Get hooked — the best fishing locations in Scotland

Times

2 days ago

From the Tay to the Spey and a foreverness of loch beyond, fishing flows right through Scotland's cultural fabric. While many of the best spots are wonderfully remote, others are accessible right from the roadside. Then there's the coastline, where wild sea anglers can confront the North Sea's roaring embrace, or the tumultuous waves of the Atlantic Ocean.
Wherever you fish, you'll be guided by the seasons: spring heralds the return of salmon; summer entices trout anglers to rivers and lochs; autumn creates a new chapter as the salmon embark on their upstream pilgrimage. Not even winter can deter anglers seeking a grayling or two. If you have limited time or are just beginning your Scottish angling adventure, read on for the best spots I've found in decades of fishing here, as well as from writing my guide to wild fishing. All are reasonably priced, some even free.
Fringed by patches of sweetgrass (you might catch a whiff of its vanilla-like scent as you walk to the shore) and home to the largest population of breeding ducks in Europe, Loch Leven is a shallow, triangular loch renowned as a brown trout fishery. Its unique strain of brown trout, Salmo Levensis, is used to stock rivers, lakes and lochs across the world. After trials of stocking both brown trout and rainbow trout during the latter half of the 20th century, the loch has now reverted to being a natural brown trout fishery. Note that there is no bank fishing and angling is only possible via one of the supplied boats. There is an RSPB reserve at the southern end of the loch: expect ospreys in spring and summer, and wildfowl in spectacular, raucous numbers in autumn and winter.Details £30, fishlochleven.co.uk
You may occasionally hear the Waverley, the last seagoing paddle steamer in the world, trundling past while you're fishing Loch Long, but most of the time you can hear a pin drop. As the name suggests, this is a very long loch — its 20 miles eventually empty out into the Firth of Clyde — but it's a largely peaceful spot. You can fish with bait or with spinners from the shore, or on a boat, as long as you return any migratory fish, which in this case means salmon and sea trout. This still leaves you with brown trout, cod, whiting, plaice, mackerel, skate, wrasse, pollack, spurdog and many other species to catch. There's a good spot about a quarter of a mile past the Arrochar hotel, especially when the mackerel are starting, typically in mid-June. Use light tackle and you can also catch wrasse close to shore. Details Free, trossachs.co.uk
Twice during the Second World War aircraft crashed into this loch and the surrounding area. It was used to train pilots and aircrews because the surrounding steep hills are apparently ideal for target ranges. It's also excellent for fly-fishing: the loch has a large head of wild brown trout averaging about 8oz. You can also fish for pike, perch and char here. You can park beside the loch's ruined medieval castl, which it is thought may have been built by Robert the Bruce, and follow the well-marked trail to the shore. Keep your eyes peeled for ospreys, which have started nesting by the Roundhouse café at the top of the loch.Details Free, eastayrshireleisure.com
Newcastleton is a beautiful spot, with the Liddel Water running beside the village. Fly-fishing is best from July to September, with September the optimum month. The salmon season runs from July 1 when, with good water levels, fish start to run into the Lower Liddel. Good-sized catches can be made with salmon and sea trout but brown trout are present too. It's best fished with a weightier rod (seven weight is preferred in a fly rod) because the fish tend to be beefy. Tickets can be purchased locally on the day from outlets including the Eskdale hotel (eskdalehotel.co.uk) and Canonbie post office. The River Esk is nearby too. Details From £28, bordereskfishing.co.uk
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Six miles northwest of Tarbert at the top of the Mull of Kintyre, this small freshwater loch is a delight to fish. The casting is pretty easy since the banks aren't quite as steep as those at some of the other lochs in the area. Fishing can be slow but hit it at the right time and brown trout will be rising all around the banks. It's hard to predict exactly when that will happen — it could be early morning or late evening — but, as with all things fishing, patience is needed as there are no guarantees. Brown trout are not large here but are generally between 8-12oz. If they're in a taking mood, they will merrily take a dry fly, wet fly or nymph. However, you'll have a choice of 13 lochs to fish on your Glenbeg day permit, so if the trout aren't obliging at Loch a' Chaorinn, simply move on to another (my tip would be Loch a' Mhinn, which has good, clear banks to make fly back-casting easier).Details £10, glenbegfishing.com
The river skirts the village of Crianlarich, a popular hill-walking hub — in other words, big mountain backdrops are guaranteed. Insects can be troublesome here but slather on the Skin So Soft and persevere, and you'll be rewarded with brown trout, salmon and char. A good fly combination would be a gold-ribbed hare's ear and a black spider as a dropper. The wise angler usually fishes upstream of the viaduct but, really, the entire length of the river promises good but challenging angling. Fishing fine and far off should be your maxim here; all the fish are skittish. In other words, fish the slightest leader to your fly you dare and cast a line as far away as you can manage.Details £10, crianlarichstore.co.uk
The seven-mile beat that starts in Avonbridge and runs east to Torphichen Bridge is a great base for fishing the Avon. There's excellent brown trout fishing to be had here after rain, with fly, bait, spin and ledgering (weighting the line so the bait sinks to the bottom of the river) all possible. Along the beat's length are different pools, runs, gorges and open farmland, and there are two other beats shared with different clubs that include excellent sea trout fishing down near the estuary. Dry flies and emergers are a great option in the upper farmland. To fish this river at the right time, when the fish are on song, is a privilege — and a bargain too, because a day ticket here is one of the cheapest in the fishing world.Details £10, fishforth.org
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This gorgeous, sheltered Sutherland beach, with its famously Caribbean-looking shoreline, hugs the bay opposite the coastal village of Lochinver with the Hebridean islands of Lewis and Harris just offshore. The waters are fabulously clear and the white sand magnificent. It's a scenic spot, so it can be crowded in the summer months, but cod, haddock, whiting, pollack, saithe and mackerel are all waiting in the bay. Float fish for the wrasse, pollack and saithe — and definitely feathers for the mackerel. By autumn, it starts to get quieter. Details Free, venture-north.co.uk
It's a long but hugely scenic walk to this spot in the rugged, peak-studded wilds of Letterewe in Wester Ross — but what a place to fish, in a deep freshwater lochan three miles northeast of Loch Maree. Medium-sized brown trout are common, though there are tales of far larger specimens being wrestled to the bank. Relatively easy fishing offsets the 90-minute walk it takes to reach it from the village of Struy but it's only an hour's walk back. It feels, and is, very remote, enhancing the fishing experience. If you have the time, it's possible to camp overnight and make a longer trip of it; contact the estate to check they're not stalking, though (letterewe-estate.com).Details £7.50, assyntanglinginfo.org.uk
This is a lovely river to explore, with inky pools and fast-flowing stretches of water running through scenic tree-lined, meadow-filled countryside. Trout are abundant, with some over 5lb, and you can expect sea trout to turn up from June onwards. There are 13 named salmon pools as well. The middle reaches of the beat near Kemnay are perhaps better known for their brown trout fishing but the brownies are well spread out across the whole river's lovely glides and slow, deep pools. The upper river beats from Alford to Monymusk are superb in April and May but after that the trout get trickier to catch — from June it's best to move to the middle and lower reaches.Details From £10, fishingthefly.co.ukWild Fishing by Kevin Adams is out now (£18.99 wildthingspublishing.com). Buy from timesbookshop.co.uk. Discount for Times+ members