As many will know, I moved to Inverness with work the best part of a year ago. For a multitude of reasons
she who must be obeyed and I are only now moving all our worldly goods to Inverness-shire to our new home near Beauly.
So, with a bit of time on my hands before we move, I got to thinking about Aberdeenshire and realised that for 17 years I've lived and worked in the area
Time flies when you're having fun.
So what changes have there been over the years
Lots.
When I moved here there were a fraction of the fisheries there are now, some have fallen by the wayside but the Aberdeenshire stillwater fisher has more options now than ever before.
The quality of fisheries has improved hugely over those years, rivaling the best the UK has to offer. However, there is one fishery I will miss and I'm sure it wont take a genius to work out which one. I still have ticket #1 when Mike opened the doors to Haddo
I rate Haddo as the best fishery in the NE, others come close in different ways, but of all the managed fisheries it's the one I will miss the most. Not least because I have made friends there, drunk obsene amounts of coffee, smoked too many cigarettes, had great fishing and spent grand days out in great company.
The Don has changed in that time too, 'back in the day' I could spracchle down to the water when the family business was the Colquhonnie Hotel and bag a trout or two. I don't fish up there enough now as the river has changed mightily in that time, but somehow I don't think it's quite the same. Nostalgia
I don't think so. Lack of talent
Hmmmm, maybe I'm not patient enough these days
Undoubtedly there are better river trout anglers out there than me . That said, I can't really put my finger on it. I do think there's been a change in how the river 'is'. IMHO things
are changing for the better on the Don, it's going to take a lot of time and probably some spilt blood, sweat and tears but I'm confident those with the best interests of the river at heart will see through.
Will I miss the Don
Tricky question. Yes
and no. Without any doubt the Don has been
the most fickle and frustrating fishing 'mistress' I have known, never expensive but a right pain in the arse
Just when you think you've cracked the 'code' it turns round and bites you in the backside
I will say this though, it's probably the best kept Salmon fishing secret in Scotland
ooops
I have no idea why the Don has become a minor obsession for me over the years, it just has
Hopefully, somewhere close to our new home will have a similar influence and the Don will be out of my system
Will I miss Aberdeenshire
OK, so I'm not travelling
quite as far away as Sandy has
I'm only an hour and a bit away so can always pop back when the opportunity arises. But, thinking about it, I'm only going to miss my chums and family left behind.
I'll not miss the politics (I'm sure you all know what I mean) and I'll certainly not miss the winter weather - honestly, it's milder where I'm going
I'll have more fishing on my doorstep than you can shake a large collection of fishing rods at
So no, not really.
I just hope that some of you will come up for a visit in 2011 - perhaps a re-invention of the 'grand days out'
I'll still be active on the forum, no worries on that count, just not so 'local' any more.
So long Aberdeenshire and (with a nod to Douglas Adams) thanks for all the fish
Hamish
