Me and a few pals went to Kerry recently to try for a salmon and do some night beach fishing for the bass. We were lucky with the weather in so far as it wasn't raining( always a bonus in Kerry!) but Jesus it was cold!
We spent the days on the river bank chasing the salmon and then took to the beach after dinner each night. We did question our sanity a few times mind you as we pulled on our wet cold gear in the shed and wondered whether we would not have been better off settling down for the evening in one of the local pubs. Anyway we persisted and made our way down to the local strand armed with plenty of lugworm and razorfish for bait. We were staying with a pal of mine who organises fishing trips at his fishing lodge which he runs with his partner Lynn.
We set up the gear and cast out into the surf more in hope than expectation with it being so cold. All was quiet for about 20 minutes and then we heard a shout as Neil had hooked a bass. It wasn't a big fish, about 2 lbs but was very welcome all the same and was quickly released. We hoped that it might be a sign of things to come but unfortunately that was it, not another sausage was to be had. Things looked up though when our host produced the hot toddys to cheer up our flagging spirits!!! I will be back down over Easter and hope to have a bit more luck as the water temperature should have improved.
I'm enjoying reading your blog. Keep up the good work.
ReplyDeleteI was just wondering - how is the quality of the water in general? I'm interested in knowing if the fish are artificially restocked or if they naturally maintain their population levels.
From what I've read about over-use of pesticides and fertiliser by many farmers, and the effluent that leaches into the rivers, I'd be surprised if they didn't have a big effect.
Hey How are ya. thanks for your comment on the blog and keep reading. The bass here are saltwater and in generl the quality of the water in the sea is excellent. The rivers by and large are good too with one or two exceptions. The fish are not stocked so it is vital to return as many bass as possible. Bass area protected speices here from commercial fishing which helps. Check out www.irishbass.org for more info. Hope this helps.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the follow on Twitter. How is your knowledge of fishing in Carlow?
ReplyDeleteHi Gary, Thanks for calling by. We are really lucky here in Carlow in that we have 4 good trout rivers wihin 20 mins of the house, a fantastic salmon river in the slaney only 10 mins away and the barrow which holds the record for pike in Ireland a 5 minute spin away. I will be posting as much as I can about the fishing as soon as the season opens on the 17th of March.
ReplyDeleteI wonder would you be willing to write an article for our site, www.montecarlow.com on fishing in the county?
ReplyDeleteWe are running a regular article, "things to do in carlow" and I would love a piece on fishing. Let me know if you are interested. You can discuss your blog in the article also. gary@montecarlow.com
Would love to Gary. What are you looking for?
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