Home Trout fishing reports Sunset successes for Lough Sheelin anglers

Sunset successes for Lough Sheelin anglers

July 9, 2025

3017

Lough Sheelin angling report June 19th – July 9th 2025

“Never give up on something that you can’t go a day without thinking about.”

Winston Churchill

John Byrne with his 63cm trout caught on a Spent Gnat

Mid summers day also known as St John’s Day or the Summer Solstice fell on June 21^st. This is a significant date in that it marks the longest day of the year and astronomically speaking, the beginning of Summer. With the sporadically hot weather we have been having over the past few months, it feels as if summer started some time ago. Up until early July there were still good hatches of Mayfly on Lough Sheelin but gusty and fresh predominantly westerlies put an end to any spent going out on the water and now heading into the middle of the month, Sheelin’s Mayfly is officially over for another year.

Summer is all about the sedges, reputedly the cream of the angling crop but up until recently it felt as if the cream had gone off and the fishing was poor. There were good hatches of sedges, but the trout showed little or no interest until recently when fishing here has picked up in the last few days. Prior to this any fish that were being caught were in the twilight zone – evening and after dark using Murrough patterns usually around Lynch’s point with the odd one being caught using a dabbler in a wave.

The adult caddisflies or sedges lay their eggs in or near the water and these hatch into larvae. The next is an interesting stage as the larvae will then build a protective case around themselves using twigs, leaves or tiny stones, really whatever is to hand in their aquatic environment. When the larvae are fully grown, they seal themselves within their cases and transform into a pupa. The pupa then undergoes metamorphosis emerging eventually as an adult sedge. The adult emerges from the water, its wings unfold, and it begins the next generation by mating and laying eggs. The caddisfly or sedge play an important role in the aquatic ecosystems, serving as a good food source for the trout and other aquatic animals. Their unique life cycle and case-building behaviour make them a fascinating addition to Lough Sheelin’s entomology. Because sedges are an important food for trout, understanding their life cycle can help anglers choose effective fly patterns and presentation techniques.

Holding on to happiness, Oliver McCormack with his trout caught on a Green Stimulator

There are around 300 species of sedges but anglers don’t need to know all of them to catch fish. Sedge patterns like the Chocolate Drop, Cinamon Sedge, Elk Hair Caddis, Stimulator and Palmered Sedge are working now. The Murrough patterns for evenings and after dark, single, fished dry and imitating the way the natural skits over the surface in a splashy wake worked for some anglers. Up until last weekend many anglers were complaining about ‘the dead sea’ – very little piscatorial movement and just the occasional splashy appearance. Since the weekend things have steadily improved with plenty of surfacing of trout and good catches being recorded. Fishing was mainly with teams of wets with the Dabblers in Claret, Green, Pearly, Silver, Peter Ross and Fiery Brown being the favourites but also Bumbles, Sheelin sedges, Cock Robins, Golden Olive Bumbles, Red Arsed Green Peters, Daddies, Spent Gnats, small brown sedges, Wulffs, Klinkhammers, Sedgehogs, Mallard & Claret and Silver Invictas were in the mix.

The best areas for fishing were mid lake, Merry pt. Walkers, Wilsons pt., Lynch’s pt, Stony Islands and along the Western shore up to the Sailors Garden.

2.5lb trout caught on a Murrough at Lynch’s point

Summer is the time when river habitat restoration takes place within the Sheelin catchment. As anglers floundered trying to catch Lough Sheelin’s elusive trout, 800m of a section of the Pound river was rehabilitated and enhanced by IFI with the work funded by the local angling club, the L.S.T.P.A. This work involved the introduction of 80 tons of spawning gravel, the construction of pools, deflectors and vortex weirs, fencing off animal access areas and putting in bank protection to control erosion. All of this instream work will radically improve habitat for both juvenile and adult trout. Without funding from the local angling club this project would not have happened. Rehabilitation of this nature is the life blood of Lough Sheelin by effectively protecting, enhancing and nurturing her natural wild brown trout habitat. This is where some of the L.S.T.P.A membership money goes and it is a very worthwhile and productive way to spend members hard earned cash.

Vortex weir oxygenating a section of the Pound River

Rehabilitating the Pound River, June 2025

1 of 9

Luring with flies

1 of 18

Please remember anglers to abide by BYE-LAW 949 which strictly prohibits from

June 14^th, 2017 onwards:

The taking of any brown trout of less than 36 centimeters.
For a person to fish with more than 2 rods at any one time.
To fish with more than 4 rods at any one time when there is more than one person on board the boat concerned.
For a person to take more than 2 trout per day.
All trolling on the lake from March 1^st to June 16^th (inclusive).
To fish or to attempt to take or to fish for, fish of any kind other than during the period from March 1^st to October 12^th in any year.