Here's professional Scottish salmon guide Jock Monteith our delivering a long fly fishing line across the River Tay near Dunkeld wearing a traditional heavyweight Tweed jacket that hand been handmade by Haggarts of Aberfeldy.

Here's a salmon fly fisher amidst a Spey casting lesson on the River Tummel where the focus was being put on getting a visual of the anchor point which is the mid section of the cast where the front end of the Spey line briefly touches the surface of the river before being sent across the river. Watching this anchor point touch down assists with the timing of the power stroke. Look at the lovely fast streamy water behind this fisherman which the River Tummel is famous for.

Here's a shot of me teaching Angus how to Spey cast on this popular Scottish salmon fishing show at the neck of the Cottar Pool on the Tay's Newtle Beat. This was me demonstrating D Loop formation for Neen, Angus and the cameraman while I was working on Newtyle as the Head Ghillie.

Nothing betters a perfect through actioned salmon Spey rod for delivering a consistent effortless Spey cast to the river. Look at the lovely oak tree on the far side of the river which is the marker for a good fishing area of this salmon water. This fisher was on the River Tay near the village of Murthly and under supervision of career salmon fishing guide Jock Monteith.

Spey Actioned Rods

By Jock Monteith 27th October 2019

What ever happened to the lovely 'made in the UK' rod badge with a 'original owner' lifetime warranty issued 'confidently' based on the build quality of a rod and not from the excessive margins from low cost overseas manufacturing.

This is clearly allowing big brands to simply throw new rods at their often 'frequent' salmon fisher rod breakage warranty claims.

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

Global Salmon Rod Manufacturing Boom

I understand that margins, shareholders and annual dividends and all that stuff are important in business but to my mind the only thing that matters is what the angler 'truly' feels when he starts to use his new rod for the first time away from the tackle showroom and how that relationship develops and assists him to hook & land salmon over the following years. A salmon fly rod should be a trusted 'friend for life' and there's not truly too much that's involved in making a good one that's solid enough to not only fish (& play fish) well but also take the knocks along the way. Consumer confidence and product trust are the best & most sustainable 'marketing tools' to my mind.

Here's the perfect end result of a carefully presented River Tay salmon fly in the middle area of the Tay Valley near Dunkeld during May. Look at the physical perfection of this salmon and it's no wonder these Spring run fish are the most highly regarded of all the Scottish salmon runs. The fish is in the landing net beside my salmon fly rod & reel.

Buy More Air Less Carbon Fibre

It wasn't that long ago when the big guns were pitching their salmon rods on the 'lightest weight' is best marketing theme. That technically means you're getting more air and less carbon fibre for your money and what happens to the resilience of the rod when you lighten up its structure too much! These days some rod designers have clearly minimal salmon fishing experience or they're not thinking things out well enough when it comes to important factors like fly control at range via sufficient rod length or avoiding a drowned line while playing a powerful salmon. Can you imagine what Georgina Ballantine would have thought of our latest vast ranges of rods which her 'beast' would have no doubt 'splintered' or she'd still be playing it!

Here's a fine fresh run salmon from the River Tay which was caught near Dunkeld by one of our salmon fishing holiday guests. Catching salmon like this is exciting when taken on a fly rod and every salmon fight experience is exciting. The Tay is just over an hour away from Glasgow to so easily accessed by car.

Salmon Fly Rod Technology Developments

The commercial theme these days seems to be to create the 'next best thing' a year or two after already coming out with that claim which to my mind doesn't build trust with salmon fishers who are needing good solid advice on what to purchase and don't want to be completely re-sold every few years. Is technology really moving that fast with fly rod materials and even if it were is the skill set of the majority of salmon fly fishers going to truly see a benefit in that latest material. I think we all already know the answer to that one.

Here's the double handede salmon Spey rod being held out and high across the fast stream at the Guay Pool on the Lower Kinnaird Beat of the River Tay near Dunkeld. This method is how you control your salmon fly at long range which is a rare skill seldom understood by the majority of new salmon fishers. A professional salmon fishing guide will teach these vital fly fishing skills.

Bruce & Walker Salmon Spey Rods

Personally I'm a fan of Bruce & Walker and I've known them & used their rods for over 40 years. My favoured outfit for the Tay is their 16ft Norway blank in the 9/10 category & I've got their 11 weight 16ft version too for big tube fly sunk line time. This rod on the Tay beats all the normal stuff for fly control at distance, lifting your fly line to the salmon when the fish is running away at distance to avoid 'line drown' (aye do that with a little switch rod if you could even deliver a 'controlled' fly to a distant salmon lie in the first place!), plays a salmon magnificently, has a powerful 'through action' for Spey casting for those who've taken time to learn how to 'load' a Spey rod & can take the inevitable knocks all salmon fly rods endure if they are used frequently enough or on a professional basis.

The action of your Spey rod is best optimised via proper line loading and if done correctly is virtually effortless like what you see here in this photograph. This salmon fishing trip guest is out on the River Tay practicing his Spey cast power stroke forward delivery near the Perthshire town of Pitlochry.

Other Lovely Salmon Spey Rods

I've other rods too which are fantastic to Speycast with and Harrison's in Liverpool build a beautiful 15ft rod for me which is a great all rounder and an excellent tool for teaching proper Spey casting with. I've tried many salmon fly rods over the years and the nicest 15ft rod I ever used was the older model Daiwa Scottish built 3 piece Altmor which was a truly magnificent piece of kit (designed by David Bell) which was solidly built and if you could load it properly it would effortlessly power a lovely line out as if somewhere in the 'power stroke' that rod blank had an in-built turbo charger! I lost most of my interest in salmon rods when the 'broom pole handled Viking sticks' and 'washing lines' appeared but looks like they won't last forever as fishing tackle 'fads' never ever do!