Spurdog at Killoughter Beach.

Quick facts

Mark type

Beach

Skill

Intermediate

Catalogue rank

Seasonal

Why fish Spurdog at Killoughter Beach

Reputed best Wicklow beach venue. Specimen homelyn, thornback, smoothhound and bullhuss in the catch record.

A shingle beach in the heart of the Greystones-to-Wicklow shingle belt.

Documented in the Eastern Regional Fisheries Board guide as the regard of many anglers as the BEST of all the Wicklow beach venues, the beach turns up quality fish with regularity.

Specimen-class homelyn ray, thornback ray, smoothhound, bullhuss and occasional spurdog have all been recorded here.

Short: Reputed best Wicklow beach venue.

Sandy and shingle beaches with deeper gutters close inshore. Silver Strand is one of the few accessible east-coast marks that produces spurdog on summer night tides.

Reputed specimen beach for rays and hounds on spring nights, not a beginner mark.

The Eastern Regional Fisheries Board guide explicitly states 'many anglers regard Killoughter as the best of all the Wicklow beach venues' on the basis that it produces quality fish with regularity.

Specimen-class homelyn ray, thornback, smoothhound and bullhuss are all in the catch record, this is a serious species venue, not a casual beach.

Two practical local notes: (1) the road in is poor, and (2) weed can shut the beach down after onshore wind, one SAI session was abandoned for that reason and turned out to be the wrong call (the weed cleared shortly after).

Season and tide

At Killoughter Beach, Spurdog is worth targeting in occasional summer night. Coast-wide, Spurdog runs June to September (peaks August summer night tides. Silver Strand produces spurdog on warm summer nights, and Killoughter holds them as a seasonal dogfish-family predator alongside whiting.).

Wider mark season: Smoothhound: May to October (specimen-class possible), Thornback ray: May to September, Homelyn ray: May to September, Bullhuss: summer evenings (specimen-class), Bass: April to November (peak autumn Sep to Nov), Codling: October to February, Dab: October to February, Flounder: October to March, Spurdog: occasional summer night, Whiting: October to February

Tide guidance here: Falling tide for the shingle-belt pattern. Evening and night sessions for the predator species. Distance casting required for hounds and rays; close-in for codling and flatfish.

Summer night tides on the marks that produce them. Silver Strand and Killoughter are the reliable ones; match your rigs to the mark.

Fishable phases: first-flood, mid-flood, high, first-ebb, mid-ebb. Peak: mid-flood, first-ebb.

Tactics on this mark

Fish night tides on the marks that produce them. Silver Strand fishes best on summer night sessions, while Killoughter wants evening and night predator tactics on the shingle belt. Match your rigs and casting distance to the mark rather than a single generic rule.

Pulley rig at distance (hounds/rays/huss); Standard flatfish rigs close in; Two-hook flapper

Gear: open beach. Facing E.

• Pulley or simple ledger rigs with squid or fish strip
• Fish after dark on summer night tides
• Use wire or heavy mono where dogfish-family taxa might appear together
• Pulley rig at distance (hounds/rays/huss)
• Standard flatfish rigs close in
• Two-hook flapper

Baits and lures

Spurdog baits and lures: Squid; Mackerel strip; Fish baits on pulley or ledger rigs.

What this mark typically holds: Hardback green crab (hounds, outlasts peeler against lesser species); Squid (rays); Lugworm (codling/dab); Mackerel head (bullhuss).

Hardback green crab (hounds, outlasts peeler against lesser species); Squid (rays); Lugworm (codling/dab); Mackerel head (bullhuss)

Access and ground

Access via the local road from Newcastle/Ashford direction. The road in is poor, described in SAI session reports as 'potholed' with limited improvement over the years. Small car park at the end. Railway crossing required for some access routes.

Parking: Small car park at end of access road; arrive early on quality conditions.

Safety: Railway crossing required for some access routes, designated points only. Standard shingle-beach safety. Weed can shut the beach down after onshore wind, judge the conditions on arrival.

Nearest tackle: Wicklow town or Greystones tackle shops.

Nearest town: Newcastle. Skill level: Intermediate.

Size and identification

Typical shore size: Typical shore fish run to a few kilograms on night-tide sessions, very much a specialist east-coast beach target.. Specimen class: Larger fish are possible on the accessible sand marks that produce them on summer night tides..

Slender small shark with white-edged dorsal spines and a pointed snout, often showing alongside other small sharks on summer night tides. Confirm the ID before retaining any shark.

Tip: Treat spurdog as a seasonal bonus rather than a guaranteed target, and read the Silver Strand and Killoughter safety and tide notes before settling on a flood-or-ebb plan.

Irish shore context: record class around See IFI records, shore fish typically modest weight but hard-fighting.

Same-mark companions

Other ranked targets on the same mark include Smoothhound, Thornback ray, Homelyn ray, Bullhuss, Bass, Codling. Open those pair pages or the full mark guide when you want a multi-species session.

Live ranked advice for Killoughter Beach updates on the daily plan. Pair this page with the Spurdog species guide for coast-wide season bars and conservation detail.

Conservation

Dogfish-family sharks, return quickly and avoid deep hooking where possible.

Guide conservation label: Catch & Release Recommended.

Confirm current bag limits and closures on the Spurdog species guide and /learn/rules before retaining fish.

Other species at Killoughter Beach

• Smoothhound
• Thornback ray
• Ray
• Bullhuss
• Bass
• Cod
• Dab
• Flounder

Full mark guide lists all 12 catalogue pair pages.

Next steps

Live ranked session advice for this mark sits on Today's plan. Rules and bag limits: learn / rules.