Drew Jamieson was formerly responsible for the trout reservoirs of Lothian Regional Council.
He has also served on consultative committees and held positions with leading angling organisations.
Jamieson is also a lifelong angler and it was with real interest when his new book, Where the Wild Trout Swim arrived in the post.
The 116-page paperback allows Jamieson to reflect on his time as a Scottish trout angler.
It is dedicated to his grandfather who took a cane from the shed, ‘borrowed’ a yard of gran’s best cotton thread and dug a worm from the garden to go fishing.
Jamieson has followed in his footsteps and his work is not about how to catch fish but it is targeted at the ‘thinking angler’ who wants what the author calls, some back-story.
There is no information on where or how to get permits as he argues management of individual fisheries can decide to change their permit policy at any time.
Rather, his reflections are about his passion for angling and some of the pages are devoted to science.
There are interesting quotes. The first is from keen angler John Buchan and it reads: “Fishing has to do, not with passing fashions and outworn creeds, but with great things of the world, – the return of Spring, the stillness of summer weather, grey hills, clean waters and the incommunicable freshness of the fields.”
His boyhood in The Ochil Hills is reflected upon and rivers including The Clyde, The Tweed, The Devon and The Water of Leith (pictured near Colinton) featured.
The author, incidentally, features a quote from the late Graham Priestley, a former head bailiff, who said: “Few cities of any size boast a river, fishing for trout, among their amenities but some 12 miles of Edinburgh’s river between Leith and Balerno are available without charge to citizens and visiting anglers alike.”
Classic water Loch Leven and tapwaters including Talla, Loch Katrine, Gartmore Dam, Gladhouse and Carron Valley all have a place alongside Glencorse, known, said Jamieson, as “the Queen of Reservoirs”.
There are statistics but this book will not help you pick the killer pattern. It will, however, provide another insight into the sport enjoyed by many.
It is, by the way, one of several books written by Jamieson and his portfolio includes Scotland’s Wild Salmon and Trout from Scottish Reservoirs which is sub-titled “a valuable recreational resource”, plus A Scottish Angler’s Companions, sub-titled “Fly fishing with the Masters”. All are available on Amazon.
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