Author Archives: Claretbumbler

Huntin’ hybrids

So, there is this lake near Ballymote which purportedly contains bream/rudd hybrids. I have been hankering to catch some of these relatively rare fish since I took up coarse fishing and today I headed off to county Sligo to try my luck for them on Bellanascarrow. The lough also contains pure strains of both speciesContinueContinue reading “Huntin’ hybrids”

Quick session

I had some maggots left over from the other day and when I turned over the compost heap in the garden there were lots of worms squirming around in the muck so I decided to have a couple of hours fishing Ardrea lough just outside Ballymote in County Sligo. A small lough with a coupleContinueContinue reading “Quick session”

32 – Episode 17, Antrim

Antrim occupies that far north eastern corner of the island of Ireland, an ancient kingdom with strong traditional links to my home country of Scotland. Indeed, I think I am right in saying there are but 12 scant miles of salt water at the closest point between the two countries. I recall being on holidayContinueContinue reading “32 – Episode 17, Antrim”

Fisherman’s blues

Some days everything goes according to plans but then there are other days……….. Researching possible coarse fishing venues near to me often threw up references to ‘Lakehill Pond’ but the exact location of this small lake could not be found. I knew it was between Ballyhaunis and Knock but no more detail than that couldContinueContinue reading “Fisherman’s blues”

A tale of two days

My new found love of coarse fishing has made a right old mess of my normally straight forward season. It is usually a case of no fishing in January or February then a gradual build up during the spring months as I fish for trout and salmon. Some sea trouting in the summer then anotherContinueContinue reading “A tale of two days”

32- Episode 16, Monaghan

Where do you even begin with county Monaghan? Seriously, was there ever a place so well endowed with coarse fishing venues? A hell of a lot of head scratching went into deciding where to fish to tick this Ulster county off my list but in the end I made a decision, well sort of……. MonaghanContinueContinue reading “32- Episode 16, Monaghan”

32 – Episode 15, Dublin

Part 1, June 2021 ‘And that auld triangle went jingle-jangleAll along the banks of the Royal Canal’ Dublin. The Irish sea to the east, the mountains of Wicklow to the south and the rich farmlands of the pale to west and north. The depressingly inevitable scatter of commuter belt towns encircling it. Capital of theContinueContinue reading “32 – Episode 15, Dublin”