Best time to catch brown trout or salmon?

Tigerandahalf

Is it best to avoid the middle of the day when the sun is up? I often notice there are a lot more flies around dusk/dawn. Is the water more oxygenated in the cooler periods of dusk/dawn and thus more activity. I'm hoping to fish the river Feale but the waters are pretty low at the moment due to the good weather. Would the best place be deep pools and what lure would be best...worm/fly/spinner???

Thanks in advance.

Kess73

What part of the Feale are you looking to fish?


Not looking for you to give an exact location but do you mean in Limerick or Kerry (technically I know you can fish it in Cork also).


Listowel and just above is probably best right now as the water is a bit deeper there, and is a great spot for spinning for salmon especially and also for trout.

The Bridge Stream is just outside of Listowel and is an excellent spot to fish on the fly, especially in low water.

Further up the river near Mountcollins is fly country, although there are some good spots between Abbyfeale and Mountcollins for catching on the worm but worming is only allowed at set times by some of the clubs so check first.


Make sure you check in advance which club looks after the stretch you want to fish though as there are four or five different clubs involved.

Tigerandahalf

I don't know yet, heard it was decent for fishing, but that it was better years back. What is the story with the licence and how much do they cost. Are you limited as to where you can fish with that licence then?...only on certain stretches? What is the best spinning lure or will anything do? Some people have recommended the bronze coloured Mepps. What about minnows?
Thanks for the advice.

Kess73

Tigerandahalf wrote: »

I don't know yet, heard it was decent for fishing, but that it was better years back. What is the story with the licence and how much do they cost. Are you limited as to where you can fish with that licence then?...only on certain stretches? What is the best spinning lure or will anything do? Some people have recommended the bronze coloured Mepps. What about minnows?
Thanks for the advice.

You need a permit and a rod license to fish the Feale, and if you want to use club waters you will have to get a pass at whichever club's water you want to use. Most of the clubs do day passes.


As you seem to be leaning towards spinning in your reply, my advice would be to head towards Listowel and fish the pump house flat or the Hotel pool. A 2.5 inch devon minnow or a Mepps spinner (Angila Long in bronze or silver or a Black Fury used to work well for me there) should give you a good shot at a salmon or sea trout. With the water temperature rising a bit over the last few weeks it should be a good spot.

The North Kerry Anglers Association is the club that looks after this stretch and you can contact them for pricing on a day pass on 068 23848. Jim Horgan is who you should look for.

Jim Horgan can also sort you for the needed permit and give you the price on that, or if you are going to Listowel you can get one at Jim Halpins Tackle Shop on Church street, and the number there is 068 22392 and his email is jhss@eircom.net.


Both lads will be able to give you much better advice than I can as to other spots if you decide that you want to fish on the fly instead, but if spinning is your game, then the two areas I named are probably your best bet as they are very well maintained by the club and fish well year in year out.


Tight lines to ya wherever you decide to go on the river.

Tigerandahalf

Just another few questions.
When spinning do you need to put any weights at the end or will the weight of the spinner be sufficient. Also what flow should the water be..should it be slow moving and fairly deep? Should you be casting straight across the river or upstream/downstream.
You also mentioned the temperature..is it better to use a spinner when the water is warmer?

Cheers.

Compton

you need to choose a spinner to suit the water conditions. Don't add weight to spinners as they may not work properly. Unless using some like floating devons, these can be used with aweight and a 3-way swivel called a jumping-jack.

Compton

And if its very low, I'd shrimp fish the deeper pools as they may be holding fish, if shrimping is banned, I'd worm it.

ch750536

fine for brown trout on the feale just now, is best with blackwater. Used a size 1 mips, worked fine.

Plenty of areas outside the clubs too so check up and work the opposite banks, more than enough if you dont want the benefit of joining a club.

Personally I wasnt looking for salmon.

eta - may be very good by later this week, some rain on the way and plenty of dry soil to wash in (for the brown trout). Sea trout may come soon too.

Kess73

Tigerandahalf wrote: »

Just another few questions.
When spinning do you need to put any weights at the end or will the weight of the spinner be sufficient. Also what flow should the water be..should it be slow moving and fairly deep? Should you be casting straight across the river or upstream/downstream.
You also mentioned the temperature..is it better to use a spinner when the water is warmer?

Cheers.

Soory for not replying to you sooner, was not in this forum for a bit.

As Shblob said, no weights needed for spinning. Just use the spinner as it is.

As for where you should be casting. Generally I tend to cast downriver and bring the lure back against the current. Casting upriver just forces you to retrieve your lure faster then the current is going, so unless you are fishing a slow moving water, you can run the risk of tangles and a very ineffective looking bait if you are not used to spinning.


I mentioned the water temps as the fish are that bit more active when it is up a bit, plus there is more natural food available for the resident fish so they will be feeding.

The two pools I mentioned in Listowel are fishing well at the moment. Devon minnows seem to be working well. The pools have plenty of water in them, and there seems to be a good number of fish in the area.

There are sea trout in the area now as well, and they should be further up river now as well.


I had a look at the White River near Ballyhahill in County Limerick today, which is not a million miles away from the Feale, and it would seem that the rain has clouded the river there washing soil and titbits of food into the water, so as ch750536 said, it could be a good week on the Feale for brownies for the same reason.

ch750536

I'd be hitting the Feale today if I wasn't busy, good deal of rain last night.

thehamo

whats the chances of gettin a trout on a nypmh at night/dark? Was gonna try tonight as I was walking back up the river but didnt know if it was worth my while or not....