Salmon Fishing on the River Alness
One of the smaller east coast rivers, the Alness, or Averon, flows for ten miles from Loch Morie to the Cromarty Firth at Alness. A dam built on Loch Morie helps to ensure a reasonable flow in the summer months and fresh fish can be drawn into the river by artificial spates resulting from a release of water from the dam, as well as maintaining the river at a good fishing height.
A few fish are taken on the Alness in the early months of the season, with some fish in the upper river by April in most years, but the main run of salmon begins in July and continues through to the season’s end in October.
The river has both estate and club water available. Novar Estates have six rotating beats and the Home beat. The Alness Angling club controls good stretches of productive water on both the lower and upper river. Annual catches are in the region of 200 to 300 salmon. The Alness also has a fair run of sea trout, with about 100 taken each season.
The lower beats are fly only but worm fishing is allowed on the upper river, but only if fished on a fly rod and reel.
River Alness Map
Tap or click on the map below to view full size image
Note: the maps on this website are extracts from the Bartholomew “Half Inch” map series dating back to the middle of the twentieth century. There have been many changes since the maps were made, and much of the human detail, e.g. buildings and roads, will have changed over the period. It is to be hoped, however, that the character of our Scottish rivers, and the trout and salmon in them, will not have altered too dramatically over the years and that they may still offer the wonderful fishing prospects of days gone by. Bearing the above in mind, anyone planning a fishing or walking trip in Scotland is advised to equip themselves with a compass and the appropriate up-to-date Ordnance Survey map, the most useful for the angler probably being the Landranger series, scale 1:50,000. For Alness, see O.S. map number 21.
For further information about the fishing on the Alness see River Alness Fishing
For information about the trout fishing in the area see Trout Fishing Scotland