Lough O' Flynn, Roscommon

davidk11811

I wanted to ask does anyone regurlarly fish Lough O' Flynn in Roscommon often, I was thinking of giving it a visit but I heard it wasn't great for shore fishing? Is it any good?

ironbluedun

davidk11811 wrote: »

I wanted to ask does anyone regurlarly fish Lough O' Flynn in Roscommon often, I was thinking of giving it a visit but I heard it wasn't great for shore fishing? Is it any good?

David I fished a few times over the years and last season I fished it twice in September…. I have read that the population of trout is 50% stocked and 50% wild, I think that the population of stocked trout is much higher than that, probably more like 75-80%...but as stockies go they are quite good ones, I think this is due to the good natural feeding in the lough…O Flynn is a lovely little lough to pass a day on… it is not big it does not get too windy and it is not hard to find the fish…there is a population of wild trout and these are nice fish but much harder to catch than the stockies….the spawning facilities are limited for the natural wild fish…you mention shore fishing in fact anglers do fish along the northern shore I have seen a few doing it… but to fish it properly you need a boat and they are for hire in Balinlough…you will need a SRFB permit to fish it as the fishery board control and stock it….and you will be asked for the permit…traditional wet and dry patterns work well... the red arsed green peter in size 12 is very good in July-Sept, in August a dry daddy is good…it is a lough that is rich in fly-life…as it is surrounded by a lot of bog during periods of high water the lough can get a bit peaty but this doesn’t really affect fishing too much….you might not catch any monsters there and the wild ones are difficult to tempt but the stockies will provide some sport….

davidk11811

Are the stockies all rainbow? I might pass it a visit but I don't really want to rent a boat. You think I might catch something fishing from shore? Is there any other good trout rivers in the Roscommon area because to be honest, I'm sick of pike fishing. Thanks

ironbluedun

davidk11811 wrote: »

Are the stockies all rainbow? I might pass it a visit but I don't really want to rent a boat. You think I might catch something fishing from shore? Is there any other good trout rivers in the Roscommon area because to be honest, I'm sick of pike fishing. Thanks

no rainbows only browns...you can fish the north shore and yes you have a reasonably good chance of catching from that spot depending upon wind direction...dont know any of the rivers in that area......

davidk11811

That's a shame, I really wanted to do some trout river fishing.
Thanks

davidk11811

So today a friend and I brought up a boat to lough o Flynn and got permits etc. We were'nt there long before we were asked for our licences and they do a great job of checking which is nice to see. We launched the boat anyway and within a few mins of fishing we caught a pike (We were spinning of course). Not long came the second then the third etc. We went in search of trout down torwards the North shore and out in the middle a trout just missed my lure! The only one we saw the whole day, I only saw one trout rise the 5 hours we were fishing and the one I missed aswell. What I wanted to ask is where exactly should I look and do you think we were just on it a bad day as there was no trout rising? Anyway we caught loads of pike and I wouldn't be too worried about poachers reading this as they won't get away with taking pike from O Flynn, they'll be well watched.

coolwings

davidk11811 wrote: »

... The only one we saw the whole day, I only saw one trout rise the 5 hours we were fishing and the one I missed aswell. What I wanted to ask is where exactly should I look and do you think we were just on it a bad day as there was no trout rising? ....

Did you happen to notice any locals preparing to go out as you were coming in?
The trout may have been feeding deep on nymphs during bright daylight, or not feeding until later. The evening rise would bring some up.

From a SHRFB description of fishing July-August on L Owel:
There is generally a lull in the trout fishing season from about the second week of June until the third week in July and few anglers fish the lake during this time. Instead anglers eagerly await the annual hatch of large sedge known in Ireland as the Green Peter. It is difficult to give an exact time of year for the emergence of this fly.
During a hot summer, the hatch can begin as early as July 14th, while in a cooler season it may be delayed by a couple of extra weeks. The hatch starts about 10pm and lasts for about one hour and may go on much longer.
It is vital to remember that the best fishing is always after dark on Lough Owel.
Another point worth noting is that the first week or ten days of the hatch always provides the best fishing. The trout feed more avidly early on in the cycle but after about two weeks fishing begins to slow down....
The Green Peter brings up the best fish in the Lough. During the Green Peter hatch, trout angling is at its best and trout anglers enjoy lively sport at this time. This is the period that nearly always produces the biggest trout of the season.
It is recommended to fish a team of wetflies in the areas mentioned above until about 10pm.

You will probably find the daytime feeding from trout improves as the water cools over the coming month. For now, the trout, and their preferred insect prey prefer the cooler morning, evening and night time temperatures.
Don't worry about them not seeing a fly after dark. They have incredible eyesight in low light conditions, just present it above them, ie near the surface, and stay near the shallows.

davidk11811

I definitely won't be going at night time and I don't know if I'll fly fish.

ironbluedun

davidk11811 wrote: »

I definitely won't be going at night time and I don't know if I'll fly fish.

no dont take up golf, only joking...........

coolwings

........ take up golf...

So the trout haven't raised the white flag just yet David!
What size were your pike?

davidk11811

Got 27 pike, all around 1 pound and one or two were 4 pound. It was great sport though, had a ball.

coolwings

davidk11811 wrote: »

Got 27 pike, all around 1 pound and one or two were 4 pound. It was great sport though, had a ball.

Well you had a good day's sport so. Well done.
It might be the better way to fish there during the heat of the day.

As the season rolls around into autumn, and the days cool, more trout will feed earlier, and your fly opportunities will increase. Meanwhile stick with the methods that are proving successful for you.

SeaFields

Ill probably be hung out to dry here by resident coarse anglers but surely they should get rid of those pike out of there...it is a commercial trout fishery isn't it? Or am i getting mixed up on venues? That many jack pike in a lake would decimate the trout population.

davidk11811

Yes We were dumbfounded with the ammount of pike in it, we only expected to hook one or two by accident but in total we probably hooked about 45. I had only one trout on my line and it wasn't long before he was off. But this is a wild lake that has had trout and pike living in it forever, but can those stockies survive? Most of the pike are about one pound so would they be able to eat the average 1.5 pound trout in the lake. Torwards the end of the trip I saw a huge pike gracefully and silently taking a fly from the surface, he made no sound as he sort of did what reminded me of the "Lock Ness Monster", he put his head up and dived under again and his whole body followed behind him and went back under water, if that makes sense?
He must of been at least 25lbs, and 20lb fish are often caught there. But we were very dissapointed that there was very little trout after buying our permits! :rolleyes:

coolwings

When pike are small they are insectivorous, and have the same diet as trout.
Food competitors, not predators, until they get larger.
They only predate trout when they get over about 2lbs.

That's the rational for culls by the way, take the big pike out, without predation the small pike survive to become stunted and stop predating the trout due to not reaching the size of switching to a fish diet. The pike biomass stays the same but is made up of more numerous, small pike. It (the cull policy) didnt take account of food competition enough, consequently they are moving away from it on trout lakes with limited pike spawning areas.

Macspower

Only see this thread now guys,

I'm prob in the best postition to speak on O'Flynn as I own the Whitehouse Hotel in Ballinlough and I fish it at least a few times a week. Feel free to ask any questions about it.

O'Flynn is truly a fantastic lake in many ways. On the downside it is really only accessable by boat but the hotel boat is always available and the fisheries board boats are for hire at 25 per day.

It is full of stocked brown trout and a very small % of wilds, The last day out we had 17 fish from the boat in 3 hours and all were stockies. 2 under 1lb and 1 over 2 lb all the rest 1.5 lb or so. good hard fighting fish to be fair to them.

Method: I've decided to leave this one out but by all means PM for more info.

It's also one of the best pike lakes I've ever experienced. Yesterday the waterkeeper from Athy in Kildare had a ball there with nearly 30 pike to the boat and lost as many more while fly fishing for pike.

Check out www.ballinloughhotel.com and look at the photo gallery for a few pics.
All pike returned alive and well as per catch and release policy...

There is a bag limit for the brownies of 6..

Also the coarse fishing in the area is as good as it gets. roach/rudd/bream/hybrids and pike all available within 20 mins of the area. Again a Pm and I'll gladly put anyone in the right direction...

Enjoy but please respect this great lake.... and as mentioned earlier you need a licence and you will be checked.

ironbluedun

good post macspower.... i have fished o flynn for trout but never the pike...its a little lake i like myself....i would like to try the pike on it sometime, maybe after the trout fishing is over, or in the early spring....i do wonder though if the stockies are providing the larger pike with a good rich diet to make them fat and plump? what are the best methods for the pike, are they widespread around the lake? please pm if you think better to do so. thanks.

Macspower

ironbluedun wrote: »

good post macspower.... i have fished o flynn for trout but never the pike...its a little lake i like myself....i would like to try the pike on it sometime, maybe after the trout fishing is over, or in the early spring....i do wonder though if the stockies are providing the larger pike with a good rich diet to make them fat and plump? what are the best methods for the pike, are they widespread around the lake? please pm if you think better to do so. thanks.

The big pike are normally got on deadbait. I recently got a 15.9 lb on a trolled smelt. I had it at 4 ft on a trolling float. I also had 13 pike on the fly 2 weeks ago. Nothing bigger than 3lb but great sport.

I reckon the winter will be amazing for piking. I've also heard loads of local stories of big pike caught on small trout spinners. Unfortunally the local attitude is "the only good pike is a dead pike". I was nearly excommunicated for returning pike.

ROSSKI

Hi Macspower,

What type of permit do you need to fish there?
Are there limitations on what size of engine you can use?
Is trolling allowed?

Thanks
Rosski

Macspower

ROSSKI wrote: »

Hi Macspower,

What type of permit do you need to fish there?
Are there limitations on what size of engine you can use?
Is trolling allowed?

Thanks
Rosski

You need a 39 euro a year fisheries board licence to fish O'Flynn. This can be purchsed locally

No Limitiations to engine size but your better off with a small engine. I use a 4 stroke 4 hp.

Trolling for the pike is ok but trolling for trout is frowned upon by the local angling club but not banned.. I just dont see it as much sport...