Every year I organise a meet with guys from a Salmon Fishing Forum I am involved with. We quiet often meet up during the fishing season and it's always good to catch up with the lads and have a cast on rivers we otherwise wouldn't fish. We have been coming to the River Don for three years now and apart form last year when we had very low water, we've always had a few fish on the bank for our day.
Group photo. L-R Ralph, Dave, Alan, Mel, Kenny, Bill, Paul and me.
On a run up to the day there was the usual banter and chat on line and as the day drew closer we realised we were going to be lucky with water conditions due to heavy rain earlier in the week. We arrived at the estate office about 8.15am and were greeted with 1ft 2in on the Bridge of Alford gauge which was ideal. The river was carrying a wee tinge of colour but we were confident that fish would still come to a fly in these conditions. We chatted for a while to discuss tactics for the day and draw beats. I tackled up with my 13ft Hardy Uniqua and matched this up with a Rio Scandi shooting head and fast sink tip. My fly of choice initially was a 3/4" Monkey.
Fishing down the Dam Pool with Paul Pritchard.
I was drawn to fish Beat 3 with Paul Pritchard and we were eager to get going. Paul hadn't had much luck fishing the Don in the past so I gave him first run down the Dam Pool. the pool was fishing nicely and as we got near the dam itself, expectation levels increased as i was positive there would be a fish or two present. Sure enough, as Paul neared the tail of the pool just opposite the Dam, he had a thumping take but sadly the fish didn't connect. It was really hard luck as it about pulled the rod out of his hand and how it never hooked itself is a mystery. Still, it was a good sign and I followed him down the rest of the pool but couldn't temp anything.
Fishing down the Craig Pot.
Next pool up on our beat was the Craig Pot. This used to be one of the best holding pools on the entire river but a few years ago an Archimedes Screw was installed at the neck of the pool and I just don't think it fishes the same now. This is just my opinion of course but I have spoken with a few Castle Forbes regulars who have the same thoughts as me. Anyway, Paul and I fished down the pool from the right bank but nothing was tempted so we continued our journey downstream to the next pool.
Looking upstream for the top of the Nursery Pool into the Craig Pot and Suspension Bridge
Looking downstream in the Nursery Pool.
Next pool down was the Nursery Pool. This is another lovely pool and another good pool which produces fish through out the year. It really is a lovely cast and is a delight to fish. Paul and I both fished through the pool and were expecting a salmon to grab the fly every cast but it wasn't to be. We just couldn't temp anything but we were both confident that we were covering fish.
Upper Deepstane from the right bank.
Bill's first fish of the day from Upper Deepstane expertly netted and photographed by Kenny Carr.
Upper Deepstane was the next pool on our morning beat and this, yet again is another good opportunity to pick up a fish. On arrival to the pool we received a text from Bill who managed to land a fresh run 8lber from the pool earlier on in the morning. At least we knew there were fish there and confidence is a big part in salmon fishing. Paul allowed me to go first through the pool and he followed me down. By this time I had changed to a Sunray Shadow just to try and provoke a fish into taking but i fished the length of the pool but didn't move anything. Paul, fishing conventionally down behind me had the same result.
Paul fishing down Middle Deepstane.
A lovely cast on Middle Deepstane at this height.
Castle Forbes Estate kindly allowed us to have lunch in their estate office again this year and we are always very grateful for this. Paul's good lady Loreena provided lunch of homemade soup and sandwiches, cheese scones, rock cakes as well as crisps and beverages. It went down a treat and we were all stuffed after tucking into the spread she laid on. As per usual on any fishing trip, the topic of discussion over lunch always revolves around salmon and this was no different. We all put the salmon fishing world to rights before heading off to our chosen beats for the afternoon session.
Lower Auchreddachie. Another nice cast and a pool with good depth to hold fish.
As the river was sitting at a good height, the whole beat was fishable so Paul and I decided to head up to Beat 4. Lower Auchreddachie is a pool I am very fond of so we opted to have a run through there first before fishing any other part of the beat. There is nice depth to this pool on the far bank and I was fortunate enough to land a nice springer from here a couple of years ago. We both fished through the pool with out an offer but there were a few big brown trout showing as we made our way down. Just a pity I never had the #5 rod with me.
Fishing down the Bridge Pool in the afternoon.
Following Paul down the Bridge Pool.
The Bridge Pool is another good bit of water that would hold fish and we made sure we covered the whole pool from top to bottom. Again, as tempting as it looked we just couldn't get a salmon to take our offerings but a couple of brown trout were greedy enough to take my fly and Paul landed one too.
Bill Cooks' second fish of the day from the Dam pool.
On our way down to the lower part of the beat we came across Bill who was fishing the Dam pool and he informed us that he managed to winkle out another Don springer just minutes before we arrived. This was excellent news and spurred us on for a final push before calling it a day.
Paul keeping a low profile whilst fishing down the Middle Deepstane pool.
After fishing down the Bridge Pool without success Paul and I decide to head back down river to have a go in the Deepstane Pools from the North bank this time. As Mel and Dave were fishing the Upper Deepstane we began in the Middle Deepstane. All three Deepstane pools are classic middle to upper Don pools and are all capable of yielding fish on their day as Bill proved earlier. We were both optimistic that we would be covering fish and we made sure we covered the pool as best we could but like the rest of the day, our efforts went unrewarded.
Bill Cook pondering a fly change. Bill managed to land 2 springers for his day. fantastic fishing on the Don at anytime of the year but extra special during the Spring months.
Upper Deepstane from the left bank in the afternoon.
Time got the better of us after fishing the Upper Deepstane but Mel did see a nice fish head and tail in the pool before we fished it but it was long gone by the time we covered it. There was to be no further action for any of us in the early evening so we called it a day around 7pm and headed back to the cars to pack up.
It was another great Forum meet and all the rods had a good time and i was great to see the River Don giving up her bounty once again during the Spring. Spring fish on the Don are scarce and to get two in a day is good going and Bill was in the right place, at the right times to grass a couple of lovely fish. We will look forward to heading back there again next year and fingers crossed we get conditions like we had for our day this year.
Finally, I would just like to thank Sandra who works in the estate office for all her help in organising the day and to Lord and Lady Forbes for once again, providing us with the office to have our lunch in. It really is appreciated from not only myself, but from all the lads who come along to this day. It makes it all the more enjoyable and we will be back again soon for another crack at the Don springers.
Last year I organised a day on the Castle Forbes beat of the River Don. Despite the low water we managed to catch 3 fish for our day so I decided to book the same day for this year. There were some coincidental similarities from our day this year compared to last year. For example, the river was around the 4" mark, we got rain the night before, and we had 8 rods fishing. I'm not superstitious but I had a good feeling about the day because of this.
The River Don at Castle Forbes.
L to R. Charlie, Bill, Nicky, Andy, Kenny, Philip and Paul.
We arrived at the Castle Forbes about 8.15am and I introduced any unacquainted rods with each other. As we are all, what could be only be described as obsessive fishermen, it wasn't long before we all got chatting about the state of salmon stocks and tales from seasons past and present. Some rods had driven several hours to be there but these meets are always worth the travelling even if nothing is caught. As the river was very low and running crystal clear it was a case of using light rods and floating lines. I was using my 13ft rid and a floating AFS shooting head with a 5ft intermediate tip. Fly of choice was a #9 Kinermony Killer. Incidentally, the same set up and fly that did the business for me here last year.
Lower Bankhead on Beat 4.
An Osprey hovering over the Fir Tree Pool on Beat 4.
Looking upstream from the tail of Lower Auchreddachie. A cracking wee pool.
The Castle Forbes beat is roughly 4.5 miles double bank with a Keig Bridge crossing the Don about half way. We split ourselves into two groups with three rods above the bridge and five below for the morning session. Philip, Charlie and I were allocated the upper pools and as neither Philip or Charlie had fished the beat before it was down to me to point them in the right direction. Charlie opted for the upper most pools of the beat and Philip and I started in the Upper Auchreddachie and Lower Auchreddachie respectively. The sun was high in the sky but a strong breeze had kicked up and this made casting difficult at times. Despite our best efforts and fishing the deeper and more likely spots, we couldn't temp a salmon but Philip did have a brief encounter with a good trout.
Fishing my way into the Broom pool.
Looking down Philips pool. A bit on the low side for in here but a few trout were rising.
Philip Black fishing the Sawmill Pool.
Looking upstream from Keig Bridge into the Bridge Pool.
Lord and Lady Forbes were kind enough to give us a room in the Estate office to have lunch in which was appreciated by all anglers. It was good to sit down together and chat, especially the guys who hadn't met before. I'm sure there have been some new friends made from this which is the whole point of these meets. Sadly, there were no fish caught up to lunch time by any of the rods unlike last year when we had two on the bank by this time. Nobody had seen any sign of a salmon either but this was understandable given the low water conditions. It's just the way it goes sometimes when booking fishing so far in advance.
The Hydro Scheme on the Craig Pot. Not sure it is doing the pool any good to be honest with the extra flow it creates.
Looking downstream from the Craig Pot with the old "shankin' brig" over the pool.
Charlie fishing down Lower Deepstane.
Looking upstream from the Lower Deepstane pool.
The angry goose which took offense at my fly line and chewed through it!
A few of the rods decided to call it a day after lunch but myself, Charlie, Philip and Bill stuck it out. We all opted to fish the lower part of the beat with our efforts concentrating on the Craig Pot, the three Deepstane pools and Phemie. Charlie and I fished the right bank whilst Philip and Bill fished opposite. We covered plenty water with several different approaches but we couldn't temp any salmon. I did nowhere have an encounter with an angry goose! I was fishing down the Nursery Pool when a goose came swimming upstream and took a dislike to my fly line. It grabbed the line in its beak and began to shake its head. I quickly pulled the line away but on closer inspection afterwards, the goose had chewed my line and almost cut it in two! I had only used it about four times and it was now in need of a serious repair. We made our way back to the car park at the Craig Pot for a chat before heading home. We left the beat about 5.30pm with the Sun still slitting the sky.
Donside's most famous landmark; Bennachie
It was great to meet everyone again on the Don. Just a pity the weather and fishing gods were against us this time but we all gave it a good go regardless and covered all the likely areas and pools. There was just a lack of water to encourage any fish to run up river as I firmly believe we would have caught salmon if the water was up a few more inches. Still, it was good to see the beat again and I will look forward to my next trip here and I will also look forward to meeting up the the lads again on another meet somewhere in the near future.
Despite the obvious lack of salmon running many rivers in the Northern Hemisphere this year, my catches have been reasonably good considering. I had a few Spring fish which was very pleasing, not so much luck during the summer months but I finished my season off with a number of fish which I was grateful for. I did however, have to put in the hours for my fish as the blank days by far outnumber the successful ones.
One pleasing aspect about my 2014 season has been catching fish from several beats I had never fished before. These included a cracking Springer of around 8lb from the Castle Forbes beat on the River Don in April. Then I got two fresh, back end fish of 4lbs and 15lbs from the famous Ballogie beat of the River Dee in September and I fortunate enough to land two fish in October weighing 5lbs and 9lbs from the Don on my first ever visit to Semeil Farm.
Spring
The Spring for me was very good in terms of fish caught considering the Spring run was well down on previous years. I managed to catch salmon in February, March and April. Not landing a fish in May prevented the full house.
A particular highlight for me was landing my first February Springer from Carlogie on the River Dee. I had lost a good fish not long after starting on the Thursday morning and hardly had a touch, even from a kelt, until 4pm on the Saturday when I landed an 8lber from Fraser's Pool which was the perfect way to end my 3 days there for anther year.
My first February springer from the River Dee at Carlogie.
In March, I was lucky enough to get an invitation to fish the River Dee at Inchmarlo and was delighted to land this sea lice Springer of around 6lb in a very high water.
A nice sea liced springer from Little Blackhall & Inchmarlo in March
Another highlight was hosting a Salmo Proboards Forum Meet on the River Don at Castle Forbes along with my friend Bill Cook. We booked the whole beat for the day and there was 8 of us fishing which included some rods who had never fished the Don before. Despite low water, we landed 3 springers for our day which was a fantastic result. I got 1 and Bill got the other 2. We took a bit of stick as we were local lads and the ones who got the fish but we had a great couple of days. Good company, good craic and good fishing. What more could you want?
A cracking River Don springer from Castle Forbes in April during the Forum Meet.
Summer
Summer salmon fishing for me was almost none existent in terms of catches. I spent more time fishing for Brown Trout on the Don than anything else and landed a few good ones along the way. I did however, land a salmon from the River Don at Manar on the 23rd August in a high water. A coloured fish around 7lb came to the net after losing a bigger and cleaner fish just a few minutes earlier.
Summer Salmon from the River Don at Manar.
A sea liced grilse from the Don caught by my pal, Charlie Robertson in August.
A nice sea trout from Headinch and Cambus O May which got a good tune out of my Uncle's old Sharpes Aquarex reel.
A nice sea trout from the Spey taken on a small Monkey tube..
Back End
The back end of the season was very kind to me this year and I had a several good days on the river. A small clean Grilse and a cracker of 15lb from the Dee at Ballogie on the 22nd September is a particular highlight. Both taken on small Red Francis double.
A wee grilse from Ballogie in September.
A cracker of around 15lb also from Ballogie.
During October my catches seemed to come in pairs and I landed another two fish on the 11th October, again from the Dee, but this time at Inchmalo. These were both coloured fish which were estimated at 5lb and 14lb.
A coloured Grilse from Inchmarlo in October.
14lb hen Salmon from Inchmarlo also during October.
A few days later, I was out for an hour or so after work on the 16th and was lucky enough to land a nice, clean fish of around 5lbs from Lower Fintray. My first salmon off the ADAA water this season. Better late than never I suppose.
A bright October Grilse from the Don at Lower Fintray.
Later in the month, I booked a last minute outing on the Upper Don at Semeil Farm and was rewarded with two fish which were roughly 5lb and 9lb respectively. It was my first time on the beat and I really enjoyed it.
A coloured fish about 5lb from Semeil.
My second fish from Semeil. A heavily coloured hen of around 9lb.
My friend, Bill Cook's 13lb Salmon from the Don at Kemnay.
I am just in the process of booking up my fishing for the Spring and I'm really looking forward to it. Hopefully it will be a better year for the Salmon this time round and we see decent runs through-out the season.Whatever happens, I'll be out on the river in the search of Silver!.
Here are a couple of fresh salmon landed from the River Don on Saturday. Both were carrying sea lice and were caught just over an hour apart but from two separate beats. Bill Cook landed a 3lb grilse from Kemnay and Charlie Robertson landed a 7lber from Manar. Both fish also seem to be showing signs of red vent.
There must have been a run of fish entered the Don as I was hearing reports of sea liced fish being caught up around the Castle Forbes area. With good water levels (1ft 3in at Alford as of 31/8/14) hopefully this is the start of a good back end for the Don.
Bill Cook's 3lb Grilse from the Upper Chapel pool on the ADAA Kemnay beat.
Charlie Robertson's 7lber from the Long pool at Manar taken on a Sunray Shadow.
During the close season, along with friend and fellow River Don angler, Bill Cook, we decided to host a couple of days fishing on the Don for members of The Salmon Fishing Forum. Since the Don is local to both of us, we thought it would be a good to show just why we enjoy fishing there so much and also to let others see what it was like.
The water on the Don has been very low for the last few weeks and we really needed some rain to get the levels up to encourage fish to move upstream. The week before we were due to fish rain had been forecast but it never materialised and we were left with the prospect of the river being very low with little chance of anything other than trout to catch. Or so we thought.
BREDA
On Friday I met up with Bill, Kenny and Brian as we had booked a day fishing on the Breda beat near Alford prior to the main meet at Castle Forbes on the Saturday. Breda can be really productive given good levels of water but when we arrived, the river level was sitting around 4 inches at most. Not ideal for salmon fishing so we spent most of the morning sipping whiskey and chatting about all things fishing! We did have a token effort for salmon before lunch but it was clear it was going to be tough to find a pool that would hold any salmon at this height of water so in the afternoon we decided to target really what the Don is famous for, the wild brown trout.
Apart from a few small trout between 8-10oz no bigger fish were landed until expert trout fisher, Brian spotted a group of larger specimen fish readily taking flies off the surface. he made a few casts with an emerger type dry fly and was soon bent into one of the fish. At first he thought it was just an average sized trout but several seconds after hooking it, the fish woke up and tore off downstream taking Brian right into the backing! The fish left the pool and down the weir into the pool below. Whilst leaving the pool, Brian's line became snagged on a rock so he and Bill waded out to try and free it. The fish was still on and soon the line was free. No longer was the line free when the fish parted company with the fly and was lost. Bill had seen the fish going over the falls and estimated it around the 4lb mark. Fish like this are what the Don is famed for. It was not to be on this occasion for Brian but hopefully something he will remember about his trip to Breda and the River Don.
We didn't really fish much after that so we headed off to the hotel for a few beers and some supper, raring to go for Castle Forbes the following day.
Here a few pictures from Breda on Friday.
Fishing down Smith's Brae. As you can from the picture, the water is very low.
Kenny Carr having a cast in The Rock before lunch.
Looking upstream in Beech Avenue.
A wee 10oz Brown Trout from Ghillie's Run which took a #14 Klinkhammer.
Looking downstream from the bench in Laird's Pool.
CASTLE FORBES
Yesterday was the main day for our River Don meet with Mel, Brian, Alan and Andy joining Bill, Kenny, Brian and myself to fish the Castle Forbes Water. Heavy overnight rain lifted the river an inch or two and added a bit of colour to the flow as well. Levels were sitting around 5in on the gauge but was to rise slowly and colour up all day.
We all met at the estate office around 8.30am. It was good to finally put faces to some of the names. Two lads had to call of late due to work commitments so we would have 4 rods above Keig Bridge and 4 below. We all had a good natter for a while then it was down to business. I was allocated the top half of the beat in the morning along with Kenny, Andy and Brian. After a wee dram in the car park we headed off to our allocated pools. I tackle up with my 13ft Hardy Uniqua, floating line and due to the coloured water, my fly of choice was a #8 Kinermony Killer.
I was to start in No Name Pool and work my way downstream taking in Upper and Lower Auchreddachie, Peir, and Phillips. I fished No Name Pool without a touch and headed off down to Upper Auchreddachie. Just as I got to the bend, I was taking a photo when I had a thumping take on my fly. Unfortunately, the photo was taken just a split second before the fish broke the surface. After a very dogged fight, Brian expertly tailed the fish for me which we estimated to be around 8lbs. I fished the rest of the morning without another offer but I was delighted to get a fish. As we made our way back to the estate office for lunch, it was pleasing to hear that Bill had landed a nice fish also around the 8lb mark. 2 fish for the morning was a great result considering the water conditions.
After lunch we were to fish the lower beats. This consisted of pools such as Dam, Craig Pot, Nursery, the 3 Deepstane pools and Upper and Lower Rake. I started in the Nursery Pool which was a lovely looking pool. Just about 3pm, Bill gave out a shout to signal he was into a fish down in Middle Deepstane. As I was on the opposite bank, I couldn't help him but made my down just to get a few pictures of the action. Brian had also heard Bill's shout and made his way down too. Fortunately, he was on Bill's bank and arrived just in time to tail a cracking fish of around 12lbs for him. Our total for the day was now 3 fish which was a great achievement in the low, dirty water. By about 4pm the wind picked up and the fog was rolling in from the hills which made it quite cold so we decided to call it a day and headed back to car park to talk over the weekend.
The feedback for the guys who attended the meet was all good. Those who had not fished the Don before were very impressed with what it had to offer, not only for salmon but the wild brown trout too. I also really enjoyed myself and to get a fish was a very welcome bonus. It has been one of the most successful forum meets in regards to fish caught and to achieve that on a low river which coloured up and rose all day was all the more pleasing. I wonder how we would have faired with 1ft on the gauge and dropping after a rise? Who knows. During this weekend, I have met some great, like minded people and look forward to meeting them all again at the next outing. Tight Lines.
Here are some pictures from our day at Castle Forbes.
Team Photo .> Me, Alan, Brian, Mel, Kenny, Andy and Bill. The other Brian is not in the photo
No Name Pool. Looks like it would maybe hold a fish or two later on in the year.
Upper Auchreddachie. Just as I was taking this photo was when the fish took!
A cracking springer from the Don about the 8lb mark.
Andy fishing Phillips pool.
Looking upstream from Nursery into the Craig Pot which is below the suspension bridge.
Looking downstream in the Nursery Pool. Nice bit of water for the fly.
Almost there. Bill playing his second fish of the day in Middle Deepstane and Brian on hand to tail the fish for him.
