Thanks to bluefin tuna and the recovery of its stocks in the Atlantic and Mediterranean, we can now successfully fish for tuna off more and more European coasts. With Donegal on the west coast of Ireland, another important destination has officially been added. It will certainly re-sort the travel routes of big gamers in Europe!

Donegal has been known to sea anglers since the 1980s for its good blue shark fishing. One of the charter skippers, Adrian Molloy, once saw a large school of ‘dolphins’ appear during a shark fishing trip.  “But there was something wrong with them, their tail fins were all vertical,” remembers the 62-year-old with a smile. They were bluefins. Before the turn of the millennium Adrian started fishing for tuna and is now a living legend because of his success. Even the BBC reported about him.

So far, Adrian and other skippers have only been able to fish for tuna with special permits. But now Fishery Minister Michael Creed has received a permit from the EU to introduce a scientific catch  & release fishery. 15 charter boats will receive licences for this and, according to Creed, will thus strengthen “fishing tourism in coastal communities”. “Especially in Donegal”.

Adrian’s statistics make clear what this will mean for us big gamers: In 2018 (a good year) he caught an amazing 228 Bluefins in 50 fishing days! More than 4 tuna per trip average, there is no other fishing area I know of that. The tunas are also big: their average weight is 160 kg. The smallest weigh 80-90 kg and the largest last year weighed over 300 kg. Such giants are caught at most still in March before the Canaries or before Mallorca in May-June.

Another advantage for the skippers in Donegal are the relatively short distances to the fishing grounds. If the tuna moves into Donegal Bay, the baits are laid out after half an hour at the latest, sometimes it is only 5 minutes.

There we will fish for science, because the tunas are all tagged and released. Adrian has a lot of experience in this since 2003. He has tagged over 300 tunas so far, 50 of them with satellite transmitters.

Adrian is now investing in his future – and that of us anglers: He has ordered a new boat, an 11 m long catamaran from BW Seacat, which lies like a board in the water. “The deck is huge, whether standing up or in the fighting chair, anything is possible,” he says.

Adrian also fishes stomach-friendly: Not drifting, but trolling on 80-130 lb equipment with large lures, daisy chains and spreader bars bring success here. The best time before Donegal is from the beginning of August to the beginning of November. September is usually a safe month.

The drill of an average tuna takes about an hour. The best at the end: The trip costs 800 Euro full charter (for up to 5 anglers) amazingly little! Fishing takes place from 8.00 to 17.00, without a strict limit.

Contact:

Adrian Molloy

Web: www.tuna.ie

Mail: adrian@tuna.ie