A soggy sporran has been returned to its owner after a fisherman Highland Reel-ed in the catch of a lifetime.
Angler Jamie McCulloch had been fishing on the Banchory beat of the River Dee this week when he felt an unusual tug on his line.
When he finally landed his prize, Mr McCulloch said he was amazed to discover he hadn’t hooked a salmon, and instead had dredged up a sealskin sporran stuffed with cash, keys, a phone and a wallet.
And astonishingly, after an online appeal via the net, Mr Mcculloch yesterday reunited the family heirloom – and all of its sodden contents – with Culter chef Arran Greig.
Mr Greig, 28, said he lost the sporran over the weekend at a wedding, when he decided to take off his shoes and socks and wade across the River Dee in his kilt.
He said: “I was at a wedding, and I thought that the river looked rather shallow and the spot across the river would make a fantastic photo opportunity.
“My kilt was already wet from the rain earlier that day, so I thought, what the hell.
“Everyone was cheering me on, so I just went for it.
“As I was going across, I started to stumble a little bit, and I managed to catch myself but ripped the sporran off with my knee – and it had my phone, my bank card, my keys for my house and all my cash.
“But the main thing was the sporran itself – it has been in the family quite a while, so I was absolutely thrilled when I found out that someone had found it.
“The way it was found is a bit strange, but I’m not surprised it’s made its way back to me because it was full of things with my name on it, and I thought there was always a chance it could get washed up on a bank somewhere.
“I can’t thank Jamie enough for returning it.”
Mr Greig added: “I would also like to apologise to Neil Selbie Kilt Hire who, despite me risking wrecking one of their excellent outfits, still kindly rang me up to let me know my sporran had been found.”
