Specimen Bandon Sea Trout

The mini drought we endured down here in the south west finally came to an end on the 2nd of May. Heavy rain heralded the beginning of a 3 foot flood which freshened the river up no end and must have come as a relief to the remaining salmon kelts and descending smolts. Reports came in that a few fish were running Bandon weir on Saturday evening as the water rose, alas Sunday saw the river unfishable. Keeping the powder dry, Ian, Rob and I made our way to the river at 6am on Monday morning as the mist was rising. By now the river had fallen to a manageable height, yet was still bowling down and well coloured. Rob stuck to the fly while Ian and myself opted to spin, with yellow size 4 flying c's being the order of the day. Starting at the top of our chosen stretch, sport was slow with the odd knock from a trout. Deciding to move down river, my spinner was halted mid flow in a slacker piece of water. Rod buckling over, the fish splashed and raced down stream. Assuming it was a grilse, 5 minutes later Ian slipped the net under something a bit more spotty than a salmon!

What a surprise it was to see such a lovely, pristine sea trout. A personal best for me, we estimated it to weigh around 4lbs. After a quick pic, the sea trout was released on its way again and swam off like a rocket. Delighted with the success, we resumed our morning session with the anticipation of more action. Trying a few more spots revealed no further interest as Rob retired his fly rod. Ian was about to follow suit as they had made a plan to go up river when his spinner was intercepted in exactly the same location as mine was. Similarly to my own take, the fish splashed straight away and we could see it was bigger. A salmon at last, we thought... a strong fight ensued with the fish being extremely stubborn holding out in the current. On my first attempt to net the fish, it turned away at the last moment and I glimpsed an array of spots in its back. Mentioning it to Ian, he was having none of it and was adamant it was a salmon! We said no more until minutes later Ian had his prize on the bank. Our jaws collectively dropped as we realised the fish was indeed a sea trout and what a sea trout at that!!

Not renowned for its big sea trout, this whopper from the Bandon had us shocked. Measuring 65 cm in length and over 35 cm in girth, this fish would have weighed comfortably over 6lbs and possibly up to 7lbs. A specimen trout is a special creature, and Ian didn't even think twice about releasing his trophy catch. Cradling it in the water as it regained its energy, Rob was about to relieve me of my resuscitating duties when it walloped me with its paddle and sped off into the depths. What a moment it was for us all to share in the capture and return of this rare beast. The next trick will be to try and catch one on the fly at night time.

Sun Baked April Hampers Fishing

Given reasonable fishing conditions, April is a month to get excited about on the Bandon. However there has been no appreciable fall of rain and the fishing has all but dried up as a consequence. The current reading of the river gauge suggests the river is now only 6 inches above its lowest height last summer which is astonishing. With just the odd salmon grassed at the beginning of the month, the Bandon really needs a good flood now to get her back into the swing of things.

Back in late March, I caught my biggest brown trout on the fly whilst searching for a salmon. Taking a 3 inch conehead monkey fly, the trout measured 51cm and I estimated it to weigh 3lbs. Many trout succumbed to big salmon flies, such is their hunger at the start of the season. All going back, they will hopefully provide more sport during the summer months when in better condition.

On the sea trout front, I made my first nocturnal cast this week. Noting that a few sea trout had entered the river on the big tides, some pools held a smattering of fish up to 4lbs or so. Even though the nights were freezing and cloudless, this was too much to ignore. Equipped with a sink tip line, short leader and an array of flies, the first casts were made over where I had hoped a few sea trout would be settled. After changing flies 3 times I finally had that unmistakable wallop as a fish struck. Several jumps and runs later, I slipped the net under this sparkler measuring 38cm and weighing around 1 1/4lbs. Not the biggie I was hopping for, but it sure was nice to be out fly fishing for sea trout on the Bandon at night again.

With the water temperature now exceeding 10 degrees Celsius, brook lamprey have been busy spawning along the river. The smallest and most common of the 3 species found in Ireland, they do not have a parasitic phase and die after spawning. The Bandon is noted for its populations of brook and river lamprey, with one survey recording one of the highest ever numbers of juvenile lampreys in Ireland.

Finally, catches of bass around the south coast have been extremely encouraging recently. Must get out for a cast before the ban on May 15th! The Irish Bass Festival, run by the lads at Absolute Fishing in Tramore Waterford, will be held from the 17th to 19th of July. For more details on this great event click here.

First Springer of the year on the Bandon River

Following on from my success last week on the Drowes, I thought I would be writing this weeks post with a few landscape photos of the Bandon. However, I have a little bit more to write about then that as the Bandon has offered up its first spring salmon of the year.

Opening on February 15th, angling conditions have been favourable for the majority of the month. Brown trout fishing has got off to a promising start, with a good number falling to sunken nymphs. As always for the time of year, the trout are ravenous and will take anything from small nymphs to 2 inch conehead flies intended for salmon.

Further to the good news on the brown trout front, sea trout have also made an early appearance. One angler was lucky enough to catch a sparkling silver tourist on the opening day, estimated at one and a quarter pound in weight. Common place many years ago, its been years since one of these was caught in February. 

Salmon kelts have been less numerous this spring, more than likely due to spawning taking place earlier than usual last year. This is great to see as less will be caught by fishermen thus giving them a greater chance of running the river a second time. Springers are few and far between in early spring on the Bandon, never mind to say February. However, whilst battling the driving wind and rain yesterday with my friend Fergal, I got the surprise of a life time.

Having returned a couple of trout and a kelt to the spinner and fly already, I had another take on the spinner late in the afternoon. Blasting down river and ripping line off my reel, I gave Fergal a shout as I thought this could be something different. Playing the fish for several minutes, we didn't commit to deciding the state of the fish until we had it in the net. As I gained control of the salmon,  Fergal skillfully netted it and we immediately knew we had just landed the first fish of the season. I wouldn't be surprised if they could hear the shouting and roaring of excitement miles away!

Weighing approximately 7lbs, she wasn't carrying any sea lice but was mint fresh. After a quick photo, I set her back off on her way upstream to hopefully spawn the next generation of spring salmon. There's something very special about catching a fresh salmon at this time of year, and its all the sweeter when its on your local river. If conditions offer up the opportunity, I'll be putting more effort into trying to catch a springer on the fly. Using an assortment of tube flies such as Dee Monkeys, Willie Gunns and Green Butt Cascades, hopefully I'll draw a fly close enough to the nose of a springer for him to snap at it.

February Silver on the Drowes

The River Drowes is located in County Leitrim and flows into Donegal Bay. Flowing out of Lough Melvin, it is a short river of only 5 miles in length. Opening on January 1st, it traditionally produces Ireland's first spring salmon of the year. This year the river got off to a slow start but last week saw catches improving. Keeping an eye on updates, water levels and the weather forecast, my buddy Mike made a late call last week to go up there and fish the weekend as conditions looked very good. Time to pack the gear and start the long journey north for our maiden voyage!

Tackling up at 8.30 Saturday morning with the gauge hovering around the 0.65m mark, we began fishing in front of our cottage in Lareen Estate at the Boat House and worked our way down to the Blackwater using fly and spinner. The Drowes in this upper section is quite a shallow running river in most parts, punctuated by several weirs. These weirs produce a diversity of flows, creating several streams to swing a fly in.

Later on we drove downstream to the Four Masters bridge and fished from the Alder Pool down to the infamous Mill Pool. Employing my 13 footer with a RIO AFS Hover shooting head, I attached a RIO Spey Versileader with a sinking rate of 4 ips and a conehead gold Willie Gunn. Mike opted for his shorter switch rod, matching sink tip line and used a variety of flies. Between us we covered the river for a few hours without a pull in all manners of weather, from glorious sunshine to battering hail. Confidence lifted for a short while as I saw a fish head and tail in one of the many pools, alas it looked like it was running hard.

For the evening shift, we ventured back up to the top of the fishery and worked our way through the pools once again. Fly, spinner, shrimp and worm, the lot was drowned at one stage or another. But as the light faded we had to admit defeat and so we retired to the cottage and made plans for the following day.

For the last roll of the dice, we settled on having a look at the fishing around Lennox's Bridge. Wandering upstream equipped with spinning rods, we came to a lovely piece of water called Briney's. The pool consisted of a fast, shallow head, an even flow in the main body through to the tail which held a bit of depth. 

With only a couple of hours to go before we had to hit the road for Cork, I persevered here hoping that at some stage a springer would come by. On my third run down through the pool my black and copper flying c was halted mid way as I struck into a fish. Initially I was startled after hundreds of casts without a sniff, but soon enough I copped on and 5 minutes later Mike slipped the net under a 7lb beauty. 

I was ecstatic with my prize, this being my earliest spring salmon to date. What a feeling to have the fish in the net as our long journey and persistence had paid off. My new Shimano Spheros 6000 reel stood up to the challenge and I'm looking forward to seeing how it copes with spinning in high water conditions for the rest of the year.

The Drowes Salmon Fishery certainly is a beauty, and is managed with the utmost of professionalism and care by Shane Gallagher and Bill Likely. Their hospitality was second to none, from the kettle boiling as soon as we stepped in the door on Saturday morning, to providing a big bag of blocks for the evening fire! Every pool is tended to and wooden walkways along the river make fishing a joy. It sets an example to other fisheries around the country and the long expedition to the other end of the Wild Atlantic Way will certainly be made again.