Munster Coarse Anglers fished Round 7 of their winter series at the weekend, this time they visited Clondorney, near Tulla…
A big smile with a small bag shows just how tough the fishing was
Maybe it was Sunday was a day for a lay in rather an spending the day on Clondorny.
A hard frost and bright sun shine at the start of the match with a few fish topping in the shallows ends. So it was with optimism and high hopes we started, however grey sky and a nasty easterly breeze so put pay to any thoughts of a fish feast.
it soon became apparent that bites were at a premium and no small fish showing in the deeper pegs it was going to be a grueller…
Munster Coarse Angling Club are affiliated to the National Coarse Fishing Federation of Ireland, NCFFI the National Governing body for coarse and predator fishing and casting. www.ncffi.ie
3/2/23 Just Three boats out and in the words of Currane angler Mr. Dominic McGillicuddy / the flyman of www.fishingwithdom.com no good just three boats out and very quiet. Wind SW fresh and overcast followed by showers.
4/2/2023 Mr Eric Jouen of Waterville Boats and at [email protected] reports that he caught a few Kelts and the odd Brown Trout. Just for the record there were three boats out this day. Wind SW fresh and veered NNE fresh, followed by good cloud cover.
5/2/2023 This first St. Bridget’s Bank holiday Sunday and there were only three boats out this day and all the Currane reels were all quiet, this was confirmed by Currane anglers Mr. Eric Jouen of Waterville Boats and at [email protected] and Mr. Dominic McGillicuddy/ the flyman and at www.fishingwithdom.com Wind SSE and veered S fresh to strong with good cloud cover.
6/2/2023 All quiet on the SW front on this St. Bridget’s bank holiday Monday. Wind fresh, average speed 23mph and overcast.
7/2/2023 Currane angler Mr. Eric Jouen of Waterville Boats and at [email protected] reports that there were only two boats out manipulating their skills and for all their efforts just a few Kelts caught. Wind SSW light and veered S in the afternoon and overcast.
The rivers and lakes of Waterville drain a large catchment and are regarded by many as the foremost Salmon and Sea-Trout fishery in the country. The lake system is well developed with access to boats and guides being readily available to the tourist angler. The Sea-Trout caught here are renowned for their size and quantity. For more details see:
Notes: Located at Lakelands House Bed and Breakfast and Self Catering Accommodation, on Ireland’s best sea trout lake, Lough Currane. Frank is a professional angling guide and boatman.
Sea angling can be arranged with local operators.
Boat Hire
Boats for hire. All boats and engines are moored on the farm, 300 metres from the house, with easy access from the road with car park and boat shed.
Notes: Having ghillied on Lough Currane for over 30 years Vincent is a great choice for those looking for a guided service or flyfishing instruction on the Lake. All ages are catered for and even experienced anglers will benefit from the watercraft and fly-lore unique to Lough Currane. All tackle is provided and accommodation can be organised if required.
The Barrow Perch Bonanza Competition took place in Sunday February 5th from 9am to 3pm at a location somewhere along the Barrow.
The event was fully booked with a maximum participation of thirty anglers and, even though the conditions were poor after a sudden drop in temperatures overnight, some super river perch were caught during the day, with some specimens in the 30cm – 40cm size range.
Some of the fish from the day
1 of 6
The river holds a good head of perch – including some very big ones – but they were not as active during the day as the organisers had hoped they would be.
The winners on the day were:
David Dennis
Adam Bartosik
Ben Moore
The prize for the longest perch was awarded to David Dennis
The organisers are now preparing for their Perch League which starts on the 19th February, anybody interested in taking part should make contact via the Barracuda Fishing Tackle Shop Facebook page.
With the 2023 salmon fishing season slowly beginning to take shape, regular contributor Andrew McGall has put together a YouTube video of his salmon chasing exploits during the 2022 season. The Atlantic salmon is the fish of a thousand casts, but here Andrew has cut straight to the action with highlights of some of his most exciting takes from the season gone.
Having said that, there must have been several thousand casts to piece this footage together, so well done Andrew.
Andrew tries to adhere to the ‘Keep ’em wet’ philosophy of trying to keep your fish in the water throughout the unhooking process, only lifting them for a quick photo. Keeping the fish underwater ensures that they are not deprived of oxygen and gives them the best chance of survival once released.
As ever, Andrew has some wise words to accompany the video and, if you haven’t seen them before, Andrew has a series of great fishing vids uploaded on his channel – so don’t forget to like and subscribe!
Don’t miss what will undoubtedly become Ireland’s greatest angling event.
After the success of the first Irish Spring Angling Fair in 2022 Ned Maher of Ardaire Springs Angling Centre, Mooncoin County Kilkenny has just announced that he will once again host the IRISH SPRING ANGLING FAIR.
Taking place on the May Bank Holiday Weekend, the Fair will open to angling enthusiasts on Saturday 29th April and Sunday the 30th of April 2023 over the bank holiday weekend.
It is without doubt a must attend event, throughout the 2 days a host of world renowned celebrity names such as Scott Mackenzie, Glenda Powell, Peter Driver, Henry Gilbey Jim Clohessy Craig Barr, Steffan Jones, Jason 0 Riordan, Maurice Cahill, Stuart Wylie, Ronan Murray, Cormac Walsh and more will provide talks on angling related topics and give free demonstrations to attendees
Fly tiers row proved a big hit last year with salmon ,trout saltwater and pike flies being tied by some of the best in the business ,
Game, sea and pike angling will be the hot topics throughout the weekend and the event guarantees to offer something for everyone.
Ardaire Spring Angling Centre covers over 4 acres of lakes, stocked with rainbow and brown trout ranging from 2lb to 20lb.
The venue provides a unique opportunity for both world renowned celebrity anglers to showcase their skills and indeed leading tackle manufactures to demonstrate and promote their fishing tackle and boats on the lakes.
With ample room for exhibitors it offers a fantastic opportunity to add to your tackle collection and indeed find out the latest tips and techniques. There will be stands from all types of angling including tackle suppliers and promotional stands from fisheries and even some international companies promoting angling holidays ,
Not forgetting the younger generation we will have an abundance of activities for kids to include fly casting, lessons and much more. Onsite catering will also be available throughout the weekend.
Don’t miss out on an amazing weekend, meet with celebrity anglers and fellow angler enthusiasts, join us and support the fair at Ardaire Spring Angling Centre and see it develop in to the greatest Irish Fair of future years.
A quick photo and then the first Drowes salmon of 2023 was safely released
It was a case of third time lucky for the first salmon landed on the Drowes this year. Only the third salmon reported so far this season, the first two fish) caught on the blackwater and Lough Currane) were knocked on the head. Drowes Fishery manager, Shane Gallagher has the story his rivers first fish of 2023…
Ronnie Mc Morris prepares to release the first salmon from the Drowes this year
First Drowes fish of the year was landed just after midday from Briney’s Pool upstream of Lennox’s Bridge. Ronnie Mc Morris, originally from Fermanagh, now living in Drumuckrim, Ballyshannon, caught the fish in his third cast. The salmon was fresh in and sea liced. Estimated at 10lbs, it took an Ally’s Shrimp variant and was released to continue its onward journey.
The fly…
Ronnie received the Drowes Perpetual Cup for the first salmon from the Drowes of the 2023 season and also the Thomas Gallagher Conservation Cup for the first caught and released salmon of the season.
Ronnie with the Drowes Perpetual Cup and the Thomas Gallagher Conservation Cup
It is believed to me the first caught and released salmon in Ireland if the 2023 season. [Ed. – Certainly the first one reported to Inland Fisheries Ireland this year!]
Go fishing…
River Drowes
The Drowes Fishery is one of Ireland’s premier spring salmon and grilse fisheries. The river is some 5 miles in length, with over 70 named pools, flowing from Lough Melvin at Lareen Bay and entering the sea at Tullaghan, just outside Bundoran. The Drowes has a wide variety of water suitable for all fishing methods, including several miles of good fly water and deeper slower moving pools suitable for spinning and bait fishing.
For information and bookings on the Drowes Fishery & Lough Melvin see http://www.drowessalmonfishery.com Tel: 071 9841055 (8am to 12 noon). Mob: +353 (0) 87 8050806
It was a dry week for most of the country, with only 10-15% of normal rainfall recorded, and only slightly more in the west and northwest. Temperatures were 6 to 8°C, cooler in the midlands and milder in western regions. There were some very sunny days and these went down well with anyone out and about this week, particularly with that noticeable stretch in the evenings…
After the big floods a couple of weeks ago most of the rivers have dropped back considerably and there is plenty of good fishing water on those rivers which have opened already. Decent conditions on the Munster Blackwater saw a good turn out on the river on Wednesday. Ray O’Dwyer fishing at Careysville marked the opening day with the first salmon of the season, a 6.25lbs sea liced fish. Ray took the salmon on a tube fly. The 2023 opener at the Galway Fishery began with a gathering of anglers and friends, but high water limited angling.
The Ireland on the Fly podcast focuses on Lough Carrowmore, known for being one of the best lakes for spring salmon on the fly in Europe, and features a discussion with Brian Hope from the Bangor Erris Angling Club to provide tips on fishing at this location.
There were some lovely pike caught in the Leinster Pike Anglers winter league
Pike anglers Anne Marie and Stephen had a successful pike fishing trip on Lough Derg with Damien Culliney of Anglers Paradise, catching 10 fish including a 104 cm PB for Anne Marie, and both clients and guide are already planning another trip due to the enjoyment of the experience. Elsewhere Mark Kiernan won the Leinster Pike Angling Club’s winter league with 18 fish for 60lb 11oz, followed by Mark Byrne with 15 fish for 48lb 6oz, and Mark McKenna with 6 fish for 26lb 1oz. Meanwhile, 35 Newbridge District Pike Anglers fished in a competition with canal and river venues at the weekend. Most anglers opted for the river and had a productive day. 72 pike were caught, with Adam Craig breaking his PB with a 19lb fish and David Quinlivan landing 11 fish for 49.04lb.
If you can’t go fishing this weekend why not join Norbert Renaud of L’ile Verte Pike Fishing Lodge for a Friday night livestream featuring chat, beers, and flies, as he shares his expertise on catching hard fighting Irish pike and offers gear reviews, fly tying, and fishing footage on his YouTube channel.
In coarse angling, Alan Larkin won Round 4 of CM Lakelands Muckno Feeder League by dominating the competition at the top end of Black Island with 4.420kg, while Joe Nolan took second overall.
Not often seen by shore anglers – haddock!
Catch of the week this week goes to Aaron Vambeck with a shore caught haddock from Donegal. One of the Mariners club members, his catch goes down as a new club record shore haddock (their only shore caught haddock!).
The 2023 Irish Winter Shore Angling Festival took place from January 26th to 28th in east Wexford with 124 entries. The competitors fished at three different beaches and captured various species including Flounder, Dab, Codling, Coalfish, Rockling, Lesser Spotted Dogfish, Whiting and Bass, recording a total of 3,135 fish.
The 2023 Irish Winter Shore Angling Festival took place on east Wexford beaches
The winners of the festival include Under 18’s Max Roche, Ladies Jane Cantwell, Pairs Richard Yates and Chris Clark, 4 Person team Richard Yates, Chris Clark, John White, Sam Collier, and Individual Ben Arnold.
Spurdogs!
Anglers on a Wicklow Boat Charter had a successful day of fishing, landing 7 specimen sized spurdog and many others around the meter mark. Also at sea last week was Jim Clohessy, fishing off the cork coast aboard Skua. He was searching for pollack and codling and was pleased to find a steady flow of fish, including pollack, big wrasse, and codling, all caught using soft plastic lures and 60g jig heads.
Cormac Walsh is back with the Lure Fishing Podcast and his latest episode features a conversation with renowned sea angling photographer and bass fishing expert Henry Gilbey covering various topics on bass fishing and lure fishing.
And now the weather…
Today and tonight will be mostly cloudy with light rain and drizzle, temperatures of 10 to 12 degrees and 5 to 8 degrees, and moderate to fresh southwesterly winds. Tomorrow, rain will develop in the northwest and turn colder with temperatures ranging from 6 to 11 degrees and moderating to fresh northwesterly winds.
The next few days will be quite settled with occasional rain and drizzle. Temperatures will be near or above the February average, with cold and dry conditions on Saturday night leading to frost and possibly ice. Sunday will be dry with sunshine, followed by cloudy weather with light rain or drizzle on Sunday night and Monday. The cloud and patchy rain will clear southeastwards on Tuesday, potentially lingering in the southeast into the evening. The outlook for Wednesday is settled but with the possibility of rain on Thursday.
If the fish aren’t biting why not cut a few rushes and have a go a making a St Brigid’s cross? Or reach back further in time and mark the old Celtic feast of Imbolg that celebrated the rebirth of nature after the long death of winter.
Don’t forget there’s an extra day’s fishing this weekend (Go raimh maith agat Naomh Bríd). We hope loads of you get out on the water, but don’t forget to check the weather, check the tides and check the river conditions before you travel.
Catch of the week this week goes to Aaron Vambeck with a shore caught haddock from the pier which also goes down as a new club record shore haddock (the only shore caught haddock). A fantastic catch well done! Aaron also had thornback rays, dogs, dabs, scorpions etc. on a great evening out.
L-R Jose Perez, Maureen Byrne, Andrew Crosbie, Christine Meehan
Protection and Development posts opening up in Cavan, Clare, Cork, Donegal, Dublin, Galway, Kerry, Leitrim, Limerick, Louth, Mayo, Roscommon, Sligo, Waterford and Wexford
Inland Fisheries Ireland, the state agency responsible for the protection, conservation, development and promotion of freshwater fish, habitats and sea angling, is launching its recruitment drive today to hire 36 Seasonal Fisheries Officers.
Subject to funding, the six-month posts are divided across seven River Basin Districts, covering 15 counties with recruitment getting underway immediately.
Seasonal Fisheries Officers will join teams over the summer months to help protect, conserve and develop fisheries resources working in and around Ireland’s lakes, rivers and coastlines.
The agency plans to launch a second recruitment drive in the coming weeks for Seasonal Research Assistants.
Christine Meehan Fisheries Officer
The Seasonal Recruitment campaign will open for applications tomorrow Saturday 4th February 2023.
Those interested in applying for a six-month Seasonal Fisheries Officer role can apply on-line at www.fisheriesireland.ie/careers, before the deadline of Tuesday, 21st of February 2023.
Fisheries Officer on patrol
Location of posts (Subject to budget availability)
Cavan (River Basin Districts: North-Western)
Clare (River Basin District: Shannon)
Cork (River Basin District: South-Western)
Donegal (River Basin District: North-Western)
Dublin (River Basin District: Eastern)
Galway (River Basin District: Western – Galway)
Kerry (River Basin Districts: South-Western)
Leitrim (River Basin District: Shannon)
Limerick (River Basin District: Shannon)
Louth (River Basin District: Eastern)
Mayo (River Basin Districts: Western – Ballina)
Roscommon (River Basin District: Eastern)
Sligo (River Basin District: Western – Ballina)
Waterford (River Basin District: South-Eastern and South-Western)
On the Erne System, Guided Predator Angling have been busy again. Check out Simon’s short report below…
No bites to near lunch time today had me starting to sweat!
A few changes of location thankfully picked up a few fish, including one with a real nasty wound but at least it looked healed and the fish was still feeding!
Few fish each for the lads and and enjoyable day all round, even if the wind was a nightmare!
Boat Hire
Salmon and Sea-Trout fishing Guide
