Irish canals are not on the whole held in high regard by anglers. Often referred to as ‘that ditch’, the Royal canal is the only option for me these days so I take a slightly more pragmatic view of it. The canal traverses the Irish midlands in long straight lines interspersed with odd turns, presumablyContinueContinue reading “Back at the ditch”
Category Archives: coarse fishing
Therapy
I was worn out, emotionally drained if you like. Thursday was a day of meetings and stress. OK so it wasn’t like I was being beaten up by a Tory whip (like some) but never-the-less I felt tired and needed to relax. I’d go fishing! Now this was sort-of pre-planned but the plans fell asunderContinueContinue reading “Therapy”
Just down the road
It turned out I was a little hasty in my summation there was no fishing near my new employers factory. For a start, the little drainage ditch I could barely make out at the bottom of an adjacent field turned out to be the river Brosna. Formally a wonderful game fishery full of trout andContinueContinue reading “Just down the road”
Pontoon bridge
For those unfamiliar with the area around here let me explain about Pontoon bridge. When the level in lough Conn was lowered many years ago a cut was blasted to join up loughs Conn and Cullin. A fine bridge spans that cut and it is a very popular spot for salmon fishers who gather thereContinueContinue reading “Pontoon bridge”
Meelick
So I found myself in the midlands yesterday and decided to have a quick look at the river Shannon. I did not have much time, just a couple of hours, but as I was within striking distance of the river I thought it was worth a look. I picked up some maggots in Tullamore andContinueContinue reading “Meelick”
Saturday afternoon
With a free afternoon yesterday I decided to try my luck fishing Cloondroon lough just across the county border in Galway. A survey of the two plastic bait boxes in the fridge revealed some healthy worms in one but the maggots from last week in the other one were not in great shape. Most hadContinueContinue reading “Saturday afternoon”
Busy morning in Sligo
‘Showers, heavy at times, clearing to the east in the afternoon’. That is what the forecast said so I looked out my waterproofs and stowed them in the car. A planned sea fishing trip had to be called off due to high winds on Saturday so I was mad keen to get out and doContinueContinue reading “Busy morning in Sligo”
32 – Episode 31, Limerick
Here’s the craic, Limerick (along with Louth) kept slipping down my list of counties to fish for the better part of two years. My research kept coming up short on options for both of these counties so I put them on the long finger for ages. Louth was completed some time ago though, so itContinueContinue reading “32 – Episode 31, Limerick”
Thinking small
I can hear her words today just as clearly as when she said them to me. Mrs Collier was my teacher at primary school, a lovely woman who doted on her charges but stood for no nonsense. What with eight year old me being a bit of a tearaway there were frequent clashes between meContinueContinue reading “Thinking small”
Change of scene
For the past few weeks I have been out chasing trout on the big lakes, either fishing myself or boating other anglers. Today I decided it was time for a change of scene. After sorting out a couple of tasks at home I headed off for lovely Leitrim to try my luck on a smallContinueContinue reading “Change of scene”
