388 
THE EISHING GAZETTE 
[May 27, 1893 
FISHINGS AND SCENERY OF THE 
HIGHLANDS. 
THE NORTH ESK, ^yEST WATER, AND 
GLENESK STREAMS. 
According to some, the North Esk is formed 
by the union of the Lee and the Mark, while 
according to others it debouches from Loch Lee 
and receives the water of Mark about a mile and 
a half farther down the glen. From Loch Lee to 
the sea the length of the river in all its windings 
would be about twenty-seven miles, hut counting 
from the sources of its head waters—the Mark 
and the Lee—its length of run would be con- 
the way to the sea. With the hills now left in 
the background, the country becomes very flat; 
hut for several miles it is so closely wooded with 
a variety of trees, both planted and natural 
grown, that it may well be called the most shut- 
in of landscape. For several miles through this 
fiat, where it is densely wooded to its brink— 
trees overshadowing it and growing out of its 
rock-face fissures, some even out of rocks wholly 
surrounded by water—the river in the course of 
the ages has cut its way through the red sand¬ 
stone in many fantastic forms and fashions, and 
now generally forty to fifty feet below the ground 
level—here chafing and lashing itself into white 
foam, and there toiling sullen and black below 
West Water, along with their numerous trouting 
affluents, have been very popular with tourist 
anglers—not only from other parts of Scotland, 
hut from a far greater distance. The North Esk 
itself has a wonderful reputation—almost fabu¬ 
lous it may be said—for its yield of the migratory 
SalmonidcB annually to the netters; but that 
except in autumn all the fish of this sort are 
slaughtered to gratify man’s cupidity, is con¬ 
sidered by all who have acquaintance with this 
fine river to be an utter shame to, and .a most 
serious and unpleasant evidence of the apathy of, 
the number of influential riparian proprietors 
possessing the entire angling rights between its 
source and the monstrous obstructions which 
IN GLENESK. 
siderahly greater. In the main its course is 
eastward, with inclinations to the south-east. 
About Loch Lee and farther inland the district 
is very wild and mountainous, with only occa¬ 
sional dashes of the sylvan. Below the loch, 
Glenesk opens out, and for many miles, though 
hills here and there touch the river, the scenery 
through which it flows is sylvan and beautiful, 
with lodges, farmhouses, steadings, and arable 
farms, from the hamlet of Tarfl’side downward, 
lending to it a not ungraceful variety. Gene¬ 
rally the near hillsides are green, especially on 
the south bank, but at a distance, and flanking 
them, rise the mountain slopes covered with 
heather and boulders, while on one side are 
Mount Keen, Breadcairn, and Mount Battock; 
through rocky and congested passages—it pre¬ 
sents in these, as in other almost unique aspects, 
scenes that will not soon be forgotten. Seaward 
the country opens out more, is less well wooded, 
and less flat; but the banks of the river do not 
continue to present, save at rare intervals, the 
same variety of appearance or striking charac¬ 
teristics. 
The river’s principal tributaries are the Lee 
and the Mark—its head streams; the Effock, 
Tartf, Keeny, Turret, Mooran, West Water (far 
the largest), Cruick, Blackburn, and Luther. 
The West .Water is a considerable stream, 
having a run of about fifteen miles, during which 
it receives the water of a number of small tribu¬ 
taries. It originates with the water of Saughs, 
[UEE Arms Edzell Fishery. 
keep back the whole of the ascending fish, only 
to fall a prey to the grab-all netters. No salmon, 
no grilse, no sea-trout, no finnock get beyond 
the formidable and utterly impassable dams of 
Craigo and Morphie until the month of May, and 
after that time it is only during the Sunday slap 
that they have the chance of pushing farther 
inland—and then only should there be a spate. 
A good push of water on Saturday or Sunday in 
the months of June or July, when the summer 
run is strongest, is usually found to have given 
a chance to a fair number of grilse and sea-trout 
to get over the obstructions, past all Johnston’s 
inveterate netters above and below, and away on 
to the farther inland waters, where the rod alone 
can he plied. The reaches below the obstructions 
THE LOUPS. 
and on the other Boustieley, Greenhill, Ben 
Tirran, Dog Hillock. Cruys, Knock and Hill 
of AVirren, which severally are seen from the 
valley or through the converging passes. Most 
parts of Glenesk for many miles downward 
from Loch Lee are, close by the brink of the 
river (which here exhibits a perfect variety 
of pool, stream, and rocky and peebly runs), 
ornamented by a profusion of graceful birchwood, 
and the scenery withal is of the most delightful 
description. The formation until the river leaves 
the hills proper is silurian, with variety of soils, 
hut on entering the romantic estate of the Burn, 
the old red sandstone, with concomitant soil 
deposits, is all at once found to be the prevailing, 
if not the only, formation, and this continues all 
whose sources are on the Black Shank—one of 
the group of mountains in that very high but 
singularly picturesque region of the county lying 
between the glens of Effock and Clova. Its 
course is almost eastward, and it flows through 
some most beautiful woodland and hill scenery, 
entering the North Esk about two miles below 
Edzell—that prettily situated little village at the 
eastern base of the Grampians where Forfarshire 
and Kincardineshire unite. The rocks of the 
upper reach are silurian, and lower down, where 
deep pools abound, the formation is chiefly of old 
red sandstone. Grilse and sea-trout find their 
way into the West Water, and are caught in it in 
the autumn. 
For many long years past the North Esk and 
ON AVEST WATER. 
in question yield astonishing sport in the autumn 
with salmon, hut it is a well known fact that 
many of the anglers fishing some of them are 
adepts with the Plunger and the Grapplesaul 
fly, and “ nae a bit scrupulous about gaen doon 
tu th’ bottom.” Most splendid fish and of 
tremendous size are in any quantity caught in 
these waters, and the writer has known of a 
couple of cartloads being caught in a single 
autumn day by operators with the deadly gripper 
lures, where the water falls over, behind one 
of the dykes. This gives but a faint idea 
of the wonderful success which attends opera¬ 
tions when they are conducted on the most 
.approved lines which the “ locals ” are wont to 
proudly boast of, hut whether to their shame 
