Menu

Ireland's sailing, boating & maritime magazine

Displaying items by tag: Hooks

#Angling - Recreational angling on the River Suir is set for a change as a new bylaw sought by a majority of anglers has been signed into law.

As of Friday 12 April till the end of the season, when fishing for salmon and sea trout (over 40cm) on the River Suir, the use of worms, prawn, shrimp or any other crustacean or artificial forms thereof as bait is prohibited - as is the use of any fish hooks other than single barbless hooks, up to and including 11 May.

From 12 May to 30 September the bylaw provides for a bag limit of five fish for the season subject to a daily bag limit of one fish. Anglers must use a single barbless hook once their daily or season bag limit has been reached.

Inland Fisheries Ireland (IFI) points out that this bylaw is applicable to the 2013 season only.

It is hoped that this measure will ensure even better angling for the many local anglers and angling tourists that come to fish the Suir for brown trout from Tipperary to Waterford.

Published in Angling

Forty Foot Swimming Spot on Dublin Bay

The 'Forty Foot' is a rocky outcrop located at the southern tip of Dublin Bay at Sandycove, County Dublin from which people have been swimming in the Irish Sea all year round for 300 years or more. It is popular because it is one of few spots between Dublin city and Greystones in County Wicklow that allows for swimming at all stages of the tide, subject to the sea state.

Forty Foot History

Traditionally, the bathing spot was exclusively a men's bathing spot and the gentlemen's swimming club was established to help conserve the area.

Owing to its relative isolation and gender-specific nature it became a popular spot for nudists, but in the 1970s, during the women's liberation movement, a group of female equal-rights activists plunged into the waters and now it is also open to everyone and it is in the control of Dun Laoghaire Rathdown County Council.

Many people believe that swimming in extremely cold water is healthy and good for the immune system.

Is it safe to swim at the Forty Foot?

The Forty-Foot is a great place to swim because there is always enough water to get a dip but like all sea swimming, there are always hazards you need to be aware of.   For example, a lot of people like to dive into to the pool at the Forty-foot but there are submerged rocks that can be hazardous especially at low water.  The Council have erected signs to warn people of the underwater dangers. Other hazards include slippy granite cut stone steps that can often be covered with seaweed and of course marine wildlife including jellyfish that make their presence felt in the summer months as do an inquisitive nearby Sandycove seal colony.

The Forty-foot Christmas Day swim

A Dublin institution that brings people from across Dublin and beyond for a dip in the chilly winter sea. Bathers arrive in the dark from 6 am and by noon the entire forty foot is a sea of red Santa hats!