Having made the now weekly excursion to Wexford last Friday I arrived at my mark in the hope of landing some nice Bass. Whilst in the process of changing into my waders and filling my kit bag I noticed a number of anglers returning from the beach. I immediately recognised one of them as Patrick Gallagher or Padge as he is referred to here. As I have bought a number of lures and soft plastics from Patrick (but had yet to meet him in person) I sheepishly ventured over to him as I did not want to intrude on his party of fishermen and introduced myself to him. I needed not to have been so cautious as upon introducing myself Patrick greeted me as if I were a long lost friend and while shaking my hand introduced me to his party. There were 3 French guys ( who later it transpired to be the leading men at Ultimate Tackle) and a rather tanned looking Henry Gilbey. Some idle fishing chat ensued but I could gather that they were eager to race to another mark to continue fishing so I let them off and wished them well. Patrick informed me upon leaving that he had some new lures in and to give him a call on Sunday to have a look-see. I said I would and set off for the rocks wondering if this Red Rod mini army had left any fish at all for me!!!
Conditions looked calm but the tide was moving in so I began. Within an hour I was into a nice bass but lost him on the "journey" back to the rocks where I was standing.
I stayed for another couple of hours but drew a blank. In my mind I blamed the Red Rod army for catching all the fish!!!!
Saturday's morning and evening sessions proved to be just as fruitless with only a small pollock caught.
I awoke on Sunday and said Id give Patrick a call about some of his lures. We arranged to meet up later in the day.
I had another blank on Sunday morning and was in a dismayed state when I met up with Patrick. He reassured me informing me that he had heard from a number of places that it was the same in other marks. Having bought quality lures from Patrick before(at better than shop prices) I was confident in allowing Patrick to make suggestions as to what I would purchase. He had a tremendous assortment of lures...Tide Minnows, Patchinkos, Zonks, Feed Shallows etc .After explaining to Patrick where I normally fished in he was kind enough to make some recomendations for me backing them up with his reasoning behind his choice. I listened attentively made my selection and deal was done. I thanked him and was beginning to set off when he called after me to see if I wanted to join him fishing where he could demonstrate how to use the lures effectively. Who am I to refuse an invitation such as this???
Upon arriving at our mark we began to pull on waders and kit. Patrick was at this time passing on information on tackle that he really rated from rods to reels to swivels and choice of braid. I absorbed it like a human sponge!!
Then Patrick moved on to the elements of fishing that I am patchy on to say the least-Watercraft. I listened quietly to everything that he had to say. All information was passed to me in such an uncondencending manner that I never at one point felt like I was the class dunce. After he explained something he would make sure that I understood itbefore moving on.
Needless to say he knew alot more than I did!!!!!
It was at this point that Patrick then offered me the use of his Tenryu Red Bar 270....yes one of the Red rods!! I was a bit frightened to use it in case I damaged it in any way (€460 odd
) but Patrick put me at ease and said I wouldnt . Confidence restored I grabbed it from his hand!!!! (who wouldnt??)The walk down to the rocks was a very informative one with Patrick stopping to explain all about the Bass...how they feed, where they feed and all manner of information that I was unfamiliar with. We studied currents gully marks, holes, rocks etc and each time Patrick explained everything to me but in a manner that was friendly and informative.
This man knows his stuff and his information is not a patch on the enthusiasm that he shows towards his fishing. The excitement and love of what he does is apparent in every word uttered from his mouth and from the "Child on Christmas Morning" expression on his face. His excitement passed on to me(and Ive loads of my own!!!!)
We began to fish after reaching our mark. Again Patrick was beside me offering advice and suggestions about casting, retrieving and the action to put into the lure. He offered advice on the areas in which to cast and even though he was there to fish himself he spent more time coaching me then casting his own rod.
Speaking of rods...The Rod Bar is an UNBELIEVABLE piece of work!! The casting is so easy and the action of working plugs in the water is so easy in comparison with the rod that I had been using before. It feels so light but strong at the same time if that makes any sense! I had always thought this rod was out of my league but fishing with it (and with Patrick's help) was so easy and amazing but also difficult to put into words!! Try one if you can is my advice!!!
After about an hour Patrick said that it was unlikely that there were fish there so he was moving on. I think he could see the disappointment in my face and he went on to invite me to go fish in a secret mark of his with the French guys and Henry. Only a fool would refuse such an offer
We arrived at the lsecret mark and I was introduced to the Lads again. A lovely bunch of French guys very enthusiastic and friendly and the rather charasmatic Mr Gilbey! I thought that I would not be "accepted" within the group but Patrick assured me that I was not intruding and to just enjoy myself.
We began fishing the mak and a number of bass were found but the catches were mainly pollock. Some nice ones at that. Patrick had a 4lb and 6lb fih and one French Guy got into a MONSTER bass who took to his already hooked pollock on the retrieve in. Unfortunately he did not land it. (i'll get it next time
)Again I had Patrick beside me explaining the features of the mark. Identifying the gullies holes etc and the way in which the wind and tide/current wwere moving. He really knows his stuff!!!
I spent the next couples of hours casting and fishing with the beautiful red rod. I managed to hook into a bigish fish and I could feel the power of the rod as I pulled into him. Alas I failed to land him and was rather disappointed but I was always receiving encouragement from Patrick. We skipped along the rocks each time Patrick explaining to me where to cast and why to cast into that area. It was a fisherman's paradise...lovely mark tremendous fish being caught and very friendly company.
Unfortunately the darkness really set in...I could have stayed all night but the French guys were eager to sample some Guinness so we began to pack up. After bidding farewell to the Lads and thanking them for allowing me to fish with them we bade our farewells...remembering to return Henry's head lamp to him. Thanks Henry.
Then came the time to return the Red Bar (hoping that Patrick would forget!!!!!). I handed it back but promiosed myself that one day soon I will invest in one!!
Patrick drove me back to my car and was still offering advice on my fishing techniques and other relevant information. Again I want to emphasise how easy it isto listen and learn from him. He has a natural ability to pass over information not matter how small but also in a way where he is not condescending in the slightest. He is just easy to listen to and learn from. We spent another few minutes (in the rain) chatting before I got into my car for home to relive the evenings experience over and over again.
I know that this has been a vague shore report and that I have allowed myself to ramble on for a long time but I just want to portray to those of you who do not know him the decent kind of man that he is without it coming across as a mere advertisement for his services-I did not in any way mean it to be.
Those of you who have met him before may be able to recognise some of the traits that I have described here about Patrick. He is a very decent man and without going into much detail has offered a day of guiding services free of charge to help fund raise for some less well off children with whom I work. I must say that I was very touched by his generous offers.
So those of you have yet to deal with Patrick my advice is to get in touch...he is a very open and approachable decent guy who will not see you wrong. I am sure he does not mind people getting in touch with him regarding lures tackle etc or even one of his guided outings(I know this because its exactly how I first came in touch with him). I know he is in the business to sell but rest assured he will NOT sell you junk All his gear he uses himself and has never forced anything onto me just to make a sale. I am sure that there are many who will agree with me.
He has a great blog with some excellent reports and pictures here http://seirelandlurefishing.blogspot.com/
And to Patrick (if you read this) I just want to say a HUGE THANK YOU again for one of the most enjoyable bass outings I had without actually landing one!! I hope we can do it again very soon. Thanks again.
about five times more than what i live on!how do you start this guiding lark 
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