We’ve heard from a few anglers that Tope are running well in the Carlingford & Dundalk area right now. And Robert Babington of Dromiskin, Co. Louth sent us in this photo to prove it. Estimated at 40+ lbs, it was one of seven Tope caught and released in the session.
Anglers onboard Kiwi Girl fishing out of Mullaghmore, Co. Sligo had great bluer shark fishing during the week. Conditions were ideal with relatively calm sees and plenty of blues about.
Check out the Kiwi Girl FB page for some cool video footage…
From Mullaghmore Harbour, our Sea Fishing Ireland experience aboard the M.V. Kiwi Girl will bring you to some of the best inshore fishing grounds in Europe. We offer a wide range of Sea Fishing Ireland Boat Trips to suit both novice and expert, from Short 2 Hr Sea Fishing Boat Trips to Big Game Options.
Kiwi Girl is a Fastcatch Kingfisher 31′ with a 420 HP Caterpillar engine.
The Pier, Mullaghmore, Co. Sligo, Ireland
Telephone: +353 (0)87 6100111
Email: mail@offshore.ie Web: www.offshore.ie
Luke Aston, skipper of the Clare Dragoon, is a man of many talents. Not just fishing and skippering, he’s good at writing about it too. So here’s an account of a two-day trip last week in his own words.
Luke was also out both days at the weekend and again, we’ll let him tell it in his own words:
Clare Dragoon is a LOCHIN 366 powered by 650HP engine, skippered by Luke Aston and operating out of Carrigaholt Co. Clare…
I have some offers up on my web site www.fishandstay.com and if anybody is interested in putting a trip together please do get in touch. Also I Twitter from the boat on @fishandstay and try to update my face book page www.facebook.com/CarrigaholtSeaAngling fairly often!To experience some of the best deep sea fishing available in Ireland contact Luke.
Telephone: +353 65 9058209 or +353 87 6367544
Email: lukeaston@eircom.net Web: www.fishandstay.com
John Fleming, skipper of the Brazen Hussy II, is so enamoured with shark fishing that he called his business Blue Shark Angling Galway. And he lived up to that name this week, bring a good few sharks to the boat for his guests. So far it has been nearly all porbeagle sharks, with just the one blue for Darren Lynch on the 17th.
Darren’s brother Chris had a porbeagle of 88lbs , his first ever, and dad Tom had a nice porgie of 108lbs, also his first ever.
John has been out several days since in the fine weather, with porbeagle sharks hooked and brought to the boat on every occasion. Most are being released at the side of the boat to minimise handling where possible.
It hasn’t been all sharks, with some fine pollack and ling also coming aboard in the last week.
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
Address: Baile an tSagairt, Spiddal, Co. Galway.
Telephone: +353 (0)87 7571320
Facebook: www.facebook.com/BlueSharkAngling
Blue Shark Angling Galway,
Phone John Fleming : +353 (0)87 7571320
With high temperature warnings in place throughout the country, Inland Fisheries Ireland is appealing to anglers, the farming community and the general public to report any sightings of fish under distress, which may be caused by the extreme heat combined with low water levels.
As a result, anglers are being asked to voluntarily stop using ‘keep nets’ while high temperature warnings from Met Éireann are in place, as these nets may cause unintentional distress to fish. In addition, anglers that practice ‘catch and release’ fishing are asked not to fish during the heatwave where possible, as this may put undue pressure on fish stocks.
Dr Gregory Forde, Head of Operations at Inland Fisheries Ireland explains: “It’s a sad reality that low water levels and high water temperatures can lead to fish kills, especially as there is less oxygen in the water to allow fish to breathe. Once the water temperature exceeds 20 degrees centigrade, salmon and trout suffer and are distressed. At present, temperatures are dangerously high and fish kills may be unavoidable. In Lough Sheelin in County Cavan for example, the water temperature recorded by Inland Fisheries Ireland was over 26 degrees centigrade this week. In some instances, moving fish in and out of the water may also prove too stressful. That’s why we’re asking anglers practicing catch and release fishing to consider taking a break from fishing while the high temperature warnings are in place. We’re also asking anglers to voluntarily stop using ‘keep nets’, until conditions become more favourable.”
Forde added: “Inland Fisheries Ireland staff are continuously monitoring water bodies, such as rivers and lakes, for any signs of fish under distress in shallow water or drying out rivers and streams. We’re encouraging the public to report any sightings of fish under distress to our 24 hour confidential hotline on 0818 34 74 24 so we can respond as quickly as possible to help rescue or relocate these fish.”
Inland Fisheries Ireland is supporting Irish Water’s appeal to reduce water usage as much as possible. As water source levels are dropping, the state agency is reminding landowners that abstraction of water from rivers and lakes should be carried out in a sustainable manner to ensure sufficient levels are available for other water users and to protect the aquatic habitat.
It is also timely to remind all those using pesticides that these should be used only as a last resort, always in accordance with product instructions and always respecting statutory ‘no use’ zones, being mindful at all times of proximity to water bodies such as ditches, streams, ponds, rivers, lakes and springs. Even a very small amount of pesticide can be highly toxic to the aquatic environment, Inland Fisheries Ireland has said.
To report sightings of fish under distress or fish kills, members of the public are encouraged to call Inland Fisheries Ireland’s confidential hotline number on 0818 34 74 24, which is open 24 hours a day.
Experienced shark anglers Pat Kirwan and Clyde McElwaine contacted Inland Fisheries Ireland during the week to report witnessing a rare shark leap clear of the water four times while they were fishing for Tope a few miles off Greystones. It happened last Saturday, 17th July, when Pat and Clyde were fishing in separate small boats, with two other boats close by, in an area known as the Codling Bank. The sea was completely calm when Pat heard a loud splash and then watched as a massive fish swam under his boat before jumping completely out of the water, revealing itself as a Thresher Shark. Immediately identifiable by its massive tail, which he estimated to be 3 metres in length, this enormous fish jumped fully out of the water three more times before moving off. “An incredible sight”, according to Pat – he estimated the fish to weigh about 200 kg. Pat and Clyde, who both tag Tope and other species for IFI’s Marine Sportfish Tagging Programme, have fished this area for many decades and have never witnessed anything as spectacular as this display from a species that is known to visit Irish waters infrequently.
Marcin Kantor was out with David Norman of West Cork Bass last week…
Last week, I had the pleasure to spend a couple of days fishing with David Norman aka West Cork Bass. We have spent a day chasing mullet and 2 days on the kayaks. While mullet did, what mullet usually do and managed to avoid getting hooked, the time spent on the kayak was very productive indeed. It really was as good as it gets.
We got onto some lovely Wrasse, top water ferocious Bass (with a few double hook-ups!) as well as Pollock to approximately 9lbs falling to jigs, top-water and the fly methods. With the weather we recently experienced, there is hardly a better place on the planet earth than the Irish Coast. Great memories made with a very nice and knowledgeable angler.
The final draw for 2021 brown tags for salmon angling on the Lower River Lee is now open for applications. Email your name, address, phone number & 2021 licence number to corkleebrowntag2021@fisheriesireland.ie before midnight tonight Friday, 23rd of July 2021. For more information visit: https://bit.ly/3kJSJW0
Jim Clohessy was out with regular fishing mate Paul on his Boat last week and then was invited to fish 2 days on Thresher with Rob and Gavin.
Jim reported great conditions at sea for the most part for a mix of fishing.
