Lough Currane and River Inny updates from Vincent Appleby and the Waterville Lakes and Trust…

The Trust report

The first sea trout of the year was caught on Lough Currane yesterday! The fish of around 2.5 lbs was caught on the troll by veteran Ghillie Terence Wharton Senior. Lets hope that many more will follow! Salmon fishing has been a little slow this last week with just a few fish caught on the troll.

The ghillies are again helping us collect scales from salmon caught for our Scale Reading Programme. This valuable work is helping us build a better picture of the salmon stock dynamics in the catchment as well as enabling us to track salmon from our Conservation Hatchery.

Despite the cold weather persisting now into May, the high level mountain lakes will now be producing good fishing for small healthy trout. There are ten such lakes in the Currane catchment, all of which require a reasonable level of fitness to reach them! The weather also is much more extreme and more liable to rapid change than in the lower lakes and visitors are advised to keep this in mind when venturing into the uplands.These high level lakes are populated by generally small, beautifully marked, trout, which have their origins in the last ice age. As all these lakes are impassable to migratory trout, they are likely the last stronghold of the original genetic markers, dating from that time and which are responsible for the unique, long lived, Waterville sea trout.

It may well be that these unique trout are the key to saving our famous sea trout and the Trust is currently looking for funding to carry out much needed research into their characteristics and origins.

The Waterville System has a very similar habitat to the once famous Loch Maree, in Wester Ross in the Northwest Highlands of Scotland, with its close proximity to the sea and its chain of lakes.

Lough Maree was world famous with anglers for its plentiful stocks of large sea trout. The fishing kept two fishing hotels and many full time jobs going, until in the late eighties, salmon farming in nearby inshore waters, wiped out the fishery and the jobs which went with it. The Trust is committed to preventing a similar fate for Waterville.

If you’d like to know how you can help out with our work email [email protected]

Rod Robinson
Waterville Lakes & Rivers Trust

The Appleby reports

25/4/18 There was some good action on the Waterville fishery today so straight to the action. In the trolling department, angler Mr. John Howard Knowles from Preston, caught a cracker of an 11 lbs. Salmon on the troll, while Fishing with his Gillie Mr. Terence Wharton Jnr, also in good form was John’s Father, Mr. Mark Knowles, while fishing with his Gillie Mr. Dominic McGillicuddy of www.fishingwithdom.com caught an 11 lbs. Salmon on the fly. Now we head for the bungalow and catch of the day and in the trolling department, fishing out of www.curranelodge.ie Mr. Niall Howe of Co. Down, caught a fine 7 ½ lbs. Salmon and the action didn’t stop there because his good friend Mr. Arthur Miskelly also fishing out of www.curranelodge.ie caught a cracker of a 12 lbs. Salmon, all while fishing with their Gillie Mr. Tom O’Shea of www.flyfishingatloughcurrane.com Now we head upstream on the Commeragh, an angler from Cork caught an 8 lbs. Salmon on the fly, while fishing with his Gillie Mr. Neil O’Shea of www.oshealoughcurrane.com Wind NW fresh and gusty with heavy hale showers. Yesterdays weather. Amount of rainfall 11.0mm. Maximum air temperature12.2c.

26/4/18 Straight to the clerical error department and yes I got a diplomatic thrashing in all departments and yes I failed miserably in my Duties, for getting the facts wrong, so lets put the record straight, yesterday I reported that UK Angler, Mr. John Howard Knowles, caught his 11lbs. Salmon on the troll, well this was incorrect and in actual fact John caught it on the fly. Just for the record Mr. John Howard Knowles and Father Mr. Mark Knowles, were fishing out of http://thecrescentwaterville.ie/  Now today’s action, sadly the Wild Atlantic Salmon were in a lethargic mood this day and I can tell you by the end of the day my Noble fly angler weren’t far behind after casting their flies all day and as they say that’s fishing. Wind NW light to calm with reasonable cloud cover. Yesterdays weather, amount of rainfall 3.2mm. Maximum air temperature 11.4c.

27/4/18 All the action comes from http://thecrescentwaterville.ie/  and for good reason, their client UK angler Mr. Mark Knowles, while fishing with his Gillie Mr. Dominic McGillicuddy of www.fishingwithdom.com caught a fine10lbs. Salmon and that was their ration for the day and for the rest of the Currane Anglers it was all quiet on the SW Front. Wind E calm to light with reasonable cloud cover. Yesterdays weather, amount of raifall 1.2mm. Maximum air temperature 10.9.

28/4/18 The cold weather is the big story of the day and for good reason, we start with a slight snow flurry on the Kerry Mountains’ as you can see by today’s picture and to top it all local Gillie Mr. Tom O’Shea of www.flyfishingatloughcurrane.com and his client Mr. Martin Coveney were telling me as the temperature dropped and you can believe it or believe it not one hailstone shower lasted an hour and a half and it got so bad that Tom had to bail his boat, I believe they call it global warming, I personally would say that my Noble anglers were frozen out this day, or as my Uncle asked one Great Gillie Mr. Jack O’Sullivan 45 years ago, any good today Jack, no replied Jack, had a bad day at the Office and I think that sums up today’s action. Wind NE light to fresh. Yesterdays weather, amount of rainfall 0.2mm. Maximum air temperature 11.7c.

29/4/18 As April is closing on a cold spell and today was no exception, as you can imagine with the wind  ENE and with bright sunshine all morning it doesn’t make for good fly fishing, but come afternoon it began to cloud over and as you can imagine the Currane fly anglers anticipated a few rod benders but sadly that wasn’t the case, but at least they were out there manipulating their flies and lures. I will finish with quote of the day from a local angler, “we flogged our flies all day and all we landed up with is an aching back and now I’m heading for the bar and in the morning I might have a hangover, oh what the hell there’s always tomorrow”. Wind ENE light and variable with a few showers. Yesterdays weather, amount of rainfall 4.8mm. Maximum air temperature 11.2c.

30/4/18 On this the last day of April their fly reels were as silent as the Lambs as the fly anglers cast their flies into the current, into the Ledges and into the points of Currane. As the trollers passed the fly men / fly women, they all gave a blank hand signals and that sums up today’s action, all hands and no Wild Atlantic Salmon. Wind NW light variable and bright sunshine all day even though there was a bit of cloud cover at times. Yesterdays weather, maximum air temperature 12.4c.

1/5/18 The first day of May started with wild conditions with a strong wind from the SW, so the Currane anglers were left standing and waiting for the wind to drop and thankfully come afternoon they headed out but sadly Lough Currane got the better of them. Wind SW strong in the morning, fresh in the afternoon, plus heavy rain for a good part of the day and it made a reasonable flood. Yesterday weather, maximum air temperature 12.0c. Just for the record the amount of rainfall for April was 197.9mm.

That is your ration from the last week on Lough Currane, from your Gillie and the Waterville Fishery, no spin no fly’s just facts.

Vincent Appleby
www.salmonandseatrout.com

Go fishing…

Vincent Appleby

Eureka Lodge, Caherdaniel West, Co. Kerry.
Telephone: +353 (0)66 9475248
E-mail: [email protected]
Web: www.salmonandseatrout.com

Waterville Lakes and Rivers Trust

The Waterville Lakes & Rivers Trust, formed by concerned volunteers in 2016, is one of the new Rivers Trusts to be set up in Ireland and is currently aspiring to Charitable Status. Its remit is to protect the fresh and coastal waters of the Iveragh Peninsula.

Find out more and how you can contribute at

• www.watervillelakes.org

Find out more about Lough Currane…

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

• Waterville lakes and rivers system