[Quickcast 84]

hi folks

me and a mate will be heading for the river don for some salmon fishing in august.i dont have a clue about the river,good beats,flies etc etc,never fished it.could someone fill me in please,where whould we be best to start? i am a complete novice at salmon fishing.

                            cheers darren 

[Hamish Young]

Let's start with what gear you have/intend to use and then go from there

H 

[Quickcast 84]

hi hamish

i have all the gear,salmon rods,fly rods,spinning rods and can put them out a fair distance,so no problem there.i have got all the spinners,lures,tobys,rapalas,flies etc etc,again no problem.the problem whould be whats the best part of the river to start fishing from and what works in that part of the river.i got all my gear from a freind of my fathers,who can no longer fish because of ill health.now i whould like to pay him back with a nice don salmon 

    cheers darren

[Quickcast 84]

folks

all i need is a part to start from,monnymusk,inverurie,castle forbes,whats best??? this forum is full of don bred anglers.

please help.

don't want to put a few day's fishing to waste fishing on the wrong part of the river.

any info is greatly appreciated  .i will also followup with a in depth photo report of how thing's went on the outing.

 cheers darren 

[Matt Henderson]

Depends whether you want to fish a single or double hander?

Further upstream lends itself better to a singlehander and downstream more a double hander. The council beats are reasonable value for money.

However by my understanding the Don is having a terrible season for silver tourists.

Cheers

Matt

[Quickcast 84]

Further upstream lends itself better to a singlehander and downstream more a double hander. The council beats are reasonable value for money.

However by my understanding the Don is having a terrible season for silver tourists.

thank you very much for the feedback matt.like i said,i don't have much knowledge of the river.i would like to take a tourist on a single hander 10ft 6-7wt preferebly,chance's are slim,but that is my goal and i aim to achieve it in a couple of day's fishing! which part of the river would i be best to ping a line in?

 cheers darren 

[sutherland1]

Good luck with a 6/7 weight is there not river don maps you can buy sure that would be of help ???

[Ben Dixon]

Hi Darren,

Your #6/7 will be fine, I often use a stiff #6.  Think you've gone about this the wrong way mate, I can't see anyone here sharing much knowledge with you after voicing your intention to knock a fish especially in a season when salmon have been so scarce.  You buy your ticket and you have the right to take a fish should you so wish but I would maybe think carefully about what you take, small cock fish if anything and make sure it is fresh otherwise your efforts will be wasted.  Salmon once in the river for a while taste pretty grim, not sure how much salmon fishing you have done in other places but if you're not sure about what makes a good "keeping" fish, contact the Biologist at the Don Trust and he'll help you out.
If it was me, I'd be taking  and would rather see a well taken pic of a salmon being returned than a dead fish in the flesh.

Cheers

Ben

[Hamish Young]

If it was me, I'd be taking  and would rather see a well taken pic of a salmon being returned than a dead fish in the flesh.

Agreed 

As to where to fish I (personally) would base it on what you already know to begin with.
For example, if you're more confident/comfortable with a single hander then that will kind of point you in the direction of where to go for a cast. Again (personally) I'd look above Inverurie.

Spinning is limited on some beats, so check carefully what's permitted on the water you fish.

H 

[Quickcast 84]

hi ben

i never keep fish,whether it be on a fishery or river,but i have been asked to keep a fish for my dads freind,if i catch one.if i were to catch a big fish,it would be returned safely to the river,after a quick photo.a small fish is all i am after to take home.

hamish,

definately more confident with a single hander and would try to avoid using a spinner.i have heard good things of the beats up past inverurie.i think that is were i will be heading 

[Ben Dixon]

O.K, understood Darren.

See how much rain we get tomorrow, the Don is coming up just now.  Once it settles and starts to come down try literally anywhere above Alford as far up as Glenkindie.  Be aware that above the Bridge of Alford there is no spinning on most beats.  Small fly, #10 or #12 fished on a floater with a polyleader fast enough to keep it 6" or so below the surface, you'll need to change tips as you work a pool to give you the best chance.

Cheers

Ben

[Quickcast 84]

cheers ben.it would be the tackle shop in inverurie for the permits?

[Jim Eddie]

Here is a link to the council beats on the Don and Ury

http://www.aberdeenshire.gov.uk/parks/fishing/fishing_season_permits.asp#Permit

 

Jim

[Matt Henderson]

You can also try the fish Don website which has beat descriptions and contacts for permits. I can't remember the address but you can get it through the fishpal site.

[Quickcast 84]

thanks folks,thats most helpfull