Good question Sandy, this is the Swedish view
I’ve been fly fishing for nearly 30 years. I bought my first graphite rod -81, a Sage 9`#5. Nice rod and I still have it. When I was younger it was more exciting with new rods and reels.
Nowadays I don’t spend any big money on fishing tackle.
I don’t have any quality fly fishing waters near where I live in Sweden, so I put my money on fishing trips.
The recent years I’ve been fishing mostly in three rivers. This is what I pay for fishing tickets.
River 1. Main river has around 12 miles, both banks of grayling and trout.
Smaller rivers are 3 and have around 50 miles of fishing for grayling and trout and 400 lakes with pike and perch.
Prices are: Year/43£, Week/16£, 24:hrs/4£. No trophy waters. Over the weekends can some pools bee crowded.
River2. Has around 8 miles of fishing, both banks of grayling and trout.
Prices are: Year/58£, family member18£. Week/29£, 24:hrs 8£. Some pools are more exclusive with limited access and the price on these are 33£/24:hrs.
This is trophy water for both grayling and trout. Last week of July and first week of August can be crowded on some of the stretches.
River3. Has around 25 miles of fishing, both banks, grayling, trout, pike and perch, + several hundreds of lakes with mainly, pike, perch and some grayling. The river has a tributary with grayling and trout.
Prices are: Year/50£ + one family member. Week/21£, 24:hrs/7£.
This is trophy water for grayling. Here you don’t see many other fishermen during a week. I’m talking about wild fish in these 3 river examples.
On my fishing trips is the whole experience that counts.
Stocked stillwaters with quality fishing are few, and the coast on these are round 15£ for ticket+boat/24:hrs.
I’ve been too Scotland a couple of times, for the trout. Rivers I fished was Earn, Tay and Tweed. If I remember right I paid, 5-12£ for a day ticket, and that’s ok. I enjoyed the fishing very well, even if I dint catch any larger fish. Mostly the surroundings were great and the wildlife is quite different to what I’m used to. This was late April and in beginning of May so the evenings was free for ……….
Hope you can make sense of my school english. I’m an old chap with a young mind, and still learning.
//Harri