[Captain Birdseye]

Couldn't believe it when I caught a 2lb rainbow trout on the Ury on Tuesday just at the cemetery in Inverurie. Where could this possibly have come from and anyone else encountred any more or is this just a lone fugitive?

[wildfisher]

Lochter perhaps ?  I think the Lochter burn  ends up in the Ury / Don eventually

[Sandy Nelson]

Insch would also be a possibility, i think the burn there runs into the ury/gadie eventually? wouldn't swear to it though.

There may well be a few private ponds stocked along the route of the river so the possibilities are quite varied.

What sort of condition was it in? what did you get it on?

Sandy

[Captain Birdseye]

It was in a good condition although there were a couple of patches near the tail that I can only describe as a sort of tan colour although didn't appear to be anything more than that. Caught on a silver stoats tail.

[sharpie]

chances are it came from loch insch as the feeder burn runs into the gadie burn then into the urie. although it has been a few years since loch insch has had a bad flood.

if it was at the cemetry then chances are there's a few in the don also

[Mike Barrio]

Hi folks

I realise that first reactions are to think that any escaped trout would probably come from one of the "commercial trout fisheries" on the water concerned, but in my experience this is very rarely the case.

The last thing that any fishery manager wants is to lose stock fish ......... they cost an awful lot of money! Therefore a manager keeps a close eye on any "security" issues  

There are more and more small non commercial ponds being stocked nowadays with trout for personal use, a group of friends, or small syndicates. Many of these are not "managed" properly, are not secure and are fed by burns.

I have heard of more than just a few cases where ponds have been stocked and the trout have "disappeared" within a week  :  

I have even been asked at the fishery ....... "How deep does my pond need to be beside the burn so that the trout will prefer to stay in the pond and not swim off up the burn like the last lot did?"

Best wishes
Mike Barrio

[buntinbee]

Over the years I have had a few rainbow trout from the Don. I have caught one from as far up as Kildrummy, one from Kemnay and also had them at Parkhill.
Another interesting catch I have had from the Don is brown trout stockies from up past Colhouznie at Strathdon a few years ago. These were identifiable by a blue die spot on their belly, the same as the stockies put in at Parkhill. I think I had four that day. I have no idea where they would have come from unless they were actually stocked up there. The only place that I am aware that stocking has ever taken place on the Don is away down at Parkhill. This would have been a fair journey for them, nearly fifty miles away, not to mention having to negotiate the Newe and Polduie dams. Maybe someone on here knows of a stocking program up there around 10-15 years ago.

[wildfisher]

Buntinbee,

Interesting.  There used to be a fish farm up by Tullynessle, a lot of escapee bows were caught around Alford, although I never had any myself. They are bloody annoying but seldom survive more than a year or two – or so it is said. Can you imagine the disappointment of hooking a large fish on the Don only to discover it's a fecking escaped rainbow!!!   :

[rattrala]

Caught a Rainbow of around 6lb's at the meetings of the Urie and the Don whilst Salmon fishing about two years ago. If it is from the same escape the fish may have been in there for over two years.

[sharpie]

Over the years I have had a few rainbow trout from the Don. I have caught one from as far up as Kildrummy, one from Kemnay and also had them at Parkhill.
Another interesting catch I have had from the Don is brown trout stockies from up past Colhouznie at Strathdon a few years ago. These were identifiable by a blue die spot on their belly, the same as the stockies put in at Parkhill. I think I had four that day. I have no idea where they would have come from unless they were actually stocked up there. The only place that I am aware that stocking has ever taken place on the Don is away down at Parkhill. This would have been a fair journey for them, nearly fifty miles away, not to mention having to negotiate the Newe and Polduie dams. Maybe someone on here knows of a stocking program up there around 10-15 years ago.

there was a time probablt about 15 years ago that inverurie tried stocking browns but i'm sure they had a yellow spot on the belly. there is also a pond at lumsden which is not far from the don so that may be responsible for the ones up that way