loch at Tarvie is being delayed probably until June 1 as everything including the frog spawn is three weeks behind and the fish need that extra time to reach optimum condition. The bait loch is now almost entirely open after being closed for a month because of foot and mouth restrictions, which have been relaxed.
IN stark contrast the warmer weather played havoc last Saturday with the annual Meig Open Competition on Loch Meig, organised by Loch Achonachie AC. THE winning team were the only anglers using sinking lines. The canny boys David MacLean, Mr MacDonald and Mr Brocklehurst from Beauly Angling Club walked off with first prize with a bag of 12 trout for 8lb 13oz. Mr Brocklehurst had the best individual catch with seven for 5lb 11oz. RUNNERS-UP were local team Calum MacDonald and Al Murray with five trout for 4lb 1oz. The best fish of the day at 1lb 3oz was taken by Lewis Ross from the official Loch Achonachie team.
BEFORE the snowmelt put the fish down, Loch Meig had been fishing very well, with fish taking freely on the surface, including many in the 2lb plus class. |
ON the salmon front, the Ness system had a meagre week. Dochfour, with a promising minus five inches on the gauge, started well with two springers on the Monday to Jimmy Craib snr with an 11lb fish in the Weir on a black and orange devon, and to Dr Young with one of 10lb in the Black Trees on a size 6 Claret Allys. But that was it until Saturday, when Donald Fraser tempted a sea-liced 9lb salmon in the Gullet on a Zebra Toby. The rest of the river was blank.
UP ON the Moriston, there has been little generating and consequently the water has been very thin, with fish lying off the river mouth.
THE northern rivers are desperate for a good downpour, as April's rainfall was less than half of that recorded for the month last year. Thurso anglers struggled to put 10 salmon on the bank. THE Halladale, with the gauge reading zero, only managed one fish last week - 10lb to Gavin Ogilvie in Smigel.
EVEN the Helmsdale is suffering from lack of water the dam has not been opened yet, and one beat was actually blank for the week, unheard of for early May.
THE Kyle rivers were almost down to low summer level. Nonetheless salmon still seem to be desperate to get into the Carron, and one middle beat had 14 last week almost all returned.
THE club water at the bottom of the Brora has been open for spring fishing for the first time, and for much of April it averaged close to one salmon a day.
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