We all love that feeling of expectation when planning our first fishing trip of the season. Work commitments this year have meant my own plans were constantly being re-jigged as my contract dragged on for much longer than expected. The hoped for early outing for salmon fell victim to the great lord of work. AContinueContinue reading “First day of 2018 season”
Author Archives: Claretbumbler
Getting down
A lot of my own fishing in the spring takes place on smallish, wild rivers. There are no carefully manicured lawns sloping gently to the water’s edge here in Mayo! Access to the river ranges from ‘interesting’ to down right life threatening. When you do arrive, sweating and breathless at the river you are facedContinueContinue reading “Getting down”
Cool start to the season
It is hard to believe the trout season opens on the River Robe tomorrow. We have snow already on the east coast of Ireland and it will spread across the whole country on Thursday. I am still working in Kildare but finish this contract on Friday and plan to battle my way across the countryContinueContinue reading “Cool start to the season”
Pandora’s box
If you have been following this blog you may recall that I am planning on doing some trolling this coming season and trying out some new baits. Over the winter I have amassed loads of old ABU spoons, devon minnows, a few plugs and assorted Kynoch’s, some of which were in poor condition. My planContinueContinue reading “Pandora’s box”
Musings
Leaving for work every Monday morning at the same time means I can see the days lengthening. Only a couple of weeks ago backed out of the driveway in pitch blackness which persisted until I was fully half way across Ireland. This Monday there was a paleness in the eastern sky as I crossed intoContinueContinue reading “Musings”
Cheeky Dabblers
There is always room in my box for a few more Dabblers. When I run out of ideas on the lough I often reach for an intermediate line, find some shallow water and tie on a couple of Dabblers. Over the years since Donal invented the original every fly tyer has meddled with the basicContinueContinue reading “Cheeky Dabblers”
Toby, Sinky and the net
Not really about fishing at all, but I thought this tale of modern life was worth the telling………. eBay is great, isn’t it! Any old tat turns up on it and if you are like me then simply trolling through the various categories is entertaining enough without even making a purchase. There are bargains galoreContinueContinue reading “Toby, Sinky and the net”
A beginner’s guide to trouting in Mayo
First I have to say a heart-felt ‘thank you’ to all of you who read my ramblings on this blog. I guess I must infuriate some of you as I roam across a vast swathe of different angling genres, never settling on just salmon fishing or fly tying. I jump around from topic to topicContinueContinue reading “A beginner’s guide to trouting in Mayo”
Kynochs and other plugs
A confession first, I don’t know much about Kynochs and their kin. You see they were never really part of my armoury when I fished in Scotland and they are far from common here in Ireland. I am becoming more interested in them now though as I seem to be doing more and more trollingContinueContinue reading “Kynochs and other plugs”
A new pattern
The couple of hours between 3 and 5pm on a Saturday afternoon usually find me in the same place. At the fly tying vice slurping endless mugs of coffee, tying flies while listening to the football on the radio. Not for me the fancy-shmansy television coverage; I prefer the old school approach to soccer. IfContinueContinue reading “A new pattern”
Claretbumbler 