When your school trips involve fishing Lough Melvin and the Kylemore system in Connemara, there is a good chance you might get handy at fishing.

This was obviously the case with Sammy McGowan and no doubt helped him to burst on to the Irish Team as a 19-year-old on Loch Leven in Scotland.

Sammy won top Irish rod on this first cap and went on to earn many more international caps while still in his twenties.

Hailing from Co. Down, Sammy is well known on the Irish fly fishing scene. He took a step back for a while from the competition fishing in latter years but hopes to get back to it again.

Sammy turned his attention to dying and sourcing fly tying materials. In what started out as a hobby, it grew and grew for him and since Covid, has now become his main job, running his business, Irish Fly Supplies. For more, visit

https://irish-fly-supplies.square.site/

For this episode Tom is also joined by Mike Keady and they look back at how the mayfly fared, and talk to Sammy about his early years, competition fishing, fly tying materials, his love of Lough Neagh and, very interestingly, a Pink Flamingo which has nothing to do with fly-tying materials!

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Brendan Garland is a committed salmon angler; a late arrival to the party, he has put more in the twenty years he has been salmon fishing than many of us will put in over a lifetime of angling.

After a misspent period of chasing golf balls around courses, Brendan switched to salmon angling after coming across a promotional flyer while playing golf in Mayo in the 2000s and he has never looked back.

He has fished extensively in pursuit of salmon both in Ireland and abroad.

Some of our listeners may know him from his blogs both on Instagram and TikTok and he also has his own YouTube channel. Currently he is on a mission to show 365 takes that he has recorded in his salmon fishing journey.

A highly analytical and patient angler, he talks of different methods of approach when faced with differing conditions.

Tom is also joined by Garrett Ruigrok as co-presenter on this episode.

You can follow Brendan on:

https://www.facebook.com/brendan.garland.33

https://www.Instagram.com/brendanmgarland

https://www.tiktok.com/@flytyguy

Keep up to date with all the latest Ireland on the Fly on:
https://Instagram.com/IrelandontheFly

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Ireland on the Fly

The People & Places of Fly Fishing in Ireland.

With the trout season for 2026 very much underway, it has, so far, been very much a start stop affair. This spring has brought has brought us a lot of high winds and temperatures have struggled to get into double figures for the most part. The bad weather has prevented a lot of Anglers getting out. However, good things come to those who wait and, with an upturn forecast in the weather forecast, things are on the up.

This latest episode sees Tom joined by Mike Keady for his first stint as co-presenter on the show. Mike has been a regular guest on Ireland on the Fly and will be well known to our regular listeners, he will be joining us for podcast for the trout episodes.

The guys are joined by another friend of the show, Jackie Mahon. Jackie is one of the top guides in the country, working mainly on the North Western Loughs of Ireland.

We asked Jackie how it has been so far for him this season and what his plans are up until the end of June. He tells us of Loughs Arrow, Erne and Melvin, when and how he approaches them and also touches a bit on sea trout as well. As ever with most of us anglers, he has high hopes for the season ahead!

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Keep up to date with all the latest Ireland on the Fly and get regular updates on https://Instagram.com/IrelandontheFly.

After the long winter break and with the 2026 season now truly under way, we kick the year off and look ahead to the salmon fishing season.

Joining Tom on this week’s episode is Conor Arnold from the Blackwater. Tom is also joined by Garrett Ruigrok as co presenter and they ask Conor for his thoughts and (more importantly) hopes for 2026, mindful of the disappointing salmon year of 2025. There is a tinge of optimism which time will tell whether it is well founded or not.

Conor also discusses his role last year in getting involved after the catastrophic fish kill on the Blackwater when he rose to prominence nationally in dealing with Government bodies and politicians after this disaster.

We also discuss the current standing regarding salmon angling regulations, which is very much a wait and see exercise.

And for anyone brave enough to venture forth in the search of spring silver, we get a good insight into the tactics to adopt in their pursuit.

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Keep up to date with all the latest Ireland on the Fly and get regular updates on https://Instagram.com/IrelandontheFly.

A Happy Christmas to all our listeners and as it’s that time of the year we thought we’d bring you a bucket list episode that many of us can only dream about – fly fishing for the golden mahseer in remote Bhutan.

Jake Anchell joins Tom Doc to tell him about the recent once-in-a-lifetime trip he made with his father, David.

Find out about Bhutan, the place of the mahseer in their culture and how you can target this massive fish on the fly. One for the Christmas wish list!

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Keep up to date and get regular updates on https://Instagram.com/IrelandontheFly.

So, the salmon and trout season is over for another year and while there was plenty of negatives with fish kills and pollution incidents, there was also still a lot of great fishing to be had.

And for this week’s episode we’re focusing on the brown trout season with Eamonn Ross from Lough Sheelin and Mike Keady from Lough Corrib.

Plus Tom also has updates on a recent worrying development of green algae on Lough Corrib.

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Get regular updates on https://Instagram.com/IrelandontheFly

Ireland on the Fly

The People & Places of Fly Fishing in Ireland.

No matter the fishing and conditions, the 2025 fly fishing season will go down in memory as the year of the worst ever fish kill in the history of the State, which is certainly saying something based on this country’s approach to pollution, water quality and environmental protection.

We’ve discussed fish kills on this show before, highlighting the fact that when guilty verdicts and fines are handed down, the consequences are risible anyway.

But for this week’s episode we wanted to focus on the questionable practice in the Blackwater investigation and why the current legislation is not fit for purpose.

Conor Arnold of the Upper Bridgetown Salmon Fishery on the Blackwater has been to the forefront during this crisis, spending untold hours highlighting the issue and trying to get to the bottom of it as best as he can.

Conor also spoke as an invited witness at last week’s Oireachtas Committee hearing into the Blackwater fish kill and a day later he spoke to us about the hearing to tell us what arose from it.

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Get regular updates on https://Instagram.com/IrelandontheFly

Ireland on the Fly

The People & Places of Fly Fishing in Ireland.

As we head into the final days for most of you for the game fishing season, this week we find out about the Boyne fishery, and the superb brown trout fishing to be had on the Trim Athboy Angling Club waters.

Tommy Keogan is a stalwart of the club and he talks to us about how the club manages its eight miles of waters, as well his love of fishing the loughs and why this year was a particularly good one for him.

For more, visit: https://www.trimathboyanglers.net/

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Keep up to date and get regular updates on https://Instagram.com/IrelandontheFly.

Ireland on the Fly

The People & Places of Fly Fishing in Ireland.

Kevin McLoughlin is a lifelong angler from Cork who joins us on this week’s Ireland on the Fly to talk about the good old days for salmon when the spring run was something to behold.

Kevin talks about moving to Cobh, working in the fishing industry and even spending a year on the newly formed fisheries board in 1979.

He has seen it all in Irish fishing since the 1960s and has plenty to tell.

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Keep up to date and get regular updates on https://Instagram.com/IrelandontheFly.

Ireland on the Fly

The People & Places of Fly Fishing in Ireland.

Throwing Feathers in the Wind is a new book out by Richard Gorodecky, a fly angler who moved full time to Ireland five years ago to be closer to the river fishing that he loves so much.

Richard was a long-time visitor to these shores fishing all over the country before settling in south Munster but his obsession with fly fishing has also seen him fish all over the world.

Throwing Feathers in the Wind is his first collection of essays detailing his fishing in Ireland and further afield, and is, like so many good fishing books, more about the why than anything else.

Plus, Tom and Daire also discuss the dire fish kill on the Blackwater and ask when will it be the tipping point to stop further fish kills?

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To find out more and to buy a copy of Richard's book, go to:
Gorodecky.com

Keep up to date and get regular updates on https://Instagram.com/IrelandontheFly.

Ireland on the Fly

The People & Places of Fly Fishing in Ireland.

We’re at the tail end of the grilse run now and with the summer conditions we’ve had, coming off the back of a poor spring run, we’ve been desperately looking for some good news on the salmon front.

And we found it – or sort of – because this week Johnny Casey and Yamil Turcuman two passionate salmon anglers who we’ve spoken to before – join us to let us know how their season has been – ranging from the bad to the sublime....

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Keep up to date and get regular updates on https://Instagram.com/IrelandontheFly.

Ireland on the Fly

The People & Places of Fly Fishing in Ireland.

You may have seen the recent campaign and news stories about the disappearance of sprat from our coastal waters and the government’s unwillingness to do enough to protect our marine habitats – but what has it got to do with you if you're an angler and only interested in freshwater?

Well in the current environmental climate, pretty much everything, and whether it’s marine or freshwater conservation it’s something every angler needs to be informing themselves of and trying to do their bit to help with.

So this week we’re joined by campaigning ecologist, Padraic Fogarty, to tell us more about the SaveOurSprat campaign, how the government isn’t doing enough and why everything from sprats right up the marine food chain are in danger.

Plus, Tom is back from his week's fishing in Orkney and tells us how the heatwave hit the loughs and the brown trout even that far north.

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Keep up to date with all the latest Ireland on the Fly and get regular updates on https://Instagram.com/IrelandontheFly.

Ireland on the Fly

The People & Places of Fly Fishing in Ireland.

Is a river alive? What a question….it throws up so many if, buts, maybes, but most importantly, why not?

They are our lifeblood, our circulation, our healing waters.

But they also need saving now in these troubled times of extraction, industrialisation and pollution.

To kick off Season 2, we’re taking the big picture view when it comes to rivers, and we’re asking shouldn’t the rights of nature be respected in our laws and constitutions? If a limited company can have legal rights why then can’t our rivers?

Without our rivers, without due care, without oversight…..well, we all know what can and is happening in terms of water quality and how that is affecting us all, not least of all the wild salmon.

So to help with some of these existential questions, celebrated nature writer, Rob Macfarlane joins Jim Murray to discuss how he set out on journeys around the globe, from Ecuador to India and Canada, and finally to his own home waters in Cambridge, to ask is a river alive?

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The Last Salmon Season 2 is supported by The Missing Salmon Alliance.

Image: Richard Davies via https://www.instagram.com/racdavies_photos/

The Last Salmon, presented by actor and salmon activist, Jim Murray MBE, offers hope and solutions to the tragic story that is unfolding for an iconic species in crisis - the wild salmon.

For regular updates, follow the show at Instagram.com/TheLastSalmon.

Wild salmon are in a perilous state. But we can’t and won’t give up.

The Last Salmon with Jim Murray is back for another season, launching July 25th, addressing the problems and hearing from all sides of the argument, to find the solutions to help save our wild salmon.

It’s not too late, the salmon haven’t give up, and nor can we.

The Last Salmon, presented by renowned actor and salmon activist, Jim Murray MBE, offers hope and solutions to the tragic story that is unfolding for an iconic species in crisis - the wild Atlantic salmon.

Listen and follow on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts, and for regular updates, follow the show at Instagram.com/TheLastSalmon.

Season 2 of The Last Salmon launches in July 2025 with more insights from salmon anglers, fishery scientists and conservationists.

We should never stop learning – and in fly fishing especially, we’re never done.

This week we hear from Packy Trotter a life long fly angler, guide and instructor who epitomises the spirit of teaching and learning in the sport.

STANIC and APGAI qualified, Packy then travelled to the Catskills where he took the FFF certified and FFF masters qualifications becoming, at that time, only the second person in their history to pass both exams at the one session.

Suffice to say, there’s plenty we can learn from Packy

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Keep up to date with all the latest Ireland on the Fly on https://Instagram.com/IrelandontheFly.

Ireland on the Fly

The People & Places of Fly Fishing in Ireland.

Continuing our fly fishing in hot waters theme on the show, this week we’re joined by Ronan Collins, a well-known and well-travelled fly angler who is just back from a trip to Gabon in west Africa.

Ronan tells us why fly fishing in Africa should be on everyone’s bucket list with an incredible array of species to be caught from crevalle to snappers, tarpon, barracuda and sharks.

Ronan is also on the board of Salmon Watch Ireland and he talks to us about this year’s very poor spring run and why a multi-faceted, multi-agency approach is drastically needed to address the emergency situation relating to salmon numbers in Ireland.

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Keep up to date with all the latest Ireland on the Fly and get regular updates on https://Instagram.com/IrelandontheFly.

This week, with the hot temperatures we’ve been having and the noticeable lack of rainfall, we wanted to speak to renowned fisheries scientist, Ken Whelan, who gave a talk at the recent Irish Spring Angling Fair, called ‘Trout in hot water’.

Ken details the impact and consequences of rising temperatures on our freshwater fish as well as their food sources and he challenges anglers to start thinking and adapting to the changing habitat and waters that we are going to be seeing.

As always with Ken, he’s got some thought-provoking and fascinating insights well worth listening to and considering.

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Keep up to date with all the latest Ireland on the Fly on https://Instagram.com/IrelandontheFly.

Ireland on the Fly

The People & Places of Fly Fishing in Ireland.

This week, in honour of the midsummer solstice, we’ve recorded a midseason review to find out how the fishing has been so far, the highs and lows, and what we can expect for the second half of the season.

It might be the height of summer but it won’t be long before the long days start getting shorter so make the most of your fishing while you can.

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Keep up to date with all the latest Ireland on the Fly on https://Instagram.com/IrelandontheFly.

Ireland on the Fly

The People & Places of Fly Fishing in Ireland.

The latest Salmon Watch Ireland newsletter has details on this year’s NASCO conference which warned of the crisis levels for Atlantic salmon.

“The International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) has released its 2025 advice on Atlantic salmon stocks—and the news is sobering.

Wild salmon populations across the North Atlantic have reached historically low levels. The total nominal catch in 2024 was just 364 tonnes, the lowest since recordkeeping began in 1960.”

Stressor Analysis

All countries in attendance also provided stressor analysis of salmon stocks for their own region and SWI has details of Ireland’s salmon stressor levels which included:

North Atlantic Ocean Change

• Highest overall stressor.

• All Irish salmon exposed to changing marine conditions →

  impacting marine survival.

• High uncertainty, poor knowledge of mechanisms.

Pollution / Water Quality Deterioration

• Among top 4 stressors.

• Widespread nutrient, sediment, silt, chemical pollution.

• Main sources: agriculture, wastewater, industry, urban runoff.

• Affects growth, survival, habitat quality.

Habitat Degradation

• Top 4 stressor.

• Includes channelisation, land drainage, bank encroachment.

• Widespread habitat quality loss → affects spawning and

  resilience.

Aquaculture

• Top 4 stressor.

• Marine open-net cage aquaculture on western seaboard → sea

  lice, escapes, disease risk.

• Lack of effective mitigation or future plans → contributed to

  high score.

For more from SWI and NASCO go to:

https://salmonwatchireland.ie/2025/06/11/nasco-press-release/

This season we’ve heard about the disastrous spring salmon run and there hasn’t been much to report yet for the grilse run – all in all, our worst fears about salmon numbers seem to be coming true – and not just in Ireland.

One of the worst culprits of course is aquaculture and the effects that sea lice from salmon farms has on migrating salmon, which the industry – and the Government via the State body, the Marine Institute – try to lessen by quoting from a dubious scientific paper.

However, the hugely respected fishery scientist, Paddy Gargan, has led and released what’s been called a landmark study which shows that, contrary to the Marine Institute and salmon farming’s stance, sea lice does have a major and significant effect on the mortality of salmon.

This paper has just been released and its implications will be far reaching as Paddy discusses on the show.

Plus, staying with salmon, we also speak to John Murphy, from Salmon Watch Ireland. John is back from last week’s NASCO conference where the stark reality about the future of wild Atlantic salmon was laid bare.

Listen & Follow on Apple or Spotify:

For more on Paddy Garagan’s sea lice study:

https://salmonwatchireland.ie/2025/05/29/issue-number-14-30-may-2025-salmon-watch-ireland/

Keep up to date with all the latest Ireland on the Fly on https://Instagram.com/IrelandontheFly.

Ireland on the Fly

The People & Places of Fly Fishing in Ireland.