Latest fly Bogof closed but we will have another soon, thanks to all who took advantage..

Last week was almost a non event on the river and a non event with my internet connection at the weekend hence the late report. The good news is that temps are steadily dropping and this week has produced 8 fish in the last 2 days for Borrobol rods. We are seeing stones on the river which I only remember seeing as a boy! This is interesting in itself as all those high water salmon resting spots are abundantly clear now and the bed of the river is giving up it's mistique in most places. 

Alistair Jappy had the only real success on the Association water landing a cracking 3lbs sea-trout on a Baby Td tube whilst salmon fishing. Not much else happened apart from most of the fish that were lying there appearing to move upstream or back out to sea with the uncumfortable low water level.

The forecast is looking very promising for rain this weekend, this could be the low pressure we have been waiting for, lets hope we finally get a meaningful downpour and the season can explode back into action.

I have created another new fly which I like the look of for autumn salmon fishing, I am calling it the Red Hot Alistair due to the radiant red badger hackle which gives the fly it's striking red Alistair appearance. let me know what you think of it on the Forum and feel free to contact me if you want some.

Speaking of the Forum, it would be nice to see a few more users on there to get some interesting Helmsdale discussion going. Don't sit on the sidelines, have some fun, make a post and let us know what you think of the river, its pools, its salmon, its beats, flies, tactics, rules whatever, get those fingers moving, nobody is going to bite!!

Here is the latest action video from Team Loop and their associated adventure filming team - watch out for the guy hooking the tarpon and wait till you see his line screaming past his boat, unbelievable power and speed but the Loop cross s1 rods handle everything no problem, and yes, we have them in the shop and online! this month we are offering free lines with these extra special rods, call us for great deals. 

http://www.motivfishing.com

We are letting our latest fly BOGOF run until the end of this week (Sunday) so fill up the coffers when you have the chance, don't forget to put Club Helmsdale BOGOF in the comments section and also please feel free to have a go on our new Helmsdale river Forum. Just sign in with a username, wait for authorisation and off you go!

Last week was a non event on the Helmsdale, probably 30 - 40 fish maximum. The water is still dropping and although there are lots of fish around they are not easily tempted. Anglers who are prepared to chop and change tactics are scoring better than most.

The Association water provided a handful of grilse for William & Alistair Jappy and David Melville landed a nice 8lbs fish. lots of fish around again but treasing them up to the fly is becoming a real challenge hence the lack of information for this latest report. Rain will change everything and we are all still hoping for that big flood to end the season with a bang!

We have upgraded some of our fly selections recently in time for the Christmas rush. Fly selections make grand stocking fillers so don't forget where to get them. Below is a hot one for female angling friends, the Pink Collection...we have many more.

Norwegian Selection

Russian selection.

Another pic of our gorgeous new Alistair SuperSnaeldas below which you can now order anytime, call us or email. These will work brilliantly in coloured water.

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Latest river Report below. But fthis week the major highlight is a fly BOGOF on all flies available online - you must put "Club Helmsdale BOGOF" in the comments section when ordering to qualify or you will not receive the BOGOF. Please also call the shop if you prefer. This covers almost all flies apart from some of the Helmsdale Special flies like Alistairs and Red Alistairs which we have to tie to order.

Also we still have our handy tube vices at half price for Club Helmsdale members and we are starting a more interesting topic over on the new Club Forum. We are asking for views on the river rodding set up and whether or not you think there should be more rods available on the river. I have had countless anglers in the tackle shop who are less than impressed with the strict rodding regime. They said that the high price paid for the fishing should offer more flexibility so that Lodge parties can fully utilise the excellent fishing generally on offer. "Even if some of the kids could have a chuck with a trout rod whilst the adults were fishing" was one comment which stuck out...feel free to comment over on the Forum. Sign in with a username (wait to be authorised) and join the discussion...

We have given up on rain here and the fish are getting fed up also! The beats are struggling apart from odd days of success on the lower river and most of the fish have seen most of the flies and they are getting decidedly more difficult to excite! If the water cools down things may change as the spawning urge kicks in. A fair percentage of the fish being caught are still fresh salmon and there are more to come. Most rivers in the highlands are awash with fish waiting at the river mouths so I would predict good fishing to come yet providing we get a spate before the season comes to an end only 5 weeks from now.

The Association water produced around 5 fish towards the end of last week so maybe the water is indeed cooling down and freshening up.

One of our awesome new flies below is the Alistair SuperSnaelda hot on the back of the success of our worldwide killer RS SuperSnaelda. It should do the business on the Helmsdale for sure in coloured water. These can be tied to order once my arm is functioning normally again!

Some pics of another first fish success on the Helmsdale last week courtesy of Badanloch rods.

On the afternoon of Friday 16^th August, Jemima Landale caught her first salmon...and put her father, managing director of the top fly manufacturer Fulling Mill, to shame. Badanloch ghillie Alec Fraser had just taken Jemima into the head of the Oasis Pool on beat 3 (?) to teach her the basics of salmon fishing. The water was low and the sun was beating down – in short, not great salmon fishing conditions. “To be honest, I didn’t think we stood much a chance of catching a fish,” commented Alec. “I was all set for an afternoon of teaching Jemima and her younger brother Ottie to fish, when suddenly the line tightened. No one was more surprised than me!”  After 10 minutes and some wonderful runs, Jemima brought a 5 ½ lb cock fish to the net. The requisite photographs taken, the fish was returned to the river to continue its journey up the river. Jemima’s father proceeded to fish the rest of the day, but failed to match his daughter’s feat. So, another Helmsdale first and one that just goes to show that fishing is indeed a true leveller!

Fish on, steady as she goes.

Almost there...

Relief, fish in the bag.

The prized first fish.

Returned safely, job done and smiles all round.

The Helmsdale is running out of water and rain is now desperately required. last week still reported around 60 fish which is good going in the low clear conditions but with only approximately 6 weeks to go we need proper rain to really boost the season. The Association gave up very few but next spate and it will be the place to be so keep a close eye on the forecast.

I am struggling to type this week due to a rupture of my lefy bicep but hopefully things will improve with some rest and tlc, not so much fly-tying for a while but ill be designing plenty for inclusion next season.

Our fly BOGOF is still on with all the flies shown on the last 3 fishing reports and i am pleased to say that there has been excellent take up on joining the new exclusive Club Helmsdale setup. With the offers available to members it really is a no brainer + we have a Helmsdale river Forum which will gather pace as the nights get longer. We hope for some interesting discussion on there where members can talk freely about the river.

Once again we are offering a great deal on our tubefly vices for half price so call the shop and purchase one anytime. 

We have an interesting insight into the fulling Mill HQ in Kericho Kenya this week - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2fvK-CCMMoc One of the best tiers over there ties one of our new Tiger Willie Gunn Coneheads, as you can see, he (Tadeo) is well in control of the situation, a great guy and a brilliantly talented fly tier, even under pressure!

Helmsdale hosted the annual Highland games this weekend and the North of Scotland open fly casting championships. Kildonan Ghillie Martin Grant won the salmon distance casting with a super cast of 159 feet. The rod used was the new Mackenzie DTX Perflex 15ft and our usual Carron Jetstream Competition line of 105ft head did the trick. The overall trophy went to head water bailiff Peter Quail who came second in the salmon casting but also won the trout accuracy and trout distance, Peters wife Mary-Anne won the Ladies open salmon casting to complete a fine double casting 91ft.

We were delighted to have Loop CEO Gordon Sim helping out this year again and he had a fine selection of the new Loop Cross S1 rods demonstrating their amazing 3M technology. Everyone who picked up one of these rods found it very difficult to put them down again, so light and powerful and casting the tightest loops with extreme accuracy. These rods are the new "must have" rods on the market and a Loop reel to balance offers anglers a very hi-spec outfit difficult to equal. Call us for the absolute best deals on these awesome rods and reels.

Some pics of the weekend games casting activities.

Gordon Sim demonstrating a Cross S1 in suitable attire!

Some of the Angling Club Boys running operations.

Last years trout casting winner Pete Daniels

Things are slowing down here now after a pretty dour week. Once again the river has missed out on all the rain and has dropped as a result. Compensation water is running out and unless it rains very heavy very soon we are going to struggle on the fishing front. I would estimate between 50 & 60 fish are off including only a handfull off the Association water.

Borrobol Ghillie Glen Macdonald had an early fish on Monday morning from the local beat but Alistair Jappy had the best of it on Thursday catching 2 fresh grilse and rising lots on tiny tubes. Most of the grilse are still depressingly small for the time of year but there are still good numbers of fish around in the estuary and sea, the next spate should give the best week of the season.

We have added some more flies to our exclusive "buy one get one free" fly offer and they are listed below with a few pics. last weeks flies are also still included in the offer. Please state BOGOF FLIES in the comments section if you are ordering on-line so we know you are taking up the offer.

Black Brahan doubles, top sea-trout and salmon low water flies in 10,12, & 14s

Silver Shadow Shrimp doubles in 4, 6 & 8s

Yellow Shadow Shrimp doubles in sizes 6, 8 & 10s

Red Allys Shrimp trebles in sizes 10, 12 & 14s

RS Super Snaelda in 0.5" this is our best selling new fly all season at home in good water and abroad.

RS Mosquito in 0.5" & 0.75, a deadly plastic TD style tube with innovative aerofoils and boar bristles. Fish these lightweight tubes on any sinking line or tip.

Our secret new flies this week are a selection of fabulous Alistairs in various shades and prefrences - everyone has their favourite tone and we can tie it up for you anytime in tube or conehead form. if you fancy another colour let us know - maybe green is worth a try? We will have these for sale to the general public next summer.

Please have a go on our Angling Forum and lets get some Helmsdale fishy discussion going, tell us your favourite pool? your best catch? or worst loss! just sign in and we will connect you asap.

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The river still gave up over 90 fish last week which was a great effort considering we missed out on all the rain again and could only muster a few mm. Badanloch rods headed by Ian Muir scored best with over 20 which was roughly the score from the Association water. 

Monday was a good day with 4 fish off early doors from the Jappy Twins, Jim Forsyth had the biggest fish of the week, a super 12 pounder with sea-lice from Roaries on a Cascade, John Sweetman and Adam Macdonald also both got in on the act. Tommy bird had 2 one afternoon and Peter Macmillan had his best week of the season with a handful of grilse. This will probably be the peak week unless we get water very soon but we would at least expect the fish to improve in size. last week saw many tiny grilse in the 2 - 3lbs bracket, surprising for early August. Daughter April Louise also had her first brownie on loch Fhearnan this week, A daddy longlegs did the trick fishing off the bank in her new waders!

Don't forget that we have an Angling Forum up and running now where you can post your fishing stories and start some interesting discussion on the Helmsdale river. I note that Suisgil Estate is back on the market for 7M, interesting topic to discuss maybe...

We still have a bogof on the flies from the previous report and will change this next week. The Simms wader deal is still up for grabs and we have a cracking deal on our tubefly vices which are reduced from £25 to half price for members here - please quote half price vise if you want to purchase one and call us to pay on 01431821372 - http://www.helmsdalecompany.com/index.php?act=viewProd&productId=1038

April with her first Brown trout, I think she is hooked as well as the trout!

Jim with his 12 pounder

John Sweetman with a nice 7 pounder

Yours truly with the wife and friends Adam & Mia Macdonald enjoying an evening on the Association water.

Our video of the week is this superb promo from Loop tackle on their new GDC shooting head lines - watch closely to see the unbelievable V-Loop rocketing across the river. http://vimeo.com/68340715

Many thanks to all who have signed up for the new report, we now have the Club Helmsdale Angling Forum up and running so please feel free to sign in with a username and enjoy the chat and make some posts/comments.

The river fished ok last week but it is getting harder and harder to persuade fish to take in the low warm water. Over 50 fish were caught including 12 from the Association water. Achentoul rods had the best of it with 10 but they were all well earned. There are loads of fish around right through the system and if the rain forecast materialises then we are in for a killing soon. 

The Association water provided 10. Adam Macdonald got proceedings off to an early start on Monday morning with a grilse from Roaries followed by 2 from Mr Marsano. Father and son team Orr then took 4 between them, with the highlight being the performance of young Evan Orr (11) who lost far more than he landed but he was delighted to grass 2 nice grilse for his efforts and stay in pace with his dad Robert. Alistair Jappy had one of the other 7 fish landed on one of his flying visits home from the North sea. Vince Kaney had a fish on Saturday and Sandy Malone persuaded 2 from the streams also on Saturday. All in all a decent week but hopefully there is even better yet to come.

A delighted Evan with one of his Helmsdale grilse

There were still good numbers of fish arriving on the Helmsdale last week and we have some footage of them below. I also got out and about for a spot of saltwater salmon and sea-trout fishing last week and as you can see, there were plenty finnock around. I hope to get back out this week to catch a few bigger ones and a salmon or two.

We are still running with the same salmon fly Bogof as last week so snap some up when you have the Chance. Below we have one of the Bogof Kylie shrimps catching a lovely wee golden coloured pollock, this fly seems to catch anything and it was hauling in the saltwater Finnock also!

Finally we have "Buy one get one free" special offer on the following flies for new Club Helmsdale members only. Please add "BOGOF" to the comments area when ordering so you get your free flies

RS Kylie shrimp doubles size 14

Rs Logie silver salar doubles size 11, 13, 15s

FL Frances gold trebles size 10 -18s

FL Frances silver trebles size 10 & 12s

Frances magenta trebles 14 - 18s

Frances magenta copper tubes 1", 0.5" & 0.25"

Collie Dog silver double 14s

Collie dog black double 14s

Collie Dog silver treble 10s 

Collie Dog black treble 8s

We also still have the Simms waders on offer  - please view last weeks report.

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Welcome to the new Club Helmsdale fishing report and blog. As a registered Club Helmsdale member you have now joined an exclusive club of anglers with the best interests of the river Helmsdale at heart. You will now access the best tackle offers we have, you can participate in exclusive members only "buy one get one free" offers on flies and watch some up to date videos and enter chat about the river in the comments section ( new forum coming very soon ). We will be launching hot new fly patterns and if anyone wants to ask questions regarding these please feel free to contact me via the comments section and I will try to get back to you asap. We also hope to have some exclusive "Club Helmsdale" merchandise lined up in the near future with a selection of caps and sweaters available.

You are also now a member of our Club Helmsdale Anglers Club. This is a new concept online Angling Club where anglers will have a say in all matters relating to the river as we will be communicating as a body with the Helmsdale River Board. No matter where you live or where you fish, if you have anything to say about the river Helmsdale, here is the place to say it. This club will also communicate with Angling Clubs in the area and keep up to pace with all that is important and going on in highland fly fishing.

The fishing on the Helmsdale last week was reasonable again considering the persistent low clear and warm water conditions. Around 60 salmon were accounted for including 7 from the Association water. The warm water is definitely having a detremental effect on the fishing but the forecast for the week ahead shows signs of heavy rain moving up from the humid South - a bonanza could be just around the corner!

Small and tiny flies are all the rage with micro hitch and Td's still fishing great, wee doubles and trebles in 14s and 16s too.

Alistair Graham popped down to the Association water with son Fraser for a quick cast and Fraser promptly grassed his first salmon at 4lbs (below ). the deadly fly was a Kylie Shrimp and for someone who has never cast a fly from a double handed fly rod it was quite an achievement.

The deadly fishy RS Kylie Shrimp which you can buy right here - http://www.helmsdalecompany.com/index.php?act=viewProd&productId=929

As promised, we also have some hot new exclusive flies for you to try which we will introduce shortly. Here we have a new take on the legendary Alistair tube. We have added some dyed wild boar to the hairwing and it works an absolute treat! please contact us if you want some tied up. We have named it the Alistair Shrimp.

We also have a short action video for you to enjoy, it was on an Association water sea-trout fishing trip recently when one of our first shoals of grilse appeared at dusk. A large Sunray Shadow was quickly deployed to offer a meaningful silhouette to counteract the bad light and a grilse was hooked after the normal explosive take! unfortunately a nuisance trout grabbed the dropper and made things very interesting on the wee rod!

Finally we have "Buy one get one free" special offer on the following flies for new Club Helmsdale members only. Please add "BOGOF" to the comments area when ordering so you get your free flies

RS Kylie shrimp doubles size 14

Rs Logie silver salar doubles size 11, 13, 15s

FL Frances gold trebles size 10 -18s

FL Frances silver trebles size 10 & 12s

Frances magenta trebles 14 - 18s

Frances magenta copper tubes 1", 0.5" & 0.25"

Collie Dog silver double 14s

Collie dog black double 14s

Collie Dog silver treble 10s 

Collie Dog black treble 8s

Finally we have an amazing offer on a pair of new Simms G4Z waders size (L) which were purchased in error. The retail price is £799 - we will take £600 - its a great deal for someone! Waders shown below, post at cost. These are the absolute top of the range on the market!

Tight lines and we hope you enjoy our improved fishing report and exclusive members offers.

We also invite you to join our discussion on river matters. Our first topic is gentle and we are asking if there is anything you would like to see improved in general on the river? Please click on the comments option below to open discussion on the river.

last week was a very tough fishing week due to high temperatures and low clear water. Around 35 fish were caught including 7 from the Association water. When these conditions take hold the most successful anglers fish early and late and this was proven to great effect on Monday morning when William Jappy lured and landed 4 salmon on 4 different flies from the Association water. 

Midweek was tough as temps kept rising, fish were caught all over the river on a huge range of different patterns from large Sunray Shadow to micro tubes. Sea-trout are still scarce but maybe the best is yet to come. The grilse seemed to hit base properly at the weekend and Alistair Jappy quickly landed 2 more from the Local water but many fish were seemingly uninterested. Roaries pool held many fish but tempting them was almost impossible, reasoning was that the welcome loch compensation water was too warm and dead. The bay now holds good numbers of fish as they await rain, I think they will be lurking for a while if the long range forecast is anything to go by, there is to be no break in the settled dry weather anytime soon so anglers brace yourselves for a few more early morning starts!

With only 4 day tickets available for anglers turning up on a daily basis and 8 available for anglers deciding to reside in the village I would get on the phone to book your days fishing on the Association water, The low water will suit this stretch and the fish are there primed to run the river! I would estimate that the next two weeks will see the peak of a heathy grilse run. With OAP and under 16 tickets set at only £12.50, Adults £25 you are sure to have great value for money on a day out. Call the shop on 01431821372

Soon the format of the fishing report will change for the better when we expand into more of a blog mode and invite discussion on a range if interesting topics, it will be a hotbed of controversial news information & videos for new "Club Helmsdale" members only with special members offers and much more, don't miss it as this platform becomes very interesting indeed!

Check out the website right here - http://www.helmsdalecompany.com/index.php to get your supply of deadly flies and all the tackle you need to catch salmon and trout.

This week we are reccomending you to watch the fabulous new DVD from former world Spey csting champion Ian Gordon from Speyside. A truly amazing talent and a superb film which will add much to your salmon fishing repertoire. Buy here now - http://www.helmsdalecompany.com/index.php?act=viewProd&productId=1456

Last week it was the Scottish Gamefair, this week it was the fabulous Castle Stuart links for the Scottish Open Golf Championship. Phil Mickleson was a very popular winner and an absolute wizard with a wedge! here we snapped the 4 time major winner in an almost impossible position on the par 3 8th hole, needless to say he got up and down with nonchalant ease! a very deserving winner in the end.

Just back from a fabulous day at the Scottish Gamefair Scone Palace Perthshire where I tried out the latest new rod from Scott Mackenzie, the Perflex. I have to say, this rod performed like a rod double the price, I was castiing into a breeze with absolute ease, overhead and Spey. Scott has a real gem of a rod here and at a fabulous price of around £300 - 400. Watch out for it on here when it becomes available very soon.

The Helmsdale rallied with around 50 fish last week which was an excellent effort on low warm water. A few more grilse are arriving and the Badanloch compensation water is keeping things fishable when most other rivers in the North are on bare bones. Small flies and Sunrays seem to keep working well and fishing early and late like the summers of old is proving most productive.

The Association water struggled with only 5 fish, surprising, as low water usually suits this stretch throughout the summer months. Gordon Davidson had a purple patch on Monday after a stroll along the riverbank. He helped out a visiting angler who was having a rather unsuccessful time, Gordon who was rodless at the time noticed a few fish were around and was quick to take up the offer of a cast from the visitor, he promptly caught 2 and lost 1 on a small Cascade double. I also had a nice grilse on Tuesday night before a session at the sea-trout, once again a few fish were spotted and a Sunray Shadow was quickly deployed from the 10ft trout rod, a few minutes later I was playing a grilse on the Sunray and a trout on the dropper simultaneously! both were landed with a struggle! 

The dry spell is set to continue so it is well worth a cast on the Association water. Pop into the shop and grab a day ticket, we are fast approaching the peak of the summer run!

Ron, wife Karen and wee April showing off her new tweed hat! at the Gamefair with Scone Palace and fabulous blue sky in the background.

Nothing more to be said - Magic Murray!

I snapped a visitor landing a fish in Roaries pool on the Association water midweek.

The river came up to 2 ft overnight on Sunday and flushed life back into the fishing. Bonanza it was not, but there were enough fresh and resident fish to score approx 100 fish for the week including the Association water. Sea-liced fish were reported from beat 4 above but I have not heard of a fish coming off the loch yet, this is no surprise as it is not taken seriously and rarely visited, having said that there will be plenty fish in it now and anyone giving up a few hours on the lower beat will be rewarded if the wind is favourable.

Although catches were generally good during the week it was still easy to miss out as pods of fresh fish ripped through the system. The week ended with a bang for Badanloch rods when Alistair & William Jappy got the nod late on Saturday. They had a great evening with 5 fish from beat 2 and 4 on beat 1 after 8pm. Unfortunately the sea-trout have not really materialised in any numbers yet. Catches have been sparse from the generally productive Association water.

The same water however has had its best week of the season with around 10 fish off ending with 3 on Friday and 3 on Saturday. We had the usual mix of fish for the time of year with grilse as small as 2lbs up to fish in the teens. Visiting and local anglers both caught their fair share with all the usual suspects getting in on the act apart from me who is too busy providing the tackle to catch them, I'll try to rectify this problem from next week onwards!  

Baby Temple dogs, Alistairs and small doubles were catching well all week as the river dropped fast - this week could be even better!

This weeks photo's include Mick Buttery (below) with his second fish of the season (11lbs) on another one of his own flies - this time it was the Micky Blue

Kenny Macdonald Golspie on a flying visit had this 8lbs beauty from Roaries pool on a Baby TD.

And, here are 2 of our new flies which have been starring abroad in Russia on the Yokanga and Ponoi rivers. We are getting fantastic feedback from guides and anglers claiming amazing catches on these flies. I think you need a selection of all the above flies in your box! 

Flaming Tigerback - To buy them click here now - http://www.helmsdalecompany.com/index.php?act=viewProd&productId=1496

Willie Gunn Feeler - To buy click here now - http://www.helmsdalecompany.com/index.php?act=viewProd&productId=1482

The deadly Baby Temple Dog tube - fish this with a Fulling Mill tube double size 10 or 12 - these doubles are exactly the same as Loop doubles in strength weight and colour. You can buy them both here right now - http://www.helmsdalecompany.com/index.php?act=viewProd&productId=1530

http://www.helmsdalecompany.com/index.php?act=viewProd&productId=1344