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This big predator took a salmon lure in one of the Kinnaird Beat salmon pools near Dunkeld. Normally pike are found in the quieter deeper reaches of the Tay and other Scottish rivers however this one was hooked in streamy fly fishing water which is unusual.
There's Northern pike to be found in the deeper slower moving pools of the middle River Tay between Dunkeld & Pitlochry. Pike prefer the deep pools like this one on the Dunkeld House Beat near Dunkeld.
Here's 2 River Tay salmon fishers spin fishing their lures across the Rock Pool on the Kinnaird Beat which is a very good pool for this Tay salmon fishing tactic. This is a deep salmon holding pool and you can see the way the deep water commences at the edge of the underwater sand bar.
This fine pike was caught on the River Tay near Pitlochry in a renowned salmon pool which I was fishing for salmon. A nice surprise to see a perfect predator like this show up and at first contact I was convinced it was a salmon due to the prolific salmon lie it was occupying.
There's Northern pike to be found in the deeper slower moving pools of the middle River Tay between Dunkeld & Pitlochry. Pike prefer the deep pools where there isn't much flow and sometimes they'll have a go at the salmon angler's lures too.
The slower deeper moving stretches of the River Tay upstream of the River Tummel/Tay confluence often produce pike as these fish prefer this type of water much more that streamy salmon fly water. I've seen pike landed by salmon fishers up to 20lbs in weight however they are a rare occurrence compared to catching salmon on the Tay.

Are There Pike In The Scottish Rivers

Professional Scottish salmon guide Jock Monteith's career information about where pike can be found on Scotland's famous River Tay.

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Are There Pike In The Scottish Rivers

what other Species of Fish are In The River Tay

Scotland's famour River Tay has many more species of fish than just salmon. There's a healthy population of wild brown trout, sea trout and graying in the Tay along with roach, perch, eels and minnows to name but a few. The biggest predatory fish in addition to Atlantic salmon however is the Northern Pike (Esox Lucius) which are sometimes encountered on the famous Tay and other Scottish salmon rivers.

Where To Find Scottish river Pike

Having fished and professionally served on the River Tay for most of my life I'm fascinated by all other fish species that are in the Scottish rivers and where they can be located. Pike are generally ambush specialists so you're more likely to find them in the deeper calmer stretches of the Tay where they can expend littlle energy while in pursuit of their prey. This however doesn't always apply as I've personally hooked pike in faster watered salmon pools however only when they've been lurking in about the deeper calmer water close to the riverbanks. 

How To Catch Pike In The Scottish rivers

Whenever I've encountered pike on the River Tay they've readily taken the regular salmon spinning lures we mainly use like the 30g Toby 'Salmo'. There are dedicated pike anglers who come to fish the upper middle reaches of the Tay who will use dead baits for pike whether ledgered or fished up off the riverbed with the aid of a pike float. These days there are so many amazing pike bait fish replicas available to purchase in most fishing tackle stores that there's no reason why anyone would go to pike inhabited water and not catch a pike on one of these superb actioned replica fish lures. A wire trace while pike fishing is essential so you don't learn the hard way as to how good a pike's teeth are at slicing through monofilament!

 

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