Opening day on the River Tay 2017
Opening day on the River Tay is always a special date on the Scottish salmon fishing calendar. It is a day when people from across the country come to Perthshire to experience a bit of salmon fishing history. My wife and I have been very lucky over the years and always had a beat to host a party of friends on this momentous day. Indeed in 2015, my wife caught the first salmon in the UK, when she landed a springer on the 15th of January on the Dalmarnock beat. This year we were invited to the Newtyle beat which is situated just downstream of Dunkeld. It would be a day of celebration, where old friends meet up, enjoy some good food, sample a wee dram and of course have a cast. This year the 15th of January fell on a Sunday, so instead Monday would be the day that the mighty River Tay opened its banks to anglers.
The marquee looking good
Monday morning dawned dry and clear. After the recent cold weather, it had turned much milder overnight. There had been significant snowfall the previous week. This meant that the water had the potential of rising significantly overnight due to melting snow. When we arrived at the beat, it quickly became apparent that this was the case. We had been at the beat the previous day erecting a marquee and the water was much lower and at a perfect height. However, the river had risen around two feet but at least the water was running reasonably clear.
With the help of some good friends, we managed to get the tables erected underneath the marquee. Thankfully, conditions were calm and there was very little wind which made the job much easier. As the guests started to arrive, the smell of fresh bacon wafted in the air. Our fellow anglers would be welcomed with a hot bacon roll and a dram. We had guests arriving from all across the UK and there seemed to be a great sense of anticipation for not only the day but also the season ahead.
The guests getting tackled up
We were lucky enough to have James Stokoe, the winner of the BBC’s “Big fish” competition come and open the beat, by having the first cast. Our good friend Allan would be piping before the opening ceremony, so the scene was set for a good day.
Allan Sinclair doing a fantastic job on the pipes
Shortly after ten, we all followed Allan, who piped us down the steps by the hut. He was dressed in his tartan trousers and looked the part. We walked down to the side of the river, beside the boat and Sam and I gave a short speech. Thankfully, everyone managed to stay awake! James then went on to make the first cast and the 2017 salmon fishing season on the Newtyle beat was officially open.
James has the first cast and opens the beat
Our good friend Andy who is also the ghillie on the Newtyle beat started to ferry anglers across to the far bank in the boat. There were a total of eighteen anglers fly fishing and spinning, so the beat would be well covered. As the water had come up overnight, Andy felt that the best chance of catching a fish would be in either the Cotter or Steps pool. He wanted to make sure that both these pools were well covered. Andy was going to take James and another guest out in the boat harling, as this would give James the chance of experiencing a method of fishing that he had never practised before and which is unique to the River Tay. Sam and myself would show two of our fellow anglers the Ferry pool which was at the top of the beat. The Ferry pool was looking good. It fishes well in high water and it looked like the perfect spot to ambush a springer. David and Grant would be fishing the pool in the morning.
Les getting his rod bent
As everyone was away happily making their first casts of the season, Sam and I decided to drive over to the opposite bank to see how the anglers fishing the Cotter and Steps pools were faring. By now there was blue-sky overhead and the sun was beating down. It was around ten degrees and very pleasant. You would not have believed that it was January. As soon as we arrived on the far bank, we heard that a kelt been landed. David, a ghillie on the River Spey had been the first to make contact. He had caught a kelt and lost two others on the fly. David was delighted to get his rod bent. While chatting to David, we heard a shout go up. We looked upstream to see that Les was into a fish. Sam and I went up to give him some assistance. Les had been fishing the Trap and had a good solid take on the fly. When we arrived by his side, he had still not seen the fish, he had hooked. Would this be the springer that everyone had been hoping for? The fish fought well making long powerful runs downstream. Les did well, keeping his rod bent and maintained adequate tension on the line. After around ten minutes, we got our first glimpse of the fish. It was a large well-mended kelt. After one further run upstream, the fish came close to the bank and I managed to tail it. Les was over the moon and rightly so. The fish had given an excellent account of itself. After a quick photograph, the fish was released and swam away strongly. There had been two kelts caught now which was a decent start to the morning.
As it was now midday, Sam and myself decided to go back across the river and start preparing lunch. We had decided to serve the homemade beef stew with crusty bread as well as broccoli and stilton and sweet potato soup. There would also be home smoked salmon, a selection of cheeses and cold meats, as well as sandwiches for everyone to enjoy.
Our guests started to return to the hut around one o clock. It was great to hear that another three kelts had been landed. Unfortunately, the elusive opening day springer continued to elude us. We all enjoyed a good lunch, which was washed down with glasses of wine and whisky. There were a lot of laughs and the craic was brilliant. Spirits were high amongst us.
Going for a cast after lunch
It was difficult to motivate people to have a cast in the afternoon. I think that they were quite happy sitting in the Marquee enjoying the good food and refreshments. However, Andy and I managed to persuade everyone to wet a line once again. Andy was going to take two anglers out in the boat harling and again the Cotter and Steps pool would be well covered. A couple of anglers went upstream to fish the Ferry pool. It was good just to relax in the afternoon sunshine. Sam and I chatted to some of our friends. We were so lucky to get such help from those who attended and this really made the day run smoothly. On regular occasions, we could see anglers on the far bank with their rods bent but every time a fish came to the bank, the word kelt was shouted back. My wife had kindly offered to drive, so I was able to enjoy a couple of cheeky wee drams, which went down well!
As it was mid-January, the light began to fade by around four o clock and we could hardly make out the figures fishing on the far bank. People started to return to the hut shortly afterwards, having had a lovely day. It was good to hear that a further five kelts had been caught in the Ferry pool during the afternoon which meant that most of our guests had at least got their rods bent. We all enjoyed a wee dram as the sun was beginning to set. James Stokoe had a great day. It was only the second time he had fished in Scotland and his first experience of the mighty River Tay.
A beautiful afternoon on the Newtyle Beat
Many of our guests headed back to the Abernethy Inn for dinner and drinks. It was the perfect way to round off what had been a perfect day. There was an excellent atmosphere in the Inn and we all reflected on what had been a truly memorable day. The drams were flowing, some excellent speeches were made and the air was filled with laughter. The celebrations went on well into the night and one of our guests commented that his ribs were sore the following day because of all the hilarity!
Fun at the Abernethy Inn
It had been another fantastic opening day on the River Tay, one that will be remembered for a long time to come. There were plenty of kelts caught, the craic was good and there were so many unforgettable moments. The opening day Tay springer proved to be elusive but this did not detract from the day. As we all know there is much more to salmon fishing than just catching fish and on opening day this was certainly the case!