salmon fishing gear

Atlantic Salmon leaping in turbulent waterfalls in Perthshire, Scotland

The end of summer is one of the best times to catch Atlantic Salmon.  The fish have fattened up in the spring and early summer in preparation for migration.

Salmon Fishing Gear

Rods

13 or 14 foot rods will work better on smaller rivers. Although if you’re fishing Scotland’s rivers we recommend a 15 foot fly rod.

 

The rod should be well suited for both sinking and floating lines. Most modern fly rods are capable of this.

Line

Salmon Fishing line The best line to use in most rivers is a #7 weighted line.

Flies

Some good flies that work in all Scottish rivers include the Ally’s Shrimps, Yellow Ally’s Cascade, Stoats Tail and the Executioner

Salmon Fishing Scotland

Best Rivers for Fishing in Scotland

There’s a lot of great salmon fishing in the British Isles from rivers in the southwest of England to the many rivers or the Scottish highlands. You’ll find some great fishing in many of the Scottish rivers.

 

Southern Scotland rivers to try include the river Clyde, river Tyne, river Ayr, river Doon, river Girvan, river Stinchar, river Bladnoch and river Yarrow to name a few.

 

Central Scotland is also gifted with many rugged and well stocked rivers including the river Ness, river Nairn, river Lossie, river Deveron, river South Esk, river Tummel, river Add and river Lomond to name a few.

 

The north offers a ruggedness similar to that of eastern Canada with long days in the summer and short cold days in the winter. It does have a much more temperate climate thanks to the Gulf Stream.

 

The north also offers a good supply of rivers that are great for fly fishing for Atlantic Salmon including the river Laxford, the Wick river, river Beauly, river Kirkaig, river Croe, River Shiel and river Oykel.

15 ft Fly Fishing Rods

If you’re wanting to check out 15 foot fly rods we’ve included the rods below for you and our top picks.

 

We’ve chosen these rods for a number of reasons. There’s our top choices as well as options to suit different budgets.

 

You might want to supplement your fly fishing gear with a 15ft option or if you’re starting out and wanting to try your hand at fly fishing you mightn’t want to go top of the line to start with. The less expensive models will let you dip your toe in the water and give you a feel for fly fishing without hurting the wallet.

 

Looking for fly fishing gifts? These will be real winners.


Fish Farm Threats

Many anglers and environmental groups don’t like fish farms. They claim that they’re ripe for parasite infestations and mass escapes that threaten the survival of the United Kingdom’s wild salmon stocks.

 

While fish farms do offer a way to take pressure off the environment from over-fishing, it does lead to pollution due to the great amount of waste. There are risks of viruses due to the great numbers and the ability of the virus to easily spread and get out into the open.

Official inspections throughout the past years have shown that many Atlantic Salmon farms around the Scottish coast have had infestations of the sea lice parasite. Diseases like these are a great concern to all involved.

 

The 3 things that concerns authorities about fish farms are:

  • farms losing whole farms through infestation
  • public concerns about the safety of the food
  • viruses getting out and affecting foreign stocks in Europe and Canada