An exciting day at Killary.

Fishing: Just me

Time: 1200 to 1800

Tide: High at 1600

Venue: Killary Harbour

Weather: Cloudy with a slight breeze

Bait: Sandeels and Mack

I fancied a day out yesterday so had a trip to Leenane and fished Killary.
It was a great day to be out and a privalage to be in such a beautiful part of the country.
First cast I had a 12 inch Mack, then a small whiting, followed by two large doggies.
This is great I thought, chompoing through my sandwiches and trying to pour tea from my flask.
Then I got a bite! not an ordinary bite, but one that you see out of films like "Jaws"
By the time I put my tea down the rod was now horizontal and on its way into the water.
I struck, I say struck, to be honest I hung on to the rod for dear life.
This was something big and it was not stopping. It dived and went off at a break kneck speed. After what seemed ages it stopped and turned back towards me, then it dug itself in!
I tried to move it and it just refused to do anything apart from lay on the bottom.
After a couple of minutes and some slack line, it moved off again at a slow speed away from me.
Now I'm not a weakling and can hold my own in a good wrestle, but I was not going to win this fight. It stayed on for the next twenty minutes, sulking and sometimes moving away from me very slowly.
Then the inevitable! it parted company and left me sat on my backside wondering what the hell it was.
I finished my tea and sandwiches and tried to put a name to this creature that had made me look so foolish.
Could it have been a seal? or a large wray or a large conger or a submarine or Neptune himself. I did fish on for another couple of hours and finished with a few fish and a good story to tell.
Told the wife and she gave me the same look as she does when I tell her I didn't eat the last piece of cake, it must have been the fairies.
If anyone has ever had this sort of experience, then please tell me as I am begining to believe in aliens!

Final qouta of fish: 6 doggies, 1 mack, 1 whiting and maybe Jaws.

Had a similar experience last year , didn't last as long though , something pulled my rod right out the tripod , I slackened the clutch on my reel and the line was being stripped at a rate of knots only for it to be bitten clean through , lasted less than a minute but felt like a life time

Big ray by the sounds of it. maybe a skate. ye wouldn't know.

Gerry Kelly had exactly the same happen last week over there, possible skate!

ha mate nice report, thinking the same myself a skate,, have fished killary myself many times over ten years now...,, had one or two possable skate takes myself plus other anglers in my company,,,, maybe someone might land such and put us all in the picture.... i fished killary myself last sunday and blanked on it the first time in ten years, plus the same as a friend of mine the week earlier.... there was two of us on sunday plus another lad but only two doggies landed in a six hour session.......

nice report mikado,you can tell the wife the monster is there as alby said the same thing happened me it and it happened twice,the first time I saw a bite and tried to reel in but it was stuck on the bottom,I could feel movement on the rod but it took 20 mins of hard work to pry it of the bottom,when I was reeling it in it felt like a ray but very heavy,it then took a quick turn and snapped the 25lb line I had on and left me like you,on my back looking at the sky and wondering

second time much the same only that it straitened a 3/0 hook

my first thoughts were a big ray or conger but I ruled the conger out because I was fishing on to sand,I ruled out a ray when it snapped the 25lb line,I am nearly sure it must have been a skate

Many thanks for all your replies, I feel a lot better knowing that other anglers have been on the receiving end of this creature.
I will not give up, but if it snaps 25lb line, where do I start?

your gonna need a bigger rod try big flapper bait and some hefty braid i reckon! but ya know yourself if you go back to target the monster it`ll not be there! sods law man

was watching john wilson and his daughter catching 180lb skate in 500 feet of water in a scottish lough on the telly a few days ago they where using huge reels full harnesses and rods like broom handles to be honest i dont think you could land one over 80lb from the shore as the tackle would be so heavey you wouldnt cast more than 10 feet also you wouldnt have the leverage to lift one off the bottom because of the angle of your line ,maybe a jeep with a winch could come in handy,and a small boat to get your bait out like they use in france for the big catfish?dont forget a gaff and a few mates to haul it up would prob get you a spread in sea angler if you managed it

lads Ive also had unstoppable fish on this venue i also seen the same thing in kerry but nothing was landed something to get the juices flowing same time of the year


http://youtube.com/watch?v=MB78amkdJ1U

http://youtube.com/watch?v=jrThrWgD ... re=related

http://youtube.com/watch?v=d9RvZVFus_I

its great to see that others had the same experiences,has anyone on the site ever caught a skate before,even a small one?

There is a link on here somewhere leads to a english site two lads up in scotland caught skate of up to 150 pound i think from the shore sayed they used wire traces and 60pound line ill try find it and post later..