Last weekā€™s weather across Ireland was generally unsettled, with frequent showers, spells of rain and mainly moderate southwesterly winds. While the rainfall helped maintain water levels on many salmon rivers and encouraged some fish movement, conditions remained variable and catches were generally modest to poor.

So, it came as little surprise that salmon reports remained scarce over the past week, with only a small number of fish reported from rivers in Cork and Kerry, while anglers on Lough Currane once again drew a blank. Angling conditions on the Moy were also affected by the unsettled weather and, coupled with low fishing effort, resulted in catches remaining below average for this time of year. Cooler temperatures and breezy conditions made trout fishing somewhat challenging at times, although mayfly activity on the Western Lakes was reported to be fair to good. While anglers observed plenty of fly life on the water, surface feeding activity remained somewhat limited. This was also the case on Lough Arrow, where the local club held its annual mayfly competition and, despite difficult conditions, a number of quality trout were still recorded. Lough Conn experienced a similar pattern, with abundant fly life but catches remaining patchy overall. With regard to river trout fishing, we received another informative report from Dan Oā€™Neill covering tactics and fly selection on the River Nore. Dan, an APGAI-qualified instructor, will also be involved in a Womenā€™s Beginner Fly Fishing Day taking place at Southern County Fishing Resort, Co. Carlow on Saturday, 13 June. The course is aimed at beginners and novice anglers aged 18 and over, and all equipment will be provided. This promises to be an excellent opportunity for female anglers looking to take up or develop their fly fishing skills. Further information is available from Maddy Kelly, who has earned 25 caps for the Irish Ladies Fly Fishing Team and has also served as team captain on three occasions.

Over to pike fishing, where some anglers benefited from favourable predator conditions under overcast skies. Newbridge District Pike Anglers were back on the banks for a back-to-back weekend competition, with Ian Murphy the standout performer, taking first place in both events and continuing his excellent recent form on the river. Staying in the east, Chris Barry from Go Fishing Ireland reported excellent pike fishing for his clients, including fish of 112cm and 113cm.

113cm pike for Gaspard Perez fishing with Go Fishing Ireland

We also received a report from Artem Novikov on nearby Lough Derravaragh; Artem, who enjoys making his own lures and now pike flies, had some great sport using one of his own creations.

Meanwhile, Irelandā€™s Hidden Heartlands continue to deliver quality predator fishing. Bodo Funke of Angling Services Ireland, who specialises in predator fly fishing alongside lure angling, reported a number of outstanding catches for his clients in recent weeks. These included several pike over the magic 1-metre mark, as well as a superb 44cm perch landed on the fly by returning Austrian client Mario. This fine fly-caught specimen undoubtedly earns our ā€œCatch of the Weekā€ award. Well done, Mario!

Our first “Catch of the Week”…a chunky 44cm fly-caught specimen perch for Mario

Last weekā€™s unsettled weather also brought mixed conditions for coarse anglers, with regular rainfall and lower-than-average temperatures affecting many venues across the country. Despite this, we received a number of reports, mainly from visiting anglers, who still enjoyed targeting bream, roach, hybrids and tench.

UK angler Mike Edwards was in touch to share details of his recent trip to Ireland, one of many he has made over the past 30 years. Mike and his group enjoyed a successful fortnight on the Shannon, Boyle and Lung rivers, landing good catches of roach, hybrids and tench.

Dave Warburton and Tim Bradshaw, who stayed in the Killeshandra area, Co. Cavan, also reported on their annual visit. Despite tricky conditions at times, the pair still managed to land quality bream and tench and are already planning their next trip to the Emerald Isle.

Quality bream and tench from Killeshandra

Last but not least, Paul Waghorne, who has spent as many as 40 days fishing in Ireland this year, reports for the final time on his long-running ā€œpilgrimageā€ to Ireland. Meanwhile, Padraig English of Louth Pike and Trout followed up last weekā€™s carp PB with an excellent PB tench of 6lb 11oz, securing our second ā€œCatch of the Weekā€. Well done, Padraig!

Our second “Catch of the Week”…Padraig’s 6lb 11oz specimen tench and new PB

The competition scene was also busy recently, with Ronan Minogue and Andrei Pirchio winning the NCFFI Commercial Pairs at Oaklands, while Wayne Swinscoe from Nottingham claimed first prize at the Fermoy Spring Festival. Concluding the competition news, Nikita Kubrack finished top in the Oā€™Callaghanā€™s Cup, which was fished over three days at Inniscarra.

Sea angling was also affected by fresh winds and unsettled seas along exposed coasts, limiting opportunities for offshore and shore anglers alike. As a result, there were very few reports from charter skippers, although improving weather towards the end of the week brought hopes of better fishing conditions ahead.

Kit Dunne of Wicklow Boat Charters enjoyed a strong start to the season, however. Over the last two weekends, his clients recorded tope along with mackerel, herring, dab, dogfish, pollack and wrasse, providing many first-time catches for both younger and older anglers alike; an excellent start to the season all things considered.

Nice Wicklow tope

Along the west coast, poor weather has recently hampered skipper Luke Aston, with many trips restricted to the Shannon Estuary. While the estuary produced smaller shark species, including a number of fine bullhuss, it is the larger specimens for which the ā€œClare Dragoonā€ is best known. When conditions briefly allowed offshore fishing, Luke once again delivered, putting a client over another impressive six-gill shark giant.

Another six-gill giant beside the “Clare Dragoon” ready for release

On the shore front, South Shore SAC faced difficult conditions along the North Dublin beaches. However, with the assistance of six visiting anglers from the Ulster Krakens, they still managed to land a range of fish, including decent bass and flounder, making for a successful joint outing despite the challenging conditions.

Other news

Chantel Carr from the National Biodiversity Data Centre has written another guest post for us about young Irish anglers doing their bit to protect our biodiversity: The International Sport Fly Fishing Federation has selected the island of Ireland to host the Youth World Fly Fishing Championship 2026, which will take place across Counties Tyrone and Donegal. The event will bring together some of the most talented young fly anglers to compete on rivers and lakes. As part of their role, the Irish team will act as Biosecurity Champions, promoting awareness of invasive species and encouraging best practice by ensuring all competitors Check, Clean and Dry their gear between fishing locations, helping to protect and preserve Irelandā€™s waters.

Young Irish anglers promoting biosecurity
  Sport Ireland is delighted to invite children and teenagers with disabilities or additional needs to take part in a fun fishing experience this May. The event will take place at Tibbotstown Reservoir, Carrigtwohill, Co. Cork on Saturday, May 30th, with sessions running from 10amā€“12pm and 2pmā€“4pm and open to ages 10ā€“17 years. Further information and booking options are available here.

   

And now the weather

Any lingering showers will clear early tonight, leaving mostly dry and cloudy conditions. Mist and fog may develop in places, particularly across southern and southeastern areas, with overnight temperatures of 9 to 12Ā°C in light southwest or variable breezes. The weekend is expected to bring warm sunny spells and generally dry weather, with top temperatures of 17 to 21Ā°C, although cooler conditions will persist along some coasts. The settled spell looks set to continue into next week, with temperatures possibly reaching 24Ā°C in some areas.

Donā€™t forget to double-check theĀ forecastĀ before heading off, and if youā€™re going to sea,Ā check the tides.

 Safe fishing to allĀ andĀ 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 toĀ [emailĀ protected].Ā 

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