Andrew McLaren Jenkins, always known as Sandy, was born on 9 April 1937 in London. His family lived in Sunningdale in Berkshire and, as he was growing up, the rural nature of his surroundings inspired a lasting love of nature. During the second world war he and his brother Jock were evacuated to Scotland, living first on the Isle of Mull and then in a place called Moffat. While there he developed a passion for fishing, having watched the salmon swim past from a bridge over Moffat Water. When the war ended in 1945, he returned to his family in Berkshire, before attending Canford School in Dorset. In 1956, when he began to study medicine at Edinburgh University Medical School, his family had moved up to Scotland and bought a small farm in West Linton, Peebleshire. He retained the knowledge of plants gained by his first year studies of botany all his life and had a reputation for testing visitors to his home on the Latin names of plants.Known to be a diligent student, it was also said of him that he had once consumed a pint of beer standing on his head in a tavern called Deacon Brodies in Edinburgh. He graduated MB, BCh in 1962 and did various house jobs in Edinburgh, beginning to specialise in surgery. Passing the fellowship of the college in 1966, he embarked on three years of research investigating the rejection of transplant organs by laboratory rats. From 1972 to 1976 he held the post of honorary consultant in general surgery and kidney transplantation at the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary and obtained the higher degree of ChM in 1973. Sadly he lost several close friends and colleagues at this time; they all died of hepatitis. When he was moved to the vascular unit at the hospital, he began to forge a career in vascular surgery which was to lead to it becoming a speciality in its own right with Sandy being one of the most proficient practitioners. A friendly and popular man, he had a reputation for remaining calm in the operating theatre even in the most challenging situations and he inspired a generation of trainee vascular surgeons to follow his path. In 2002 he left the NHS and, five years later, retired completely. Throughout his life he continued to enjoy the love of salmon fishing first kindled by Moffat Water. He travelled all over the world, particularly to Canada, Alaska, Russia and Norway, fishing and indulging his love of wild places. After retirement he took the time to learn the Russian language which enhanced his many trips to the Kola Peninsula. Closer to home he loved the Scottish Borders countryside and was a keen marksman, enjoying the conviviality of shooting expeditions. He also wrote a popular book about his fishing experiences *Cast of a Lifetime* (Eccleston Publishing, 2008) and an historical novel set in Norway and Russia during the second world war *The Ring and the Swastika* (Troubadour Publishing, 2016). He met his wife Pat at Leith Hospital where she was working as a theatre staff nurse – it was said the encounter was during an operation for haemorrhoids. After some years of ill health, he died on 28 February 2022 aged 84 and was survived by his wife, children and grandchildren.