ANGLING NOTES:IT WAS a real pleasure to attend the recent Waterville Sea Trout Festival. The inaugural two-day event celebrates the resurgence of the Co Kerry town as a premier sea-trout destination.
Historically known as Carrean, Waterville is on the Iveragh Peninsula between Lough Currane on the east side and Ballinskelligs Bay to the west, with the Currane River connecting the two.
In the 1960s and 1970s the town attracted media attention due to regular visits by Charlie Chaplin, star of the silent movies. Chaplin regarded Waterville as his second home and his mother came from the area. A statue in memory of the great performer stands on the waterfront.
Of course, Waterville is famous for another reason. The fishing in the area is superb. Its many lakes, rivers and coastline offer the angler perhaps the most comprehensive variety of fishing in Ireland. Furthermore, the Currane sea-trout is renowned throughout the world.
Discover Ireland (www.discoverireland.ie) has identified Waterville as an “Anglers Welcome” town. Fishing, you know, is not all about catching fish – and the angler-friendly accommodation, excellent food, pubs and entertainment, all add to the attraction of the place.
The Tech Amergin arts and education centre is a modern amenity comprising exhibition space, IT rooms and auditorium. It is the hub throughout the festival. I visit the many workshops and even manage some fishing on Lough Currane. Busy weekend but most enjoyable!
In a downpour, Glenda Powell holds a spey-casting demonstration in the grounds of Waterville House on the banks of Butlers Pool.
The big sea-trout caught the previous day is the main ingredient for the cookery class. Local chef Ivor O’Connor attracts 50 enthusiasts and his choice of compatible wines is intriguing. William Kavanagh, a fly-tyer with Donegal Fly Fishing Company, keeps his group busy building sea-trout patterns.
Officially opening the festival, Dr Edward Fahy said: “The Waterville trout are an event worth celebrating. These animals are unique in this country and the secret is that it is a versatile species that occurs in a variety of shapes, sizes and colours.
“The catchment produces 83 per cent of sea-trout of specimen size. That surely is something to celebrate,” he said.
Dr Paddy Gargan, speaking on The Celtic Sea Trout Project, said Waterville is part of a recent €2 million EU-funded Interreg programme between Wales and Ireland.
“Sea-trout have lost out to salmon over the past 40 years,” Gargan said. “We really know little about the species – where they go at sea, are they multi-spawners, and so on. This is the first time a programme has been funded to understand the genetics of sea-trout, and there will be good benefits down the line,” he added.
A view from the front line, a talk by Waterville Fisheries Development Group manager John Murphy, gave an insight into the work on sea-trout spawning beds and gave a hatchery update.
Although spawning stocks were lower than 2007, they remained sustainable in comparison to the drift-netting years, Murphy said.
The hatchery produced 25,000 sea-trout fry in 2003 and by 2006 this increased to 30,000 at which time the exercise was suspended. Murphy describes Lough Currane as being as if “God made it”.
There too to celebrate the sea-trout is Waterville’s John Dowd who, along with 18 international members, climbed Mount Everest on his first attempt last year. John is a member of the Kerry mountain rescue team.
My thanks to guide Neil O’Shea (oshealoughcurrane@eircom.net) and John Murphy for their time fishing with me on Currane. Also to Rod Robinson for the invite to Waterville.
angling@irishtimes.com