Visiting sports fishermen to Ireland can expect something in the region of 80 different species.
Belmullet in county Mayo, surrounded by magnificent coast line offers some of the finest assets to entice you to take to the water!
"Think of a fish and it can probably be caught off Belmullet" With over thirty nine varieties of fish known to inhabit the waters off the shores, the sea angler is rewarded with the best all round sea angling waters in Ireland. The Belmullet Sea Angling Club also run a number of popular open competitions during the year. There is also a selection of lakes in the area for Fresh Water Angling. Carrowmore lake made headlines with the quality of its catches in 2010 and featured in may angling publications, so be sure not to miss this fantastic opportunity for the holiday of a lifetime.
The Talbot Hotel offers a "you catch it .... We'll cook it" option for all its guests.
The name Belmullet translates as ‘the mouth of the Mullet’ and the Mullet, running some 25 km from north to south, shielding the west coast from the full force of the Atlantic Ocean. The ridge of land which leads to Belmullet separates two great bays, Broadhaven to the north and Blacksod to the south. Both have a fantastic variety of beautiful strands and rocky shores and both are fabulous places for angling from the shore or by boat.
Belmullet is renowned as one of the very best sea angling centres. Specimen Fish from Belmullet taken between 2000 and 2004 were 4 tub gurnard, 2 cuckoo wrasse, a red gurnard and a sea trout.
Shore angling
Two small fishing harbours on the rugged north Mayo coast are within reach of Belmullet. Porturlin and Portacloy provide bottom fishing for flounder, dab and eel with float fishing for mullet and spinning for coalfish, mackerel and pollack. The inner pier at Portacloy yields dogfish, flounder, plaice and turbot. Rinroe and Rossport, on the east side of Broadhaven Bay, have channels inviting spinning for sea trout and bass and bottom fishing for flounder. Rinroe is best on the last hour of ebbing tide and the first two hours of flood. Rossport is later, from two hours after low water until high tide. Lugworm and crab are obtainable a little way to the north at Rinroe pier and sandeel can be dug from the banks of the channel.
Ballyglass Lighthouse, on the western side of Broadhaven Bay, standing above a rocky ravine, and Ballyglass Pier, at the southern end of a shallow bay, are both good for a variety of fish and techniques. Spinning yields coalfish, mackerel and pollack and float fishing provides wrasse. Bottom fishing at the lighthouse is for conger, dogfish and pouting, and off the pier for dogfish, flounder, plaice, ray and turbot. To the west of the lighthouse is Pollacoppal with beach fishing for flounder, ray and small turbot and spinning from the nearby rock for mackerel and pollack.
Boat Angling
Boat angling based on the Mullet offers endless variety: the open waters of the Atlantic invite anglers in fair weather, while Blacksod and Broadhaven Bays are sheltered – and equally productive. Charter boats are available at Belmullet and at Blacksod.
The most exciting area on Broadhaven is the tide-race off Erris Head which claims to offer some of the very best fishing anywhere in Ireland. Coalfish up to 20 lb (9 kg), big cod and pollack, turbot, gurnard and cuckoo wrasse are all plentiful. This is also one of the few places where brill and megrim turn up with any degree of regularity. The Irish Record megrim was taken there in 1986.
Sea angling club
Belmullet SAC, Tel 097 82093