ANGLING IN IRELAND

Angling in Co. Cavan & Prospect Bay Angling Holidays...

As true today as it was in 1653, the gleeful joy of knowing others toil while you fish…

County Cavan’s 365 lakes are renowned the world over for their coarse and pike angling. Some also offer fighting brown trout, such as Lough Sheelin, and a few miles up the road Fermanagh and Leitrim share Lough Melvin with its unique Sonaghan and Gillaroo trout species, and the cannibal Ferox. Leitrim’s lakes and the Erne system of counties Cavan and Fermanagh are linked together in Ballyconnell by the Woodford Canal. Together with the many fine game angling river stretches, this area has enticed and delighted anglers of all nationalities for many years, and since we are situated where the three counties meet, Prospect Bay is ideally located for the lot!

On this site however we have concentrated on the pike and coarse fishing at our own location - Brackley Lake - and the neighbouring waters within the Bawnboy and Ballyconnell area, plus information on game fishing in the immediate locality. Further down are links to the fisheries boards, pike angling and Cavan Tourism sites for full information on the entire region’s fisheries.

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COARSE FISHING

Brackley Lake

Brackely is one of the county’s nine major lakes, being 500 acres in size, and is particularly scenic, with a backdrop of the Cuilcagh Mountains at sun-down offering some chocolate box reflections for those who remember to bring their camera!

More importantly, it offers some of the best bream fishing in the county, and also offers good pike, roach, perch, and hybrids. Pike anglers particularly will be pleased to know we offer free use of our boat during your stay with us. Click here for more info on pike...

MAP OF PROSPECT BAY & BRACKLEY LAKE TOP

There are 25 pegs along the west facing shore at Prospect Point, to the left of a car park, which is one the favoured locations for the prestigious King of Clubs competitions, while to the right is our own gated parking area, jetty and private fishing stretch around Prospect Bay and Scrabby*. Alternatively there is level access and parking on the main road at the Amenity Beach. Both locations have a stony foreshore and few reeds.

Brackley is known to be reliable even when fishing elsewhere is slow. Cavan-born author Hugh Gough in his book Coarse Fishing in Ireland, describes Brackley as a “highly rated” fishery, offering “superb fishing”.

As evidence of such claims we asked two of our English angling holiday guests to describe their recent ten day stay with us. They wrote it all down, plus emailed some great photos, for which we thank them sincerely – and we’ve applied it to the map below.

Bawnboy area

3 miles west of Ballyconnell Town are four popular lakes, all offering good bream, roach, perch, hybrids and pike. (Brackley Lake is close to Bawnboy, but at Prospect Bay it has a Ballyconnell postal address, so we listed it separately!)

Bunerky Lake

Roadside car parking with access to a good bank, quality bream and rudd.

Lakefield Lake

Limited roadside parking with bank fishing, big bream, good pike, also rudd.

Templeport Lake

Parking near church. Fishing from stands, good pike

Bellaboy Lake

Limited roadside parking

Ballyconnell Town area

The town itself backs onto the Woodford Canal, part of the Shannon-Erne Waterway and there are five lakes within a few minutes drive of the town centre. All over bream, roach, perch and pike. (Brackley Lake is closer to Bawnboy, but at Prospect Bay it has a Ballyconnell postal address, so we listed it separately!)

· Shannon-Erne Waterway access points at Skellan, where there are eight concrete stands for bream and roach, Ballyheady bridge, Killarah, which has a 50 peg stretch, and Ballyconnell has numerous access points behind Main St. and up to the weir.
· Killywilly Lake Roadside parking, good shore
· Tomkin Road Lake same
· Cuillaghan Lake bit of a walk but 35 stands. Very good pike fishing
· Coologue Lake part of the SE Waterway, with boat access
· Derrycassan Lake same
· Ballinamore/Newtowngore in County Leitrim, and very close to us is
· Garadice Lake A big good water with many stretches producing good bream catches, with roach, hybrids, perch, pike, eels. Fishing at the chief stretches, where there is parking near the water are at Church Shore, Haughton’s Shore and Connolly’s Shore.

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PIKE (Esox Lucius)

As you may have seen already from the maps, this area of Cavan is in the centre of the best coarse and pike fishing in Ireland. To our north, a few minutes drive away Lower Lough Erne, and to our south, the lakes of Leitrim.

Good local lakes for pike include Brackley, Cuillaghan, Bunerky, Lakefield, Templeport and Bellaboy.

There are good holdings of fodder fish in these lakes for pike – in addition to basic rations to maintain weight, a pike consumes an extra 7kg in order to grow 1kg – so pike here are common over 20lb, and 30lb specimens are recorded annually. Irish pike also benefit from a kind climate and warm water, and grow faster than in the rest of Europe – a 20lb pike in Lake Windermere, England is 15 years old at 20lb weight – an Irish pike of the same weight is a mere baby of 6!

Whatever your preferred method – dead baiting, lure fishing or fly – they all work here, though dead baiting has always been the most preferred.

“take a coddling hook, and take a roach or a fresh herring, and a wire with a hole in the end, and put it in at the mouth, and out at the tail, down by the ridge of the fresh herring; and then put the hook in after, and draw the hook into the cheek of the fresh herring; then put a plumb of lead upon your line a yard long from your hook, and a float in midway between; and cast it in a pit where the pike useth, and this is the best and most surest craft of taking the pike” A Treatyse of Fysshynge with an Angle From the Book of St. Albans 1486 attributed to Juliana Berners, Abbess of Sopwell

“I know some do angle for Bream and Pike with artificial flies, but I judge the labour lost, and the knowledge a needless curiosity; those fish being taken much easier, especially the pike, by other ways…” From The Experience’d Angler, 2nd edition Robert Venables

Here on Brackley Lake we provide guests with free use of boat, outboard and fish finder, and can provide bait and tackle, so even if you’ve never tried before, why not have a go?

Its true about beginners luck.

Our son decided a good way to ‘be alone’ with his girlfriend was to bring her out on the boat for pike, and since it was her first experience of fishing, maybe he’d impress her with a specimen catch (caveman syndrome).

He set up two rods and they began trolling, and within twenty minutes she had two, double-figure catches. This was not part of his game plan of course, and romance went overboard as he valiantly attempted to save face. However it was not going to happen. She proceeded to take four more over 10lb, while he only managed to lose two jack pike.

As usual, size always matters, but he has been consoled since by other male anglers who reminded him about the powers of attraction attributed to his girlfriend’s female pheromones; which, they assured him, attracted these large, female pike to her hook, and no doubt also affected his own ability to concentrate…

Whatever… they’re engaged now, and as Will Shakespeare once said about the loss of a fish.

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GAME FISHING

There is a plentiful choice of location for local trout fishing, from favourite mountain streams to world famous loughs like Sheelin, or Melvin in nearby Fermanagh, for Sonaghan, Gillaroo and Ferox, (but where different rules apply for licences and permits.) The mighty Shannon springs from the Cuilcagh Mountains beside us.

Trout Lakes...

Lough Sheelin

Lough Sheelin in the south of the County is world famous for its hard fighting big wild Brown Trout. Lough Sheelin is a little more than 4 miles long and over one mile wide. It has an area of approximately 4000 acres ( 1800 Hectares) The Lough is situated in the North Midlands on the borders of Cavan, Meath and Westmeath and is part of the River Inny system.

Open Season: March 1st - October 12th
Species: Large brown trout averaging 3llbs with fish to 10llbs possible. Pike in season subject to regulations
Access: Good around the lake
Permit: An angling permit from the Shannon Regional Fisheries Board is required.

Adult Annual €35 Pensioner Annual €18 Juvenile Annual €12
Day Permit €10 21 Day Permit €18 Juvenile 1 Day Permit €2
To purchase a permit, contact t:+353 (0)57 9121777 or purchase online at www.shannon-fishery-board.ie

Other game angling lakes include;

Holy Lake, Belturbet

Stocked rainbow, lake managed by Belturbet Trout Anglers Club. Boat fishing only. Trout to over 6lb recorded. Depending on season, dryfly, wetfly and nymph patterns can all be successful.
Season: 1 March to 31st October
Methods: Fly only
Bag Limits: Three trout per half day with size limit of 12inches
Permits: Gerry Walsh, Belturbet 049 9522359
Boats: Ian Elliott, Belturbet 049 9522865

Annagh Lake, Butlersbridge
Good lake managed by Butlersbridge Trout Angling Co-op. Stocked with mainly rainbow, annually. Boat fishing only, can be hired locally. There are good hatches of duckfly and sedges during the angling season, and traditional patterns will suffice.
Season: 1 March to 30 September
Method: Fly only
Bag Limit: 4 trout size limit 12 inches
Permits and boats: Sean O’Hare, Butlersbridge 049 4332490

Trout Rivers...

Two good rivers for trout are Annalee River, Butlersbridge

This long river rises in Lough Sillan at Shercock and is joined by the Dromore River below Cootehill. The Cavan Anglers Club control this section of river upstream from Ballyhaise to Ballynallon and a permit is required. Good hatches of olives and sedges occur. There is some good fishing at Deredis near Butlersbridge and upstream of Cootehill in the stretch below Knappagh Bridge
Permits from Donohoe’s Bar, Ballyhaise 049 4338142

River Erne, Belturbet

Upstream of the bridge at Kilconny to the Railway viaduct is developed for brown trout fishing by local Trout Angling Club. There are good varieties of fly hatches and wet and dry patterns will produce some fine fishing.
Season: 1 March to 30 September
Methods: Fly only
Bag Limit: 3 trout size limit of 10inches
Permits from Tommy McMahon 049 9522400

Prospect Bay’s stocked lake

To further enhance the variety of fishing here at Prospect Bay, we are currently developing a stocked trout fishery which will be open to day visitors and guests – watch this space for updates!

Atlantic Sea Fishing...

If you fancy some sea fishing during your stay then you can charter a 33ft boat from Ballyshannon, Co. Donegal (approx one hour’s drive).

Contact: Molly Reynolds at Creevy, Ballyshannon on 071 9852896

ANGLING LINKS:

www.cfb.ie - Central fisheries board and link to local fishery board
www.angling-in-ireland.com - Irish pike fishing assoc.
www.cavantourism.com - County tourist office/angling info downloads & video clips.
www.dcal-fishingni.gov.uk - N. Ireland fisheries.
www.fermanagh.gov.uk - Fermanagh fisheries and rod licenses.

Just remember...

Rates for 2008 are as follows:

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Prospect Bay, Brackley Lake, Ballyconnell, County Cavan, Ireland

Tel: 049-9523930 | Email: info@prospectbay.ie