This perfect River Tay Springer was caught by myself on the 23rd of February from the Kinnaird salmon beat near Pitlochry. These early run Scottish salmon are perfect specimens and are guaranteed to get your heart racing. This fish was quickly returned and swam off strongly to continue its upstream migration to the upper reaches of the Tay. You can see the gold ABU Toby lure, Bruce & Walker Hexagraph spinning rod and Van Staal spinning reel used in the capture of this fine Spring run salmon.

It's important to know good spin fishing tactics to stand the best chances of success when spin fishing on the River Tay. This shot was taken on the Rock Pool near Logierait which is a very productive spin fishing area of the Tay. This fisher was on a guided River Tay salmon fishing day with me as his personal ghillie. You can see I've kitted him out in chest waders, a waterproof jacket, life jacket and fishing equipment.

How can clearly see the perfect iron Logierait Bridge behind this River Tay spin fishing guest. This area of the Tay near Pitlochry has some lovely deep holding water for salmon which can be perfectly targeted with a spinning rod & spinner. Look at the lovely green grassy riverbank which makes it easy for fishing guests to fish from.

This perfect 27lbs Tay Springer took me by surprise at the Kinnaird Beat's Rock Pool during a high water period at the end of May while I was working as a professional salmon fishing guide. What a absolutely perfect fish which showed up at 5pm after a full day of salmon fishing effort. You can see the size of this fish against the 32 inch frame of the salmon landing net the salmon is lying on before I released this fine fish.

This is the tail of the Gauge Tree Pool on the Dunkeld House salmon fishing beat of the River Tay slightly upstream of the historic Dunkeld Bridge which you can clearly see in this photograph. I took this shot of one of our River Tay salmon fishing trip guests while working as his salmon fishing guide on the Tay. This shot was taken at dusk and you can see the sunset still illuminating the hills behind the bridge.

There's much skill and understanding involved in catching a Scottish salmon on a spinning rod and make no mistake about that fact. This visiting American salmon fisher was learning these spin fishing skills near Dunkeld on the River Tay during the low water of Summertime while under my supervision as his salmon guide.

When playing a salmon it's important to ease off the rod pressure if you see you're fly line rising and anticipate a jump. If a fish does jump like this simply drop your rod so the fish cannot get a bang at the taught mainline with it's tail which could dislodge your hard earned salmon fly hook hold. I took this photo while serving as a salmon fishing guide on the River Tay near Dunkeld as my salmon fishing guest was plating this fine salmon.

Successful Salmon Spin Fishing

By Jock Monteith 13th August 2026

Here's a few paragraphs on how to set a salmon spinning lure hook based on 'practice' not 'theory'.

Nothing beats professional time spent on a Scottish salmon river for observing the various aspects of this glorious pursuit.

Here's a nice spin fishing shot I took of salmon fishing guest on the River Tay having a serious attempt at catching a salmon while on his fishing break. This slow moving deep pool near the village of Stanley is a great fishing area on the Tay. You can see the salmon fishing hut tucked in below the trees on the far side of the river.

The Calm Before The Storm

Firstly I'd like to commence with something that is not commonly known or regarded but loses hundreds of salmon hooking opportunities on the Tay each year which I'm convinced is due to angler's misconception that the split second a salmon takes their spinning lure it is going to 'take off' like a bohemian bonefish on some death defying down river charge and break their nylon unless anything but the 'lightest' of clutch settings is deployed. The powerful runs from a salmon don't usually start until the fish realises it's in danger and that can sometimes be many minutes into contact but seldom within the first 10 seconds as at that early stage of proceedings the fish doesn't know what's going on.

There's just as much tactical skill in using a spinning rod as there is in fly fishing and make no mistake about that fact. Big Scottish salmon rivers like Tay requires an intelligently thought out fishing plkan with either fishing method. This shot was taken at the tail of the Green Bank Pool near the River Tummel / River Tay confluence.

Locate A Taking Salmon When Spinning

Before we start getting into the nitty gritty of logic based salmon spin fishing tactics for successful hook ups it's very important the angler fully understands exactly how to get themselves to those 'golden' hooking opportunity moments in the first place. Too many fishers turn up with no 'cast & move' water coverage knowledge so no effective water coverage occurs. While that can sometimes work on salmon beats that are stuffed with fish a logical and well thought out 'riverbank movement' plan is always going to stand the angler a far superior chance of success. If you want to cover the maximum amount of the salmon beat water you've paid for access to then move 1 rod length between each cast (10ft) and keep that going 'religiously' throughout the entire fishing day. If you follow this riverbank movement plan consistently it's highly unlikely you'll get to 5pm without some subsurface attention!

This salmon spinning reel was manufactured by Shimano and is known as a Stradic 5000. The fishing line on the spool is Maxima Chameleon in 18lbs breaking strain. I always add a few extra turns of line to the spool like you can see here just to add a bit of extra distance to each cast when working on a big wide river like the River Tay as a salmon fishing guide.

Tighten Up Your Spinning Reel Clutch To Set The Hook

This misconception has meant most of the spinning anglers fish too slack an initial clutch setting on their spinning reels (as they correctly do on their fly reels). When a salmon stops a hard fluttering metal lure or plastic plug it's not as likely going to hang onto it for any more than a few moments (like it will do with a fly) before trying to eject it. As the majority of salmon will approach and take the lure from behind (prior to naturally & immediately turning on the lure) there's a very good chance one of the spinning lure hooks is going to lightly lodge in its mouth. It is then crucial that sufficient pressure is properly delivered to the hook point(s) in the following moments or the salmon will very likely shake the lure out and be gone. This 'logically' cannot be achieved with a slack clutch setting as no effective hook point pressure can be applied. All salmon are masters at getting rid of unwanted foreign objects from their mouths and don't let them prove their skill to you!

Here's one of our many guided salmon fishing guest playing 1 or 5 perfect lower River Tay salmon during July. A high rod tip like you see here is important when playing salmon to offset sudden jumps or surges and to keep the fly line high in the water column away from potential snags. Look at the lovely red sandstone cliffs on the far bank of the Tay.

Loosen Off The Clutch To Play Your Salmon

Once you've truly felt the weight of the fish by putting put a good bend in the rod to set the hook(s) and are satisfied that is the case then loosen off your spinning reel clutch a bit as it's highly unlikely at that point the hook is ever going to come out and I cannot personally remember a fish coming off when I knew the spinning lure hooks were set properly. In the old days I recall my late mentor on the Tay picking up an already buckled 'harling' rod and giving it one almighty pull before handing over the rod and saying 'if it's getting off son it's getting off early! So when spinning on the Tay set your spinning reel clutch to a reasonably tight setting which doesn't have to be full lock but certainly enough for your drag not to negate the hook point pressure you're trying to achieve to set the hook. In other words a 'strong' pull with your hand on the monofilament or braid should take line off the spinning reel spool but nothing lighter than that!

Here's a River Tay salmon in the last stages of the fight before being landed. Drawing the salmon into deep slack water makes the landing job much easier than trying the same in fast shallow water. All experienced salmon fishing guides will be aware of this as it considerably shortens the fight.

Early In The Salmon Fight

After you've set the hook with a salmon regardless of how you've caught the fish all you're likely going to feel is a dead weight with some slow movement and a maybe a bit of initial head shaking. At this point the salmon will be unaware of the alien interview that lies ahead so it's unlikely to do anything too erratic. When any salmon finally realised it's in danger they'll usually firstly head to the bottom of the river for safety which is no doubt exactly how they'll react if a big predator panics them at sea. A high rod tip with a good bend in the rod is important as if you give the fish too much control it will try to rub the hooks out on the riverbed or on occasion try to wrap your line around a riverbed snag.

Here's a perfect example of God's finest marine creature the Atlantic salmon. These fish are amazingly powerful and awesome to look at once your skill levels are high enough to place one in the landing net for a close up inspection. This fine specimen was caught near Pitlochry on the River Tay by one of my salmon fishing trip guests.

When A Salmon Does Wake Up And Run

When your salmon finally realises it's in danger that's the time to expect fireworks. I've seen even big salmon being brought virtually to an angler's feet minutes into the fight with no real signs of life and then all of a sudden the salmon see's the angler which kicks off the real battle! Don't be deceived or caught off guard just because a salmon comes towards you too easily early into any contact and be prepared for that power surge run that will in all cases commence. Here's a classic example of what I'm referring to from a 14 lbs salmon that was caught on the River Tummel.

Here's a fine Summer River Tay salmon being netted by the beat ghillie at the stern of the boat. The Lower River Tay is a productive area for catching salmon from the Summer to Autumn part of the River Tay fishing season when many salmon congregate here. This fish was caught with some professional salmon instructor assistance on the Tay's Benchil Beat.

Netting A Played Out Salmon

Once a salmon's big runs have stopped and you've got the fish under control in the deepish river margins away from the main current a salmon that's ready to be landed will often be tail up and frequently showing its flanks. When you see this you'll know that it's now the time to land the fish. Whether you're on your own or with a ghillie the net should be sunk and the fish should be near the surface and with one big 'smooth' actioned continuous sweep of the rod the salmon should be drawn over the net then the net simply lifted. In decades of salmon fishing I can honestly say it seldom happens that way as most anglers don't understand what's expected of them at the critical landing moment and the ghillie usually ends up having to take matters into his own hands!