Surf(shore) fishing in Ireland questions...

Hey, everybody. I'm from Southern California in the USA and my wife and I are going to Ireland this September. I'm a very avid surf fisherman here in California and I wanted to try surf fishing in Ireland for sure when we're there. I know that the waves are a lot rougher out there and you need heavier gear. The problem is that I can't fit all of that equiptment in the suitcase and we ideally want to travel light.

Out here, I usually use a 6 foot 6 inch medium action freshwater rod with 8 pound test Yozuri hybrid line to catch things such as Perch, Halibut, California Corbina, Shovelnose Guitarfish, Batrays, Croaker, etc....The setup is usually a Carolina rig with a MORF(Motor Oil Red Flake) grub(1.5 inches). I also have a lot of Berkeley Gulp that I'll occasionally use. I can fish the surf out here barefoot with shorts and not worry about too much, but I really want to know how it would be fishing off of the sand on the beaches out in Ireland. I know that we're flying into Dublin and we're going to Waterford for sure since my wife's relatives were originally from there. I'm pretty sure that I'll need waders, water shoes and such.

I just want a confirmation about all of that and how is the weather during September? What kinds of fish can I catch from the sand? I've seen a lot of the pictures you all have up here and the fish are very interesting-looking. They're not that different than the fish we catch out here in the US. Also, where would I buy a fishing permit/license and what are the price ranges?

Here are a few pictures of some of my recent catches. I practice catch and release for all of the fish unless they good hooked too deep and are going to die.

[img]http://www.weslouie.com/5-11-06a.jpg[/img]
Shovelnose Guitarfish, 44 inches..caught with a MORF grub

[img]http://www.weslouie.com/5-4-06b.jpg[/img]
Batray off of a Gulp Shrimp

[img]http://www.weslouie.com/5-2-06d.jpg[/img]
Barred Surf Perch, the usual catch along California beaches. Caught off of MORF.

[img]http://www.weslouie.com/5-3-06d.jpg[/img]
Pacific Halibut, off of MORF.

[img]http://www.weslouie.com/5-1-06c.jpg[/img]
California Corbina, off of MORF.

[img]http://www.weslouie.com/4-26-06c.jpg[/img]
Yellowfin Croaker, off of MORF.

[img]http://www.weslouie.com/4-21-06d.jpg[/img]
Very small Leopard Shark, off of MORF.

[img]http://home.pacbell.net/wes53177/feb24_02.jpg[/img]
Jack Smelt, off of Gulp Sandworms.

The grubs I usually use are the standard, curly-tail grub that look similar to this:

[img]http://www.eburch.biz/rmn_4grub.jpg[/img]
I usually use the 1.5 inch, but also use up to a 2 inch grub and I also cast Kastmasters and Big Hammer Swimbaits.


That's about it. I would appreciate any kind of info. I've been browsing around on this website and other Ireland fishing websites to get a feel of what I should be doing as far as fishing goes when we get there in Sept.

Thanks!

"Hi Akuma,

Welcome to the forums. Weather in September on the East Coast here should be reasonable temperature wise, probably averaging 14-18 centigrade. Expect rain.

Your regular Gulp! lures will probably work here - use them when spinning off the rocks here for pollock myself and a few of the lads have had wrasse on the Gulp! crab lures. We rarely use soft lures off the beaches here but some of the newer Gulp! 6"" lugworm/ragworm baits are showing some promise, I hear.

Licences/permits are not required for sea fishing except for sea trout (it's about $35 for a sea trout licence but I think the season closes for them Sept 01 this year anyway) - just catch and release any of those you come across and there'll be no problem there. There are no closed seasons in september for any fish you're likely to get off a beach or rock so you're ok on that front as well.

Some people here spin in the surf, using hard lures like spinners or a german sprat mainly for bass and sea trout (a smaller version of the striped bass you can get off the US beaches).

Since you'll not be allowed to take line or hooks on a plane in any case more than likely, you'll need to pick those up when you get here. Shouldn't be a problem, but I wouldn't go lighter than 15-20lb line myself. Ask for advice in a local tackle shop.

The most common species off the beaches here are likely to be flounder, dab, lesser spotted dogfish, possibly some species of ray. Most people fish a small natural crab, lugworm or fish bait on the bottom with either a fixed or rolling lead.

I'm sure some of our members from around your destination area will be able to elaborate on this a bit...maybe you could meet some of them when you're over? Hard to beat local knowledge - I'm at the exact opposite end of the country...."

Hi, Sandman.

Thank you very much for the tips and suggestions! I really appreciate them. I still have no clue as to where exactly we're going to be visiting in Ireland except for Waterford and Dublin. I won't find that out for a few months and I guess when that happens, then I'll try to ask some questions here for all of the people that are local to the places I'll be heading to :)

Thanks again and good luck with the fishing!

I still have no clue as to where exactly we're going to be visiting in Ireland except for Waterford and Dublin.

Hi akuma,

Waterford has one of the best coastlines for bass in the country. Well worth a shot. Fishing plugs with light, easily transportable gear should produce plenty of fish and there might be a few larger specimens about in September. Plugs can be expensive here so it might be worth bringing your own.

As Sandman said, it's worth getting info on specific locations once you know what your itinerary is. There are some good guides available too if you want to increase your chances of getting fish in a short space of time.

Jonathan

You can bring plugs alright, but would probably have them confiscated at the aiport, in case you're a terrorist intent on foul-hooking the cabin crew.... :lol:

If you take the trebles off, you should be ok. You can pick up a pack or two of trebles this side with no difficulty.

A couple of our members have had trouble even getting loaded reels and spools of line onto planes, even for domestic flights, despite pointing out that they could equally easily strangle an air hostess with their necktie, belt, laces etc - and they weren't obliged to surrender those. :shock:

It might be an idea to check out in advance with whatever airline you intend to fly with exactly what sort of gear you can get onto a plane these days.....

You should be ok with line ,hooks etc. in your main luggage ,it's just your hand luggage you would have a problem carrying hooks and line in .

If it's a problem you could always mail them to wherever you're staying :)

On a related matter, I've often wondered about the wisdom of those bazooka rod holders ...

There are no closed seasons in september for any fish you're likely to get off a beach or rock so you're ok on that front as well.

There are regulations covering bass fishing that operate all year. Any bass you keep must be over 40cm and you can only have 2 bass in your posession in any 24 hour period.

(selling bass is also a no-no, but that's hardly likely to arise in this case :) )

I think John D and myself are starting to sound like a pair of broken records :oops:

There are regulations covering bass fishing that operate all year. Any bass you keep must be over 40cm and you can only have 2 bass in your posession in any 24 hour period.

True, though you can catch and release as many as you like.

Hi

What you might consider is rock hopping rather than just fishing from the sand i.e. fishing from the rocks into typically deeper water for other species. Although Waterford is not the most famous area for this, it still has some good rock marks, and you have the benefit of additional species, in particular pollack and to a lesser extent ballen wrasse. Both are hard fighting species albeit you would be unlikely to encounter any over 3-4 lbs. On light tackle a 3 lb wrasse is a fair fight! The fact that they inhabit rough ground means that you need to keep the terminal tackle heavy - wrasse have pretty impressive teeth so 20 lb snood is not overkill. Pollack and to a lesser extent wrasse can be taken spinning grubs, plugs, tins (as you call them) i.e. metal lures and any others. You may also pick up other species including coalfish (similar to pollack) and the occasional bass, that is the european sea bass. At that time of year the big bass (18 lb caught recently in Waterford, several into double digits, most in the 3-7 lb range) come in to feed on peeler crabs...

I would be really interested to see how you get on if you brought over Rangers, Atomz and other US branded lures which are simply not available here. BTW everything here is far more expensive, a typical USD 6 rapala will cost you closer to USD 20 :shock: so put them into the main luggage! Obviously rock marks are weedy so you might consider using shads, which have the benefit of bouncing off obstructions etc.

My typical set up for this is 20 lb powerpro to 15 lb flourocarbon leader to a rapala loop knot holding a very small clip and then choice of lure. You will find that most people use far longer spinning rods here, around 10 foot, in order to generate longer distance but I am sure your kit will work out fine. BTW, if you do go wading, take around around the channels... for example the mark known as the saleens in Tramore has a 5 knot current on the flood or ebb, shifting sands and in places it is very steep.

Hope this helps

Hi Akuma,

I am from Waterford and fish there quiet often with a number of other anglers. September will be a good month to visit as there will be a good variety of species available.

Closer to your arrival I will be happy to make contact and advise as best I can on current info and where and when you are likely to catch!

Hope this helps somewhat.

Regards,

Kstaff.

Wow....thanks for all of the replies!

I am going to catch and release all of the fish as I usually do, so I don't have to worry about the regulations of keeping the fish. I just want to catch something while I'm there to make the trip more memorable :)

I do fish off of the rocks over here in California and generally catch Barred Surf Perch or Calico Bass, which look like this:

[img]http://www.fishtheoutdoors.com/images/photos/recipes/calico_bass.jpg[/img]

I am going to try and bring some jerkbaits and various assorted lures to try while I'm there and keep them in my suitcase. I have a large bazooka to store my saltwater rods in, but since this isn't primarily a fishing trip, I might have to buy a smaller one just to accommodate my freshwater rod or I might get a slightly heavier setup just to fish in Ireland that one time.

I believe that we're flying in on an airline called Aer Lingus. I was planning on calling them about the fishing tackle closer to the time we're going to take our trip.

kieran, I have been using a really great jerkbait from a Japanese company called Lucky Craft and they work amazingly well over here in California. Those things are guaranteed Halibut catchers off of the beach and I've seen them work for anything and everything in the US and all over the world. The only problem is that they're expensive, about $15-20 US each.
[img]http://www.bubbajackstackle.com/Flashminnowp.jpg[/img]

But, I definitely want to try some California techniques and lures in Ireland to see how I do compared to traditional Ireland fishing methods because I'm sure some of them will work.

As far as sinkers go if I were to use a plastic grub, how heavy of a sinker would I need? I was reading the site and I saw people regularly use a 4-5 ounce sinker for certain situations. You guys are going to laugh at this, but most people out here that fish off of the beach with light tackle like myself only use a half ounce sliding sinker on the Carolina rigs...hehe. If I were to compare what I've seen and read so far about shore fishing in Ireland, it would be like fishing off of the East Coast of the US because they also use heavier gear all the time for things such as Striped Bass and Bluefish.


Thanks again everybody!

Hi Akuma,

I am from Waterford and fish there quiet often with a number of other anglers. September will be a good month to visit as there will be a good variety of species available.

Closer to your arrival I will be happy to make contact and advise as best I can on current info and where and when you are likely to catch!

Hope this helps somewhat.

Regards,

Kstaff.

And how will you find out :?: :lol:

Hi Akuma

Sinkers here are called leads and are ... made of lead! :D :wink: I;ve yet to see the stone or ceramic sinkers stocked here... although as our environmental awareness and laws pick up, they will hopefully appear.

We use spinning leads of 1 and 2 ounces, shaped like a cigar that the line runs hrough on a spiral to improve casting distance from the shore. Another technique is simply to put a 1 oz drilled bullet lead (circular or tubular) about six foot ahead of the lure and fish it like that. Another curious technique uses a bouncy ball and another a Jif lemon bottle - I'll let you search on them and you'll get the idea. :wink:

The 4-5 oz leads are for baitcasting from the beach, typically up to 100 and if people have the right kit and technique 150-180 yards, although that is rare. To be honest most of the fish on the surf beaches are caught in the 5-35 metre range, in and around the breaking waves....

The fishing here is comparable with the east coast however the fish are not as big or as fearsome as the bluefish (you will be pleased to learn!). That said the bass has spines and sharp gill covers so you do need to exercise caution in handling them, ditto the wrasse and their teeth are not something you want to get too involved with (designed to crush shellfish and crabs). I would buy the leads here rather than try to ship them...

HTH...

But, I definitely want to try some California techniques and lures in Ireland to see how I do compared to traditional Ireland fishing methods because I'm sure some of them will work.

I'd be interested to hear how you get on. Don't forget to report back here afterwards :)

Jonathan

don't be too quick to through back any fish that looks familiar, as some of my fishing buddies bare a striking resemblance to them, and you could be done for manslaughter.
For a small amount of the ever shrinking euro you can buy a starter set up for surf fishing when you arrive, then break it over someones head when they ask you if you've ' had any luck' when obviously there interpretation of the word luck and yours have completely different meanings.
Billy the bass.......