River Tweed- Lower Dryburgh
It was the last week of November and after fishing on the Upper Tweed the previous week, I thought I had made my last cast for the year. However, the weather forecast was set fare through the early part of the week and the River Tweed was dropping down to a nice height after recent heavy rain. Temptation got the better of me and I just had to have one more cast before the curtain was drawn on another season. The majority of fish were being caught on the middle and upper reaches of the Tweed, so I felt that the best chance would be in this area. There was good availability on the river and after careful consideration I decided to book a rod on the Lower Dryburgh beat, near St. Boswells. I had heard a lot about the beat and have always wanted to fish it. I gave the ghillie George Ingils a ring after I had booked my fishing to ask him what conditions were like. George is a Tweed legend and was very enthusiastic. George said that the river was running clear and in good condition. In fact he commented that it was probably the best conditions all autumn. This was reassuring to know and I was now really looking forward to my day.
I had to drop my wife off in Edinburgh, as she was catching a train south. So we left our house in Perthshire early, around 6am. I thought this would give me plenty of time to drop her off and then drive down to the borders. I was wrong as by six thirty the traffic was tailing back three miles from the Forth Road Bridge. As we came into Edinburgh the traffic was no better. I was tempted to drop my wife off on the side of the dual carriage way, but I thought this would not go down too well. I did not leave Edinburgh until around eight, so the rush was on to get down to the borders in time. In late November the days are short and so I did not want to turn up at the beat at ten and lose most of the morning. Fortunately the traffic on the way down to the borders was light and I arrived at the beat on time.
The first thing that struck me when I got out of the car was the beautiful tranquil setting. In front of me was the river, with the morning mist just rising off it. Upstream I could see a mouth-watering pool which looked like a dream too fish with the fly. Downstream I could also some more lovely fly water. I was really feeling optimistic and knew I had made the right decision to fish at Dryburgh, irrespective of what I would catch that day. It felt like a place where catching a fish would be a bonus and a perfect location to forget about the stresses of modern life. I suppose it’s one of the main reasons why many of us go fishing.
The view from the fishing hut
The hut also looked great with a veranda overlooking the river. I walked up the steps to the hut and knocked on the door and walked in. George was already there with David the second boatman and one of the other guests, John. The welcome was terrific and George made me feel at ease straight away. After ten minutes in his company, it felt like I had known George for years. His enthusiasm was truly infectious and the right medicine for a cold November morning. Over a coffee we discussed tactics. George said that he felt that the river was running at prefect height for the beat and that most of the pools would fish well. I was assigned to fish the Brockies Hole Pool. This was the wonderful pool I first saw upstream from the hut. I was delighted, as I saw fish moving in the pool whilst building my rod up. George suggested that I fished Brockie’s Hole during the first part of the morning and then I would swap with John who would be fishing the pool further upstream called Burnfoot. John was a regular fisher on the beat and managed to land a thirty pounder from the beat a few weeks earlier.
Fishing Brockie's hole
George and David kindly talked me through how to fish Brockie’s Hole and pointed out some likely lies. I could not wait to get started. Brockie’s Hole is a stunning pool. It has a fast run at the head of the pool, the current then spreads evenly down the entire length of the pool. At the tail of the pool the current picks up. Although the tail is shallow, it looks very fishy. I was told by George that most of the fish lie quite close to the far bank. A deep channel runs along the far bank down the entire length of the pool and it was in this area where most of the fish were likely to be lying. The wading was also very easy with nothing more than small pebbles to contend with.
I was advised by George to use a sink tip line with around a two inch copper tube. I selected a fly that was tied by my good friend and ghillie on the Thurso river. I had already done well with the fly earlier in the autumn on the Tweed. It was a two inch gold bodied Willie Gunn variant. I started fishing at the head of the pool. The fly was swing around beautifully in the current. The sun was shining up the pool. Brockie’s Hole was looking like a scene form a picture postcard. I was seeing the occasional fish jumping half way down the pool. There were also a few good sized sea trout jumping near the tail of the pool. A third of the way down the pool as the fly was swinging around in the current just off the dangle; I got a sharp pull, then nothing. I therefore recast my fly at the same angle and in the same area. Just before the fly came on to the dangle the same thing happened again. I knew it was a fish. I was also aware that my fly had a long wing and I felt that the fish may have just been pulling at the wing. I repeated the cast a number of times but I got no further response. I fished down to the tail of the pool under the watchful eye of George, who was watching from the bank. George felt that I was covering the water adequately and felt that I should fish through the pool again.
I went back to the head of the pool and decide to change my fly. I felt that I should try a smaller tube, as this may induce the fish to take. I have found in the past when I have had fish pulling at the wing of the fly often a change in fly size does the trick. I picked a red and yellow Flame Thrower copper tube around an inch in length. I fished down the entire pool again to the best of my ability covering the water diligently but to no avail.
George suggested that we go and try the Burn Foot pool, which was on the bend immediately upstream. John had fished Burn Foot during the first half of the morning. The Burn Foot Pool is a lovely long pool set on a sweeping bend. The fish lie quite close to the far bank . The pool is made for fly fishing and has a very inviting glassy tail. This was the pool that John caught his thirty pounder a few weeks earlier from. John kindly showed me the pictures of his monstrous fish over a slow gin. It was a magnificent capture and fish that any angler would be proud of.
The Burnfoot pool, a dream to fish
I started fishing at the head of the pool. The wading was easy as almost all of the pool had a shingle bottom. The fly was swinging around in the current beautifully and I was just waiting for the line to tighten. A large fish was showing frequently at the head of the pool. I covered it a number of times, but obviously it was playing hard to get! The tail of the pool fished really nicely. It was where John had landed his monster fish. The fly was swinging around nicely through the dark glassy water. I could not believe that I did not get a take.
We decided to have an early lunch as the days in late November are short. The atmosphere in the hut at lunchtime was convivial. There was great hilarity and laughter at George’s jokes and he even managed to stump us on a clever racing riddle. I felt like I had been fishing the beat for years. I must admit, I did need some motivating to get out from the warm confines of the hut and go fishing. David felt that it would be worthwhile for me to fish the Gullet pool in the afternoon. He kindly said that he would take me across the river in the boat and accompany me whilst I fished down the pool. David chose a tungsten Willie Gunn tube fly around two and half inches in length. He explained to me that as the Gullet was a fast flowing pool and that it was important that my fly had enough time to get down. The Gullet was downstream from the hut. It had a fast head, with the flow running through the middle of the pool. On either side of the flow there were some very inviting calmer glassy patches of water. Further down the pool the flow was spread more evenly and David said the bottom third of the pool usually had fish lying in it. The Gullet had been the most productive pool during the autumn, so I was really looking forward to having a cast.
The Gullet pool
As soon as I started fishing the pool, I saw two fish show in the fast water at the head of the pool. Shortly after this a number of fish also started to show in the tail of the pool. A run of fish may have been coming through the pool. It was really interesting to listen to David’s thoughts on what had been a difficult season on the river. We both agreed that next year would hopefully turn out to be much better. I continued to fish down the pool. The bottom third of the pool was significantly slower than the head. The fly was swinging around in the current a treat. I was covering one of the likely lies that David had pointed out, when my line gently tightened . I lifted the rod and the fish was on. The fish came towards me at speed. I had difficulty keeping the tension on the line as I reeled furiously. The fish then started shaking it’s head close to my bank. David had got the net and was standing waiting for his opportunity. I could see the small clean looking fish under the surface of the water. However the fish then rolled over on to the leader and the line went slack. The fish was lost. We were both quite philosophical about this. At the end of the day I had the enjoyment of getting the take and then a decent fight. The fish swam away unharmed, which was probably a good thing being late November. We continued to fish the tail of the pool and unfortunately had no other offers. The light was fading so David suggested that we had another cast in Brockies Hole, but from the opposite bank from which I had fished it in the morning. David tied on a Junction Shrimp for the last half hour of the day. The Junction Shrimp has saved many a blank day in the gloaming. I fished the pool hard and saw a few fish at the tail of the pool. Crossing back over the river in the fading light was special. The mist was rolling off the water again and the river was almost looking silvery in appearance.
Back at the hut, we had a coffee reminiscing on a great day. Unfortunately there had been no fish caught from the beat. But this did not matter, as we had all enjoyed ourselves. It was great fishing a new beat, which had some lovely fly water, located in such a peaceful setting. George and David were fantastic company and really made me feel at home. It was a pleasure to fish with them and get some handy hints . Lower Dryburgh was a fitting place to have my last cast of 2014. I will definitely be back, but unfortunately next time I will have probably have to bring the wife!