West Ross-shire
The most northerly part of West Ross-shire, or Wester Ross as it is known locally, sees a continuation of the magnificent scenery of Assynt, through the peaks and lochs of the Inverpolly Nature Reserve, including the spectacular Stac Pollaidh.
Heading south, there is a subtle shift in geology and topography. Torridonian sandstone becomes more dominant, resulting in ranges of mountains, rather than individual peaks. One outcome of this, is that there are fewer lochs.
To the west of Gruinard Bay on the Slaggan peninsula, is the first major cluster of trout lochs available to visitors, the fishing controlled by Aultbea Estate.
A few miles south, there are several lochs around Poolewe controlled by Letterewe Estate, including the famous Fionn loch, but these are largely reserved for Estate guests. South of that is the village of Gairloch.
The Gairloch area is well known for its hill lochs, attracting active anglers prepared to ‘walk-in’. For many anglers, this is the ultimate wild fishing experience combining hill walking in majestic scenery, with wild brown trout fishing, but there are also lochs with easier access.
The Gairloch Angling Club waters are a good place to start, as not only do they offer permits for the Gairloch Hill Lochs, but they also have some roadside lochs including Tollaidh and Bad an Scalaig.
Permits are also available through Gairloch Estate for hill lochs, including Loch na h-Oidche and the Gorm lochs, but these involve some serious hiking, and the fishing needs to be booked in advance.
Further south is the Shieldaig Lodge Hotel which offers visitors trout fishing on the Shieldaig Estate lochs, though hotel guests will have priority. These include an excellent group of hill lochs just above the hotel known as the Fairy lochs.
To the east of Gairloch lies the beautiful Loch Maree, an island-studded expanse of water lying beneath the towering peak of Slioch. Loch Maree was once one of the finest sea trout fisheries in Europe, but stocks were wiped out in the 1980s by salmon farming in Loch Ewe. The loch is still fished for brown trout and salmon.
Along the length of the Wester Ross coastline are a dozen or so small spate salmon rivers including the Polly, Kanaird, Ullapool, Broom, Dundonell, Gruinard & Little Gruinard, Kerry and Torridon, as well as the larger Carron system and the River Ewe, which flows out from Loch Maree.
Most of the smaller rivers lie within the boundaries of a single estate and their salmon fishing is reserved for the Estate’s guests, who are often staying in a sporting lodge.
There is little salmon fishing available to visitors. The best opportunities are on the Keanchulish beats of the River Kanaird, north of Ullapool, and the New Kelso beat of the River Carron at Strathcarron.
River Ewe & Loch Maree slide show images © Andrew Graham-Stewart; Loch Sionascaig and Damph images © Euan Myles.
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