The Fishing:
Competition takes place over four days (weather permitting). The event is organised into two separate events – a three day “Species Hunt” and a one day “Specimen Hunt”.

The Species Hunt
The rules are simple – you head off and catch as many different species of fish, to size, as you can! You keep one of each species of fish to return to the weigh-in. Your total species score is over three days – in other words a cod caught on day one is a species – a cod on day two will not increase your total species count though it may increase your overall weight.

What is a day species hunting like?
You will arrive the launch site in the morning to find a hive of activity and banter. Skippers will have their boats fuelled up the evening before. Boats are launched and wagons and trailers parked up. At some point you will head for the notice board and collect your safety tag, here you will be met and any last questions will be answered. If you don’t already have one, a species size list will be available for you. At 0855 there will be an announcement on the VHF and at 0900 the hunt begins.

When you return after the days fishing you retrieve your boat. There is always plenty of bodies on hand to help you. If conditions are rough there will be a “drop and go” system in operation. You drop your driver to the slip and head offshore and wait to be called into the slip. You will be called when your trailer is in the water waiting and you will be guided on.

The weigh-in begins fifteen minutes after the days end time. Patience is requested here as the weigh team is comprises of competing anglers who rush through their retrieve in order to get the show on the road a soon as possible.

Your catch for the day should be brought to the scales in a fish box. The weighmaster will check each species for size and will weigh the fish. Weights are recorded on computer immediately. Before you leave the scales you will be asked confirm your boat number, the number of species you have caught and the total weight of the fish.

That done you are free to head for the garage to top up your fuel. Most competitors gather in Rosies Bar for a post mortem of the day. There is usually finger food available which is kindly sponsored by the owner.
Later that evening you can head for Guileen to view the complete results for all boats for the day.

As part of the species competition there are also 10 nominated fish. There is a prize for the heaviest of each of these species caught over the three days of the Species Hunt. At Guileen you can also check this list to see how you are doing.

There are daily prizes for the 1st , 2nd and 3rd most species each day.

So what will you do on day 2?
The choices is yours- you can “top up” on the species you caught on day one or maybe you might decide to fish for the “most on the day” prizes, while doing so you might just manage to add to your overall total. You might decide to concentrate on catching the biggest specimen of your favourite species from the 10 Nominated list. You will know your target weight from referring to the nominated list the night before.

When you weigh-in on day 2 you will be credited with all species you have caught on the day. You will be told how many you have added to your running total for the overall event.

You can check the overall positions and species at Guileen that night.

Day 3
The final day of species hunting is a tough day for the boats that are trying to top up on their overall totals. At this stage the species are tougher to come by and species counts for the leading boats are small. Again some boats will fish for the most species daily prizes while others will defend their position as the holders of some of the heaviest of the 10 nominated fish.

When day 3 has been completed it is a fresh start for day 4

The Species Hunt is the main event and as such it gets priority in terms or weather.


The Specimen Hunt
The specimen hunt involves a hunt for the heaviest fish of six species. There are two possible lists depending on the weather conditions – If conditions are poor the list contains harbour species – if conditions are good then the list contains more offshore species.

For example last year the species were:

Plan A: (Good Weather) Bass, Cod, Ling, Pollack, Plaice, Whiting.
Plan B: (Restricted) Bass, Conger, Dab, Flounder, LSD, Plaice.

(This list has remained unchanged in recent years)

This competition has evolved over the years and now includes prizes for the best combinations of the six species. Catching all six is tougher than you think!

The choice is yours: try catch the best of you chosen species from the list or try to get the best combination of all the six species.



Presentation Of Prizes
On Thursday night the presentation of prizes takes place in Jim Gallagher’s pub in Trabolgan. A buffet is served and the show normally gets on the road at 2030.

A typical schedule for the event is:

Friday: Arrival
Saturday: Fishing Practice – Check-in & Briefing in Jim Gallagher’s Bar (Trabolgan) 2000hrs.
Sunday: Match Start or Practice depending on weather forecast.
Monday – Thursday: Match fishing 0900-1700.
Thursday Night: Presentation of Prizes.

Note: If you are new to the event please email for a list of popular safety and fishing GPS coordinates.