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Fishing in Cork Harbour
Cork Harbour is one of the largest natural harbours in the world. It offers sheltered fishing in all but the strongest winds and there is a wealth of species that can be found inside the harbour. During small boat competitions, nearly all of the species can be caught within the safety of the harbour. There is something for every type of sea angler - specimens are common and there are several Irish records that have been caught here. Again during 2009, specimen bass, blonde ray, gilthead bream, golden gray mullet, lesser spotted dogfish, red gurnard, thick lipped mullet and plaice were all caught and recorded in the Irish Specimen Fish Committee's 2009 report. Charter boats working outside the harbour capture specimen coal fish, conger, cod, ling, pollock and wreck fish every year.
Our boats are kept on moorings accessible by rib from the historic town of Cobh on Great Island. With access to both the sheltered harbour waters and great sea angling from marks such as the Smiths rock, Daunt rock, the Aud wreck, Power Head, Pollack Buoy, Ballywilliam Rock and many more. The waters in and around the harbour are heavily influenced by the Gulf Stream allowing unusual species to be caught and some offset in the arrival of species in the area to your own fishing grounds - just ask the anglers who fish the annual Small Boat Competition at Trabolgan - most years you would need to catch over 25 species in three days to be in with a chance of winning.
The harbour has the following types of inshore fishing available all within 5 minutes of leaving the pontoon in one of our new fast Warrior 175's.
The harbour has the following types of inshore fishing available all within 5 minutes of leaving the pontoon in one of our new fast Warrior 175's
- Shallow sandbanks with turbulent water, riptides and over falls - ideal for bass, plaice, launce, codling, rays, dabs and occasional turbot.
- Deepwater (up to 100 feet) fishing - using baited feathers or large baits on the drift or at anchor
- Reef fishing - use feathers, hokkais or shads on the drift for bass, pollack, coal fish or put a large bait down for conger.
- Bottom fishing over sand, mud or mixed / broken ground for rays, bass, plaice or conger
- Spinning and plugging for bass and pollock
- Estuary type fishing for bass, flounder, sliver eels and mullet - find fast moving tide races or shallow brackish water alive with huge mullet
- Float fishing using bread for mullet or fish bait for garfish
To view the specimen fish caught from the Cork area from 2006 the Irish Specimen Fish Committee's annual report which included details of specimen fish and where they were caught. This report can be downloaded by visit the web site at www.irish-trophy-fish.com
Catch and Release Policy
The BellaVista Hotel and Self Catering Suites encourages a "catch and release" policy by all visiting anglers. That's not to say that anglers must return all that they catch, just that we want to preserve the environment and fishing stocks in the harbour for the future sea fishing generations.
Please note:
- Anglers are only allowed to have two bass in their possession in any one 24-hour period and they must be over 40 cm in total length.
- There is a closed season for bass from the 15th of May to the 15th of June each year. If you accidentally catch a bass during this period, just return it alive to the sea.
- Specimen bass cannot be claimed during the closed season.
- The specimen weight for bass is 10 lbs and the Irish record currently stands at 17 lbs 13 ozs.
New Shore Angling
We have excellent packages for shore anglers with full use of our fully insured 7 seater Land Rover with pre-marked G.P.S Locations, unbeatable B & B or self catering rates.
Boat Hire
The Bellavista Hotel and Self Catering Suites, which overlooks both the lovely town of Cobh and Cork harbour has a fleet of 5 Warrior 175 /170 boats available for both self drive hire and guided hire to get you angling in Cork harbour. The boats were carefully selected as one of the safest and optimally designed boats for the inshore sea angler. Fitted with Mariner 100HP /Suzuki 80 HP four stroke engines these boats are swift and make sure that you can get the most out of your fishing time in the harbour.
There is an Icom VHF radio with DSC and Lowrance fish finder / G.P.S. on each boat so that you should have all that you need for a safe and successful trip. Each boat can fish up to maximum of four with a varying seating plan. Our newest boats come with a single swivel seat for the driver to maximise space for fishing.
Boat Safety
Each boat has undergone an RNLI sea check and is equipped with two anchors, boat hook, warps, fenders, VHF with DSC, first aid kit, fire extinguisher, navigation lights and features an electric bilge pump or self draining cockpit with additional bailer. We also have our own safety boat on standby in case you should get into any difficulty and have emergency procedures conveniently located beside the VHF so that you can handle any situation. The wearing of life jackets is not just a stipulation of the hotel but also a legal requirement in Ireland so we must insist they be worn at all times
Boat Fuel
Each boat will be refueled at the end of each day by the staff at the Bellavista hotel. The cost of refueling varies with the price of petrol but feel free to ask us for our most up to date price on booking (knowing that this is subject to change). As of 18/07/'10 the cost per tank stands at €35 and again, this is subject to change. It is your responsibility to ensure that your boat is fully fuelled before a member of staff leaves you for the day, after that it is assumed to be accepted by both renters and staff that the tanks were full.
Tackle Hire (optional - must be pre-booked)
Most anglers will want to use their own tackle, however we are aware that traveling with rods especially on aeroplanes can be at additional expense / hassle. We can provide a range of quality rods and reels for low cost hire from our on site tackle shop.
To ensure that you are out fishing as soon as possible after your arrival it is important that we have good notice of exactly what you require for the duration of your stay to secure availability
Rods:
- Daiwa TD-R casting 4-10ozs up tide rods
- Abu Transmitter 30lb class rod
- Shakespeare UglyStik Sapphire 30lb class rod
- Daiwa Osprey 10 foot spinning rod 10gm to 60gm - perfect for lure and float fishing
Reels:
- These great boat rods can be matched up with either
- Abu 7500C3
- Abu 10000BG (Big Game) reels
These are all spooled up with Penn 25lb or 30lb bs monofilament line and ready to go...!
The spinning rods are matched up with Daiwa Regal 4000XI spinning reels - great for distance casting with 10lb line and an amazing 10 ball bearings for a smooth retrieve - just the perfect tool for handling bass, mullet and garfish.
Terminal Tackle:
Though we initially tried to supply basic terminal tackle on a hire scheme we must now insist that any additional tackle that you require be purchased at either our fully stocked store on site or any other tackle shop that meets your requirements. If you would like to leave your weights at home to save those precious airline baggage kilos, feel free to drop us an email with your booking to enquire about our low cost weight rental.
Bait
We have frozen bait available for purchase at our tackle shop which is usually stocked with mackeral, sand eel, bluies, squid, crab and lug worm. Prices vary with our supplier but are currently between €3 and €15 depending on the type and quantity of bait required.
Fresh bait including mackeral and sand eel is readily available at certain spots either outside or towards the entrance to the harbour. Large buckets for live bait will have to be requested at the time of booking and will be subject to a rental fee.
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Read French Angler's Report
Watch Interactive Video on Angling
Watch Interactive Video on our Self Catering
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