The sun glints over Neidpath Fell,
And lights the forest grey;
The dewdrop glistens on the grass,
The cock proclaims the day.
Then up, my lads! cast care aside,
Throw business to the deil;
We’ll fill our baskets frae yon stream
That winds by Ashestiel,
Let others toil frae day to day,
This warl’s gear to win,
Or seek in pleasure’s vain pursuit,
For joys they ne’er can fin;
But gie to me my weel worn creel,
My ain rod in my han,
And tho’ I’m poor, I envy not
The noblest in the lan’.
(Songs of the Edinburgh Angling Club)
Whether you are a fly fisherman filling your basket from the River Tweed like the angler in the song, or a scientific dipper with a net and a jam jar, there are hours of sport and fascination in Scotland’s inland waters.
After we have explored the fish of lochs, burns and rivers, we can move downstream to the salt water of the firth [estuary] and out to the sea.