It’s been another week of mixed weather, with heavy rain earlier, followed by some warm and pleasant weather midweek, and a return to wet and windy weather today with Storm Betty passing through later on. Don’t overstay your welcome Betty!

We have plenty of sea angling reports this week. Water temperatures are reaching their annual peak, there is plenty of baitfish around, mackerel are being caught all around the coast, and bigger fish are feeding hard. Mullet are a great quarry species that give a great fight, and this week our Catch of the Week is a specimen mullet of 6lbs 1oz caugth on the east coast by Dawid Kop.

We have reports of good mixed species fishing from around the coast, from Cork heading north to Galway. Small boat angler Jim Clohessy always provides a great account of fishing trips, and this week’s report is no different. Jim toopk advantage of calm weather to head well offshore and fish a variety of marks, producing some nice fish and covering 80 nautical miles overall!

Kayak anglers in west Cork also enjoyed good sport with pollack and mullet. From Kerry we had reports of good boat fishing around Valentia, where Loughshinny Anglers from north Co. Dublin enjoyed a great 2-day trip. Shore anglers in Kerry also had great fishing, as Cork Sea Anglers club had some excellent sport in Tralee Bay, with a 2-day competition producing some fine ray. The pick of the bunch was James Raymond’s 105cm stingray, a fine fish!

sting ray

Further north, anglers in west Clare enjoyed some fine sport aboard the Clare Dragoon, with plenty of species caught, while in Galway Bay pollack were plentiful for guests of skipper John Fleming on the Brazen Hussy II. We also have a report from the very successful Newport Sea Angling Festival, running for 57 years now!

Bluefin tuna fishing is also gong well, with boats in Donegal Bay reporting good fishing for these giants. And not to forget the east coast, where anglers aboard Kit Dunne’s boat out of Wicklow enjoyed great species fishing, including black bream and red mullet – two species we haven’t caught yet ourselves.

The Lure Fishing podcast, a series by Cormac Walsh that is growing in popularity, interviewed Drew McMinn,  light lure fishing expert based in Belfast, about all things LRF. Not sure what LRF is? Drew’s got you covered – check it out here.

Finally, on the sea angling front, the Irish Under-16 team are busy preparing for the World Championships in the Netherlands in October. They are running a fundraiser to help with expenses and you can help (and win raffle prizes too!). Read about these great young people here, and buy a ticket if you can.

The team

Pike angling is very quiet at the moment, with most anglers giving them a rest over the summer months. Coarse angling too, is fairly quiet. Heavy rain and fresh water probably helped club anglers in Edenderry, even if windy conditions made presenting a bait difficult. Some great catches featured, with the winner Paul Kelly weighing in over 17lbs.

Salmon angling has not been hectic of late, and fishing was reported as slow on the Moy, where 77 fish were reported. The estuary, however, produced very good sea trout fishing, with guide Judd Ruane saying last week saw the best run of fish into the estuary so far this year. The Munster Blackwater was reported to be poor, although a few fish were reported from Cappoquin. The forecast heavy rain tonight should see floods and spates in most rivers over the coming week, and hopefully this will see sport improve.

Moy estuary sea trout

Trout angling was said to be really picking up on Loughs Conn and Cullin last week with good hatches of olives getting fish rising. Dan O’Neill was stewarding at the Thomastown competition on the River Nore, and he and son Anthony were inspired with the high quality of the competitors, and the number of trout landed.

The Ireland on the Fly podcast also deals with competitive flyfishing, and in the week that the Irish Youths team captured their third consecutive home nations trophy, Daire and Tom spoke with captain Eanna O’Leary and coach Deis Goulding, to find out the secret to their success.

We also feature a new video from George McGrath, from the Gundog and Fly YouTube channel, showing some of his trout fishing on the upper Suir and small tributaries this summer – well worth a watch!

 

In other news

Salmon Angling Logbook Returns

Inland Fisheries Ireland is encouraging salmon and sea trout anglers to return angling logbooks (setting out their fishing and catch record) and any unused gill tags from 2023 if they have ceased fishing for this year or once the season has closed.

These returns provide vital information regarding the status and management of our wild Atlantic Salmon and Sea Trout stocks into the future.

Clare River Bye-Law Consultation

A public consultation is now open on a proposed new bye-law for the Clare River and tributaries in Co. Galway, which involves a new bag limit for angling of 2 trout per day. Find out about it, and how to make a submission here.

Clare River and floodplain looking south from Anbally

Outdoor Recreation Infrastructure Scheme Funding

The Outdoor Recreation Infrastructure Scheme (ORIS) is now open for funding applications, which angling clubs can apply for. The focus of ORIS is to support outdoor recreational infrastructure in countryside areas across Ireland that not only provide an outlet for the communities in which they are situated, but that also deliver added value from a tourism perspective. Read our post about it here.

Clones Erne developments

And now the weather

The second named storm of the season, Storm Betty, will arrive later today, with high winds mainly affecting the southern coastal counties of Ireland, but bringing heavy rain across the whole island too. An orange weather warning is in place for high winds, while a yellow warning is in place for heavy rainfall. Check out these warnings on the Met Eireann website here. If you are engaging in outdoor activities please take heed of these warnings and stay safe.

Rain in Ulster will clear quickly on Saturday morning to leave a bright and breezy day nationwide with sunny spells. A few showers will occur, mainly in the southwest and west of the country. Maximum temperatures of 18 to 22 degrees in fresh and gusty southwest winds. Plenty of dry weather on Sunday with spells of sunshine and just a few showers, mainly confined to Atlantic coastal counties. A fairly warm day with highest temperatures of 18 to 23 degrees in a moderate to fresh southwest breeze.

The early part of next week is expected to be showery, with sunny spells and frequent showers, some heavy and prolonged, but warm with temperatures of 19-22C in light SW winds, so feeling quite pleasant in between the showers. Don’t forget the sunscreen and the rain jacket!

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

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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