I am planning fly tying lessons in the close season if there is enough interest.

They will consist of 2 - 3 days flytying and discussion on all aspects of "salmon" fly-tying and tactics . Solar Monkey, SuperSnaelda, SuperSquid, Coneheads, etc etc the list of our successful flies and inventions is very long.
The tying course will show you how to master all of them and many more.

If there is enough interest I will be able to approach hotels on Speyside and hopefully arrange a deal on accom for everyone.

There is no limit to the number courses but each one would be limited to 6 people, cost per person still to be worked out.

If you or a party of friends are interested please contact me and we can set a couple of days superb flytying and tactical talk...

19/9/17 Latest update is around 150 off last week after great water, the total could have been many more if the river was more settled.

We also have a buy 2, get 1 free, on this deadly Willie Gunn Temple Dog in copper or tungsten. Simply order online and we add one more free, click here to buy - http://www.helmsdalecompany.com/rs-willie-gunn-td-pro-choice.html

RS Willie Gunn Temple Dog. A stunning tube for autumn fishing on a sinking tip. available in 0.5", 0.75", 1"

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The Helmsdale provided around 65 fish last week as the unsettled autumn conditions moved in. This week is also proving very unsettled and the river is very high indeed. The upper beats should produce as soon as the river starts dropping. We have all the gear required to catch salmon in the autumn (as you know ) or just call us for advice, we are always available to chat.

We have cracking pocket sized salmon fly selections in Baxters of Fochabers now also ( pic below ) so pop in if you get the chance, Its a superb place to shop and eat with a huge choice of great products from local and international businesses. Our large selection of our best flies is selling well and with all the big water about it would be a good idea to top up on your Monkey and red Frances tubes, top autumn killers.

Christmas is coming, yes, not Halloween yet but its the time to start thinking of that Loop rod you have always wanted or replacing top of the range Simms gear, indulge yourself....you are worth it! Below I'm letting you into part of an email I received from a very experienced guide who I had the pleasure of having by my side last week. The point being that I was using my favourite setup of Loop Cross S1 salmon rod and Gaelforce line, The dream combo I won't change for anything! effortless power and accuracy and a total pleasure to fish with.

Big news and amazing new flies coming soon

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"Hi Ron,

Thank you for your reply and for your compliments, that is very much appreciated. It was a pleasure guiding someone of your extreme casting capability and covering the water so perfectly. I enjoyed watching every cast, it was a real pleasure I can assure you.

Thank you also for sending some of the flies which worked so well for you, that’s very kind".

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We are giving away £50 worth of our flies with every Loop Cross S1 rod purchased for Christmas.

We are ordering from Loop & Simms soon so if you fancy giving yourself or receiving (working on) an awesome Christmas present this year please order online or call/email me and we can get it all for you in plenty of time. Treat yourself...casting should be a pleasure, not a chore!

Drop into Baxters Fochabers on the banks of the Spey and grab some of these, great little Christmas presents.

latest news 3/9/17 Around 60 off last week so things are still rolling along but the temps need to start dropping soon if the season is to end with a bang! Don't forget to scroll down and check out our superb and deadly end of season flies, they are exactly what you need! you can either buy them in Baxters of Fochabers on the banks of the Spey or simply shop online right here - http://www.helmsdalecompany.com/

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The Helmsdale is easing itself into the final phase of the season, pretty good on the whole so far, but now anglers are getting tested. The last two weeks have been tough going. Fresh fish are still running and you can bump into one anytime but the trend is how best to persuade the residents now. It is always a challenge, good water helps but even this does not guarantee sport nowadays, the days of big killings on the back of big spates are over, probably due to the unpredictability of the weather and warmer autumn temperatures. Word is, the river has over 1000 fish off so far with a full month to go, not bad considering the fish have been hard to catch all summer.

If you are lucky enough to be fishing the Helmsdale, or any other river for that matter you need to start fishing smart and that simply means broadening your tactics a little. Even though it is still mild don't be afraid to fish deep espcially if there is good water levels, Frances tubes and coneheads are as good as it gets, RS Willie Dog coneheads, Red/Gold SuperSnaelda conehead, RS Willie Gunn TDs in copper/tungsten. Take serious note of water clarity, depth and temperature. If the water is clear go for amaller flies, 1/4" frances copper/tungsten tubes, Black Frances, Silver Stoat, Cascade Pot bellied Pig. Bigger water will command the heavier brighter patterns like Framethrower, Cascade Pig Tungsten, Cascade Conehead, Cascade SuperSnaelda, Willie Dog Conehead and Black & orange Monkey. Keep the explosive Sunray Shadow in mind also as they have a habit of getting attacked by the bigger fish as Glen Macdonald Borrobol rods found out yet again last week in the Marrel pool beat 1. He hooked another brute which turned and headed for the Association water at high speed before throwing the hook unfortunately.

To make things easy we have set you up a great deal on our top ten "best of the best" salmon flies for £30 normally over £40 as tungstens are around £3.99 - £4.50 generally. So to take out the hassle, just grab our very Special selection by clicking right here for immediate delivery - http://www.helmsdalecompany.com/best-of-the-best-autumn-selection.html

Best of the best selection

Catches were fairly good on the Helmsdale last week once again with good numbers of fresh fish still entering the system. Borrobol and Achentoul rods both had over 20 fish and the total was somewhere around 80 off including the Association water.

The big news is that we have just situated one of our large fly towers in Baxters Village Fochabers. With over 125 dozen of our best flies on display this should be a great outlet for anglers fishing the lower Spey and for passing trade heading to one of the many other rivers in the area. The flies are for sale along with tube doubles in the Whisky shop area, just pickup a tub and help yourself with Frances, Monkey, Kinermony killer, Willie Gunn TDs, Baby tds, infact the whole top deck is Monkey tubes of every sort....Drop in if you can and check out the quality on offer. Obviously we have many more patterns available online right here - http://www.helmsdalecompany.com/

I have also had some insider information from a ghilie on the river Dee on a fly that is making big headlines for a group of French anglers over the last few weeks. RS Feeler Willie Gunn in 10s & 12s is really making its mark and getting noticed, so much so that the Ghillie has ordered dozens for himself!( pic below )

Our fly tower in Baxters Village right on the A96 and easy to pop in to grab some deadly flies....

RS Feeler Willie Gunn is really fishing great right now and out fishing everything on certain rivers - buy now right here or from the cube at Baxters - http://www.helmsdalecompany.com/feeler-willie-gunn-salar-double.html

RS Alistair Flamethrower

Some more of our deadly little beauties.

RS Red Cascade is starting to fish well now also.

The river produced over 100 fish last week for easily the best week of the season. This week may be as good as lots of fish appear to be around the coast. If the weather is kind, catches should once again be very good. The Association water continues to pick away and is well worth a cast at only £25 per rod per day.

The Helmsdale is not firing on all cylinders quite yet but there are plenty of fish around and approx 60 off the river for the week including the Association water. I spent a few hours on the water last week (Sat ) and witnessed a good run of grilse around the tide especially, we had 5 interested between us, 3 hooked & 1 landed. As per usual my fiancee Donna bent the rod first and duly added another classic Helmsdale grilse to her tally. The Alistair UV conehead is always her first choice and it proved its worth yet again. 6 fish were caught on the day, Alistair Jappy had 2 before breakfast but the catch was disappointing considering the abundance of fish. Adam Macdonald started to make a dent in the population earlier in the week with 3 on Monday/Tuesday but the rest of the week was tough.

This seems to be the trend this year, very encouraging numbers of fish around but they are proving quite difficult to catch when in the past a mini bonanza would have been had throughout the system. 200+ fish July weeks were not uncommon a few years ago, my father worked on the river for 40 years, I have the benefit of all his experience & stats. The river was also netted at the mouth along with bag nets intercepting the run from East & West too. There are lots of fish around this year, back in the netting days there were huge numbers of fish around and thats the difference. incedentally,  3 pink salmon have now been recorded on the river along with plenty from other Scottish rivers, worrying maybe but we don’t know enough about the issue yet to know if this mini invasion could become a problem. (see pink collection below )

Next week could be the big one, more fresh water hit the system on Saturday so it is topped up perfectly and ready for some serious action! Coneheads should work very well and as you know, we have plenty of the best for sale right here – http://www.helmsdalecompany.com/helmsdale-co-flies/coneheads/tds.html

When the river drops, there are no better flies than the 2 amazing RS Baby TD’s below, these are teamed up with size 14 Partridge Patriot Stinger tube singles to give an idea of how tiny they are. Single hooks suit them very well, you should try them, they take a superb hold and release is much easier. You can grab some here right now - http://www.helmsdalecompany.com/rs-baby-td-aluminium-tube-rons-favourite.html

Donna smiling all the way into another Helmsdale fish on the Association water.

Landed and happy! Loop Cross S1 13ft, GDC 9 floater, G4 Loop Evotec 8-10....

One of Adams fish, absolutely pristine, cautht on one of our baby Tds...

When we are on the subject of pink salmon, this is one of our top selling sets for the ladies - http://www.helmsdalecompany.com/the-pink-collection.html

Momentum is growing on the Helmsdale as a mix of salmon and grilse enter the system, lots of fresh fish are being seen but catches are not reflecting this for some reason. Borrobol were top rods with 13, regular Ian Muir had 9 on Kildonan and the other rods had a reasonable picking between them. Things should accelerate soon as the peak of the season approaches. The tagging on the North coast bag nets is not seeing much of a run yet but good marks of grilse have been seen arriving. Next week should see things kicking off.

See our offers in the reports below if you are looking for great rods reels and lines, we also have a superb influx of new flies onboard also so get stuck in and secure your supply before they disappear! By the way, we have the best Frances flies in the world and they are one of our top sellers in red & black especially and on tubes doubles & trebles. You can check them out below and buy them right here - http://www.helmsdalecompany.com/red-frances-copper-tube-pro-favourite.html they are simply deadly in copper & tungsten especially as they get right down in front of the fish where they simply suck them on or grab them like tigers!

Back in stock along with loads of your favourites, the Blue Elver....have a good look through the site for all the new arrivals. Alistair coneheads, baby tds, tungsten frances, micro SuperSnaelda and many more..

The Helmsdale is still somewhat simmering but catches of grilse are steadily keeping things interesting for those putting in the hours, Kildonan and Suisgill having the best of it last week with 20 and 19. A pink salmon was caught on beat 1 below and interestingly there were pinks caught on the Spey & Dee recently also.

Don’t forget to stock up with our deadly coneheads in Willie Dog crimp, Willie Dog summer and Cascade Crimp plus superdeadly micro versions of each too, these are our most successful summer flies, check them out right here, links to each below.

Cascade micro conehead - http://www.helmsdalecompany.com/micro-cascade-conehead-ghillies-choice.html

Willie Dog Micro conehead, you can buy here right now - http://www.helmsdalecompany.com/micro-willie-dog-conehead.html

How’s your casting these days? Is the line flying out of your fingers and making the reel jump? Do you enjoy watching it fully turn over at long distance? If it is not then you are probably not loading your rod and your line may be on the light side with its rating. Without getting too technical about things, technique is one thing, and we all have out own personal styles and methods of propelling line, but get the line rating spot on for your rod and use a quality line and you are most of the way to maximising your full potential.

I have seen so many anglers using old cracked dirty lines too light or way too heavy for rods that they have no chance of ever getting remotely close to perfection, or even just enjoying their casting as the art form it is.

Sometimes salmon fishing is all about the fly, luck, right place right time, but sometimes it is about light presentation at close and long distance as well as all the other variables.

When was the last time you ran your line through line cleaner to help keep it supple and clean, products on the market not only clean and lubricate lines nowadays but they fill tiny imperfections, all this helps generate extra line speed and that slick zip out through the rod rings.

We are offering you the opportunity to grab one of the best salmon lines out there recommended by many experts and even myself as the best! I have used and tested the new Gaelforce range over the last 2 seasons and I have not used anything better.

Buy one Gaelforce line and get a half dozen of our best salmon flies free.

Buy any Loop Evotec or Hardy Marquis reel and you get a Gaelforce line half price.

Buy any Loop Cross salmon rod & either Hardy or Loop reel and you get a Gaelforce line free inc a dozen salmon flies free.

The combo of Loop & Gaelforce is the dream casting combo….you only live once and we have great deals.

Call me for prices and the key to casting perfection!

A couple of nice recent fish to round off with below from Ian Muir & Chris Wall from beats 2 & 3

Last week was quide dour on the Helmsdale, the residents were not too interested and still no real sign of many grilse. 30 - 40 would cover the total catch including the Association water.

On a more exciting note we have made the Megan Shrimp available, the exact tying from the legend herself!, no frills, no flash, just the real thing and its a fly thats caught thousands of salmon. Check it out below and order some for the summer...

Speaking of tradition - we also have a great offer on Hardy Marquis reels and Carron lines, the cream of floating line summer fishing for years. Buy either size of Marquis reel and get a Carron 9/10 or 10/11 line half price..a superb combination of class, engineering and tradition at its best! call me for details and price thanks - 01343870158

Check out the Hardy reels right here - http://www.helmsdalecompany.com/hardy-marquis-lwt-no-1-2-pro-choice.html

The Helmsdale is coming off a few good weeks. The first big water of the summer induced a great week early June with around 100 fish off and the following week reported 80 or so to keep the great momentum going for the season. Last week has not been so good as the main run is drying up a little and grilse are very thin on the ground but its very typical for the time of year. A few small grilse have been caught so its just a question now of when with the main run come in and how many. The Association water was not on fire but fish were taken if the hours were put in. Latest news hot off the press - William Jappy had 4 today (24/6/17) one at 8lbs and 3 grilse between 3 & 4lbs Alistair jappy had a 7lbs fish yesterday. Looks like things are about to hot up so get your flies ordered and hooks sharpened and don't forget to get them from us, the specialists!...permits are available from Rob at Thyme & Plaice and the Bannockburn on Dunrobin St.

BTW our long awaited Tungsten Red frances tubes are back in stock!

The Brora has been picking away well also with good water levels and last week I had first hand experience of it having the luxury of two rods booked on the South bank. As it turned out we got off to a flyer as my partner in crime and fiancee Donna grassed a 13.5 pounder within 20 mins of starting at 6.30am in her favourite Madman pool. the rest of the week produced only another dozen fish but at least 6 were lost after playing them for a few minutes, more offers were had but they did not connect. If the truth be told, the water was way too high for the first half of the week with the spate topping out at close to 3ft on the Ford pool marker on Monday. Brother Andy had another out of Madman and Adam Macdonald had a bar of silver from Otter pool after bending the rod on one in the Pot and getting smashed out of the park by a brute in Greenbank! below are a bunch of pics from the week to brighten up the report! By the way, the fly of the week was my favourite Willie Dog conehead which never fails on the Brora...it landed 6 for me during the week but could have been 10.

Once again, Loop rods and Gaelforce lines made fishing an absolute pleasure, I just cannot praise this tackle combo enough, I do love the Loop GDC shootine heads which complement the rods superbly but the Gaelforce range get the nod for me as they are all integrated through to floating runningline on their Spey and shooting head lines. Please call me for a cast or demo with any from our selection of Loop rods and Gaelforce lines, you need to feel the amazing quality to believe it! call us to order any of this kit, they are by far and away our best sellers over the last 2 seasons, No prizes for guessing why!

I must give a special mention also to our incredibly comfortable and spacious accom run by John & Caroline McMorran which lies close to the Brora river. This fabulous 4 bedroom house offers absolutely everything you could wish for including free broadband and a homely wood burning fire as well as oil fired central heating. It has everything required for a week on the river, the huge open plan kitchen is a fantastic space to relax and eat and the beds are as comfy as you will ever sleep on, we thoroughly recommend it and have already booked it for next year! - http://www.self-catering-clynelish.com/

RS Willie Dog tube, Gaelforce line and Loop ,Cross S1, a combo to die for! You really need some of these flies in your summer flybox, grab some here right now while stocks last - http://www.helmsdalecompany.com/willie-dog-crimp-conehead.html

Willie Dog securely in the scissors of another sea liced rocket.

Off he goes full of power to fight another day

The fish were of superb quality as you can see, no problem with feeding for these guys wherever they came from!

Otter pool looking great

Donna's reward for getting up early Monday Morn. Loop Cross S1 13ft

The Beech and Beech tree pool, not quite so rewarding! however we did retrieve the killer fly...

Another missile netted for Ron, Tail of Bengie pool.

Tail of Bengie pool at around 1ft 6

The gorgeous Greenbank pool at 2ft

The resulting chromer for RS first time down it...

Upper Cliff pool in fine fettle.

Adam Macdonald and my daughter April have the top of the Otter pool well covered later in the week lower water.

Adam Macdonald in the Pot pool, minutes later he was hit by a salmon right on the surface which did not stick!

Another hefty fish later in the week from Greenbank

Donna into another double figure fish but unfortunately it won the battle this time throwing the hook after 5 minutes

RS Willie Dog Crimp 8mm - deadly! buy here right now - http://www.helmsdalecompany.com/willie-dog-crimp-conehead.html

RS Willie Dog Summer 12mm - deadly! buy here right now - http://www.helmsdalecompany.com/willie-dog-conehead-summer.html