River Spey Opening 2020

My trip to the Spey last week was great fun despite the lack of fresh fish being caught!

This year I was keen to fish a few different beats after attending the Spey open day celebrations in Aberlour, which despite the weather was very well attended. It’s always a good feeling to chat with Spey anglers, who are like myself, desperately keen to get onto the river and have the first cast of the Spey season!

MAKING SALMON CONSERVATION A NATIONAL PRIORITY

I was invited to join a reception at the Scottish Parliament last night (Tuesday 8th January) hosted jointly between Fisheries Management Scotland and the Scottish Government on a matter dear to all of our hearts – making sure that conservation of our precious wild salmon is at the very heart of Scottish Government’s priorities going forward and I have to say that that the evening and the speakers came across as being completely joined up and genuinely keen to work together in their approach to take matters forward.

Happy New Year

Happy New Year! I hope you all had a great festive season and Santa added a few new bits and pieces to your fishing gear which you obviously need!

Hard to believe that as I sit down to write my blog it will the first of the year and decade!! Where does the time go!

The Missing Salmon Alliance

I write this as CEO of FishPal, an ambassador of the Atlantic Salmon Trust and most importantly as a passionate salmon angler who cares so much about the future of our iconic Atlantic salmon.

Fishing and Friends

Last week I had the pleasure of returning to one of my favourite beats to fish, Wester Elchies on the River Spey. I was invited to fish by one of my very good friends who equally shares a passion for the beat going back many many years.

Summer time, when the fishing is…hot!

It’s interesting speaking to various people about the weather we have had so far this yea, not least this current heat wave. Fisherman, not surprisingly, have been delighted to see us get our fair share of rain over the months. Some would of course want more, some unlucky to have been on the river before the rain and rivers on their bones, others arriving whilst the water was big and dirty and the lucky ones timing it just right as the river falls back, clears and you start to get really excited about the days ahead!

River Verdal, Tingvoll, Norway

It starts with a flight out to Norway on the 31st of may to join friends ready to have their first cast of the new season on the Verdal as the clock strikes midnight. It might be a short season for the rivers of Norway but the opening week is always eagerly awaited.

Skarnsundet Norway

Skarnsundet is regarded as one of the best fishing locations in the Trondheimsfjord. Its nutrient rich waters and strong tidal currents attract large shoals of feeding fish.

The Trondheimfjord is the third longest fjord in Norway and one of the most spectacular. Due to Skarnsundets location, we can offer fantastic fishing in calm waters all year round.

Marks View 24th April

The opening paragraphs of todays newsletter talks about the 2018 catch statistics and the ongoing problems with our salmon stocks and I am proud to be supporting so many different initiatives that hope to help not just with the conservation of our beloved salmon but also get behind some seriously well thought through initiatives that hope to finally help address some of the issues and then do something about it!

FMS Conference Edinburgh

Friday week I had the pleasure of attending the Fisheries Management Scotland Conference in Edinburgh entitled “Salmon and People in a Changing World.” An audience of interesting like minded people from around the world all meeting to get stuck into some really challenging and topical agenda items that certainly made for some great debate.