Freestone · Mixed · North East / Aberdeenshire, GB-SCT

Ythan

A meandering stretch of the River Ythan flowing through lush green pasture with trees along the banks near Ellon.
Good · Atlantic Salmon
Silver Stoat's Tail · small double / microtube
Goodlive now
A good day — worth the effort
River steady at a fishable height. A reliable day. Match the fly size to the water height and cover the lies.
70% confidence
What moved it
  • Level0.65 mLast reading 25 min ago
  • Water temp17.9°C
  • ClarityClear
Today's fly
Silver Stoat's Tail
Silver Stoat's Tailsmall double / microtube
From the river-specific salmon pack.
Conditions on the water
Live gauge
Level
Steady
0.65 m
Last reading 25 min ago
Water temp17.9°C
ClarityClear
Weather17°C
WindW 19 km/h
Pressure1017 hPa
Rain · recent0.3 mm
Rain · ahead0.4 mm

The nearest gauge doesn't record temperatures, so we've estimated it — defer to the river keeper's advice.

Water temperature for Atlantic Salmon
Warm — slow
18°C est.ideal 10–14°C
0°14°28°
How to fish it · for Atlantic Salmon
When
Morning into early afternoon.
Where
Pool tails, steadier runs, and any water with pace.
Method
Fish a sensible line-and-fly combination for the height and pace of water.
Kit
13 ft #8/9 double-hander in spate, 10 ft #8 single in low water. Floating line plus a fast-sink tip. 12–15 lb fluoro tippet.
Why this works
Good — water clarity is working for you, but water temperature is the limiting factor today.
Hatch timeline · todayPeak at 6am

Hatch predictions

Today's headline hatch shown — see all 8 active hatches hour by hour with Pro.

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Sub-surface · on the nymphunder the surface

Hatch predictions

Top nymph shown — see all 2 guilds with Pro.

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Beyond the hatch · worth watchingambient prey

Hatch predictions

Top prey shown — see all 2 with Pro.

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Evidence
Survey-backed · regionalHigh confidence

Backed by regional invertebrate surveys; no sampling on this exact reach yet.

Through the year
0–3 scale · August highlighted
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Salmon runRun
1
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
1
Daddy Long LegsHatch
2
3
2
GrannomHatch
2
2
Evening SedgeHatch
2
3
3
3
2
Large Dark OliveHatch
1
2
2
1

Numbers are intensity 0 (none) to 3 (peak) — a guide, not a guarantee.

Ranked for today
Atlantic Salmon fly box
What's coming
Plan ahead
5-day outlook
Other water nearby · 5
Don (Aberdeenshire)
20 km
Salmon · Brown trout · Sea trout
Don
25 km
Brown trout · Salmon · Sea trout
Dee (Aberdeenshire)
41 km
Brown trout · Salmon · Grayling
Dee (Aberdeenshire)
41 km
Brown trout · Salmon · Grayling
Deveron
43 km
Brown trout · Salmon · Sea trout
Gallery · 2
  1. A meandering stretch of the River Ythan flowing through lush green pasture with trees along the banks near Ellon.
    The River Ythan winding through green meadows near Ellon, Aberdeenshire.
  2. Terrain map of the venue
    Terrain map
Water quality (WFD)
  • Ecology: Moderate
  • Chemical: Unknown

SEPA (Scotland) · UKSC023231

Why this score · for Atlantic Salmon
  • Temperature2630% weight
  • Flow6025% weight
  • Clarity9520% weight
  • Feeding Time9515% weight
  • Pressure8510% weight
Directions
Apple MapsGoogle Maps
Seasons & zones
  • Salmon 11 February → 31 October

Sea trout: Variable seasonal (2026)

Related guides
Scotland Playbookloch & river fishingAtlantic Salmonsalmon tacticsYorkshire & SpidersNorth Country methods
Casting instructors near here
Booking & contacts