This perfect salmon was caught on the River Tay near Pitlochry in July via careful sub surface water column planning where a heavy sink tip was added to the fly line to put the fly down through a heavy flow area of the salmon pool. When salmon are lying deep you need to get your fly down onto them for the best chance of cooperation!

This was my Monteith Sunk line salmon fly fishing system which was a sunk line Speyline that allowed salmon anglers to fish their fly as deep as necessary. This Speyline Multi tip system came with a pouch of braided core sink tips of varying sink rates which were carefully thought out by myself while working as a professional River Tay salmon fishing guide.

Here's a shot of a professional salmon guide and his salmon fishing guest out on the famous Ash Tree Pool of the River Tay which is located in Highland Perthshire between Pitlochry & Dunkeld. This is a great area of the River Tay to fish for Atlantic salmon.

I designed this salmon fly while working on the River Tay as a professional salmon fishing guide so here are the exact dressing details for anyone wishing to tie this excellent fly pattern;
Hook: 1

Here's my most deadly weapon salmon fly pattern the Copperass. I built a thriving salmon fishing guide business on the back of this pattern such is its salmon attracting potency. For anyone who would like their salmon fly rod pulled out of their hands here's the correct fly dressing materials;
Hook: 1

This perfect salmon fly was designed by myself on the River Tay 20 years ago and is an absolute salmon magnet when fished properly. Many experienced salmon anglers swear by the effectiveness of this pattern and it's sometimes wrongly referred to as the Newtyle Shrimp however it's proper registered name is the Jock's Shrimp as a credit to its creator. Here are the exact dressings for this deadly Scottish salmon fly pattern;
Hook / Tube: as required
Thread / Silk: Uni Thread 6/0 or 8/0, Red
Tag / Butt: Oval silver as for Rib
Tail: Orange Arctic Fox or equivalent with pearl flashabou accent or mirage over, just 2 or perhaps 3 strands max.
Tying note: it's important to set the Tag / Butt in place first, this helps lift the Fox tail slightly, increases movement and helps avoid

This is the brown winged version of the Jock's Shrimp fitted with a Partridge Nordic No 6 tube fly hook. This is a true weapon of a salmon fly and lethal for attracting salmon on the famous River Tay and other Scottish salmon rivers.

Here's a guided River Tay salmon fishing guest fishing his way methodically down through the Meetings Pool on the Upper Kinnaird salmon beat which is a perfect holding area for salmon in medium to low water levels from mid March through to October each year. Look at the beautiful fully leafed oak trees on the far side of the river.

Targeting Deep Lying Resident Salmon

By Jock Monteith 6th June 2026

During the low warm water Summer months it's vital that you understand that salmon will be lying deep where the cooler water thermals are to be found.

Therefore a deep salmon fly presentation is vital for a chance of a resident fish.

I took this beautiful downstream shot of the River Tay in Perthshire which is a famous Scottish salmon river. This lovely shot was taken a few miles upstream from the Perthshire town of Dunkeld. You can clearly see my salmon fishing guest a few hundred yards below me. The dark shadowy water just off the main current is a great Tay salmon holding area and is always worth fishing through.

Where To Find Low Warm Water Salmon

At this time of year resident salmon will be holding up in the deeper pools where they've a degree of security before the next high water moves them on again. These lower warmer water holding areas tend to always have a deep section of at least 7ft or 8ft. Resident salmon like these deep water holding areas as the river warms as that's where the cooler water is to be found down in the depth along with safer surroundings to escape the attention of the wild otter populations (or the same otter simulation commotions & silhouettes of the recently introduced beaver populations that zig zag across our salmon pools all night long!). A really good low warm water salmon holding pool will also often have a fast stream at its neck which will provide good oxygen levels for its occupants.

In low water like you see here in this picture of the River Tay you need stealth and a careful salmon fly presentation to outsmart resident salmon. This lovely salmon pool is located on the Tay at Kinnaird and fishes very well for salmon fishing holiday guests in low water conditions with the above mentioned stealthy approach.

Winding Up Resident Salmon To Force The Take

When there's not a lot of easier caught fresh run salmon about and your main focus is on older resident fish that are holding up in the pools you really need to get your salmon fly annoyance levels up as high as you can to induce a take. Old stubborn resident fish tend not to come charging up from the depth to grab a high fished fly so the best and most effective approach is to to get your fly right down in amongst them via the use of tungsten impregnated sink tip sections. When you do this you'll have a far better chance of a fish having a go at your fly even though the majority of salmon anglers tends to believe in full floating lines and maybe a light polyleader in these low warmer water river conditions.

This is the Rock Pool on the River Tay slightly upstream of the River Tay & River Tummel confluence which is just visible in the background. This is a very good salmon fishing area in Scotland and worthy of a salmon fishing trip. I took this beautiful shot in low water conditions during June after commuting down in this traditional Tay salmon boat.

You'll Never Look The Same Way Again At Your Living Room

I'm going to apologise in advance for opening up this tactical salmon pool depth thought & visualisation process as it will likely mean you'll never stop imagining every room you now enter as a deep Summer salmon river holding pool! If you're currently in a room while you're reading this then look up and imagine the ceiling is the waterline, the sofa is a big subsurface riverbed boulder and the floor is the gravel riverbed. Now imagine your fly swinging overhead a few inches deep fished off a full floating line with an 8 to 10ft leader. The only problem now is that these old resident salmon are tucked in bedside the big boulder (your sofa!) and your fly is operating 7ft above their noses! There's obviously little chance of any of these fish breaking from their deep water holding position to come and investigate your fly even though you'll feel like you're fishing!

Don't Mess About With Polyleaders

There's a big different between a monofilament cored polyleader and a heavier braided core sinking tip. Although I've caught many salmon on generally shorter lighter polyleaders over the years if I'm targeting deep lying resident salmon (as described above) I'll be fishing at least a 15ft length of type 7 braided core sink tip (or much heavier if required) to get that fly right down to the deep water column target area that I'm suspecting fish to be holding at. Big 'full arm' mends will be added on each forward delivery touchdown to allow that sinking tip time to do its job before the current tightens my fly line and the fly starts to fish. If I'm in a pool with a fast flow I'll also be using the full rod length with extended arm through the first 1/3rd of the swing with the rod held in a high outwards pointed angle before gradually bringing the rod tip around and down to keep that pace of fly perfect for the first 3rd of the swing right through to the final 3rd of the fly's flight path. Also, to my mind if you're not occasionally clipping the riverbed you're probably still not fishing deep enough!

A heart racing close up inspection with one of these fine Atlantic salmon and will remain in your memory banks for an entire lifetime. This perfect Summer salmon came to a deadly Jock's Shrimp salmon fly and was caught near to the River Tummel/Tay confluence which is located not too far away from Pitlochry in Perthshire. Note the fish friendly fine mesh of the landing net behind the salmon.

Add Some Life To Your Salmon Fly

If you're going to force resident salmon to have a go you're not only going to need your fly down in amongst them but you should also be introducing the most 'unpredictable' salmon fly movements via your rod tip as the fly covers these fish. Like any creature that sees the same old thing 'day in day out' salmon also get used to seeing the same old daily 'boring & lifeless' salmon fly movement through the pool. So once you've assessed and picked the correct weight & length of proper braided core sink tip to get your fly close to these deep lying salmon (and after you've mended as much as you need to get that sink tip right down) you should then be introducing sharp erratic & slow pulsing rod tip movements as your fly covers the pool as I'll guarantee you these fish won't have seen anything like this before therefore giving you the best chance of a sub surface interception! These tactics are not the nicest way to fish but if you tool up accordingly with a range of heavy sink tips and follow the above advice over older educated resident salmon your fly will most certainly be the one that gets the attention!