There’s really nothing quite like seeing salmon running waterfalls in autumn, it’s a spectacular sight and one that sparks emotion too—many of us feel a corresponding disappointment or joy depending on whether a fish makes it to the top or fall back down with resounding a plop of failure.

Perthshire is a great place to see this amazing natural phenomenon and Nathan loves the challenge of capturing it on camera. In this article are some of his best photos of salmon leaping, but we also encourage you to try and see it for yourself. Some of our favourite posts are the Buchanty Spout, the Hermitage and the Linn of Tummel.

While you watch, perhaps with a flask of soup and some blankets, spare a thought for the epic journey the salmon have been on, from river to sea and back again:

Newly hatched Atlantic salmon are without scales at first—they start to form when the fish reaches about 3cm in length. Scales grow at about the same speed as the fish itself and a salmon will have the same number of scales for most of its life.

The salmon progresses through the alevin stage, when it stays in the breeding ground, to fry, when it leaves the breeding ground and begin to actively hunt, to parr—when it prepares to migrate to the Atlantic.

The salmon will spend usually up to four years in the river it hatched in, or until it’s about 15cm long. A this point its appearance alters and behaviour changes—it begins to swim with the current instead of against it. With these changes, the parr become smoult and migrate to the sea. Once large enough—at the grilse stage of growth—they return to their native river to spawn. Normally they only do this once or twice during their life cycle because of the strain it puts on them.

Salmon cease eating in fresh water, so it’s unclear why they will take a salmon fishing fly. They also change colour the longer they are in the river system. Silver when first coming from the sea, they gradually change into a reddish brown. This is likely the reaction of the freshwater on their scales, but is also helpful for camouflage.

The males in particular can often turn bright colours, and they also develop a hook on their jaw as they get closer to breeding time. So next time you see a salmon leap, look at the colour, as it can tell you at what stage that fish is at its life cycle.

We never get tired of seeing the salmon leaping, and it’s something everyone should see if they can. We believe that a little understanding about the natural world really increases our enjoyment of it, so we hope this article enhances your experience when you go salmon spotting.