Salmon Netting on the Tweed
As seen in This Is Northumberland 2023
One of the world’s great salmon rivers rises from Tweed’s Well in the lonely windswept Lowther Hills, some six miles north of Moffat in the western half of Scotland’s Southern Uplands. Several small burns trickle down from the surrounding peaks to join the swelling Tweed as it travels initially north and then east, steering an extraordinary course through the heart of the Scottish Borders on its way to the North Sea. For 17 miles the river serves as the historic border between England and Scotland, but with 2 miles to go, it meanders through entirely English territory - a consequence of Berwick-upon-Tweed finally being taken by the English in 1482. The town had previously changed hands between England and Scotland a staggering thirteen times. The river ends its journey in a flourishing "s" shape around the magnificent walled town of Berwick before flowing into the North Sea at Tweedmouth.
There are many still pools and freshwater tributaries along the length of the Tweed, providing excellent spawning grounds for wild Atlantic salmon. As a result, the migratory fish has been a source of food and profit in the area for thousands of years, with records of angling on the river tracing as far back as the Romans. The first dedicated fisheries are evidenced as early as the 11th century, and by the 13th century vast numbers of Berwick wild salmon were being salted, packed in barrels, and exported as far as London. At the time, although local rules existed, the river was a lawless place. With a high demand for wild salmon and little protection for spawning or smolt migration, overfishing ensued. Numerous Acts and laws were then duly passed to protect the dwindling salmon stock throughout the 18th and 19th centuries. These changes led to the rule that exists to this day – the only permitted method of fishing commercially on the Tweed is by ‘Net and Coble’ – an ancient technique which has remained largely unchanged for nearly 900 years.
To the casual observer, fishing by net from a flat-bottomed boat known as a ‘coble’ appears physically hard but technically simple. In practice, this net fishing technique requires considerable skill, an intimate knowledge of the local environment, awareness of the running habits of salmon, and a deal of luck! As one fisherman holds the end of the net at the water’s edge, another crew member rows the small wooden boat across the river, paying out the net in a semi-circular ‘shot’. Gradually, the coble is rowed back to land, encircling any passing fish in the decreasing draw of the net. The net is then wound in on a winch, hopefully, brimming with fish. This method of catching salmon has endured for hundreds of years through both conservation and adaptation. Local men and boys have honed these skills through a combination of direct experience and of knowledge which has been passed down from crew to crew over generations.
With the arrival of ice-packing and improving rail infrastructure, the local net fishing industry thrived towards the end of the 18th Century. Berwick Salmon was distributed in great quantities by rail and sea, supplying some of the country’s best hotels and restaurants. At its peak, there were more than three dozen salmon-netting fisheries in the tidal section of the Tweed, providing employment for up to 800 people. However, new-fangled competition from salmon farms, chronic disinvestment, and tightening legislation in the 1980s soon forced the industry into a rapid decline. Many of the net fisheries on the Tweed began to close and following an organised buy-out of stations by the Atlantic Salmon Conservation Trust, Berwick Salmon Fisheries Company ceased operation in 1988, ending its 220 year history on the river.
Many locals feared this would be the end of net and coble fishing on the Tweed, and if it were not for the inspirational commitment of Michael Hindhaugh, perhaps it would have been. From the age of ten Michael, along with his friends, helped out at various netting stations along the Tweed during the eighties. Today, he operates the town’s last remaining commercial net fishery at Gardo, nestled under the sandstone arches of Berwick Old Bridge. Between April and September, he runs a crew of retired fishermen, plus a couple of enthusiastic students who take on work during the summer months. Their catch makes available the only legal means to purchase Tweed wild salmon, as it is illegal to sell rod-caught salmon.
However, Michael is the first to concede that the company can never operate as a conventional business based on salmon sales alone. He tells us “In a good year, we’ll just about break even. But it’s not about making a profit. It’s about keeping the town’s fishing heritage alive on the Tweed”. That’s why in 2015 Michael established the River Tweed Wild Salmon Company - a social enterprise aiming to ensure the continuation of the centuries-old practice, and the preservation of the traditional skills of net and coble fishing.
““On a good year, we’ll break even. As a social enterprise, it’s not about making a living but keeping the practice alive here on the Tweed.””
Michael believes that increasing public awareness of the practice is pivotal to its survival and today his organisation now makes unique, hands-on experience days available to all. Groups of family, friends or colleagues are invited to come down to the river, don a pair of waders, and participate in an authentic net fishing experience. Each session lasts approximately 5 hours, with morning, afternoon, and evening sessions all available throughout the season. Following a brief safety talk in a traditional fishing shiel, you will proceed to the netting station where you will take up various positions within the operation. By the end of the session, you will have tried and completed all aspects of fishing by net and coble. With a little luck, depending on that day’s catch, you may even be able to take home a fish of your own. Plan ahead, and Michael can have a freshly caught Tweed Wild Salmon prepared for your consumption at one of Berwick’s splendid independent restaurants that very evening.
Whilst Michael is zealous in his approach to preserving historic methods, he is also acutely aware of the urgency to maintain the Tweed’s salmon population. As well as adhering to the stringent regulations imposed by the Scottish Government, he has taken it upon himself to implement his own measures to ensure that The River Tweed Wild Salmon Company is engaged in a sustainable practice that will not harm the interests of future generations. Although the fishery has permission to net from four sites at Gardo, he will often only use one site at a time. This allows for regular intermissions in the process which enable salmon a free run upstream. Furthermore, mindful of protecting spring salmon stocks, rather than commencing netting at the earliest stage of the season, he delays the start by a few weeks every year. The ethos of his operation is centred on taking ownership of responsible fishing and the crew recognises a healthy and sustainable population of wild fish is integral for a harvestable surplus to exist at all.
Despite the loss of nets along the river, fishing by means of net and coble is deeply intertwined in Berwick’s past and remains integral to the cultural identity of the town today. Whatever the future holds for salmon netting on the Tweed, Michael Hindhaugh and his crew continue to do all they can to preserve the intangible heritage of net fishing in the estuary of one of the world’s great salmon rivers.
Photography by Brandon Robson
