Spate · Granite · Argyll, GB-SCT

River Orchy

The River Orchy flowing beneath Dalmally Bridge in Argyll, Scotland, with hills in the background.

A scenic west-coast / Argyll spate salmon river feeding the Loch Awe system, where timing and water height matter.

Tomorrow · Slow going — better windows ahead
Pheasant Tail Nymph
Forecast · Tomorrow
Slow going — better windows ahead
Little in your favour today. Fish the certain lies, or leave it for a better one.
40% projected
Today's fly
Pheasant Tail Nymph
Pheasant Tail Nymph
Conditions on the water · Tomorrow
Live gauge
Level
Rising
0.54 m
Lifting fast
Water temp8.5°C
ClarityUnfishable
Weather5°C
WindN 18 km/h
Pressure1030 hPa
Rain · recent5.5 mm
Rain · ahead14.3 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
Cool — slow
9°C est.ideal 10–16°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.
Likely species
Mayflies
Stoneflies
Caddisflies
Gammarids
Hatch timeline · tomorrowPeak at 1pm

12pm(now) — Autumn Needle Fly

Stage: Creeping nymphsApproach: Heavy nymphActivity: 40%
Also:Iron Blue35%
Peak emergence window

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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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
March BrownHatch
2
3
2
CapererHatch
2
3
3
2
Heather FlyHatch
2
2
Autumn DunHatch
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 · 1

A picturesque Argyll spate river where timing and water height matter. Late May brings the first realistic salmon, with July-October the stronger period. Conservation messaging should be prominent: return all salmon, grilse and sea trout, carry a net, and fish to the Awe District C&R code.

Dalmally BeatsAgent booking
The strongest import in the Awe/Orchy system — named beats around Dalmally booked via FishPal and local routes.
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What's coming
Plan ahead
5-day outlook
Other water nearby · 5
River Awe
18 km
0
Salmon · Sea trout · Brown trout
Loch Lomond
45 km
0
Brown trout · Salmon · Sea trout
River Lochy
48 km
0
Brown trout · Salmon · Sea trout
Endrick Water
53 km
0
Brown trout · Sea trout · Atlantic salmon
Loch Tay
42 km
Brown trout · Char · Salmon
Gallery · 2
  1. The River Orchy flowing beneath Dalmally Bridge in Argyll, Scotland, with hills in the background.
    The River Orchy at Dalmally Bridge, Argyll.
  2. Terrain map of the venue
    Terrain map
About this water

A scenic west-coast / Argyll spate salmon river feeding the Loch Awe system, where timing and water height matter. Early salmon reach the Orchy in late May, with July to October the stronger period. Conservation messaging is prominent here: 100% catch-and-release for salmon, grilse and sea trout across all beats for the entire season. Granite-based upland geology shapes this river. Atlantic salmon stocks are Category 3 (declining) — all salmon must be released under Scottish Government conservation guidelines.

Sea trout here

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

  • Granite
Why this score · for Atlantic Salmon
  • Temperature9330% weight
  • Flow6025% weight
  • Clarity9520% weight
  • Feeding Time8515% 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 tacticsYorkshire & SpidersNorth Country methods
Casting instructors near here
Booking & contacts