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The procession was lead by Ian Botham. Ian
was under a certain amount of pressure due to
newspaper reports regarding his private life.
We were grateful to Ian for fulfilling his public
duties under difficult circumstances, and even
more grateful for the storm of press coverage
it generated for the event!
The blessing of the boats took place around
10am and ten it was off for cast. Anglers were
invited to fish the Kenmore and Castle beats
in return for a £15 donation to the Tay
Ghillies Association hatchery project. Over
£400 was raised in permits.
Ian then joined us in the boat for a quick
harl round the Hotel Pool. Ian is a keen angler
and throughout the morning showed a sound knowledge
of both fishing and the conservation issues.
Hopefully he will be able to come back in better
circumstances.
It was not long before the Board's new catch
and release recommendations were put to the
test. Bob Brownless of Country Pursuits took
a fine fresh fish of around 18lb, which was
immediately returned, much to the delight of
the Grampian TV crew who caught it all on film
and to the great relief of the many officials
in the crowd! Well done Bob!
The day saw good numbers of kelts and a few
fresh fish. We received reports of some 8 fish
taken from the system and there were many more
we did not hear about. All agreed that there
seemed to be a better stamp of fish about this
year.
In the evening the gala diner was hosted in
excellent fashion by the Kenmore Hotel, who
provided a great repast. Prizes (gallons of
whisky from Dewars) were awarded for the best
fish of the day and Normark Rapala also donated
fishing tackle to the lucky winners.
All in all it was a great day, inspite of the
cold, which gave a fairy tale feel to this years
event.
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