DTAA members Declan McKibben and John O’Neill (also capped for Ireland) placed 4th and 5th after two hard days fishing last weekend on Conn. The annual Whit Weekend competition has been going now for many years thanks to the hard work of Orla Walsh and Padraig Traynor, and volunteers from the local club.
Conditions were not great it must be said. A stiff southwesterly wind made fishing uncomfortable for some on the Saturday, with the majority of anglers staying on the West of the lake from Castlehill Bay, Gallaghers, Abbey Shore, Flannery’s, Ned’s and Bog Bay. Some braved the crossing to other side near the narrowest point from Chain Island to Rinmore, fishing down that Eastern shore into Sandy Bay… all the while knowing that the return trip would be lumpy enough. Other adventurous types went even further up the lake to Brackwansha and Cormorant Rocks, where perhaps the best of the fishing was to be had. Sunday was a similarly challenging day, with the wind similar to Saturday (25-30km) but coming more Westerly and even Northwesterly at times.
Despite some amount of Mayfly still hanging around all over the lake, the fish were hard got, not much surface action and pulling wets on an intermediate or slow sinker proved the most effective method. Yellow and Green mayflies were effective, though the trout were thought also to have been feeding on fry.
Overall there were 86 anglers out with just 10 returning fish on Saturday (for a total of 12 fish which measured at least 13″) while on the Sunday there were 11 anglers returning just 15 fish (this is similar to last year’s competition). Despite the poor fishing, all it takes is for a few to be caught to determine the winners and runners up. As usual the prize for the Whit Weekend is a Sheelin Boat. Local angler Stephen Browne blanked on Saturday but brought in a nice bag of 3 fish for almost 4 lbs on Sunday, losing a nice fish estimated to be 3 lbs during his day at Cormorant Rocks. This earned Stephen the Tolan/Traynor Cup for the second year in a row and another boat! Clare angler Jimmy Fitzgerald (heat winner on Saturday) came in second, winning a nice Sage rod and Northern Irish angler William Craig placing 3rd. Lough Arrow expert angler Francie White had the heaviest fish (approx 2.50 lbs) on Sunday which was enough to get him well up in the prizes.
DTAA’s Declan McKibben and boat partner Joe Ferguson headed for Rinmore Point on Saturday, fishing along the shore and into Sandy Bay where Declan picked up a nice fish of 0.775kg. Declan fished with Corrib based Leitrim angler Gene Haran on Sunday, heading straight for Castlehill Bay where conditions were quite good for dries and wets despite the occasional banks of weed lurking just below the surface. Declan picked up another trout in the first drift, and rose two more later in the day, while Gene saw and covered at least two fish. This made it hard to leave Castlehill Bay where it generally accepted that a quality fish is possible anywhere in this shallow bay.
John O’Neill fished with John Walsh on Saturday and Francie McSharry on Sunday. They fished Flannery’s, Gallagher’s, the Bog, 5 pin shallows, and the Abbey shore. John got his first fish at Woodford shallows and the 2nd at the 3 pins Gortnor Abbey side of Woodford, with both fish on day one, and earning him second place in the heat.
The folowing pictures are from Orla Walsh (and thanks Orla also for the pictures of Stephen, Declan and John.
As noted above, this long running competition would not be possible without the dedication and hard work of Orla and Padraig and volunteers. In addition, high praise is due to the Boatmen who boat their partners around the lake, ensuring that a great day is had by all.