Last week, I mentioned in this column that my wife Jan and I just returned from a 14-day cruise around the British Isles. I mentioned that we were going to visit Loch Ness in the Highlands of Scotland and maybe spot Nessie, the alleged resident loch monster.
I guess I could understand that a monster could survive in Loch Ness for it is 24 miles long, a half mile wide and 980 feet deep. At places it is deeper than the North Sea.
Well, to make a long story short, we did not see Nessie.
We did have a nice boat ride on the Loch and saw on its shore the ruins of one of Scotland’s largest castles, the Urquhart. It saw great conflict during its 500 years as a medieval fortress with control of the castle passed back and forth between the Scots and English during the Wars of Independence. The power struggles continued, as the Lords of the Isles regularly raided it up until the 1500s. The last of the government troops garrisoned there during the Jacobite Risings blew up the castle when they left. Urquhart’s iconic ruins remain, offering glimpses into medieval times and the lives of its noble residents.
During our bus ride from Inverness, Scotland to the Loch Ness, I happened to look out the window as we crossed over the Ness river and saw a 4 or 5 lb salmon grilse jump some 3 feet out of the water. It’s nice to know that there are still some Atlantic Salmon making their spawning runs up those rivers .
The River Ness is a summer and autumn fishery flowing for some six miles from Loch Ness to the Beauly Firth. It flows through the city of Inverness where King Duncan, notably of Shakespeare’s Macbeth, had his castle. It was there that I saw the bloke pictured herein fly-fishing using a Spey rod. I couldn’t help but stop and take his picture and watch him fishing right in the heart of the city, within sight of Inverness Castle and St. Andrew’s Episcopal Cathedral.
Never heard of Spey casting? Well it originated in the heart of Scotland in the mid-1800s. The name comes from the River Spey, which is where the cast originated. Therefore, the Spey cast was developed so one could successfully cast on a large river such as the Spey. These rods are usually 12 to 15 feet in length, and can toss a line up to 80 feet. That’s about how far the angler seemed to be casting. I don’t know if he caught any fish, but he sure could cast a fly.
While there are many variations of the Spey cast, the basic technique is broken down into a few simple actions. With the fly line floating directly downstream, the angler first lifts the line off the water with the tip of the rod, sweeps the line backwards just above the water, and allows just the fly and leader to “anchor” the cast by touching the water one to two rod lengths away and forming a D-loop. While swinging the “D-loop,” the cast is completed by firing the line forward with a sharp two-handed “push-pull” motion on the handle of the rod while making an abrupt stop with the rod tip at the end of the cast. The cast is most easily compared to a roll cast in one-handed fly fishing, although by using the fly as an anchor, a Spey cast allows a greater loading of the rod and thus achieves greater distance than a one-handed cast. (Hope I didn’t lose you there.)
Richard ‘Dick” Bordeau, of Pittsfield, knows how to Spey cast, and he is pretty good at it, too. He sometimes uses that method while fishing for steelhead in the Salmon River in Pulaski, NY. He offered to teach me how to fish with a Spey rod one time, but it looked too complicated for me. I can get tangled up pretty well using my regular 9-foot flyrod, much less one that is 15 feet long.
Our tour guide told us that in order to fish for salmon in Scotland, you have to buy a permit. The price for that permit depends on where one fishes and the time of year. A permit to fish a beat at the prime salmon spawning season could cost $200 or more. At the same location at a different time of year the cost could be as low as $25.
The guide also said that Atlantic Salmon have been in a decline there recently and now, in order to increase the stock, anglers must practice catch and release on the Ness River. (Incidentally, between 80,000 to 100,000 salmon are caught annually by anglers in Scotland’s rivers. Many of these were returned to the water but around 25 per cent were still being killed).
Basic Hunter Education Course
All first-time hunters who wish to purchase a Massachusetts hunting or sporting license must successfully complete a Basic Hunter Education course. The Basic Hunter Education course is designed for novice hunters and is standardized across North America. All government-issued Basic Hunter Education certificates, from any jurisdiction, are accepted to meet this requirement.
Upon successful completion of this course, graduates will be mailed a Certificate of Completion recognized in all U.S. states, Canada, and Mexico. All courses are free of charge and open to the public.
Such a course is being offered at the Pittsfield High School, 300 East Street, Pittsfield, MA. The course includes 6 evening courses: September 4, 6, 11, 13, 18 and 20. They all run from 6:00 pm to 9:00 pm. To enroll call (508) 389-7830.
Thanks for everything Charlie Liston
Charles J. Liston of Lenox Dale passed away this past August 17 at the age of 95.
Readers may recall an April 15, 2018 article that I did on him entitled Charles Liston honored. The article mentioned his receipt of a special plaque from the Lenox Land Trust recognizing his role in forming the Land Trust and his longstanding commitment and leadership of the conservation movement and its early initiatives in Lenox and Berkshire County.” He was recognized for having been tireless in his role as a surveyor for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, in assisting in conservation work for the Commonwealth, for Lenox, and for many regional environmental groups. And for that generosity of spirit, generations to come will enjoy these preserved lands and wildlife.
He was recognized for exploring and recording the boundaries and features of thousands of acres of land. And his expertise and love of natural landscapes resulted in the permanent protection of many of those acres in their natural state. Anyone who has hunted, hiked or bird watched the Post Farm, the George Darey Wildlife Management Area, Hallowell Meadow, the Edith Wharton Park or Parson’s Marsh in Lenox owes Charlie a great deal of gratitude.
We also owe him our heartfelt gratitude for serving in the US Marines during WWII in the South Pacific, notably in the Saipan, Tinian and Okinawa campaigns.
Charlie and his many accomplishments will long be remembered.