connemara coastal capers!!!! 3rd &4th may

People: me, jordan and saltydog

Duration: not long enough!!

Tide: all states

Weather: 4 seasons in 2 days

Bait: lug, rag, mack, sand eel

Rigs: all sorts

Results: shore rockling, flounder, bull huss, thornback rays and more dogs than you could shake a stick at




Report: we met up with saltydog at mid day and followed him to the first mark. a beach where turbot had been taken only a few days before, so jordan's hopes were high of finally getting the turbot monkey off his back . we got set up around 1pm and saltydog was first off the mark with a flounder. not to be outdone jordan got 2 in quick sucession which left me feeling a bit left out . but an hour or so later i got a double shot of flounder . at first glance i thought one of them was a plaice but a closer inspection revealed him to be a very spotty flounder . this set the tone for this session with about 15 flounder between us all. but no turbot for jordan (the east coast turbot must have sent word over jordan was out) . by 7pm weed was rapidly becoming a problem and saltydog suggested a move to another venue where jordan stood a chance of a load of his favourite doggies with the added chance of a thornie to boot.

we arrived at the rock mark and were fishing by 8pm. 2 other anglers were packing away as we arrived. they were spinning and got 2 mackeral. but we were more interested in the bottom feeders . before i even had a rod in the water both jordan and saltydog were pulling in the dogs hand over fist the next 4 hours proved to be the busiest we've had this year yet. it was incredible. saltydog was pulling in doggies 2 at a time. he even managed to get 3 dogs on a 2 hook trace something i've never seen before. jordan got the biggest spiny starfish i've ever seen which was cool to handle before returning him. then saltydog got a doggie thornie double which got out attention i changed over to a 2 hook rig with a glow light attached to the first hook to appeal to the fishes inquisitive nature and was straight into a nice plump shore rockling quickly followed by my first ever thornie . meanwhile saltydog was still pulling in doubles of dogs and raymonds . this was the best fishing we've had in a long time . jordan was still pulling in the doggies with the biggest at 2lb 5ozs and i got my first huss of 2009 . then junior followed suit with his first huss of 2009 at around 3lb so by midnight we had caught more fish than we could count and decided to quit while we were ahead. besides that it was now chucking it down and we had been on the go for 20 hours saltydog decided to head for home and we thanked him for giving us a great day out that we wo'nt forget in a hurry ,,,, awh, who am i kidding. we'll never forget that session . so our beds in the b&b were calling and hit the hay

we got up and had breakfast and were back at the rock mark by 9.30am jordan wanted a ray before going home . it was blowing a gale and the rain was coming down in bucket loads but we stuck it out until 1pm with a half dozen dogs between us and a flukey 42cm mackeral to jordan. at first we thought it was approaching the 2lb mark, but the digital scales had it in at 1lb 2ozs ai'nt it funny how we always think they look bigger than what they really are . the 6 hour drive home flew by as we thought about all the fish we got on our trip and our only regret was that we could'nt stay longer . saltydog was a top bloke who put us on top of more fish than we could keep count of and a great deal of gratitude is due to him hopefully one day we can return the favour. jordan's quest for a turbot continues . and at this rate fishermannum1 will be right. when jordan does finally get one, i'll need to go and get it stuffed and mounted

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great report Al' and and great results too well done guys
so jordans pursuit of the holy gral....sorry turbot continues!!!!!!!!!!
dont worry he will come good, there is one out there with his name on it
and cracker pic's too guys, great stuff

great read lads, pity no turbot for the lad but ye more than made up for it with the others

Was great to meet up with you both really enjoyed the session. It's a shame the Turbot didn't play ball as they had been showing in numbers over the last couple of weeks with some caught on the Friday but i guess that's fishing Was a busy session alright nice to see some Ray and Huss showing up not forgetting that plum Shore Rockling. I got hit towards the end with a massive bite but will never know what it was as i couldn't budge it even though it was out on the sand there was no give what so ever and ended up snapping the 20lb main line thats the second time i've got a big hit and broken up out there in succession first thought was conger gone to ground in a reef hopefully some day the riddle will be answered. Good to see you guys got a session in before you headed back in the afternoon ....Al you must've been exhausted after all of that Anytime you guys fancy another crack at the Turbot or Rays gimme a shout you'll be more than welcome ... and Jordan it's only a matter of time before you get that Turbot judging from the way you fished keep it up your some angler

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super session lads. you deserve every bit of success with a 6 hour drive mate. well done.

That star fish sure is a wierd looking creature alright. plenty of smalll turboids up in ballycastle at the minute. again well done lads

Great report and some nice photo's there lads.Well done it sounds like that was a good session alright and unlucky on the Turbot Jordan but all things come to those who wait .Think i will try up north this weekend as i have hit donaghadee twice in the last week and not so much as a nibble hence no report but i will still try to get my first donaghadee Fish sooner or later
Well done again guys

Paddy

Excellent fishing and report. You sure had a great weekend fishing. You will have to get yourselves down south and get some bass

one word nice

great report Al' and and great results too well done guys
so jordans pursuit of the holy gral....sorry turbot continues!!!!!!!!!!
dont worry he will come good, there is one out there with his name on it
and cracker pic's too guys, great stuff

thanks don. we might get one in donegal. i'm trying to get it sorted that we can get back up your end of the world on saturday 16th may if you fancy a wee session

great read lads, pity no turbot for the lad but ye more than made up for it with the others

cheers seanie. funny thing was that after he got the first few dogs the turbot (or lack of em) were a distant memory

Was great to meet up with you both really enjoyed the session. It's a shame the Turbot didn't play ball as they had been showing in numbers over the last couple of weeks with some caught on the Friday but i guess that's fishing Was a busy session alright nice to see some Ray and Huss showing up not forgetting that plum Shore Rockling. I got hit towards the end with a massive bite but will never know what it was as i couldn't budge it even though it was out on the sand there was no give what so ever and ended up snapping the 20lb main line thats the second time i've got a big hit and broken up out there in succession first thought was conger gone to ground in a reef hopefully some day the riddle will be answered. Good to see you guys got a session in before you headed back in the afternoon ....Al you must've been exhausted after all of that Anytime you guys fancy another crack at the Turbot or Rays gimme a shout you'll be more than welcome ... and Jordan it's only a matter of time before you get that Turbot judging from the way you fished keep it up your some angler

jordan reckons you were bitten off by his 21lb turbot . it was great finally meeting you man and you could'nt have done more to put us onto the fish, really appreciated it man. it made jordans trip awhh,, i was knackered when we got home. living on coffee and red bull as usual on our travells can take it's toll . and like i said before we'll have to return the favour in the future. we're planning a run up to fahan on the 16th if the weather holds and you're more than welcome

super session lads. you deserve every bit of success with a 6 hour drive mate. well done.
That star fish sure is a wierd looking creature alright. plenty of smalll turboids up in ballycastle at the minute. again well done lads

cheers stevie, it had loads of hard thorns when jordan hauled it up outta the water. but by the time i got the camera out the thorns retracted inside those soft rings out of sight really weird creature. we'll just have to try for the turbot in donegal next week (again) that puts the turbot hunt tally to 900+ miles so far and still no turbot for shorty

Great report and some nice photo's there lads.Well done it sounds like that was a good session alright and unlucky on the Turbot Jordan but all things come to those who wait .Think i will try up north this weekend as i have hit donaghadee twice in the last week and not so much as a nibble hence no report but i will still try to get my first donaghadee Fish sooner or later
Well done again guys
Paddy

cheers paddy. i'm not sure what's up with donaghadee at the moment it seems really hit or miss, which is'nt like it at all. it seems that there is a lot of blanking going on there at the moment . but stick in there man as it might sort it's self out with the start of peak activity from thursday onward on the solunar table this week

Excellent fishing and report. You sure had a great weekend fishing. You will have to get yourselves down south and get some Bass

thanks frank, i might just take you up on that as we're planning a camping /fishing trip down your way in june. we gotta get into some bass and get them ticked off the species list for 2009 soon . i'll pm you nearer the time when things are set in motion man

one word nice

sure was roger

well done lads, once again that was some session, dont know how you do it . i've only been out once (fresh water) all week and after reading this i'm looking forward to the weekend... . some serious haul of fish you both got and no doubt the turbot will be kacking themselves knowing jordan is still gunning for them.......

great report Al' and and great results too well done guys
so jordans pursuit of the holy gral....sorry turbot continues!!!!!!!!!!
dont worry he will come good, there is one out there with his name on it
and cracker pic's too guys, great stuff

thanks don. we might get one in donegal. i'm trying to get it sorted that we can get back up your end of the world on saturday 16th may if you fancy a wee session

no prob's al, looking forward to meeting you's again, will try and line up a spot were the wee man will have a chance of........ "dare i say it".........a turbot i know a beach that has been throwing up a good few over this last couple of weeks, so recond we could hit that, and keep our fingers crossed

What a super session there lads. Great report Al and fair play to you all on a deadly mix of fish.

great session lads, i was trying to make it out there and meet up with ye ( no rods though ) but it turned out the girlfriend lost her car keys

If ye are down again, and i'm up and about i'll get salty to drag me out with him and i'll get ye onto turbot

Well done Al, Jordan and Saltydog, super sessions,,,, that young man will certainly have lots of great memories when he grows up Fair play Conor for putting the lads onto the fish I'm sitting here green with envy

jordan reckons you were bitten off by his 21lb turbot . it was great finally meeting you man and you could'nt have done more to put us onto the fish, really appreciated it man. it made jordans trip awhh,, i was knackered when we got home. living on coffee and red bull as usual on our travells can take it's toll . and like i said before we'll have to return the favour in the future. we're planning a run up to fahan on the 16th if the weather holds and you're more than welcome

Haha well dbrock's Turbot is still on the prowl up that way anyhow don't mention it your more that welcome anytime coffee and redbull the fishermans friend won't be able to make the trip to Fahan on the 16th will be fishing the SAI comp in Kerry that weekend but best of luck with it, i'll have to get up for a session with Don myself in the near future

Great report and great fishing lads.

Hope to start getting out myself from next week - really am jealous.

Jordan, all things come to he who waits.

Will be on the Ards Peninsula for a wedding in June so will get to fish that area (hopefully, she's already hinting about 'not bringing rods') so I might be looking for pointers nearer the day.

well done lads, once again that was some session, dont know how you do it . i've only been out once (fresh water) all week and after reading this i'm looking forward to the weekend... . some serious haul of fish you both got and no doubt the turbot will be kacking themselves knowing jordan is still gunning for them.......

thanks minty. are you fishing our club comp on saturday? i might give donaghadee a go after work that night. i'll check the weather forecast and if all's well i should be set up for 2am on the harbour

no prob's al, looking forward to meeting you's again, will try and line up a spot were the wee man will have a chance of........ "dare i say it".........a turbot i know a beach that has been throwing up a good few over this last couple of weeks, so recond we could hit that, and keep our fingers crossed

thanks don, i'm stuck in belfast until 9pm on the 15th. so we'll proably leave then and head up to pollan bay to get an overnight session in and head down to fahan the next day to fish it for the last 2 hours of the ebb and then the flood again . i'll keep you posted and drop you a p.m. nearer the time

What a super session there lads. Great report Al and fair play to you all on a deadly mix of fish.

cheers man. all those blanks that were plagueing me in april are long forgotten now

great session lads, i was trying to make it out there and meet up with ye ( no rods though ) but it turned out the girlfriend lost her car keys
If ye are down again, and i'm up and about i'll get salty to drag me out with him and i'll get ye onto turbot

no probs steve, you must be chomping at the bit to get back out again . i think i'd have gone stir crazy by now if i was laid up as long as you have been man hopefully when we're back down you'll be up and about and back to fishing again (jordan will proably still be chasing his turbot)

Well done Al, Jordan and Saltydog, super sessions,,,, that young man will certainly have lots of great memories when he grows up Fair play Conor for putting the lads onto the fish I'm sitting here green with envy

thanks dave. jordan takes great delight in going into school and showing his classmates and teacher all our reports in SAI. you would be suprised how many 9 year old kids in north belfast know all the lads on the site now and conor was a top bloke for showing us some really productive marks but i think the next time we go to galway it will have to be for at least 3 days to really have a proper bash at it

Haha well dbrock's Turbot is still on the prowl up that way anyhow don't mention it your more that welcome anytime coffee and redbull the fishermans friend won't be able to make the trip to Fahan on the 16th will be fishing the SAI comp in Kerry that weekend but best of luck with it, i'll have to get up for a session with Don myself in the near future

no probs conor, good luck in the comp and keep us posted if you're heading up donegal way

Great report and great fishing lads.
Hope to start getting out myself from next week - really am jealous.
Jordan, all things come to he who waits.
Will be on the Ards Peninsula for a wedding in June so will get to fish that area (hopefully, she's already hinting about 'not bringing rods') so I might be looking for pointers nearer the day.

thanks mate. let me know when you're heading over this way and we will try to put you onto some fish. we've always got enough bait to go round, so that would be one less thing for you to worry about man. let me know the date you'll be over on and what you'd like to fish for and we'll try and get you sorted