The last few days have been very productive for anglers in Ireland and though the weather was again fairly mixed and sometimes unsettled there was a move towards the warmer temperature of the last couple of days which has injected a bit of extra life into many fisheries – inshore, offshore on lakes and rivers…

Fishing on the Duff this week was fairly slow but there was a few salmon caught  including two fish over 14lb. Some good salmon were also had on the Drowes along with a handful of grilse, but fishing there has been inconsistent. It was another impressive week  on the Moy. The total reported catch for the week was 221 salmon, including the first of the season for the Moy Fisheries Ridge Pool. Good salmon fishing was also reported at Ballisodare, Lough Beltra, the River Bonet and Garavogue. The welcome drop in water levels, and the arrival of grilse in good numbers, has seen the best week of the season so far on the Galway Weir, with 30 fish reported landed, and several more hooked and lost. The Delphi Fishery reported some excellent catches last week and in the early part of this week with anglers landing up to 3 salmon in an afternoon and good numbers of fish over 10lb. There were great reports of specimen sea trout and salmon from Currane at the end of last week but over the weekend the fishing slowed down with the change in the winds.  The Feale also had a quiet weekend despite good water there, while on the Owenmore 1 salmon was landed on Sunday and a few sea trout were also caught. Salmon fishing on the Laune has been described as fairly good but not many fish are being reported. Good numbers of fish have been reported to be running the Munster Blackwater but the run of fish on the Slaney has slowed with little to report over the last week.

The Mayfly is well and truly up now and good catches were had on Lough Derg by anglers fishing the Spent Gnat. Hopefully the warm evenings will see the Spent fishing last a little longer than usual following the poor fishing had through most of May. Angling on Arrow has improved somewhat in recent days, with much better hatches of Mayfly and the prospect of Spent Gnat fishing looming in coming days. On Lough Conn the mixed and changeable winds over the past week have led to very changeable conditions, resulting in mixed results for anglers. Small Olives have still been hatching in relatively large numbers in some parts, while Mayfly hatches remain rather localised. On Corrib good hatches of fly have not yet produced traditional Mayfly fishing and though a lot of fish are still being taken on Olives and Buzzers many anglers described the fishing as frustrating. On Lough Mask trout fishing continues to be very productive. Mayfly hatches have been sparse so far, with the main hatch in the south-eastern corner of the lake (Saints Island – Inishard area). The buzzer hatch on the warmer days has also been incredible with some fine trout taken on various buzzer patterns. Mayfly patterns are taking trout on Loughs Sheelin and Owel now and though there was a good hatch of fly on Ennell over the weekend the fishing has not been great. Some good fly fishing was reported on Lough Melvin but there was no mention of the Mayfly. River anglers have seen a huge improvement in their sport as the warmer weather has brought on hatches and we had encouraging reports this week from the Suir, Laune, Ryewater and Fane.

Joe Byrne (Courtown Harbour Angling Centre) with a specimen 3.3lb Gilthead Bream
Joe Byrne (Courtown Harbour Angling Centre) with a specimen 3.3lb Gilthead Bream

The warmer and more settled weather has seen sea angling improve and this week’s Catch of the Week goes to Joe Byrne of Courtown Harbour Angling Centre who caught and released a 3.3lb gilthead bream, the first report of a gilthead this year. Another first in this report is a cod caught by saltwater fly angler Jacques Bronkhorst fishing in Cork Harbour. Jacques and guide Richie Ryan also had some good pollack fishing on fly. Charter boat fishing in the area is starting to pick up now that water temperatures are increasing. The increase in temperatures has also seen fishing improve at Waterville where pollack have returned to all their regular haunts after a long absence. Fly anglers targetting mullet in the Caherciveen area also reported good fishing last week. Charter fishing on the Shannon Estuary and off Loop Head had a slow start to the season but anglers fishing on the Clare Dragoon are reporting much improved fishing now. Anglers fishing on Killala Bay endured some very wet weather to land good catches of pollack and ling aboard Leah. Some good fishing was also reported by charter boat anglers on Donegal Bay. On a rescheduled Fisheries Awareness Week event at Belmullet juvenile anglers caught a mix of coalfish, pollack, ling, gurnard and wrasse. Sea anglers are reminded that bass fishing is currently closed to protect the spawning stock. If you accidentally catch a bass just safely release it.

Big bags of roach were reported by anglers on the Inny where there is a strong spawning run of fish. Rod Scott won the Mal Scott Memorial Cup fished in and around the lakes and rivers of Enniskillen, Co.Fermanagh with a total of 64,650kg. A single day’s haul of 62kg ensured Fint Brennan’s win at the Oaklands Match fished over the weekend. An English angler fishing Swan Lake Lough Gowna reported 100lb of Bream in recent days and there is a lot of good fishing being reported in the wider area. A Belgian couple fishing in Longford had some good tench to 6lb fishing with Kevin Lyons of Melview Lodge.

Staying in Longford, a pair of Italian anglers fishing with Kevin Lyons had great pike fishing despite the mixed and sometimes unpleasant weather on offer. Pawel Orlow from the Fishmaniak Polish fishing club has reported  some great pike fishing in Co Monaghan with a lot of nice double figured fish even during the few warm settled days that we had. Lively pike fishing was also reported from the East Clare lakes, though most of the fish caught have been jacks. Better pike fishing was reported from Lough Derg and parts of the lower Shannon.

Stay safe, its the law

Bank holiday weekends are notorious for associated drownings especially when the weather is any way sunny. If you are fishing from a boat you should wear a lifejacket, and take the time to ensure that it is functioning and fitted correctly.

The Pleasure Craft (Personal Flotation Devices and Operation)(Safety) Regulations 2005 (S.I. No. 921 of 2005) apply to pleasure craft being operated in Irish waters. A suitable PFD must be worn in the following situations;

  • By anyone on board an open craft that is under 7 meters in length.
  • By anyone on deck on a craft that is under 7 meters length.
  • By anyone under the age of 16 on board an open craft or on deck of any other type of craft.

Whilst not a requirement of the Regulations, it is recommended that anyone using a boat alone should wear a PFD at all times regardless of weather conditions or the size of the craft. Anglers fishing from the rocks should make sure they know their tides and keep an eye out for rogue waves.

Angling outlook

Tomorrow will be a little cooler and cloudier in light to moderate north-westerly.  More cloud and patchy rain on Saturday. Cooler again with highest temperatures 13 to 16 degrees, warmest in the South and Southeast in a moderate Northwesterly breeze. Sunday looks like it will become warmer with light Southwest winds developing.  Bank holiday Monday looks warm as well with temperatures between 17 and 20 degrees and very little wind.  Tuesday and Wednesday of next week look warm and mostly dry days with sunny spells and top temperatures of 18 to 21 degrees.

In fairness that’s got to bring hope to lots of anglers planning to make the most of the long weekend…

Tight lines,

Myles Kelly
Catch, Photo, Release

If you have an angling story to share with the Irish Angling Update please send it to [email protected].

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John Paul Breakers with his personal best 12lbs 3oz trout taken on Lough Corrib, May 2013
John Paul Breakers with his personal best 12lbs 3oz trout taken on Lough Corrib, May 2013