What Makes A Ghillie
Choosing the professional ghillie route in life is one of the most important national rural ambassador roles of all and one that requires a vast amount of salmon fishing expertise and as importantly superb people hosting skills too.
Life Long Riverbank Relationships
When you meet one of these true professionals that Scotland is fortunate to have an army of then you'll very likely form a relationship that can last a lifetime. That has certainly been my experience and although being in with a chance of catching a salmon is the main attraction of the sport I'd say there's definitely more reliability and value from the bond between the visiting salmon angler and the man who heads up the salmon beat fishing operation if you haven't already experienced it.
The Fishing Hut & Riverbanks
An immaculate fishing hut shows respect for the visiting salmon anglers and is a big indicator of the Head Ghillie's self pride. A good sweep out each night and keeping the hut clean, tidy & organised goes a long way towards the guest's overall fishing experience. The same with riverbank maintenance and a true professional will time his annual beat riverbank cuttings just right for longevity and minimal fishing guest disruption and will leave the heavier riverbank maintenance tasks to Sundays or for the closed season. A tidy fishing hut with well maintained riverbanks are great to see and brilliant for the guest's ease of fishing and repeat bookings. All top Head Ghillies will fully understand the instant first impression power of an immaculate fishing hut and perfectly groomed riverbanks.
Salmon Fishing Guest Arrival
A true Head Ghillie salmon fishing professional who's on top of their game and not just viewing things as a 9am to 5pm job will naturally want to be at their fishing hut between 7am & 7.30am getting everything ready for the arrival of the guests. There's nothing worse or more disrespectful for a visiting salmon fisher on their day away from the office than waiting for the ghillie to show up. A ghilllie has the luxury lifestyle of going to the river every day so he'll be aware of that privilage and have respect for his guest's valuable time who only occasionally get the chance to 'escape' to the river.
Ghillie Customer Relations
The Head Ghillie should be able to manage any fishing guest behavioural issues without the fishing guest even knowing they've been cautioned! A true pro will re-align the non compliant etiquette behaviour of a fishing guest with humour and grace leaving the guest educated and not offended. A high level of people skills are crucial for any beat ghillie to possess and especially a Head Ghillie. The art of that 'delicate' level of communication isn't easy to learn and takes time to master but once mastered it becomes the 'icing on the cake' for additional annually returning fishing guest business and referrals.
Salmon Fishing & River Knowledge
A professional ghillie needs to also be a true technician at catching salmon as only that level of expertise could ever be effective for showing clients the best tactical approaches. On the bigger River Tay that involves not only being lethal with a salmon fly rod but also with a spinning rod and from the boat too whether it be traditional 'harling' or roping a guest down through a salmon pool. Being able to briefly visit a riverbank salmon fishing guest and make an effective salmon fishing tactical adjustment recommendation which then achieves the desired 'silver' reward is also part of the magic a true professional brings to the table.
A Ghillie's Sharp Amazing Banter
All of the very best ghillies I've been fortunate to meet and fish with throughout my career have all had an uncanny knack of creating the most amazing & instant 'one liners' from their acute 'sense of humour' that can leave the fishing hut occupants in absolute stitches! The professional ghillie's ability to host his fishing guests goes a long way to filling up any salmon beat with regularly returning fishing guests. These 'rare' hospitality people skills can also benefit local hotels such is the positive knock on effect for the entire local economy.