Mornings and evenings are distinctly cooler now and for most game angling is over for another year. There are still a few waters that fish to October 12th, but it is pike, coarse and sea anglers we will be hearing most from until we get into next year…
Salmon season is all but over on this island and it has been an interesting season. Catches were ahead of last year at a number of fisheries and there was a feeling of satisfaction for many at the end of September despite tricky conditions that dogged the second half of the season. The last day of the season on the Munster Blackwater saw water come right after floods and some fine salmon were caught and released. Water remained high on the Bandon. Spinning seemed the best option and not many fish were reported. On Currane there was great excitement as it looked like the man who opened the season was going to close it, but a late report of a salmon on the Bulter Pool was the cause of controversy. Sea trout remains open for another week. Lough Inagh saw sea trout fishing improve this year, and while the salmon season was described as frustrating the fishery manager is predicting a good season in 2018. The last week of the season saw the Moy pass 7,000 salmon landed milestone, as catches improved following a long period of heavy water. The Drowes also finished the 2017 season well with good numbers of salmon caught. These were mostly coloured fish but they provided good sport for those that fished on Saturday.
There was quite a mix of weather for trout anglers fishing the last week of the season on Lough Corrib. Many reported a good finish to the 2017 season with good fishing on dry olives and dry peters, and good numbers of fish met. Some decent fish were also landed on wets and on the troll.
Coarse anglers in the Longford area had good fishing in the last week with decent numbers of bream featuring in catches. Good catches of bream and tench were also reported from the lower Shannon, particularly at Portumna. Total catch for the week at the Cootehill Angling Festival was 1,436kg. Mark Pollard, Lutton finished in first place from the 95 strong field with 34.590kg.
More and more anglers will turn to pike angling now that the cooler days of autumn are here. Good catches of pike in the 90’s and over 1m have been reported recently from venues in Longford, along the lower Shannon, Lough Derg and Lough Allua. Domhnall MacDomhnaill wins Catch of the Week for his 96cm pike from near Portumna.
Dogs, dabs and small gurnards featured in catches in the South Shore SAC League fished at Newcastle at the weekend. Ruairi Coleman, Swords Angling Centre, won this leg of the event with 17 fish, mostly dogs. A group of Welsh bass anglers fishing with Sean Jordan in Wexford had some great sport on lures with fish to 73cm caught and released. The Ramrods, a new club in Kilmore Quay for boat anglers, reported good charter boat fishing recently. The club is open to all and is actively recruiting new and novice members. There are reports of good sharking from the south east to the west coast, and when conditions allow Galway Bay is seeing some decent blues landed. Good bass fishing was also reported by Sid Jones from marks in Waterford and east Cork. Good numbers of fish have been encountered with the odd specimen landed…
The weekend is to be mostly dry, but some southern counties may get a bit of rain. Temperatures will be about 13-16C in moderate to light winds mostly from the west. Next week will be wetter and current indications suggest the latter days of next week will remain unsettled with a strong west to southwest air-flow covering Ireland feeding in spells of rain on most days and with the risk of strong winds at times.
Finally, the Inland Fisheries Ireland funding Call 2017 is closing on Friday 13th October at 5pm. The Call is made up of the following funds:
- Salmon Conservation Fund to a maximum of €500,000
- Midland Fisheries Fund of €50,000
- National Strategy for Angling Development Fund €1,500,000
More information and a link to the application portal can be found on www.fisheriesireland.ie/funding .
Best of luck with your application!
Safe fishing to all and tight lines, especially here in Ireland.
Myles Kelly
Catch, Photo, Release
If you have an angling story to share with the Irish Angling Update please send it to [email protected].
Headlines
Salmon fishing reports
- Season on River Moy finishes with over 7000 salmon reported
- End of season on Munster Blackwater marked by good catches
- Salmon season over on Currane but still some trout about
- Young anglers enjoy a day at Delphi
- Lough Inagh rounds off a good sea trout season with some fine fish on closing day
- Drowes ends the season well
- Good water at end of season on Owenea
- Bandon anglers already looking forward to February as season closes
- Salmon to 8lbs on the Ilen
Trout fishing reports
- Good sport on Corrib as season draws to a close
- Croneen disappoints as trout season ends
- Athlone conference to hear findings into genetic diversity of our brown trout populations
Coarse angling reports
- Waterford juniors have great day at Oaklands
- High water and blustery conditions at Cootehill Angling Festival
- Good bream and tench catches at lower Shannon venues
- Bream, roach and hybrids feature in Longford coarse catches
- Belgian anglers do well with coarse fish and pike in Longford
Pike angling reports
- 92cm long pike on Allua wins a few shorts
- Good pike fishing reported on Derg and lower Shannon
- Belgian anglers do well with coarse fish and pike in Longford
Sea angling reports
- Specimen sized bass for angling guide Sid Jones
- Ruari Coleman wins Newcastle leg of South Shore league
- Good sharking on Galway Bay when weather allows
- Ramrods on Tour – new club brings boat angling to the fore
- Welsh visitors get the tides right for Wexford bass
