The Irish coastline, over 3000 miles long, is washed by some of the cleanest and clearest seas in Europe. It is also one of the most varied, with dramatic cliffs such as those in Donegal, Mayo and Clare; many miles of wide strands with their arresting contrast of blue sea, white surf and pale sands; and stretches of rugged rocky coastline and quiet estuaries. This variety offers unlimited opportunities to the sea angler, who can find somewhere to fish almost all the year round.
Ireland's climate may give mixed summer weather of sun and rain, but because its seas, especially on the south and western margins, benefit from the warming influence of the North Atlantic Drift they can be fished from spring to late autumn for species found elsewhere only in the summer months. For this reason unusual warm-water species often turn up in catches here, fish such as trigger fish, red mullet, red bream, sunfish and amberjack. But Ireland's shores are near the divide between cooler north Atlantic waters and the southern influence and they accommodate many cold water species also.
In all, over 80 species can be caught from Ireland's seas. And this fishing is as easily accessible to the angler who seeks solitude and peace in one of the least populated countries of Europe as it is to the fisherman who wants to enjoy sport in the company of other anglers.