No one would argue that on most river systems, July is noted as the being best month for Grilse!   No one, ten or more years ago, would have disputed the above statement.   However, now it is certainly not the case.   For that matter, Grilse, notoriously described ten years ago here on the Spey as “Vermin”, have all but disappeared and it has to be said, much to the detriment of both the river and visiting anglers.

At the time of the “Vermin” incident, I wrote an article outlining what I felt would happen, not “if”, but "when" we lose our run of Grilse.   In the article I spoke about the high commercial value of these small fish and the obsession, on this, as well as on other rivers, with “Spring Salmon”.   I have to say, reading the article today leaves me felling more than a little bewildered at where we have been, as well as where we are going with regard to managing our fishery!!

Unusually high temperatures tend to make fish behave completely differently to that seen during more normal conditions.   With river temperatures at 73^oC, Ghillies up and down the river complained that fish would not run due to the temperature difference between sea and river.   On the face of it this would seem to be the case, that is, unless the said fish were destined for the part of the river between Craigellachie and Orton!   It would seem, in this part of the river, nothing would stop them.   Although politics dictate that I cannot be “beat specific”, in general, compared to any other section, this area has fished so well, not only in July, but throughout the whole of the season.   The question has now been asked by so many people. Why when other beats around this area catch relatively few, do salmon stop here in what appear to be much larger numbers?   I believe the main part, but not the full answer to this lies in “Numbers of fish in the river”!   This section, historically, has always fished better for most of the season and only during years with less than adequate stock does the gulf between this and the rest become more evident. Every river system has a part of the river like this!

The major talking point, both here and elsewhere, has been the high percentage of Salmon, also the apparent lack of Grilse.   Turn the clock back 20 years during July and we would find nine in every ten fish caught during July to be a Grilse.   This year, it would be one in ten, if that! 
Fishing in the Grantown area has been on a par, or slightly above that seen last July, with Sea Trout numbers in particular higher than those of last year.   Fishing on the Castle Grant Beats has remained steady also, with again salmon, rather than Grilse being the dominant component.   A really nice week for Mr Sean Tighe’s party, fishing No2 beat culminated in one of his guests, Mr Martin Williams, catching what was his largest UK caught salmon, a fine fish of estimated just over 20lbs was released after a very good fight.   This being only one of many 20lb fish caught in the river this year, there is no doubt the average weight of salmon caught during July will be higher than in very many years, possibly the highest on record! 

Further downstream, beats have mixed fortune.   The week beginning 13th July brought with it possibly the worst conditions for summer fishing.   The week started around 7” on the gauge and rose each day, the water growing darker and darker as the week progressed.   These conditions undoubtedly put fish off the take, having a sickening effect on them. Mind you, for Master Tom Leslie, this did not seem to pose much of a problem!   16 year old Tom, arrived to find the atmosphere in the camp unusually subdued due to conditions, casually walked into the river and caught a nice 8lb fish with his third cast, and then followed this with another after dinner.   This spurred the team on and proved the old adage,”If the fly’s not in the water”!   His host on A Beat Tulchan, Mr Gavin Kelly, was delighted with the fact that the boy had shown everyone, including some experienced rods, the way it should be done. Well done Tom!

It would seem the lack of Grilse impacted on the area between Ballindaloch and Aberlour more than any other.   July normally provides anglers with very good sport in this part of the river, but over recent years, as Grilse have declined, this has not been the case.   Also, and importantly, conditions are always a major factor in whether or not fish are caught, and the fact that a large part of July saw unsettled conditions, with dark peaty water, has always to be factored into the equation.   There is no doubt however, this year; the main problem is the distinct lack of summer fish. 

After a very slow June and early part of July, rods fishing the Brae beats finally had something to smile about when fish begun to stop in greater numbers toward the end of the month.   Head Ghillie, Mr Colin Reid was delighted as his beat recorded its first day of the season with double figures, as was on most other Brae beats, this was followed by days with between 3 and 5 fish, which is much more like they would normally expect.   Fishing here, during August and September, given good runs of fish, can be spectacular to say the least and given the way things have went this year, who knows, it may be the Autumn run which will prove to be the strongest of all.

September Prospects
As it has most of the season, my belief is, autumn fish will form the strongest run of the year. Rods fishing in September, certainly on the lower and middle part of the river will hopefully see some good sport.   Visiting anglers should remember, as temperatures drop, so fly size can increase.   Don’t be afraid to go big, and even back to intermediate or even sinking lines to entice some of these larger autumn fish.   Many of the best days I have seen have come when we make this change back to almost spring tactics.

Any interested reader can find the original article relating to first paragraph of this report here.  (It makes interesting reading! - Webmaster)

Ian Gordon
Speycaster