Reviews

Trout Fisherman Article - February 09
The trout fisherman recently published an article on Ballyhass Lakes, please click on the link below to view the article.
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Ballyhass Lakes - much more than a 'put & take' fishery - Irish Angler, Oct 2008
When I got an invitation to fish Ballyhass Lakes, the answer was a definite yes. I had heard so much about this amenity from many people, old and young. Stories of gin clear water and hard fighting fish filled my mind as I drove from Dublin to Mallow. After a few phone calls and stopping folk for directions, I found myself driving through the main gate of Ballyhass Lakes about 2.00 pm. I visited Ballyhass a few years ago when I was fishing the River Blackwater for the I.T.F.F.A. River Interprovincial. Since then Ballyhass Lakes site has been developed beyond my expectations.

The main reason I travelled to Ballyhass was to see what the fishing facilities were like. Little did I know that there were many more activities being held on site. You can go kayaking, rock climbing, abseiling, archery, low ropes course, aeroball, team challenges and orienteering. I don’t think you would ever get bored here. I took a quick walk along the main lake before I headed to the lodge. The lodge was only being built the last time I was here. The lodge now consist of a full tackle shop, toilets and changing rooms, which are all spotless.

Eddie McCarthy, owner of the facility, met me at the lodge as Tom Loftus, the manager, was away that day. Andrew Duncan, a friend of mine, travelled from Mullingar to spend a few days on the lake as he had never been before, although he had heard so much about it. Andrew’s main aim was to practice deep water fishing for rainbows as he is travelling as captain of the I.T.F.F.A. team to Wales in September for the four nations international. Eddie showed us to the main lake and we arranged to meet at seven that evening for dinner.

The main lake covers 12 acres and is fly fishing only. This lake can be fished from the banks but is best fished by boat. The water is 8 to 11m deep in most places with very clear visibility. Boats suitable for up to two or three anglers can be reserved and hired (for use on the main lake only) with life jackets. The fish stock is both rainbow and brown trout varying in size from 2 lbs to 15 lbs.

I was told the fly selection at Ballyhass follows the normal seasonal fly life cycles with some added lures that work well in the still water. In spring dry fly fishing begins with emergers and the likes of small Klinkhammers and progresses to olives in early summer and the reliable Daddy Longlegs in August and September. The late autumn and winter fishing is best with fast sinking lines such as the Di 7 with boobys and lures being very effective. All methods have their place at Ballyhass, but the clear water favours long leaders of fluorocarbon. All the usual goldheads, nymphs, and buzzers will work well at Ballyhass at all times of the year.

The upper lake can be fished from the bank with worm, spinners and bubble and fly. Worm bait is available from the tackle shop. This lake has extensive fishing platforms and rain shelters and is a very safe environment for all groups. The lake is stocked regularly with fish up to 2 to 3 lbs. Fishing methods are confined to those permitted and no ground baiting, no artificial baits are allowed.We decided to give this lake a miss as there were groups on the lake and judging by all the smiles and laughter, most of them had

On a day ticket an angler can keep two fish up to 3 lbs weight. All adult fish and all brown trout are on a catch and release basis only. Once the bag limit has been taken, the angler can continue to fish on a catch and release basis for the remainder of the period.

As we tackled up Andrew set up a fast sinking line and a cat’s whisker booby whereas I went for the nymph/cormorant approach on a slow glass intermediate. Andrew was soon into a lovely hard fighting rainbow of nearly 2 lbs. As he netted a fish my line went solid, but the fish got off. I wasn’t too worried as on the next cast, I had another that stuck ... a lovely fish of similar size. It was amazing to see such water clarity. You could see fish swimming twenty feet away, five foot down. It was amazing to see the fish react to the flies and indeed how many follows you got without a hook up. It really taught me a lot about rainbows. All too soon it was seven pm.

We were staying in the one of the four star holiday homes that have been built away from the lake. The holiday village adds extra comfort to your stay at the fishery as you don’t have to travel up and down the same day or book accommodation away from the fishery. Staying in Ballyhass Lakes’ holiday homes is ideal as it is right on the water’s edge.

Andrew, Eddie and I had a lovely dinner. The conversation, as it does, always leads to fishing and Eddie is as keen as we are to promote fishing in Ireland especially with youths. As we were just getting comfortable, Eddie suggested we try the evening fishing as the big trout sometimes come up for the large sedges that skitter across the surface at night.

Unfortunately, we did not see any large fish that night, but we did catch an awful lot of trout on small sedges and other various dries. We retired to one of the self catering holiday homes that night. The following morning after a hearty breakfast, Eddie suggested we head down to his private beat on the Blackwater River for trout and salmon. I never knew the facility had a beat on the prestigious Blackwater. Unfortunately, I had not brought waders or my salmon fly box so we declined but vowed to return another day. The Cork Blackwater runs just four miles from Ballyhass Lakes. Eddie has available beats on a private stretch of double and single bank in the upper reaches of the river. Many of the beats are set well back from any roads and give a variety of good fly and spinning waters. A State Licence is a must and can be purchased at the Lodge, where you can also get a supply of salmon flies and baits. A ghillie can be provided with prior notice.

As we were leaving early in the afternoon, we headed back out in the boat to try our luck deep down in the lake to see if we could pick up a larger specimen. We caught numerous fish to three pounds until the takes started to dry up. We both changed to floating lines and dries as the fish were starting to move sporadically around the lake. I set up a floating line with a fourteen foot, three pound, omni monofilament cast with one dropper. I put a small paraloop hare’s ear on the top dropper and a size 18 uv reed smut on the tail. It was amazing to see fish swimming four to five foot through the water to intercept your tiny dry fly.

Andrew was also having similar success with his small dry buzzer pattern in conjunction with shuttlecocks. We rowed back up the lake for a final drift along the platforms. There are numerous casting platforms on one side of the lake and who did I see only Shane Bird and David O’Brien from the I.T.F.F.A. Irish youth team. They had said they might pop down to practice their dry fly fishing. We went over to have a chat and Andrew gave the two lads a few dry patterns each to try and wished them luck in their upcoming home international match on Lough Conn in Co. Mayo. We had a few more fish that drift before we decided to call it a day. All in all, it was a great couple of days. I have never seen so many fish swimming around in such clean water. The place was really quiet but there were groups walking around all day doing this, that and the other.

The main lake would be an ideal training ground for anyone wanting to use heavy sinking lines as the water is very deep. It would also be an ideal lake for the Irish senior, youth or ladies teams to practice various rainbow trout methods on before travelling abroad to fish Internationals. This is one of the best fisheries around with activities to suit non-angling friends or family (while you go fishing). Also, the accommodation is superb. Groups and corporate days can be booked and there are many different activity weeks run throughout the year.

Ballyhass Lakes is open from 9.00 am until dusk - 7 days a week. You can contact Eddie or Tom through the website www.ballyhasslakes.ie or email: info@ballyhasslakes.ie or telephone 087 2248097 or +353 (0)2227773 or fax 2227990.

The following review appeared in the Irish Anglers Digest Vol 1 No 5 November 2001.
Are you one of those people who get depressed putting away the fly rod for the winter months? Do you spend hours stripping fly lines off reels, cleaning them and hanging them up in a cupboard until the following spring? Do you suffer from the dejected winter mental state now diagnosed as S.A.D. (Severe Angling Deficiency)? Well, if you do, there previously was no cure except regular visits to the pub, some winter sea fishing or some pheasant shooting. Now, however, if you live within striking distance of Mallow, Co. Cork, your winter blues may be over.

Ballyhass Lakes Fishery is a relatively new fishery which is open all year round and offers both rainbow and brown trout fishing. The fishery comprises two lakes of crystal clear water which have been formed in an old limestone quarry and are fed by springs flowing through the limestone. Once introduced to the lakes, the stocked fish feed only on the natural fly and insect life and there is evidence that both rainbow and brown trout are spawning successfully in the lakes.

The main lake, which is 12 acres in size, is fly only and is best fished from one of eight boats available for hire (the boats can be hired with battery operated electric engines). This lake ranges from 8-11 m in depth and produces most fish during the summer months on floating lines with leaders 18 to 20 feet in length. During the winter months, most anglers swap the floating lines for fast sinking flies, size 10-12, on sinking or sink tip lines. I fished the lake during the first week of October using a floating line and long leader with a small Bibio on the top, a Hare's Ear with a gold beaded head in the middle and a Montana nymph on the nail. This combination accounted for 8 fish, the heaviest estimated at 3 lbs, all of which were returned unharmed. On the previous day, a beautiful 7 lbs brown trout had been caught and released by a local angler. The current record is a rainbow trout weighing 21 lbs. The smaller of the lakes is just 2.5 acres in size and is reserved for bank fishing using either fly or spinner. This is an ideal lake for beginners or people fishing with young anglers. Indeed, the fishery manager, Tom Lotts, offers fishing lessons and fly casting tuition from either the bank or from a boat. The facilities at the fishery I can only describe as superb. There is ample parking, disabled access, spotlessly clean toilets and showers, a shop, picnic and barbeque areas and rain shelters with tea making facilities. There is also a shop with the basics in fishing tackles and all the flies you need, together with a rod hire facility. Stocked lake angling will never match wild trout fishing, but this fishery comes as close as it gets!

The following review appeared in the Irish Anglers Digest September 2004.
A few miles outside of Mallow, Co. Cork set away from the road side, is a lovely fishery that has become the regular stop of anglers throughout Ireland and the UK. I am speaking of Ballyhass Lakes. Although this place could be looked at as a saving grace from the doldrums of the closed brown trout season, there is no reason as to why one should not make this piece of water a regular stop throughout the season.

Owner Eddie McCarthy and General Manager, Tom Lofts, have taken great care to ensure that Ballyhass lakes are, and will remain the top fishery in Ireland. The angler needs not concern him or herself with what style of fishing they prefer, as everyone's taste can be satisfied. On the grounds of the facility there are two beautiful lakes. The largest lake is about 12 acres and the smaller lake 2.5 acres.

On the smaller lake folk can enjoy fly fishing, worm or bait fishing as well as spin fishing with lures. This particular lake is allowed all of these methods due to the fact that most of the fish taken from here are generally taken for tea. It is stocked regularly to maintain a consistent level of quality fishing. Although the fish that are put into this lake are not double digit fish, I have seen trout of over two pounds being taken from this water

Only a five minute walk from the main lodge, the smaller lake is favoured by many people who wish to pass along to their children the joys of angling. Personally, I cannot think of a better place for a beginning angler to start learning this fine sport. With rain shelters nearby, which make host for a lovely cookout as well as shelter from the rain, families can regularly be seen cooking the freshly caught trout for lunch.

The larger or main lake is of a different calibre altogether. Fly fishing only is the rule for the main lake. Since many fish are caught and released to be caught again, this really is a crucial element to a smooth operating fishery. Any fish over six pounds must be put back, as well as all brown trout.

The depth of the water can vary from a few inches to over forty feet. The fish can be found at different depths throughout the season and, as with any fishery, wild or stocked, the fishing can change by the hour. The contour of the sub-surface is uneven and very rocky with rich weed growth in the shallow areas. While the smaller lake is stocked with rainbows, the main lake holds stocks of rainbow and brown trout. These beautiful fish are fully finned and strong fighting, no matter what season or depth they are caught in. One up to two pounds is around the average size fish. However, there are many fish well over ten pounds and I have seen photographs of fish well over twenty pounds. There is also one golden trout that haunts the waters of the main lake. Having been in the water for just under a year, only two anglers have managed to bring him to the net, only to be released again. I was fortunate enough to be present during one of these times. The weight of the fish is around the fourteen pound mark and is truly quite a site to behold.

During a brilliant olive hatch last year, I was fishing in the upper, shallow part of the lake, a spot that I favour greatly. A faint shadow appeared to be moving under the water only a few feet from the boat. I quickly realized that this was a fish of exceptional size cruising only a foot or so under the surface. I had a dry #16 quill bodied olive dun tied onto a very long leader. I only had a few seconds before the fish faded out of site, so I made one false cast and dropped the fly in the path of this shadow. Have you ever had a text book fishing moment? Well folks, I know we don't get many, but this was pure text book. The fly landed ever so gently on the water. The shadow then began to move closer to the surface, towards the fly, to take the shape of a beautiful hen trout. As I sat in the boat watching this scene unfold, the fish took the fly. The take was so gentle that I didn't realise that the fly had disappeared. A firm lift of the rod, and the fish quickly disappeared out of sight once again, she was hooked! The fight continued on for over ten minutes before the silver beauty gave up. We had no scales with us so the fish was quickly released, but my mate and I are sure that the fish weighed every bit of ten pounds. Unforgettable dry fly fishing

The quality of the fly life is outstanding. As with most waters, buzzers are present all year around and so are freshwater shrimp or scuds. I have found Chartreuse and olive coloured buzzers to be very productive. Flies imitating these organisms should do well at nearly any time of the year During the mid-season, Ballyhass sees a lovely hatch of olives. Throughout the day before the main hatch begins, pheasant tail nymphs, B.W.O. nymphs and emerging patterns in sizes #14 and #16, can entice a few takes. While small dark midges can bring great dry fly fishing during a summer's evening rise, nothing can compare with the amount of daddies that get blown onto the water during the late summer to autumn months. The fish really take advantage of this daddy fall, so be sure to have few in your fly box. Any helpful advice on flies can be got from the tackle shop, however, recommend having these flies in your box -epoxy buzzers, snatchers, dark nymphs and small CDC F-flies. A selection of these in different sizes and colours should put fish in the boat under most circumstances.

With tickets available nearly every day of the year, anglers can enjoy a day's worth of craic even during closed brown trout season. Full and half day tickets are available as well as rod and tackle hire. The main lake has a fleet of boats that can be hired for the day. I recommend booking ahead as the boats can often be booked out for the day, especially at weekends.

The tackle shop is stocked with quality rods, reels, lines, flies and just about anything that the angler could need. Light snacks, sandwiches and drinks are also available at the tackle shop. Ballyhass also offers tuition on beginning fly fishing as well as advanced stillwater tactics by two well known Irish anglers, Glenda Powell and Andrew Ryan. The newly revised and updated Ballyhass website lists information about the lakes as well as upcoming events, and accommodation. As of this year, Ballyhass lakes have introduced salmon beats, some four miles of the Blackwater River are now available for day tickets. So, if you're looking for somewhere new to fish, the family is in dire need of an outing or you just need to wet a line during the winter months, or you fancy a bit of salmon fishing, Ballyhass, lakes is the place for you.