Strangford Lough Seatrout Sessions - March 2011.

nice fish paula.good of you to concentrate on the camara work!! you will get yours soon i hope!

Thanks Noel, hopefully I will be in front of the camera more this year than behind it taking the pictures!!
Besides, I am much more photogenic don’t ya think!

well done paula and norman great report and some nice fish there keep it up great to see

Thanks Stef. It was good to get out to a local mark.
I am just back up from Co.Kerry fishing, which is the reason for the late reply, I haven’t been online much, too busy fishing.

nice report, pity you didnt hook any but there is always the next time

Thanks Martin. As u said there's always next time, and the time after that and the time after that for me to try and get one I met Jonny from the U.C.C on Saturday while out on my travels and got speaking to him briefly which was cool, it's always nice to put a face to a name.

feel sorry for you

well done! first two are quite similar to a brown trout and third one looks like its been in the sea for a while as its lost its markings and became more silver.. nice fishin

Thanks ghost

Hi Paula,

Great report, great fishing too, well done. There is an interesting difference in your sea trout as the-ghost says. The first one looks a bit like a brownie but the tell tail (pardon the pun) black edge to the tail of a sea trout is clearly visible. The 2nd is very brownie looking, looks almost like a Lough Carra trout with its silver flanks and yellow tinges and fins, lovely condition that one. No 3 looks like a well mended kelt, extremely silver and lean.

Are there sea trout streams running into Strangford Lough, forgive my ignorance but not familiar with the lough, been there a couple of times but never fished it. Our biology teacher (a Mayo woman) used to organise bird watching day trips to Strangford lough when I was at school, thats really the only experience of the place I have. Fascinating place.
That looks like a good mullet in your avatar, what size was it? I hope to make a bit of mullet progress this season.
Cheers,

Cathal.

Hi Cathal and thanks,

Strangford Lough comprises off many small rivers, streams and lagoons, areas with shallow water, deep pools and inlets and it’s those features and the way it’s made up that make it ideal for holding Seatrout. There’s over 100 miles of shoreline to explore but not all of it is easily accessible. There is a good mix of both fresh water and sea water within the Lough and as well as that, there is plenty of seaweed and kelp growing which makes it a perfect habitat and feeding ground for them too. There is fast moving tidal currents which oxygenate the water.

I have fished quite a few places in the Lough but there’s so many others I have yet to investigate and fish but I hope and plan to more this year.
For K2 and me the trout are purely to pass some time until the mullet arrive and when they do they provide us with a few months or so of great crack targeting them.

Thanks. The mullet in my avatar I caught last year from the Lough and it was the biggest one I have ever landed. Here’s a link to the report from last year: viewtopic.php?f=3&t=29889
Have you fished for mullet before yourself? If you have then you will know how addictive they are but at the same time how frustrating! You need to have lots of patients and preservation because they drive you mad but they are great sport and when you do finally hook into one all the time effort you put in is worth it, the fight they give is fantastic! You know you have a fish on when you have hooked a mullet! If you haven’t targeted them before then I really would say to you give them a go, you’ll never look back.
You are more than welcome to join us sometime for a session over the summer if you are ever over in the direction of Strangford, just give me a shout beforehand, send me a PM and we can get something arranged. Good luck.

Yes good to get out again good day and norman got a few good fish great to see. As for fly they were very hard to get on the feed loads of fish jumping to the fly a few hook ups very annoying but fun. Thought good chance to try a fly i been working on and first casts fish on proper it took a run turned into us jumped and that close was able to see fly come out of mouth...gutted but thats fishing for you. Home to vice to tie a few more lol

Thanks mate. It was a good to meet up with you again and get out fishing, it was a long winter waiting for the season to come around again. It was great to see your very own hand made fly working, pity you didn’t get landing your fish but with the way it leaped out of the water I am not surprised to got itself free! That’s the way it goes.
Now tie some more flies – not for you, for me. I am seriously thinking about giving this fly fishing a go, it looks great crack and when the mullet arrive they will give us some great sport on the fly rods. Roll on the summer, hopefully it’s a good one.

very well done Paula and Norman, good start, nice couple of trouts there

Thanks grady. Now all I have to do is get one myself. Going out today after work, fingers crossed.

Guys, had some difficulty with this last year convincing some that what I had caught in the same river were in fact Seatrout, Kerry, Norman, well down, great catch! This river I know well, and I don't believe it holds brown trout of this size. The sea trout smolts released into it, every year are not indigenous, they may well be mixing with the natural strain, so that might explain the variances. Or have you ever seen a Salmon that has been in a river a while, they colour up, almost beyond recognition. This makes the Grilse hard to distinguish from a large sea trout. Here's an interesting debate on the same thing on another forum, just have a read, and make up your own mind.
http://www.flyforums.co.uk/sea-trout-fishing/71428-how-tell-difference-between-brown-trout-sea-trout-4.html

Thanks Paul. I’ll get a read at that link you gave me soon when I have abit more time. There seems to be a few fish about at the minute. Get yourself out with some of those newly tied flys you made, they should work a treat, they certainly look the part. Maybe see you about sometime. Good luck.

Hi guys, the first pic is of a brown trout, as it has red spots. No sea trout has red spots, as far as i know? I have heard of a name "slob trout" that live in salt/ fresh water, a sort of hybred. Ive been a trout and salmon fisherman all my life, but new to shore fishing. Sea trout is known as white trout, or the silver fella... no red spots. But bloody well done and keep it up... a trout is a trout, good on ya.

[cathalger]

Hi guys, the first pic is of a brown trout, as it has red spots. No sea trout has red spots, as far as i know? I have heard of a name "slob trout" that live in salt/ fresh water, a sort of hybred. Ive been a trout and salmon fisherman all my life, but new to shore fishing. Sea trout is known as white trout, or the silver fella... no red spots. But bloody well done and keep it up... a trout is a trout, good on ya.

Hi Billy,

A sea trout can virtually revert to looking very like a brown trout in certain river systems, when in spawning mode. As juveniles before they go to sea, before they smolt they are indistinguishable from brown trout of a similar age because thats what they are, the same thing, plenty of red spots before they turn into little silver smolts, and the red spots can come back when they return to spawn (I cant say this happens with every single adult fish or in every river system). Sea trout (ie sea going brown trout) do get red spots around spawning time, though more commonly a rusty colour. The black edge to that first fishes tail indicates that it is without doubt a sea trout/white trout, its just a fish that hasnt fully silvered up again after spawning before Chrstmas. Stale sea trout (coloured fish up the river close to spawning in late October) were occasionally weighed in as large brown trout in the not too distant past in a tackle shop near me-before the club went mandatory catch and release. They even won prizes for being brown trout.

I know what you mean Billy re it lookin like a brownie, but they are the same species (salmo trutta) and that one will go silver again in time. I must dig out and scan the pic of the fish I have from the Glendun river especially for this thread, it will be interesting to anyone into brown/white trout.

Paula, can I ask you please, was the 1st fish caught in open salt water or an estuary/brackish area? The 3rd fish is the kind of sea trout kelt I am familiar with, its a typical kelt and exactly like what I used to catch in my local rivers in March when I was a teenager. Thats what I would expect a sea trout kelt to look like even before it leaves the river, but I know Strangford is a fairly unique and complex system and could have peculiarities of its own, which could explain the nice variety of colouration in your 3 fish. I think I'd like to fish the lough for its sea trout this season!

Anything is possible with these fish, a few years ago when spinning for sea trout, pollack and mackerel near a river mouth but in the open salt water, my friend caught a perfect 6 or 7oz brown trout- in the tide, not a smolt, no sign of it smolting and I dont think it had any plans to? Sea trout smolts heading to sea are usually almost completely silver before they ever hit the salt water so? It was a perfect brown trout, in the sea in July- not March.

Last edited by cathalger on Sat Mar 26, 2011 11:11 am, edited 2 times in total.

will have some flies tied for you next time out. come over to the dark side go get fly rod you do great on it and since last trip 4 sea trout to the wee fly so its working

Hi guys, the first pic is of a brown trout, as it has red spots. No sea trout has red spots, as far as i know? I have heard of a name "slob trout" that live in salt/ fresh water, a sort of hybred. Ive been a trout and salmon fisherman all my life, but new to shore fishing. Sea trout is known as white trout, or the silver fella... no red spots. But bloody well done and keep it up... a trout is a trout, good on ya.

Hi Billy,

A sea trout can virtually revert to looking very like a brown trout in certain river systems, when in spawning mode. As juveniles before they go to sea, before they smolt they are indistinguishable from brown trout of a similar age because thats what they are, the same thing, plenty of red spots before they turn into little silver smolts, and the red spots can come back when they return to spawn (I cant say this happens with every single adult fish or in every river system). Sea trout (ie sea going brown trout) do get red spots around spawning time, though more commonly a rusty colour. The black edge to that first fishes tail indicates that it is without doubt a sea trout/white trout, its just a fish that hasnt fully silvered up again after spawning before Chrstmas. Stale sea trout (coloured fish up the river close to spawning in late October) were occasionally weighed in as large brown trout in the not too distant past in a tackle shop near me-before the club went mandatory catch and release. They even won prizes for being brown trout.

I know what you mean Billy re it lookin like a brownie, but they are the same species (salmo trutta) and that one will go silver again in time. I must dig out and scan the pic of the fish I have from the Glendun river especially for this thread, it will be interesting to anyone into brown/white trout.

Paula, can I ask you please, was the 1st fish caught in open salt water or an estuary/brackish area? The 3rd fish is the kind of sea trout kelt I am familiar with, its a typical kelt and exactly like what I used to catch in my local rivers in March when I was a teenager. Thats what I would expect a sea trout kelt to look like even before it leaves the river, but I know Strangford is a fairly unique and complex system and could have peculiarities of its own, which could explain the nice variety of colouration in your 3 fish. I think I'd like to fish the lough for its sea trout this season!

Anything is possible with these fish, a few years ago when spinning for sea trout, pollack and mackerel near a river mouth but in the open salt water, my friend caught a perfect 6 or 7oz brown trout- in the tide, not a smolt, no sign of it smolting and I dont think it had any plans to? Sea trout smolts heading to sea are usually almost completely silver before they ever hit the salt water so? It was a perfect brown trout, in the sea in July- not March.

I stand corrected, thanks for the info mate. Good informative post.

oh good god paula!! the trout are in trouble now have you got the trout bug now until the mullet appear then . i was talking to dawsey during the week and he's not far behind you. he's been out trout terrorizing as well .

Paula,
Ive barely broke the ice on mullet fishing but its not that I havent had the opportunity to before its just I havent focussed on them yet, putting the effort into other types of fishin. Seeing them at really close range last year in a nice bit of shallow water over sand has kinda got me intrigued, I regret not having a go at them when the chance was there. If the chance arises this year again I intend to try and get one.

During the summer they appear in various spots close to home here in river and sea, I must have a bash at them. Would really love to do some visual fishing for them with a fly rod, dunno just how tall an order that is but maybe?

Cheers for the offer of an introduction to Strangford Lough, that would be great and very kind of you to offer. More later,

Thanks, Cathal.

Hi guys, the first pic is of a brown trout, as it has red spots. No sea trout has red spots, as far as i know? I have heard of a name "slob trout" that live in salt/ fresh water, a sort of hybred. Ive been a trout and salmon fisherman all my life, but new to shore fishing. Sea trout is known as white trout, or the silver fella... no red spots. But bloody well done and keep it up... a trout is a trout, good on ya.

Thanks Billy. They are such a great fish, the variations in colours and markings on them are lovely.

Paula, can I ask you please, was the 1st fish caught in open salt water or an estuary/brackish area?

Hi Cathal,

One of the places we where fishing is tidal and does have a mixture of both Fresh and Sea/Salt water within it.

Paula,
Ive barely broke the ice on mullet fishing but its not that I havent had the opportunity to before its just I havent focussed on them yet, putting the effort into other types of fishin. Seeing them at really close range last year in a nice bit of shallow water over sand has kinda got me intrigued, I regret not having a go at them when the chance was there. If the chance arises this year again I intend to try and get one.

During the summer they appear in various spots close to home here in river and sea, I must have a bash at them. Would really love to do some visual fishing for them with a fly rod, dunno just how tall an order that is but maybe?

Cheers for the offer of an introduction to Strangford Lough, that would be great and very kind of you to offer. More later,

Thanks, Cathal.

Give them a go this year Cathal, you will love it. As I said, you are very welcome to join me sometime this year for a go at them in the Lough and most certainly bring and use your fly rod.

will have some flies tied for you next time out. come over to the dark side go get fly rod you do great on it and since last trip 4 sea trout to the wee fly so its working

Thanks mate. That’s the flies sorted, now I just have to buy the rod and reel. I might get the one I was telling you about, it’s a good set-up for me starting out and would be strong enough to allow me to target both Bass and Mullet which is what I would want it for.
I am looking forward to getting out with you again. Well done on the four fish, it must be a great feeling catching fish on a fly that you have made yourself.

oh good god paula!! the trout are in trouble now have you got the trout bug now until the mullet appear then . i was talking to dawsey during the week and he's not far behind you. he's been out trout terrorizing as well .

Thanks Al, but I don’t think the trout need to worry about me! Norman maybe.
Yes, Dawsey has been out trout terrorizing as well. I was talking to him this week and we’re going to try and get out for them soon again, maybe this weekend fingers crossed.

for sure be great set up for both. have used rod myself and it great bit of kit...cant wait see you get first fish on the fly

well done paula and k2 nice fish great to see keep it up

for sure be great set up for both. have used rod myself and it great bit of kit...cant wait see you get first fish on the fly

Thanks mate I will go online sometime this week and get it ordered up, then all I need is some casting lessons. Looking forward to it.

well done paula and k2 nice fish great to see keep it up

Thanks Stef