I was desperate to fish the Orkneys for the brownies but had to somehow fit it in with also going to South Uist the same year as well. How could this be done? Two 1200-mile trips in the same year, would my wife go for it? Yes, she agreed! She must like cold windy wet places just like I do!
I had spoken to someone a year before who really rated the place both in terms of the quality of the fish and the peace and quiet that goes with the Orkneys. Therefore, I began planning and reading up as much as I could about the place.
One thing that became evident was that by August which was the planned timing, the trout had left the margins and a boat was required. However, hiring a boat is not that easy on the Orkneys. You can get one if you are staying at the Merkister Hotel, but we were self-catering. Also, I wanted to try all the main lochs, not just Harray. It seems that as a visitor you needed to book a guide to get a boat. I know this would inevitably catch me more fish, but I always like to do things myself when possible. It would also be very expensive to hire a guide and boat for the 7 or so days I hoped to fish in our two weeks on the Islands.
As is usual, I came up with a cunning plan which involved buying a float tube. I would have total flexibility over when and where I could fish. I could just do a couple of hours in the evening if it suited our plans. In the end I went for a Snowbee float tube which is good value it is good to buy from a local company
I could not resist stopping off en-route for a day’s fishing on Loch Watten, one of the famous limestone Lochs of Caithness and somewhere I had on my hit list. This was August 2018, and it had been a very dry summer. The nearby River Thurso was down to its bones but initial impression of Watten was good. A good bit of cloud cover, and a good westerly breeze was pushing towards the main car park bank. Float tube inflated, rod set up and launch only took about 20 mins. However, all was not well, and it did not take long before I realised that visibility was down to about 6 inches due to a massive amount of green algae particles in the water. 6 hours fishing, and nothing. It later transpired that this was quite a common event at Watten in Summer!
Next day we were booked on the ferry from Scrabster to Stromness on the Islands. All went well until driving into Scrabster when the car started getting a bit lumpy and almost conked out just before the ferry. Had I just filled up with petrol I would have thought there was something wrong with the petrol, but I had not. Not enough time to call the AA as the ferry was leaving in a couple of hours, so parked up and ignored the problem for an hour hoping the car would make the 400 yards to the ferry. Nice bit of lunch and back to the car which started and ran fine. But I knew whatever it was would rear its head again.
Superb crossing, passing the Old Man of Hoy before arriving at Stromness. Once on the Island we made our way to our accommodation at Dounby in the middle of the Island. There was just one moment of lumpiness in the engine to remind me all was not going to be well. On the ferry I had arranged for the car to be seen at a local garage so we duly arrived to be met by a man who looked like he may have retired about twenty years previously. I bet he was an expert at tuning up a twin carburettor, but he could not find the computer port in the car. I had to point to it and then he could not get the pug in, I had to do it. He looked baffled by the screen on the laptop which seemed to indicate several faults, but he not very confidently told me all was well with the car and it would be safe to drive for the rest of the holiday. Fortunately, he did not try to charge for his expertise as my refusal to pay him would have been embarrassing for the both of us!
Next day we drove for 15 mins without incident to the tackle shop in Stromness where I joined the Orkney Trout Fishing Association for I think it was about £15. For this you get a key to the car parks on all the main lochs which makes the whole thing easy, especially with the float tube.
Afterwards took a short drive down the coast whereupon car trouble again. More serious this time and the car finally stumbled to a complete halt at a minor ferry terminal, which was fortunate as I was able to use the landline there to call the AA. AA came, car started and ran ok so we drove straight to Dounby about 10 miles away where the engine got lumpy again just before we arrived.
This was hopeless! I had no confidence that the car would make it to a loch and back and would result in me being stranded on a minor Orkney road.
Fortunately, the buses were good and there was lots to see on the Islands so we had a great time visiting the various archaeological sites, beaches, and the Orkney Brewery. Shame I could not really get the float-tube on the bus!
Back to the car, we got it booked into another Garage and they thought it was one of the brakes overheating and expanding causing the intermittent lumpiness after driving a few miles. ‘We’ve given the brakes a good clean so you should be ok from now on’ was the answer to the problems! £50 wasted! I am not a mechanic, but I knew that was rubbish. Needless to say, the car got lumpy before we got home.
In the end I had to risk a fishing trip, having come all this way, so decided to go to Swannay for one evening when the weather was perfect. Its about 8 miles from Dounby and the car started jumping about just as I approached the small car park, but I was there! The loch looked very inviting. There was a small fishing hut, a few boats, and enough room to park several cars feet from the water.
Swannay is situated amongst moorland and farmland, about 600 acres in size and generally shallow, mainly under 10 feet. It is also full of skerries, underwater rocky outcrops that obviously attract the trout. Within 20 minutes I was launched into the water. I had a traditional 3 fly cast and floating line.
I had done a lot of research into the local flies, from several books and the Orkney flyfishing Association website. The popular flies differ from the usual traditional Scottish patterns in that they are generally more colourful and also in the prolific use of marabou. Many are similar to modern mini reservoir lures. Also, the colour ‘Orkney peach’ is very popular and there is much discussion and debate as to the true colour! I understand the use of brighter flies compared with the mainland is partly because of the lesser water clarity in the Orkneys.
I tied on a size 12 orange sedgehog on the bob, middle dropper had a size 12 dunkeld with Orkney peach instead of orange and an Orkney cormorant on the point again size 12. (I have included the dressings at the end)
There was a gentle south-west breeze which meant I could just drift out parallel with the shore. I would estimate about forty yards from the shore put me in about 5 feet of water and I soon bumped into some skerries that were not visible beforehand. This is where the float tube excelled. Rather than a sudden crunch with a boat, I felt them with my feet beforehand and was able to gently manoeuvre my way round.
I had a couple of short casts in front before one or two fish rose within easy casting distance. The first cast covering one of these resulted in a solid pull and a spirited fight. Its great fun playing a fish from a tube as you are so much closer to the action. Netting the fish is a dream. Its literally like fishing from an armchair and the fish is netted just a couple of feet away. The first fish was just under a pound and was released after a quick photo. This one took the orange sedgehog on the top dropper
A couple more fish followed within minutes, both just over a pound. This is a particularly good average size for wild Scottish brownies which often only average a few ounces. Each fish fought with immense strength for their size taking line with strong runs.
I had probably only drifted forty yards for the three fish and was now just beyond the group of skerries. I was treated to a very solid thump from the end of my line and the fish left me with no option but to concede several yards of line. This was one of those stubborn fish that showed as slow but powerful pulls on the rod tip. I guessed the fish, which by now I believed to be an exceptionally good fish, was on the bottom and I was more or less over it. I just could not move it, but knew it was still there from the powerful pulls. Eventually, it started to move off again and I was able to get some control over it, but every inch gained was hard won, and after some hauling saw a boil just below the surface. The fish came into view, hooked on the middle dropper, and I remember being surprised that it only seemed to be maybe just over a pound and a quarter, still a good fish, but I had convinced myself I was hooked up to a 2lb fish. Duly netted and sat on my lap in the float tube I began to unhook it when I felt a pull from the remaining line. It took a moment to dawn on me that I had been playing two fish! Fortunately, the fight had tired out the second fish and I was able to hand line it into the net to join its mate. Another fish of a pound which meant that I was not wrong in my assumption that it was a big fish, just two of them to make up a weight of 2 1/4 lbs.
I caught another very soon after, again about a pound, 6 so far, all a pound or over in about 45 minutes fishing and I had not drifted more than 50 yards. Probably about the best 45 mins fishing I have ever had. However, the damn car was nagging at the back of my mind, not knowing if I would make it back or not so I packed up whilst I was winning and headed for home.
And that was it for my Orkney fishing trip, a wonderful 45 minutes with some good fish on a fantastic loch. 1400-mile round trip for 45 minutes fishing!
Probably bored of car stories by now, but the end result was that we broke down again at the ferry terminal, hobbled onto the boat and finally came to a halt a few miles from Wick! AA Relay home to Cornwall taking over 2 days. Final verdict on the car was an engine management thing in a block of plastic was overheating after about 20 mins driving leading to the lumpiness followed by complete conking out. When the part cooled down again it worked fine (for 20 minutes!) Very expensive and I now have a different car.