FISHING SEASON AND FISHING WEEK
The season extends from 01st April to 31st October. Fishing is allowed as follows:
FOR SALMON - from 01st April to 31st October (mandatory catch and release until June 16th)
FOR SEA TROUT - from 01st April to 30th September
FOR BROWN TROUT - from 01st April to 30th September Weekly tickets extend from Monday to Saturday inclusive
SUNDAY AND NIGHT TIME FISHING No Sunday fishing is allowed;but between 1st May and 31st August,Saturday fishing will be allowed until 3a.m. on Sunday mornings. No fishing is allowed during the following hours: 01st April to 30th April from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. 1st May to 31st August from 3a.m. (Sun) to 12 midnight (Sun) 1st September to 30th September from 11 p.m.to 6 a.m. 1st October to 31st October from 7 p.m.to 7 a.m.
RULES & REGULATIONS
1 CATCH RETURNS You must make a catch return to the association secretary of your season's fish before the 15th of November. Failure to have made a return in may result in a surcharge on any subsequent ticket.
2 GENERAL DISCIPLINE TICKETS: Tickets must be carried when fishing and produced at the request of any River Watcher.
LIMITS: Anglers must not fish outwith the limits covered by their ticket.
TRESPASSING: Anglers must avoid trespassing and use only recognised routes to and from the river.They must not park vehicles in gateways.Anglers may not access permit waters via the Willow Pool Beat and when walking to the upper limit on Canonbie Beat (right bank) must not traverse the river bank of the Hollows Beat.
MOVING-ON: Anglers must keep moving,whether by day or night,when others are waiting to fish.This applies to fly fishing,spinning and worming except in heavy flood waters.In normal waters anglers must not start fishing in front of others.
WADING: Excessive wading, particularly in mid-stream, is to be avoided.Protests should be made at the time to anyone so offending and if necessary should be reported to a River Watcher.
DOGS: No dogs are allowed.
FIRES: No riverside fires,barbeques,bottle parties or other such gatherings are permitted.
LITTER: Anglers are asked to remove their litter and also to refrain from leaving rubbish in the huts.
NIGHT FISHING: There is no fixed time for the start of night fishing and anglers cannot reserve water by arriving early.
PROHIBITED FISH: The following must be returned to the watewr, namely, kelts unclean fish and migratory fish under 12"and all brown trout under 10" Also foul hooked fish. All rainbow trout to be killed. All salmon caiught before 16 June to bne returned to the water. ALL FISH must be HOOKED by the MOUTH. Any foul hooked fish must be returned to the water immediately.
3 BREACHES OF RULES Any ticket holder infringing the above regulations or convicted of illegal fishing or of any offence under the Fisheries Acts shall forfeit his ticket immediately.The permission granted to him to fish shall cease and determine without having any claim for refund of ticket money. All tickets are issued subject to observance by the holder of the Environment Agency Bylaws in Scotland. The E.A. state that they will enforce a rod licence on the Scottish Esk and Liddle from 1st April 2005. The Fisheries are not obliged to grant tickets to all applicants. The Fisheries reserve the right to alter the foregoing rules without prior notice and without cause shown.
4 METHODS OF FISHING BAITING: No upstream spinning, fishing with prawn or shrimp (natural or artificial) and no ground baiting in any form is permitted.
FLOATS: No float of any kind is permitted.
GAFFS: No gaff shall be used or carried at any time.
WEIGHTS: Lead weights are not allowed. Lead free weights can be used.
HOOKS :Size limits of hooks are given below.
RODS must be held at all times.
FISHING FOR SALMON BEFORE 16TH JUNE It is illegal to fish for salmon before 16th June except using artificial fly or lure (spinner) on a catch and release basis.
5 FLY FISHING Fly fishing is allowed throughout the season provided that no weight or excessively loaded fly of any kind is used and no double hooks larger than No 4 low water size (old scale) or treble hooks larger than No 8 (old scale) are used. No casting upstream is allowed except for dry fly fishing.
6 WORM FISHING
IN THE ESK - LANGHOLM BEAT From Skippers Cleuch Burn downstream to the bottom of the Langholm Beat worming is permitted at any water level
IN THE ESK - LANGHOLM BEAT Above Skippers Bridge upstream to the top of the Langholm Beat worming is only permitted when the water level entirely covers the black line on the gauge on the left bank of the river opposite the Buccleuch Hall in Langholm.
IN THE ESK - CANONBIE BEAT Worming is only permitted when the water level entirely covers the gauge at Canonbie Bridge.
IN THE LIDDLE Worm fishing is permitted at any time.
RESTRICTIONS No worm fishing is allowed between the white markers at the Skippers Bridge. -Fishing at Penton Loup is limited to 15 minutes when others are waiting to fish. -Fishing is prohibited on the cliff side of the Dead Neuk. -No single hook larger than No.2/0 may be used. -No Stewart or Pennel hooks larger than No.10 may be used. -During October only one single hook may be used.
7 SPINNING Spinning is allowed only in the following cases and provided only that fishers use an artificial minnow, a spoon, a sprat, stone loach or a natural minnow, but not either prawn or shrimp. From 01st April to 15th April spinning with the tackle described above is allowed at all times when and all places where fishing is permitted. In the ESK, excluding the tributaries from the Craig / Potholm March to the Bells Weir, on any day between 16th April and 31st October dates inclusive, provided that the water covers the black line marker at the Buccleuch Hall for the Langholm Beat and the marker at Canonbie Bridge for the Canonbie Beat. In the LIDDLE from Roan March to the Burnmouth / Lawston March as far as belongs to the Buccleuch Estates Ltd and on the right bank from the Muir Burn to the junction with the Esk from 16th April to 31st October inclusive, provided that the water covers the red line markers at Newcastleton, Kershopefoot and Penton Bridges.
RESTRICTIONS No spinning is allowed between the white markers at Skippers Bridge. -No treble hook larger than No 2 may be used. -Baits, including weights, must not exceed 1oz (25gms). -Spinning lures and equivalents must only have one treble hook.
8 NOTE - READING GAUGES Where the water covers the mark on the gauge of any beat at 9.00am or later rises to cover the mark, then spinning and worm fishing will be permitted until dusk that day. Should on any day the marker gauge at Buccleuch hall not to be covered yet the Esk is in flood due to flows entering from Wauchope or Ewes, the additional red marker gauge on the downstream side of Skippers Bridge if entirely covered will permit anglers to spin or worm from Langholm foot suspension bridge downstream to the end of Beat only.
