Rostoonstown is a south facing steep to beach east of Kilmore Quay in county Wexford. Comprised of coarse sand and shingle, this deep water venue is home to a range of species which include bass, flounder, plaice, dab, smooth hound, codling, dogfish, and on August evenings, mackerel. Southerly winds in tandem with the lateral current which sweeps this beach can wash in rafts of floating weed making fishing very difficult. Neap tides and north west winds on this occasion created a calm sea free of weed, ideal for fishing, but also beloved of our friend the lesser spotted dogfish.
With the wind backing around to the south west a midnight high tide on Rostoonstown might produce bass. Arriving at 20.30pm Dave and I were greeted with a clear slightly choppy sea with only a single small wave breaking on the shingle. “Dogs and flounder”, says I, but you live in hope. Bass can run this strand at any time so we could be lucky.
Setting up three rods we cast our lugworm baited hooks to cover various distances from the gutter out. Using two hook paternosters, as is the form on this beach the rods were motionless for the first hour. Hooks during this period were being stripped clean by crab or shrimp after five minutes exposure, but bait was not an issue , we had plenty. As dusk fell the rod tips nodded with a dull slow lean that can only signal dogfish. So it proved, all three rods covering all distances contained dogfish. In waves they came, not a common experience for me on this beach but it can happen. Apart from a solitary flounder that was it, dogfish till midnight. By that stage Dave and I agreed, enough is enough, so we upped sticks and headed for home.
