After the recent high water conditions we would normally expect to see a lot of carcasses of salmon after having spawned. This, for some reason has not been the case this year. I am very sad to report that my Good Friend James MacDonald passed away early on Thursday morning. James spent much of his working life in the Merchant Navy, with his beloved Ben Line. When he retired in the mid 1980s I managed to persuade him to take on some seasonal ghillying. During the next twenty five years he proved to be an immense asset to the Thurso River and became friends with many people from all over the world. James will missed by many, many people.