An artist at work with a message for all
Here is esteemed artist Howard Butterworth in action painting at Borrowston at the River Dee opening ceremony 2013 celebrating the River Dee and 150th birthday of the Dee District Salmon Fishery Board. Howard is an artist of great renown and sees his paintings fetch top dollar at market. Howard wanted to continue with his dedicated efforts as a kind supporter of the River Dee, Its education programmes for children, and of course the tremendous amount of habitat restoration work restoring the River Dee valley to its former glories. Over 100 years ago many riparian forests were removed which allowed sheep farmers to prosper and when they moved out, Deer & forestry became the main resource for many land owners.
Now with global warming affecting the upper Dee valley which is harming the progeny of our treasured spring salmon stocks, action is being taken to mitigate against this increasing and maligning threat. The £2.5 million Pearls in Peril project will see a terrific amount of native woods being planted throughout the upper catchment and tributaries which will provide shading to cool the river in summer months, stabilise the banks against erosion preventing siltation, and provide a home for invertebrates which are vitally important to our rare freshwater pearl population and juvenile spring salmonids. This is a hugely ambitious project, albeit the River Dee organisations have a great track record in project delivery with the E.U Cass Life project an example of exemplary delivery of a large match funded project. The River Dee Trust need to find funds constantly to allow them to seek matched funding opportunities that arise from time to time and enable great restoration work programmes to be undertaken. Every contribution made to the River Dee Trust is crucial and does get used for very important work projects, the likes of which could never be undertaken in a short timespan without collaborative support.
Never more than now has the Trust need your support, and to this end Howard has created a wonderful painting for supporters of the Dee to purchase. For every high quality Giclee print sold by the Butterworth Gallery at Ballogie, Howard will donate £25 to the River Dee Trust. Howard asks supporters of the Dee to embrace this initiative. Will you please consider providing a nice home to a lovely image that celebrates the stewardship of the River for the last 150 years by the River Dee Board ? You can go to Howard’s website to order a copy of this fine artwork, and in the process really make a vital gesture of support to our River Dee. http://www.butterworthpaintings.co.uk/acatalog/River_Dee_Opening_Ceremony_2013.html
An interesting tale of lost and hopefully found !
An interesting e-mail with some images. The story is about a camera found in the River Dee which needs to be re-united with it’s owner………..
Fishing the River Dee , I found a digital camera lying amongst boulders in two feet of water at Glisters ( Cairnton). The camera was well wrecked but I managed to extract the SD card and after a bit of terminal-cleaning, it produced 16 video clips (USA scenes) plus 149 photos including a wedding (clearly somewhere in England) plus some of a hike up Glen Tanar. The last four are of a Canadian Canoe trip down a river which includes the very last photo taken by that camera………..on 27 June 2008! I thought it pretty spectacular to find an SD card still working after years of immersion! I can’t recognise the beat where these last pics were taken but by sheer natural detective ability I would deduce that it is [a] on the Dee, and [b] upstream of the Glisters Pool! EDIT: This look likes Commonty where the river breaks to three streams around two islands..
If anyone recognises any of the images and can perhaps forward details-FishDee would like to reunite the owner of the camera with their memory card from their long lost camera ! write to ken@riverdee.org
FishDee weekly audio fishing report
Please find attached download link to weekly FishDee audio report for people with reading difficulties and visitors from abroad.
River Dee Weekly Audio Report
Banchory School Master faces daunting challenge
Here’s a daunting challenge for Colin Nicoll from Banchory Academy. Colin has been pivotal in getting the River Dee Trust’s Mar Lodge Summer School Week for teenage children off the ground. This activity week launched last year and was so successful it is being repeated this summer. As Colin is a keen supporter of the river I thought you may want to hear about the challenge facing him.
Hi Folks,
I am again organising an 8 day trip with 14 pupils from Banchory Academy travelling from Mallaig to Aberdeen by foot, mountain bike and canoe, camping as we plot our way across the country. This year is a little more challenging as well as taking 14, 12-15 year olds, we are taking two guys who are both double leg amputees from our chosen charity Horseback UK.
Paul, (50) lost his legs back in 1979 at Warren Point in Ireland following an IRA blast and Scott (23) lost them following an IED blast in Afghanistan 2 years ago. Although the blasts were almost 30 years apart both guys are from the 2nd Battalion the Parachute Regiment. Both are now involved working at Horseback UK having attended courses as part of their rehabilitation. We depart this Friday 17th May for 8 days and we hope the weather warms up.
Hope you are able to sponsor me for what is a fantastic charity.
If link does not work just cut and paste into virgin money and search for Across Scotland 2013
Many thanks
Colin
http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/acrossscotland2103
Colin Nicoll
Depute Rector
Banchory Academy
01330 823357
07825682863
River Dee weekly fishing report 14th May
Recent Catches
The River Dee saw a lot of anglers fishing the length of the catchment looking for the elusive salmon with catches reported from Ardoe to Abergeldie. If you were in the right place at the right time there were some fish to be caught. FishDee beats reported 74 salmon to 22 lbs and 8 sea trout. It’s been a slow cold spring this year so far with night time frosts still occurring. Lower Crathes continues to provide sport weekly with 16 reported last week and the Invery beats reported 12 with Graham Ritchie, a very talented angler catching 3 in a day. Conditions at times have been difficult for anglers and this week was no exception. The weather has been quite cold and the river levels have fluctuated a bit with quite unsettled water coming down the valley which seems to put fish off the take. Anglers though are a resilient bunch and the people I met on the river last week seemed to be having a very enjoyable time in the valley, enjoying good Scottish hospitality. I caught up with Lars Terkildsen from Sweden fishing with Hans from Germany at Commonty. Sport had been slow but they managed some fresh fish and persevered to get their rewards. Lars has had some superb days on the Dee with up to 18 salmon; this year sport has been challenging but the rewards have been worth the efforts.
Jan Tryk with a 22lb salmon at Lower Crathes
Tristan Sillars dropped me an e-mail commenting ‘I am just back from the annual May Aboyne trip with Andrew Dennis and Bill and Mark Currie. It was a challenging week, seeing hardly any fish entering the pools despite the water temperature remaining around 50 all week and of course decent water heights. Clearly the majority of fish have either remained in the lower half of the river or we are encountering a particularly poor spring run. I would imagine it is a combination of these factors, according to my own spring catch records for the river; we are heading for the lowest spring catch on the river since 2002. In terms of the fishing, we managed 3 fish, and lost another. I have attached a picture of one of my fish, a 14lber from the Lummels. This fish had almost half of its tail fin missing, if you zoom in you can see it, although my hand is half covering it annoyingly! Despite this unfortunate damage, this fish put up a super 15 minute fight, quite incredible and testament to the admirable survival instinct of these fabulous creatures.’
I received an e-mail from Jan Tryk, a visiting angler from Denmark who was fishing at Lower Crathes advising ‘Hi Ken, Here is a picture of my beautiful salmon (22 lbs) from Lower Crathes caught May 7th which was caught on a Cascade size 10 and fished close to the surface.’ It’s a lovely fish and I’m delighted to receive this image from Jan. I am also delighted that Ian Murray rang me this morning with some news from Lower Invercauld and Monaltrie. He advised Mr JH Stephenson landed two fish yesterday from his beats which were very newsworthy; one of 25 lbs and one of 28lbs. The fish were bars of silver. I hope to get more information about these captures for next weeks column.
Tristan Sillars with a damaged salmon at Aboyne Water
Orvis of Banchory have details of their free beginners fly fishing courses, which will be held between May and September. For further details contact Orvis of Banchory by visiting their store at 2-8 Bridge St, Banchory AB31 5SX or call telephone number 01330 824319. Copyright FishDee
As always please let me know how you get on by dropping me an e-mail to ken@riverdee.org with any anecdotes and pictures about your experiences on the river. Ken Reid © FishDee Ltd.
Beat catches reported
SALMON & GRILSE: Ardoe and Murtle 3, Altries and Lower Drum 1, Park 3, Lower Crathes and W Durris 16, Crathes 3, Invery 5, Tilquhillie 7, Little Blackhall and Inchmarlo 2, Middle Blackhall 2, Upper Blackhall 1, Cairnton 1, Woodend 1, Commonty 2, Ballogie 1, Borrowston 1, Kincardine 2, Carlogie 5, Dess 3, Aboyne Water 3, Aboyne Castle 1, Craigendinnie 2, Waterside and Ferrar 2, Dinnet 2, Deecastle 2, Monaltrie and Lower Invercauld 2, Abergeldie 1.
Total: 74 Largest: Lower Crathes and W Durris & Little Blackhall and Inchmarlo 22lbs
SEA TROUT: Ardoe and Murtle 1, Park 2, Tilquhillie 1, Little Blackhall and Inchmarlo 2, Woodend 2.
Total: 8 Largest: Woodend 4lbs
Prospects
The prevailing cool weather conditions look set to continue with the Met Office suggesting grass frosts this week. They suggest this week will see air temperature maxima peak around 12 degrees Celsius and get perhaps a little warmer during the latter part of the week. Winds will be light and variable. River levels are pretty decent with the Sepa gauges are showing 1ft 2 inches at Mar Lodge, 1 ft 9 inches at Park. The maritime influence shows tides dropping through the week from 4.0 metres to 3.4 metres which may bring some new fish forward. We may be a bit early for Grilse just now but we hope that they start to run the river in the next few weeks to augment numbers of salmon in the river. A good summer run would be a blessing for the river.
As always please heed the advice of your beat Ghillie who can make suggestions about where to fish on your chosen beat and what flies and tactics to utilise. Time and time again I hear from anglers who let me know how helpful their Ghillie has been in putting them onto taking fish. Their knowledge is second to none and they can at times make a difference in helping you achieve success on their beat. If you don’t have the services of a Ghillie to call on then you will probably want to fish with a full floating line or perhaps with a 5 foot sink tip just to take the fly a few inches below the surface. Your fly choice might include a Black or Red Frances, Snaelda, Ally’s shrimp, Cascade or Maggie’s Shrimp. The Monkey or Sunray can also be used at times to good effect. Perseverance is the key though as you won’t catch a fish unless you have a fly in the water.
If you find you have the wrong flies with you for your fishing trip or run out, then pay a visit to some of our super retailers; George Strachan’s store in Aboyne have increased their selection of fishing equipment and River Dee flies tied by the Ballogie Estates Head Ghillie Sean Stanton, at very attractive prices too. The Orvis store in Banchory also has a vast selection of flies to choose from and equipment to hire. The Countrywear shop in Ballater is a favourite destination for visiting anglers, where Norman Clements is always delighted to meet visiting anglers. They have a good selection of fishing equipment available and provide good service and value. I would like to add Kincardine O’Neil Post Office supplies nice sandwiches and a great selection of River Dee flies too.
I really would encourage anglers who are thinking about fishing to book availability now through FishDee because sport should really pick up now given the significant improvement in fishing conditions-its getting warmer. The hotels in Deeside provide excellent value and there are Fisherman’s rates for groups of anglers. All anglers and Ghillies are being asked to ensure all anglers have their waders and any landing nets sprayed with a mild disinfectant prior to commencing fishing, even when they are fishing different beats during their week on the river. It’s a quick procedure that will help the river and prevent ingress of unwanted pathogens and non native species entering any part of the River Dee watercourse. We also want to prevent the transfer of ranunculus from the lower part of the river to the upper part. We have a great range of accommodation providers so please visit the relevant pages on the FishDee website to find out more. Please write with any news of catches or anecdotes with images to ken@riverdee.org so I can share this news in the weekly report and FishDee blog. It should be a better week for anglers and hopefully we shall get some good news to report next week. Tight Lines to you all! Copyright FishDee. Ken Reid © FishDee Ltd.
FishDee website sponsor opportunity
The FishDee website which attracts in excess of 2.5 million visitors each year is looking for a main site annual sponsor for the website. The main site sponsor will obtain a prime banner web link position on the sidebar on each page of the FishDee website which ensures very high visibility and consistent positioning.
The demographic profile of salmon anglers are predominately ABC1, male, over 40 years of age with disposable income.
This is a really great advertising opportunity for a company looking to add a new dynamic advertising platform to their marketing mix. Please contact Ken Reid at ken@riverdee.org or call 013398 80411 to discuss.
River Dee Weekly Audio Fishing Report
https://www.dropbox.com/s/mngnav48kdj0dg1/2013%20May%2006%2012%3A38%3A20.wav
River Dee Weekly Audio Report
Orvis of Banchory-A must visit venue for visiting anglers
Orvis of Banchory-A must visit venue for visiting anglers
Orvis of Banchory is a truly delightful retail and fishing outlet situated a few minutes’ walk from Banchory Bridge over the River Dee. This world famous retail company has a very well stocked establishment in Banchory which is hugely popular, both with the residents of Deeside and many visiting anglers and their families. The store offers a superb range of top quality merchandise to suit all, complemented by a very experienced team of friendly and helpful staff, ably led by the very experienced store manager Claire Vannet.
The well stocked fishing section of the store is overseen by Ben Dixon, an AAPGAI master instructor for trout and SGAIC instructor for salmon. Ben is both knowledgeable and enthusiastic, offering great advice to ensure visiting anglers they get the products, service and advice, whatever their requirements are. The fishing section offers well known brand names such as Scott MacKenzie, Rio, Airflow, Vision and of course Orvis. Fly-tying equipment comes from Cookshill and a superb range of flies from the Caledonia Fly Company at competitive prices. The fishing section also offers a range of fishing equipment to hire ensuring people can try before they buy. Ben also oversees the Orvis two hour introductory courses for people wishing to try their hand at fishing throughout the fishing season; these run from March until the end of September. Their two hour introductory course covers the basics of fly fishing and fly casting. You can contact Ben in the store for the dates that are scheduled throughout the fishing season (note these may be subject to alteration)
Many visiting anglers have long suffering partners/fishing widows who are very understanding when it comes to their much needed fishing sorties on the Dee. What better way to repay their kindness by visiting the store and purchasing a lovely gift to show you really care ! Clare recommends items of clothing or fine gifts as a suitable and welcome surprise which will delight your partner when you return home. There are of course a great selection of ladies wear and menswear items too, with well recognised brand names such as Hunter, Barbour International, Le Chameau, Orvis and Sandwich ensuring a great choice of hunting, shooting, fishing and leisure wear items available to purchase. Orvis also have a loyalty scheme that sees customers being notified about clearance bargains when they run their sale events nationally. To find out more go to the Orvis shop website here or visit the store, which is located at 2-8 Bridge Street, Banchory, Aberdeenshire, AB31 5SX and is open Monday to Saturday from 9 am to 5.30 pm.
River Dee Weekly Fishing Report
Last Week
It was a trying week for anglers and Ghillies alike last week due to conditions they had to face. There was a fierce wind at the beginning of the week and a big rise in river levels on Saturday which made fishing difficult. It’s also clear that the spring run so far this year has not been good for many anglers and Ghillies, especially in the upper beats. This is fishing and not catching, and there are never any guarantees of sport when you are trying to outwit a fish which does not feed in fresh water. FishDee beats have reported 108 salmon for the week and 16 sea trout, with perhaps some late additions to add to this total. Lower Crathes continued to fish well, with the anglers catching 26 salmon for their week. I visited Arni Baldursson on Thursday at the beat who advised that sport was good; he advised he had 8 for the week so far and hoped to land a few more by the end of the week. Park reported 15 salmon, Ballogie beats 14 and the Blackhall beats were also in double figures.
Alan Lankshear who celebrates his 90th birthday this month fighting a hard salmon at Carlogie
Mr Coghill from Argyll had 3 days at Crathes fishing with Ghillie Brian Sim and advised ‘No fish but a most interesting and informative three days. Brian knows his beat intimately, understanding exactly how to fish each pool in the prevailing water conditions. His knowledge of the latest fishing methods is outstanding and his scientific approach to matching tackle to conditions is exactly what an angler who is new to the beat wants to hear. So often a Ghillie will side step the question of what tackle to use and how to fish, not Brian, ask the question and you will get a straight answer. Following my visit to Crathes I have bought a Skagit and am tying up a range of Sunrays, Brian’s favourite fly. They may not catch me more fish but it will be fun trying and learning a new technique. Looking forward to next year.’
Sean Stanton from Ballogie comments on his blog ‘At last the fish have arrived! We managed to get some sea liced salmon this week, after the big flood last week I was pretty sure they would run up the river after it had cleared. I did expect to see more fish in the pools but due to the water temperature falling, the fish seemed reluctant to move fast through the pools, the water temperature dropped from 48f to 42f due to the snow we had towards the end of the week. With the weather forecast indicating no cold nights we may see some increase in the water temperature and some snow melt into the river.’ And with tides building this week hopefully a good run of new fish. Simon Bragg dropped me an e-mail with an image of his very first salmon from Borrowston. I am sure we all wish him continued success on his visits to the River Dee.
Orvis of Banchory have details of their free beginners fly fishing courses, which will be held between May and September. For further details contact Orvis of Banchory by visiting their store at 2-8 Bridge St, Banchory AB31 5SX or call telephone number 01330 824319. Copyright FishDee
Beat Catches Reported
SALMON & GRILSE: Ardoe and Murtle 1, Upper Drum and Lower Durris 1, Park 15, Lower Crathes and W Durris 26, Knappach 2, Crathes 3, Invery 5, Tilquhillie 5, Lower Blackhall and Kinneskie 1, Little Blackhall and Inchmarlo 5, Middle Blackhall 2, Upper Blackhall 2, Cairnton 3, Woodend 2, Commonty 4, Sluie 3, Ballogie 6, Borrowston 2, Kincardine 6, Carlogie 4, Dess 3, Birse 1, Craigendinnie 1, Dinnet 3, Headinch and Cambus O’May 2, Total 108
SEA TROUT: Ardoe and Murtle 2, Tilbouries 1, Park 5, Lower Crathes and W Durris 1, Tilquhillie 2, Lower Blackhall and Kinneskie 1, Commonty 1, Carlogie 1, Dess 1, Crathie 1, Total 16
PROSPECTS
The river is running high and clear following the rise in river levels on Saturday following Friday’s snowfall in the mountains and heavy rain at lower levels. The Sepa gauges are reading 1ft 11 inches at Mar Lodge and 2ft 9 inches at Park. The Ballogie weather station reported a temperature of over 17 degrees Celsius yesterday making it the hottest day of the season so far; this has led to snow melt and a good water level for anglers. The river temperature was in the mid forties Fahrenheit last week however it dropped back to just over 40 degrees on Saturday. It would make a difference if we could get temperatures in excess of 50 degrees Fahrenheit to really get salmon on the move to the upper beats. The weather forecast is looking reasonable this week but there may be a bit of rain midweek and strong winds, with air temps reaching perhaps 18 degrees Celsius. This suggests we will have fluctuating river levels to contend with however the maritime influence sees tides building from 3 .8 metres to 4.1 metres. Hopefully a good run of new fish will come forward given the ideal river conditions that prevail at present. All things being equal we should get better sport during the forthcoming week.
Simon Bragg with his first ever salmon at Borrowston
With lengthening daylight hours anglers may well be starting to fish on into the evenings and look for sea trout. Sea Trout fishing is a nice way to unwind in the evening after pursuing salmon all day. There are quite a number of anglers who come to the River Dee to fish for salmon and sea trout and will have two rods set up to use. If a good hatch of flies is observed anglers may find a bit of sport from sea trout.
It’s a case of persevering this week and if and when a run of fish comes into your chosen beat, you may perhaps see some action. It’s important to work with your Ghillie and heed his wise advice. The Ghillies will be eager to see salmon landed where you can exploit any opportunities for sport. They will advise what flies to use and tactics to employ. At this time of year fish may take a 1.5 inch tube fly fished off an intermediate line and later in the day perhaps a much smaller fly fished off a floating line. Vary your tactics of fly presentation and be alert to slight changes in air and water temperature. If you don’t have a Ghillie to help you, perhaps you will fish with big flies first, and fish down a little bit; later on in the day perhaps use a plastic or aluminium bodied Sunray shadow fished very square with a figure of eight retrieve, especially if you see fish splashing about. Fly choice will include Black and Yellow variant tube flies, Ally’s Shrimp, Dee Monkey and Pot bellied pigs; later in the day you may perhaps get fish to come to a size 8 or 10 dressed double. Flies can be purchased locally at Somers in Aberdeen, Orvis in Banchory, Kincardine O’Neil Post Office, George Strachan’s store in Aboyne and Countrywear in Ballater.
I really would encourage anglers who are thinking about fishing to book availability now through FishDee because sport should really pick up now given the significant improvement in fishing conditions-its getting warmer. The hotels in Deeside provide excellent value and there are Fisherman’s rates for groups of anglers. All anglers and Ghillies are being asked to ensure all anglers have their waders and any landing nets sprayed with a mild disinfectant prior to commencing fishing, even when they are fishing different beats during their week on the river. It’s a quick procedure that will help the river and prevent ingress of unwanted pathogens and non native species entering any part of the River Dee watercourse. Irene Ross who has the Old Toll House in Kincardine advises she has availability into June. We have a great range of accommodation providers so please visit the relevant pages on the FishDee website to find out more. Please write with any news of catches or anecdotes with images to ken@riverdee.org so I can share this news in the weekly report and FishDee blog. It should be a better week for anglers and hopefully we shall get some good news to report next week. Tight Lines to you all! Copyright FishDee
