Loch of Lintrathen

Lintrathen is the big one in Angus — a substantial Scottish Water reservoir west of Kirriemuir, tucked into the quiet country between Strathmore and the foothills of the Grampians, managed by Dundee Angling Club on a permit basis. It's fished for wild and stocked brown trout from boats, loch-style, on traditional tackle. The fish are not large by commercial standards but they are honest, free-rising in the right conditions, and the setting is far more beautiful than its low-key reputation suggests. On a warm May evening with a light ripple and a caenis hatch coming off, Lintrathen gives the kind of fishing most anglers think you have to drive to the Highlands for.