Description
Land of Hope 🏴
“Located in the far north west corner of Scotland nestled in rugged landscape and dramatic vista’s lies Kinloch Estate.”
A tale of three friends experience in the Land of Hope…
We were on a fishing expedition of a life time in the extreme south of Patagonia, William, Eoin and I. At the end of what was an epic adventure we were already planning our next trip. We wanted to find and experience Scotland in its wildest form and the tremendous salmon fishing it has to offer. There were many options as Scotland is a wild place with some of the worlds best salmon fishing on offer. We scrolled through the map searching endless rivers in search of a true wilderness Scottish experience to produce our next fishing and filming fix.
Browsing the map we found vast areas of wild landscapes in the region of Sutherland hosting so many famous names of fabled rivers. River Naver, River Helmsdale, River Grinyard, Oykel, so many choices but then we discovered the Hope system. A place we had all heard a lot about but had never had the pleasure to visit and fish.
After many years working as a ghillie at the prolific Grimersta estate I had become quite accustomed to loch fishing for salmon. Pulling that muddler through rolling waves, mesmerised by the rocking boat and the wake the muddler provides when stripping it back. I was ready to get back on to the oars and drift some new waters.
After arrangements were made with the estate we soon managed to set a date and make our ambitions a reality.
The Hope system is located in the very north of Sutherland in the Highlands of Scotland. The Loch is fed by the Strathmore River which is supplied by the numerous hill lochs deep into the heart of North West Sutherland. The loch extends to approximately 6 miles in length and eventually flows out into the River Hope, and further that into the northern end of Loch Eriboll before carrying on into the Atlantic Ocean.
Loch Hope stands as one of the famous salmon and sea trout fisheries of Scotland, many have heard tales of how effective dapping was and perhaps still is on the famous waters. It is named after Mount Ben Hope , which rises steeply above the southeast bank of the lake.
Will and I made a rendezvous with Eoin and Andrew the estate factor on the Black Isle and continued our journey north. The road would be long and the roads interesting as they wind through the open moorland and mountains of Sutherland. Deciding to take a detour to see a good friend we drove up via Helmsdale to meet with Gordon Sim and his family. The route was fantastic, as we drove parallel to the famous river Helmsdale for many miles and investigated all those pools we had heard so much about. Next the River Naver came into view another famous salmon river and we followed it right up in to the headwaters and to Loch Naver itself.
Suddenly a beautiful majestic mountain began to break the barren landscape and Ben Loyal came into view. One of the highest most northerly munros, it towers over the rolling moorland and is a truly spectacular mountain to behold.
We were greeted by the Ghillie/ Stalkers Ian Smart of Loyal Estate and Ian Macdonald of the Hope estate. Both Ian’s have worked on the two estates for many years and their knowledge of the surrounding areas was unparalleled and very educational. We were shown to our idyllic ‘Fishermans Cottage’ which would be our base for the next week. Situated on the banks of Loch hope at the north end and close enough to hear the occasional splash of a fresh salmon leaping out of the water and crashing back into the shimmering mask.
Ian Macdonald assured us that the river was quite high last week and it has encouraged many new fish into the system. He certainly filled us with optimism and later that first evening he showed us down to the river to show us where we would be fishing the next day. The evening was a humorousone with 4 eager fishermen and some of Scotland’s finest nectar fuelling fishing stories well into the night.
The alarm sounded early at 5am, I was greeted by a spectacular view through the window, looking south over the vast expanse of water looking dark and gloomy still with the evenings mist clinging to the shores. Day break was coming as my gaze followed the majestic loch up into the glen, there was a hint of a moody red glow creeping down the summit of Ben Hope, the magnificent munro that gave the Loch and river its name. We fuelled the coffee pot, shook off the cobwebs and dove straight into the car to explore the river below.
Meandering down the fishermans track towards the lower river we gazed at some glorious pools as we drove past them. Arriving at the bottom of the river we were looking straight out to sea. Towering sea cliffs on the right and breaking waves 400 metres out. The tide was coming in and immediately we spotted some salmon leaping as they came in on the tide. We set up a few cameras to get some nice shots and Gordon headed upstream to the White Stone pool.
No more than 5 minutes passed and we saw an excited figure coming back to meet us.” Guys!! I had three casts and had two different fish rise to the hitch fly!” We followed him up to the pool eager to catch some fish on the hitch. We set up a couple of cameras and watched eagerly as the hitch fly skated across the surface. Four casts is all it took before we watched a nose and dorsal fin slip through the water and roll over the fly. It was enchanting to watch and as Gordon made his next cast all eyes were fixed on the riffle created from the little tube fly……. Bang! “There he is!” shouted gordon. The take was very subtle and if you blinked you could have missed it, but the eruption of water that followed was spectacular. The line tightened and the rod went up, the fish leaped into the air repeatedly trying to throw the hook and eventually succeed and the line went slack.
Next into the pool was Eoin, he worked his way down the pool casting with pin sharp accuracy to just beyond the current. Each time we all watched in anticipation, barely able to blink as we may miss something. All the commotion from the previous fish must have spooked many of the fish, it wasn’t until he got half way down the pool that the inevitable happened. This time we never even saw the fish take, just a large swirl appeared around the fly and it was sucked under into a fishes mouth. This one was headed back out to sea. The backing knot appeared within moments and Eoin raced after the fish to catch up on it. The acrobatic display was a pleasure to watch and the tide fresh fish began to calm and Eoin could bring it under control and present it to the net.
The sun was still rising and it was 7:40am yet we had already encountered three rises, lost one and landed one. This trip was shaping up to be fantastic.
Together we fished on in the White stone pool and landed another two fresh grilse, these fish were really eager to take a fly and it was a pleasure to enjoy such fantastic sport. Suddenly the pool began to lose its flow, the fly would not swing correctly, and as we watched the river level was coming up. Once it filled with the tide there were many more fish jumping in the pool, but to our amazement all takes and offers ceased. We decided to head upstream to try and beat the tide.
We were to late the next two pool up had also lost their flow and the fly really struggled to swing as the tide was pushing up against the current coming down stream. We decided to head back to the car and drive up to the top few pools where the tide wouldn’t reach.
As we approached the car park the landscape had completely changed, the estuary was full of water and there were fresh salmon leaping in their scores across the bay. It was an incredible sight, we took out the camera and began to film the spectacle. You could watch the shoals of fish cruising around the bay, with nervous water appearing in small ripples as the fish explored just below the surface. Every time we heard a splash we would turn only to find another three fish in the air at once.
We also soon realised that the track had also flooded and we would have to drive through some fairly deep water to get back to the road. Heading back to the upper river we found the notorious ‘Glebe’ pool. Even I had heard about this pool when chatting to anglers that have already had the pleasure to visit the Hope river. It sits high up the river and has good access from the road. There is a very attractive shallow bubbly run at the top of the pool and a small croy on the far bank which funnels the stream even further down the pool. It then opens up in to a wonderful glide and 30m down turns a sharp left hand bend. It just screamed out for a hitch fly to be worked across the surface.
Will was first up, armed with a 9’ 5# and 1/2” hitch tube he started to swing the fly from the top of the run. I sat with the camera and eagerly tried to get the take on film. Well it didn’t take long, he had only waded a few meters and lengthened his line when he landed the fly just of the croy on the far bank and immediately everything tightened up. The line ripped through the water as the salmon ran down stream, other fish were jumping out of the way of it and at one point there were three salmon in the air at once. The light 5# rod was bent double and Will expertly fought the fish into the side where we slipped the net under it. The sea liced sparkling fresh 6lb grilse was a wonderful sight and we took a quick photo and slipped it back into the water where it belonged.
We fished on and both Eoin and I managed to catch a fish each with many offers and swirls at the fly. It was 11am and our stomachs were rumbling so we headed back for a late breakfast. We all chatted around the table and we all had smiling faces. Not only had we all caught some stunning Scottish fresh salmon on light tackle but we were so pleased to see such a great amount of salmon in our Scottish waters.
The influence the tides make on the river was quite substantial during our visit. We experienced quite high tides of up to 5 meters during the beginning of the week. The tide reached almost three quarters of the way up the river. It’s a very interesting experience fishing rivers that are influenced by the tide. As the salt water surges up against the natural flow of the river the salt water seams to be pushed into the edges of the pools and quite slowly the tidal current smothers the down stream current. The pool would often be bouncing with fish at this point but they seamed more concentrated of cruising around and chasing each other than following a fly.
We focused most of our fishing on the river around the tides and fishing the rising tide and falling tide seamed to be most productive. Whilst the tide was high we were able to enjoy the vast variety of fishing that the estates offer.
Loch Hope is one of the prettiest Lochs I have been fortunate enough to fish. It has many iconic bays and points which have been legendary drifts for many years. The loch narrows somewhat towards the south end where it become shadowed by Ben Hope. It is 6 miles long encompassing drifts that an anglers could spend a lifetime getting to know them. It has 9 boats that are clinker built and very sturdy even in a tough wind. We drifted down some fantastic shorelines and armed with muddlers and small silver stoats we took great pleasure in watching the muddlers dances on the waves ducking and diving creating that desirable wake. It wasn’t long before we encountered our first sea trout, an eruption in the water over the fly and an exhilarating run followed, the fish cavorted through the waves and gave a tremendous battle which eventually it won as the line sent slack. We estimated it to be around 5lbs and really played tribute to the stories one has heard of the sea trout of Loch Hope.
The variety of pools in the river is quite fascinating, they begin at the outlet of Loch Hope in a series of runs that all provide intimate unique water that is idyllic for a fly fisherman. Some pools have man made croys which funnels the flow to create perfect salmon pools and they enable the river to hold more fish during low flows. As you begin to reach the lower pools their nature changes with every turn. The Long pool is lined with seaweed on the rocks and its a pool that changes dramatically with the tide. We found it best to fish at low tide or just as the tide was ebbing in or out.
There was a lie that Ian had pointed out, at low water a small rock awash with seaweed at the end of the rocky shore on the other bank. Frequently you would see fish jumping in this spot. My first encounter with this pools was somewhat special and has provided memories that will last a lifetime. Armed with a 9’ 5# a 14’ leader, teamed with a micro hitch tube on the point and a small size 16 green butt on the dropper I began to fish my way down the pool. As I approached this known lie the flies landed just above and beyond the said rock immediately I witnessed the classic rolling of a head, dorsal fin and tail of a fish that came to and missed the fly. Landing the fly gently the second cast produced nothing. Then I presented the flies to the same spot and began a smooth figure of eight retrieve, and a lively grilse smashed the fly and headed back out to sea. The reel sang its wonderful tune and the rod was doubled fighting the powerful grilse of around 5lbs. Bringing it into the side I was becoming worried about the dropper getting caught in the floating seaweed and we required a good team effort to get this fish in. Will waded out and aided me by tailing the fish, all was a success until it shot through my legs no longer attached to the fly.
Not to worry it was only 8 casts later until we landed another. Then they seamed to come off the take…. nothing coming to the hitch but the tide was still out and the stream was perfect. We opted for changing from a hitch tube to a small size 12 single hook. A black silver and red pattern that Will tied up that very morning. We decided to tie a half hitch behind the eye to still create the riffling attraction. Two casts later with a slightly faster retrieve another fish splashed at it. The next 8 or 10 consecutive casts all got a reaction from a fish, they wanted it but we not taking properly. I changed to a micro treble size 18 undertaker, and icelandic pattern that is so small it can hardly be named as a fly. First cast with a quick retrieve a fine 4lb grilse nailed it. Looking at my watch 45 minutes had passed, and yet it seemed like 5. Completely encompassed in our own little world of fly fishing the whole world had passed by. I can know see how many people describe fly fishing as their own way of meditation. Some people play sport, run, play instruments, meditate, yoga, well I can see no better way to lose ones self and forget about the whole world in that moment its just you vrs a wild quarry and nothing else matters.
At the end of the fishing track is an ancient Icehouse, it has a small opening but as you explore deeper it opens up into a large vault that would have been an vital essential facility for those dwellers hundreds of years ago. One can only imagine how many salmon were running these waters back then and as you look at the structures walls you soon realise why it is so big inside. Salmon and sea trout must have been a huge asset to feed the clans through years. Incidentally the Icehouse pool sits just below the ancient icehouse and is a picturesque stream that is one of the first pools to become affected by the tide. Laden with seaweed on both banks it offers perhaps the last fresh water runs into the sea pools. It fishes best when the tide is ripping out and if you were able to time it correctly it provided some fantastic sport.
One afternoon we were chasing the tide out and fishing the pools as we saw them at their best. We were fortunate to land a fish from almost every pool. The Black stream is the final pool before you meet the breaking waves as the surf meets the river mouth. This pool is something to behold…. this particular afternoon, Eoin Will and I were overwhelmed at a run of salmon that came into the pool. It seamed the fish would begin to run a considerable amount of time before the tide really came in. Stood on golden sand with the sound of crashing waves from the surf just 400 metres away, sea gulls squawking away and the sight of gannets dive bombing the sea just out from the river mouth. Yet here we were with a shoal of salmon right before us… fish leaping through the air constantly perhaps just because they can or perhaps the famed porpoising enables them to travel more easily. Crashing over the line, Wading into the surf chasing salmon and sea trout was a newexperience for us and very educational. I for one will be trying tiny micro flies and hitch tubes again for tide fresh fish in the clear north sea.
I have chased shoals of salmon in the western isles on many occasion and occasionally we would get lucky but they really had their minds on other things. Here however they were interested and again that subtle riffle created from the hitch fly seamed to get them aggravated and in the mood to take. That magic hour when the pool was stuffed with fish running upstream on the tide we were fortunate to not only record the take on camera but also we captured some beautiful footage of salmon leaping as they entered the river.
As a collective group of flyfishers we all agree that the highlight of our trip was the sport we enjoyed in the sea pools. We encountered sea fresh grilse in vast numbers and caught them on light weight tackle in the salt water which was a tremendous experience.
Gear in use
