Salmon Fishing on the River Spey
The River Spey in Scotland is probably the most famous salmon river in the World. The Spey rises in the Monadhliath mountains to the south of Loch Ness and flows 100 miles northwards to enter the Moray Firth at Spey Bay. In its lower course, downstream of Grantown, it is a fast flowing river, providing miles of perfect, and highly sought after, fly fishing water.
It is on the lower half of the Spey that we find the famous beats – Castle Grant, Tulchan, Balindalloch, Knockando, Carron, Elchies, Arndilly, Rothes, Delfur and many more, where the cream of Scottish salmon fly fishing is to be had, by those fortunate enough to have access to them, in the months of April, May and June.
Until the recent dip in salmon runs, the annual salmon catch on the river in recent years has been just short of 10,000 fish. The Spey is also one of the best sea trout rivers in the country, although the sea trout catch had dipped in recent seasons to around 2000. The best salmon fly fishing is to be found in the middle and lower beats, where only those with the ability to wade deeply and handle a fifteen foot rod effectively will make the most of their opportunities. The best of the sea trout fishing is to be found in the upper middle river, upstream of Grantown. The sea trout fishing can also be excellent on many of the lower beats but, perhaps understandably, the angler’s sights are firmly fixed on the salmon, while the sea trout are largely overlooked.
There is a very high demand for rods on the Spey and long term tenants generally keep a tenacious grip on the best of the fishing. Fortunately, there are several angling associations on the Spey, who control some excellent beats, many of them available to the visiting angler. The best known of these are the Strathspey Angling Improvement Association, based in Grantown, the Abernethy Angling Association, centred on Boat of Garten, and the Aberlour Angling Association.
River Spey Maps
Tap or click on a map below to view full size image
Note: the maps on this website are extracts from the Bartholomew “Half Inch” map series dating back to the middle of the twentieth century. There have been many changes since the maps were made, and much of the human detail, e.g. buildings and roads, will have changed over the period. It is to be hoped, however, that the unique character of our Scottish rivers, and the trout and salmon in them, will not have altered too dramatically over the years and that they may still offer the wonderful fishing prospects of days gone by. Bearing the above in mind, anyone planning a fishing or walking trip in Scotland is advised to equip themselves with a compass and the appropriate up-to-date Ordnance Survey map, the most useful for the angler probably being the Landranger series, scale 1:50,000. For The Spey, see O.S. map numbers 29 and 36.
For further information about the fishing on the Spey see River Spey Fishing
For information about the trout fishing in the area see Trout Fishing Scotland