Kelso fishing museum now angling for September opening after lockdown hold-up

A new fishing museum due to have opened its doors in Kelso last month after £75,000 was raised to make it a reality is now set to net a September launch date instead.
Kelso fishing museum project co-ordinators Alastair Brooks, Bill Quarry, Morag Hume and Eoin Fairgrieve are now pencilling in a September opening date.Kelso fishing museum project co-ordinators Alastair Brooks, Bill Quarry, Morag Hume and Eoin Fairgrieve are now pencilling in a September opening date.
Kelso fishing museum project co-ordinators Alastair Brooks, Bill Quarry, Morag Hume and Eoin Fairgrieve are now pencilling in a September opening date.

Work was nearing completion on fitting out the River Tweed Salmon Fishing Museum in the old tourist information centre at Kelso Town Hall before it was brought to a halt by the start of the Covid-19 lockdown in March, dashing hopes of it opening to the public in May.

However, the fishing enthusiasts behind the project, given a £10,000 in handout from Scottish Border Council’s community fund earlier in the year, are now pencilling in a September opening date, dependent on relaxation of the current lockdown.

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A spokesperson for Kelso Community Council said: “The museum was due to open in March. However, like everything else, the coronavirus crisis put a stop to work in March.

“The museum now hopes to open in September, provided that government guidance allows.

“In the meantime, work continues to transform the room, and it’s great to hear that all the work has been carried out by local tradespeople, meaning that Kelso really does have its stamp on this latest tourist attraction.

“Those that have been in the town hall will have noticed a small renovated fishing boat that has been turned into a planter. This is sitting just outside the museum where the tattie box planters were until last year.

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“By the time the museum opens, there will be a commissioned sculpture of a fisherman that will sit in the boat.”

The museum, to open free of charge 10 months a year, is expected to attract up to 15,000 visitors annually.

It will be decked out like an old fishing bothy, displaying up to 1,500 angling artefacts.

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