Brenda Montgomery, IFI reports from Lough Sheelin – April 1st to April 7th 2013:

‘Fly fishing can teach us about the fragility of nature and our responsibility to protect our planet from harm’

Last Tuesday April 2^nd it was unseasonably cold, the car registering a cool minus 4, driving towards Ballyjamesduff  from Granard in the early morning your focus can be momentarily distracted to  the right by the appearance of a great expanse of sparkling water, glittering as if covered in  tin foil in the frosty sunshine – the majestic Lough Sheelin. – ‘lake of the fairy pool’ and despite the persistently cold weather, Sheelin has to be appreciated for the beautiful sometimes magical lake that it is.

The start of the week was a tough one on the Sheelin anglers solely because of the persistent cold.  As we pushed into the month of April, the radio and newspapers constantly informed and reminded us that it has been the coldest March since Met Eireann records began but we don’t want these statistics and for most of the anglers all they are listening for is a break in this weather and milder conditions with westerly winds so that they can finally get to grips with Sheelin.

On Wednesday things looked hopeful with a bright day and a gentle east wind, there were small localized hatches of duck fly with fish moving and coming up once to the top, this was the first day of the season when a few dry flies were tentatively chanced but after that it was a change back to the wets and a minky on the tail to tempt some trout going through the pins at Chambers bay.  Friday was a different kind of day on the lake with broken cloud and the wind loosing that bitter bite from the wicked North East which has plagued Sheelin for the past 4 weeks.  The wind took on a more Northerly turn which led to some great shoreline drifts and then the sun came out to finish fishing around 3pm as it just got too bright.

Sheelin was in competition with the Grand National on Saturday but ran its own race to produce some lovely catches of trout. A lot of fish were showing at the weekend, their surfaces splashes teasing the ever optimistic angler. There was good fishing on Sunday but then around 4pm the wind changed to the all too familiar cold of the North East and fishing came to an abrupt end once more.

Last year we had olives hatching on the lake in late March but as yet there is no sign of this elusive little fly, we can perhaps blame the weather for this as temperatures were a good 20 degrees higher this time last year but for now the anglers joke that the only olive you might see now is one wearing a coat and hat..

The two most popular lures for the week were the minkies and the humongous both in black.  If the minky is too long trout are inclined to hang on to the tail, fail to grab the hook and are lost.  The humongous lure was popular in black with a small bit of glitter in the tail but silver proved to be successful too.  Stimulators also made an appearance for the first time this week.

Ned Clinton with his 5 ¼ lb trout caught using a humongous on April 7^th

There were small hatches of black buzzer particularly in sheltered areas. Favourite flies being used were The dunkeld, Sweeney todd, Raymund, Jack Flash, Hare’s Ear, Claret Dabbler, Pearly Dabbler, Silver Invicta, The March Brown and The Cock Robin.

The popular Sheelin Classic trout competition now in its 9th year will be run on Lough Sheelin on Sunday June 9th 2013 – 11am to 6pm.  This is a heaviest fish competition with a 15” size limit and only 2 fish per competitor.

This is a competition well worth marking in your diary and because of the popularity of the Sheelin Classic and to avoid disappointment, it is advisable to secure your entry sooner rather than later by contacting Noel McLoughlin at 087 2179460 for further information

A catch & release policy is actively encouraged on the lake at all times

Please remember anglers that the size limit on this lake is 30 cm (11.8 inches) – we need our small fish alive…….

Gary McKiernan (www.loughsheelinguidingservices.com) releasing his 2 ½ trout on Sunday April 7^th.

The heaviest catch for the week was Ned Clinton’s 5 ¼ lb trout caught on Sunday April 7^th

Total catches recorded for the week:  29

Selection of Catches:

Larry McAlinden, Northern Ireland – Sunday April 7^th, 1 trout at 2lbs fishing wets.

John Brennan, Dublin – fishing with a friend on Sunday, John caught 3 trout heaviest weighing in at 3 ¾ lbs.

David McBride, Southside Anglers – on April 7^th 2 trout weighing in at 3 and 4 lbs respectively.

Peter Boyle, Monaghan – Wednesday April 3^rd 1 trout at 1 ½ lb using a minky, April 5^th 3 trout heaviest at 3 ½ lbs on a Hare’s Ear Dabbler (green) at Church, other trout were caught at Derry Point using the same and the third was caught at Lynch’s Point on a Peter Ross Dabbler.

Gary McKiernan (www.loughsheelinguidingservices.com) – fishing Sunday April 7^th, 3 trout heaviest was 2 ½ lb using a Claret Dabbler.

Ned Clinton, Crover – on Sunday April 7^th, 3 trout heaviest was 5 ¼ lb using a humongous.

Michael Kelly, Dublin – on Friday afternoon April 5^th, using a minky 1 trout at 3lbs, April 6^th around Derrahorn 2 trout at 2 and 1 ½ lbs using a minky and on Sunday April 7^th using wets 1 trout at 4lbs.

Brenda Montgomery, IFI

Lough Sheelin