Everything you need to know about getting started with salmon fishing.

This is a comprehensive no-nonsense Guide to getting started, if you’re looking to learn how to fish for salmon.

So you want to get into Salmon Fishing but don’t know where to start? Hopefully this guide will help. This is a concise and simple guide to help you from an Orvis guide who has salmon fished with clients for 16 years throughout Scotland. 

It can be daunting starting out, where to go, what equipment to use, how to read a River, what is the river etiquette? How much do I tip the Ghillie? What Spey casts to use? The answers are here, read on:

Let’s break his down into a step by step guide, beginning with:

What equipment to use for salmon fishing in Scotland? 

Most rivers in Scotland are fly fishing only, and some allow spinning like the Tay and the Tweed. The sensible thing to do is to ask yourself, do I want to fish one of the big rivers? The Tay, The Dee, Spey and Tweed? Or a smaller spate river?

Salmon fishing Equipment for Big 4 rivers – The Tweed, Tay, Spey and Dee

A 14ft or 15ft Fly rod, with a reel. You don’t need to spend the earth, a Shakespeare Oracle Scandi 15ft rod will set you back £120.00 on Amazon and its a pretty decent rod, certainly good enough for a beginner to enjoy learning on and the reason for choosing a Scandi version (there are other Shakespeare Oracles) is simply that Scandi (short Spey) lines are easier to cast for beginners and this is a nicely balanced rod.

If you’re looking for a robust, great value salmon reel, the Vision Deep ticks many boxes. It will set you back about £80.00 can take a battering, has a decent drag and great line capacity. 

So what salmon fly line is best for a beginner? If your setting out, do not use a long head Spey line, I.e. 65ft, opt for a Short head Spey line, or Scandi as they are known.  These are easier to cast and I can tell you that in my years as a guide I have got literally thousands of people casting lines like this good enough to cover fish in under 30 minutes of tuition. You cannot go wrong with an Airflo Rage Shooting head kit. For £79 this gives you a running line/ short spey line and tips, floater, intermediate and sink tip. This will cover most scenarios and this is an extremely easy line to cast.

So there you have it. A complete, fly rod, reel and line for £280.00.

What are the best value breathable waders?

Waders are an item you should be careful buying. Many people buy cheap and pay the price.. many people buy expensive and pay the price too. I cannot see past the Orvis Clearwater waders, they offer excellent value for money, and I would recommend trying them on with thickish socks and wading boots. Make sure you try bending down and standing up and all legs movements are easy and unrestricted. Get the Orvis Clearwater wading boots too, they are superb value, the waders and boots will set you back £368.00 but often Orvis offer deals and discounts, don’t be afraid to contact your local store and ask.

So in summary, £650.00 will get you properly set up, and enable you to be tooled up for a day on the river. (Excluding flies and nylon tippet)

Which river in Scotland is best for salmon fishing for beginners?

This depends where you live, but pick a beat with a good Ghillie, preferably one who holds a casting qualification like SGAIC and therefore can give casting tips and tuition. If you want a more dedicated guide for the day, then hire a guide. You can meet the guide at the river, use your own gear and he or she can take you through the fundamentals and various casts. This can be invaluable in the beginning, so bad habits don’t set in.

The River Tay at Fishponds is one such beat, a gem of a Ghillie in Iain Kirk, a wizard with a fly rod and always willing to help. Its good water for learning and relatively inexpensive in the earlier parts of the season (spring and summer)

Whilst were on the subject of grilles and guides, it’s customary to tip them. This is the right thing to do and as a general guide, anything from £20-£50 deluding on the day you’ve had is the norm.

What if I want to try salmon fishing before buying all the gear?

Hire a guiding company to take you out, they will provide you with quality fishing tackle, waders, boots, life vest and rain jacket. Well we do that certainly!

This will set you back approx £375.00 for a full day including dedicated guide with you all day, permit, tackle and VAT. Our team of professional fishing guides include SGAIC casting instructors, so if you want to try various combinations fo rods and lines and learn various Spey casts, we can help.