83 



of the salmon, which, being enclosed among the 

 rocks, men go in and catch them in great abundance 

 with their hands, spears, yea, with their very dogs" 



The stretch of water from where the Dee is joined 

 by the river Ken, in the direction of the sea, abounds 

 with fine fishing streams, and no angler need want 

 sport who knows his trade, and will devote himself 

 to it. Large baskets of trout can be had in almost 

 all states of the water ; and I have found here, what 

 I have often witnessed elsewhere, that strong east 

 and north winds, though piercingly cold, when they 

 fall fairly upon portions of still and deep water, are 

 very favourable to the feeding of fish. I have seen 

 them quite ravenous under such circumstances. 



In this section of the Dee, immense quantities of 

 grilse are occasionally taken. In 1836, there was 

 caught, at one draught, three hundred and fifteen ! 

 It is chiefly in this section of the water that the 

 large bull-trout are found, sometimes weighing up- 

 wards of twenty pounds. It is in these parts where 

 both the Ken and the Dee flow through Loch-Ken, 

 that perch and pike are to be found in any quanti- 

 ties. It was here that one of the latter species of 

 fish was taken with fly, of the astonishing weight 

 of seventy -two pounds. 



The Ken has a run of about twenty miles before 

 it falls into the Dee ; and in its higher portions is a 

 very pleasant stream for trouting. Should the 

 angler make Sanquhar a starting point for this river, 

 he will find the public road leading into the higher 

 parts of Kirkcudbrightshire passing close to upper 



