Final Loch Report 2022

As we say goodbye to another season here at Coldingham Loch, it’s perhaps worth reflecting back on a year ago today. At this point in 2021 we had been badly affected by Storm Arwen and we were starting the long and arduous task of getting ourselves and the place back on its’ feet. Once again, we would like to say our heartfelt thanks to the many people – members, friends, neighbours, family who have helped us (in many different ways) to do this both over last winter and during this season. We simply could not have got to where we are now without you all. Thank you.

Whilst we have previously informed you of some sad news in 2022, it would be remiss of us not to mention again and remember a couple of friends who, sadly, are no longer with us but who served the loch well over many years. Tina Wise and Peter Hill are greatly missed by many of us.

The loch closed on Wednesday 30^th Nov – a cold, frosty and foggy day which saw only a few brave souls venture onto the water. After a long dry summer and fairly dry autumn, we had a few days of torrential rain in mid-November with floods on many local roads. Suffice to say that the loch was well and truly filled up in just a weekend, the water levels well above the concrete jetties. However, November in general gave some good days fishing for those who kept an eye on the forecasts and (sometimes!) hit it right. Of particular note was the number of brownies that were caught in this last 10 days or so of the season. Bank anglers tended to do better on the whole in the latter part of November than the boat anglers but as always there were those that bucked the trend (not mentioning any names Bob Cockburn and Colin McIssac!).

During late November we embarked on another round of tree planting which saw approximately 600 mixed native trees being dotted around the loch. This includes an area which we have designated to the Breadalbane Club and individuals from the club who very kindly donated sums of money towards the replacement of trees. As always we amassed a team of very willing volunteers to help with the task of planting and once again our thanks go to all of them.

So once again it’s time to hunker down for the winter get the fly- tying vice out and make a start on the preparations for 2023. Speaking of which, our thanks to Les Lockey for his second year of providing us with the “A Fly to Tie and Try This Month” each month. We have had plenty of anglers, both holiday guests and members who have thoroughly enjoyed these features and have had some great success on the flies tied and tried too. The last two years of these monthly reports can be found on the loch reports if you scroll back through. Thank you Les for all your hard work with these, they’ve been a real treat.

Cottage bookings for next year are already quite busy so anyone wishing to book a cottage or chalet please get in touch with Carmel and we can hopefully sort out a cottage for you. It’s better to do it through Carmel, particularly if you are wanting to fish whilst here as she can check availability of the fishing for you.

The severely cold weather of the past few days has resulted in a completely frozen loch which is always special to look at and appreciate and thankfully only usually happens during our closed season. Luckily, we managed to get all the boats off in relatively good weather conditions and at some point over the winter we will start to address the few minor repairs that are inevitably needed.

A big thank you to all our members, guests and clubs that have supported the loch this year and well done to all those clubs that have managed to get their dates in early for next year and beyond. We look forward to seeing you all again in 2023. A lot of people are now commenting on the very relaxed and friendly atmosphere that exists at the loch and we would like to thank you for the letters of support that we regularly receive.

The fishing reports that people have been sending in to support the loch reports have also been well received and provide valuable information for forthcoming anglers …… so please keep them coming next year.

One highlight to share with you that only happened at the end of the season is that we were unknowingly nominated by one of our members for “The Rural Oscars Award” organised by the Countryside Alliance. We were informed yesterday that we have reached the Scottish final of the 2023 Countryside Alliance Awards in the Rural Enterprise category. On its own this is no mean feat, as there were over 17,000 nominations across the five categories. We are told that the winners this year will be chosen by public vote and anyone wishing to support / vote for us will be able to do so in January by going to a link which we will be able to provide once it opens in early January. We will post a one-off loch report with the link in January and get in touch with members through our members website. This prestigious award promotes and supports rural businesses across the UK. Winners of the Scottish final will go on to represent Scotland at The House of Lords in the National champions reception in May 2023. All very exciting!!

2022 was a very unusual and memorable year for many reasons, but we now feel that we have managed to reinstate the loch and its environs to a level that will benefit future generations of users. We are now hoping that we can enter a period of stability in which everyone can relax and enjoy this beautiful place.

As always, we wish you all the best for the festive season and a very happy and prosperous new year. No doubt the closed season will fly by and we look forward to seeing you all again next year.

Gareth and Carmel