Articles

Porbeagle
SHARK ARTICLE It has been three years since big Phil, and myself had decided to try our hand at shark angling on the north coast. The problem with this area is that by time our coastal waters have warmed up enough to make it a viable option, the weather has typically begun to deteriorate. This does not affect the larger charter boats quite so much, but the Atlantic can be a daunting and sometimes dangerous mass of water to the small boat angler.   A change in wind direction or tide ca...

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Fly Fishing for Pike Part 3
Flyfishing from a float tube My one and only experience of float tubes until now was after Glenn Drennan, an angling pal and devoted “tuber”, talked me into having a go with his "belly-boat". Initially dubious regarding the merits of bobbing about on a lorry tyre, I soon realised through Glen’s enthusiasm for this side of the sport, that there was more to tubing than meets the eye.       My mental images of plodding about the water’s edge, donned...

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Fly Fishing for Pike Part 2
Targeting Pike from the boat Following on from my first article where I targeted Pike from the shore, it follows that I should have a bash at old Esox from a boat, and to compare the differences. Mark Corps brought me luck on my previous trip, so it only seemed right to invite him along for the day. He asked if Shane, one of his work colleagues could join us, and, as my boat fishes three quite comfortably, he was more than welcome.     I first met Shane O’Reilly at the ...

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Fly Fishing for Pike Part 1
Pike from the shore When the editor of Irish Angler magazine asked me if would be prepared to put together an article on fly- fishing for Pike, of course I agreed. Although this side of the sport is challenging and exciting in its own right, I felt the need to push the article a little further, and suggested that it may be interesting to target Pike on the fly from three different angles.     First approach could be from the shore, secondly, target them from a boat, and final...

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Angling First Charity
Sponsored Day Trip    Terry takes the volunteers from Northern Ireland angling charity "Angling First" on a deep-water adventure     The trip A recent and memorable boat trip off the Antrim Coast began with a phone call totally out of the blue, from Mark McGivern. Mark is the director of a successful angling charity named “Angling First”. The charity, through the medium of angling, aids and offers respite to adults and children from all walks of life. This ...

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Terry's Teach-in at Baronscourt
Teaching children angling techniques at Baronscourt This month’s “teach-in” is one with a difference. Not only was it a weekend adventure rather than a single day, but also, it would be better described as an “angling clinic”. On this occasion I had seven budding superstars to contend with.       During a recent angling-coaching event, I hi-jacked some of the pack away from the game angling theory to teach them the art of pole and waggler fishi...

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Specimen Hunting Series Part 12 Black-mouthed Dogfish
Black-Mouthed Dogfish (aka Black-mouthed catshark) Fact file Name BlackMouth Dogfish Latin name Galeus melastomus Irish record Not applicable as yet Specimen weight Not applicable as yet     The trip As this is the last article of my specimen hunting series, I decided to finish with a fish that is little known in the sea-angling world, and furthermore, has yet to be acknowledged by the Irish Specimen Fish Committee as a viable target species in Ireland. So, what is the proc...

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Specimen Hunting Series Part 11 Bull Huss
The Bull Huss Challenge Name: Greater spotted dogfish, also known as Bull Huss. Latin name: Scyliorhinus stellaris Irish record: 23lbs 13ozs, taken at Kenmare Bay by Perry Dumay on 17.09.2003 Specimen weight: 16lbs or 7.257 kilos       The trip After last month’s successful Tope adventure, I opted to stay on the predator theme and seek out another big hitter in the “toothy critter” line up. For this month’s article, I have decided on the challenge of...

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Specimen Hunting Series Part 10 Tope
The Tope Challenge    Latin name (Galeorhinus galeus) Irish record, 66 pounds 8 ounces, taken at Carlingford Lough on 15.7.1979 by Cyril Young Specimen weight, 18.144 kilos or 40 pounds       The trip Looking back through the recent list of species I have targeted for this series throughout the season, I realised that it was time to seek out something a little more exciting. Mullet, Tench and Wrasse are worthy challenges but it was now time to catch a true preda...

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Specimen Hunting Series Part 9 Ballan Wrasse
The Ballan Wrasse Challenge    Latin name (Labrus bergylta) Irish record 4.3 kilos, taken at Clogher Head on 20.08.1983 by Bertrand Kron Specimen weight 2.154 kilos or 4.75 pounds   The trip Despite the fact that Ballans occupy almost every under water reef and kelp forest around our coast line, the capture of a specimen greater than four pounds twelve ounces is definitely not a foregone conclusion. With thousands caught and released by shore and boat anglers each year, the...

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