Suspicion

It had to happen sometime and yesterday it finally did - it rained! The heavens opened and it fairly lashed down for the whole afternoon, soaking unwary tourists and flushing the drains and culverts clear of weeks of debris. It remained warm and muggy and the rain kept falling - to the dismay of almostContinue reading "Suspicion"

Just getting there

Warning: there is not a lot about angling in this post so many of you may want to skip this ramble through my physical woes and tribulations. I will write a cheerier post very soon! Just getting to the fishing used to be one of the delights of a day out for me but myContinue reading "Just getting there"

TxE=S

Rain is a-coming! The weather gurus are sure the heavens are going to open over the next day or two, meaning I will be out and about chasing the silver tourists with the fly rod. There are lots of posts on this branch of our sport already on this blog but here is a quickContinue reading "TxE=S"

Doggie bashing

My first trip out on the salt this weekend was somewhat unusual for me in that it was a competition. Drafted in to fill the always difficult fourth man slot in a team, I was due to fish for my current employer (Westrock) in the annual Allergan competition. We would depart from the quay inContinue reading "Doggie bashing"

Night Moves

This all started a couple of weekends ago. There I was, sitting in the brilliant sunshine admiring the stunning view with a pint of the black stuff to sup on. Pretty near perfection I think you will agree. But being a fisherman I was fretting about the sunshine and the adverse effect it has onContinue reading "Night Moves"

Vanishing Launce

With a high tide just before sunset I decided to take a drive out to Achill to see if the sandeels have arrived yet. These wee fish are always on the go, travelling to somewhere else. They can be present in their thousands one tide and be completely absent by the next one. Tonight IContinue reading "Vanishing Launce"

A change is as good as a rest

It has been a terrible season so far on the rivers and loughs for me. I have yet to catch a decent tout and only a single salmon has fallen for my flies. Time to change things around and do some salt water angling. I have agreed to fish as part of a team inContinue reading "A change is as good as a rest"

Leaders

Let’s talk about leaders. When I started fishing the fly for trout this was pretty damn straight forward – you tied an overhand knot on the end of the fly line and looped a 9 foot length of 4 pound breaking strain nylon on to it. Life in general has evolved in a variety ofContinue reading "Leaders"

Still quiet on Conn

Conn (again) today. Like some sort of a piscatorial junkie I had to go back there again to get another 'fix'. Previous disappointments were pushed to the dark recesses of my memory and I packed tons of gear and even more optimism before setting off. Let me get this off my chest straight away -Continue reading "Still quiet on Conn"