The chat is hotting up on our Helmsdale River Forum with regard to the new Fisheries Review recommendations - Sunday fishing, Carcass tagging, new Boards etc - sign in and tell us what you think the new Helmsdale Board should look like!

If you are reading this for the first time after clicking on our website link you will have discovered that the Helmsdale Fishing Report now has instant access with an option to sign in to our River Helmsdale Fishing Forum or sign up for our occasional newsletter and offers.

It has been confirmed that the 2015 Helmsdale river opening will once again be offering free fishing for the week. Opening day will be on Monday Jan 12th up until and including Saturday 17th. I will be available for guiding and instruction on a daily basis throughout the week so please call to book on 01431821372 or email me on enquiries@helmsdalecompany.com.

Guiding on Jan 12th & 13th are now booked.

Fishery management in on the brink of fundamental change and I will be reporting on this regularly and linking to Facebook, Twitter etc. It is important that everyone with an interest in fishing and Scottish river management in general starts to discuss what's best going forward and the Helmsdale river news needs to be out there with the best of them. Society has moved on.....

The Freshwater Fisheries Review has now reported on it's findings, the full report and it's recommendations can be accessed here - http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Resource/0046/00460195.pdf
Antiquated Freshwater Fisheries Management practice has been stripped back to the core from it's origins in the 1800s. Over the next few months the latest recommendations will be consulted on and become law soon after.

The review is extensive and basically sets out to modernise all aspects. Here are some of the headline recommendations.

1. Introduction of a National Rod license.
2. Abolishment of closed days ( for the first time Sunday salmon fishing in Scotland is recommended )
3. River Boards are to be completely redesigned into modern "Fishery Management Organisations" FMO's.
4. Catch & Release is to be introduced across the board with FMO's having to apply for a licence to kill any fish.
5. On successful application to kill salmon, tags will be issued for each fish.
6. Costal Netting Stations must also apply for a license to kill fish phased in over the next 2/3 years dependent on the scientific evidence of a sustainable harvest.
7. Artificial stocking will only take place under license and if exceptional circumstances relating to population sustainability justify such an intervention.

All in all a very progressive and challenging list of new recommendations for the running of Fisheries in Scotland from 2016 generally. Fish farming has not been part of this review unfortunately but I believe this will be consulted on and reviewed separately, hopefully sooner rather than later.

On a less complicated note, here is a new Alistair Pot Bellied Pig I have recently designed for fishing in the Highlands, it should work well if the success of the classic Alistair tube is anything to go by. I hope you like it, please contact me if you want some.