Game Fishing in Ireland

Wed, 10 Mar 2010

Website Sponsored by:

Anglers Discount !!

Roomex.com
Webtrade Hotels Ireland
Dublin Hotels
Dublin Airport Hotels
Cork Hotels
Donegal Hotels
Ennis Hotels
Galway Hotels
Kerry Hotels
Kilkenny Hotels
Limerick Hotels
Mayo Hotels
Shannon Airport Hotels
Sligo Hotels
Waterford Hotels
Wexford Hotels
Wicklow Hotels

Game Fishing in Ireland

The essence of game angling is the pursuit of native fish in wild places; Ireland offers a unique opportunity to experience such fishing. Salmon, trout and sea trout are native species with an honoured place in Irish culture. And Ireland's loughs and rivers have preserved their character in a landscape which has changed very little over the centuries. The angler on Lough Mask, one of the great western limestone loughs, witnesses a timeless scene looking across the waves to mountain ranges which ripple into infinity on the skyline. This sense of place, which is one of the pleasures of fishing in Ireland, can be experienced in different ways on the many types of Irish river and lough. Lough Mask is like an inland sea, but there are also countless small loughs where the lone angler can fish in sheltered solitude. Major rivers like the Munster Blackwater in the south offer sport with salmon and scenery on a grand scale, while a more intimate experience can be enjoyed on the minor limestone trout streams such as those which wind through the green pastures of County Meath. But while Irish game angling is a sport of varied landscapes and many seasons, it has one abiding virtue; it still offers an authentic angling experience in a world where this is increasingly rare.

Game Fishing Seasons:
Open Season:
The salmon and sea trout season opens on January 1st in some fisheries. Most fisheries open at a later date (various dates up to the March 20th). Most brown trout fisheries open between February 15th and March 1st.

Close Season:
Most fisheries close on September 30th with some exceptions which close on various dates between September 15th and October 12th. Most brown trout fisheries close on September 30th with some exceptions which close on various dates between September 15th and October 12th.

Trout River Fishing:
The brown trout is a native Irish species, and the most widely distributed freshwater fish in Ireland. It thrives in rivers of all types, from small mountain streams to broad limestone rivers such as the Boyne or the lower Liffey. Its main requirements are clean water and swift runs over gravel in which to spawn.
Ireland has for centuries offered ideal habitats for the brown trout. It is still predominantly an agricultural country with a low population which is concentrated on the coastal margins. Ireland's landscape remains a patchwork of pastures and bog drained by innumerable rivers and streams. Its rivers, especially those in the midlands, have long been noted for the quality of their wild brown trout fishing. Viscount Grey of Falloden in his classic book Fly Fishing (1899) described angling on the best of the English chalk streams, but he found the "wildest and most exciting dry fly fishing" he had experienced on the river Suir in County Tipperary; he said of it that "in May or June it might be the finest dry fly fishing" in these islands.
At a time when the habitat of the wild brown trout is contacting all over Europe, and when some fly fishing for trout has an artificial character, Ireland offers the essence of the sport - the pursuit of wild trout taking hatching fly in natural waters. Rivers like the Fergus in County Clare provide challenging sport with selective trout of high average size, and scenery on a impressive scale; a more intimate experience can be enjoyed on the minor limestone trout streams such as those which wind through the pastures of County Meath or County Mayo. Irish trout fly-fishing is a sport of varied landscapes and many seasons, but it has one abiding virtue; it offers an authentic angling experience in a world where this is increasingly rare.
Back to the top

FLY ONLY BYE LAWS AND SIMILAR REGULATIONS
On some waters fly only regulations or other method restrictions may be in place. Please check with the fishery owner or Regional Fisheries Board for further information.
Back to the top

GENERAL FRESHWATER
The only legal method to catch freshwater fish is by rod and line (Bye-law No.595)
A person may fish with not more than two rods at any time (Bye-law No.595)
Back to the top

PROHIBITION OF LIVE BAITING
It is illegal to have or to use live fish as bait (Bye-law No.592)
It is illegal to transfer live roach from one water to any other waters (Bye-law No.561)