The unpredictability of Donegal weather!

I had been all set for a few days fishing and got my myself geared up and had a good bit of banter and craic with some lads about what I will catch (or in this case not) but I was quietly confident.

Well here is a lesson for you - If you are going to fish Donegal, never ever rely on the weather giving you a break.

I headed off to fish 2 hours before high tide on a rock mark to try out HRF for wrasse and pollack. Looked good when i left the house, slight breeze but nothing serious. Boy was it a different story when i got out onto the rocks. There must have been a storm the week prior to my arrival, the swell was what can only be described as evil.

It started off a little choppy and then gradually got worse, forcing me to leave my mark and head for home.

It was dissapointing to say the least because  i had got myself geared up and finally got the time to go out and try my marks but sadly not, although i think i got the end gear right!

Anyway later on that evening i did some trecking over fields and down onto the shore line once again to try for some pollack as it was coming on for dusk. This time with hard lures and plugs ..... The water looked nice and active but the tidal variation between low and high water was pathetic .... it was a shocking tide and sadly no fish.

The one thing however i do appreciate is the surroundings which i find myself in when fishing these parts of Donegal. If nothing else it is hard to beat being out by the water in lovely surroundings. 

The next morning i set the alarm for just after 6am and set out to try the estuary for sea trout. Opened the curtains to find a hard frost outside - great now i have a huge temperature drop ..... car dial read '0' - this wasn't looking good. The water was like glass and the sun was up and bright. Not ideal conditions to say the least but sure it was a lovely morning.

To top it all off another huge shower came in from the atlantic but we managed to get a quick snap of a rainbow before we got soaked and made our way back to the car......

After several failed attempts to throw a line in the sea, we dug out the fly rod and headed for fresh water ..... See the Wild Irish Brown Trout post for details.