Stillwater · Mixed · Angus

Crombie Reservoir

Crombie Reservoir venue image
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Monikie's smaller sister, set inside Crombie Country Park a few miles further into Angus.

Fair · Rainbow
Kate McLaren · 12-14
Fairlive now
Reasonable summer fishing likely at Crombie Reservoir
Good wave on — drift country. A useful wave. Work the productive shore.
58% confidence
What moved it
  • WindNW 8 km/hLight breeze
Today’s fly
Kate McLaren
Kate McLaren12-14
Retrieve, in the film
Conditions on the water
Live gauge
Wind
Light breeze
NW 8 km/h
N
NW
from the north-west
WaveRipple
Water temp
Air temp9°C
CloudOvercast
Pressure1021 hPa
Rain · recent0.0 mm

Some readings unavailable — check directly before fishing.

How to fish it · for rainbow
When
Current conditions suit Crombie Reservoir well for summer tactics. The ripple should help fish move and feed more confidently.
Where
Start with Booby (8-10) on a fast strip on floating line or static on sinking. Rainbows respond to more active retrieves — try short strips between pauses. If that does not produce, switch depth or speed before changing the pattern entirely. In the ripple, a bushy searching dry (Hopper, Shipman's, Elk Hair Caddis) outperforms flush emergers — it stays visible and holds the surface tension.
The plan
Plan A

Start with Booby (8-10) on a fast strip on floating line or static on sinking. Rainbows respond to more active retrieves — try short strips between pauses. If that does not produce, switch depth or speed before changing the pattern entirely. In the ripple, a bushy searching dry (Hopper, Shipman's, Elk Hair Caddis) outperforms flush emergers — it stays visible and holds the surface tension.

Plan B

If the main plan stalls, drop to a size 14–16 midge — switch to a washing-line or suspender rig and change drift line before you change food group.

Watch for

Evening tends to be the best period in summer — stay late if you can for a sedge or spinner fall.

Either bank or boat

Good ripple suits both bank and boat. Bank: work inflows, dam walls, and points. Boat: broadside drift covering wind lanes.

Through the year
0–3 scale · July highlighted
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Trout seasonSeason
1
2
2
2
2
2
1
Daphnia SwarmHatch
2
3
3
3
2
Daddy Long LegsHatch
2
3
2
Lake OliveHatch
2
3
3
3
3
3
2
Silverhorns & LonghornsHatch
1
2
2
2
1

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

Ranked for today
Rainbow fly box
What's coming
Plan ahead
5-day outlook
Condition match
73%
Cloud50%
Wind100%
Temp60%

A good match for this venue — most conditions are close to what it fishes best in.

Other water nearby · 5
Gallery · 1
  1. Terrain map of the venue
    Terrain map
About this water

Monikie's smaller sister, set inside Crombie Country Park a few miles further into Angus. Another Scottish Water reservoir run as a stocked rainbow and brown trout fishery, smaller and more intimate than Monikie, with fewer boats and a bank that's easier to work comprehensively in a session. It's a good water for an angler new to stillwaters — the scale is manageable, the fish are forgiving in the first weeks after stocking, and the facilities (tea, toilets, tarmac car park) lower the barrier to a quick after-work cast. The regulars know exactly where each fresh stocking goes in and fish accordingly. If you're new, ask; the Angus crowd is open-handed with information.

  • Reservoir
  • Mixed
Why this score
  • Wind conditions (ripple) closely match what this water fishes best in.
  • Buzzer is in its seasonal window, boosting the chance of targeted feeding.
Directions
Seasons & zones
  • Trout1 April → 31 October
Related guides
Booking & contacts