Online draw for ‘Brown Tags’ for Easkey River

Inland Fisheries Ireland is running a lottery draw for 'brown tags' associated with the Easkey River in Co. Sligo.

Anglers who win a brown tag can catch and keep a wild Atlantic salmon or a sea trout caught at the river.

A total of 60 brown tags are available to be distributed through four draws in the 2025 season, with a quarter of the tags available in each draw.

The first draw is on Friday, February 14th, 2025.

Entries are invited from January 31st until midnight on Sunday, February 9th, 2025. The entry form is below.

Information about the draw

To enter the draw, anglers must provide their name, contact address, telephone number and a 2025 salmon fishing licence number. This is the only method to apply for a brown tag. 

Salmon fishing licences are available online at store.fishinginireland.info 

Brown tags will be posted to the successful applicants.

Those who receive a brown tag should place them on the fish - along with a blue tag - as proof it was lawfully caught and may be retained for private use.  

Anglers who are not allocated a brown tag are only permitted to fish for salmon on the Easkey River catchment on a catch-and-release basis, where the fish is returned safely to the same waterbody. 

All anglers must use catch-and-release methods only, involving single or double barbless hooks. Use of worms as bait is not permitted. 

Brown tag regulations apply to the Easkey River from February 1st, 2025, and will remain in place until September 30th, 2025, when the salmon fishing season ends.