This is God's finest marine creature in a salmon landing net moments before it was released back to its River Tay habitat. This fine fish was caught during late March near Dunkeld and weight exactly 23lbs. The fish took a pearly pink 4 inch Classic Tomic lure in colour code 341. These lures are ordered from Tomic Lures in Canada especially for use on the River Tay by many professional salmon fishing guides.

Here's a lady salmon fishing guest Mrs Caplin with a perfect March caught River Tay salmon of 23lbs which was caught upstream of the Dunkeld Bridge with the assistance of her professional salmon guide. This fish was caught on a cold wet Spring day but that didn't matter due to the accomplishment and excitement of the capture of this perfect Tay specimen.

This perfect River Tay 'coble' boat at the ready stirs my blood in perfect water and light conditions like this. This photo was taken at the tail of the March Pool on the Kinnaird Beat of the Tay during Springtime.

This perfect heavyweight Spring salmon was landed at Dunkeld from the boat and weighed 23lbs. This fish took a pearly pink Tomic 4 inch classic lure which is a deadly Spring salmon fishing lure. Look at the perfect marine coloured beauty of this specimen Tay salmon which was caught by our River Tay salmon fishing guide during March.

Here's a lovely upstream shot of the famous Meetings Pool of the River Tay's Kinnaird Beat during the last hour of daylight. Some anglers refer to this time of the day as the 'witching hour' and often salmon push on up river as the light fades and especially during low water conditions.

This fantastic 200 year old sandstone bridge spans the River Tay at Dunkeld and is a landmark on the Tay. There's some very good salmon fishing water both upstream and downstream of the beautiful Scottish bridge which has been a a visual marker for many River Tay fishing trip guests over the last 2 centuries.

I never buy cheap salmon fishing gear as it's often false economy and doesn't tend to last too long. What you see here is my own Bruce & Walker 16ft Spey actioned rod paired up with a Van Staal C-Vex fly reel, a Brady fishing bag and a McLean salmon landing net. All of these items I've owned for decades and use successfully each season on the River Tay. Buying cheap kit which needs replacing every few years costs more money in the long term.

How To Combat The Scottish Rain

By Jock Monteith 28th March 2026

There's no other Scottish pursuit that produces the excitement levels that contact with a perfect hard fighting wild Atlantic salmon will do.

Even the wettest of weather conditions are quickly forgotten when one of God's finest marine creations makes an appearance!

The Sheer Amazing Magic Of Scottish Salmon Fishing

One of the many attractions of this fantastic pursuit is not knowing what to expect regardless of what the weather or water conditions are doing. The most carelessly spoken words on any salmon river are often similar to 'you're wasting your time' or 'it's not worth fishing today' which should always be welcomed as they'll almost guarantee you a fish the same way forgetting to bring your landing net will too! Isn't it also strange how the rain always appears when you've forgotten to bring your raincoat!

Scottish Salmon Fishing Preparedness

Preparing yourself properly for a visit to any salmon river is the most important starting point and too many anglers still turn up with inappropriate fishing gear which immediately puts them at a fishing disadvantage. Take the time to find out exactly what the best flies or lures are well before your fishing date and make sure your waders are in good order along with all other salmon fishing kit items. I once recall an angler turning up with a salmon fly reel that the internal components had completely corroded and jammed and it took half a can of WD40 and nearly and hour to get his reel working adequately again!

Here's a group of Canadian salmon fishers who had come to fish the River Tay learning how we tie our salmon flies onto the leader. This photo was taken near Murthly on the River Tay in Perthshire while professional salmon guide Jock Monteith was teaching these salmon fishing holiday guests the basic salmon fishing skills.

Always Listen To The Ghillie's Fishing Instructions

I don't know of any Scottish ghillies that don't want to see salmon getting caught or who would intentionally give out inaccurate fishing information so fully tune in when you're briefed on where or how to fish a specific salmon pool. Even if you're a better caster or the ghillie is half your age listen closely as all ghillies have the advantage of watching their salmon pools on a daily basis which tells them exactly where salmon are holding and which fishing approaches are working best. This type of quality intel is crucially important for maximising the fishing opportunity but is often ignored!

Here's a group of happy River Tay salmon guided fishers enjoying a beer at lunchtime after a proper chef prepared riverbank fishing hut lunch. The Scottish rivers make the perfect location for a fully catered salmon fishing event day.

Respect All Other Salmon Fishers Too

If you show up on a mixed rod salmon fishing day where other unknown salmon fishers are making up the fishing numbers then respect their day out and hopefully they will respect yours. Don't 'heron' a pool or get upset with the ghillie's pool rotation plan if you can't get on to the main fishing hot spot first or twice throughout the day. Don't fish through the pools and leave them completely bombarded diminishing the next angler's chance but be careful and considerate to the other anglers and often you'll find reciprocation. There's also much more fishing satisfaction from hooking a salmon when you're last through the pool!

Superb Scottish Riverbank Camaraderie

Some of the most amazing people are to be found on the Scottish salmon rivers who've been drawn there by the same invisible force that got you there. Personally I've met and entertained thousands of them over the decades and the more I reflect back on that mega busy period of my life the more I realise that was the best time of all. Nothing beats the comradery in Scottish salmon fishing nor the buzz of building up your fly rod on a fishing day where you can sense the chances are spot on for some salmon action. The magnificence of the Scottish rivers and the sheer excitement and thrill of capturing a perfect fresh run salmon will always pare the Scottish rain into insignificance!