June 2010
Boat is safely moored in the ‘lagoon’ & ready for the 15th June. Terns are bringing sandeels back to their chicks on Lady’s Island from Splaugh. They pass over the house here. Lovely to hear their distinctive cry. There are plenty of bass around. I spotted gulls feeding strongly near the Carrick Rocks a few days ago. The water temperature is 14 degrees C. Have a look at www.irishbass.org
June 21st
I seem to have lost the touch to catch bass. James jnr. out fished me last evening by 6-0 !! Two good fish of 4lbs & 6lbs the others all around 2lbs but wonderful fishing on a glorious calm evening. That K -ten works well.
Some early morning fishing later this week.
June 24th
An early start. Fishing by 4am! with Simon & Michael. Michael knew the spots & kindly floated us over them in his boat. We fished hard & at times in very warm conditions. We all managed 8 to 10 bass each ranging in size from 2lbs to 8lbs. Sub surface lures worked well but the the real excitement is those poppers. Various types like the Patchinko & skitterpop all worked well. Thanks Michael for having us & we’ll be back for another go.
June 20th Galway
James & I had amost enjoyable morning on the Galway weir last Sunday. One gate open but the river was full of fresh grilse & news ones arriving on each tide. We managed to hook three fish but land none! 5 caught for the session. Blistering sunshine & I came home well burnt!
July 3rd to 10th
Yet again a wonderful week spent high in the Nephin mountains waiting for rain, which did arrive last Sunday in good quantity!. Great flood & we managed two days fishing out of it. A further small spate on Wednesday saw a few fresh grilse in but not many & a few sea trout. Very frustrating from then on to watch good rain pass us by to the south. No records broken but a nice 5lb seatrout was released, caught on the wonderful Black Pennell. James managed to catch his first salmon on fly & two others. Keep an eye out for Irish Angler Magazine!
July 12th
An evenings fishing with Shay. Quickly hooked two bass off St Helen’s Bay & just as quickly lost both! Both fish appeared to be heavy. K Ten again. Managed to get one just before dark on ‘The Bridge’. Wind was north easterly which chops the water there a bit. Shay had a fine pollack, all of half a pound!! We’ll have another go & one day, Shay, we will catch.
August 7th
4 days spent in Ballina with Chris, Simon & James. The main run of grilse had passed through some two weeks earlier but plenty of fish showing both on the Ridge Pool & the Cathedral beat. Not so easy to catch. We all fished hard & found it somewhat frustrating to see fish caught on worms but wouldn’t look at fly! However persistance paid off & we managed 8 on the fly. Most fish around 3lb. Kevin proved yet again he knows the lies!!
We spent a most enjoyable evening at the very kind invitation of Mount Falcon on the famous Wall Pool. 3 on the fly & 1 spinning. Many thanks to Shane Maloney for his advice & for showing us the hot spots! A magnificent fishery.
Garry as usual his smiling self. Always a pleasure to visit the Ridge Pool Tackle shop.
Michael the ‘bass man’ showed us up by taking 3 on the Ridge on the morning session.
Left rather reluctantly on Sunday morning
August 20th
A last minute decision to race off the farm & head for Splaugh. Proved the right move! We arrived in St Helen’s only to find two divers in the middle of the best spots armed with harpoons! Left that & headed back to the Carricks. Fast & furious it was for 3 hours. James & I had 6 fine bass each, averaging around 4lbs. James caught a fine fish of nearly 7lb.. One brought home. Surface lures, mainly Gunfish, worked & after dark out came the K Ten. Brilliant lure.
We’re looking forward to some fine weather in September & October.
Rain needed for the Nore.
September 9th
Tremendous flood on the River Nore after torrential rain last Monday. Settling a bit by Thursday. Fished for 4 hours with a yellow flying C. Water very strong but just clear enough for a spinner to work.
It’ll be a few days yet before the fly works well. Rain last night & a bit forecast for tonight wont help. All that moss is gone! Kevin is optimistic as usual & mad to have a go!!
September 11th
The River Nore still high & coloured due to overnight rain up country but the river is dropping & should be suitable for a fly by midweek. I spent all afternoon at it but never even saw a fish. Up to lunch time as far as I know only one fish caught at Brownsbarn Bridge. Kevin, ever optimistic, had his new Sage rod up,loaded with a sink line & two flies which would have done any Christmas tree proud!
Tales of good fishing on the Suir & Balckwater
September 17th
Two great days spent in West Mayo at the kind invitation of Rock House & we were splendidly looked after by Dominique & Laurence. My apologies if I have your name spelt wrong. Thanks Fred for capturing on film the three salmon we managed to catch. Each fish took as the camera was rolling. Great bit of luck! Pat at Burrishoole, thank you for allowing us access to the traps & some good film taken here & generally thanks for your hospitality. Always a pleasure to visit this unique place. We managed a sea liced fish of 5 lbs from the ‘Leap’. The other two fish came late in the evening, high up in the Nephin mountains. Simon knew the lie & the little Cascade did the trick. The third fish followed shortly after. Both safely returned. All the time, Fred behind us with his camera.
Finally, our thanks to Sibylle & Guy for setting this all up
September 22nd
Rain predicted for the next day or so. Hopefully not too heavy. Have had some great sport on the River Nore. Not easy to hold on to fish with single barbless hooks!! The water is still strong & taking it’s time clearing. Not ideal for the fly but it is working. Fish travelling strong which is good to see. From reports, last Sunday, seemed to be a good day with some good catches & a few big fish. Kevin always manages to catch but went home early last night!!
September 25th
A lot of fish encountered at Brownsbarn yesterday. Very few today. Travelling hard. Very few upstream on the Thomastown stretch. I hand tailed a 10lb fish for Derek this morning but apart from this I have heard of no other catch. Met a delightful father & son partnership having a go . Nearly worked for them as father had a brief hook up. Never asked them their names but thank you for your kind offer of those lovely flies. Declan changed rivers. The river is high & coloured. Hopefully by Monday it’ll be good.
September 30th
Last day thank heavens! Flogged it from morning ’till dark. Not a pull! Not the same for Declan. Great last day for him. I helped him beach a lovely fresh sealiced fish of about 10 lbs & he followed that up by another, carefully released. Thanks for the ‘phone calls & my thanks to Jim for his cheerful smile & always interesting chat. To Keith, those river reports save me many miles of driving. Thanks. Brian & Barry managed a brace last Sunday.
I have a feeling a great many fish made it upstream & hopefully to spawn. Sorry to leave the river bank after another great season. Hopefully we’ll all be back in 2011.
November 10th
Rather reluctantly I collected the boat from the ‘Lagoon’ today & thus ended another season. A difficult one, due to wind mostly but some lovely bass fishing & a few nice cod in October. Will be back in May for another go. P.G.
Meanwhile the dogs are enjoying flushing those phesants!
We are situated 5 minutes walk from the sea & immediate fishing grounds. Some excellent marks, within short walking distance. Fishing gear can transported ahead if required. Bait supplied. Boat fishing a speciality but weather dependent. Magnificent rocky stretches of coastline also the famous Splaugh Rock fishing ground, very close by. Best months June through to October. Specialising in fly fishing. Also spinning surface poppers, possibly the most exciting form of bass fishing. I am strong defendent of catch & release for both salt & fresh water fish but ‘one for the pot’ is always acceptable. Some excellent tope fishing in Rosslare Bay. This can be done all through the summer but I have found that May & June are best. We have two self catering houses which sleep six. Plenty of car parking space & away from the main road.
We are busy for most of July & August but bass fishing can continue into November provided the sea temperatures hold up. There is a closed season for bass from May 15th to June 15th & daily bag limit of 2 fish per rod & no fish under 40cms (15.75ins) may be taken. All around the Wexford coast some excellent bass fishing can be found.
Trout fishing on Loughs Corrib & Mask. Boats & ghillies arranged. Own boat & guided fishing trips. Vast expances of wild trout water. Best fishing April, May & September but often good fishing in July & August.Accommadation on self catering basis. Lake side cottage available to let year round. Stunning scenery set in Joyce’s country, Connemara. Given the right weather, some spectacular spate river fishing for salmon & sea trout can be set up. I have considerable experience of many rivers in Galway & Mayo. Most are easily accessable & often available. State fishing licences are required for salmon & sea trout. Spate river fishing, is very water dependent. Golf courses are nearby if required.
Fishing trips to Uganda, Kenya, Madagascar, Maldives, The Carribean and Ireland.
An African fishing trip should be experienced by every fisherman! Kenya’s east coast is renowned for some truly spectacular blue water fishing, targeting species such as marlin, sailfish, wahoo, dorado, yellowfin tuna, etc. In-shore fishing for trevally, grouper, jobfish etc, is also possible. The mighty giant trevally is abundant aswell.
I have experienced what is possibly the most spectacular wild fishing I’ve ever encountered in Uganda on the River Nile at Murchison Falls in Northern Uganda . The Nile Perch is what brings fishermen here but many other species available. The Nile perch can reach in excess of 60Kgs. The falls at Murchison are simply spectacular & the fishing is not for the faint hearted. The river is deep & turbulent, the weather ofter hot & the river bank shared with crocodiles & hippo! The prize of a big perch is never to be forgotten.
A camp site is available at the top of the falls in spectacular surroundings. Basic but most enjoyable. An African night spent under canvass is memorable! If a bit more comfort is required, there are a few lodges a short distance from the falls which offer creature comforts! Uganda has a grim past but most visitors will be pleasantly surprised by the friendly people & modern facilites.
The Maldives feature in most travel agents but seldom do they mention the fishing. The local Maldivians rely heavily on the fish stocks which abound around the many islands. Yellowfin tuna are very numerous & provide their main catch. For the sport angler it’s hard to know where to start to begin to explain the wonderful fishing & all is accessable within a very short distance off shore. In fact we caught saifish within 100 meters of the shore! What brought me to these waters was the Giant Trevally. This fish is quite the most powerful fish I have ever encountered. Even small fish weighing 10kgs can keep you busy for 20 minutes. Very spectacular to catch as the best method is surface poppers . The bigger the popper the better. 30 centimetres! You need a good rod & only the best reels will survive!
Jigging, using the popular Japanese technique, provides a break from those heafty poppers & is highly effective. Dogtooth tuna, trevally, job fish, amberjack, grouper, napolean wrasse, coral trout, rock cod & the list goes on. Again the rod & reel have to be top quality. January to March being possibly the best months. Live aboard luxury ship, sleeping up to 12. 6 to 8 persons being ideal.
The in-shore reefs abound with fish life & snorkling or diving should be tried as these underwater worlds are indescribably beautiful.