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Displaying items by tag: North West Angling Fair

The North West Angling Fair will host to some of the world’s finest fly casters at this year’s event, taking place at the Melvin Sport Complex in Strabane, Co Tyrone on the weekend of 1-2 April with free admission.

Names such as Mark Patterson, Scott MacKenzie and Pauline McClenaghan will be present to offer their expert tips and advice for angling enthusiasts of all skill levels.

Free demonstrations will be taking place both in the River Mourne and on the Felix McCrossan sports field.

The event promises to be a fantastic occasion for anglers and fishing enthusiasts from across Northern Ireland and beyond.

They will have the opportunity to watch the best international fly-fishing tackle producers, fly-tying brands, fishing outfitters, professional casting demonstrations and expert fly fishing tuition.

Free fly-tying lessons with instruction tailored to the specific needs of from beginner through to advanced will also be offered.

Timees and locations for the fly-casting demonstrations can be found below. For more about what to expect at the show, see the Derry City & Strabane District Council website HERE.

North West Angling Fair 2023 Fly Casting Programme, Saturday 1 April

North West Angling Fair 2023 Fly Casting Programme, Sunday 2 April

Published in Angling

#angling - Next weekend sees the biggest event on the local angling calendar that looks set to attract hundreds of visitors when the North West Angling Fair is hosted in and around the spectacular setting of Castlederg Castle in Co. Tyrone.

The family friendly event hosted by Derry City and Strabane District Council is free admission and is set to bring together a host of the UK and Ireland’s top fly dressers, casters and top angling specialists.

The fair will be open from 10am – 5pm each day of Saturday 6th and Sunday 7th April and will feature appearances and demonstrations as well as interactive opportunities for the public to get involved.The fair will host stalls from retailers and fly tying demonstrations while outside on the Derg River some of the best casters in the world will impart their wisdom through demonstrations.

A special youth element entitled CATCH (Community Angling Training and Coaching Hub) will be hosted by the Loughs Agency where experienced and professional coaches will be on-hand to train new, novice and experienced young anglers in game, coarse and sea angling.

Looking ahead to the event, Mayor of Derry City and Strabane District Council, Councillor John Boyle, encouraged local people to take advantage of the world class event on their doorstep and noted that it will attract thousands of visitors to the Council area.“I’d like to congratulate the Festival and Events team at Council for assembling a stellar line-up of special guests and an exciting programme of activities for the 2019 North West Angling Fair,” he said.

“This is the first time the fair has come to Castlederg which will allow us to showcase our angling offering not only to visitors to our Council area but also to local people who may be considering taking up fishing as a hobby.“The programme is family orientated and allows people of all ages to get involved and learn more about the art of angling and I’d encourage as many people as possible to come along and sample what it has to offer.”

Festival and Events Manager at Derry City and Strabane District Council, Jacqueline Whoriskey, noted the Fair has something to suit all levels and tastes.

“We are delighted to once again host the North West Angling Fair and bring it to the spectacular surroundings of Castlederg Castle, using the grounds of the St Eugene’s GAC and the Derg River,” she said. “Some of the biggest names in the angling world will be in attendance and there is a wide range of activities and demonstrations to choose from. “The event is free of charge but people can buy the best equipment and supplies for their fishing needs at the trade stands.

“We are particularly excited about the CATCH Hub, hosted by the Loughs Agency, that will help inspire the next generation of anglers through short workshops covering casting, netting, fish identification, rover invertebrates, bait, lures, fly tying and safety and enable participants to achieve the CAST Angling Starter certificate.”

Among the high calibre lineup in attendance at the fair will be well-known multiple world fly casting champions Hywel Morgan who will be demonstrating angling techniques and giving expert advice along with the likes of Robert Gillespie, Michael O’Kane and Stevie Munn.

The exhibition area will offer the public the chance to browse and shop around for equipment from a wide range of local traders including Rodgers Fishing Tackle, The Bridge Gun and Tackle, River Mourne Gun and Tackle and The Great Outdoors.

The ever popular Fly Tyers Row area will afford visitors the opportunity to watch fly dressers practice their craft and will include demonstrations from acclaimed tier Arthur Greenwood and local youngster Laoi Coyle.The full lineup for the North West Angling Fair is available by using this website link

Published in Angling

#Angling - Pauline McClenaghan and Gordon Armstrong are among the celebrity anglers lined up for the inaugural North West Angling Fair in Strabane, Co Tyrone later this month.

As the Londonderry Sentinel reports, the festival will take over the Melvin Sports Complex on the River Mourne on Saturday 28 and Sunday 29 May and give visitors an opportunity to see some of the world's best fly-casters and fly-dressers in action.

Also in attendance will be world champion fly-caster Andrew Toft from Glasgow, Mooney Goes Wild contributor Ken Whelan and Scottish casting instructor and ghillie Scott Mackenzie. The Sentinel has more HERE.

In other angling news, anglers taking part in the Waterways Ireland-sponsored Classic Fishing Festival in Fermanagh last weekend were forced to abandon a fishing stand due to an overflow of sewage into Lower Lough Erne, according to the Fermanagh Herald.

While organisers moved to accommodate competitors elsewhere, it has since emerged that the overflow near Killadeas was one of several discharged permitted by NI Water, though none affected the festival's other fishing sections.

Published in Angling

Dublin Bay

Dublin Bay on the east coast of Ireland stretches over seven kilometres, from Howth Head on its northern tip to Dalkey Island in the south. It's a place most Dubliners simply take for granted, and one of the capital's least visited places. But there's more going on out there than you'd imagine.

The biggest boating centre is at Dun Laoghaire Harbour on the Bay's south shore that is home to over 1,500 pleasure craft, four waterfront yacht clubs and Ireland's largest marina.

The bay is rather shallow with many sandbanks and rocky outcrops, and was notorious in the past for shipwrecks, especially when the wind was from the east. Until modern times, many ships and their passengers were lost along the treacherous coastline from Howth to Dun Laoghaire, less than a kilometre from shore.

The Bay is a C-shaped inlet of the Irish Sea and is about 10 kilometres wide along its north-south base, and 7 km in length to its apex at the centre of the city of Dublin; stretching from Howth Head in the north to Dalkey Point in the south. North Bull Island is situated in the northwest part of the bay, where one of two major inshore sandbanks lie, and features a 5 km long sandy beach, Dollymount Strand, fronting an internationally recognised wildfowl reserve. Many of the rivers of Dublin reach the Irish Sea at Dublin Bay: the River Liffey, with the River Dodder flow received less than 1 km inland, River Tolka, and various smaller rivers and streams.

Dublin Bay FAQs

There are approximately ten beaches and bathing spots around Dublin Bay: Dollymount Strand; Forty Foot Bathing Place; Half Moon bathing spot; Merrion Strand; Bull Wall; Sandycove Beach; Sandymount Strand; Seapoint; Shelley Banks; Sutton, Burrow Beach

There are slipways on the north side of Dublin Bay at Clontarf, Sutton and on the southside at Dun Laoghaire Harbour, and in Dalkey at Coliemore and Bulloch Harbours.

Dublin Bay is administered by a number of Government Departments, three local authorities and several statutory agencies. Dublin Port Company is in charge of navigation on the Bay.

Dublin Bay is approximately 70 sq kilometres or 7,000 hectares. The Bay is about 10 kilometres wide along its north-south base, and seven km in length east-west to its peak at the centre of the city of Dublin; stretching from Howth Head in the north to Dalkey Point in the south.

Dun Laoghaire Harbour on the southside of the Bay has an East and West Pier, each one kilometre long; this is one of the largest human-made harbours in the world. There also piers or walls at the entrance to the River Liffey at Dublin city known as the Great North and South Walls. Other harbours on the Bay include Bulloch Harbour and Coliemore Harbours both at Dalkey.

There are two marinas on Dublin Bay. Ireland's largest marina with over 800 berths is on the southern shore at Dun Laoghaire Harbour. The other is at Poolbeg Yacht and Boat Club on the River Liffey close to Dublin City.

Car and passenger Ferries operate from Dublin Port to the UK, Isle of Man and France. A passenger ferry operates from Dun Laoghaire Harbour to Howth as well as providing tourist voyages around the bay.

Dublin Bay has two Islands. Bull Island at Clontarf and Dalkey Island on the southern shore of the Bay.

The River Liffey flows through Dublin city and into the Bay. Its tributaries include the River Dodder, the River Poddle and the River Camac.

Dollymount, Burrow and Seapoint beaches

Approximately 1,500 boats from small dinghies to motorboats to ocean-going yachts. The vast majority, over 1,000, are moored at Dun Laoghaire Harbour which is Ireland's boating capital.

In 1981, UNESCO recognised the importance of Dublin Bay by designating North Bull Island as a Biosphere because of its rare and internationally important habitats and species of wildlife. To support sustainable development, UNESCO’s concept of a Biosphere has evolved to include not just areas of ecological value but also the areas around them and the communities that live and work within these areas. There have since been additional international and national designations, covering much of Dublin Bay, to ensure the protection of its water quality and biodiversity. To fulfil these broader management aims for the ecosystem, the Biosphere was expanded in 2015. The Biosphere now covers Dublin Bay, reflecting its significant environmental, economic, cultural and tourism importance, and extends to over 300km² to include the bay, the shore and nearby residential areas.

On the Southside at Dun Laoghaire, there is the National Yacht Club, Royal St. George Yacht Club, Royal Irish Yacht Club and Dun Laoghaire Motor Yacht Club as well as Dublin Bay Sailing Club. In the city centre, there is Poolbeg Yacht and Boat Club. On the Northside of Dublin, there is Clontarf Yacht and Boat Club and Sutton Dinghy Club. While not on Dublin Bay, Howth Yacht Club is the major north Dublin Sailing centre.

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