Last week saw snow, sleet and hail along with bitterly cold easterly winds and temperatures dropping below zero at times. So, it was no surprise that fishing was described as “hard” and “tough” throughout most angling reports we received. By the end of the week, the arctic air brought angling to a complete halt in a number of places. This was the case on Lough Sheelin, which showed a consistent representation from the angling fraternity up until Thursday but then the elements took over and trout fishing came more or less to a standstill.

A bitterly cold Lough Sheelin

On Lough Corrib, Connacht Predator Anglers  also fought the elements while fishing their “Trout Masters” event. Staying in the west, the crew of Tomi Guidedfishing continued their successful hunt for big ferox including a trophy trout of almost 90cm, which wins our Catch of the Week.

Trophy ferox trout

River trout anglers might be interested in the newest episode of Ireland on the Fly podacst. This time, Daire and Tom speak to George McGrath of Gundog & Fly YouTube fame about the River Suir, one of the finest wild brown trout rivers in Europe.

The unseasonal weather also impacted on salmon fishing and, as a consequence we only received a report from Lough Currane where the angling community unfortunately lost one of their legends…

Over to coarse fishing, where Munster Coarse Anglers experienced tough fishing at O’Briensbridge, mainly due to discoloured water from the snow and rain earlier in the week. Staying with coarse angling but moving further south to Wexford, the final round of the Ger Hennesy Winter league was fished on Oaklands. Kieran Reeves was the overall winner scooping first prize for the first time.

oaklands
Nice bags at Oaklands

Pike anglers were also busy fishing a number of competitions during the week. While Tulla anglers experienced a hardy day on Clonlea, the recent cold snap didn’t deter Limerick Pike Anglers fishing their fourth competition of the year. On the Grand Canal, the Phoenix Pike Anglers held an annual memorial competition which was won by Padraig Carroll.

Given the atrocious weather conditions, it’s no surprise that sea angling reports were also quite scarce this week. However, Killybegs Fishing Trips braved the elements in Donegal Bay catching some fine pollack and a few cod in freezing conditions. Further south, members of Cork Sea Angling Club explored a new rock mark and were rewarded with some fine painted and thornback ray together with doggies, dab and coalies.

painted ray
Nice painted ray from Cork

In other news

Inland Fisheries Ireland would like to remind all salmon and sea trout anglers who fished during the 2022 season to please return their logbooks and any unused gill tags. These returns provide vital information regarding the status and management of our wild Atlantic Salmon and Sea Trout stocks into the future.

licence logbook return 2022

Inland Fisheries Ireland have launched their first #SpotlightSeries of 2023, sharing a little more about the work we do. If you’d like to read more about Inland Fisheries Ireland‘s focus on Habitat and Conservation, check our #SpotlightSeries at: https://bit.ly/3F2ctxq

Finally, anglers in Ireland will once again have the opportunity to catch and release bluefin tuna in 2023 through the continuation of the highly successful Tuna CHART catch, tag and release programme that has been in operation around our coast since 2019. Experienced charter skippers are being invited to apply to join the 2023 Tuna CHART programme between the 21st of March and the 4th of April 2023 by filling out an application form online at  www.fisheriesireland.ie/bluefin

And now the weather…

The outlook for St. Patrick’s Day is for a mix of cloud and some sunny spells with widespread showers. The showers will be heavy and prolonged at times with a chance of thunderstorms mainly in the west. Highest temperatures of 11 to 14 degrees in moderate south to southeast winds, easing later. The weekend will see more showers spreading in from the west turning heavy at times. Winds will be moderate to strong from westerly and southwesterly directions. Current indications suggest that low pressure will continue to dominate our weather next week bringing further spells of rain and showers but with good dry periods as well. Highest temperatures generally ranging from 8 to 12 degrees.

🍀 Happy St. Patrick’s Day 🍀, safe fishing to all and tight lines, especially here in Ireland.  If you’re heading to the coast, don’t forget to check the tides.

IFI Staff
Catch, Photo, Release

If you have an angling story to share with the Irish Angling Update, please send it to [email protected].

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