What were/are the signs of a poorer run of salmon? Part 1.
Back in the 1990s those of us working on the river noticed a drop off in the number of salmon on the Spey. All the classic signs were there, but unfortunately, because no one at the time wanted to hear such talk, they were all ignored. But what were the signs? I try to outline them below.
My Salmon fishing experience began, not on the Spey, but it’s much smaller cousin 30 miles east, the Deveron. At this time, the mid 1970s, good runs prevailed, and most fishing was by invitation only. Pressure on the river and beat by rods was minimal.
As a boy I was lucky to fish Forglen, the best beat on the Deveron and had many days of catching between 3 and 7 salmon, sometimes more. Those were all “Autumn” Fish. For the eyes of a young boy at this time, the sight of so many salmon jumping was just so exciting. It was nothing to count 100+ fish jumping in a pool on the way through it. Our rivers were running on full. Life, and fishing was awesome!
A few years later in 1985, I began working as a Ghillie on Lower Pitchroy, the uppermost of the 3 Knockando beats on the river Spey. This was also a time of plenty on the Spey with so many fish visible in each of the five named pools. However, over a relatively short period it became obvious that less fish were resident in each pool.
Although the overall catch remained at 10k+, those of us with a keen eye could see the overall number entering the river was dropping. But what were the signs? As it was not visible in the catches. In fact, due to the part played by “conditions” both water and weather, along with advances in method and tackle and more competent anglers, with better method, anglers now caught a higher percentage of salmon. Sea Trout too we’re dropping in number but need to be dealt with separately.
Estimating the the overall numbers of salmon in a river solely on rod catch has serious flaws and for those trying to manage rivers, can be dangerous to say the least! For the reasons listed above, a season with extreme weather and water will not produce anything like as many fish to the rod and line and has no relevance to the season before, especially in years when fish were scarce.
So how do know this? What do I base this information on? Was this guesswork based on a formula, or was it factual?
During the 1980s whilst working on Lower Pitchroy, each year in the summer I would snorkel and count the fish in my 5 pools. At this time, on most years I would see good numbers of salmon in all 5. However, in the early 1990s it became clear that 3 of the 5 pools had little or no salmon resident in them. However, catches generally remained unchanged. By the end of the decade only 2 of the 5 ever had decent numbers of resident fish. By the time I left the beat in 2003, apart from the best holding pool in the area there no resident fish anywhere. Through snorkelling each summer, I knew that numbers of fish in my beat had declined from 1k – 1.5k in the 80s to less than 200 in 2003. However, the fact that there was still “some” resident fish, meant my guests had a decent chance of catching a few and importantly, seeing a few gave us confidence! Fishing for fresh running or moving fish is always easier when there are a few residents in the pool you were targeting. I had watched the 5 pools in my beat go from all holding resident fish to just one. The important thing here was, even with this massive drop in overall numbers, at this point, on a good season (weather and water conditions) we still caught decent numbers150-180. For me, the red flag was there and glaringly obvious. However, when tying to point this out I was repeatedly told by the then Chairman of the board not be so negative, the long term catch on the Spey is 10k and has not changed in 50 years. Based on what I had seen in the 90s, I knew this wouldn't be the case for too long. This was the time we could have done something about the problem, but heads were buried firmly in the sand, or, possibly, in a new fledgling business!
My first fish of this year (2024), caught in the Fiddich pool on Easter Elchies, reminded me of the importance of having residents. On the day (26th April), I was super confident because I knew it had produced 20 of the 25 fish caught on the beat this season. Did it surprise me when it was the only place I saw any fish on the beat too? Nope! But why this pool and not the others? Well, the short answer is, not only was the pool in good height when fish arrived, but it is also the top pool in Zone 2 with an important juvenile producing tributary flowing into it. It is also a “Gathering” pool for Juveniles.
The presence of a tributary and “gathering” is also extremely relevant but requires much more explanation than I have time for here!
What, I hear you say, is Zone 2? It’s my personal code for what is historically the best and most productive part of the Spey, the area between two tributaries, the Mulben Burn to the River Fiddich. More fish stop in this, than any of the other 5 zones on the river. On the Spey, this is the benchmark, the area that spring salmon will initially rest/stop on their way upstream as adults. A good, bad or indifferent run of Spring Salmon can be measured, not by how many fish are caught, but by how many of the holding pools in this zone have fish in them by the end of May. This year has been particularly poor. A little like we saw on the Dee a few years back.
Here is my take on the 5 zones on the Spey -
Zone 1 – The sea to the Mulben Burn.
Zone 2 – The Mulben Burn to The Fiddich Burn.
Zone 3 – The Fiddich Burn – River Ann
Zone 4 – River Ann – River Dulnain
Zone 5 – Above the Dulnain.
Correct height of water, not only for specific beats, but specific pools within that area or zone.
In order for salmon to take up residency in a pool, it’s important that the river level suits that particular pool. Two days of the correct water height is no good. The mean height must be over a longer period. This year, unusually, we had higher water throughout the spring, meaning those beats with good “high water” pools faired best.
In part 2 (my next blog) I will highlight why, in my opinion, some beats in Zone 2 faired better than others, whilst those in other zones had the most awful spring. I know you will find my thoughts interesting.
Fantastic knowledge and insight Ian. As someone who has fished Lower Pitchroy on three seasons now, I can totally see what you are saying. Most of the fish caught have indeed been resident fish and the majority have been caught by experienced fishers (who know the beat) in and around the main holding pool you refer to. It may appear that a particular angler has superior technique and ability - however it's more likely the knowledge of the pools and (depending on conditions) the timing of when the residents 'come-out to play' that makes the difference in terms of fish caught!