Summer in the Highlands is all about skating flies on the surface when the water is clear and low, on the other hand when the rain kicks in and rivers are peat stained and high its a totally different story. Fulling Mill have a vast array of perfect flies for all conditions and none are better than Laerdal Sunrays, Coneheads, plastic micro tubes and low water doubles, couple with these top 5 salmon fishing tactics.
Salmon fishing techniques can vary hugely from river to river and all are dependent on water levels. Low water requires stealth, fine tippets, small flies and lightweight accurate presentation. Spate water is much more forgiving in that you can launch weighted poly tips, copper tubes and bright coneheads across the pool. Successful angling is all about reading the conditions and selecting the correct setup for the day.
Top 5 Salmon Fishing Tactics
- Read the water and conditions, focusing on water clarity and temperature.
- Carry a selection of sink tips, floating and sinking tips will allow for a better approach overall. Use a floating tip for clear water, and a sink tip for coloured water.
- Select an appropriate fly size and weight that coincide with the conditions. EG, Low water, small flies.
- Keep moving and covering as much water as possible in between casts, this is one of the most important of the top 5 salmon fishing tactics.
- Be prepared to change tactics on the day. Fishing conventional doubles and hitching flies can be effective in good water, where as searching big pools with Sunrays fished square across the pool can provoke a take. Heavy coneheads fished deep may force big fish into attacking. One of the biggest mistakes is sticking to one fly all day, even if you’re not getting any response.
View Fulling Mill’s Salmon Fly Range
The most successful salmon anglers know when to change tactics and keeping an eye on the conditions will definitely give you an advantage. Keep it simple, fish large flies deep when the water is up and coloured, fish small flies on or close to the surface when the water is warm clear and low. Although, one exception is fishing large Sunray Shadow tubes in low water.