Munster Coarse Anglers were back again at O’Briensbridge over the weekend, this time to fish Round 6 of their winter series…
Round 6. Back to O’Briensbridge rowing course. Gone was the film set but it was still outstanding achievements for some and tragedy for others my self included.
Outstanding award goes to Steve with his second win on the trot on this venue 11lb 2oz
Ray’s long walk was not was in vain as 2nd place 6lb 3oz was his reward.
Richard’s 4lb 9oz was a credible 3rd (no hybrid this week though.)
Finally well done to the rest of the lads who scratched a way bites all day and to myself the wooden spoon – truly hammered on both sides by 1st and 3rd…
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
The Irish Specimen Fish Committee have announced that the awards ceremony for the 2022 season will be held in the Clayton Hotel Leopardstown on the 11th of March at 14.00. All anglers who caught a specimen fish will be invited to attend to claim their cert and award. Please note that the venue is Leopardstown (not the Airport Clayton where the event has been held in recent years).
Pauric McGearty welcomed regular visitors back to Carafin Lodge for his first angling group of 2023. Water levels were on the rise following heavy rain which fell for two weeks before Josef Ludwig and his fishing group landed at the lodge. And then, on arrival, the temperature dropped dramatically, with hard frost, which remained for most of thể trip. So conditions weren’t exactly encouraging for the week…
Cold weather didn’t stop the fish from taking
But you have to make do with the hand you are dealt and the guys fished hard, and managed to land some nice pike with the biggest being 101cm. There was also the unexpected but welcome bonus of a good trout. All fish were in super condition and are feeding up well. All fish were caught using dead bait under a float including the trout. Smelt was the top bait followed closely by small Roach. All fish quickly photographed and straight back into the water as Carafin is a strictly Catch and Release fishing lodge.
A bonus trout on a deadbait
Good fish = Happy Angler
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Carafin offers self catering accommodation, with top class boats, equipment and bait and a guiding service. We go out of our way to help our customers enjoy their angling holiday.
They currently have some availability for February which is big-fish month, so why not make a booking to bag a big one!
Looking forward to the 23 Season and some notes about fishing in April
2023 started off for me with an email from Fulling Mill to say that my fly patterns have just arrived in the UK and are up on the Fulling Mill website. The range consists of wet Mayfly, Spent, Stimulators and Daddies. The patterns have been working the last number of seasons throughout Ireland, the United States and the UK with great success. I will also be working closely with Fulling Mill on some new products which will be launched soon, so keep an eye on my page for updates.
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Jackie's Green Drake Fly
Jackie's Hot Head Black Stimulator
Jackie's Hot Head Claret Stimulator
Jackie's Hot Head Fiery Brown Stimulator
Jackie's Hot Head Olive Stimulator
Jackie's Hot Head Sooty Olive Stimulator
Jackie's Hot Head Yellow International Stimulator
Jackie's Mask Green Drake Fly
Jackie's Silver & Pearl Daddy
Jackie's Spent Pink Para May
Jackie's Spent White Para May
Jackie's Spent
Jackie's Yellow Mayfly
Jackie's Melvin Daddy
A client recently asked me what are the best months to fish Lough Arrow and I found it hard to answer because I just love every minute I spend on the lake. There is something special about Arrow and it’s hard fighting Browns, so if I had to pick a month it would be April. It’s a great time of year to flyfish on Lough Arrow, it may take bringing extra clothes and layering up but the results are worth the extra effort. In April with bug life starting to appear and hungry Trout starting to feed after a long cold winter, it results in some extraordinary opportunities to flyfish.
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The best news is the Trout have seen little pressure with Arrow only opening on the 1st of April, and the Trout are hungry and eager to grab a fly. A typical day on Arrow involves Buzzers, Dries or Wets depending on how cold the day is. During April hatches of Olives start and offer good dryfly or Buzzer fishing. On the colder days we pull wets in the shallows in that few feet of water for that pull back at you.
When a guide gets a day off the first thing that’s on his mind is to go fishing. Last season, some of the days that I’ve had off I headed back to Arrow in the afternoons for some dry Buzzer fishing into the evening. This fishing consists of some of the bigger resident fish coming out to play and it’s something I love doing in the evenings.
Go fishing…
You can purchase some of my patterns in the new Fulling Mills brochure for 2023 which will be out soon.
Notes: Provides guiding on Lough Arrow, Melvin, Glencar Lake & Lough Gill .
Clients from all over the world from England, Scotland, Wales, Germany, Usa and South Africa. Total C&R on Jackie’s boat while guiding.
Flies for sale
2023 started off for me with an email from Fulling Mill to say that my fly patterns have just arrived in the UK and are up on the Fulling Mill website. The range consists of wet Mayfly, Spent, Stimulators and Daddies. The patterns have been working the last number of seasons throughout Ireland, the United States and the UK with great success. I will also be working closely with Fulling Mill on some new products which will be launched soon, so keep an eye on my page for updates.
Outdoorsman, podcaster and speaker Tommy Serafinski hosted Dr William Roche, Senior Research Officer at Inland Fisheries Ireland on a recent episode of his podcast Tommy’s Outdoors.
The podcast- The Demise and Recover of the Atlantic Bluefin Tuna gives an in depth look into the Atlantic bluefin tuna (Thunnus thynnus), the largest tuna in the world. These special creatures frequent Irish coastal waters to feed during its annual migration through North Atlantic waters. This giant of the sea can reach lengths of 4m and 1500lbs. The bluefin is prized by sea anglers for its power and fighting ability and is a very valuable commercial species.
Tagged Bluefin Tuna Donegal Bay 2019. Copyright Adrian Molloy
William and Tommy discuss the Bluefin Tuna CHART programme and angler-driven fish tagging programmes. The podcast has a particular focus on the Tuna CHART programme whilst also covering the Marine Sportfish Tagging Programme which is aimed at elasmobranch species of fish like sharks, skates and rays and they touch on the bass tagging program.
The Tuna CHART programme is a collaborative scientific programme between Inland Fisheries Ireland and the Marine Institute in partnership with the Sea Fisheries Protection Authority, the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) and the Department of Environment, Climate and Communications (DECC).
Well, the rain of the last while (4 months?!) took a welcome break this week, with temperatures plummeting, hard night frosts, and some areas even saw snow.
Pike angling is popular at this time of year, with fish often feeding up in advance of spawning over the next couple of months. Lough Erne is known for big pike, and young Jamie, who was a guest of uncle Kevin and Steven Powell of www.lureguides.com landed a fantastic 110cm pike over the weekend. Kevin also enjoyed fantastic fishing, with Steven putting them over lots of feeding fish throughout the day, but Jamie wins our Catch of the Week.
Jamie, Kevin and pike
Another angler enjoying his pike fishing was Callum Morss, who managed to land the same big fish twice in a few days. Although on the second occasion a new digital scales took a few pounds off the weight on his old mechanical scales, it still registered a whopping 25lbs 1oz! Further proof, as if it we needed that careful unhooking, handling and releasing can help to preserve our precious fish stocks and ensure a sustainable recreational fishery into the future.
Big fish second time!
Low temperatures and a cold wind made fishing difficult for the third round of the winter league at Oaklands, but John Browne made light of the tricky conditions with a very creditable top weight of 16.14kgs, just clear of Ronan Minogue with 15.00kg.
The CM Lakelands club also held the third round of their L. Muckno Feeder League on Sunday, with the cold weather providing difficult fishing. Irish international James O’Doherty managed to bag enough skimmers from his Yellow Island peg to win the day with over 5kg.
Salmon anglers are still mostly in hibernation, but another salmon fishery opened this week with 9 boats venturing out on Lough Currane on opening day. Fishing proved fruitless except for a few kelts, but the anglers enjoyed getting to wet a line again, and celebrated the start of another new season in style that evening.
Lough Currane opening day 2023
The Ireland on The Fly podcast this week is of interest to salmon and sea trout anglers, as it focusses on the plight of wild salmon in Scotland, where the fish farming industry is a major threat. Tom and Daire interview Rachel Mulrenan of Wild Fish, an NGO and advocacy group that campaigns for greater protection for wild salmon and trout.
Floating weed, the curse of shore anglers, especially after rough weather, proved a nuisance at South Shore SAC’s first competition of the year on Kilcoole beach. It was no match for Alby Allan though, who continued his recent good form with 30 fish to take the win. Whiting, coalies, dabs and codling provided plenty of sport, as well as the prolific weed!
Tralee Bay SAC also kicked off their competitive season with a match on Fenit Pier, where a massive turnout of anglers defied the cold weather for the John Lacey Memorial competition.
Fenit
The competition was dominated by the McMahon family, with Shane and Paddy McMahon taking the senior and junior prizes on the day. Not to be outdone, Liz McMahon took the longest fish prize with her 41cm coalie.
Best round fish of the day and 3rd place over all on the match was Liz McMahon with this belter of a Coalie of 41cm rounding off the fine family haul of prizes
Skipper John Fleming took a trip down the coast in fine weather to a boatyard in the Shannon estuary for winter maintenance, but he also reminded us of the potential for the season ahead, and that skippers’ diaries are open for bookings! Check out our listing of charter boats around the country and get booking some dates for the year.
We also feature a new podcast from a noted bass lure angler, Cormac Walsh, who has started a podcast to talk all things bass fishing. I know I have a lot to learn about this branch of fishing, so I will be following with interest! In the opening episode, Cormac chats with Michael Kelly from Evobass Lures, an Irish company making soft plastic lures perfect for Irish bass fishing.
Other News
In other news, the IFI Sponsorship Programme remains open for applications, with the closing date extended until Wednesday 25th January. So get your applications in soon!
Thursday 2nd February is World Wetlands Day, and the Local Authorities Water Programme (LAWPRO) is celebrating the day with an online “fireside chat” featuring Stories From The Waterside, a collection of writing from Irish authors sharing the water related local stories and personal connections. You can even choose which stories will be read, by their authors, by visiting the Stories From The Waterside website and voting for your top 5.
Trout anglers will be interested to hear that Inland Fisheries Ireland is holding an online lunchtime seminar about brown trout genetics in Ireland. Dr. Karen Delanty will give a talk on recent studies to examine the patterns and levels of population structuring and genetic diversity amongst brown trout populations in Ireland. The talk is free but registration is required.
And now the weather
Milder today with temperatures of 4 to 9 degrees, cloud spreading from the west but remaining mostly dry apart from some patchy drizzle. Patchy outbreaks of rain tomorrow, becoming more persistent in the west later, and moderate southerly winds bringing highs of 8-10C.
Sunday: Damp or locally wet to begin as overnight rain clears into the Irish Sea. Generally dry in the afternoon with a few sunny spells. Highs of 9 to 12 degrees in mostly light southwest breezes.
The outlook for Monday and Tuesday is for dull and cloudy weather with patchy light rain, amounts remaining small though. Light to moderate SW breezes and highs of 9-12 C.
The Local Authority Waters Programme (LAWPRO) are marking World Wetlands Day on February 2nd by holding an online celebration of Irelan’ds Magical Waters. The online Stories from the Waterside takes the frmat of a “fireside” chat, featuring stories from writers sharing the water related local stories and personal connections.
Stories From The Waterside was a writing competition held during the Covid 19 lockdown. Due to popular demand a dedicated website www.storiesfromthewaterside.ie was created where all of these wonderful stories can be read! Some of these stories will be read by their authors on the online event, and readers can suggest which stories should be considered, by way of a popular vote. All of the stories are published on the website Stories from the waterside, and can be searched by county, folklore, wildlife, waterbody type and other key thematic areas. We invite you, your families and friends to read the selection, and pick out your favorite stories for consideration. We will then approach the authors of the top five stories with a view to reading out their story and, if they are happy to do so or have someone read on their behalf, we will put them on the programme for the night. To Vote Please Click Here before Tuesday 24 Jan 2023
Stories From The Waterside online takes place on Thursday February 2nd from 7.30pm to 8.30pm. It will be held on Zoom, and you can register for the event by visiting www.LAwaters.ie . Alternatively, look up @LAWPROteam on Facebook, or check out @watersprogramme on Twitter.
One of the many off-season tasks facing charter skippers is boat maintenance. Sometimes that can be fairly routine, sometimes it can involve a full engine refit, or major overhaul to the boat and electronics. All charter boats are inspected by the Department of Transport on an annual basis, with the emphasis on passenger safety, so having this maintenance done is important both for safety as well as making sure the boat is running as efficiently as possible. If you are considering a charter boat trip this year, make sure it is a licensed vessel for the best guarantee of safety. You can check out all the licensed charter boats around the coast on our website here.
Skipper John Fleming took his boat, the Brazen Hussy II, down the west coast to the Shannon Estuary for some work in the boatyard this week. He took advantage of the fine weather, with almost flat calm conditions for most of the trip.
Passing Loop Head (we think!)A flat calm Shannon Estuary at Moneypoint
Season Ahead
Once the maintenance is complete, John is hoping to start his season in late February or early March. We’ll leave it to John to describe what guests on board can target throughout the season:
Starting off with some whitefish, pollock, cod, coalies, whiting and haddock. We will still continue to target these during the full season.
Spurs should start showing in early April so going to hit them around then with usually a good chance of specimen fish.
We will be starting to target tope in early to mid May.
Then from end of June until roughly mid August it will be time for porbeagles, hopefully it will be as good as the last couple of years. Really fast action with some big days numbers wise. With the rest of the summer until mid October being good for blues, again some nice fish being caught.
Hopefully also we will be targeting Atlantic bluefin tuna this year.
Accommodation can be arranged in a local B&B with some great restaurants and pubs for great food and craic!
So if any of you fancy a trip don’t hesitate to contact me and here’s to hopefully another great season.
Plan Your Season
Many charter skippers diaries will be starting to fill up with bookings now, particularly the summer months, weekends and popular holiday times. Now is the time to plan a few trips, get your friends on board and book with a skipper or three for a few outings throughout the year. Check out our listings for charter boats around Ireland here and search our angling reports here for previous years’ updates to give you an idea of what you can expect. Don’t forget to sign up for the Irish Angling Update, a weekly roundup of the best fishing stories from around Ireland, direct to your inbox!
Ahoy Skippers
We are always happy to feature reports from licensed charter skippers on these pages, so we welcome all contributions and photos that might help anglers to choose your boat for their next trip!
Go fishing…
To book fishing with John aboard the Brazen Hussy II, give him a call on 087 7571320
A regular day is between 9am- 6pm from either Rossaveal, Spiddal or Galway depending on species being sought after. Fishing on the inshore reefs for pollock, cod, ling, wrasse, conger eel and mackerel can be reached in 10 minutes from departure, while our offshore reef marks are within 45 minutes of departure. Our ground fishing for tope, spurdog, ray, bullhuss, turbot, plaice and the giant common skate can all be reached within the hour which ensures the most amount of time is spent fishing.
The shark season usually starts at the end of June and runs into late October, this is the ultimate angling adrenaline rush with these hard fighting blue and porbeagle sharks all being tagged and released safely.
Package deals available
Cormac Walsh is a well-known and very prolific bass angler, based in Co. Wexford in the heart of bass country. Cormac has just started a lure fishing podcast, exploring all things lure fishing. Lure fishing is an exciting way to fish for bass, with often explosive takes off the surface. In recent years, the range of hard lures has also been joined by soft plastics, with can be fished weedless. This allows bass anglers to fish much more ground, including thick weed and snaggy ground where hard lures with exposed hooks would be lost easily.
Cormac with a fine bass taken on an Evobass Sabre lure
One of the new companies supplying lures to this market is Evobass, a startup founded by Michael Kelly and based in Dungarvan, Co. Waterford. Another bass hotspot, unsurprisingly! In the opening episode, Cormac interviews Michael about his lures, bass fishing in general, and covers everything from amino acids to bass conservation!
Listen here on Spotify for a fascinating insight into lure fishing and creation, and don’t forget to follow Cormac at BassFishingIreland on Facebook for further episodes as they arrive. And if Evobass lures take your fancy, check out the website here or their Facebook page here. We support buying local, and we’ll be checking them out ourselves!
Trout anglers will be interested to hear that Inland Fisheries Ireland is holding an online lunchtime seminar about brown trout genetics in Ireland.
Karen Delanty will give a talk on recent studies to examine the patterns and levels of population structuring and genetic diversity amongst brown trout populations in Ireland.
The talk is free but registration is required.
Webinar 3 – Brown trout genetics – Monday 23rd January 2023
