Flyfishing on the River Tweed

Tweed, the second longest river in Scotland, rises at Wells of Tweed, some 1500 feet up in the hills north of Moffat. From there it flows eastwards for 98 miles entering the North Sea at Berwick. For the last 19 miles of its course the river flows through England.

Pat O'Reilly with a nice sea trout from the
Upper Caberston fishery at Walkerburn

Although most famous as an autumn salmon river (Tweed has produced well over 10,000 salmon per year in recent seasons) the river also holds good numbers of sea trout as well as brown trout and grayling.

Tweed tributaries
On its way to the sea the River Tweed receives waters from several major tributaries, most notably the Yarrow and Ettrick, Gala Water, Leader Water, Teviot, Till and Whiteadder.

The Tweed river system is governed by the River Tweed Commissioners (RTC) who were set up by the Tweed Fisheries Act in 1857. The Commissioners comprise representatives from both the public and private sectors, including landowners, angling clubs and commercial fisheries. The Tweed Foundation, a charitable trust, was formed in 1983 to enhance and maintain all species of fish in the Tweed catchment. Many other Rivers Trusts and Foundations across the UK have since copied this successful model.

Salmon fishing
At the time of writing, Tweed opens for salmon fishing on 1st February and closes at midnight on 30th November. While noted for its autumn run of large salmon, Tweed also has a fairly good run of spring fish and a grilse run in late summer.

In all but low water conditions a double-handed rod of 13 or 15 ft is needed to cover the water effectively. In summer it is sometimes possible to fish with just a floating line, but for most of the year you are advised to bring also sink tips and a fast sinking line with flies sized to suit the conditions. Ally's Shrimp and Cascade are of course popular on Tweed as elsewhere, but your own favourite salmon fly patterns will do the business provided you get them down to where the salmon are. (Incidentally, our introductory Guide to Salmon and Sea Trout Fishing is available online, and of course we recommend it unreservedly if not altogether impartially!)

Sue Parker fishing for salmon on Tweed

Trout Fishing
In addition to the world-class salmon fishing on Tweed, there is some excellent trout fishing; most of this is administered by angling clubs who sell permits at very reasonable prices. Note that trout fishers are required to give way to salmon fishers in the event of potential conflict, and in practice there is generally a very good relationship between trout and salmon fishers on this great river.

Tweed trout fishing is highly regarded in Scotland but perhaps not as well known outside the country as it's quality would justify. We have enjoyed some wonderful spring and autumn fishing for wild trout that average not far short of the 3/4 lb mark, with plenty of larger fish. It is a river with reasonably good hatches of upwinged flies and sedges - in fact the densest Grannom hatch we have ever seen was on the upper reaches of Tweed, and the trout gorged themselves. (Pat O'Reilly's bestselling illustrated book Matching the Hatch covers all of these aspects.) The best fishing then is during the early stages of the hatch, when there is a chance that your fly will be seen among the hundreds of naturals that soon become thousands!

If you need detailed advice on river trout flyfishing, our Beginners' Guide to Trout and Grayling Fishing is available online...

A 9 or 9.5 ft rod rated at #5 or #6 is ideal, since at times you will need to make quite long casts to cover rishing fish. General imitation dry flies are usually good enough unless the trout are locked on to abundant BWO spinners or to large sedges. When nothing is rising, heavily-weighted nymphs are effective for trout and grayling, and sizes 16 and 18 are a good match for most natural ephemeroptera nymphs.

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