The Sunny Side of Ireland. John 1844-1912 O'Mahony
Castleconnell will prove most attractive. The season commences on the 1st February, and closes on the 31st October. Trout, pike, and perch fishing free; salmon and grilse fishing by arrangement. The fishing-rods manufactured at Castleconnell have won a world-wide reputation for Messrs. Enright and Sons, and Mr. Jack Enright has himself won the record as a long distance fly caster. A writer in The Fishing Gazette having dealt in an appreciative article with Castleconnell gives valuable information as to the names and situations of the more important pools on the river.
The fisheries in the Castleconnell district taken in rotation from below, are: the Prospect or Clareville Fishery, on the Limerick side of the river (this means that the fishery extends to midstream; adjoining it on the Clare side, and immediately opposite, is the Landscape Fishery. Both of these are well-known salmon and peel catches. A few of the best pools in Prospect are Pinnee, Salahoughe, Feemoor, and Commogue. On Landscape the best pools are Poulahoo, Pallaherro, and Filebegs).
Adjoining the Prospect Fishery, on the Limerick side of the river, is the New Garden Fishery, which contains the pools of Moreagh, Glassogue, Black Weir, and Sporting Eddy. Next to this, on the Limerick side, is the Hermitage Fishery, which contains some famous catches, such as Back of Leap, Fallahassa, Poolbeg, the Commodore, Bunnymoor, and Head of Moreagh. Still on the Limerick side, we next reach the Woodland's Fishery, a picturesque portion of the Shannon, and here are the pools of Panlaides, Drarhus, Thunnavullion, and Long Eddy. Next is reached the Castle Fishery, and the pools here are Balcraheen, Lackaleen, and the Lough, the last affording several courses of fly fishing. Still on the Limerick side the World's End Fishery adjoins the Castle Fishery, and the pools here are the Pantry, the Kitchen, and the Over the Weir.
Returning to the Clare side of the river the fishery next to Landscape is the famous Doonas, the lower part of which contains the pools of Poolcoom, the Stand, Black Weir, Faalgorribs, Franklin's Eddy, and the Old Door, while the upper part includes Lickenish, the Dancing Hole, Old Turf, Lurgah, Lacka, and Sallybush. Next on the Clare side we reach the Summer Hill Fishery, part of which is opposite the Woodland's Fishery and part opposite the Castle Fishery. The pools on Summer Hill are the Black Eddy, Clare side of Drarhus, Thunahancha, Figar, Clare side of Lackaleen, and Clare side of the Lough. After this the Erinagh Fishery is reached, and here the pools are Gorribs and side of the big Eddy.
In the spring salmon fishing is pursued principally with Devon minnows as lures, the "cullough" running a good second favourite. Phantom minnows and the very large spinning Shannon flies are also useful. A bit later on the prawn takes precedence, the bigger the prawn the better. As the season advances the lure, whatever it may be—fly, minnow, prawn, or what not—should decrease in size until October, when again they should assume larger proportions, but not so big as in the spring. Towards the latter end of March, and onwards for the rest of the season, artificial flies are are almost exclusively used. Truly wonderful specimens of the fly dresser's art are some of the Shannon patterns. Fancy a salmon fly dressed on an 8-o hook! Yet this is at times absolutely necessary to ensure success. The best patterns for various times of the year are—For February, March, and April, big Shannon Blue Fly, the Black Goldfinch, the Jock Scot, and the Yellow Lahobber; for May, June, and July, Purple Mixture, tinsel bodied Green Parrot, purple bodied Green Parrot, Silver and Blue Doctors, Purple Widgeon, Orange and Grouse, and Thunder and Lightning. Towards the end of the season here, as elsewhere, strange fancy patterns will frequently prove successful. The most suitable patterns of trout flies (the size of which depends entirely upon the height of the water) are—Orange and Grouse, Green Rail, Purple Rail, Black Rail, Orange Rail, March Brown, Hare's Ear, silver-tinselled body Black Rail, and Orange and Grouse with a sprig of Guinea Fowl or Green Parrot in wing.
The tackle for the coarse fish is of the ordinary character.
At the foot of Lough Derg stands Killaloe, an ideal resting place for an angler. The cathedral is of some interest, and in the vicinity the Protestant Bishop's palace stands. The bridge connecting the town with the village of Ballina has thirteen arches, and the huge weir helps as a breakwater. Shortly above the bridge of old time stood Kincora, the fortified palace of Brian Boru; its glory has departed, and all that remains is a mound, crowned with a grove of trees. Here Brian of the Tribes held his sway; and still the peasant in Munster, wishing to express his welcome, says in Gaelic—"Were mine the boire of the Dane or the wine of Kincora, it would be poured for you." Here it was that the Norse King, Magnus, wintered early in the twelfth century, and found a wife for his son, Sigurd, in the house of Brian. M'Laig, the bard of Brian Boru, after the death of his king in 1014, made a lamentation, which Mangan thus translated:—
"Oh! where Kincora is Brian the Great?
And where is the beauty that once was thine?
Oh! where are the princes and nobles that sate
At the feast in thy halls, and drank the red wine?
Where! oh, Kincora.
They are gone, those heroes of royal birth,
Who plundered no church and broke no trust,
It is weary for me to be living on earth,
When they, oh, Kincora, are below in the dust.
Lo, of Kincora."
From Killaloe, northwards for twenty-five miles, Lough Derg at times expands in width over eight miles, where its distant shores form a sky line—hedged in with Tipperary and Clare Mountains. The lough loses none of its picturesque attractiveness to the sportsman, who is informed that the whole of the fishing is free.
From Limerick as centre, as we have said, tours may be made into North Kerry.
To the average tourist North Kerry is a terra incognita, and yet from the pleasant pasture lands around "Sweet Adare" in Limerick to where the distant mountain of Caherconree sees his regal head reflected in the sea—there lies a beautiful land. Beyond Patrickswell, on the Maigue, is the little village of Adare, once the camping ground and stronghold of "those very great scorners of death," the Desmond Geraldines. Still the ruins of Desmond Castle, and of three abbeys, tell the tale that here once, beside a citadel of strength, were places of religion and refuge. Now, in the depth of the retreat of sylvan splendour, the Earl of Dunraven has his noble mansion.[1] At Adare, as well as at Ballingrane, six miles away, still are many evidences of the Palatine plantations, which were effected here in the eighteenth century. In 1709 a fleet was sent to Rotterdam by Queen Anne, and brought to England some 7,000 refugees from the German Palatinate. Of these, over 3,000 were settled in this part of the County Limerick. They were allowed eight acres of land for each man, woman, and child, at 5s. per acre; and the Government engaged to pay their rent for twenty years, and supplied every man with a musket to protect himself. Industrious and frugal, the exiles throve in the land of their adoption; many of them emigrated to America, and only a comparatively small number of families still remain. These, however, preserve, besides the names, many of the characteristics of their predecessors—as Dr. R. T. Mitchell, Inspector of Registration in Ireland, testifies in his survey of this very district:—"Differing originally in language, though even the oldest of the present generation know nothing of the German tongue spoken or written, as well as in race and religion, from the natives amongst whom they were planted, these Palatines still cling together like the members of a clan, and worship together. Most of them have a distinctly foreign type of features, and are strongly built, swarthy in complexion, dark haired, and brown eyed. The comfortable houses built in 1709 are in ruins now. The original square of Court Matrix in the ruined wall can be traced, and also, in the very centre of this square the foundations of the little Meeting House in which John Wesley occasionally preached to them in the interval, 1750–1765. Modern houses stand there now, but not closely grouped together. They are all comfortable in appearance, some thatched, some slated, some with one story, others with two; nearly all have a neat little flower garden in front, and very many have an orchard beside or immediately behind the house. There is all the appearance of thrift and industry among them." From Ballingrane, a branch line passing Askeaton, with its ruined Castle and Abbey ruins, to Foynes, a good harbour, from which passage can be made to Kilrush, and thence per rail to Kilkee. From the junction the main line runs by Rathkeale