Irish Angling Update – 17 Feb 2023
The past week or so has brought a subtle change in the weather, as slightly milder temperatures coupled with brighter, longer days, signal that spring is slowly seeping into the fabric of our daily lives. It’s not just that temperatures last week were two degrees above average, but you could actually feel the warmth of the sun on your back if you were fortunate enough to be outdoors when it shone. Luckily, with rainfall well below average for the week, there was plenty of opportunity to make it outdoors, where the rising levels of birdsong and the early flowering daffodils reinforced the perception of the season changing.
While all these natural markers herald the coming of a new season, we also have our own angling markers: days, dates and events of special significance that punctuate our yearly angling calendars. One such marker was passed this week, as Feb 15th saw the commencing of the trout angling season on many of our western lakes. It’s a date that’s keenly anticipated by plenty of trout anglers, both in the west and further afield, and while the fishing on the loughs at this time of the year can be patchy at best, just knowing you can jump in a boat, set out on a drift and cast a fly, lightens the heart of many an angler. In fact, for most anglers that do venture out on the loughs on the 15th, opening day is not even primarily about the fishing, but more about the chance to meet up with old angling friends and maybe share a meal and a few stories of seasons past. This year was no different, as the photos of hearty meals cooked over open fires and washed down with a glass of red, speak of a camaraderie that only early-season lough anglers share.
Luckily, this year’s opening day saw a fish caught that did justice to the importance of the occasion. Ian Turner, fishing with Wild Atlantic Angling Experiences guide Jasper Mathews, hooked and boated a fantastically marked 9,8lbs ferox while trolling lures on the Corrib. It’s great to see such a fabulous fish landed and returned on opening day, and Ian’s super trout wins this week’s Catch of the Week. Hopefully, it’s a sign of a bountiful year on the loughs for all.
For those fly anglers who are planning a trip to the loughs this year, you could do a lot worse than stick a few of Jackie Mahon’s patterns in your fly box. Jackie has been collaborating with Fulling Mill to make a selection of his patterns commercially available, and, in his latest report, he spends a bit of time giving us the lowdown on some of his top patterns. For those looking to brush up on their angling skills, one date to mark on your calendar is the weekend of 15/16 April, when the Munster Fly Fishing Fair will be held in Clonanav. Featuring a host of industry experts from the tackle trade along with fly tyers and casters, this free event promises to be an activity-packed fishing fair.
Moving on to salmon fishing and we were pleased to hear that Delphi fishery got off the mark for the season as Bob Hadden landed a 6lb 15oz salmon while fishing the Meadow Pool with an Ally’s Shrimp. As luck would have it, Bob was back in action 4 days later as he managed to land the second Delphi salmon of the season to make it a super start to the fishing year for him.
Unfortunately, anglers fishing on Lough Currane during the week did not fare quite so well, as it turned out to be a quiet week, with no fish reported. If you have an hour or so to spare over the coming week, you would do well to tune into the latest episode of Ireland on the Fly, where Tom and Daire are joined by Dan O’Donovan, the author of Salmon of the River Lee, to discuss the history of the fishing on the river and the impact on the fishing community of the river being damned. And, if that podcast sparks an interest, the next draw for the brown tag allocation on the River Lee will be held on 22nd March, and anglers will be able to apply to be included from March 6th.
Moving on to pike angling, and Simon from Guided Predator Angling had some good results earlier this month while fishing the Erne system. One of his clients, Danny Hagan, had a red letter day when he broke his PB (12lb) by landing a fish of 21lb, quickly followed by one of 20lb. That’s bound to be a day to remember for Danny. Limerick County Pike Anglers were back on the banks last week, but this time in somewhat unusual surroundings. Given a chance to fish the famous salmon run at Castleconnell, the club made the most of the opportunity to host a club competition there and caught plenty of pike from the renowned fishery. Meanwhile, Tulla District Angling Club have announced their competition schedule for 2023, with plenty of dates running from February through to October.
To a different type of predator now, and Dan O’Neill, better known for trout angling on the River Nore, had a busy day out chasing perch with his young son Anthony and his pal Rares on the River Barrow. Having got the youngsters set up and catching a fine stamp of fish on lures, Dan was able to get his fly rod out and tempt a few on the fly.
To coarse angling news now, and members of the Iascaire Feeder Fishing Club have been exploring hidden gems in County Leitrim lately. Choosing to cast a line on an unfamiliar lake in the Carrigallen area, a couple of members were well rewarded for their efforts with 167 fish, not bad for a winter’s day on a new venue. Over on the River Erne, the Erne Anglers continued their winter league on a river running low and clear. There were some very nice weights taken for the time of year, and the overall winner was Dave Williams with a bag of 13.6kg. At Oaklands Lake, round five of their winter league proved to be a tale of two halves. One half of the fishery had plenty of carp moving, with top bag of 44kg going to Ronan Minogue. Unfortunately, the anglers in Section B were faced with a no-show from the carp and had to make the numbers up with silvers. To wrap up the coarse angling news, Tulla & District Coarse Angling Club have announced their competition schedule for 2023, with 14 dates scheduled between March and September.
We finish this week’s angling reports with sea angling, and a couple of firsts for the year as anglers broke their species ducks for the season. First up is David Norman of Angling Adventures West Cork, who made the most of a break in the weather to target mullet on the fly, landing his first mullet of the year and a total of five fish to 6lb which is super fishing by any standards. Next up, the ever-active Killybegs Mariners were out for a couple of evening sessions during the week and had their usual haul of flatties and sea trout with the welcome addition of their first bass of the season.
In Wicklow, Kit Dunne managed a quick trip out to a deep water mark in search of some winter spurs, and while they didn’t find huge numbers, he still managed to get a specimen for one of his punters. On the competition scene, South Shore SAC headed to Wicklow north beach last weekend and found the conditions to be almost too good, with the calm-ish seas limiting bites and only a couple of anglers managing to master the whiting to put in decent scores. Cork Sea Angling Club had their first competition of the year, and also kicked off their species hunt with a trip to Cobh. Fishing was tough, with numbers low, but the species side of things didn’t disappoint, with 12 species recorded for the evening’s fishing. Finally, bass anglers will be interested to hear the latest episode of The Lure Fishing podcast, as the host Cormac Walsh speaks to all-round angler Marcin Kantor, with a particular focus on bass fishing.
To wrap up this week, we have a discussion on a recent paper exploring the stewardship role that anglers play in the protection of particular aspects of nature such as rivers, lakes, habitats, and fish species. As anglers, we have a deep connection to the environment in which we spend so much time and which gives us so much enjoyment. Through participation in our sport and through contributing to social activities such as angling clubs we acquire an understanding of and share knowledge about our local environments, which, in turn, fosters a sense of responsibility for doing the right thing to protect those environments. A quick browse through our weekly reports shows that we have a number of very active angling clubs in this country, and many of them are open to new members. Maybe now is as good a time as any to sign up for some social fishing…
And now the weather
Friday afternoon will see rain spread from the south west to all areas of the country by the late afternoon. It will become windy overnight on Friday and it will be a wet night with widespread rain which will turn heavy in places. The rain will clear on Saturday and it will be a mostly dry but cloudy day with patches of light rain or drizzle with fresh westerly winds. Sunday will also be a cloudy day with most of the country remaining dry. The mild, cloudy weather with broken spells of rain will continue at least until Tuesday, before turning colder from mid next week.
Safe fishing to all and tight lines, especially here in Ireland.
IFI Staff
Catch, Photo, Release
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All the angling news
Trout Fishing Reports
- Jackie Mahon – flies for all seasons
- Opening Day Gold on Corrib
- Munster Fly Fishing Fair – 15 & 16 April 2023
Salmon Fishing Reports
- Delphi off the mark
- Ireland on the Fly: Dan O’Donovan and the Salmon of the River Lee
- Another quiet week on Lough Currane
- Munster Fly Fishing Fair – 15 & 16 April 2023
- Next River Lee Brown Tag draw set for 22 March
Pike Fishing Reports
- Contrasting days but consistently good fishing for guests of Guided Predator Angling
- Perched on the Barrow waiting for trout season to begin
- Tulla and District Angling Club pike competitions 2023
- Limerick Pike Anglers make most of trip to Castleconnell
Coarse Angling Reports
- Hidden gems in Leitrim
- Erne Anglers Winter League – Round 7
- Perched on the Barrow waiting for trout season to begin
- 44kg of carp wins Ronan round 5 of Oaklands winter league
- Tulla and District Coarse anglers competition schedule
Sea Angling Reports
- The Lure Fishing Podcast – Episode 3 – Marcin Kantor
- Enjoyable late winter fishing and first bass of the year for Killybegs Mariners
- Brief trip to the deep gets a specimen spur for Wicklow Boats
- South Shore SAC find conditions ‘too good’ to catch…
- Tough fishing but Cork SAC enjoy trip to Cobh
- February mullet on fly for Angling Adventures West Cork
