Salmon Fishing School

By Jock Monteith 13th November 2017

Studying all the key points that are required in order to become a great salmon fisher is well worth doing and goes far beyond learning how to use a salmon fly rod that represents most people's take on this topic. A wild Atlantic salmon cares not a jot about the arial performance of a fly line and nor will it ever.

Salmon Fishing Courses

A good source of information to optimise your salmon fishing skills can either be delicately drawn out of the professional 'full time' river staff of the Scottish rivers or on occasion it can be obtained through a professional ghillie's 'fishing' course. Notice I deliberately used the word 'fishing' and not 'casting'.

Forget The Casting Schools

The real skills involved in salmon fishing are not the self serving egotistical ones that come from delivering a long elegant tight looped fly line to the river when you know you have an audience. The 'real' skills are understanding how to maximise your water coverage, effectively react to a take from a fish and identifying areas of a pool where salmon are likely to be present.

Full Picture Of Salmon Fishing Tuition

On ocassion in the past I've had guests come to me that have been with some of the known casting instructors and subsequently watched their blank faces when I've asked them about how they liked to space each swing of the fly. Even more horrific I watched an angler blow 2 fantastic takes from a salmon that clearly wanted his fly because he hadn't been taught how to set a hook by his casting instructor which is the most important skill of all.

Remembering My Youth On The River Tay

When I flash my mind back to the 70's when I was a young boy learning this game my late Tay ghillie mentor spent the least amount of time demonstrating how the fly rod functioned. His teaching involved great detail on boat & riverbank approaches and movement, how to set the hook and as importantly how to play & land a fish. Of all the things taught 'reading the pool' was number one on his list of priorities and rightfully so.

Learn Everything You Need To Know

Fishing courses these days don't properly teach any of these skills from what I've seen as the instructors are usually too busy demonstrating their own personal and often 'switch board' jamming techniques with all the latest fad casts they've created. Much of these newly formed associations are just money churning opportunities for new anglers to feel part of a club which is fine if it's the association you seek.

Career Ghilie Salmon Fishing Tuition

If you want to really take a degree in this sport get yourself some consistent 'one to one' time with a 'true' career professional who will quickly re-align your salmon fishing thoughts to those that are 100% sub surface. This association and good old practical time spent on the Scottish salmon rivers will provide the true education you seek and one that will keep you in this fine pursuit for life as was the case with myself.