In the last week we have experienced the stark contrast of dreamy, summer-like sunshine and the harsh reality of our first winter storms. Given all the unsettled weather it is little wonder that there is little to report on the sea angling front. Pike anglers seem to have the lion’s share of the fishing, though there is a bit of coarse fishing to report on also…

skate
Tip of the Iceberg… Graham Smith wins Catch of the Week with this 170lb skate

The Polish Anglers of Northern Ireland fished the Autumn Trapper Cup on Lough Muckno on Sunday. The anglers endured miserable conditions at times to return some respectable enough bags. Tomasz Bartoszko was the overall winner with 7.000kg, nearly a full Kilo ahead of the next best angler. Congratulations and best wishes go to those junior anglers who qualified for FIPS-ed World Youth Angling Championships in 2016 to be fished in Portugal. We look forward to reporting on their achievements on River Sorraia at Coruche in these pages next year.

Four Dutch anglers fishing in Monaghan enjoyed great sport last week catching good numbers of fish each day and bagging a few good pike along the way. Pike to 20lb were caught on a mix of lures but towards the end of the week deadbaits performed better. There are a number of good reports from across the Midlands with some decent pike reported from Loughs Derravaragh  and Ennel, the Inny River and across into Lough Ree. A mix of methods proved successful, including fly. Perch were also reported on jigs at Derravargh over some deep water marks. An Italian angler in Boyle gave a fly tying demo in local pub and then put this wares to the test the following day. He succeeded in catching some lovely double figure pike on the flies tied the night before, maybe they were anointed with Uisce Beatha? There were more pike on fly for another angler fishing in Mayo which has become a regular haunt for many pike anglers through the winter months.

The 3rd leg of the Leinster Youth Qualifiers was fished at Arklow on Sunday. Conditions were more than a little unpleasant and at times far from ideal. The anglers fishing the event proved their mettle and toughed it out, even managing to catch some decent fish while they were at it. A broad array of species were caught, including some nice codling, whiting, dab, flounder and rockling among others. Kayak angler Graham Smith gives a great account of a recent trip in pursuit of skate. To start he had good fun catching bait – lovely coalies to 2lb and more. Then there was the excitement of hooking and playing a big skate. And big is no exaggeration –  the first fish landed was 5′ 4″ across the wings and 78″ long, giving an estimated weight of 170lb. This is a huge fish to catch from a kayak and is a very worthy Catch of the Week winner. Another big fish was lost adding to the drama of the day but it didn’t spoil an outing that also saw doggies, spurdog and some big squid landed.

As we go to press, Status Yellow and Orange wind warnings are in place, and nearly every county is feeling the effects Abigail, Ireland’s first named storm. The weekend will likely be a wash out and it will be colder too but there might be some hope for early next week. Having said that unsettled weather returns on Tuesday…

Safe fishing to all and tight lines, especially here in Ireland.

Myles Kelly

Catch, Photo, Release

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pike
The pot of pike at the end of the rainbow in Mayo…