Killybegs mariners
A spot of colour on the coast. Killybegs Mariners head to Belmullet

One week into April and the slight rise in water temperatures has seen an improvement at many fisheries, both at sea and inland. If the winds would ease a little there would probably be more consistent fishing to report, but for some the days that are good enough, have been more than good enough…

Inconsistency was to blame for the poor fishing effort and low catch on the Moy as water levels were up and down as a result of the changeable weather. At Delphi there were only a couple of salmon landed in the last week but hopes were lifted by a fish on Saturday. It’s been a long wait for salmon anglers on the Galway Weir, but local angler Dave Lenihan broke the duck there with a fish of 6.5lb caught on shrimp. On the Feale water levels have suited fly angling and two salmon were taken by anglers. Good water levels have also been reported on the Laune, but most of the system’s salmon are being caught up in the lake or further up the catchment. Windy conditions on Lough Currane impacted on fishing effort and only a couple of fish were taken since our last update. The River Ilen produced its first fish of the season in the last week – a fine springer of 13lb caught on a Flying-C. Staying in West Cork, the Bandon turned out one more fish, this time on fly. The lovely 11lber was Pa O’Connell first ever salmon. We finish out the salmon report in Cork where 1 salmon was reported from the Lee.

Catch of the Week might have slipped through the Sheelin anglers fingers this week, but they definitely win Quote of the Week with the classic

‘There is no WiFi out here but we promise that you will not find a better connection’

Trout to over 6lb were landed on fly and one angler had two fish of 5.5lb each. No prolific hatches yet but buzzers were out in many sheltered bays, coves and tree lined shorelines. It’s a different story from Lough corrib where fishing has really picked up since last week. Duckfly hatches are still going in many bays, with more fish feeding on them, as well as a few early olives. Meanwhile on Mask, anglers have reported seeing some excellent hatches of duckfly and small sedge on the warmer days this week with fishing described as good. A great addition to the facilities of Lough Mask, is the construction of a wheelchair-accessible facility for disabled boat anglers built at Burkes pier at Ferrybridge.

There are a couple of coarse angling reports from Lough Muckno this week. CM Lakelands Feeder team enjoyed their time in the sun and recorded bags to over 4kg. At the Yellow Island pegs Drogheda CAC did a little better with weights almost 8kg, with the pole producing bigger nets of fish. There was good fishing on the Shannon at Portumna where the Town Stretch produced a top weight of  27lb 12oz for Bruce Pennell. Further up the river at Lanesborough on the hotwater stretch some lovely roach to over 1lb are featuring in the catches. A couple of anglers did make efforts to get an early tench but water temperatures need a bit more of a rise still.

9lb trout
Steve Blacklidge poses with his Catch of the Week before releasing it safely

Not too many pike reports this week. But there should be some good fishing available as water temperatures continue to rise following spawning. At Lanesborough pike to 16lb were landed over the weekend, but it was a 9lb trout on a roach dead bait that got the anglers most excited. Steve Blacklidge’s impressive trout wins Catch of the Week. On Ennell pike lures were also snapped by the odd trout but their intended targets also had a swipe at them along with some lovely looking perch.

The Killybegs Mariners paint a picture of the angling in their area that would make you wonder why they ever to travel to cast a line. But they do, and you can be sure that if they’re going somewhere, it’s worth going to. Their annual trip to Belmullet is proof of this and some serious shore angling was enjoyed by the club with big flounders and sea trout being the highlight of the trip. Down in Cork Harbour kayak anglers tried to make the most of the conditions towards the end of the month but the winds proved too much for these small craft. Staying in Cork Harbour, over 1000 fish were caught by 70 anglers fishing the final of the Munster League and though the fish kept the anglers busy they were of a small enough stamp. On the east coast anglers had more great specimen fishing with Kit Dunne out of Wicklow. Spurdogs to 18.1lb and even a couple of early tope were landed by anglers during the week, despite very limited opportunities to get afloat.

Friday will be a dry bright day with highs of 11 to 15C in light southerly breezes. There may be some grass frost over night under clear skies. Warmer again on Saturday with highs of 17C in in light to moderate southerly breezes. A cooler feel to the day on Sunday as southwesterly winds veer northwesterly and freshen. It will be mostly cloudy with a fragmenting band of rain spreading eastwards across the country during the morning and afternoon. South and southeastern counties will likely retain the mostly dry conditions More showers and fresher weather to follow next week. It’s like they made the weekend fishin…

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

Myles Kelly

Catch, Photo, Release

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