Frequently Asked Questions

Frequently Asked Questions - Celtic Angling

What kind of Experience do I need?
(The following advice is as a result of experience gained in guiding over the past 10 years and is not meant to be off-putting, it's our way of trying to get things right for you. Look on it more as tough love which has your interest at heart!)
Often in the past we've ended up in locations unsuitable to the client's level of skill, only to waste time changing venues.
Our idea of an experienced flyfisher would be someone who's been flyfishing up to 20 days a season for 10 or more seasons. A few hours fly fishing during vacation over a few years would not count as 'experienced' in our books.
Be realistic in appraising your particular level of skill as this is essential in planning your day.
A novice or relative beginner will be out of their depth (No pun intended) on our wild streams and more at home improving
their skills on our small lake in the hills, with every chance of catching nice trout into the bargain. It's a great place to learn or improve. Many beginners will find river wading difficult, never mind trying to wade and flyfish at the same time.
An ability to cast a dry fly or nymph upstream, gathering slack line and shooting it again whilst wading rocky and weeded streams would be a great advantage. A reasonable level of fitness and rivercraft is required, particularly on the rivers.
Fly fishing differs from other fishing methods and requires practice after a grounding in basic principles from an Instructor.
Many self-taught flyfishers develop faults which are diffucult to correct later, so it's best get proper advice from the start.

What are the best Seasons - Times of year?

We offer a year-round service but Mar-Sept would be our busiest period as this is the open season for Trout and Salmon.
Sea-Bass open all year with exception of close month May14th to June 14th.
Our trout lake in the hills is open year-round as being a private water it's not subject to Statutory closing dates.

This lake holds Brown and Rainbow Trout to 3 or 4lbs. Most will get their first trout on fly here.
Our Salmon (Atlantic) are prized but success very much depends on water levels, so it's a bit of a lottery if you book this in advance. May/June/Sept probably best . Best to wait until close to your booked day to decide if Salmon are an option.
Our rivers are comparatively small but wild, and early months (Mar/Apr) would see good water levels, little weed and cooler temperatures. Fly fishing really comes into it's own in April/May and can be good right through to end of season (September 30th). However, rivers can become weedy and low after June so good flyfishing skills a big plus then.

For information on Ireland / general weather see http://www.irelandexpert.com/faqs.htm#weather
For more up-to-date weather for Adare area of Ireland see http://www.met.ie/forecasts/regional.asp?Prov=Munster

Should I bring anything with me?

Perhaps a rainproof outdoor jacket. We supply all rods/reels, wet gear including waders, we also supply packed lunches, drinks, photos, Instruction, permits, licences and 4wheel drive transport.
Our fly-rods are mainly fast action 9ft, 6wt rods by TFO of Dallas and our reels are top of the range by Ross Reels of Colorado. Single handed salmon/saltwater fly rods would be 9ft/10ft , wts. 8/9/10, Double-handed 12.5 and 15ft.
We have over 40 fly rods but feel free to bring your own gear although this does not alter our rates.
We supply nylon or rubber waders but bring your breathable waders if you wish, we will be happy to supply wading boots.

Can we go as groups?

Often an experienced angler will encourage others in his group to try their hand and in such a situation the group as a whole will be treated as beginners. Normally our limit is 4 anglers maximum to an outing.
The norms of fly fishing require that each fisher be some distance apart and this is not ideal for multi-client instruction, particularly on rivers with steep, overgrown and inaccessible banks.
Pitching beginners in difficult surrounds puts them and the instructor in an unfair position.
Lady fly fishers are always welcome, more and more females are taking up fly fishing, very 'chic' nowadays!

Saltwater fly/spin fishing?
We offer spinfishing or flyfishing for Sea Bass & Mullet (Like Stripers in USA) from the shore on the Shannon Estuary.
We also combine this with trout on our nearby hill lake. Option 6. http://www.celticangling.com/ireland-tours.html

Fly fishing School?

We are getting more and more queries on this and just to clarify, a minimum of 4 participants are needed to make this work.
Group booking of 4 (may work with 3 ) ideal as it can be difficult arranging a date mutually agreeable to 4 individuals.
We do keep a waiting list and once we arrive at 4 persons we then go ahead and try to fix a mutually agreeable day.
Ideal for Birthday present, Stags, and voucher certificate may be issued in advance via email or post.

The Fish?

As a tribute to those wild beauties that give us such sport we release 99% of our catch, keeping but an odd fish for the 'table'.

Safety/Insurance?

All our clients are covered by Public Liability Insurance and Travel Insurance whilst with Celtic Angling.
Automatically inflating life-jackets provided when fishing for Sea-Bass or on request when river fishing.

Transport?

We collect/drop clients from/to Hotel/Guesthouse if in or near Adare, or rendezvous with clients in Car Park at rear of Heritage Centre/Tourist Office in centre of Adare village. Clients may follow in their own transport if they wish, indeed, this is sometimes necessary with larger groups. Most fishing locations we use are 10-30mins from Adare.