Fishing in Cahersiveen
My mum was from Cahersiveen and I spent many summers in that town fishing.
There is good fishing in Cahersiveen and the surrounding area. Cahersiveen has a marina where trawlers can come in to land their catch. (Things to do in Cahersiveen)
Deep-sea fishing in Cahersiveen
Beginners
When I was young, I can remember fishing off the bridge in Cahersiveen. The bridge is tidal and the best time to fish is when it is high tide. Here is a good link for the Cahersiveen tides.
The best type of fishing at the bridge is using a spinner. Pollock is the main fish that will be caught. You can also go conger eel fishing off the bridge while you are spinning with your rod.
One year I did that in the Cahersiveen Festival and I caught 2 Pollock and when I was drawing in the line to see if I had a conger eel, I thought I had caught the line on the bottom.
It took me 10 to 15 minutes to pull the line in. When I was spinning for pollack, I hooked a conger eel and it went down to the bottom of the river and wrapped itself around a big rock.
Non-Beginners
For float fishing, I recommend Cois Cum or Coonanne Piers. Cois Cum pier is about 3 miles from Cahersiveen just passed the two ring forts. We always got fresh lugworms from the strand that is near Ballycarbery Castle.
It is nice and sheltered from the Atlantic Ocean. Sometimes mackerel will force the sprat into the bay to corner them. It looks like boiling water when the mackerel attack the sprat.
There are people going out in small boats to the lobster pots here. If we see them casting off with their boats, we would ask them to bring us out. Then we would be fishing with feathers for mackerel.
Just don’t be surprised when you catch the fish that the boat owner will use the fish for the lobster pots. So, you will have to catch more fish than the lobster pots combined.
If you want to go to a bigger boat I recommend you fish off Valentia Island. It is really good for mackerel. You can go out Blue Shark fishing between the months of June to September. For this type of fishing, you should go off Bray Head in Valentia.
If you want to do beach fishing, I recommend you go to the White Strand which is a blue flag beach as well. I believe you can catch sea bass from here but I haven’t done it yet.
Freshwater fishing
If you like freshwater fishing, I highly recommend you go to Lough Currane. It is located near Waterville 21 km away from Cahersiveen. From May to October, you can catch the best Sea trout here. The best time is from June to September.
You will have to get a fishing licence as well. The average size of the sea trout is 1 1\2 pounds but annually the sea trout in this Lake can reach up to 6 pounds.
Salmon will come up through Lough Currane to spawn in the lakes of Capall, Lough Namona, Lough Derriana, Cloonlaghlin, and Lasknamacnateery.
Another good place to go is Caragh Lake (Lough Caragh) and the river flowing into it. Firstly, it is very good for Salmon when they come up to spawn and secondly, you can catch brown or sea trout here.
The majority of the fish is caught by a spinner but sometimes the fly will work. Boats can be hired along the north and west shores. The southern end along the west and east shores, near the river, is the best for salmon. Also, this is the best place for catching trout but they can be found on all the shores.
River Laune
Last but not least the river flowing by Killorglin. It is called the River Laune. The river connects the Atlantic Ocean to the Killarney Lakes. To produce the best results for Sea Trout spinning with light tackle is best.
The average weight of sea trout on the River Laune is 1 pound. Salmon will take the fly on this river. For best results wait till the river is swollen from the rain. The salmon tend to hold back when water levels are low and run through quickly when conditions allow.
Another good website for freshwater fishing.
Remember, if you are doing freshwater fishing you need a licence which you can purchase in some shops near the place you are fishing.
Check out my web pages on the Ring of Kerry Drive, The Skellig Ring and Slea Head Drive.