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Post by Sloggi on Feb 19, 2007 22:26:25 GMT
Do kelts ever go out to sea for a bit and return to the river?
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Post by Fruin on Feb 19, 2007 22:30:55 GMT
Well done Jim, that is a cracking fish to warm you up on a spring day. Do kelts ever go out to sea for a bit and return to the river? I've heard that seals can chase them back in to the river. I've also heard that a serious attack from sea lice will drive kelts and smolts back into fresh water to kill them off. Can anybody verify this? |
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Post by johnmac on Feb 19, 2007 23:59:41 GMT
Wille Gunn...do you know the ghillies name? i swear i recognise him?
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Post by exerod on Feb 20, 2007 8:54:44 GMT
 Sorry about the quality of the shot but the sun was shinning up stream ....just a quick photo before the fish was returned. Who am I to question this  I thought it was a kelt too. I don't have the experience of many on here but I've yet to see a fresh fish that was as soft in the belly or as bendy as that one. Also, and this might be because of the angle of the light, the silver looks wrong for a fresh one and it has a very distinct line between the silver and the "black cap" on its head. Or is it a skinny springer following on from last years skinny grilse? Shoot me down  Andy |
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Post by macd on Feb 20, 2007 9:26:32 GMT
Well done both.
Jim that is a belter- did you not have one like it on the dee last year.
There is also a pic of a recent dee fish that looks undersized and a bit kelty, but confirmed as fresh.
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Post by tynetraveller on Feb 20, 2007 9:58:26 GMT
Malcolm's fish does look a bit kelt-like, but after seeing the majority of grilse in August on the Spey ( we had 19 in a week on Carron in August and of the grilse, one weighed I estimate 1lb 4oz and the others were in the 2.5-3lbs bracket- Many like kelts in the body) -I am not surprised if there will be some small early springers. That said we had three fish of 9-13lbs too, and they were lovely fish. Hopefully the bigger, fatter boys will also show up.
Kelts have that tinny colour. I am sure someone with Malcolm's experience would know very easily if it was a kelt. Also there is no protusion around the vent at all in Malcolm's fish..
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Post by Fruin on Feb 20, 2007 10:21:58 GMT
Is it possible that whatever affected the weight if the fish in last years grilse run will also affect the 2 sea winter fish in this years runs? The ghillie on Waukmill on the Tay informs me that they had grilse as light as 10 oz last year  |
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Post by tynetraveller on Feb 20, 2007 11:17:00 GMT
Fruin- That fish of Malcolm's will have smolted at the same time as the grilse we were catching last august, it has just come in later. It follows that if they were struggling to feed last summer, then these springers would at the very least have had a poor start- Some may have found good feeding this winter and made up ground, but obviously some haven't.
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Post by turrifftackle on Feb 20, 2007 13:31:50 GMT
Small kelt like fish.
Looks like you could be right. Deveron reports a usual 7lb "ish" fish on Saturday- unconfirmed and a fish off Montcoffer yesterday.
Now all indications would point to this fish being a kelt- as to the lower beat (not usual for many fish to hang around there in the spring) and the size at 3.5 lb. However confirmed by the gillie and others to be a fresh fish and looking like our skinny grilse of last summer.
Frank
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Post by stoater on Feb 20, 2007 18:59:37 GMT
Odd one. And potentially very worrying if this is a continuation of last year's desperate grilse. I, and I suspect a lot of us, have mis-identified Fish, I hold my hand up. What does it for me is that big beady eye, and bendy eel-like torso. If this is the shape of springers to come, lets have a SERIOUS look at these wretched trawlers that scrape up the very start of the food chain.
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Post by diverdave on Feb 20, 2007 19:12:08 GMT
Duncanm had an interesting fish of the Don today. Very similar to the WG fish, very hard fighting, no gill maggots and perfect fins. It was the correct colour, not tinny silver and yet it was thinner than we would have expected. In every way a springer, even thick shoulders but its belly was a little thinner, almost like last seasons grilse
After it was returned, 3 of us debated it and decided it was afterall a springer. We had caught a few kelts earlier in the day and during the week and even the most well mended of them were distinctly different to this one.
Looks like last seasons thin fish have indeed continued into this season.
D
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Post by robmason on Feb 20, 2007 22:19:42 GMT
They chose a more "PC" picture I see. Incidentally, that particular chap obviously knew where to find the sand eels! |
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Post by duncanm on Feb 20, 2007 23:03:49 GMT
Skinny or not I was delighted to get it. had taken me nearly 2 years to get one and I truely hope that it was a springer. It fought much much harder than the Kelts I had caught on the previous two days down the same river but I don't know if that means anything.
It went back back into the river just fine anyway.
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Post by salmonscotty16lb on Feb 21, 2007 1:18:52 GMT
hats off Jim!! that is enough to shift the lazy lot like me to a river :L unfortunately its casting practice for me tomorrow 6months too early on my local  |
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Post by diverdave on Feb 21, 2007 19:15:33 GMT
In contrast to our lightly built springer off the Don yesterday I got a spectacular springer off Park south today. Ken our Ghillie could not have done more for us, and put me right onto a fish, he even told me what time the run would pass and bang on time i got the prettiest springer I have ever had. Yesterday he had a fish in Bakebare at 1030 and he told me the run should be passing at 1130 and at exactly 1130 it took. The fish was in superb condition and covered in sea lice.   Absolutely delighted, thanks again Ken,I will be back! |
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elwyman
Member
A nice autumn day on the Conwy
Posts: 1,035
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Post by elwyman on Feb 21, 2007 19:20:51 GMT
That's a real beauty Dave, hope you gave the gillie a good tip then! ;D
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Post by scottyjock on Feb 21, 2007 19:42:53 GMT
a belter of a fish that one didn't struggle for its supper anyway . Jock
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Post by Fruin on Feb 21, 2007 22:04:22 GMT
Diverdave, a real bar of silver, well done!
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macsalmo
Member
Salmo dreamer
Posts: 370
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Post by macsalmo on Feb 21, 2007 22:07:30 GMT
Thats a belter Dave,
keep em coming fellows, its wetting my appetite big time ;D.
Gary
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Post by macd on Feb 21, 2007 22:10:00 GMT
In contrast to our lightly built springer off the Don yesterday I got a spectacular springer off Park south today. Ken our Ghillie could not have done more for us, and put me right onto a fish, he even told me what time the run would pass and bang on time i got the prettiest springer I have ever had. Yesterday he had a fish in Bakebare at 1030 and he told me the run should be passing at 1130 and at exactly 1130 it took. The fish was in superb condition and covered in sea lice. Absolutely delighted, thanks again Ken,I will be back! If I hadnt made the booking- no fish  . I think a percentage of the glory should go to me and some to Dunc for putting up with that damn grin all day.  Possibly the bonniest fish i have seen. I got a kelt- no lice-  in the cellar. Lovely water- bit high maybe. Good to meet ken, i enjoyed fishing with him- a gent and great craic. |
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. I think a percentage of the glory should go to me and some to Dunc for putting up with that damn grin all day. 
in the cellar.