Old school on the Keel

Sunday morning: No wind. Not even a faint zephyr. Glassy surfaces on the loughs meaning every cast causes fish scaring ripples. The thought of a day spent chasing corduroy ripples across the vastness of Lough Conn did not appeal so I demurred on my planned visit to the Massbrook shoreline. I needed a plan ‘B’ContinueContinue reading “Old school on the Keel”

A quiet day on Conn

Saturday, 21.30 hrs: The modern version of jungle drums were beating a few minutes ago when I received a text to let me know that 7 or 8 salmon had been seen jumping on Lough Conn earlier today. That makes sense as I know there have been fresh fish running the river Moy for theContinueContinue reading “A quiet day on Conn”

update from Mayo

Still suffering a serious lack of water here but some showers over the last few days have brought some salmon in at last. Beltra has produced a few- https://www.facebook.com/Lough-Beltra-380982678740593/?hc_ref=NEWSFEED&fref=nf The river Moy is seeing some action too with the Ridge and Cathedral beats fishing well and beats right up as far as the East MayoContinueContinue reading “update from Mayo”

alive and kicking

So today I finally made time to take a look at the sick Evinrude outboard which let me down so badly last weekend. When it failed to start on the lake I rowed ashore and whipped out the spark plugs, thinking the mixture may have been too rich and she had oiled the plugs. BothContinueContinue reading “alive and kicking”

Mixed fortunes on Lough Conn

The big southerly wind we were promised on the forecast didn’t really materialise after all. A steady force 5 brought mild, damp air up over Ireland and a good day for fishing. I had semi-packed the gear the night before so it was just some last minute additions that had to be slung into theContinueContinue reading “Mixed fortunes on Lough Conn”

Variation of a spinner pattern

Old age is a bugger, isn’t it. Advancing years bring some positives I will grant you; experience, appreciation of the good things in life and a calmness which is rare in the young. But weighed against these positives are some pretty hefty negatives, the chief one being (in my opinion) failing health. Now look, I’mContinueContinue reading “Variation of a spinner pattern”

No fishing again!

I was ill today so my plans to fish Lough Conn came to nothing. I’m hoping to feel better soon and to get out for a few hours fishing through the week (work permitting). Here is a very brief up date on the local angling gossip: There are a few salmon and early grilse beingContinueContinue reading “No fishing again!”

A day for sunbathing

Tried Lough Conn today but the conditions were hopeless. Flat calm and brilliant sunshine are the nadir to all Irish fishers and that was exactly what the weather Gods provided for us today. No signs of fly life beyond a solitary olive. No mayfly at all to be seen. A few very small trout roseContinueContinue reading “A day for sunbathing”

Conn today

Out for a few hours on Lough Conn today. Flat calm to start with but a wind came out of the North West later to to give us a small ripple. We were fishing for salmon but only saw 3 coloured fish show outside the mouth of the Deel river. Lots of other boats outContinueContinue reading “Conn today”

Crossboyne

I want to focus on a specific stretch of the River Robe in this post. There are two reasons for this; firstly one of my followers tells me he fishes in the area and has struggled to catch much. Secondly I want to run through some basic techniques which have been successful for me inContinueContinue reading “Crossboyne”