Guides Jason O’Riordan and Ken Whelan share their knowledge and wisdom with anglers on the Slaney. Jason reports;
Last weekend I travelled up to the village of Bunclody, Wexford to meet up with my good friend Ken Whelan to deliver our sea trout course on the magnificent Clohamon beat of the river Slaney. The first element of this course took place on Saturday afternoon and consisted of detailed information on the sea trout itself(delivered by Ken) and tactics for catching them, particularly at night on the fly (delivered by yours truly).
Once the classroom presentations were delivered and some excellent questions from the eight participants answered we were joined by another pal of ours and pro fly tyer Denis O’Toole. Denis tied the flies featured in Kens sea trout book “Nomads of the tides”, and he tied a sea trout tube fly for each of the course participants which they added to the complimentary box of six flies they already had received.

We then headed over to a local hotel and had a fantastic three course meal. That really set us up for a few hours night fishing! From there we went to the fabulous Clohamon beat which had some lovely water and excellent facilities. Everyone set up their tackle and spread out to their fishing spots assisted by the course delivery team. The fishing was slow to start but eventually a few nice fish were hooked (and lost) on surface lures and then one of the participants landed a nice finnock.
At about 2am it was time to finish up and head to our accommodation. After a substantial breakfast we all met up again on Sunday morning at the Clohamon beat. I did a demonstration on some daytime tactics including wet fly and streamer fishing. The participants fished on for a while and some more fish up to about 1.5lbs were hooked.
We have already received some really positive feedback on the course from the participants. They were very complimentary of the fishery and the combination of theory and practice in the course and inclusion of the flies and fly tying session. Once again our resident photographer Kuba Standera did an awesome job. Looking forward to our next course already!
To make a booking with Jason contact..
Jason O’Riordan
Mackenzie Pro Guide and an IFFF Qualified Fly Casting Instructor
Notes: Jason has a lifetime of experience in fishing and guiding on the rivers, lakes and coastline in the area. Jason has given talks on fishing techniques at the leading angling shows in Ireland. Game Fishing Ireland offers guided packages for salmon, river trout, lake trout and saltwater game species. Fishing packages can vary in price depending on the target species and time of year. A typical package can include permits, travel, guiding, and packed lunch. Tackle hire is also available.
Address: Dungarvan, Co. Waterford.
Telephone: +353 (0) 87 296 5712
E-mail: [email protected] Website: www.gamefishingireland.ie
To make a booking with Ken contact..
Ken Whelan
Email: [email protected]
Phone: +353 (0)86 7835900
Web: http://www.kenwhelan.info
Ken runs his own fisheries consultancy. He has been a keen angler since a very young age and has written extensively on angling topics. He has fished in many remote locations throughout the world and he is a qualified angling instructor (AAPGAI and STANIC) and angling guide. Ken has also produced, scripted and presented many films and videos on various aspects of Irish fisheries and angling. He is a regular radio contributor to Mooney Goes Wild on RTE. Lucky to have weaved his hobby into his job, he is never quite sure whether he is working or enjoying himself!
DISCLAIMER NOTE: Inland Fisheries Ireland do not support any brand over another.