Lough Sheelin Angling Report By Brenda Montgomery, IFI – September 1st to September 20th 2015
And you sail under the red light of fall The sharp, gentle chill of fall. Here as we move into the shadows of autumn. The night that brings the morning of spring – Autumn Equinox
The magic and mystery of Lough Sheelin – September 2015
Autumn is gradually closing in around Lough Sheelin with the evening darkness and creeping cold making its unwelcome presence felt earlier and earlier as we progress through the month.
Just as early autumn conditions typically waver between summer-like and more traditionally autumn-like, so does trout behaviour. As a result, a mix of summer and autumn fly fishing tactics lead to some nice successes on the water for this month.
A three week break from work afforded me the rare luxury of fishing a lake that I know so well in theory but seldom get that ‘hands on’ experience of fishing. Previously over the past few years, September’s weather has been good, an Indian Summer, but this year like seemingly all months in 2015 weather has been different – a real mixture, alternating between bright, windy, dull and cold with only a few days worthy of Keats’s ‘seasons of mists and mellow fruitfulness’. Indeed an Irish autumn can be a time where we can experience every season in one day.
With the close date of October 12th, fast approaching on Sheelin, some anglers reflexively stow away their rods once the first week or two of September are crossed off on the calendar but there are many others that see the last number of weeks as an irresistible challenge, a finishing kick to the season and they get out on the water as much as possible with the LSTPA’s annual Stream Rehabilitation Competition on October 3rd firmly in their sights as the grand finale.
Sheelin’s Seasons of mists and mellow fruitfulness
Angling numbers on this lake over the past 3 weeks having been sporadic, with week days being erratic, some days just featuring one or two boats while others saw twenty plus on the water. It’s been a mixed bag with some days being sluggish and slow while others have been full of action with some exciting fishing.
There has been plenty of movement of fish on this lake throughout the month with lots of splashy rises and pitching of trout. Now, into the end of September, the Sheelin trout are restless and on the move, sun angles have dipped, water temperatures have begun to take on a wintry feel and trout are being drawn into that natural progression away from feeding towards spawning.
In the earlier part of September Sheelin bucked its own trend and produced excellent fishing on days where historically it would not be worth casting, namely days of pelting rain and big winds. But in a way this lake on these occasions lived up to its reputation – the unpredictability of Sheelin – a new rule every day.
Monaghan angler Brian McAvinney making it look easy on Lough Sheelin with his magnificent 6 ½ lb trout caught Sept. 6th in Derrysheridan
It is said that the colour of autumn is Claret and certainly over the past number of weeks it’s been the Claret Dabbler, Mallard & Claret, Claret Bumble, Claret George, Claret Connemara, Claret Stimulator and Claret & Olive that have featured for some lovely Sheelin catches.
I am reliably informed by the Sheelin angling experts that really any fly will work at this stage in the season because of the restless mind set of the fish but and there is always a but,’ it must be fished right’ and reassuringly it seems quite a few of the Sheelin anglers are fishing it right with Northern Ireland angler Aidan Rush landing himself a 4 ½ pounder earlier in the month, Brian McAvinney with a 6.5lb, Mick Kelly with a trout tipping over the 5lb mark, Paul Burns with a 5 ½ pounder and a trout of almost 7lbs caught by Pierce Boyle on September 20th at Stoney creating an impressive line up in the ‘fishing it right’ brigade.
The heaviest fish for the week was a 6 ¾ lb trout caught by Pierce Boyle, Sussex using a Claret George.
Total number of trout recorded: 174
The Catches
Greg Long, Dublin – 2 trout at 3lbs 4ozs and 4lbs, September 12th on wet flies
Pat Burns – 2 trout at 5.5lbs and 4 ½ lbs using a Black Dabbler
Kevin Sheridan, Cavan – 1 trout at 19” on a Claret Dabbler.
Paul McAvinney, Derry fishing with Mick Kelly – 4 trout from 2 ½ – 4 ½ lbs on Dabblers and dapping hoppers.
Nile McLoughlin, Cork – 2 trout at 2 ½ and 3 ½ lbs on Dabblers and Klinkhammers.
Brian McAvinney, Monaghan – 2 trout at 6 ½ and 2 ½ lbs caught at Derrysheridan.
Mark Davis, Dublin – 4 trout heaviest at 4 ½ lbs using Dabblers, Bibios and a Detached Daddy.
Paddy Brady, Cavan – 2 trout at 3 ½ and 4 lbs on a Minkie and Claret Dabbler.
George Taylor, Leitrim – 2 trout at 2 ½ and 4lbs using Dabblers and Bibios.
Cian Murtagh, Cavan – 2 trout at 2 ½ and 3 ½ lbs on a Pearly Dabbler.
Lough Sheelin Guiding Services (www.loughsheelinguidingservices.com) 087 1245927
Michael Farrell @ 087 4194156Telephone: +353 43 6681298 Email: [email protected]
Kenneth o Keeffe Grey Duster Guiding 0868984172
For anyone interested in joining Lough Sheelin’s Angling Club – The Lough Sheelin Trout Protection Association please contact Thomas Lynch @ 087 9132033.
Lough Sheelin 2015
Please remember anglers to abide by BYE-LAW 790 which strictly prohibits
- All trolling on the lake from March 1st to April 30th (inclusive)
- From May 1st to June 15th – no trolling between 7pm –6am and no trolling under engine between 6am – 7pm
- June 16th – October 12th – no trolling under engine between 7pm – 6am.
- No trout less than 14 inches should be taken from the lake
It won’t work if you aren’t wearing it…
Water rarely gives second chances and a life jacket is just that – it saves your life, so we would implore anglers and all other users for their own safety as well as it being the law under
SI No 921 of 2005 – Pleasure Craft (Personal Flotation Devices and Operation) (Safety) Regulations 2005
A catch & release policy is actively encouraged on the lake at all times
Please remember All anglers are required to have a Fishery Permit to fish Lough Sheelin which must be purchased before going out on the lake.
The Hatches…
The Dabblers are a consistent favourite on Lough Sheelin with the Claret, Silver, Green, Pearly and Black topping the pole. The Dabbler basically came about as two anglers discussed the dressing of another great Irish lake pattern – the Gosling. Like the Gosling, the Dabbler has many variants. I can completely understand and identify with well-known guide, writer and angling instructor Stevie Munn’s passion and love for all flies but in particular his fascination of the older flies because of the fact that they are steeped in angling history and regardless of the continuous onslaught of new comers on to the trout fly market, fly fishing and fly patterns, the ones that work, are almost the same as they were over 100 years ago. With over 40 years of fishing Lough Sheelin, angling guide, Mick Kelly will concur with this as he constantly reminds me (when I produce a gaudy new comer to him) that ‘most of the flies are sold to catch fishermen and not fish’.
When fishing dabblers the fly is normally retrieved fast, or pulled and then dibbled near the boat before the next cast is made. The moment for a take is often on the first three pulls and then the dibble at the end of the retrieve, as frequently the trout will follow the fly, so get ready for the take just before you lift. A useful tip is if a strike cannot be made sometimes a well-timed roll cast can hook a fish.
The Flies…
When fishing dabblers the fly is normally retrieved fast, or pulled and then dibbled near the boat before the next cast is made. The moment for a take is often on the first three pulls and then the dibble at the end of the retrieve, as frequently the trout will follow the fly, so get ready for the take just before you lift. A useful tip is if a strike cannot be made sometimes a well-timed roll cast can hook a fish.
There was no discerning time to fish Sheelin this month, anglers caught fish both morning and afternoon. Though the leaves have begun to turn and air temperatures have begun to chill, water temperatures and levels have only changed marginally from the summertime conditions so morning till evening are still good to target feeding fish. When the temperatures start to really dip then this will shift to more of a midday activity pattern.
September is still terrestrial time and the Daddies featured for dapping, fishing on the surface film. A nice trout of over 3lbs was landed by a Dublin angler dapping a Grasshopper. The Green George, Claret George and Detached Daddy are great teaser flies and were all excellent as top droppers. The Muddlers work well on Sheelin, these flies push through the water creating a bubble which attracts the feeding trout. Other successful flies were the Grey Klinkhammer, the Claret Stimulator and the Bling Stimulator. Other ‘pusher’ flies used to create a disturbance used as a top dropper were the Bibios, Zulus and Sedgehogs. Something sleeker and more imitative on the middle like the Claret & Mallard, Silver Invicta and Wickham’s Fancy and then a flashy attractor on the point and for Sheelin we are talking about the Dunkeld, Peter Ross and Alexandra. The Bibio is versatile as it can double as both a top dropper attractor and a tweaked dry, when greased.
The Pearly Dabbler was responsible for a large number of the catches for this month. Probably most representative of small fry which the trout apparently are still feeding on, this pattern has an unusual body colour which is created by overlaying the black tying thread underbody with Pearl Mylar, creating a green pearlescent finish which has an almost translucent appearance. The Pearly Dabbler is good fished throughout the season but in particular in the early and later months.
The most success this month was down to wet fly fishing although a spattering of fish were caught on the dries.
This lake is governed by wind direction so the areas that were fished were governed each day by what natured dictated – around by Church Island, drifts from the Stony islands, Derrahorn, Lynch’s pt. Sailors Garden, Goreport, Derrysheridan, Kilnahard and Chambers all produced promising catches of trout.
The best flies were the Cinnamon Sedge, Green Peter, the Dabblers (Silver, Black, Claret, Pearly and Black), the Sooty Olive, Claret & Mallard, Bibios, Greenwell’s Glory, the Klinkhammer, Stimulators, the Silver Invicta, Minkies, the Dunkeld and the Fiery Brown.
The Executioner raised its head momentarily on Sheelin landing a beautiful 5lb trout for Duncan Byrnes, Inverness. The Executioner is traditionally a salmon fly which proves the theory that really anything goes in September with Sheelin’s restless hungry trout.
With the season pushing on, the lingering mists produce what anglers call ‘ a low sky’ which makes the water dark and seemingly drives the fish down, once the sky lifts and the sun appears, the fish start surfacing again.
Up-Coming Events
The Guider/McIntyre Cup – Saturday September 26th, starting at Kilnahard 11.0am to 6pm, this is an open fly fishing competition and gives a good warm up before the biggest competition of the season on October 5th. For further information please contact Frank McNally on 087 2374503
The Lough Sheelin Protection Association’s Stream Rehabilitation competition has been set for Saturday October 3rd. Match booklets will be out by mid- August and will also be available to download off the LSTPA’s web site.
The Cavan/Monaghan Garda Divisional Fly Fishing Championship and Open Competition – Sunday October 10th from Kilnahard Pier, fishing from 11am to 6pm. This competition is for the heaviest fish (visitors) and the heaviest fish (Cavan/Monaghan Garda members), presentation of prizes and refreshment dinner at Crover House Hotel at 7pm sharp. Any queries please contact Dessie McEntee on 047 77216 or 086 8937568.
Brenda Montgomery IFI
