Hook Peninsula, Wexford - 30/6/2020

With the weather being sub-par lately, there wasn't much of a chance to get out although I did find a few weather windows over the past week or so which ended up with mixed results.

June 25th - Booley Bay
On this day I had a bait out for a while at Booley Bay on a flooding tide which yielded nothing except seaweed, and plenty of swimmers going dangerously close to my line even though I was at the far end of the beach. I can never win when it's busy.
I've always blanked here over the years apart from a tiny sole last year. Has anyone fished here before and actually caught something?

Two days later I headed down to Arthurstown Pier in hope of a few hounds once again, but alas only a dogfish showed during 3 hours of fishing with large squid and peeler baits.

June 30th - Hook Peninsula
Tonight I headed out with a friend to a beach on the seaward side of the peninsula- I had fished here before in March catching two dogfish and the same pattern emerged (3 dogfish) after 2 hours of fishing, the final ebb and slack water. As the tide started to flood, a switch to peeler finally caught 3 smooth hounds in 20 minutes, all to peeler crab.
Conditions were mostly calm apart from the odd gust of wind, with an ominous looking sky that eventually cleared up partly as the sun set.
All fish released.

Here's to some better weather, I still wish to catch a 10lb smoothie this summer (a man can dream!)
Tight lines all

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Good stuff man , your getting out and trying different marks, although just goes to show that fishing can be hard but theres always a chance of that big hound. I hope to get out this week although the tides are falling into darkness and i would prefer a rising tide, but may get out and try. I see theres hounds being caught at passage east and am tempted to try for the crack. Tight lines

Some good size on them smoothies boss

Good work! Some nice fish! Never fished Booley before. Hope ya get your 10lb hound before the summers over!

Good stuff man , your getting out and trying different marks, although just goes to show that fishing can be hard but theres always a chance of that big hound. I hope to get out this week although the tides are falling into darkness and i would prefer a rising tide, but may get out and try. I see theres hounds being caught at passage east and am tempted to try for the crack. Tight lines

Cheers Sean, it's well worth a shot in dry and settled conditions on the flood in the estuary, haven't had smoothies from passage but have seen them caught there when I was fishing and there's been specimens caught there too. It's just a matter of what mark suits you.
Tight lines

Good work! Some nice fish! Never fished Booley before. Hope ya get your 10lb hound before the summers over!

Cheers, I hopefully will as long as the weather stays somewhat suitable!

Some good size on them smoothies boss

Cheers Gonzo!

Cracking smoothound!! Great report

Well done on your smoothies, keep at them, the bigger fish are there..

Cracking smoothound!! Great report

Cheers G, will pm you

Well done on your smoothies, keep at them, the bigger fish are there..

Thanks Monkeywrasse, I certainly will, have an order of a dozen peeler for next week, conditions are still windy but fishable. All the best

ive fished Booley bay and Dollar bay a few times and never had much at all altough they look very promising , baginbun is a nice spot but very weedy/rocky with lots of small wrasse

ive fished Booley bay and Dollar bay a few times and never had much at all altough they look very promising , baginbun is a nice spot but very weedy/rocky with lots of small wrasse

I think Dollar Bay is the better mark of the two, I think they're just too clean...plenty of better marks within the estuary.
I tried baginbun but blanked although it looked great. Did you fish the beach or the headland?

I fished the beach to the left near the rocks , ive seen plenty of macks cught just off the headland to the right on kayaks not far out , you can see where the tide starts to run , I bait fish mostly but may well be worth a shot with a lure for Bass as its reefy and snaggy and while i was snorkeling there there was a huge amount of sandeel about