Observe fin, humpback and minke whales, common dolphins, basking sharks, harbour porpoise, sunfish and other marine wildlife in stunning scenery.
Dolphins, Whales & More
Observe fin, humpback and minke whales, common dolphins, basking sharks, harbour porpoise, sunfish and other marine wildlife in stunning scenery.
Duration
3-4 hours
About
According to data from the Irish Whale and Dolphin Group (IWDG), this area is one of the best areas on the Irish coast to encounter whales and dolphins.
What to wear
Remember we will be out on the open water so bring a hat, a waterproof / windproof jacket and suitable footwear.
What to bring
Sun-cream, bottle of water and don’t forget your camera!
We do not permit pets on board apart from trained assistance dogs.
Location
The Lady Catherine operates from both Courtmacsherry Pier & Kinsale.
Our meeting point is at Food U Cafe Kinsale Opposite Kinsale Pier.
We can facilitate tours which commence from Courtmachserry and end at Kinsale, mainly for corporate groups.
Whales
The Irish Government declared the coastal waters of Ireland a Whale and Dolphin sanctuary during the early 1990’s, the first of its kind in Europe. Since then it is one of the must do’s when visiting the south west coast of Ireland. Our coastal waters are a summer feeding ground for a number of whale species and a year round home for several resident Dolphin species including the Harbour Porpoise. Baleen whales commonly seen off the south west coast include Humpback, Fin and Minke whales, with intermittent sightings of Killer and Pilot whales which makes whale watching in Ireland the best whale watching in Europe.
Dolphins & Sharks
Our coastal waters are a year round home for several resident Dolphin species including the Harbour Porpoise. Common dolphins are West Cork’s most frequently observed cetacean. We see them on most trips throughout the season. We sometimes encounter large groups of common dolphins with mothers and their calves in their midst. During the summer months, we often encounter several basking sharks on our tours, up to 50 sharks on one tour, feeding and displaying around the boat.
Seabirds
On our marine wildlife tours from when we leave the pontoon we can encounter firstly the wading birds including oyster catchers, bar-tailed and black-tailed godwit, whimbrel, curlew, grey plover, dunlin, redshank, grey herons, egrets, several species of duck and at certain times of the year brent geese. As we leave the sheltered harbour, black headed, black backed, herring and common gulls and cormorants are present. When on the water we can see Gannets, Manx Shearwaters, Puffins, Guillemots, Razorbills and Kittiwakes. In late summer and autumn sometimes spot Great, Sooty and Corey’s Shearwater along with Great, Long-tailed, Pomarine and Arctic Skuas.
Frequently Asked Questions
Please contact us if you require further information regarding any of the services we offer.
To make a Booking for any of our Angling options or tours, please use the BOOK NOW button on the website.
Alternatively, if you wish to contact us directly, prior to making a booking or if you have any queries, you can contact us below:
Contact
Mark &Trish Gannon,
Woodpoint House,
Courtmacsherry,
West Cork.
Mobile: +353876381003 ,mobile +353868250905
E-mail: [email protected]
The Lady Patricia and Lady Louise are licensed and insured and are skippered by licensed boatmen. The vessel and occupants are insured for charter operations. A copy of our License can be viewed on board .
Your safety whilst on our vessel is of paramount importance to us.
When you sail with us, you will be given a brief lecture and shown the location of such things as all safety gear. The idea is that, in the highly unlikely event of an emergency, everyone on board knows what to do.
It is essential that you call us on the evening before the trip & we will try to make a decision then. If you are not travelling too far, we may delay that decision until the morning of the trip. Please remember that even with today’s technology trips are sometimes cancelled when in hindsight they should not have been. Also some times we advise anglers that the weather will be OK, when in fact we find the following morning that the conditions are not as forecasted.
For charters of longer than one day, you must travel regardless of the weather. When you arrive and are settled, we can meet and discuss prospects for your charter. If you lose one or more days due to the weather, there are plenty of things to do. We may even be able to fish inshore.
It depends on who cancels and when. The full story is told in our conditions of hire, a copy of which can be found in our ‘Cost & Terms’ page, but in short, if we cancel there is no charge. If you cancel late however, the CHARTER FEE is payable in FULL. If one of the party drops out, it makes no difference to overall CHARTER COST, you are paying for the boat, not the number in the party. Please remember we operating a business.
Our boats are licensed for 12 paying passengers plus two crew, but, unless cost is a major factor, we recommend you bring fewer – 10 or less. You are however paying for the cost of the boat, not per passenger.
We have set aside individual weeks in May,June,July ,August and Sept where we offer individual spaces and small groups to join a charter together.
In order to have your booking confirmed you will need to send us €100 deposit or the total cost of the charter. Any balance is due on completion of the charter. Circumstances under which the deposit is returnable are explained in our conditions of hire, a copy of which can be found in our ‘Terms & Costs’ page.
Directions & maps can be found on our ‘LOCATION’ page.
Our vessel is now moored at Courtmacsherry Pier, Courtmacsherry, Co. Cork, Ireland. Please go to our location page for directions.
PLEASE NOTE: Car parking at the Pier is FREE and there is plenty of room for all. Please call me on my mobile to access the vessel on the marina.
We take advice from the Cental Fisheries Board and play an active part in their tagging programme.
We try our upmost to catch fresh bait daily but they can be scarce at times better to bring a few frozen just in case or alternatively order a box of frozen bait a few days prior to the charter.
We have a small tackle outlet on the pier which would stock all the main items. You need to bring a good collection of swivels, booms, lures (especially Jelly worms or equivalent), feathers and weights etc. You are likely to need a 30lb class outfit or bigger for Conger Fishing. Leads of 8oz-16oz should be available, nylon for traces in the range 20 – 300lb, fine-wire hooks between sizes 4 & 2/0, & medium-wire hooks from 2/0 to 6/0. The above will cover you for most of our fishing, but there are specialised applications you should consider listed below.Please see the Press articles in the news section of the site under the Featured articles section for good advice and fishing tips.
TACKLE NEEDED FOR PIRKING.
Rods should be of the 20lb to 50lb class with reels of a sturdy nature. i.e. Penn 4/0 or equivalent loaded with matching
breaking strain line. Cod feathers of muppets are a must, with 8/0 hooks and minimum of an 8/0 treble with a red muppet attached.
Pirks that work best are long and thin rather than short and fat. The ideal length is about 8″ to 9″ in length and the ends cut at 45 degree angles with one inch split rings. Smaller split rings tend to twist and break off when fighting larger fish.
We also find that fighting fish with a bright red muppet on the treble hooks enhances cod catches.
GILLING FOR COD ,POLLACK and Coalfish.
Rods of 20 to 30lb class together with small multipliers such as Abu, Penn or Shimano.
Slow line retrieve speed is essential when gilling and with practice excellent results can be achieved. For Coalfish however it is a very fast retrive.The main line is affixed to a boom in “flying collar rig” fashion with a small snap swivel to take the trace. Plastic 10″ UNI-BOOMS are ideal but there are many different makes available. Trace line strength should be between 15lb to 26lbs and be no shorter than eight feet in length.
Jellyworms are an excellent alternative to Redgills or Eddystone Eels and much cheaper to purchase. Please ensure the tails of your artificial eels are not bent in your tackle box or the eel will not “swim” correctly. All artificial lures should be kept apart in colour coded compartments to stop “bleeding” on other colours. Red is usually the culprit colour to cause this phenomenon. The colours that seem to work best are Black with Red or Yellow Tails. Red, Orange, Blue/White and Green.
Weights should be between from 6oz to 16oz and will be changed as tidal or wind conditions change.
ANCHORING/DRIFTING FOR CONGER AND LING.
A 50lb class rod is a must to handle giant conger especially in the hands of a novice, as even these can be broken if not handled correctly. Matching breaking strain line is essential and should be no stronger than 50lb breaking strain or else we are unable to break it out of the bottom should you become stuck. A 4/0 Penn reel is sufficent. Booms should be of the Zip slider type which are simple but effective, .
Traces should be NYLON as these tend not to kink. We advise 300lb as this tends not to get bitten through. Traces of this quality can be purchased onboard.
You will also require an assortment of leads from 8oz to 16ozs.
The catch is yours to do with what you will, but you should bear in mind that we are a sportfishing operation. We discourage large-scale fish kills in an attempt to cover the cost of a trip. Of course depending on tidal situations we target different species. All shark,Ray and Skate are tagged and releasedWhere practical we prefer a ‘catch & release’ approach for inedible species & for table fish in excess of those required for personal consumption, unless of course the skipper feels that they dead due to decompression.
Please refer to our Boat Hire section of the website.
