The Commonty, is a fishing beat located down river from Potarch Bridge.
It is accessed by a fishing road that descends gently through coniferous woodland to the river and is a secluded, peaceful and tranquil stretch of water, covering approximately 1.5 km on the south side of the River Dee. It is co-owned by Ballogie Estate Trust and Finzean Estate. The beat has 15 salmon pools of extremely varied character and fishes well at all heights.
Commonty was badly affected by Storm Frank at the beginning of this year and the subsequent spate; it suffered significant bank damage and the fishing hut was washed away. Over the last six months work has been ongoing to rectify the damage, Ballogie Estate has been working closely with the Pearls in Peril (Scottish National Heritage) project to repair areas of the riverbank and then initiated the replacement of the fishing hut.
The hut was made by Graham Sandals and is constructed from Scottish Larch frame and cladding and is insulated with British sheep’s wool. The interior cladding is FSCt&g red pine with trims around the window etc cut from Scottish larch. Graham’s aim is”… to produce buildings that have both as low of a carbon footprint as possible using where possible the most natural materials and produce something that is very durable.”
Graham also commented “I had wanted to make a fishing hut for some time so was delighted to be approached by Ballogie Estate to do so. I look forward to seeing the hut silvered down with age and blend into the landscape of the river.”
The completion of the fishing hut was celebrated this weekend with an informal picnic lunch held at Commonty; attended by the Nicol family (Ballogie Estate), Donald Farquarson (Finzean Estate), Mark Bilsby (River Dee Trust) and the Sandals, Fraser and Stanton families. The Fraser family had also been fishing during the week, reporting lots of fish in all the pools and catching a total of ten, making Commonty one of the most productive beats of the week on the River Dee.
The hut has a wood burning stove, a small gas stove for cooking and toilet facilities; it is warm and inviting and perfect for sharing peaceful fishing days with friends and family enjoying all of the surrounding flora and fauna.
To fish on Commonty, please contact Ballogie Estate, day rod rates are available:
www.ballogie-estate.co.uk, Tel 013398 86497