Monday, 23 December 2013

Salmon Fishing Ireland 2014.

Having looked back at my 2013 salmon season i must admit that it wasn't a bad year overall, i caught some good big salmon at the start of the season and had a good run of double figured fish with my 6wt switch fly rod. I tried out some of the old salmon spinners but they were too frail to take the punishment of heavy flood water and rather than damage them too much i have varnished them and put them away for display only. The annual salmon licence fees for 2014 seem to have stayed the same and i am just wondering do all Kelts,( Spent salmon ) have to be recorded again for the 2014 season because if so we're going to need bigger log books. Next year i will hopefully get up to the Drowes in early January to do some salmon fishing and filming but i have my doubts about fishing the Laune next year,  we'll have to wait and see if  the catch rate improves. I have started getting my tackle ready and have tied up some nice salmon flies for the coming season. After having some issues during the year with old waders i decided to look around for a new pair and after some research i purchased a pair of Sonik SK4 waders from Ned at Ardaire Springs fishery, i got a good deal on the waders and even a pair of wading boots thrown in, thats a bargain especially as the waders are  4ply with a 5ply reinforced section on the knees and shins. There are two things you don't want to happen to you in waders, one is to be cold and the other is wet and normally when you have a leak you get both but having bought my new waders that problem is taken care of. Remember that when you are comfortable and warm you actually fish better so make sure you look up my clothing section on this blog for those small tips on gloves etc., that will keep you warmer at the start of the season.

Monday, 21 October 2013

Sea Trout at Night on the Fly " VIDEO ".

                
If anyone is interested in fly fishing for sea trout at night i just put together some video clips  taken in September showing some of the sea trout that i caught when fishing at night. I also caught a few nice grilse earlier in July while fishing for the sea trout at night and will definitely target them at night next season.






                                

Wednesday, 25 September 2013

" END OF SEASON "

          
                

The water was extremely low with very little flow so i had to do a slow figure of eight retrieve to keep the fly moving, the salmon took very gently and on realising that it had been hooked shot past me heading upstream. I had been using an 8lb flurocarbon tippet due to the low water so i had to be very carefull when playing the salmon as it made some very explosive lunges and could have easily  broken the line. Playing the fish out for a few minutes i beached it on a gravel bar and quickly unhooked my size 15 Ahilles shrimp fly and then released the salmon back into the river. This will probably be my last salmon session of the 2013 season but you never know i might get a shot at the Blackwater for the season extension where it will be single barbless fly only catch and release until October 12th. The season itself wasn't bad but we could have done with a bit more rain, there are many salmon in the estuary waiting to run and i bet that we will get that rain as soon as the season is closed.

Monday, 19 August 2013

Salmon Fishing Ireland 2013 August ( On the Fly ).

                                
                           

Having fished down beat 4 with a Hot Orange Ahilles shrimp fly i decided to give it another run, this time with a new fly pattern that i had just tied up the previous night. Moving down the beat a salmon just barely broke the surface film with a fast turn and suddenly my line was going down stream at high speed, lifting into the salmon it showed straight away and i could see that it was a coloured fish. Putting plenty of side strain on the fish i brought it in close to me and then i allowed the fish to fight for a few seconds so that it would easier to deal with as the fly wasn't visible in the mouth. Landing the salmon i saw that it had taken the fly deeply but seeing as i was only using a size 15 double it was easy to remove from the salmon with very little harm done to the fish. Holding the fish for a few seconds it was ready and rearing to go so i released it back into the river. The new fly has now been moved to my smaller fly box which is for my blooded flies, these are flies that have successfully taken salmon and depending on their success rate will be tied in all sizes for future sessions. I hear anglers complain about their favourite fly that was lost either in a huge fish or a rock but they couldn't remember the exact colour etc to get a new one tied up, well that is why i keep a good stock of my blooded flies to save that happening to me. If you have a great fly that catches fish either take a photograph of it on your mobile phone or take it to a flytier so that you always have a copy of it just in case you lose it, also keep two boxes and everytime a new fly catches a salmon put it in the blooded box so that it will boost your confidence next time you use it as you know it has worked before. As for my new fly it doesn't get aired on this blog until it has a better success rate because it could have been a fluke and that might be the only salmon that it takes..

Monday, 12 August 2013

"On The Fly" An evening session in August.

           

During an evening session i caught two salmon on the fly with my 6 wt switch fly rod, the water was very low so i was using a 7ft.  2.6ins per second sinking tip with a 10lb flurocarbon tippet of three feet and a Hot Orange Ahilles shrimp fly on a size 15 double salar hook. In my haste to start fishing i left my camera in the car so the first fish wasn't on the video, the second salmon boiled at the fly twice before hitting it and even then it was  barely hooked with only one hook caught just at the tip of its mouth. The salmon exploded into life once it ventured into shallow water and jumped a number of times trying to shake the fly, putting plenty of side strain on the fish i played it out fast and beached it. Resting up the salmon for a few minutes i then released it back into the river none the worst for its encounter with yours truly. Both salmon were coloured and had been in the system for a few weeks, even though the fish was very silver i don't class them as fresh unless its covered in sea lice and has a blue hue running along its flanks. The upper beats of the Lee are coming to the end of the salmon run as it doesn't get much of a back end run in september, but as there are still some wild fish going through there is always the chance that if you have a fly in the water you could meet the odd fresh one passing through.

Sunday, 4 August 2013

Salmon Fishing Ireland 2013 " August Report."

          

After a month of very hot weather and extremely low water i hadn't been fishing at the Dam Salmon fishery until today. The Dam was not releasing water even though there was plenty of rain and floods about. I got a call that they had released some water the night before so that was enough for me to get up there and see if there were any fish about. The water was on full load with the two sills also releasing water and this gave it an extra foot above normal high water. Having that extra foot of water makes it hard to hold the spinner on the salmon lies for any decent lenght of time and also to hold bottom. There were some very heavy showers that made fishing hard as they made the braid stick to the reel causing it to ball up but slowing everything down i was able to overcome that issue. The first fish hit very fast but didn't stay attached to the spinner for very long as it jumped about six feet into the air and released itself, a good fish of about 15lbs but slightly coloured.

The next salmon was a smaller fish of about 5lbs very silver and net marked which i played out very fast and released. In quick succession i hooked and landed two more salmon both were in the system for some time as they were both coloured up. As the water went off i quickly changed over to my Switch fly rod and hooked two more salmon only for them to get off. Unfortunately darkness arrived and i had to call a halt to my fishing, the only issue is if the water had gone off earlier there would have been a great fly fishing session. Can't complain as i hadn't been fishing there for over a month and to hook up on my first day back was great even if was only spinning.

Saturday, 3 August 2013

Salmon Fishing Ireland 2013 Update.

Since the water levels were so low at the Dam over the month of July i turned my attention to seatrout fishing at night. I have been very successful in catching and releasing a good number of seatrout and would have caught a huge fish even by my standards only to have been broken off by a rock that i couldn't see in darkness. The seatrout gave me a lesson on the art of  night time high speed evasive manoeuvres by taking me upstream under the banks and then downstream and once again upstream and it ended by going downstream and exiting the pool through a narrow run with one big rock in the middle that i didn't see in the dark and unfortunately that rock sealed my faith by breaking my 7lb cast. I had been too naive by using a 5wt 9ft fly rod and had landed fish upto 3 and a half pounds without any problem until i met this monster, i had gone into a gunfight with a banana. Now my switch rod is being used for my night time seatrout sessions and a minimum of 12lb breaking strain cast, as the marines say i am going into battle with superior fire power so that never happens again. Back salmon fishing tomorrow so i will have more news on that front soon and by the way i have tied up some great seatrout flies that have been doing the business for me and i will have them up on my blog soon.

Monday, 1 July 2013

Salmon Fishing Ireland 2013, fishing report

           
     
              
Having arrived at the river i found that the water was at the perfect height to fish a fly but the clarity wasn't that great maybe about two feet visibility not great for the salmon to see any fly. I put up a floating line on my 6wt Switchfly rod and a 7ft 3.9ins per second sink tip. I fished the lower beats first and met a few fish but they were only pulling at the fly typical fresh grilse behaviour. I moved up to beat one and found it to be very busy with anglers shrimping and fly fishing, i started moving down the beat and got a few short takes so i decided to speed up the fly by stripping the line and straight away i hooked my first grilse, 4lbs and fresh in off the tide covered in female sealice. Landing the fish quickly i released it back into the river, now i had the secret it had worked for me in the past stripping the line or a slow figure of eight while fishing the pool keeps you in direct contact with your fly and when you feel the slightest touch or weight on the line strike. This technique is ideal for short taking fish especially fresh grilse, even when retrieving line for the next cast pause for a second between each pull as grilse will follow the fly across the pool awaiting any sudden movement and then they will pounce.

Seeing a grilse head and tail a few times i put a fly across him and stripped the line back quickly, nothing on the first cast but i thought i felt a slight bump on the fly so i quickly recasted the fly and on stripping the fly the second time i felt the fish and struck fast, the fish was on. A small grilse of about 3lbs but covered in sealice which i quickly released, fishing on i met a few more fish and had one on for a few seconds only to drop the fly in mid air. As it was coming to darkness i moved back downstream and gave one of the lower beats a quick cast before i went home, no sooner had the fly hit the water when the line went tearing downstream another hook up. The fish gave a few good runs and jumped three or four times before i was able to land it, a fresh salmon of about 6lbs covered in sealice so i took the fish. Will see how many fish i can take with my stripping method versus dead drift next time and i will let you know the outcome, also i tried a short tail versus long tail trial very few hits on the short tail but as soon as i changed over to the long tail i began to get some action and then narrowing that down with a stripping action i took fish. All in all keep changing your methods it can only improve your fishing rather than sitting there waiting for things to happen, go out and make them happen.

Thursday, 27 June 2013

Salmon Fishing Ireland June 2013

           
The water had dropped a few inches since my last session so i decided to use a floating line and a 3.9 inches per second sink tip with a 10lb flurocarbon tippet instead of the intermediate line which i had used previously. Fishing down the pool i had two short takes so i went back up the pool to give myself a wider angle which would allow the fly to stay in the area for a few seconds longer   Approaching  the area that i had got the short takes i hit the fish which rolled a few times and then headed upstream towards me, on seeing me it ran downstream taking line from the reel but i quickly took control of the fish and brought it towards me and kept the fight close in. Landing the salmon i noticed that it had female sealice on it and being less than one hour out of saltwater i took the salmon, a fresh fish of about 7lbs.

The second fish was a coloured salmon of about 16lbs which launched itself downstream taking a lot of line on its first initial run, after that it wallowed in close but gave some very explosive lunges that would have broken most lines but due to the fact that i was using a 6wt switchfly rod , it took the sting out of the surges and dampened the shock to the line. Landing the big fish i noticed that it was marked on the tail but there was no doubt that it would survive till spawning. Resting the fish for a few minutes i released it to swim away strong and just to prove me right it launched itself about four feet into the air sending water everywhere. There are a large number of large coloured salmon in residence which can be spectacular when they start pitching into the air but they move the fresh fish on by holding the lies. I saw a few grilse starting to show but they seemed quite small, some were only a couple of pounds in weight and were playing with the shrimp fly, tugging at the tail and coming short. Over all there seems to be a good number of salmon in the river but as i have said the majority are stale coloured fish.                                                                   

Sunday, 23 June 2013

Salmon Fishing Ireland 2013 ( HD )

                     
                       
                       
I had only fished the Dam fishery twice since May 15th due to the extremely low water and was glad to see that the water was up a foot on my arrival. I was only too eager to try my new Switch fly rod which was made for me by Tony O' Sullivan to my specifications. With a good flow on the river i put up an intermediate fly line with a sink tip ( 5.9ins per second sink rate ) not a great casting combination but a good fishing one and a size 15 Ahilles double shrimp fly. I met quite a few salmon while fishing beat four but all were taking the fly short so i moved up to beat one and hooked and landed the first fish of the session, a nice fresh sea liced salmon of about 7lbs. On releasing this fish i hooked and lost a smaller grilse of about 4lbs, they were so fresh that they were playing with the fly and pulling it by the tail. Even though i use a size 15 Ahilles shrimp fly i tie in a nice long calf tail to give the fly great life and movement in the eddies and boils as it fishes down the lies. I know that sometimes it can be annoying when salmon keep plucking at the long tail but i'm always happy to be meeting salmon when others aren't so the tail stays.

Moving down the beats i caught and released two more salmon of about six pounds each, very fresh and covered in sea lice and then i met a very large coloured salmon in the high teens which threw the fly in a backward spiralling cartwheel. Just as darkness was arriving i met another salmon that passed me by and spat the fly at my feet and on swimming away gave me the fin, there were a few choice words exhaled but all in all it was a great days fishing. The question is whether to shorten the tail and maybe not meet so many fish but hold onto them or leave the tail and meet fish with a chance of losing them , i will have to ponder over that till the next time.

Tuesday, 18 June 2013

Salmon Flies, From Old To The New.

 Here is a selection of salmon flies going from the oldest at the top of the picture to the most modern at the bottom. The older flies were very large and tied on big single hooks then it moved on to the tube patterns which were tied on either copper, aluminium, brass or as in the picture plastic tubes, Then came the treble or double hook shrimp versions and on to the Possum cascade patterns and finally we have my modern size 15 double salar switchfly patterns which i now catch most of my salmon on.
                                               The large salmon fly is bigger than any 28gr Toby.
                                          Plastic Tubes are great when used on a sinking line.
                                          Possum Flies have the most life of any salmon fly.
And in the last picture we have my Switchfly salmon flies which catch most of my fish. Some of the bigger salmon that i caught last year fell to these patterns in size 15 salar doubles and once the fly went in there was never any issue with hook strenght or holding capacity. To think that they were using such large patterns years ago and successfully catching salmon and now we are using small shrimp flies or tubes to catch them makes me wonder whether the salmons diet has changed or the food that it is feeding on at sea is now smaller.

Wednesday, 15 May 2013

Salmon Fishing Ireland 2013, The Dam Fishery.



Over the last week or so the dam has been generating high volumes of water making it very hard to fish due to the height and speed of the water. Using a 25gr size four blade black / gold flying c i was able to get down through the fast turbulent water and slow the spinner down over the salmon lies. I got two aggressive takes before the salmon got hold of the spinner and cartwheeled downstream taking line from my reel. Forcing the fish back upstream i quickly brought the fight to me, playing out the salmon close in and fast so that i could get it on the bank and release it. The problem is that the bank is very narrow with a lot of cut tree stumps which are very sharp so one has to take great care that neither the line or the fish become tangled up in these. As you can see in the video when releasing the salmon there are stumps everywhere so great care must be taken at all times and this only adds to the fight making it more stressful. Luckily i tailed the fish first time and with only one hook inside the mouth i quickly removed it and released the salmon. During the day i lost one more fish and saw a nice fresh six pound salmon being taken by another angler. Spinning in very high water is really back breaking work, roll on the low water so that i can put a fly across some fish and take things easy for a change.

Friday, 10 May 2013

Salmon Fishing Ireland 2013 "THE TORPEDO"

Having lost a big salmon the day before i couldn't get it out of my head, i kept going through the fight stage by stage trying to see if it was possible to have landed the fish but all avenues lead to the same conclusion..... not enough bank. I just couldn't turn the fish after it headed down stream in the very heavy water, even using 20lb breaking strain didn't stop the fish but straightened the hooks on my flying c. Having seen this lovely big fresh head and tail a few times at the base of the pool i quickly covered it and it took the spinner with a very aggressive thump and off down stream like yesterdays fish, i quickly turned the salmon and it gave another blistering run upstream which i again stopped. i brought the fight to me and held the fish only a few yards out from me and kept running it in circles thus taking away its confidence. Having made a space for myself in a very awkward area i tailed the salmon and with two hands moved it up the bank. The hooks were in the tongue and the fish was bleeding very heavily so i took the salmon. Even though the salmon was well over 15lbs very fresh and covered in sea lice i still had thoughts about yesterdays fish..... how big was he when i could turn this big fish easily, how big was he. As with all anglers we have nightmares about the ones that got away.

Salmon Fishing Ireland 2013.


                                   
Having endured some heavy showers and strong winds i caught a large salmon at the dam fishery .                                                                                                                                                                

Thursday, 9 May 2013

The Dam Salmon Fishery.



Here is the Inniscarra Dam Salmon fishery generating at over full load with two of the three sluices open. When this happens there is a very bad back eddy and with a lot of confused water about the salmon can be anywhere. The main run of water goes down the station bank and the back eddy runs all the way up the woodside thus making it very awkward to spin in as the spinner gets pulled in all directions and can get snagged up very fast. Amazingly the salmon can be facing downstream due to the conflicting eddies and currents, this can also be bad because the conflicting currents knock the spinner out of line and before you know it you are stuck in the bottom. Even when you connect with a salmon nine times out of ten you will lose the fish due to bad hook ups as the spinner is bouncing around in all directions and added to the mix bad water clarity. Having lost three salmon in a row, the third fish took hard and headed downstream and as there is no proper access to get downstream i clamped down on the line to try and get the fish to turn but it being a big fish it straightened the hooks and just kept going.

Having moved up a few yards i began to cover the near bank and met another salmon which gave a few strong runs before i took control of the situation and tailed the fish, unfortunately the spinner had been taken in too far and i had to take the salmon. You can see the state of the spinner in the video it was all mashed up and had been swallowed too far back its throat to be released, it was a fresh 11lb fish. Having only one large red barbless flying c spinner i fished on for awhile but not having a lot of confidence in the spinner i decided to call it a day. Must get some more large 25gr black and gold/ silver single barbless flying c's for the next time i hate being caught out with light baits in high water.

Salmon Fishing Ireland 2013. The Dam Fishery.


Friday, 3 May 2013

Salmon Fishing Ireland 2013 .



Having spent the morning fly fishing for salmon at the Dam fishery in really low water i was only too happy to see the water levels rise to full load. The low water was having a negative effect on the salmon due to the lack of movement and the water clarity was very bad and in some places you couldn't see your feet when wading. I had fished with my switch fly rod using a floating line and a green sinking tip but had change to a tapered leader to get some movement into the fly. The fly was a Park shrimp size 15 double salar and i got four plucks at the fly during the morning session. As soon as the water came on it cleared away the algae colour from the water and also oxygenated it as well. I changed over to my spinning rod and using a size four Flying "C" i quickly caught and released my first salmon, a nine pound fresh fish with red markings on the belly as it had just come up over the weirs. The second fish was an eight pound bar of silver with sea lice and this fish was also quickly released, actually it released itself just as i was turning on the camera it broke my grip and swam away. The third fish hit fast and strong with three blistering runs and the reel tension could be heard screaming a long distance away. Bringing the fish in close i noticed it had a bad marking on its side and this was very fresh but luckily for the salmon it hadn't broken skin or drawn blood so i reckon that it will survive to spawn. The fish put up a very spirited fight and this normally happens when a salmon's mouth is closed shut and that's what had happened, the fish had rolled and the line had wrapped around its mouth and  trapped it shut thus making the salmon go berserk and that is why it took so long to revive, it had burned itself out. There are a good number of big salmon showing up again this year lets hope that anglers will do the right thing and release the bigger multi sea wintered and multi spawing fish.

Thursday, 25 April 2013

Salmon Fishing Ireland Waterville

                                                         Lough Currane, Waterville.


Salmon Fishing Ireland Waterville

Here are some scenery photo's of Lough Currane in Waterville, Co Kerry .
                                       




As i have said before  beautiful scenery if you only look up once and awhile just to admire it, take in a deep breath and thank god that we as anglers can enjoy this.

Salmon Fishing Ireland, Waterville.

Salmon fly fishing on Lough Currane is a special experience as unlike river fly fishing where the flow of the water takes the fly to the salmon,when fishing in a boat one has to line up the boat with a known salmon lie and drift slowly over it or if you are lucky have a ghillie hold station over the salmon lie and then one can tease the salmon with the fly.Having arrived at the lake we were greeted with a heavy mist and strong squall which was the total opposite to the weather forecast but as all anglers (optimists) we reckoned that it would pass over and we would get our warm 15 degrees and light south westerly wind ...... never happened, it was cold and the squalls kept pushing the boat over the lies too fast and also pulling the boat backwards thus bowing the line causing it to be pulled away from the fish. I met a good fish on the first drift but having a slight bow in the line allowed too much slack and never got a hook set and the salmon got off, but we saw it show on the surface and it was a very heavy set fish. I was fishing a floating line with a two fly cast of a Wilkinson salmon fly size 10 on the point and a Greenpeter sedge size 10 on the dropper and this was bringing up the fish. I met a few nice sea trout as we drifted into the bay but they wouldn't stay with the fly and we saw the splashy boils which indicated that they were decent fish. I fished the day with my 11 foot switch rod and found that it dealt very well with the strong winds even though the line was a bit light for it and i should have been fishing a weight forward size 8 line and not a six, but all my fly lines are six as i fish a lot of competitions so i had to compromise with my casting. As the day wore on i changed over to a kelly green intermediate fly line and caught a few nice brown trout on the Greenpeter and one lovely trout on the Wilkinson salmon fly. As its a bit early for the larger numbers of sea trout to arrive i did well to catch anything on such a rough day and if luck had been on my side i might have landed the salmon and sea trout and then it would have been a great day ( optimist again ). I will definitely be going back to Waterville soon as i have seen a few new locations that i will have to fish under better weather conditions and seeing a nice salmon being landed by another boat only makes me more determined.

Tuesday, 16 April 2013

Salmon Fishing at the Dam Fishery April 16th 2013.

The weather was really nice with some lovely warm sunshine, something that we haven't seen in a few weeks. I put my hand into the water to check the temperature and found it to be tepid maybe about eight degrees celsius  and that must be the warmest it has been for a few weeks, looking good, we might get some action as it is close to the magical ten degrees. I fished a size four flying "c" down the run and hadn't moved anything and just as i was about to move further upstream a small salmon just head and tailed above me. I quickly covered the fish and took bottom with a few casts and hadn't touched the fish or even moved it so i extended the casting area around the salmon and kept touching bottom with every cast but no pull or touch. The salmon showed once more and i could see that it was a very shallow head and tail so i reckoned that the fish was staying high in the water column so i changed over to a smaller size three flying "c" and met the fish on my second cast. The salmon came in to fight close to the bank and kept rolling on itself and jarring the line this made me quite nervous  and when i looked i could see that there was only one hook in it's mouth and that was ideal for a quick release. Having tailed the salmon i could see that it was very fresh but it hadn't any sea lice on it and it was a hatchery salmon of about six pounds, letting the salmon rest up for a few moments i released it back in to the river. If only all spring fishing days could be so perfect, nice warm sunshine and an obliging salmon.

Sunday, 7 April 2013

THE POSSUM POSSE

                                                         THE POKER POSSUM
                                                           THE YOKANGA POSSUM
                                                                 TONY'S POSSUM
                                                           YELLOW GREY POSSUM
                                              PAUL'S FAVOURITE POSSUM
                                       
These are the new breed of salmon flies made with possum to add more life and movement to the fly. Not only are they beautiful salmon flies but actually on closer inspection they are actually works of art and i think that these flies will take a lot of salmon for me this year. To view the tying materials for these flies go to www.osullivanflies.blogspot.com.


Perfect Water but no fish moving.


The water level on the Lee River has been perfect for the last week at just two feet above low summer level but having fly fished it through all the beats with different sinking lines i had nothing to show not even a take. Using heavy flies on a floating line with a very long tapered leader has produced plenty of salmon in the past but not this time and yet the Laune river and the Blackwater river at Fort William are getting fresh fish almost off every tide. Maybe with some fresh water at high load will bring fish in because even though the east winds are keeping the temperature down one must always remember that the water coming out from the bottom of the dam is cold and added to the wind chill is very cold even to wade in. Once the wind moves to the west or south then we will have fresh fish moving upstream from the sea.
                                                              The Croy at Beat 4
                                                           Beat 1 Woodside
Perfect water but not perfect temperature, we will have to wait for milder weather and then we should see some springers showing up and hopefully being hooked on the fly.

Thursday, 21 March 2013

The Ultimate Spinner Retrieval Tool.

CLICK THE LINK ABOVE TO VIEW THE VIDEO ON YOUTUBE.
 I know that this looks like madness but there is your store for the Ultimate Spinner Retrieval Tool. When clearing river banks years ago with my grandfather we used to cut back bramble bushes and put them aside exactly for the purpose of getting spinners, lures and salmon flies back when stuck in rocks etc., at the bottom of the river. The technique only works when you can get level or above the area that you are stuck. The next few pictures will show you how to make your own Retrieval Tool in a matter of seconds and get back spinners that would have been lost otherwise.
Firstly take one bramble very carefully and skin it with a knife or scissors, you can use small saplings as well but they must be flexible just like bramble.
Here you can see the smooth area just under the bark of the bramble and this will slide down the line or braid very easily.


 Once the bark is cut off you push the bramble in and around itself to form a circle just big enough to pass over the reel and down the fishing rod.
                              Here you can see the finished product and make sure it is tight.
Here we have a bramble and a sapling Retrieval Tool shaped and ready for use.
                                      Push the bramble / sapling over the reel and down the line.
                                          Pointing the rod downwards slide the bramble into the river.
                                         The bramble going into the river and down the line.
When the bramble slides down the rod and into the water you swing the rod from side to side and up and down and this sends the bramble under water and towards the stuck spinner again you must be above the area you are stuck in or it will not work. There are two ways that this works , (1) feeding line out this takes the bramble downstream and away from the spinner and when you close the bail arm of your reel and pull hard the bramble including water pressure pull the spinner from the opposite direction and this normally gets the spinner back. (2) Keep moving the rod from side to side and up and down and this pushes the bramble down the line and up against the spinner and it gets tangled in the hooks, with a few sharp pulls the bramble will rip the spinner from the area that it is stuck in. When done properly you will always get the bramble back, but it matters not because now with these new skills you can always make another and better model.
Under water footage of bramble pulling hooks from under a rock and retrieving the spinner.
                                           Bramble and spinner safely back on dry land.
As i have said  before you can use saplings or brambles for this purpose,but when using brambles in a way you are clearing the banks as well so this is a win win situation. Don't tell the Lure/ Spinner manufacturers as they will not be happy with me as anglers will not be losing as many lures as before thanks to my Ultimate Spinner Retrieval Tool bank kit. Next time you get your spinner back using this method send me a euro as i reckon that this is my chance at becoming a millionaire ( only joking ). Tight Lines, Paul.


P.S. The video of my Ultimate Spinner Retrieval Tool in action starring yours truly will be up on my youtube channel soon so subscribe to my channel for more great tips on equipment and tackle.




















Wednesday, 20 March 2013

Salmon Fishing Ireland 2013. The Dam Fishery.

Here is the video of my second salmon of 2013 that i caught at the Inniscarra Salmon Fishery in high water.

Salmon Fishing Ireland 2013. The Dam Fishery.

With heavy rain forecast for the next few days i decided to take a chance on fishing the Inniscarra Salmon Fishery before the flood waters arrive only to find the Dam was generating at full capacity. Not only was the water high but it was also moving fast and this meant that i would have to use my heavy 25gram size four blade Flying C's to get down to the fish. The temperature dropped very fast in the evening and it became quite cold and this in conjunction with the cold water coming from the bottom of the dam was going to make fishing very hard. I fished down the entire beat taking weed from the bottom as my spinner hugged the bottom contours searching out the salmon lies to see if there was anyone at home. Having come to the last section of Beat 1 i hooked into a small salmon of about 7lbs and quickly played out the fish. The fight was short lived due to the fact that the salmon was fresh in from the sea and  didn't have enough energy to give a good account of itself. The heavy fast water having tired out the fish even before i had hooked it. I quickly played out the fish and once rested i released the salmon. With heavy rains due i reckon that there will be some fresh fish coming into most rivers soon but hopefully the floods won't be too bad so that i can cast a fly rather than spinning. Anyone that spins for salmon in high water knows the pains and aches one suffers the following days after fishing in high water.

Sunday, 17 March 2013

Salmon Fishing Ireland 2013. My first Spring Salmon of 2013

To view the video please click on the above link to see my first salmon of 2013, having problems putting video up on the blog at this moment in time. Paul.

Friday, 15 March 2013

My First Spring Salmon of 2013

                                              Beat 4 on the Inniscarra Salmon Fishery in Low Water
                                                The Croy at the start of Beat 4 on Woodside
                                            My new Switchfly Rod on Croy at Beat 3 Woodside
                                            Switch Rod 10' 10" three piece 6/7 weight
                                          Beat 3 Woodside looking downstream
                                          The Croy just below the bend from Beat 2
                                           Just below Beat 2 looking downstream .
                                           The Croy at Beat 2 looking downstream
                                          Looking downstream to Beat 2 Woodside
                                           Beat 1 Woodside in low water.
The Dam just releasing Water
                                          Starting to reach full load at Beat 1 Woodside.
                                          Side view of the Big Fish caught on a Flying C.
                                           Just a small bit of marking on the Salmon's snout.

                                         Hardy Sirrus 10ft with a 6000 fb Shimano Stradic.

When i started fishing at the Inniscarra Salmon Fishery the water was low so i decided to try out my new Switch Rod which was made to my specifications by Tony O Sullivan, the rod casts well but i think it is a small bit heavy for my 6wt lines so i will have to downsize to the 5/6 wt version rather than the 6/7 wt version that i got. It is a beautiful rod for casting both overhead and underarm and definitely has plenty of power to handle any salmon. As i was fishing all the regular croys in search of the ever elusive salmon i heard the warning siren from the Dam that lets you know that the water level will be rising soon, so i moved up to Beat 1 Woodside and set about putting up my spinning gear as that is the most successful method you can use in high water at the dam. Having fished for about an hour i hooked into a good fish which charged downstream but i was able to turn the fish with my Hardy rod and strong stradic 6000, that is why i use the 6000 because it has the power to stop big fish and not tear up cogs spinning in high water. The salmon gave a few long runs but each time i stopped the fish and brought it in closer to me and then i ran the fish around in circles to tire it out so that i could beach it. The salmon had a small mark on its snout but was very fresh and the scales were falling off but no sea lice. The fish was very broad and deep and was at least 17lbs in weight and i could barely hold it to take a photograph. Holding the fish for a few minutes in the water it was rested up enough to swim away strong and so starts my 2013 season. Can i catch a bigger salmon or is it all downhill from here. The short video of me catching the salmon can be seen on my youtube channel.