David Pike

A close encounter with Reid’s Assassin, Munroe’s Killer, the Butcher and Sweeney Todd leaves little to the imagination as to the likely outcome.

But names can be deceptive. The avuncular sounding Jock Scott, the amiable Garry Dog and a Greenwell’s Glory are every bit as deadly and all are prized for the fatal attraction they hold for unsuspecting salmon and trout.

Pity the poor fish, after journeying thousands of miles from the Atlantic and North Sea to return home to the Scottish Borders and the River Tweed, trying to say no to the seductive lures of these highly efficient killers.

Our murderous mob is, of course, part of the fly fishing family, and the second bunch of hooks are Border specialities from Victorian times that have since gone on to international fame.

Even then the Tweed, Scotland’s second longest river, was a magnet for those who were turning fly fishing into a sporting art form.

And in communities up and down the riverbanks, fishing supported a range of related service and cottage industries. Among them were rod making, undergoing a design revolution from 1850 onwards to enable anglers to land bigger fish, demand for ghillies to act as river guides for visiting parties and fly tying.

In the village of Sprouston a couple of miles east of Kelso, the Tweed had provided the main source of income for members of the Wright family for generations. Their cottage (still standing today) overlooked a stretch of water famed for its fishing and Sprouston confidently advertised itself as a provider of “good accommodation for those who come to fish.”

The head of the family, at the age of 22 and responsible for two younger brothers and a sister, was Jimmy Wright who had followed in his father George’s footsteps to work as a fly hook dresser. Over the next ten years, still living in Tweedmouth Cottage, he would marry Jessie and they would have four children.

He would also meet avid fly fishing enthusiast Canon William Greenwell, the larger than life librarian of Durham Cathedral, a partnership that made a contribution to fly fishing that endures to this day and has made both men household names among those who follow the sport.

Their legacy is the ‘Greenwell’s Glory’ a wickedly successful trout fly first dressed by Jimmy in 1854.
Canon Greenwell was in the habit of leaving the pressures of pastoral life behind and heading north to the Borders with the Durham Rangers Fishing Club that had waters at Sprouston and Henderside.
On a particularly thin day he noticed the fish taking flies he didn’t recognise, so he caught some and went to Jimmy, reputedly the best fly tier on the Tweed, to produce an imitation. The result is still described as the best wet trout fly of all time.

Armed with the new creation Canon Greenwell is later recorded as having a “fine day’s sport” with enough trout left over to fill his pockets as well as his kreel. He fished for 64 seasons and Greenwell’s Glory continues to be the downfall of many a wily trout.

Jimmy, meanwhile, went on to create many more famous flies before his death in 1902 at the age of 73, among them Silver Grey, Durham Ranger, Thunder and Lightening and Garry Dog.
There’s no evidence to suggest he ever met his fly tying contemporary, John ‘Jock’ Scott, but he would certainly know of him and would have been full of admiration for the eponymous Jock Scott salmon fly.
John hailed originally from Branxholme just south of Hawick and worked as a fisherman for Lord John Scott of Kirkbank on Tweed. His salmon fly was created as he whiled away the hours during a sailing passage to Norway.

For fly fishing followers this is the fly for all seasons and the best blend of colour ever put together for catching salmon. Immortalised in books and enhanced by reputation, few fly boxes in the world are without a Jock Scott. In Canada, another fishing Shangri-la, the Jock Scott was recently featured on a commemorative set of stamps.

Shortly after making its debut on the Tweed the rights to manufacture and sell the Jock Scott were snapped up by Forrest of Kelso, a hunting and fishing business founded in 1837 and run by brothers George and John.

Forrest of Kelso thrives to this day in Bridge Street where partner Trevor Black continues to provide equipment and services locally and to visitors.

“The Jock Scott is probably the best know salmon fly in the world and is definitely one of the most successful. It’s suitable for all kinds of weather and waters and is ruthlessly effective. We are extremely proud of the fact that this is where it all started and that flies originally designed and made locally are now world beaters.

“The fishing industry is hugely important to the area and we are fortunate to have best Atlantic salmon river in Europe and possibly the world right on our doorstep,” said Trevor.

Greenwell’s Glory, Jock Scott and scores of other colourful characters are cast across the Tweed’s moody, if bountiful, waters by thousands of fly fishers over the course of the season – one of the longest, running from Feb 1 to November 30.

I can hear the sighs of nostalgia now – an outpouring of affection and fond memories at the mere mention of the Tweed Valley Hotel. 

Under the dedicated ownership of Charlie Miller and his wife Joyce it became a magnet for fly fishers everywhere.

From all over the UK they homed in on the Tweed Valley Hotel every bit as unerringly as the salmon and trout who made their way back over thousands of miles to the river of their birth.

Strategically perched on a hillside at Walkerburn in the heart of the Scottish Borders, it overlooked the river that gave it its name; a haven with a band of brothers atmosphere that reigned supreme as a number one choice for fishermen everywhere.

The bonhomie later extended to deer stalking and grouse shooting enthusiasts, but it was always the Tweed that drew the bulk of the bookings.

Jack Charlton was a regular at Tweed Valley Hotel, as was Willie Whitelaw MP and 007 actor Timothy Dalton. “We had a great clientele and a lot of happy times. Jack Charlton was here at the same time he was appointed manager of the Ireland team and before we knew it the press pack had decamped to Walkerburn.

“Willie Whitelaw was a real gentleman and he would thank everyone personally when he was leaving. While here his break was often interrupted by calls from Margaret Thatcher but that didn’t prevent him from enjoying the fishing,” said Charlie, now 91-years-old and still going strong.

His journey to the Borders and a life-long love for fly fishing started after he moved toTyneside to pursue a career in journalism where he worked on the Gateshead Post and then the Evening Chronicle in the 60’s.

“I started fishing the Tweed and in 1972 I stayed at the Tweed Valley Hotel. It was run by two brothers and I got wind of the fact that one of them wanted to sell up. We made them an offer and it was accepted, the start of a wonderful time running a 19-room hotel within walking distance of the Tweed. What more could you ask for,” said Charlie.

Between then and retirement the Tweed Valley Hotel was a top flight centre for fly fishing courses, taken by world champion fly cast Peter Anderson. They became educationally recognised certificate courses sponsored by Edinburgh Crystal.

Not to be outdone Richard Prior set up courses for deer stalking and Charlie became an influential member of the South of Scotland Deer Society. 

“It was a far cry from my days as a cub reporter on the Lytham Times newspaper. My spare time was spent sea fishing in those days but there’s nothing that can compare with fly fishing,” said Charlie who has a fishing fly named after him – the Charlie Miller – a variant of the Dusty Miller and presented to him as a birthday present from the family.

“We had loads of repeat business and fishermen, knowing rooms at the hotel were constantly in demand, would book up months in advance as they checked out, rather than be disappointed. 

“It was a great time and a privilege to be part of it. Fishing for me is still the ideal way of switching off, listening to the noise of the water and in harmony with nature. I get down to the river as often as I can,” added Charlie.

After retiring, he and Joyce retained part of the hotel grounds at Walkerburn and built a new home that also, conveniently, overlooks the River Tweed.

And, not surprisingly, his son David, who worked as a chef at the family hotel, followed in his dad’s footsteps and is also an avid fly fisherman.

David took things a step further recently when he teamed up with fellow businessman Dave Foster to launch www.fishingmugs.co.uk

Sounds like the perfect catch for fishing fans.

The Tweed, one of Scotland’s great rivers, (in spite of the fact that its final few miles flow through England) is a magnet for those who look upon fly fishing as a sporting art form.

Taking life from a 1500 sq mile (4000 sq km) catchment area of wild Border uplands and fertile valleys, the Tweed, flowing 98-miles to Berwick and the sea, fully deserves its reputation as one of the world’s great salmon and trout fisheries.

It reputedly catches more Atlantic salmon than any river in the European Union and has been a favourite with anglers since the 17th century. Record books from the 1800’s show the numbers of fish being taken from the river numbering in their tens of thousands.

Locally created ties such as Greenwell’s Glory and Jock Scott, together with scores of other colourful characters are cast across the Tweed’s bountiful, if moody, waters by thousands of fly fishers over the course of the season – one of the longest, running from Feb 1 to November 30.

Today the river is the source of very big business indeed and you could find yourself rubbing shoulders with some high profile fishing fans from royalty to sporting stars and celebrities.

In Scotland fishing permits can range from £30 to £1,000 a day and stretches of the Tweed are among the most sought after. In October at the Junction Pool, where the Teviot joins big brother Tweed just outside Kelso, it can cost up to £30,000 a week for five rods to fish.

That’s serious money for serious players who are prepared to travel from all over the world to put their skills to the test on the Tweed.

But the Tweed has an appeal beyond angling. For almost 100 miles the river flows through some of the most beautiful countryside, with historic settings to match, in Britain.

Forming part of the border between England and Scotland it has flowed silently seaward as men have marched to war across the centuries.

From its source to Berwick-on-Tweed where it spills out into the North Sea, the Tweed – romantic, historic and recreational – is one of the Borders’ class acts.