Having basked in an extended spell of sunshine in May, the Irish weather has reverted to type in June, with most of the country experiencing above-average rainfall for the first week of the month. The rain has been very patchy, though, highlighted by the fact that Valentia in Co. Kerry saw the most rain (39mm), while next-door neighbours in Co. Cork received the least (12.1mm). Temperatures and sunshine held up well during the week, remaining slightly above average for most of the country, but the wind has been pretty strong and gusty, a factor that is reflected in some of our angling reports.

As the angling calendar moves from May to June, and the drama, high hopes and dashed expectations of the capricious mayfly hatch fade into the distance, it is the salmon anglers who begin to brim with expectation, as they wait with eager anticipation for news of grilse moving into our river systems. These smaller ‘summer salmon’ start to enter our systems in June, encouraged by any decent drop of rain, and there has been a bit of that around this week… But salmon aren’t the only long-distance travellers returning to our waters at this time of year, as sea anglers can look forward to welcoming the wandering tope and blue shark back to our shores, as they begin to congregate in good numbers around the coastline from June onwards.

We will begin this week’s reports with the salmon anglers, and down on the Blackwater system, where the expected, and much hoped-for, rain didn’t really materialise. As a result, water levels and angling effort remained low, but despite that, there were some sporadic catches of fish, with a few decent ones in the 4-6kg range. The downpours must have all fallen on the south side of the Boggeragh Mountains (I told you it was patchy…), as the River Lee saw a good drop of rain, bringing a rise in water levels which spurred the salmon into action, and 16 fish were landed, the best of which was a 10lb salmon caught on a Flying C. That same sup of rain also gave water levels on the River Bandon a welcome boost, which, in turn, saw a good number of salmon on the move, with 10 fish landed, all of which were late run Spring fish up to 15lb. Over in Co. Kerry, the River Laune yielded a few fish despite low water conditions, and Lough Lein also saw a 7lb salmon caught on the troll. On nearby Lough Currane, strong winds kept anglers ashore some days, but even when the weather turned more favourable, the lough failed to give up any treasures. On the Moy, some welcome rain brought a nice rise in water levels, and anglers made their way to the river hoping to take advantage. They weren’t disappointed as salmon were landed throughout the system, with the Foxford Salmon Anglers faring the best, with 31 fish recorded. Meanwhile, over in Co. Sligo, the Ballisodare fishery has seen some decent fishing over the past week, including a super salmon of 13.75lb for 18-year-old Seamus Costigan, a catch made even better by the fact that it was his first ever salmon on the fly. In our final piece of salmon news, a draw for 15 brown tags for the River Easkey was held during the week, and the results can be viewed here.

John Corcoran – releasing the first grilse of the season.
John Corcoran – releasing the first grilse of the season at Ballisodare.

Trout anglers were pretty active over the week, as many hoped for a last chance of a fish on the mayfly. On Lough Sheelin, those lucky anglers who timed their visit to the start of last week saw fish taking mayfly off the surface with abandon in a manner not seen before this year. Unfortunately, those anglers who heard the news and made their way to the lough later in the week, found that it had reverted to its dour and unforgiving mood… The Dublin Trout Anglers posted an extensive report on the annual Whit Weekend competition on Lough Conn. Unfortunately, as has been the case on many lakes this year, the fishing wasn’t exceptional despite the fact that mayfly were plentiful. In Co. Roscommon, Lough O’Flynn was the venue for the annual Malone Cup competition over the bank holiday weekend, where long-time club supporter Marcus Kennedy took the win with a fish of 2lb 11.6oz. To the rivers now, and in Co. Limerick, angling guide Paddy Dunworth introduced a couple of Colorado anglers to the wonders of fishing the wet-fly down on the River Deel. As ever, there were more plucks than solid takes, but the guys had plenty of fun getting to grips with it.

above Altavilla Bridge
Visiting Colorado angler fishing above Altavilla Bridge

Angling guide Dan O’Neill has had a busy couple of weeks guiding groups in the south east. He had a large contingent of French anglers whom he introduced to his local rivers, hotly followed by some angling journalists from H2O magazine who were visiting the area for the first time and plan to feature it in an upcoming publication. On the international competition scene, the Trout Anglers Federation of Ireland (TAFI) Irish Youth Fly Fishing Team will be representing Ireland at the World Youth Fly Fishing Championships in Idaho, USA, in July 2025. It’s a big deal for these young anglers to be representing their country, but it’s expensive to get them over there to do it. So TAFI are asking people to help fund their trip by participating in a raffle with some fantastic prizes. And staying with the international scene, in this week’s Ireland on the Fly podcast, hosts Tom and Daire chat to the team captain of the men’s fly fishing team that competed in the World Fly Fishing Championships in the Czech Republic recently. For any budding young trout anglers who might aspire to represent their country someday, the Dodder Anglers will be running a free fly fishing clinic on Sunday, 15th June, and any member between the ages of 10 and 18 is invited to attend.

Alberto from H2O media releases a brownie back to the river.

To sea angling now, and we begin in Co. Kerry, where the annual Tag-A-Ray Festival attracted anglers from far and wide to the fabled fishing grounds of Tralee Bay. Wet and windy conditions hampered the fishing a bit, with the boat angling restricted to a small area of shelter, but despite that, plenty of good fish were caught and tagged. It was a Tom double act that won the prizes as Galway angler Tom Keal took the shore win and Howth angler Tom McAdam took the boat win. The outstanding fish of the festival was a once-common but now rare Angel Shark, caught by Chris Kelly, and this catch of a lifetime wins Chris this week’s Catch of the Week.

A rare Angel Shark wins Chris Kelly this week’s Catch of the Week

On the international scene, it’s hats off to Alby Allan, from South Shore SAC, and JP Molloy of West Cork & District SAC, who travelled to Sardinia to take part in the Magrini International tournament, one of the top competitions on the circuit, attracting entries from all over Europe. Both Alby and JP have represented Ireland on many occasions, so it was no surprise that the pair came out on top on this occasion, their combined scores beating the rest of the stellar field. Back to the domestic scene now, and in Co. Wexford, 26 members of the New Ross & District SAC participated in their annual 3-day event, held on the Hook Peninsula. The event was plagued by strong winds, which led to multiple zone and venue changes, but none of that fazed Eugene Andrews, who put in a solid performance to take the festival win. In the south west, Bass specialist David Norman has added a couple of days to his bass lure workshop schedule. Anyone looking for a Father’s Day gift for a fishy father could do well to book a slot. Our last piece of sea angling news is that  South Shore SAC will be running the Tommy Keogh Open Competition on Saturday, 14th June, and interested anglers can now register.

A win for team Ireland as Alby Allan & JP Molloy take the honours at the prestigious Magrini tournament

In pike angling news, four first-time visitors to Melview Lodge faced some sunny conditions for the start of their week’s fishing, but by the end of the week, the skies had clouded over and sunny smiles came out, as the guys had plenty of pike, with a few over the magic metre mark. Meanwhile, it was the returning visitors who were in action up in Co. Roscommon, as Bodo Funke welcomed back a few of his regular clients for some fantastic pike fishing on both fly and lure.

Bodo Funke & client enjoy some fine pike fishing

In coarse angling news, 11-year-old Leo was treated to a fishing holiday in Ireland by his grandfather, Perry. Leo had never caught a tench before, so they decided to make tench their main quarry, using feeder tactics at short distance. And it was a case of zero to hero for Leo, as he broke his duck in style, catching numerous tench, many to specimen size, the best of which weighed in at 6lb 5oz. On the match scene, the CM Lakelands Feeder Club fished a bank holiday match on Lough Skeagh on Monday, where Brenton Sweeney took the win with 6kg of skimmers, hybrids and roach. We wrap up this week’s fishing reports with news that entry is now open for the popular Lough Muckno Feeder Festival. The event will run from 30th June to 4th July and anglers looking to compete should register their interest early.

First ever Tench for 11 year old Leo is the reason he is all smiles with these lovely specimens.
First ever Tench for 11-year-old Leo is the reason he is all smiles with these lovely specimens.

And now the weather

 

 

Today will be a day of sunny spells and isolated showers. Cloud will build from the southwest this afternoon, with most areas overcast by evening, followed by outbreaks of rain in the southwest. Highs of 12 to 17 °C in light to moderate westerly breezes. Saturday morning will be wet in most places, but the rain will clear eastwards as the day progresses, leaving a mix of showers and sunny spells. Sunday will bring a mix of sunshine and showers, although it will be generally cloudier in the west and southwest. Highest temperatures of 13 to 17 °C in moderate westerly winds. The unsettled spell looks likely to carry into early next week, as the pattern of sunny spells interspersed with patchy rain and drizzle continues.

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

IFI Staff
Catch, Photo, Release

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