The past week gave some of us a taste of the more pleasant side of an Irish spring, as temperatures managed to climb to between 16°C and 18°C on Tuesday and Wednesday in parts of the midlands and east. Light southerly winds and overcast skies completed the mix, making for good fishing conditions for those anglers who could get to the water. Unfortunately, blustery conditions are to return this weekend, as the cold, wet April showers resume once again to hopefully bring us May flowers…

We start with pike fishing this week, where we have some nice reports from around the country. April is normally a fine month for pike fishing, as the water warms up and fish are feeding again after spawning. On Blessington Lakes, lure crafting enthusiast Artem Novikov landed a good pike on one of his many home-made lures. His YouTube channel is well worth a visit to see how to make a makeshift pike lure! Regular visitors to Melview Fishing Lodge enjoyed their pike fishing trips, with water levels finally returning to near normal in Longford and a lot of mid-doubles landed to both deadbaits and lures.

Newbridge District Pike Anglers held their second competition of the year, with 13 fish landed, including two impressive river specimens weighing 21lb 4oz and 21lb 11oz. Bigger again was the super pike landed by Artur Pike Seeker at 112 cm on the measuring mat. In the midlands, Mick Flanagan welcomed regular visitor Stefano back along with his pal, Antonio. The fish were feeding hard, and Stefano’s colourful fly selection was too tempting for any pike to resist!

Coarse clubs fishing their matches found the going tough with the cold, windy weather. The seventh outing of the Leinster Qualifiers 2025/26 took place on Sunday, the venue changing to Daingean due to weather warnings. In Cavan, the CM Lakelands club also found the going tough, but there were some decent skimmers caught in a number of the pegs on Annaghhierin.

In trout fishing news, returning swallows greeted the Lough Arrow Anglers as they departed from Flynn’s Pier on their opening day of April 1st. Conditions were generally favourable during the first half of the day, with several trout caught before the afternoon brought a drop in temperatures. The Loughanure Anglers in Donegal will be hosting their first event of the season this Sunday. The event will be an open competition, with an entry fee of €25, and new members are very welcome to join on the day.

In salmon news, the Minister of State at the Department of Climate, Energy and the Environment, Timmy Dooley, has signed the Wild Salmon and Sea Trout Tagging Scheme Regulations, setting out the rivers on which salmon and sea trout angling may take place for the 2026 season. This legislation came into effect on Friday, 3 April 2026. While we did hear that a salmon or two have been landed on the Munster Blackwater, there have been no more reports of fish caught from Lough Currane.

In saltwater, Killala B&S held the Connaught Open Gold Medal Shore at Lacken Strand, Co Sligo. Eighteen anglers travelled from around the country for the day, but it was Fionn O’Higgins who took the honours after a slow start. In other competition news, Howth Sea Angling Club are hosting the second leg of the Leinster Shore League on Portmarnock Beach on Saturday, 18th April.

Colin Reilly – longest fish

Offshore, young angler and citizen scientist Darragh Wilson caught a Mulroy Bay monster that he surely wasn’t expecting. While fishing for thornback rays as part of the Marine Sportfish Tagging Programme, Darragh managed to land a massive 8 lb 6 oz lobster off Kerrykeel. This fine specimen was returned to the sea alive and Darragh wins our Catch of the Week for this unusual catch!

In other news…

The Munster Fly Fishing Fair will be held this weekend, April 10 & 11, at Clonanav Fly Fishing in Co. Waterford. Fly anglers are invited to come and see fly fishing and fly tying demonstrations from world-renowned anglers and fly tyers.

And now the weather…

The weather will be unsettled over the weekend into early next week, with frequent rain, showers, and strong winds. Friday will be wet and windy with heavy rain at times and a risk of flooding, especially in the south, with cool temperatures of 6 to 10°C. Rain will clear overnight, followed by colder conditions with lows of 0 to 4°C.

Saturday will be windy again, starting bright in the east before turning showery nationwide, with some heavy showers bringing hail, thunder, and possible wintry falls on higher ground and temperatures of 7 to 10°C. Similar blustery conditions will continue through the weekend, with a mix of sunny spells and heavy showers. Sunday night will turn colder with frost and icy patches.

Monday will start mostly dry and bright, but showers will move in from the west before easing later in the day. Overall, it will remain cool, windy, and changeable.

Don’t forget to double-check the forecast before heading off, and if you’re going to sea, check the tides.

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 reports@fisheriesireland.ie. 

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