• Very good fishing for Sea Trout and Salmon reported from Lough Currane.
• Mayfly fishing is excellent on all our major Trout lakes in the midlands and on the great western lakes.
• 10 lbs 12 oz. Trout is the best fish reported this week during the mayfly from Lough Corrib.
• 228 Salmon recorded for the week from the River Moy.
• 16.5 lbs Salmon reported from the River Derg in the Foyle system.
• High water levels hamper good coarse fishing particularly at some venues on the River Shannon.
• Lakes in the Arva, Gowna, Carrigallen area producing some nice catches of coarse fish in the past week.
• Excellent shore and deep sea fishing reported from west Cork.
• 200 lbs. Skate is tagged and released in Clew Bay.
GAME ANGLING
Southern Region: E-mail: enquiries@srfb.ie
Website: www.srfb.ie
Ian Powell reports from the BLACKWATER LODGE fishery on the Munster Blackwater in Co. Cork.
Floods followed by good weather
Since mid-May we have had a lot of rain & the river has been high – it peaked at nearly 3 metres on the gauge on May 22. At the end of last week, it finally started to come into reasonable order & we took 16 fish in 3 days, mostly in the 9-12 lb. class and mainly from the upper river. More rain in the upper river brought another smaller flood into the river yesterday, but it is already dropping & fining off. The weather forecast is dry for the whole week, so the river should come into absolutely cracking order & we are expecting superb fishing. Availability for fishing is OK in the next couple of weeks. Accommodation availability is OK except for Sat. June 3, when the Lodge is totally booked up. Keep an eye on the fishing report page for the latest information.
Best Regards & Tight Lines
Ian Powell (Proprietor)
Blackwater Lodge Hotel & Salmon Fishery
(Voted Best Fishing Hotel 2005 by the readers of the UK magazine Today’s Flyfisher!)
Upper Ballyduff
Co. Waterford
Ireland
Email: info@ireland-salmon-fishing.net
Website: www.ireland-salmon-fishing.net
Tel: 00 353 58 60235 From UK: 0871 474 0135 (10p/min any time!)
Fax: 00 353 58 60162 From UK: 0871 474 0136 (10p/min any time!)
Mobile: 00 353 87 235 21 20
South Western Region: Web: http://www.swrfb.com
E Mail: swrfb@swrfb.ie
From Eureka Lodge, Caherdaniel, angling guide Vincent Appleby reports on the past week’s fishing trends on the LOUGH CURRANE system:
Email: salmonandseatrout@eircom.net
Website: http://www.salmonandseatrout.com/
22/5/06 I start with a back date 20/5/06 I failed to report a Salmon caught by Mr Kevin Brain, also in the last couple of days his good friend Chris also had a fine Salmon followed by a couple of Sea Trout in the 2 lbs. bracket, back to the present, it wa
s rough with a strong Northwest west blowing but that didn’t stop my old gentlemen from being caught, and first in the striking zone was Mr Gary Humphries of the UK who caught a 12.5 lbs. Salmon on the troll with his Gillie Mr Brod O’Sullivan of Stella Maris Guest House Waterville and @ 0879227695 and the second Salmon of 9.5 lbs.. was caught on the troll by Mr Bob Amlung of Luxemburg fishing with Mr Neil O’Shea and of oshealoughcurrane@eircom.net there were also a few Sea Trout caught but nothing that would hit the head lines but to be fair with the cold conditions, they did well to catch any.
23/5/06 There were two Salmon caught the first was caught on the troll by Mr Simon Perks of the UK fishing with his gillie Mr Dominic Mc Gillicudy, the second was caught by Mr Sion Brain and know I will quote Sion’s Father Kevin, when the Sea Bass fishing is closed I turn my skills to Game fishing and as you can see, it is not long before I hit the head lines and as they say some of us have it and some of us don’t, and as you can see I have it all be it Sea fishing or game fishing so go to www.kbfishingireland.co.uk Wind west, fresh to strong, I will finish today’s notes by saying you can’t beat self confidence. 24/5/06 all quiet on the southwest front except for a couple of Sea Trout in the 2 lbs. bracket. Wind southeast light all-day and overcast with light rain for most of the day and in fact it made a small flood.
25/5/06 today started very slow with a very light southeast wind blowing, but come the deadly hour the wind veered southwest, then the action started on the fly, with Mr Simon Perks of the UK catching two Grilse at the Ledge in the Mouth of the Commeragh and just for the record the second Grilse he sportingly put back but Simon’s action didn’t stop there, his Gillie Mr Dominic Mc Gillicudy headed for the Morgan Rock and as Simon started casting, his Trout rod was bent double and he had one great fight with a 10 lbs Salmon and that finished his day off nicely by getting the grand slam of fly Fishing, He also caught a fine Sea Trout, there was also a fine 10 ¼ lbs Salmon caught on the troll by Church Island, by Mr Jean Quintus of Luxemburg fishing with his Gillie Mr Tom O’Shea of oshealoughcurrane@eircom.net In the Sea trout department, Mr Jean Mark of France fishing with his Gillie Mr Vincent O’Sullivan of www.vincentsfishing.com caught three fine Sea Trout ranging 4 lbs to 2 lbs all on the fly in the Mouth of the Commeragh. Wind as above and overcast with the odd light shower.
26/5/06 Very slack in the fly department be it Salmon or Sea Trout even though there were a few Sea Trout caught on the drift but to be fair to my Noble Fly Fisher the conditions were not very good with a very slack southwest wind and thick fog at times, but it was a different story in the trolling department where Mr Jean Quintus of Luxemburg, caught a 7.5 lbs Salmon on the troll with his Gillie Mr Neil O’Shea of oshealoughcurrane@eircom.net also in good form was Mr C Graas of Luxemburg who caught a fine 11 lbs Salmon and then his good friend Mr Patrick Bertrand caught a fine Specimen Sea Trout of 6.5 lbs all caught on the troll in a hired out boat from www.lakelandshouse.com
27/5/06 Made a big flood last night and the Mouth of the Commeragh was filthy all day and I can tell you Mr Simon Perks of the UK and his Gillie Mr Dominic Mc Gillicudy were not amused, but it was different story in the trolling department where Mr Zambon Romain of Luxemburg caught a fine Salmon on the troll near Church Island with his Gillie Mr Tom O’Shea and of oshealoughcurrane@eircom.net talk about a wing and a prayer because that is the second Salmon this week, Tom has caught out at the Church. I see on www.Loughcurrane.com there were some fine catches of Sea Trout and they are as follows, Mr Tom Murphy caught two Specimen Sea Trout of 7.5 lbs caught on the fly? Mr John Young had two Sea Trout in the 3 lbs. plus class and last but not least Mr Pat O Mahony had a number of Sea Trout up to 5 lbs. also caught on the fly? Wind southwest with light showers in the morning then veered northwest light to fresh with good sunny spells in the afternoon. 28/5/06 Another cracking day on Lough Currane with some fine Salmon and Sea Trout being caught on the Fly and the troll, I will begin in the Mouth of the Commeragh where Mr Simon Perks of the UK and his gillie Mr Dominic Mc Gillicudy, caught a 8 lbs Salmon on the fly and followed by a good Sea Trout of 2.5 lbs and staying with Sea Trout Mr Pete Maxey of the UK caught a fine Sea Trout of 5¼ lbs on the Fly with his Gillie Mr Sylvester Donnelly, but Sea Trout of the day was a catch and release of 7.5 lbs by Mr William Kavanagh fishing with his Gillie Mr Bob Priestly, staying in the catch and release department, Mr Steve Nation and Mr John Hegarty were delighted with their days fishing because they caught five Sea Trout all in the 3 to 4 lbs bracket and as I said all sportingly put back. In the trolling department Mr David O Hagan caught a fine Salmon of 14.5 lbs. on the troll going by the Holly Island in the Mouth of the Commeragh, also in good form was Mr Jerry O’Sullivan who caught a 9¾ lbs Salmon also caught on the troll. Wind northwest light all day and overcast with good sunshine at times. That is all the news from your Gillie and the Waterville Fishery. No Spin no Fly’s just Facts.
Shannon Region: Web: http://www.shannon-fishery-board.ie/
E Mail: info@shannon-fishery-board.ie
Brian McManus reports:
http://www.shannon-fishery-board.ie/guides/game/fishing-reports.htm
May 31st, 2006
UPPER SHANNON
LOUGH SHEELIN
Report Week-ending 28/5/06:
There were very good hatches of Mayfly and buzzers and also Murroughs on Sheelin. Unfortunately poor weather and low temperatures spoiled the mayfly fishing on occasion, especially the gnat fishing. Anglers reported catching and releasing a good number of under sized fish. Large wild Sheelin trout surfaced to feed on mayfly and were caught mainly on the gnat. Frank Kelly L.S.T.P.A, had 4 Trout for a total of 16.5 lbs, best two fish 6 lbs and 4 lbs. He released 3 of the fish, all caught on a spent gnat. Pa Tormey from Kells had 2 trout, 5 lbs and 4 lbs on spent. Father and son duo from New Jersey USA caught a 1.5 lb fish on spent. They were introduced by Michael and Mark Peters with Peter O’Reilly. Eamon Connors h
ad a fish of 4.75 lbs on a spent. An angler fishing from Ross Shore had a fish of 5 lbs. Francie Harten, Ballyheelan had 3 trout in the past two weeks for weights of 7.25 lbs, 5 lbs and 3.75 lbs. 4 anglers staying at Inny Side House Finea had 4 trout for 11.5 lbs, best 4 lbs on spent gnat.
For updates contact Mr Sean Gurhy, Assistant Fisheries Inspector Lough Sheelin Tel: 049 4336144
LOUGH O’FLYNN & UPPER RIVER SUCK
Anthony Baggott, Castlerea Tel Number: 0949620627 Email Address: mabaggott@eircom.net reports on his recent fishing on the Upper River Suck and Lough O’Flynn
4 evenings on O’Flynn averaging 3 fish per evening, best on Thursday last, calm and warm evening. Fish were moving to spent gnat. I landed a 3 lbs fish to dry Royal Wullf. Suck levels are high with plenty of fish to 0.5 lbs on small wets, sparse mayfly.
For updates contact John Ryan, Assistant Fisheries Inspector Co Roscommon at 087 6560038
MID SHANNON AREA
LOUGH ENNELL
Fishing was slow enough this week on Ennell since the big hatches of Buzzer have finished and despite some reasonable hatches of both Button and Mayfly the Trout have not obliged. Anglers have reported catching a lot of undersized fish and L.E.T.P. Association are asking all visiting anglers to abide by their 14 inch limit. Noel Gillholey and Andy Duncan, Mullingar reported a few good trout to 3 lbs.
For updates contact Pat Mc Donnell, Fisheries Officer Shannon Regional Fisheries Board Mullingar Office Tel: 044 48769 mornings
LOUGH OWEL
As the Mayfly draws to an end on other lakes anglers are returning to Owel and are having good sport with some good fish reported last week. Best reported returns were from Joe & Mick Vickers and Joe Davis, Tullamore, they had 17 fish between them over the week. Ian Cox & Peter Quinn, Dublin had 8 fish between them averaging from 1.5 lbs to 1.75 lbs. Peter Kenna & Derek Eastwood, Dublin also had 8 fish averaging 1.5 lbs to 2 lbs. John Coughlan, Kildare had 6 fish to 2.5 lbs. J. Kenny, Dublin and Billy O’Brien, Kildare had 5 fish each to 2.5 lbs. Sean Kirwan, Kildare had 4 fish, all on fly. Michael Tyvoid, Dublin had 2 fish for 4 lbs. on fly. Other anglers reported fish.
For updates contact Pat Mc Donnell, Fishery Officer Shannon Regional Fisheries Board Mullingar Office Tel: 044 48769
LOUGH REE
ATHLONE ANGLERS ASSOCIATION NEWS
Report courtesy of Eamon Cunningham P.R.O. Athlone Anglers Association Phone Mob: 087 – 2340815
Report to w/e May 28th
THE BARRA FLYNN MEMORIAL CUP
The month of May has been the wettest, coldest and windiest in living memory but finally on Sunday 28th through some sort of divine intervention the weather gods decided we had suffered enough and sent near perfect fly fishing conditions for the Barra Flynn Memorial Cup competition. The winds were moderate and the rain held off and as for the Mayfly well they also put in an appearance and hatched in good numbers and as expected plenty of Trout were caught and brought to the scales.
When all the fish were weighed it was Michael Ganly on his first competitive outing this year who claimed the beautiful Barra Flynn Memorial Cup when his splendid Trout weighed in at 5 lbs. 1 oz. It was certainly a day for firsts as Michael’s fishing partner, fifteen year old Joseph Crampton who had just joined the club the day before, also caught his first ever fish on the Dapp, a Trout weighing 2 lbs. 5 ozs. The competition for the remaining places was very tight with only one ounce separating each position and it was another of our junior members, Derek Wykes, who claimed second place with his fine Trout, which weighed 3 lbs. 10 ozs. Third place went to Jimmy Doran for his Trout, which was only one ounce lighter at 3 lbs. 9 ozs. and only one ounce behind him was Connor Hannon when his Trout weighed in at 3 lbs. 8 ozs.
We would like to express a sincere thank you to Kate, Patrick and Ross Flynn for their generous sponsorship of this competition and their continued support of the club. Thanks also to Cian Moran for the additional sponsorship and all the staff at the Bounty Bar for their excellent hospitality at the weigh in and presentation of prizes and not forgetting our very busy Captains Sean Kelly and Pat Rohan.
While this was a home and away competition all but one angler fished Lough Ree, surely a testament to how well the lake is fishing this year and we would encourage all anglers to help keep the lake fishing this good by returning as many fish as possible to the water so that they can live to fight another day.
The Monday to Saturday competition, which finishes on June 10th is progressing very well and the current leader board is as follows, in third place with a Trout weighing 6 lbs. 9.ozs. is Mark Craven. Second place is held by Connor Hannon for a Trout which weighed 6 lbs. 11 ozs and Connor is also to be commended as he released his fish back into the lake. Connor held the lead in this competition for only 45 minutes before his regular fishing partner, Sean Kelly, made an appearance and weighed in his fish at 6 lbs. 12.ozs. There are still two weeks left in this competition and while it may be difficult to beat these weights all the club experts assure me that there are bigger fish out there waiting to be caught.
The next competition is the Ladies Day competition which is scheduled for Sunday June 11th however as the water down river is very high at the moment the committee will be taking a decision this week as to whether to go ahead or delay to a future date. Full details will be published soon. <
br style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif" />ShRFB REPORTS FOR LOUGH REE
Lough Ree is still fishing well even though the Mayfly hatches have tapered off slightly. There is plenty of spent going out on suitable days and anglers have reported seen spent in the early afternoon (3 – 4pm). Some beautiful fish were caught. Sean Kelly and Conor Hannon each had a fish of 6.75 lbs on the spent. Barry Minagh Athlone had 7 fish, returned 5, best fish 4 lbs., all on wet flies. Paddy Whitelaw and Andy Duncan, Mullingar anglers had 2 fish each for 6 lbs. Athlone anglers Padraig Hanniffy & Tommy Kelly had 9 fish between them, 3 released, best 4.5 lbs. Eddie Purcell, Mullingar and Christy Dunne, Rhode had 4 fish to 4.2 lbs. on wet flies. Tommy Keoghan & Pat O’Toole, Trim had 4 fish to 5.5 lbs. on dry mayfly. Denis O’Meara, Neagh had 2 fish dapping. Other anglers reported good fishing when conditions were suitable. With settled weather forecast to the weekend prospects look promising for a few more days.
For updates contact Pat Mc Donnell, Fishery Officer Shannon Regional Fisheries Board Mullingar Office Tel: 044 48769
LOUGH DERRAVARAGH
DERRAVARAGH ANGLERS….
Last Sunday Derravaragh Anglers hosted the Stonehall/Delamer trout competition. On the day it was Club Secretary Paddy Ward who took the honours with a trout 1 lbs. 4 ozs. In the coming weeks Derravaragh Anglers will be holding their family day. This is pencilled in for June 18th. More on this next week.
For general updates contact Pat Mc Donnell, Fisheries Officer Shannon Regional Fisheries Board Mullingar Office Tel: 044 48769
PALLAS LAKE CO OFFALY
For updates contact Dinny Coyne Chairperson of the Pallas Lake Angling Club Tel: 087 2974306.
Mick Flanagan, Angling Correspondent for the Westmeath Topic and Sunday World Newspaper Tel: 087 2797270: mick@midlandangling.com reports on Midland Lakes & Rivers
MIDLAND TROUT ANGLING AT ITS BEST
It has certainly being one of the best weeks in the trout angling world to date here in the Mullingar area. Lough Owel produced some cracking trout early last week, and this can only improve in the coming weeks as top quality trout will be stocked into Owel. I had a bit of luck on the competition scene and landed an Ennell trout 3.99 lbs to win the Jimmy Nea memorial Cup.
LOUGH OWEL…
Last Wednesday I ventured out on Lough Owel with club Chairman Andy Boyle. On the day there were some Olives and a few Mayfly hatching, not a lot but still some quality fish were on the prowl. Andy hooked up with a very nice trout weighing around 1 lbs 8 oz,. This was followed by a beautiful wild trout, which Andy returned. While fishing across Brabson’s Point we caught and returned some nice small trout, which were feeding on Mayfly. Later in the day we met well known veteran Owel Angler Paddy Isdell. Paddy had a few good day on Owel during the mayfly hatches and was really enjoying some quality time on Lough Owel. Lough Owel is well worth a visit in the coming week, and on Sunday week June 11th the Leinster Championships will be fished on the lake. Starting Point is Tullaghan with fishing from 10am-6pm. More on this next week.
JIMMY NEA “Mayfly” MEMORIAL CUP….
Lough Ennell Trout Preservation Association hosted the Jimmy Nea Cup last Sunday May 28th. As we mentioned some top quality trout were moving to the mayfly on Ennell but the challenge was trying to catch one of them. Their was a very good turn out of anglers on the day, and from the very start at 11 am small fish were lashing at the odd mayfly and Welshman’s button which were on the surface. The first two hours proved very productive and plenty of small trout were caught and returned. A lot of the boats were working the Robinstown shore where most the mayfly were hatching. Mind you there was a lot more fly life last weekend. It was along here I eventually hooked -up with a super Ennell trout ,after a short but very heart pulsing battle I got the fish over the net and my angling pal Con Hope did the rest. The fish was just short of 4 lbs weighing 3.99 lbs. As it turned out this was good enough to win on the day. Mind you some other good fish were hooked and lost. In second place was Christy Dunne with another good fish weighing 1.93 lbs, 3rd was Trevor Doherty with a trout 1.87 lbs. Not two far from where I caught the winning fish local Ennell angler Frank Keena unfortunately lost what seemed a better fish than the one I landed. As the day progressed the fly life disappeared and fishing really slowed down. Some anglers met very few fish, but in general all competitors caught and returned some nice trout. The club size limit for Ennell competitions is 14 inches and it takes a very good fish to make this length. Looking at the head of trout present in the lake it’s really looking good, and the hard work by the Lough Ennell Trout Preservation Association and the ShRFB over the past number of years is starting to bear its fruit. Lough Ennell anglers are in action once again next Sunday 4th June. Up for grabs on the day is the Beaumont Cup (Fly-Fishing) start and finish Whitebridge bay fishing 11am-7pm.This is a club competition and new members are more than welcome on the day (Membership 20 Euro).
FISHERIES AWARENESS WEEK…
The fisheries awareness week is in full swing at present. Later in the week some super evening are pencilled in for your enjoyment. This is an ideal opportunity to introduce young and old to the fantastic sport of angling. On Thursday evening June 1st there will be a pike flyfishing competition at Derravaragh. This is planned for 6pm-8pm.On Saturday June 3rd. A fisheries open day will be held at Tullaghan Lough Owel, starting at 2pm and finishing at 5pm. On Sunday June 4th Lough Ennell (Whitebridge Bay) is the location for “Take a Friend Fishing”. This event is starting at 2pm and will finish at 6pm.More info on these events contact Dermott Broughan 087-2595286.
LOWER SHANNON AREA
LOUGH DERG
The mayfly season is starting to come to an end on Derg. However, there is still a bit of fishing on the lake in the evenings on the gnat, which should provide sport up to the weekend.
ShRFB reports for Jim Robinson, Angling Guide Lower Shannon and for CASTLECONNELL SALMON FISHERY Tel Mob: 087 2339999. Web Address: http://www.iol.ie/~jimrob
Plenty of salmon are appearing following the recent spates. A good run of late spring fish and some grilse are starting to appear on the lower Shannon. The Mulcair River is fishing around the long field and fish moved up the catchment into the Newport River.
Western Region: Web: http://www.wrfb.ie/
E Mail: kcrowley@wrfb.ie
Kevin Crowley reports:
GALWAY WEIR
The weir has been running at 16 gates open all week, with water levels about 6 feet higher than normal. Fishing has been completely disrupted, with conditions totally unsuitable for any kind of fishing. Slovenian visitor Andrej Urbas and a friend came all the way to Ireland to fish the weir, however, and weren’t going to be put off by the conditions. For his perseverance Andrej was rewarded with a nice 3 lbs. grilse on Friday morning, caught on a spinner. That was the only fish recorded all week as no other anglers fished. All gates are still open on the weir, but it is possible some may be closed by the weekend, and once the water drops fishing should be good as the main grilse run starts to arrive.
LOUGH MASK
There were hatches of mayfly, olives, sedge and buzzer during the week, with some good mayfly hatches in places. 118 anglers caught 326 trout in 288 rod-days for 407 lbs., and wetfly and dry fly both accounted for fish, with mayfly and olive patterns, Green Peters and buzzer patterns all successful. John Stone and Eric Neville from Waterford fished for 8 days and had 37 trout for 46 lbs. approx. to wet and dry fly, their best fish was 2.75 lbs. Toby Gibbons from Westport had 4 trout for 7 lbs. in 1 day to wetfly. James Greaves and Con Murphy from Waterford had 15 trout averaging 1.25 lbs. in 2 days to wetfly. Raymond Cripps and Bill Luttrell from England had 28 trout for 38 lbs. approx. in 1 week to wetfly, returning most of the fish alive. Their best fish was 3 lbs. Alan Haverty and John Moore from Dublin caught 18 trout for 24 lbs. in 3 days, including a fish of 3.25 lbs. all on wetfly, and Sam Harnett and Hugh Kelly from Northern Ireland landed 11 trout for 14 lbs. in 1 day to wet and dry fly. Dublin visitor Martin Carney had 9 trout averaging 1.25 lbs. in 2 days to wetfly.
The Westport Anglers held a wetfly competition on Sunday, with 42 anglers landing 65 trout for 80 lbs. approx. Tommy Carroll from Westport took top honours with 5 trout for 7 lbs., with Owen McGreal from Westport 2nd with 5 trout for 6.75 lbs. Jonathan O’Grady from Islandeady was 3rd with 6 trout for 6.5 lbs, with Toby Gibbons 4th with 3 trout for 4.5 lbs.
LOUGH CORRIB
Mayfly hatches were localised over the week, with big hatches in some areas and very little in others. Anglers had to search for the hatches to locate fish, but then they did the fishing was excellent. In the Greenfields-Cornamona area 297 anglers reported 541 trout for 836 lbs. in 427 rod-days, including fish to 10.75 lbs! Natural mayfly and dry fly were most successful, and spent gnat fishing may come into its own this week.
The Corr na Mona Mayfly Competition was held on Sunday, with dapping and flyfishing allowed. 89 anglers landed 88 trout for 130.79 lbs., and top rod on the day was Bernard O’Halloran, with 2 trout for 10.49. lbs., including a magnificent trout of 8.46 lbs. on the dap. Peter Curran was 2nd, with 4 trout for 9.89 lbs., including a fine fish of 6.40 lbs. caught on the dap. Enda Brown was 3rd, with 5 trout for 5.70 lbs. Ann Brown took the ladies prize with 4 trout for 3.86lbs. Elsewhere Bob McHuliff had 9 trout for 1 day to wet and dry fly, all returned. Pater Kelly had 4 trout for a day for 7.5 lbs. Peter Brewster from Fermanagh had 6 trout for a day, all returned, and Galway man Gerry Quinn had 3 trout for 5.25 lbs in 1 day. Con McCole kept 3 nice fish and returned a further 10 on Wednesday, and London visitors Rupert Edmondson and his father had 7 trout to 4.5 lbs for 1 day dapping. Steve Palmer fished a small Mepps and landed a magnificent trout of 10.75 lbs. The McGuinness brothers from Milltown fished for 4 days and landed 25 trout to wet and dry fly, returning 20 of those. Pat Cosgrove and Francis Toher had 16 fish over 5 days for 24 lbs., and Frank Reilly had 17 trout over 2 days to dry fly, with 15 returned alive. Peter Curran had 31 trout over 5 days for 46 lbs. approx.
In the Oughterard area there were returns for 340 trout for 530 lbs. taken by 90 anglers in 210 rod-days. Anglers fishing from Lakelands had some very good fishing over the week, with Swiss visitors Peter Weissman and Hans Wilder enjoying a successful trip, including a 5 lbs. trout on the dap. 12-year-old Daniel Ryan from Dublin had a fine 2.75 lbs. trout, while English visitors Mr. Cole and Mr. Stemp landed 18 trout over 2 days for approx. 30 lbs., all of which they sportingly returned alive. Ronald Pitman and partner from Northern Ireland had 40 trout over 5 days averaging 1.25 lbs., with all bar 5 returned.
John Walsh reports from Greenfields that anglers are catching a lot of small fish, 10-12 inches, which bodes well for future stocks. Some boats are catching 10-14 of these fish per day. These fish are the future of the stock, so it is important to handle them carefully and release them quickly.
Donal Connolly from Nonaim Lodge reports some great fishing in the Glann area. Sean Maher, John Maher and Patrick Lynch from Tipperary had a total of 26 trout over 4 days to wet and dry fly for 54 lbs., best fish was 7 lb
s. caught by Sean on a dry fly.
Eight year old Paul Joyce from Glann showed the way while fishing with his father Gerry. Paul had 3 trout for 6.75 lbs. dapping, he also released 2 smaller fish. His father, Gerry, had 1 trout for 1.25 lbs. on wet fly. Martin Smith, Limerick, had 2 trout for 3 lbs. on dry fly and released several smaller fish. Gerald O’Neill, Kilkeel, had 4 trout for 5.5 lbs. for a days wet fly fishing
LOUGH CARRA
There were fairly good hatches of olives and small hatches of mayfly over the week, and 13 anglers reported 64 trout in 81 rod-days, including fish to 2.75 lbs. Mayfly and olive patterns worked best, with wet and dry patterns both taking fish. Christian Herzog and 3 friends from Strasbourg had 38 trout averaging 1.25 lbs. in 9 days to wet and dry fly, with all the trout sportingly returned alive. Stephen Keegan and Rachel Wilde from Derry had 9 trout for 12 lbs in 6 days to wet and dry fly, with a lot of undersize fish returned safely. Austin Gannon from Castlebar had 3 trout for 5.5 lbs. approx to wetfly, including a lovely fish of 2.75 lbs.
North Western Region: E Mail: info@nwrfb.com
Web: www.northwestfisheries.ie
Vincent Roche reports:
W/e 28 May, 2006
River Moy
There was very good fishing on the Moy this week with a total of 228 salmon recorded for the week. Once again, salmon were caught throughout the system but the East Mayo water experienced the best fishing as water levels there dropped more quickly to fishable conditions following the high floods which occurred at the beginning of the week. On Armstrongs, Marc Klinkhammer, Germany, had a 12 lbs. salmon on worm and Jean Marc Corthay, France had 3 for his week. On Gannon’s, Joseph Wolfinger, Switzerland, had one of 10.5 lbs. and Ingred Keller, Germany, had one of 10 lbs., both on worm. On the Foxford Fishery, Eugene Ryan had a 12.5 lbs. salmon on worm and Tony Southerton, England, had one of 10 lbs. on worm. On the Foxford club water, John Wilkinson had two fine salmon, weighing 12.5 lbs. and 13 lbs. on worm. On Cloongee, Sean O’Brien, Wexford, had 10.5 lbs. salmon on worm and Harold Neumuller, Austria, had one at 13 lbs. also on worm. On East Mayo, the best salmon, weighing 14 lbs., was taken by J. Didou, France, on worm but John Noad, England, also had a fine salmon, of 12 lbs. on fly. Brendan Ulbrich, Germany, had one of 12 lbs. on a spinner.
Loughs Conn
There was very good fishing on Conn this week with 600 trout reported by 154 anglers for 280 rod days and the average weight at 0.92 lbs. Twenty members of the Crossmolina Anglers fished a competition, which produced 20 trout all over 13 inches with many others returned. The event was won by John Griffin with 4 trout weighing 5.63 lbs. Padraic Traynor was 2nd with 2 trout for 3.93 lbs. and Michael Noone was 3rd with 3 trout for 2.67 lbs. A competition run by the Castlebar Anglers was won by Joe Quinn with 5 trout weighing 5.84 lbs. Second was Jim Ruane with 4 weighing 5.64 and John Burke was 3rd with 4 for 5.12 lbs. Elsewhere, Gerry Sheehan, Cork, fishing with 8 colleagues, had 45 trout, averaging 1 lb., over a few days and all were returned. Dave Passmore, England, and 3 friends, fishing with Murphy Boat Hire, had 12 trout for 16 lbs. over 3 days. Lawson Clements had 10 trout over 2 days with the best at 2.75 lbs. Michael Lennon had 4 trout, averaging 1 lb., and a fresh run salmon for his day. Best flies for the week were the Mosely Mayfly, Golden Olive Bumble, Royal Woulfe, Fan Wing May Fly and Fiery Brown. Fishing looks very promising for the next week if weather conditions are reasonable.
Lough Arrow
There were some good fishing on Arrow again this week with good hatches of May Fly reported and also some falls of spend gnat. The most successful methods were dapping and dry fly fishing. Peter Dunne had four trout on spent gnat, averaging 0.5 lbs., and the same angler had a fine trout of 5.5 lbs. on a buzzer. David Gray also had great fishing. He had 2, again averaging 2.5 lbs., on spent gnat and 8 on buzzer, ranging from 2 lbs. to 5.5 lbs. Peter McKenna had 3 trout and he too had one weighing 5.5 lbs. Two junior anglers, Sarah and Walter Frazer, had 4 trout weighing a total of 6.5 lbs. all taken dapping. With good numbers of small trout also showing, Arrow appears to be making a comeback.
Ballisodare River
Ballisodare produced 32 salmon for the week. Thirteen-year-old Anthony Daly had a salmon of 9 lbs. at Collooney on Flying C. Noel Burns had a 10 lbs. salmon at Ballisodare and Noel McGowan had two for his week.
Lough Gill/River Bonet
Alex Trotter had an 8 lbs. salmon on Gill and the high water brought more salmon up the inflowing Bonet and anglers were reporting excellent sport, especially in the Manorhamilton water. Enda McBride had a fine salmon of 12 lbs. on worm and Paul Keegan and Paul Ferguson each had fish at around 9 lbs.
Drumcliffe River/Glencar Lough
The Drumcliffe had some good fishing towards the end of the week. Among the successful a
nglers were John Sheridan who had an 11 lb. salmon. Ronnie Harte had an 8 lbs. salmon on Glencar Lough while spinning from the shore.
Carrowmore Lake/Owenmore River
The cold, blustery conditions kept anglers off the lake this week but the club stretch of the adjoining Owenmore River produced three salmon. Seamus Henry had a salmon of 9.5 lbs., Des O’Rourke had another at 9 lbs and Declan Dooley had one at 8 lbs.
Newport River/Lough Beltra
The Newport House side of the fishery this week with several anglers enjoying success. Steve Jones had a fine salmon of 13.5 lbs. off the lough on Wednesday and followed this with another of 9 lbs. on Thursday. Declan Dooley had tow at 8.5 lbs. and 8 lbs., both of which he returned, and Frank Dooley had one of 11 lbs. Eamon Kennedy had one for 8 lbs. All caught, of course, on fly on this “fly only†fishery. Mick Stewart had on of 6.5 lbs. on the River.
Ballin Lough
Thirty rods recorded 49 rainbow trout of which 21 were returned. Dave Jackson and a friend had 13 trout with the best weighing 2.5 lbs. Willie Scully and Tony McGratan had 8 trout with the best weighing 5 lbs. The lake holds a good stock of trout and should fish well again with the weather getting milder. To book Ballin Lough, contact Mrs. Gill at the lake (098-26128).
Northern Region: E-mail: info@nrfb.ie
Lynsey Clarke reports:
LOUGH MELVIN • Monday 22nd to Sunday 28th May 2006.
The trout fishing has really picked up on Melvin with the Mayfly hatch starting in earnest. Good catches of both Sonaghan and Gillaroo have been reported from Kinlough and Hill’s Bay where mayfly were hatching in good numbers. Trout are coming to various flies and the secret is to find a hatch of fly. Kinlough and District Anglers held their club competition and all anglers faired well. Kackie Mahon won with 9 trout followed by George Conway with 7 fish who also recorded the biggest fish. Catches were made up of both Sonaghan and Gillaroo.
Salmon are still being caught on the Lough and regular Jim Hoye recorded another 12 lbs. salmon caught from the Rossinver Fishery on the fly, a Red Arsed Green Peter. Jim Conlon also recorded a 12¾ lbs. salmon caught on the fly from Rossinver Bay.
RIVER DROWES • Monday 22nd to Sunday 28th May 2006.
Shane Gallagher reports:
The first 2 weeks of May were pretty quiet, with low water levels and few fish running. The heavy rain in the middle of May improved the fishing and a number of early grilse were recorded as well as good numbers of double figure fish. Fly and shrimp seemed to work best, the Green Highlander and Ally’s Shrimp both took quite a few fish. The end of May has been generally patchy. Some grilse have been taken but the main run has not arrived yet. Forecasts predict rain for the end of the first week in June so that should help to keep water levels topped up.
EANYWATER FISHERY – Monday 22nd to Sunday 28th May 2006.
The Eany was running fairly low this week. The gauge read a low 0.35 metres at the start of the week and fell away as the week progressed to read a very low 0.1 metres by the end of the week. The gauge average for the week only reads 0.17 metres. With the dry conditions no visiting anglers were fishing for the week.
ESKE FISHERY – Monday 22nd to Sunday 28th May 2006.
The Lough and consequently the River had fair water levels but the weather remained unseasonably cool and very windy on some days. The fishery remains fairly quiet and there were no visiting anglers this week. There are now salmon about and anglers reported seeing a lot of salmon showing in the fishery. Local angler Anthony O’Malley Daly demonstrated this fact on Saturday by catching 2 salmon on the Lough. The fish weighed 7 lbs. and 12 lbs. and were caught on ‘The Ridge’ while trolling a Toby spinner.
OWENEA RIVER – Monday 22nd to Sunday 28th May 2006.
The Owenea had fair water levels on Monday and Wednesday but ran lower for the rest of the week. The gauge average for the week reads 0.22 metres. There were a number of anglers fishing the river this week. 21 visiting anglers fished spread throughout the week. There were a couple of salmon caught and I am still awaiting details of these.
Lough’s Agency: Web: http://www.loughs-agency.org
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bsp; E Mail: declan@loughs-agency.org
Lionel Knobbs, Loughs Agency Angling Manager reports:
Wed 31st May 2006
River Finn
The Finn is still fishing well at present with National Angling Guide Ian Gamble landing three this week weighing in at 7 lbs, 10.5 lbs and a superb 14.5 lbs. Ian informs me that the water is now starting to drop and he recommends the use of smaller flies at the tail of the pools fishing early morning and dusk.
River Mourne
Reports this week remain good with salmon grassed daily; Among the successful anglers where Cyril Davis (L’Derry) landed a nice 10 lbs. fresh run fish on the fly at the wood hole. Water levels are starting to drop at present and the forecast of dry weather will please some but certainly not the anglers with good numbers of fish in the river they will be doing a rain dance.
River Derg
Again reports are good with reports of a 16.5 lbs. salmon from the Island stretch of the river the Derg is once again retaining it name of a big fish river. Anglers were out in good numbers over the past few days along the entire length of the river as far up the river as the Border Bridge in pursuit of a fresh run fish.
Cashel Trout Fishery
Another weekend of beautiful weather combined with great catches and plenty of craic. Brian Dickson (Belfast) and son Brian released at least a half a dozen trout each using Klinkhammers and Shuttlecock Buzzers. Aidy Askin (Culmore) released fourteen trout, which took Hoppers and suspender Buzzers. John Hasson (Dungiven) released fourteen trout over two short days using suspender Buzzers which Martin McPeake (Maghera) also hooked a half a dozen, but lost them, using Buzzers. Brothers, Davy and Melvin Martin (Limavady) released six and seven trout respectively using Black Buzzers. Darrel Middleton (Claudy) released nine trout on Sunday evening, which took Black/Green/Red Buzzers.
Breakfast is now being served at Cashel in the comfort of an open log fire with plenty of craic. Group bookings most welcome during the week. Tight lines for next weekend and fingers crossed for a tagged trout.
Info and enquiries to Marlene to:
17 Birren Road, Dungiven, Co L’Derry, BT47 4SH
Tel/Fax: Dungiven 02877 742159
Email: casheltrout@hotmail.com
www.cashellakeview.com
Creggan Country Park
Having restocked with fish to 11 lbs. during the week we expect that our anglers should enjoy good sport over the weekend. And with a wealth of fly life, including Buzzers, Olives and Sedges to choose from there have been some great rises of fish especially in the morning and at dusk.
With so much activity on the surface most anglers are choosing to fish with a floating line. However the fish are often taking Nymphs just below the surface, and a sinking leader will often help get results by taking the flies down to the depth the fish are feeding on rather than depending on them coming up to the flies. Leaders come in all shapes and sizes, from fast sinking braided leaders to intermediate poly leaders and obviously it does no harm to have a number of types with you, as it allows you to vary the depth you fish at.
While the fish have been rising all over the place there does seem to be some advantage in getting out in a boat to cover those fish in the middle, where lots of trout have been seen rising in recent days, or along the Dam wall which definitely holds good numbers of fish all the time.
The summer evening sedge fishing was always the best fishing of the year on the middle Reservoir, and if the hatching Sedges are anything to go by then it looks set to be even better than in previous years. Meanwhile the Buzzers are still hatching like mad, and some anglers who have spooned their catches have reported that they contained Buzzer Nymphs almost half an inch long. We have seen some enormous sedges here in the evenings as well, a good inch and a half long, if not longer, and the sight of large fish slurping them down is really something else. So it’s not always the case that that small is beautiful. Some very good fish have been caught lately: Gerald Deehan caught a nice fish of 5 pounds the Sunday before last while last Tuesday Mark McCloskey had 4 good trout. The catch of the week however fell to J. Gorman who had two cracking fish on Sunday last, which weighed 8 lbs 6 oz and 6 lbs 8 oz respectively. Lawrence McDermott, who had a great trout weighing 10 lbs on his last visit, caught 7 fish on Tuesday past.
www.creggancountrypark.com
Further information contact;
Lionel Knobbs
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