Fishing The Fly Scotland

Index => Rivers & Lochs => Topic started by: Mike Barrio on 11/02/2007 at 13:56

Title: The Don Today
Post by: Mike Barrio on 11/02/2007 at 13:56
Took a brief trip down to the Don Bridge in Inverurie this morning to see what the water was like, as it sure was wet last night  :z6

I expected the river to be over its banks, but it wasn't. It was a tad brown and it was rising steadily. I took a couple of photos and one photo shows one of three of the usual "visitors" ........ these birds are getting out of hand, they are everywhere  :shock:

(http://www.fishingthefly.co.uk/zdon110207.jpg)

(http://www.fishingthefly.co.uk/zdona110207.jpg)

(http://www.fishingthefly.co.uk/zdonb110207.jpg)

Best wishes
Mike Barrio
 :z2
Title: The Don Today
Post by: Jay Scott on 11/02/2007 at 14:09
Nice pics Mike, i don't think i've ever seen a cormorant in the River Don, is it unusual?

Jay
Title: The Don Today
Post by: Mike Barrio on 11/02/2007 at 14:59
Hi Jay

No. not nowadays. There were three of them "working" on the stretch in between the briges this morning.

Best wishes
Mike
Title: The Don Today
Post by: ajsaw on 11/02/2007 at 16:41
Lots of snow here thawing fast .
Sure it will be well up tomorrow.
By the way hello and thanks for a speedy activation .
Title: The Don Today
Post by: Jay Scott on 11/02/2007 at 17:05
Hi ajsaw,

Welcome to the forum!

Jay
Title: The Don Today
Post by: ANDREW BEBBINGTON on 11/02/2007 at 19:07
HI
those birds are getting quite common with us down at pitfour too, seems to be more and more of them about and no preditors to keep the numbers down. Worse thing about them is the amount of fish they eat they will take 2 or 3 2-3lb fish a day
I suppose its humans that have caused them to come inland looking for food with boats trawling along the coast taking the there natural food of sand eels for fish meal. to feed farmed fish and some animals and to use in gardens.
Title: The Don Today
Post by: gunner100 on 11/02/2007 at 20:31
Quote from: "ANDREW BEBBINGTON"
HI

I suppose its humans that have caused them to come inland looking for food with boats trawling along the coast taking the there natural food of sand eels for fish meal. to feed farmed fish and some animals and to use in gardens.


It is even worse than that. About 10 or so years ago I was sailing into Esbjerg port, Denmark, when I saw the fish meal factory and adjacent to it was an electricity generating station. In conversation with a Dane on the ferry it transpired that any surplus fish oil, from sand eels caught 100 miles off the Scottish coast,  was transferred from the fish meal plant to the power station to be burnt to produce leccy!!

Don't know if the Danes are still doing it with their new environmentally policies, I hope not.

Lyall
Title: The Don Today
Post by: Rob Brownfield on 12/02/2007 at 09:08
Mike,
I was up above Monymusk yesterday afternoon and the river was rising as I was watching it!! There was a deffinate change in the colour over the 40 minutes I was watching...and it was still raining this morning!!!!

Andrew,
I would be actively feeding the Cormorants....with lead! ;)
Title: River Don
Post by: Richard Tong on 12/02/2007 at 18:58
The March copy of FF & FT landed through the letterbox this morning and there is an article by Bob Wyatt on the Don. It makes interesting reading esp the bit about the public water being more difficult as it gets hammered and quite a few of the better trout get knocked on the head over the course of a season.C & R has only been in vogue on the stretch he fished for the past 2 seasons and before that a lot of the big trout got knocked on the head. However it still produced a lot of big trout over the years which goes back to it being(relatively) unexploited with low fishing pressure apart from a few weeks at the start of the season when even then there is plenty of water available.As far as I am aware it is the only stretch where C & R is part of the rules on any trout over 2lbs.

What is your guys opinion on this? I reckon that it is all quite hard on the Don (based on my limited experience,mainly fishing in the Spring)until you reach a hatch situation but this goes for many wild trout waters. Having said that towards the upper reaches we found the trout much more accomodating and they were not so much hatch driven and could be pulled up when prospecting quite readily at times.

I do not agree that the river is hard to get access to as compared to some(Tweed,Clyde, Eden to name  a few) it is definitely underfished with plenty of beats available even at prime times. Sure you may find that your preferred beat is taken but there will be others vacant on that water or on the many otehr available stretches.

Interestingly he observes that the Don "on its day compares with any stream I know in Canada and New Zealand" and that it "ranks up there with the best,anywhere". Praise indeed from a guy who has fished all over and should know.

Richard
Title: The Don Today
Post by: wildfisher on 12/02/2007 at 19:34
Richard, Bob is without doubt correct. All waters are good on their day.  That's what makes it their day.  :grin:
Title: The Don Today
Post by: Rob Brownfield on 12/02/2007 at 22:52
Hmmmmm..i think the Don IS hard to get onto. At the price of £20 to £25 for a trout ticket is expensive.

Also, many of the beats are pretty exclusive only allowing one or two trouters onto the beats...some of which are several miles long.

But I guess thats why it can throw up big fih..so i cant have it all...lol
Title: The Don Today
Post by: LondonScottish on 23/02/2007 at 11:40
What bits are hard to get onto? You can get on just about all of it. And £20 for a days's fishing is great value, for quality wild fish in beautiful surroundings. You pay £20 for a few hours on a stocked loch, with some not even allowing catch and release so you have to stop. Or 90 mins at Pittodrie is over £20, so for a day on the Don, one of THE best trout rivers, I would say its a nothing less than a bargain.
Title: The Don Today
Post by: Sandy Nelson on 23/02/2007 at 17:15
I concur with david. :z18
Title: The Don Today
Post by: wildfisher on 23/02/2007 at 17:28
Talking of the Don. Was down at Haughton  today for a walk and was talking with one chap spinning for salmon.  OK, not my cup of tea – but to each his own. Anyway, the water was very high again and he hooked a nice trout which got off just as he was landing it. It looked about 1 ½ lb  or so but in very nice condition for the time of year. Perhaps the mild winter will mean a  few nice fish in good condition early on but I guess it will all  depend on the weather we get in March. Water temp was over 6 deg.  today, that is warmer than on my first day out there in April last year.
Title: The Don Today
Post by: Sandy Nelson on 23/02/2007 at 17:31
Worrying Fred

If it stays like this the March browns will start in March again, and the best early season rises could over before the season starts :shock:
Not like last year when they started in May.
Hopefully the weather will temper the river just in time for April, well heres hoping.

Sandy
Title: The Don Today
Post by: wildfisher on 23/02/2007 at 19:15
Sandy, all it needs is a big snowfall up the hills and a slow thaw over many weeks. That'll keep the water cold until after the season starts. You just never know what is gong to happen here. Folk often speak of "normal springs",  but as you and I know there is really no such thing  -  no two are ever the  same in this neck of the woods. Last year was very cold though. It's a shame that the SEPA station at Haughton that gives the river level on-line does not also give water temperature, would not be hard to add, temperature is far easier to measure than level.

http://www.sepa.org.uk/data/river_levels/view.aspx?id=11002


I feel  a project coming on……………………… :grin:
Title: Cheap Fishing
Post by: Chris Connolly on 24/02/2007 at 18:16
being a lowlander guys I have read your thread on the Don with interest.
The don I have fished a number of times over the years is not in my view cheap.
I have had a few fish from it but not being able to fish it consistently have never been able to know spots well.
I fish the Tay the tweed and the clyde for trout and salmon.The dearest and I grudge forking out  the £9 for is on an association water on the tweed.especially now since they have stopped stocking it.
An annual visitors ticket for trout on the tweed costs me £25 and my annual ticket for salmon on the clyde which also covers the trout last year was £45.
I think I paid £12.50 for my day on the don last year and nope I didnt grudge it as it was nice ti fish the famous don again.
I can still get a days trouting in Perthshire for very little money and just thought I would share it with you guys
No we dont have the great Big trout of the don  but we do regularly get both trout and Grayling in the 2lb+ bricket  which is still great fishing.

chris
Title: The Don Today
Post by: Sandy Nelson on 24/02/2007 at 21:28
Oh How i wish i had Grayling on my doorstep :cry:

On the whole i have to agree Chris, but the river is good value compared to some Stillwaters and a whole lot prettier.
I had the chance to spend a couple of years in perthshire and stirlingshire so have taken advantage of some of your great fishing too, and yes it was fantastic value, What you do have to consider is the DON is the cheapest main river fishing in the NE  (only some of the much smaller rivers are cheaper)
So beggars cant be choosers, well you can pick the beats, some of them are a lot less than people may think, it pays to phone around. :wink:

Sandy
Title: The Don Today
Post by: wildfisher on 24/02/2007 at 21:34
Quote from: "spiderman"
Oh How i wish i had Grayling on my doorstep :cry:


It could be arranged.  :lol:

Seriously though, if the Don had grayling it would, without  doubt,  be the best grayling river in the UK. No other river has as much caddis larvae and crustacea. They would grow to fabulous proportions
Title: The Don Today
Post by: wildfisher on 25/02/2007 at 08:07
More on the mild winter / high water  temperatures  -  one of the regulars on the Wild Fishing Forum was on the Clyde after grayling yesterday (24th Feb) and witnessed a hatch of olives   :shock:
Title: The Don Today
Post by: Sandy Nelson on 25/02/2007 at 08:10
:cry:
Title: The Don Today
Post by: Jim Doyle on 25/02/2007 at 10:58
I run grayling days on an other forum, these are held at kinkell on the earn, if you would like a day at these fish just pm me and I,ll sort one out. In fact if you can get to montrose I,ll take you.  If a group on here want a day on the river its £5 a head with one of the best huts available.  just ask   jim
Title: The Don Today
Post by: Sandy Nelson on 25/02/2007 at 18:07
Cheers jim

When i eventually get back on shift :roll:  I may well take you up on that.
Never tried the Earn, i've fished most of the Tay tributaries but never that one.

 :z18

Sandy
Title: Grayling day..
Post by: smac on 26/02/2007 at 12:55
Jim/Sandy,

I'd be very interested in a day too.

Stuart
Title: The Don Today
Post by: spencie on 26/02/2007 at 17:45
Do you go during the week or just at weekends? I would be most interested if you went during the week.

Stuart
Title: The Don Today
Post by: Jim Doyle on 27/02/2007 at 17:26
depends who is fishing the river as salmon men get first choice, if you are interested i can enqire as to a suitable date and put it up  jim
Title: The Don Today
Post by: smac on 28/02/2007 at 13:24
Could manage a weekday too. Saturdays are out for me. Can you grayling fish on a Sunday ?

Stuart
Title: The Don Today
Post by: Rob Brownfield on 28/02/2007 at 14:42
Quote from: "smac"
Can you grayling fish on a Sunday ?

Stuart


Oh yes...only time I DO fish for them :) No pesky salmon anglers about then! Last fish was on boxing day at 2 pounds and 6 oz :)



Going back to the bit about the Don being "easy" to get onto...I still disagree  :lol:  Yes, if you have the MONEY and there are no SALMON anglers about, yeah, you can get a ticket. However, you cannot compare it to a still water as most still waters have stocked fish and good facilities. The Don most of the time you have neither..not that I want stockies mind :) £20 to take away 4 large rainbows is probably good value...£20 to fish a restricted bit of water where Salmon anglers can ruin your day, where there might not be any Trout anyway and no facilities..well..I am sure you know what I mean.

I will state AGAIN though, that if the Don was not so expensive then it probably would not be so good.  :z6