In our examination of trout, sea trout and salmon fishing in Scotland, let's begin with the salmon, the king of fish, in fact the only species, in some parts of Scotland, to be dignified by the title "fish" - their lowly cousins are merely "troot". Salmon run, and are caught in, most Scottish rivers of any size and, leaving aside the vexed question of the salmon farms and their effect on stocks of salmon and sea trout in the west highlands, there is excellent salmon fishing to be found in all parts of Scotland, some, it has to be said, less accessible than others. In planning a salmon fishing trip to Scotland, there are a few vital questions we need to consider. First of all, when should we fish? in spring, summer or autumn? There was a time when many of Scotland's salmon rivers had excellent runs of salmon in the spring. Indeed, the spring fishing was often the most productive on many rivers. Times have changed, though, and, although some rivers still have a reasonable spring run, the majority of Scottish rivers now have more reliable salmon fishing in the late summer and autumn, with summer runs of grilse, in many of our northern and western spate streams in particular, reliant on a good supply of summer rain.

But the news is not all bad. Many Scottish rivers have experienced increased runs of salmon in recent years. Control of pollution has seen salmon returning to rivers in the industrialised central belt in increasing numbers; the buying out of coastal and river netting concerns has allowed more fish to reach the salmon fishing beats; the growing readiness of anglers to return salmon in rivers with fragile stocks has seen more salmon on the redds; improving management practices on many of our rivers, including judicious stocking of young fish reared from indigenous stocks, has also played a part.

All this has seen a stabilisation, at least, of a previously bleak picture on many rivers and recent record catches on some Scottish rivers have provided grounds for a degree of optimism about the future of our Atlantic salmon. Scotland is still blessed with some wonderful salmon fishing rivers, making the choice of where to fish a difficult one.

The River Spey

Grays Tube Fly Adaptor

The new Tube fly adaptor from Grays of Kilsyth complete with 25 assorted needle tubes

Flies by Grays of Kilsyth

Other matters of only slightly less immediate concern are the tackle requirements, tactics and flies needed for an assault on the Scottish salmon. Such distractions might, of course, keep us all very happily occupied throughout the dark winter days when we cannot get to the river.

I hope that the following sections will help in making such decisions.

Where to Fish for Salmon

Information on 75 Scottish salmon rivers

Salmon Fishing Tackle

Fly fishing and spinning tackle for salmon

Salmon Fishing Tactics

Basic approach to salmon fishing in Scotland

Salmon Fishing Flies

Popular flies for Scottish salmon

See Salmon and Sea Trout Catches on Scottish Rivers

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Trout and Salmon Fishing