Ian Young has just spent an enjoyable session in Scotland catching brown trout with light dropshot tackle.

I christened my E-Sox Dropshot Rod recently, but not in the way I originally got it for. After failing to get out on the canal just 500 metres behind my house, I took it 550 miles to Scotland! I go to the Highlands of Scotland, north of Inverness, every year and do a lot of walking, but also try to fish at least once in the week on the little lochs up over the heather covered hills. It involves a couple hours of walking over rough ground and up water falls to reach the right lochs, as some seem devoid of fish while others are crammed full.

Once we got to the first of the ‘full’ ones I tried fly fishing for about 10 minutes unsuccessfully (I think in need some coaching and anger management counselling) before walking up the waterfall to the next loch and out with my 7ft 6in E-Sox Dropshot Rod. I decided to try a red-headed Holographic Micro Fry Paddle Tail on a small jig head tied to 30 inches of 0.20mm Supplex Fluorocarbon, which I had previously prepared for the canal perch.

On the first cast and no more than 15 feet from the bank a fish took the lure in very shallow water. I’m not sure who jumped more, the fish, me or the dog! Anyway, it came off almost immediately but in the next 30 minutes I had eight brown trout and lost two more!

The water is very, very clear and shallow, so by having a few casts, or a fish, and then moving along the bank a bit and casting again I had the best sport I have ever had up there.

All the fish were also bigger than I have ever caught there before. I don’t know if it was the line and lures or just the natural stock of brown trout have grown bigger this year. Whatever the reason, they are excellent sport on a little Dropshot Rod and light braid main line – with the added bonus of a fantastic dinner courtesy of the three fish I kept!