We all get them, those days when nothing goes right. Last Monday was just such a day for me when a bad day and work spilled over into an equally poor session on the bank. I woke before the alarm, not an unusual occurrence for me but one which shortens an already insufficient night of sleep.ContinueContinue reading “Just one of those days”
Tag Archives: angling in Ireland
New chair
Earlier this year I treated myself to a new piece of kit to celebrate my (semi)retirement. I know, just stopping work is not the most original of excuses but it was about the only way I could justify to myself the substantial spend on something as basic as a chair to park my bum onContinueContinue reading “New chair”
Blackrock
Is it just me or has this year been uncommonly windy? It feels like every day there is a gale blowing. The weather forecast, never overly accurate at the best of times, seems to be totally out of touch with what actually happens this season. Here we are in July and the weather remains coldContinueContinue reading “Blackrock”
A day of two halves
With the game fishing around here still in the doldrums I decided to get out the coarse rods again and try a couple of venues in south county Sligo. Firstly I planned to give Finlough one more go, mainly on the back of word from a fellow angler that there were tench in that weeContinueContinue reading “A day of two halves”
Change of tack
Nearly 6 solid weeks of ghillieing had left both me and my gear in a mess. Today was spent addressing the resultant carnage and planning my next move. My right shoulder aches after days of pulling hard on the oars. I usually try to turn the boat so anglers take turns fishing from each side,ContinueContinue reading “Change of tack”
Never heard of this one!
As regular readers know, I have a habit of buying up joblots of old fishing tackle and then spending hours of my free time sifting through the detritus looking for bits I can use or salvage. This harmless idiosyncrasy keeps my amused and on the odd occasion turns up little gems of old gear. AsContinueContinue reading “Never heard of this one!”
Landex – a conundrum
Just like buses, there have been virtually no posts on this blog all year and now here are two in two days. Work has decimated my fishing for twelve months and any free time has been swallowed up by catching up on all the things I should have been doing were I at home inContinueContinue reading “Landex – a conundrum”
Must try harder
Neglecting this blog has been an unintentional but very real feature of 2023 for me. With very minimal actual fishing being done by this poor, hard working individual there has been precious little to write about. ’23 started off poorly and has gone steadily downhill from there. Even my normally near weekly trips to theContinueContinue reading “Must try harder”
Lift off
Most of the visiting anglers I meet on the western lakes are accomplished fly fishers with a vast array of tackle and tactics at their fingertips. Until quite recently they were much more adaptable than the locals who often stuck rigidly to short line wet fly. Switching to lures on HD lines, fishing tiny driesContinueContinue reading “Lift off”
A long time coming
I finally got out to do a small bit of fishing today, the first time I wet a line since last autumn. My plans to dabble with coarse fishing throughout the winter months came to naught and a thin film of grey dust had gathered on the boxes of tackle piled in the corner ofContinueContinue reading “A long time coming”
Claretbumbler 