Salmon Fishing Scotland Spring Salmon Fly Fishing on Tay, Perthshire March 2016.

Salmon Fishing Scotland Spring Salmon Fly Fishing on Tay, Perthshire March 2016.

Spring salmon fishing conditions are currently excellent on the Tay, Perthshire and everyone should not be worried about the shear size of our mighty river. Fly fishing for spring salmon on the river is not that difficult with all the modern lines available nowadays.

Gordon Hyslop playing a lively springer in the Black Stones of the Catholes beat from the bank. Gordon was using a current popular line choice, a Rio iflight plus a 10 foot sink tip.

The fish is landed and carefully unhooked in the water.

A quick photo prior to release, well done Gordon.

Salmon Fishing Scotland - By Robert White

Salmon Fishing Scotland Spring Fly Fishing on Tay, Perthshire March 2016.

Salmon Fishing Scotland Spring Fly Fishing on Tay, Perthshire March 2016.

Spring salmon fishing can be memorable on the mighty Tay, Perthshire but catching a springer on the fly is magical as Mark Tyndall found out.

Mark hooks a fish casting the fly from an anchored boat in the Wash House pool of the Pitlochrie beat at Stanley.

Nervous moments as the fish plays hard.

Success, a superb spring salmon is landed, photographed prior to release back to the river with minimum harm.

The superb fish prior to being unhooked for release.

Salmon Fishing Scotland - By Robert White

Salmon Fishing Scotland Spring Fishing on Catholes, Stanley River Tay, Perthshire 2016.

Salmon Fishing Scotland Spring Fishing on Catholes, Stanley River Tay, Perthshire 2016.

Early in the Tay spring salmon fishing season cold conditions favour the lower river around Stanley. Currently the majority of spring salmon are being caught in this area with river temperatures below 40F/4.5C.

The famous Slap pool at the top of the Catholes at Stanley.

Danny Fulton plays a lively springer on the Slap on the fly.

A superb 10 pounds bar of silver successfully landed, photographed prior to release.

Sam Robinson with a cracking 8 pounds springer caught in the Woodside at the top of the Catholes.

Salmon Fishing Scotland - By Robert White

Salmon Fishing Scotland Tay, Perthshire Report for W/E 5th March 2016.

Salmon Fishing Scotland Tay, Perthshire Report for W/E 5th March 2016.

Spring salmon fishing on the Tay in Perthshire is now in March with excellent conditions for fishing in colder weather and settling water levels plus catches are improving. Expectation is high on the river for 2016 after successful springs in 2015, 2014 and 2013 and hopefully settled weather will continue with an improving run in February to give everyone a chance of landing a spring �Bar of Silver�.

Beat catches reported
(week ending 5th March)
SALMON & GRILSE: Catholes 5, Pitlochrie 2, Burnmouth 6, Stobhall 3, Taymount 7, Cargill 2, Islamouth 1, Delvine Burnbane 2, Glendelvine 2, Murthly 2 3, Newtyle 2, Dunkeld House 2, Upper Kinnaird 2, Loch Tay Fish n' Trips 5.
Total: 44 Largest: Burnmouth 21lbs
SEA TROUT: Delvine Burnbane 1.
Total: 1 Largest: Delvine Burnbane 2lbs

Spring salmon were landed throughout last week with colder weather and fortune favoured those who braved the elements in some cases. The week again produced a consistent catch with 44 fish landed and the biggest one recorded was a 21 pounds fish from Burnmouth. It is early yet with only small runs coming into the river and very cold weather is not making fishing easy. The spring fish that have been caught so far have been superb quality and of a good size.

The majority of the salmon have been caught in the lower river, which is understandable with the cold conditions and a few fish have been running giving improving results further up the river including odd fish from Loch Tay now. The beats around Stanley traditionally lead the way in these conditions in early spring and should be a barometer for the runs. The beats around Stanley dominated the catches again with Pitlochrie to Taymount and Stobhall landing the loins share in the week.

The week got off to a good start with John Bennett landing a lovely 11 pounds beauty on the fly from Horsey and the David Ecclestone caught a 15 pounds fish from Cawn Pore later in the week also on the fly from the Pitlochrie beat. Catholes produced a superb day on Thursday for the Walker party with fish landed up to 20 pounds. More fish surrendered to the fly with Steve Fairbourn and David Ecclestone land good fish from the Woodside and Catholes stream respectively.

A superb 20 pounds fish came from the boat in the Back Dam for Ken Towner then Phil Walker landed a 14 pounds fish from Erics.

Burnmouth had a good week with 6 fish landed up to 21 pounds. Jordan Paterson had a day to remember landing 3 fish from the boat early in the week up to 20 pounds. Later in the week the 21 pounds fish fell to Jason Stratton harling in the boat on Saturday. Stobhall and Taymount managed 10 fish between them with the Linn pool continuing to produce good sport.

Cargill had a good day on Saturday with two lovely springers being landed by Brian Morrison and Lewis McKee. Further upstream Islamouth managed one in the week.

Salmon are being caught in the middle river as some fish run up slowly but this should improve in temperatures rise a bit. Delvine and Burnbane caught a couple of fish in the week as did Glendelvine. Murthly is also producing fish with the No 2 beat landing 3 in the week.

At Newtyle a delighted Andrew Thomas caught a 15 pounds springer on his first visit to the river.

A further 15 pounds fish was also landed from the beat by Gavin Perry. Dunkeld House is also producing odd fish with an 18 pounder and a 14 caught in the week. Upper Kinnaird caught a couple in the week and even

further up the system Fish n� Trips produced 2 from the Loch including a 20 pounder and an 18 pounds beauty for David Duffy.

The current week has got off to a steady start with 9 fish landed on Monday with Burnmouth producing 3 and the largest one falling to Sam Robinson in Pitlochrie pool weighing 16 pounds.

The Spring Salmon fishing season is now in March and expectation remains very high after previous good springs. Last weeks catches continued to be heartening after the slow start and bad weather. Let us hope this is a sign of an upturn in catches as last March proved. It has been a reasonable start so let us hope the season lives up to every one�s expectations over the coming weeks and months. Tight lines!


Salmon Fishing Scotland - By Robert White

Salmon Fishing Scotland Tay, Perthshire prospects w/c 7th March 2016.

Salmon Fishing Scotland Tay, Perthshire prospects w/c 7th March 2016.

The Salmon fishing season on the mighty Tay in Perthshire, Scotland has entered March and we have been encountering some colder winter weather after milder conditions with heavy rain earlier in the season which put the river up making life fairly difficult with limited opportunities for anglers to brave the elements in pursuit of that magical spring salmon however that has changed and we have good water levels and better opportunities. Spring salmon have started to run the river and catches have improved over the last month. The weather hopefully will remain settled over the coming week which should help and give the river more settled conditions and benefit the river to give a greater chance of producing some sport and some early "Bars of Silver" if you are prepared to brave the elements.

Currently the river is falling away slowly after colder weather last week (around 4� on the Ballathie gauge).

The weather is to remain colder over the next few days with some more sun as well hopefully! There will be some milder weather from Thursday to end the week. Colder conditions certainly benefit the river at this time of year slowing the spring salmon run down and giving everyone a chance to catch as they run up the river slowly. The milder weather prior to the start and last week gave us more water and would have encouraged salmon to run the river. Colder weather has settled the river back to a good level and made ideal spring fishing conditions. The water temperature was around 40 degrees Fahrenheit or 4.5 degrees Celsius and should remain at that level in the coming days.

These are typical temperatures for this time of year. The temperature may come back further with the colder forecast for the week ahead but there have been salmon running throughout the system after milder conditions prior to the opening day and resulted in fish being caught well up the system. The lower river around Stanley seems to be the hot spot currently in the colder conditions and this confirms historical results in the past. Hopefully there might be a chance of a fresh fish anywhere in the river. There will no doubt be quite a few kelts about on many beats and possibly some later run fish, which have yet to spawn. Should you require guidance on salmon identification at this time of year please see this link for some help.

As to methods, in settled conditions fishing by any method will have to be slow and deep with large lures to catch the elusive Tay Springer. 20 pounds main line with a 15 pounds leader plus favoured lures include Devons, Toby Salmos, Vision 110�s and Rapalas, for spinning and Temple Dogs, Tubes, larger flies and Monkies for fly fishing. The Tay is a large river but modern lines such as Skagits or iflights make tuning over and casting larger flies easier and the fish tend to be near the bank in larger waters. Harling is also a favoured method at this time of year but be warned wrap up well or it will not be a pleasant experience. Harling is also a favoured method at this time of year but be warned wrap up well or it will not be a pleasant experience.

Popular hotels to stay in the area are the Tayside Hotel in Stanley, Ballathie House, The Meikleour Arms, The Anglers Inn in Guildtown, Murrayshall Hotel, Scone and the Royal Dunkeld Hotel.

The Tay in Perthshire is a prime spring salmon fishing destination so why not give it a go?

Finally, you are reminded that the Tay's policy for January � 1st April 2016 is that all spring salmon must be released, i.e. the Tay has a policy of 100% mandatory release of all salmon caught under the new Scottish Government Statutory Conservation Regulation. Spring salmon are a scarce and precious resource. Please preserve both them and the long term future of your sport by following the release of salmon as it is a now legal requirement during this period even if a fish has died. The Board's bailiff team will be enforcing this new legislation.

When releasing salmon please try to keep the fish in the water as much as possible to give them every chance to recover prior to release. Releasing fish from boats in the river is not recommended. Further information on the policy and good release practice.

If you have any news or pictures of catches or experiences on the Tay and you would like to share them please email me on robert.salmonfishing@googlemail.com to be included in the reports.

Salmon Fishing Scotland - By Robert White

Salmon Fishing Scotland Spring Fishing on the Tay, Perthshire March 2016.

Salmon Fishing Scotland Spring Fishing on the Tay, Perthshire March 2016.

There is currently very good conditions for Spring Salmon fishing on the Tay in Perthshire, Scotland. The river was a little unsettled earlier in the week but colder weather has reined everything in and catches have improved as more spring salmon run the mighty Tay.

A superb 13 pounds spring beauty caught by David Ecclestone on the fly in the Catholes Stream on the Catholes at Stanley.

John Bennett with another fly caught springer this time from Horsey on the Pitlochrie beat at Stanley.

A superb top quality 20 pounds beauty caught in the Back Dam of the Catholes by Ken Towner.
Hopefully lots more to come!

Fishing Scotland - By Robert White

Salmon Fishing Scotland Murrayshall Hotel, Scone, Perth.

Salmon Fishing Scotland Murrayshall Hotel, Scone, Perth.

From the minute you arrive at Murrayshall House Hotel in Perthshire, Scotland you know it will be a special experience.

Surrounded by two 18 hole golf courses, set in 350 acres of beautiful park and woodland populated by deer, hare and wild birds, the historic Murrayshall house overlooked by spectacular mountains is within reach of both the diverse city of Perth and Mile upon mile of beautiful Perthshire countryside.

Whether you are looking for a relaxing evening, corporate event or an activity packed break Murrayshall provides the perfect location whatever the occasion. A perfect accommodation for a salmon fishing experience on the Tay.

From the welcoming smile that greets you at reception, to your luxurious accommodation and fine dining restaurant, unmatched golf facilities and Stutts bar, whether your visit is a weekend escape, corporate event, special occasion or your just passing by, our attentive staff work hard to ensure your time at Murrayshall is pleasantly unique.

Scone � Perth � Scotland � PH2 7PH | +44 (0)1738 551171

Salmon Fishing Scotland - By Robert White