The Border Esk

Although catches have declined worryingly over the past decade, the Border Esk, together with its major tributary, the River Liddle, is still one of the best sea trout rivers in southern Scotland. Much of the available fishing on the Border Esk and Liddle, known as the Esk and Liddle Fisheries, extending to some twenty miles of fishing, is owned, and has been managed for many years, by the Buccleuch Estates, with day, weekly and season permits being made available to local and visiting anglers at reasonable cost. From the beginning of the 2012 season, the fishing is to be managed by a new local angling club, which has secured a ten year lease of the "association" waters from the estate. It is hoped that permits will be made available to locals and to visiting anglers in much the same way as before.

The Border Esk at Skipper's Bridge, Langholm

Sea Trout Fishing on the Border Esk and River Liddle

Best known for its sea trout, the River Esk also has a decent run of salmon in the second half of the season. The Esk and Liddle Fisheries beats include some of the best fly fishing water on the middle Esk and the middle and lower Liddle. At one time the Esk and Liddle fishery beats, regarded as among the most productive in the country, might produce around 5000 sea trout in a season, many of them taken on the night fly during the short summer nights of June and July, with the added bonus, towards the end of the season, of up to 500 salmon. For reasons that are not clear, catches of sea trout on the Border Esk, like those of other Solway rivers, have declined in recent seasons, with the Buccleuch Estate beats now producing somewhere between 500 and 1000 sea trout per season and around 200 salmon. Given the right conditions, though, June and July can still provide some excellent night fishing. See also Border Esk Fishing ; Border Esk Photos and River Liddle Photos .