Tailwater · Granite · Argyll, GB-SCT

River Awe

A wide, calm stretch of the River Awe in Argyll, Scotland, with cattle drinking at the water and reflections of trees on the surface.

River Awe is a declining Atlantic salmon system where Atlantic salmon populations are Category 3 under Scottish Government classification; every fish returned matters.

Tomorrow · Marginal — persistence required
Pheasant Tail Nymph
Forecast · Tomorrow
Marginal — persistence required
A short window at best — fish the sure lies and move on.
40% projected
Today's fly
Pheasant Tail Nymph
Pheasant Tail Nymph
Conditions on the water · Tomorrow
Proxy gauge
Level
Rising
Proxy
via River Orchy
Water temp11.1°C
ClarityVery coloured
Weather7°C
WindN 17 km/h
Pressure1029 hPa
Rain · recent10.0 mm
Rain · ahead10.0 mm

No gauge on this water — conditions are inferred from River Orchy. The trend transfers, the absolute level does not.

Water temperature for Atlantic Salmon
Ideal
11°C est.ideal 10–16°C
0°14°28°

We have not characterised this dam's release, so this is a general cold-release figure and could be several degrees out in either direction. Treat it as a hint, not a reading, and check locally before you fish.

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.
Likely species
Mayflies
Stoneflies
Caddisflies
Chironomids
Damselflies & dragonflies
Gammarids
Hatch timeline · tomorrowPeak at 1pm

12pm(now) — Iron Blue

Stage: On emergersApproach: Emerger or dryActivity: 33%
Weather boost

Peak activity at 1pm — Iron Blue (Iron Blue, Weather boost)

Sub-surface · on the nymphunder the surface

Hatch predictions

Top nymph shown — see all 2 guilds as a supporter.

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Beyond the hatch · worth watchingambient prey(1)

Hatch predictions

Top prey shown — see all 3 as a supporter.

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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 · October highlighted
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Salmon runRun
1
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
1
Freshwater ShrimpHatch
2
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
2
Black MidgeHatch
2
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
2
Green PeterHatch
2
3
2
Murrough (Great Red Sedge)Hatch
2
3
2

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

Ranked for today
Atlantic Salmon fly box

A balanced Scottish river profile. Early season nymphs and spiders, then more dry-fly and emerger fishing as hatches strengthen on steadier glides and richer water.

Beats · 3

A major Argyll salmon river below Loch Awe, influenced by barrage/hydro conditions and closely associated with the Loch Awe trout/pike/coarse fishery. Keep the river salmon beats and the LAIA loch permits as distinct, linked records — a Loch Awe permit never covers River Awe salmon or sea trout.

River Awe main beatsAgent booking
The historic big-fish water below the Loch Awe barrage — the Awe has produced more 50 lb-plus fly-caught salmon than any UK river except the Tay.
Visit official site ↗
Pass of Brander fish counter (context)Members-only
Not a bookable beat — the Pass of Brander fish counter tracks the run entering the system.
Loch Awe (separate fishery — context)Members
A deliberately separate record: Loch Awe is a trout/pike/coarse fishery sold by the Loch Awe Improvement Association (LAIA) on annual or short permits for Loch Awe and Loch Avich.
What's coming
Plan ahead
5-day outlook
Other water nearby · 5
River Orchy
18 km
0
Salmon · Sea trout · Brown trout
River Lochy
47 km
0
Brown trout · Salmon · Sea trout
River Shiel
50 km
0
Salmon · Sea trout · Brown trout
Loch Lomond
56 km
0
Brown trout · Salmon · Sea trout
Loch Tay
60 km
Brown trout · Char · Salmon
Gallery · 2
  1. A wide, calm stretch of the River Awe in Argyll, Scotland, with cattle drinking at the water and reflections of trees on the surface.
    River Awe Cows
  2. Terrain map of the venue
    Terrain map
About this water

River Awe is a declining Atlantic salmon system where Atlantic salmon populations are Category 3 under Scottish Government classification; every fish returned matters. Mandatory catch-and-release applies. Treat it as distinct from the Loch Awe trout/pike/coarse fishery: a Loch Awe trout or pike permit does NOT cover River Awe salmon or sea trout. Fish enter from April, with the peak of the runs from May to August. This granite-based upland river system.

Sea trout here

Summer-autumn runs (June–September), nocturnal pattern in peak season

  • Granite
Why this score · for Atlantic Salmon
  • Temperature10030% weight
  • Flow6025% weight
  • Clarity9520% weight
  • Feeding Time5015% weight
  • Pressure8510% weight
Directions
Apple MapsGoogle Maps
Seasons & zones
TodayFishing closed on Sundays. Sunday fishing banned on some rivers (Tweed system, some estates). Not universal — many Scottish waters allow Sunday fishing. Check locally. This rule is applied conservatively as a regional default; river-level overrides should open Sunday where confirmed legal.Closed
  • Salmon 11 February → 31 October

Sea trout: Variable seasonal (2026)

Related guides
Scotland Playbookloch & river fishingAtlantic Salmonsalmon tacticsEuro Nymphingsubsurface methods
Casting instructors near here
Booking & contacts