June 2024 – Claretbumbler

Triple shot

An unremarkable trio of short outings over the past few days least got me out in the fresh air if nothing else. I seem to be stuck in some sort of glitch in the fishing matrix these days, my only solace being the all my fishing acquaintances are similarly struggling to make decent catches. 1.ContinueContinue reading “Triple shot”

A day of two halves

With the game fishing around here still in the doldrums I decided to get out the coarse rods again and try a couple of venues in south county Sligo. Firstly I planned to give Finlough one more go, mainly on the back of word from a fellow angler that there were tench in that weeContinueContinue reading “A day of two halves”

Finlough

Yesterday was supposed to be spent ghillieing on Lough Conn, but the client had to postpone at the last minute so instead I had an afternoon to myself. Half a tub of maggots were still in the bait fridge so it made sense to use them up, the question was where? As you drive northContinueContinue reading “Finlough”

Corgar

As promised, I headed off for a spot of coarse fishing today. The trout fishing on the western loughs is poor to say the least so I figured I would get back into the float and feeder game again. Anyone with any sense would have picked a venue close at hand for their first sessionContinueContinue reading “Corgar”

Change of tack

Nearly 6 solid weeks of ghillieing had left both me and my gear in a mess. Today was spent addressing the resultant carnage and planning my next move. My right shoulder aches after days of pulling hard on the oars. I usually try to turn the boat so anglers take turns fishing from each side,ContinueContinue reading “Change of tack”

A trying few weeks

While I have not been fishing myself, I have been out on the western loughs most days since the beginning of May. As a ghillie I have been able to observe first hand the decline in our stillwater fisheries and a pretty bleak picture has emerged for the much vaunted mayfly season. It would beContinueContinue reading “A trying few weeks”