Park - River Dee

I take a day on the River Dee at Park during opening week every year but due to a drop in prices for Spring fishing this year I decided take an extra day and fished the Friday and Saturday instead of just my normal Saturday. I had fished Park on opening day earlier in the week and was delighted to land a sea liced 12lber from the Durris Stream and hopes were high for my other days. Snow melt and heavy rain kept the water levels yo-yoing for most of the time but it was a good water to encourage fish to run the river from the sea.

My Opening Day springer from the Durris Stream on Monday last week. Still smiling!

Fishing down the Park Inn.

Looking upstream towards Silver Spoon from Park Inn.

The Park Estate has taken a battering from the flooding caused by Storm Frank and many of the tracks and pools have suffered as a result, no more so than Cooper's and Bulwarks. The river had breached the flood banks and powered it's way through the fields and woodland until it rejoined the main flow at the Castleton pool where it had swept away the fishing hut on the South bank. Tonnes and tonnes of earth and shingle have been washed out of the fields and the damage caused will run into hundreds of thousands of pounds. It's going to take a monumental effort to get, not just Park, but the entire catchment of the Dee back to something like it was before but at least the fishing is still there and anglers can enjoy what the river has to offer despite of what has happened to the surroundings.

Damage to the banks of Bulwarks caused by the New Year flooding.

Massive breach of the bank at Cooper's and the water tearing through here has left a trail of destruction through Park Estate.

Huge amounts of earth and shingle have been shifted here a this is going to take some amount of work to repair.

Another photo of the damage caused by Storm Frank.

Looking upstream where the road ends at the Long Pool. The road used to follow the curve of the river and go right up to the Park Inn.

The fishing on my two days was hampered by strong and gusty winds which made casting accurately very difficult at times. The river was also up and down almost on an hourly basis with snow melt the main cause of this. Despite the conditions we kept trying. Numerous different tactics were deployed as we searched the pools for that fresh run springer we all were craving but sadly it wasn't to be with just a few kelts to show for our efforts. We saw running fish in the latter parts of both days and when a few more decide to run the river then I wouldn't bet against Park picking up a few more before the end of the month.

Fishing down the Long Pool in a biggish water.

Making my way down Lower Kirks in a howling gale.

Castleton. Note the Park South hut is now gone. Another victim of the ferocity shown by Mother Nature at New year.

The Durris Stream seemed to be a good bet for a fish in the rising water and around 3pm on Friday afternoon, the rod on the South bank was into a fish near the tail of the pool. After a short battle the net was slid under a fresh run 10lber. The first fish of the season off the South bank. Not a bad start for Park with two in the book for opening week considering the poor early spring catches of recent seasons. The two fish caught will hopefully bode well for the rest of the spring and I would love to see Park get the good catches we all know it's capable of producing.

Durris Stream. A cracking pool and where I was lucky enough to land my fish on opening day earlier on in the week.

An angler on the South bank getting ready to land a nice, fresh springer around the 10lb mark from the tail of the Durris Stream.

Cellar. Another lovely pool on the Park beat.

There was to be no repeat of Monday's fish for me during my two days fishing but it is always a pleasure to fish at Park and the pools are a joy to cast a fly on. There is just something special about the place whether it being the history of the beat or just the surroundings, I can't quite put my finger on it but it's a beat I will always take the time to have a cast on as there is a great chance your fly will be taken by that coveted prize of an early running fish.

The Park North hut and the newly repaired parking area.

Paul Pritchard and ghillie, Keith Cromar discuss plans for the day ahead.

There is some good availability on both Park and Park South at the moment. With prices slashed by half for the early part of the season it's worth the money taking a day or two as all the fish running the Dee at this time of year will likely have to pass through the pools of Park Estate. For details of the fishing available at Park check out their page on FishDee or visit their own website at www.parkdee.co.uk

Park Junior Day - River Dee

I attended an event hosted by William Foster of Park Estate and Ross McDonald from the River Dee for Junior anglers of all levels who were invited along to fish on the fabled waters of Park. Gary Scott - an AAPGAI casting instructor was on hand to show the kids how to spey cast and to make sure they knew the dangers of the casts. The day couldn't have went any better and conditions were excellent. The river was sitting at around 18" on the beat gauge and there had been good numbers of fish caught leading up to the day which gave them all an extra insentive.

Gary Scott AAPGAI, William Foster, Keith Cromar. Photo: FishDee

A group photo of the attendees at the Park Junior Day. Photo: Gary Scott

I was helping out Aberdeen and District Angling Association junior Sean Rennie as all juniors had to be accompanied by an adult. Sean is a keen salmon angler and is very talented given the short length of time he has been fishing. Although he has caught a few salmon Sean is still very keen to learn and really takes on board what he is being taught.

Casting Instructor Gary Scott addresses the juniors in attendance before showing them the basics of Spey Casting.

The crowd look on as Gary demonstrates the fundamentals of a Spey cast.

After a casting demo by instructor Gary Scott, four of the juniors, who could cast a salmon fly rod competently were sent on their down to fish the famous Durris Stream by ghillie Keith Cromar. Not long after starting we noticed a good run of fresh grilse moving into the pool and the lads were focused on trying to get in contact with one of them. It didn't take long and after a change of fly to an Ally Shrimp and a few tips on the best way to fish the fly in the slower water, Sean had a good solid take from a fish. He lifted into a strong wee grilse and all the lads rushed down to watch him play his fish. Ross and I stood on giving him some advice on playing the fish but he played it like a pro and I soon tailed a cracking sea liced grilse of around 4lb.

Four of the competent junior fish their way down the famous Durris Stream on Park.

ADAA Junior bent into a lively wee grilse in the Durris Stream.

A delighted Sean Rennie poses for a quick photo before returning his fish. Well done Sean!

Sean returns his fish back into the Dee.

There was nothing else caught by any of the other juniors unfortunately but it was great to see Sean land a fish and I think Keith, Ross and myself were as happy as he was! I really enjoy these junior events and it's great to see good numbers attending. Hopefully these kids are now "hooked" on the sport and we will see them fishing on the river banks in the future.

Park - River Dee

I had my annual February day at the Park North beat on the River Dee today. Park was still to get off the mark for the 2015 season but confidence is always high when I fish here as catches can be prolific when it's on it's day. The water was sitting at 1ft 1in on the beat gauge and running crystal clear with the water temp hovering around 39f. My set up for the morning was my new 15ft Mackenzie shooting head rod, Mackenzie intermediate shooting head, 6ft 2.6ips tip and a 1" Maggie's Shrimp.

The beat gauge reading 13".

Paul Pritchard and Sean McGarry.

I arrived at the beat around 8.30am and was raring to go. After a good chat and a coffee with Keith Cromar, the head ghillie at Park, along with the other rods it was time to get going. I was drawn to fish Beat 4 in the morning and swap over with Paul who was fishing Beat 5. Keith suggested I start in the Durris Stream and come back up to fish the House Pool later so I made my down to the Durris and began working my way through the pool. I got about a third of the way down the pool when I thought I'd hooked the bottom. I gave the line a sharp pull and it didn't move so I did the same again but this time it it came undone. I pulled the line to begin my recast when it started moving out into the faster water. I had hooked a fish! After a very short and lethargic fight, I started to draw the fish into the bank. The fight couldn't have lasted much more than a minute or so. Just as the fish was nearing the bank the fly gave way. Thankfully, it was only a kelt but I was really surprised just how easy the fish gave up. I've never had a fish with such a lack of fight about it. It might have woken up as it got near the shingle, who knows, but it certainly didn't give that impression. I made my way back out into the river and fished on down the pool without another offer so I headed off up to the House Pool.

Durris Stream. Lost a kelt in here during the morning.

The House Pool is a nice stretch of water and I always enjoy fishing it, but this time, there was no sign of any fish willing to have a go at my fly so after a quick run through, I wound in and headed off down stream to fish Bakebare.

Looking down stream in the House Pool.

As I arrived at the Bakebare Pool, Paul had said he had hold of and lost 3 fish, the third he was sure was a springer. This was encouraging and I was eager to get started. I worked my way down Bakebare and just as the fly was coming into the slacker water near the lower part of the pool, a fish had a rug at my fly which sadly didn't stick. It was most probably a kelt anyway but at least it was a positive. I fished the rest of the pool without a touch and after a good chat with Paul and Sean we made our way back to the hut for lunch.

Looking downstream in Bakebare.

After lunch I was to fish Beat 1. I quite like Beat 1, especially the Silver Spoon pool which waslooking good at this height of water. I worked my way down the pool and with every cast I was hopeful of a take but nothing. Still, it was enjoyable to fish none the less. I fished my way down Park Inn covering the water well but without a touch. Keith had suggested that Bulwarks might be worth a shout at this height so I headed off down stream to have a cast in there.

Silver Spoon. A nice wee bit of water at the top of Beat 1.

Looking downstream at Park Inn.

Fishing down the Bulwarks pool.

After fishing down the Bulwarks without an offer, I made my further down stream to have a go in the Lower Kirks before calling it a day. As good as it seemed to be fishing the fly, my efforts were unrewarded so I made my way back to the hut for a cup of coffee before heading home.

Lower Kirks. Another fine piece of water at Park.

Despite our best efforts, we couldn't get Park's first springer of 2015 logged in the book. Apart from losing a kelt and Paul having hold of a few fishing during the morning session, that was it for the day. Fingers crossed Park score next week and get the ball rolling for their season. Hopefully there will be a lift in water soon which might just draw some fresh fish forward from the sea. I always enjoy fishing Park and today was no exception. Great pools for fly fishing and as I said before, you are just waiting for the line to tighten on every cast. I will look forward to my next visit.

Park South - River Dee

Last Saturday, I fished the afternoon on the Park South beat of the River Dee thanks to a friend of mine, Paul Pritchard, who had to leave early. The water had risen earlier in the week which was a bonus but overnight rain on the Friday saw the river rising again and carrying quiet a bit of debris. When I arrived at lunch the water had risen several inches since morning and was sitting around 24" on the gauge. Despite this, Paul managed to land a fish in the morning on a Monkey and there was another caught about 4pm. A very good result given the conditions.

I didn't managed to add to the tally but really enjoyed fishing the beat as I have only ever fished these pools from the opposite bank and I was grateful to ghillie, Bert Webster took the time to show me the areas where I was most likely to encounter a fish.

Here are some pictures of the pools I fished at Park South.

The well equipped main hut on Park South.

I started my day off in the Long Pool. There were a good number of fish showing in here despite the coloured water.

Looking upstream in to the Upper Kirks from the neck of Lower Kirks.

Looking downstream from the Kirks hut.

An inscription inside the hut.

A brief period of sunshine whilst fishing down the Lower Kirks.

A rainbow over the tail of the Lower Kirks.

An upstream view of Long pool and Upper Kirks at dusk.

On The Dee At Park

Today, I had my first outing of the 2014 season on the River Dee at Park. Heavy rain over night caused the river to rise sharply this morning and by lunch time it had risen about 10". When we arrived at the beat, the gauge was reading 46" and by lunch time it had risen to 54". It was also carrying a bit of colour which made it pointless fishing on really although I give it half an hour down in the Durris Stream but more in hope than expectation. All the rods gave up by lunchtime and retired to the hut for a few drams and a chat about all things fishing. Not how I had imagined my first day on the Dee this year to be but given the heavy rainfall which we have been plagued with all winter, I was hardly surprised to be honest.

Fishing aside, it was good to catch up with Keith the ghillie, Ken Reid and the regular rods again. Just a pity the conditions won the day but nothing we could do about that. High water, high winds and no fish sums up the day perfectly!

Here are a few pictures from this morning.

Fishing down the Castleton Pool. Due to the high water there were 2 rods fishing each pool today.

The tail of Castleton Pool looking downstream towards the House Pool.

Park House. Designed by the famous Scottish Architect, Archibald Simpson in the 1820s.

Durris Stream. A quality fly fishing pool but just a wee bit too high today for it to fish well!

A new mark on the Park fishing hut door with the big spate we had 3 weeks ago.

The beat gauge as I left was reading just a tad over 53". A big rise from 46" at 8.30am.