THE CARRON OF WEST ROSS-SHIRE 305 



into two well-marked sections by Loch Doule (Dhughaill) at 

 Achnashellach. The upper portion from Loch Scaven to Loch 

 Doule is steep and rocky through Glencarron, till the stony 

 flat is reached above the latter loch. This section is of little 

 use for fishing, although the streams in the stony flat are of 

 great use as spawning grounds. Loch Doule is barely two 

 miles long, and, from the lower end, the river emerges by a 

 long sluggish channel, and gently flows off to descend about 

 100 feet in the remaining 5| miles to the sea. This is the 

 angling section of the water. It is tortuous in its upper section, 

 and rather shallow in some of the streams. A short distance 

 below the railway bridge, where a burn joins on the right from 

 a high hill loch, reported to be full of small char, a large pool 

 occurs which holds fish all through the summer. When Lord 

 Wimborne had the river he had hecks placed across the sluggish 

 outflow from Loch Doule to prevent fish passing through the 

 river too rapidly, and at this time the large pool referred to was 

 a familiar haunt of the late Lord Randolph Churchill, whose 

 gillie told me he had a trying time of it plunging into the water 

 to rescue precious flies for the somewhat impetuous fisherman, 

 who at last rather blamed him for taking so much trouble. 



Between this and New Kelso the course of the river is com- 

 paratively straight, and then a series of fine bends, with good 

 flowing gravelly pools, succeed to the mouth of the river. The 

 head of Loch Carron, like the head of most sea lochs of its 

 kind, has a shallow sandy flat through which the fresh water 

 is very apt to open up side channels in time of flood. These, 

 under ordinary conditions of water-flow, spoil the concentration 

 of volume which is so desirable at the mouth of a river, and 

 result at times in a condition unfavourable for the ascent of 

 fish. It is notorious, moreover, that not many miles from the 

 mouth of the river two or three crews of fishermen have their 

 dwellings, who, in the past at least, have made it their business 

 to " scringe " the mouths of streams for salmon and sea- trout. 

 It is believed that the Carron has frequently been seriously 

 affected by the nightly nettings of these men. 



The volume of water in the Carron is usually sufficient to 

 induce spring fish to ascend. Clean fish have been caught in 

 the river as early as llth February, and, given suitable water- 

 flow, April and May yield very fair results to the rod. The 



