County Cavan is Ireland’s premier angling holiday base boasting at least one lake for every day of the year and a choice of rivers, including both the Shannon and Erne systems.
The message is simply: grab your rods, book a ferry ticket and get across to Cavan for a share of this fabulous fishing.
Bream are widespread but these days have to compete against increasing numbers of large hard-fighting hybrids that muscle their way to any groundbait. You can look forward to catching lots of roach, rudd and perch. Hefty tench have become much more widespread and surprise a lot of anglers with their willingness to feed and the resulting battle.
Cavan’s most famous big lakes are Gowna, Oughter, Sillan and Upper Lough Erne, but there are masses of smaller, more intimate and secluded waters, where the fish run big and most of them have never seen a baited hook!
And it is not by chance that the majority of Ireland’s major angling festival during June and September
ARVAGH is renowned for its hospitality where the counties Cavan, Leitrim and Longford come together to provide consistent mixed lake fishing within a short drive. There are several self-catering holiday homes, including the popular Arvagh Square Apartments, plus the Breffni Arms for anglers who prefer to have their breakfast served up to them.
BALLYCONNELL boasts of outstanding fishing on the Shannon-Erne Waterway and a long list of remarkable lakes, Ballyconnell has a good choice of self-catering properties and the very popular Angler’s Rest, a pub with ensuite rooms bait facilities and its own tackle shop.
BAWNBOY is a small village three miles west of Ballyconnell and very close to the prolific Brackley and Bunerky lakes with you will catch bream, roach and hybrids. There is an excellent self-catering cottage in the village but most angling visitors opt for Keeper’s Arms with its ensuite rooms serving B&B with an evening meal option.
GOWNA overlooks the immense waters of Lough Gowna. The lake itself covers many miles that include a range of different and very accessible shorelines. There is an excellent pub – Fitzpatrick’s Tavern – with accommodation in the village
Lovely Leitrim – as the county is known – has 100’s of quiet fish-filled loughs, brilliant river fishing and some of Ireland’s most prolific canals.
Here is a real chance to catch better-than-average fish of most species and it’s worth noting that Bolganard Lake, on the outskirts of Ballinamore, produced the current Irish record bream of 12lb 3oz. Both Bolganard and its neighbouring Corgar Lake often appear on the official Irish specimen fish list for bream and tench.
The Shannon-Erne Waterway runs through the heart of Leitrim and is now a very important fishery providing easy access along the canalised stretches and on the shorelines of the lakes it runs through, such as Scur and Garadice.Obviously you are going to need every piece of kit to tackle the varying waters and fish available to be caught.
There is certainly a need to feeder-fish at 30 metres and more to achieve a decent bag of bream and locals tend to use braid with a shock absorber. But do bring your pole and waggler rod to make the most of the terrific opportunities that are bound to arise on such a variety of waters.
BALLINAMORE boasts 40 lakes within a 10km radius and most of them have excellent access. The prolific waters in 2011 were Drumlonan (tench and roach), Kiltybardan (hybrids and roach), Derrycassan (large hybrids), Coologue (bream, hybrids and roach), Garadice Lake at Connolly’s Shore (bream, hybrids and roach).
CARRIGALLEN is an established angling holiday centre with lots of lakes to tackle. Town Lake has been largely ignored by visiting anglers despite having produced several double-figure bream and a best fish of more than 11lb. Gulladoo Lake is a firm favourite with plenty of roach, bream and hybrids, while nearby Glasshouse is a water choc-a-bloc with bream, roach and hybrids.
CARRICK-ON-SHANNON was built on the banks of the River Shannon and is an acknowledged as an outstanding angling location. A must-fish venue is the Mudflats where more than 30 permanent platforms provide sport under all conditions. Expect to catch lots of large hybrids, bream to 4lb and lots of roach on the pole, feeder or running line and float. There are also dozens of lakes within a short drive.
MOHILL Lough Rinn has always been the main fishery linked with Mohill and fisheries research during spring indicated one of the largest fish populations in the area. Although the lake is only seven metres at its deepest, there is a good head of bream, tench, roach, hybrids, pike and perch. Other highly regarded local waters are Lough McHugh and Cloonfinnan.
County Monaghan is the place to be for specimen size bream and tench, along with quality pike, roach, hybrids and perch on magnificent Irish loughs. Rich waters abound in Monaghan, where everyone is welcome and there is a good chance you’ll have the lake to yourself! This is the ‘best kept secret in Ireland’.
BALLYBAY is a market town located on the shores of Lough Major. On the opposite side of town is the Dromore River system, trundling slowly towards Cootehill while meandering through several big lakes. Top fisheries include White Lake, Baird’s Shore, Corravoo, Killyvaghan and Drumlona.
CARRICKMACROSS is a lively town at the hub of the region’s premier coarse angling waters that produce excellent catches every year. Top venues include Monalty, Na Glack, Lisaniske, Ballyhoe, Descart and Corcrin providing a real chance to end the day with a net of specimen tench, hybrids and perch.
CASTLEBLAYNEY’S Lough Muckno is a brilliant fishery setting new standards for angling tourism with superb easy access to the most productive shorelines. The established shorelines include White Island, Black Island, Concra Wood, South Lodge and Toome Point, where you can expect lots of bream, rudd, roach, hybrids, tench, perch and pike.
County Longford has some of the finest lakes and rivers in Ireland – including the famous warm water stretch of the River Shannon at Lanesborough and the longest shorelines on Lough Gowna. You can catch monster pike, bream galore and have a lake all to yourself.
DRUMLISH is a central base for quality bream, tench and hybrids. You can enjoy a mix of river and lake angling of the highest quality on rivers such as the Camlin, Shannon, Rinn and Erne – there’s even a River Rhine in the county! Other venues include the Royal Canal, Lough Gowna, plus a string of 10 lakes running from Drumlish to Arvagh – known as the “Stepping Stones” – that are seldom tackled by serious anglers
It is fair to say that in the past five years there have been more 100lb+ catches of bream and hybrids around Drumlish than anywhere in Ireland. Large hauls of tench are common place in summer and if you are looking for a chance to catch a big rudd, there is nowhere better!
For more details call 0151 324 4744 or check out active irish angling.com
