Very best wishes to all the fishers and fisheries out there. I hope you all have a great season. It is our Opening Day tomorrow 18th March, and and we will be there from shortly before 8am with the official opening happening at 9am. It looks like a nice mild and calm day to see you all again – so we are lucky. A wee reminder that we have been busy making soup for you and have some Taste of the Trossachs pies also. The grub will be available from lunch time but given the nice weather I expect most of you might take it later in the day or at the end of the day.
Fishing tips – these big 1cm long buzzers have been coming off and we have a very good head of overwintered fish as well as 1200 stockies put in on 14th March. Hot spots over the winter have been in the eastern basin with bung and bug, buzzer, snakes and dries. Surface temperatures at midday was 9C, with the 6ft temperature reading 6.5C.
We have the Jimmy Nairn Memorial Bowl and Trophy up for grabs for the best photo taken on opening day. Doesnt have to be of a fish but a smiling face and a good looking fish will help! The trophy stays here but the wooden bowl is for keeps. Hand made and donated by Chris Carrol of Lochend from local wood.
This beautifully engraved glass jug was presented to me by the directors to mark my 25th season as Manager at the last board meeting ( I am relatively new to the Lake:)). You can see my Cottage at the back of Gateside Bay. It is a reasured item. I actually arrived on the 1st of June 1998. Will look out some pictures for the 1st of June. I remember Jimmy Nairn asking me how I was settling in shortly after I started, and I told him that I liked it and said I’ll give it 10 years – thinking this was an unimaginable length of time to be in the same job. I had to go back some months later and revised that estimate to a good deal longer – if they would have me.
Road closures: The Arnprior Bridge is closed 14/3 to 24/3 so avoid this route – although rumour has it that it will be open during this weekend.
