I can vividly recall the amazing thrill of landing this perfect fish during late May on the River Tay near Pitlochry in Highland Perthshire. Spring salmon in Scotland are always in perfect condition like you see here as this salmon lay beside my salmon fly rod and reel in the landing net before I released it back to the river.

This perfect fish was one of 3 fish landed at sunrise on the River Tay during early June on a size 9 Jock's Shrimp salmon fly pattern fished off a floating line with an added 15ft sink tip section. The Tay often produces special moments for those astute enough to know how to fish it effectively. The Tay is Scotland's most accessible salmon river and less that 90 minutes from both Edinburgh & Glasgow.

The most famous of the bigger Scottish rivers are the Tay, Spey, Dee & Tweed and this perfect fish of around 14 lbs was caught on the fly on the River Tay during July near the Perthshire town of Dunkeld. Look at the perfect deep bodied build of this perfect salmon as it lay in the landing net prior to being released.

Look at this and tell me you cannot see the nose of an astute marine predator. This is a River Tay Spring salmon that was captured near Dunkeld during the Spring month of May which is a great fishing time on the Tay. I caught this salmon opposite the mouth of the River Tummel where it enters the Tay while I was off duty as a River Tay salmon guide.

I caught this fine 16lbs specimen Spring salmon in February on the River Tay near Dunkeld as hard proof that early run Scottish salmon certainly do exist. Look at the caliber of this perfect fish which is exceptional and easily caught too for those who know how & where to fish during the early Spring months in Scotland.

Here's a lovely Tay Spring salmon that fell for the deadly Jock's Shrimp tube fly near the River Tummel mouth where it enters the River Tay. Fly fishing in Scotland is great fun and is highly satisfying when salmon are outsmarted. This fine salmon took the Jock's Shrimp salmon which you can see in the photograph.

I caught this fine Spring salmon at the Rock Pool on the Kinnaird Beat of the River Tay while working there as a salmon fly fishing instructor. This silver salmon showed up well against the dull light condition that prevailed that day as you can see in this perfect salmon photograph.

Salmon Take Composure

By Jock Monteith 2nd July 2026

Wild Atlantic salmon are true masters at appearing at your fly at a moment during the fishing day when you're completely 'switched off' as if they are mind readers.

It's crucial that you 'keep the heid' at this moment and maintain absolute adrenalin surge composure!

This perfect Summer salmon took a very lightly dressed silver stoat salmon fly fished deep with a 15ft type 6 sinking tip. Salmon lie deep in warm water so it's important you also fish your fly deep to make it easy for them to intercept. One of our salmon fishing trip guests caught this perfect Summer fish during late August on his River Spey salmon fishing holiday.

Experimentation With Hooking Techniques

Having been a salmon fisher & professional ghillie for many decades I've played about with various different methods of hooking salmon on the fly but here's the one I choose to stick with and have been successfully using for the last 25+ years. My take on this subject is that all salmon fishers work hard for that 'golden opportunity' to hook, play & land a salmon so it's important you make it count or your adrenalin from contact with the underworld will be well and truly wasted! Let good old 'logic' be your judge & jury and have faith in what you're about to read as all hooks require sufficient pressure to be set properly and all anglers would rather land a salmon than lose one!

An Effective Salmon Fly Hooking Method

This is the hooking method I personally use & teach when guiding for guests and often when a new fisher's water coverage is good enough and the opportunity to hook a salmon arises this method has brought many fish to the landing net on day 1 of many new salmon fly fisher's careers. I personally simulate the take from a salmon with every client prior to a salmon fly being tied on and the client starting to fish. I do this at least 3 times (as a form of brainwashing!) with every guest until they understand completely that they under no account are to react to the initial tugs or knocks on the fly which typically last for 4 to 8 seconds or 'ever' lift the rod without first setting the hook.

This perfect Spring salmon was caught at the Upper Kinnaird salmon beat's Rock Pool during February. The River Tay fishes well from mid February through to mid May for perfect Spring salmon like this. The Tay is near Pitlochry & Dunkeld which are 2 very popular Perthshire towns with good accommodation options.

Wait For The Steady Fly Reel Line Draw

I inform all guests that it is 'imperative' that they wait for the 'tugs & plucks' to stop and a steady draw of fly line to start peeling off the reel. That they must 'also' wait for this steady draw of line to continue for a minimum of a further 4 to 6 seconds before clamping the reel face with the rod tip pointing down towards the fish until the weight of the salmon is felt for a further few seconds before releasing their hand from the reel face and then finally lifting the rod. I let all guests know 'in advance' that these seconds will feel like 'minutes' with the added shot of adrenalin and under no account should they rush proceedings even though they’ll feel compelled to do so! I make completely sure they understand the importance of getting effective pressure onto the hook points and that the most effective ‘logical' method to do this is by clamping the reel face with the rod parallel to the river at the 'correct' moment (rod pointing in the direction of the fish) and prior to lifting the rod!

Here's a perfect Scottish River Tay Spring salmon in the landing net before being released back to the river. This fine Spring fish weighted 16lbs and was carefully weighed in this weigh scale salmon landing net.

Lifting Your Fly Rod Without A Hook Set

Lifting without clamping the reel face (to feel the weight of the fish) often will not add sufficient hook point pressure as it only engages the soft action of the rod and slack reel clutch to enable an effective hook set. That means you're really relying on the salmon's head shakes or the water drag pressure from your fly line belly in the stream to deliver sufficient hook point pressure to set it properly. I always go 'heavy' on this when teaching to ensure that the guest has the best chance of converting a 'take' into a landed salmon. I advise every guest that this is a crucial part of salmon fishing and that few fishers understand this effective & ‘logic’ backed method. I've seen it all too often over the years where salmon fishers completely fluff their hard earned salmon take via far too quick a lift (without firstly setting the hook) and the fish saying goodbye within the normal 10 second period!

This was my first fish of the 2024 River Tay salmon fishing season and a fine fish too as you can clearly see here in this photograph. Look at its beautiful oceanic colours as they highlight against the dark browns of the river environment. I caught this fine at the Rock Pool on Kinnaird Water which has always been a good Spring salmon fishing area.

Simulate This Salmon Fly Hooking Method For Yourself

A general salmon fly fisher lack of understanding results in the loss of thousands of salmon hooking opportunities each year on the Scottish salmon rivers which is completely unnecessary. Have a colleague take the end of your fly line and simulate a salmon's draw of fly line from the reel and ask him which method placed more line pressure on his hand between the 'lifting with a slack clutch' method or clamping the reel face with the rod still down method. I know 'logically' what the answer will be and so do you before you even try it. A salmon’s mouth has reasonably tough tissue so it is imperative that the hook set is achieved properly or it will be long range ‘catch & release’ and usually always in under 30 seconds of contact! It has amazed me over the years that even experienced fly fishers can still drop hard earned hooking opportunities through lifting into the take without firstly setting the hook.