The River Annan
The river Annan is split into three sections: upper river, middle river and lower river with several beats on each section available for salmon, sea trout, brown trout and grayling fishing throughout the year (depending on peak times and seasons).
The various beats from the lower to upper river offer very different fishing during the year such as specimen trout in the spring, summer sea trout and salmon as well as winter grayling.
Although there are some pike present in the Annan they are not fished for but they are occasionally caught by anglers fishing for salmon. However, there are plenty of local lochs containing pike which are available on a day ticket.
For more information on fishing the Annan, check out the Fish Annan Blog for advice on where to fish, latest catch reports and river Annan news.
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Brown Trout Fishing
The upper river is well known for the size and quality of the brown trout, in particular on dry fly during spring where there are regular reports of 5lb plus fish from anglers with plenty of free rising fish of 2-3lb. This makes the upper river the ideal place to stalk specimen trout on dries during spring and early summer.
However, during late summer and early autumn the trout fishing can tail off for a while at which point the upper river then comes into its own for night time sea trout fishing and with water, summer salmon and grilse fishing.
Perfect for a switch rod or single handed fly rod.
The lower and middle beats also have some very good trout fishing available with a wide range of different sized fish and on the lower beats in particular there’s some excellent water for fishing spiders and nymphs.
Grayling Fishing
Grayling of all sizes are present throughout the Annan with fish of 2lb plus caught regularly during the year and occasional 3lb plus fish also reported, especially during the colder winter months.
Nymphing is the best method during the colder weather with spiders and dries particularly good during late summer and early autumn.
Much of the river has good water for spiders and tight line nymphing but provided it’s low enough, the lower river beats offer the best water for both methods with the chance of finding a specimen fish (or two).
However, the best chance of catching a specimen grayling is generally on the upper river which fishes best when the river is up. Like the big trout in spring, big grayling can be targeted on dries, especially during late summer and early autumn.
Sea Trout Fishing
On the lower river beats and parts of the middle river there’s some very good fly water for sea trout. The upper river also has good water for sea trout at night, especially after the river drops in and settles following a lift in water.
The main runs arrive in June following rain (although not essential) with smaller sea trout and herling following in July.
Sea trout on the Annan can be free rising during the day and evenings with trout anglers often catching them on dries and nymphs but the best way to fish for them is at night swinging wets or sea trout lures on a warm evening well into darkness.
Salmon Fishing
For salmon, the Annan is best fished after a recent spate as the river drops in and clears. The lower beats have the best fly water available and are mainly fly only beats with limited rods.
The middle river has some good fly water on some of the available beats and following sumner rain, the fishing can be very good for fresh summer salmon and grilse.
The main runs of salmon begin in early summer, once there is rain, with the grilse arriving from mid July. Fresh salmon continue to run until late September with only occasional fresh fish from October.
With plenty of water, salmon and grilse can progress well up river to the upper beats but not in any numbers until late summer/autumn. During autumn, especially following a lift in water, the upper beats are at their best with some good fly water on all three of the beats available.
Pike Fishing
Pike fishing is available on a number of lochs in Dumfriesshire with fish of 20lb plus reported regularly from the various pike Lochs in the area. Dead baiting is often the most likely method to target specimen pike although when they are switched onto feeding, fly fishing will pick up fish of high teens with the chance of a twenty.
There are also plenty of jacks in most lochs which provide good sport on surface lures and pike flies with the chance of a bigger fish. This can be very good fishing during early autumn as the water temperatures drop.
Annan Guiding 