Given that during April river levels were lower than anyone could remember for that particular time of year, the fact that during June we have seen much higher water shouldn’t really surprise us, it is Scotland after all, and we all know how fickle the weather can be!

The month started with the river running around one foot above summer level and this led to heightened expectations of a better run of fish entering the river. Unfortunately, during the first fortnight anyhow, this did not materialize. One of the few exceptions was the Craigellichie water, which during the first week of the month accounted for 21 salmon, including one of 23lbs. This week at also exposed the dangers of Fly-Fishing and the importance of wearing sunglasses whilst casting, especially in windy conditions. For the first time in 20 years, Doctors at Aberlour Health Centre were unable to deal with the type of injury sustained by Mr Nick Davidson, who had to be given a general anaesthetic in Elgin to remove a fly which had buried itself up his nostril. 

This type of injury reinforces the need to wear some form of eye protection when fly-fishing. But wind is not the only hazard; the final week of the month saw another angler hooked by his own fly, this time however in different circumstances. Having dogs around the river is just fine, but not when changing flies. Fishing one of his favourite pools at Rothes, “The Legend of the Spey” had already returned a nice fish, when on re-tying the fly, his line somehow got entangled around the paws of a passing rambler’s dog, pulling both hooks of the No 6 variant Cascade [aptly renamed the “Bloody Dog”] into his finger. After passing some pleasantries and politely declining a lift to the doctor on the bar of the bike, it was off to the surgery in Aberlour where the wound was duly dealt with by the good Doctors, who pointed out that because it was the second thing he had hooked that day, then according to policy, they could retain him for observation. Aghast at the thought of losing valuable fishing time, he was last seen doing a “superman type” disappearing act through the swing door of the surgery. I would like to point out, that despite rumours to the contrary, he did take time to take his waders off before he was given his tetanus injection, and that the hypodermic was not still attached to the outside of his waders when he returned to Rothes three minutes later!! Yes, there certainly is a lot more to fishing than catching fish!

The most unusual fish of the month must have been that found in the middle of the Archiestown - Grantown road. Incredible as it may seem, having seen nothing for days in the river, Head Ghillie at Knockando, Mr Sandy Milne, drove over the top of what he thought was a Sea Trout, only to find on closer inspection it was a rainbow and still very much alive! Scientific opinion was that this phenomenon could have been caused by “Global Warming” and that more research would be needed, whilst more the practically minded amongst us have put it down to a fish falling out of a tank! 

June also saw Mr Ken Jervis adding another 20 pounder to his long list of fish of this class. Fishing on Knockando, Mr Jervis, who since 1962 has fished almost every beat of river, brought the fish to the net in exactly the manner that every Ghillie would appreciate, not easy with a fish of this size, but having landed 1000s, experience shone through and the fish, which swallowed a size 6 Cascade, was easily netted.

Another success fishing the same beat was that of first time Japanese angler Mr Maco. So excited about fishing the river for the first time he could not believe his luck when by day three he was top rod with four fish. Unfortunately this was the day his luck ran out, failing to hook another during the next three days, but never the less a successful induction to the River Spey.

The final week of the month proved to be the best for beats just below Craigellichie, with the stretch between Orton and Upper Arndilly accounting for around 180, most of which were Salmon. It would seem that the June/July Grilse run of the 80s and 90s has all but died out, with the only real run of fish now arriving during August. This said, the final week, along with the first few days of July has seen some grilse caught, but rather ominously, most of these have been very small and thin, with one caught on the Brae, weighing in at just over a pound.

It’s nice to celebrate birthday’s with something special and that’s exactly what happened to Mrs Clare Carter during her days fishing on the Gordon Castle Water in late June, marking her 60^th with two fine fish of 12 and 14 from Cumberland on the Lower Castle. This part of the river, which is now the Fochabers Association Water, even given the higher than normal conditions, has over the past two weeks begun to really pick up with visiting anglers as well as locals accounting for some very nice fish in the mid teen class and as the year goes on things in this part of the river should only get better.

August Prospects
Everyone on Speyside will, by the time this goes to print, be waiting with baited breath as to whether the run of Grilse will arrive. If the pattern follows the last two years then this should happen around the first week of August, but it is salmon we are taking about and they seem to have the canny knack of adapting to whatever conditions are thrown at them. They will only enter the river when the time is right.

Ian Gordon
Speycaster