Royally-appointed fishing rod maker is getting ready to ‘wind it up’ in Strathspey
“Dear Harry, I was so touched to receive that marvellous Tweed reel cover for Christmas!
“From now on I shall be able to tie up my reel in relative comfort and security and could not be more grateful to you for such a generous thought.
“Yours most sincerely, Charles.”
That’s the latest thank you from His Majesty the King to Harry Jamieson, who has been making bespoke fishing rods for the great and the good of the world for years.
Queen Camilla, Billy Connolly, Nick Faldo, Greg Norman and so many others have chosen to reach out to Harry Jamieson of Nethy Bridge for decades.
He and his wife Chris live in their lovingly restored Craigmore Mill, where Harry works in his ‘by royal appointment’ workshop in the grounds so beautifully and successfully tended by his wife.
Holding a precious piece of greenheart wood from Guyana, Harry spoke of his passion for the work that has sustained him ever since he was a young ski instructor on Cairngorm looking for some indoors work to keep him busy when the snow had gone.
“It will take me about three months to make a rod out of this,” he said.
“It’s a lovely hard wood and there are no shortcuts. You just have to keepplaning, planing until it’s right for fashioning into the finished article - but that’s another phase of the work and it all takes time, if you’re going to do it right.”
There are some cherished notes of thanks in his collection. Here’s Queen Camilla in 2005 on receiving another Jamieson special:
“Dear Harry, I am thrilled with my new fishing rod and wanted to write and thank you for your incredible kindness. I have already tried it out on the Naver, but sadly the water was too low and I didn’t manage to catch anything.
“Nevertheless I greatly enjoyed the experience!
“This comes with my warmest good wishes and heartfelt thanks, Camilla.”
But Harry admitted last week that time has taken its toll.
As he approaches his 80s, health issues have become a factor and he admits it’s time to slow down somewhat and reflect on a lifetime of satisfying the demands of his customers.
“I’ve decided to wind down and make way for a younger person - there will be someone out there with the time to carry on the mantle of producing custom-made fishing rods for those who want them.”
Harry has already started making space in his workshop, donating a number of high-precision tools, some of them historic pieces, to the Badenoch Men’s Shed project, much to the delight of organiser Colin Whitton.
Mr Whitton said: “We’re so grateful to this amazing man who has been such an inspiration to so many and can now inspire a whole new generation locally to fashion their own creations, while sharing the companionship that’s so vital to their mental health and wellbeing.”
Meanwhile, Harry will do his bit for Chris’ exquisite gardens, which she opens annually to the delight of local charities that have benefited from her expertise.
Chris said the public had been hugely supportive over the years: “For the last 12 years at least, the open garden day has been for Marie Curie, Badenoch & Strathspey branch - this year we raised more than ever , £1065!”
