Part 14

THE FLIES to suit the Bann are as follows:--

No. 1. Body claret pig hair, ribbed with gold tinsel, orange tag, a topping, and a little wood-duck for tail; a dark claret hackle rolled up to the shoulder, and a blue jay above it; mallard wings, mixed with bustard--the dark small spotted bustard feather is best for this river, the light coloured for Scotland and Wales--golden pheasant tail and neck, peacock wing, wood-duck feelers of blue and yellow macaw, and a black head. Hook No. 8 or 9. This is a great favourite.

No. 2. Scarlet body, scarlet hackle, and mallard wing, gold over body, topping for tail, and one in the centre of the wings, jay at the shoulder, and a black head. Hook No. 8. Large for the Spring, and B, BB for June and July.

No. 3. Fiery brown body, brown-red hackle, gold tinsel, mallard wings with a little wood-duck and golden pheasant neck feather mixed with it, macaw feelers, and a small topping for tail mixed with wood-duck. Hook BB or G. Grouse hackle round the shoulder, and a black head.

No. 4. Body yellow pig hair, half way up from the tail, the remainder wine purple or dark blue, a purple hackle over it, and a claret one at the shoulder; blue head picked out the colour of the sky; two toppings in the centre of wings of mallard and brown turkey mixed, and macaw feeler. Hook No. 9. Silver tinsel over the body.

No. 5. Orange body, broad gold tinsel, dark brown-red hackle over it; strips of wood-duck and neck feather for tail; strips of spotted Argus pheasant; a dark full mallard wing with two neck feathers in the centre, and a black head. Hook No. 9, BB, or 8. Large for high water or deep places.

No. 6. A puce body, ribbed with silver tinsel and gold twist, topping in the tail mixed with wood-duck fibres; puce hackle struck full up to the head, blue jay here, and kingfisher each side of the wings, which are of a very nice mixture of Argus pheasant small spotted feather, peacock wings, mallard, teal, guinea hen, kite tail, pheasant tail, blue and orange macaw, scarlet macaw, green parrot tails, Ibis, and silver pheasant tail (the hen); feelers of macaw, a topping over all, with the crest feather of the Hymalean pheasant, and a bronze head. Hook, Nos. 9 and 8. These, with the eleven flies in the Plates, and No. 12, early in the Spring, with the five Shannon flies, are all "first-rate killers," indeed, the fourteen painted flies are all capital ones for this river.

THE TROUT FLIES are generally the same as those in the catalogue of flies for the season. In the spring they run rather large, but in the summer months they are used very small. Olive flies of various hues are very much used, and a fly with a green body and the feather off the root of the landrail's wing; another with orange body, black-red hackle, and woodcock wings. Hooks No. 8, in spring, Nos. 10 and 12, in summer. The various browns are capital in the early season, and the green olive, sooty olive, hare's ear and olive, brown and olive flies made full in the wings, and to be longer than the body. There are no hackles used in the spring, till a little further on in the season, then hackle flies are used; the wren tails of different sorts are very much prized, and the light red-brown grouse hackle, and yellow body; a blue body fly, black hackle, and wings of the starling; a gosling green olive fly, with mallard wings, mixed with landrail, and a hook No. 8 or 10; a fly with a yellow body of silk, red hackle dyed yellow, starling wing mixed with mallard, and a little partridge tail; the golden wren is good; a very small black gnat is good; and the never-failing "blue blow." The body of this little fly, as used on the Bann, is mole's fur mixed with golden olive, picked out at the shoulder, and a black bird's wing, to be fished with on warm sultry days. These flies are killers, and the trout are fond of them, which will be found excellent and plentiful at Portna.

On the shores of Lough Neagh, towards the Bridge of Toome, where the river issues out of the lake, there is good angling in the Drake season in June. There is a small inn at Toome Bridge, where the angler can procure a boat. It is but four miles north of "Randalstown," on the Belfast and Ballymena Railway. I have spent many a day on these waters, when a young man.

From Shane's Castle, the Earl O'Neil's, to the bridge, and from the town of Antrim to Shane's Castle, there are large trout taken with the fly; at the end of May, and throughout June, the whole surface of the lake along the shore is covered with the natural fly. The Drake, in the Plate, would be a good one made on a large size hook, to throw amongst them. Earl O'Neil grants permission to gentlemen to fly-fish in the demesne of Shane's Castle, by sending a note from the inn at Randalstown, to the Steward.

There are numerous rivers running into Lough Neagh, from five different counties, which it borders. The Bann rises in the Mourne Mountains, in the County of Down, and passing through the Lough, issues out of it at the Bridge of Toome, forming a stupendous body of fresh water. The Lough is twenty-three miles long, and twelve in width.

To get at the various small trout rivers running into all these great lakes in the north of Ireland, I would recommend, to gain information of the cross-roads, Leigh's Road Book of Ireland and Dublin Railway Guide.

The angler will now take his departure from the north and proceed to Dublin, viâ Belfast and Draugheda, at this place he comes to the river Boyne, where he may spend a few pleasant days at "Old Bridge," a place about three miles up the river at the "weirs." There is good Salmon fishing at this place when the tide is out, and on the flow of the tide he will take capital Grilse and Sea-Trout.

For the Boyne, the best flies are claret, brown, olive, green, orange, and black, with brown mallard wings, and turkey tail feathers. Plain ones in general are best.

LAKES OF WESTMEATH.

After leaving Draugheda, the angler will reach Dublin by rail in a very short time, where he will take his place in the railway carriage for Mullingar, the county town of Westmeath; here, he is in the centre of numerous fine lakes, well stored with large trout that will take the fly most freely in May and June; the whole country round this place is most pleasingly diversified by romantic sites, gentlemen's mansions, and extensive lakes.

There are two lakes in the neighbourhood, or environs of Mullingar, which are "Lough Ennel" and "Lough Owel," to the north of the town; the first named one is the best for large trout. There are good boats and fishermen to be had here. A little farther northward is Lough Iron, and the river Jenny, which takes its course to the Shannon. The best lake of them all is "Derevaragh," still further to the north; the town of Castlepollard is the best station to stay to fish this fine lake; the trout run twelve and fourteen pounds in it.

Lough Lane and Dromore are close to the last named lake. The angling in May is most excellent, with the green drake; it is called the drake season, and at this period the largest fish are caught; the green drake which I have described, is the right sort for the lakes, with large whole upright wings double the ordinary size.

The trout flies in general are brown, green, grey, red, black, hare's ear and yellow, hare's ear and brown, hare's ear and olive, fiery brown, claret, orange, and yellow flies, and in rough weather gaudy grilse flies are good.

The flexible minnow would be a capital bait, drawn after the boat, when the trout are not inclined to take the fly.--See an angling tour of the lakes by "Jeffery Green Drake."

There is very good salmon and trout fishing to be had in the County Tipperary, at the town of Cahir, situated on the Suir; Kilcommon Cottage on the river side, is a place of great beauty, and the angler may amuse himself in the demesne of Lord Cahir, which contains 560 acres; this place and Clonmel may be reached by railway from Dublin, and on arriving at Kilkenny there is very good fishing in the river Barrow at the town, on the road to Cahir.

There is a small river called Killmacow, two miles above Waterford, running into the Suir, in which there is beautiful trout fishing, in the Spring and June.

There are some nice streams in Wexford, for salmon and trout fishing. The "Slaney," at Scarrawalsh Bridge, near the Barony Forth, is capital for sea trout, in August and the early Spring; there is good trout fishing the higher you proceed up this fine river.

In Lord Courtown's demesne, beyond Tara Hill, there is good grilse and sea trout fishing, the river runs through the town of Ballycannew, a few miles above Gorey; Lord Courtown's is not far from Gorey, who will allow any gentleman to angle with the fly in his charming demesne. They say that his lordship can contrive to "fish these fish" into the kettle alive out of the river, part of which runs under the mansion; I cannot tell how true this may be, the river runs close to the house, in which there are plenty of salmon and trout.

The flies used here are rather gaudy, sea trout size; and the list of flies for the season will answer admirably for trout fishing.

From the above place the angler may conveniently visit the rivers in the County Wicklow, which are all trout streams, arriving at Arklow, on the river Ovoca.

There is a very nice river running along the southern side of the Wicklow Mountains, passing by a place called "Little Aghrim," from whence to the wooden bridge, three miles from Arklow, there is excellent trout fishing in March, April, and May; it passes through a long lough or piece of deep water, out of which the trout issue in the spring into the river; there is no obstruction on its banks from the Wooden Bridge Inn up to Aghrim. There is a bridge crosses the river three miles up from the Wooden Bridge, where the angler may fish up to Aghrim or down to the "Meetings." The Wooden Bridge is called the "Lower Meetings of the Waters,"--this is the most beautiful place of any in the neighbourhood of the Vale of Ovoca, as you can see fine vales from the mount behind the Inn; although from the grounds of Howard Castle, where the little and great Avon meet, the views are sublime,--this is Moore's "Sweet Vale of Ovoca, where the bright waters meet."

From the town of Rathdrum to the Meetings there is good fly fishing in the spring; through the vale there is no angling in the river, in consequence of the copper mine water running into it from the hills on each side, Cronebane, and Balymurtagh.