Drumtassie confirm new permit prices

The new rates will be introduced on February 1 and four hours killing two fish will cost £25. Six hours killing three fish will costs £29 and an eight hour ticket with the angler taking home four fish will be £35.

A catch and release ticket for four hours at the popular venue near Blackridge will cost £19, six hours £21, eight hours £23 and all day £25.

Children up to the age of 15 will cost £8 for an all day ticket on a catch and release basis.

Leeanne Aitchison attempts to catch fish at Drumtassie

The bait pond price structure allows anglers to fish for four hours and kill two fish for £25, six hours, kill three fish £29, eight hours, kill four fish £35.

Youngsters up to 15 can take one fish for £10 and two for £15 and you can use spinning techniques on the bait pond.

Leanne said: “People don’t realise how our costs have gone up, but we still believe we offer value for money fishing.”

There are 18 spaces for fly fishing on the Kingfisher lake and 22 on the Mallard, both next to The Bothy. The bait pond can hold 25 anglers.

One of the lakes at Drumtassie on a chilly winter morning

Opening hours are 6am to 5pm, seven-days-a-week and Leanne confirmed that the fishery are still stocking weekly.

She added: “We get anglers from all over, including the West of Scotland, Tayside and the Lothians, and we have been fishing well, despite the recent weather.”

Buzzer, apps, hare’s ear, lures, particularly white, and Ally McCoist patterns have worked well, but some anglers have used dries to achieve good results. It totally depends on the weather.

Intermediate and floating lines have been working and the Whacky Wednesday promotion is still pulling anglers in.

An angler fishing during a Whacky Wednesday promotion at Drumtassie

Glasgow-based, Brian Quinn, chairman of Scottish Stillwater Bank Championship, fished there recently and the 2025 final will be held there on Sunday, April 13.

The bank international, postponed from last Autumn, will be at Ellerdine Lakes near Telford in Shropshire, one of Britain’s top waters in early March and the 2025 event is in Ireland in the Autumn.

Meanwhile, Iona Allan is putting the finishing touches to her expanded shop at Allandale Tarn near West Calder, next to the Fife Sisters Zoo, where equipment, including reels, tippet material and fly storage boxes, and an extensive range of fly tying materials, is now on offer.

It is housed in The Bothy and includes a range of barbed and barbless hooks in various sizes and beads to go with them, plus eggstacy yarn, fritz, pheasant tails in various colours.

She said: “I have always kept a good stock of fly tying materials, including some we dye some ourselves, but I have extended the storage and displays so people can see them more clearly.

“We have an extensive range of eggstacy yarn from Flybox, Veniard and Fulling Mill, and we dye our own CDC and maribou.”

The water and shop are closed on a Monday and Tuesday but currently open the rest of the week from 9am to 4pm.

Elsewhere, John Donaldson from East Lothian tempted ten fish to win the Scottish youths fly fishing fund-raiser at Burnhouse Lochan with David Eadie second with six fish. Kenny Hunter, third also with six fish and Tony Deeb fourth with five fish in tough conditions.

On to sea fishing now and five anglers fished Round Five of the Winter League hosted by the Bass Rock Shore Angling League at Dunbar in flat calm seas.

James Ogilvie, the club secretary, revealed: “There were five blanks, not even a rockling showed up.”

Round Six will be on Wednesday, February 5. Fishing will be from 7pm to 10pm and the venue will be decided this weekend. See the club’s Facebook page for details.

Match Three in the seven-leg, Edinburgh New Year Shore League will be tonight (FRI) at Newhaven East with registration from 6pm to 6.15pm at Western Harbour View EH6 6PG with fishing from 7pm to 10pm.

Finally, Chris Barrett hooked into the longest fish, a 55cm cod, during the Scottish Federation of Sea Anglers pegged match at Newhaven.

Zone 1 winner was Gordon Lyall with 13 fish and 296 points with Stevie Souter second with 12 fish for 271 points. Zone 2 winner was Chris Horn with 23 fish and 533 points with Stevie Barrett second on 17 fish for 381 points.