The wind dropped yesterday for the first time in some weeks so I was able to fish with my good friend from Holland, Martin (Sammy) Van Seemus who was accompanied by his two Dutch companions William and Michael.
Almost immediately they were into fish at our first drop. The fish were small so we journeyed on to the ‘basin’ and had about three hours good action on a rising tide. All the fish were fresh and lively and Michael lost the best fish of the day…
Martin runs a company called Sam’s Fishing Travels.com. He first fished with me when he was 16 yrs old and that wasn’t yesterday! He went on to skipper a big game boat in Mexico but returned to fish sea trout with me for many years. Nice to have you back ‘Sammy’!
I believe the weather for the rest of the week will remain relatively calm so fingers crossed… Judd
Let me tell you about Pearse…
I became aware of Pearse at a young age and eventually got to know him when he started to frequent my pub back in ’73. He was a right good character and everyone in town knew him. He rubbed shoulders with the rich, the famous and the not so famous. His wit and banter enjoyed by all. The Germans loved him. “Where is the old man” they would ask. No better man to join you for a pint and enthrall you with his stories. Most were true and some he would tell against himself.
To my mind the best story he had was about his pet Salmon ‘Georgie’.
Pearse was partial to a bit of fishing and netted many salmon. When I say ‘netted’ it could be with a landing net or fifty yards… ‘any which way’ was his motto!
However, he shared his time between the pub and the river bank and knew every pebble in the river.
One day he noticed a salmon struggling in the current close to the river bank so he grabbed him by the tail and laid him on the grass. He could see the fish was unwell so he carried him all the way back home.
He later told me the salmon had the flu and when I inquired how he figured that out he replied, ‘Sure I knew he had the flu when I saw the water running out of his eyes.
I wrapped a scarf around his neck and brought him home to a bath of hot milk and Poteen”.
In no time at all the fish started to recover and a fondness grew between the two. By day Pearse kept the fish close to him in a child’s bath tub and at night he put him back into the main bath. As their friendship grew they spent long evenings together watching TV… the fish wrapped in a wet towel on Pearse’s knee so he could see the television. By this time Pearse had given the fish a name… he called him Georgie in memory of an old fishing pal.
Word soon spread about the fish in the bath and the local kids loved to visit Pearse hoping for a chance to see Georgie. He began teaching the fish some tricks and soon he had him doing somersaults in the bath… it was the talk of the place!
Towards the end of the summer Pearse could see that Georgie was getting restless and eventually decided he should be released back to his natural environment.
Early one morning he told Georgie, “you and me have to part company so we are going to take one last walk”. Wrapped in a wet towel he placed the fish in a pram and walked him across town to the exact spot where they first met.
Pearse told me he returned to that spot every morning and at exactly 11 o’clock Georgie would jump to greet him.
The story of Pearse and his pet salmon spread around the country and people didn’t know what to believe so RTE arrived in town looking for Pearse. At that time Hall’s Pictorial Weekly was a very popular TV show featuring items of interest from around the countryside. The shows presenter was journalist Frank Hall who found Pearse in Leanord’s pub in Garden Street. The first part of the interview was filmed at the bar counter and when Pearse explained he still saw the fish every day Hall insisted they adjourn to the river bank. Pearse explained how he returned to the same spot each day and at exactly 11 o’clock Georgie would come flying out of the water doing a somersault for him.
With cameras running Pearse and Hall stood by the river… 11 o’clock came and went but the fish didn’t show.
“Mr Hall, I don’t think Georgie is going to show today”, Pearse said. Hall wasn’t impressed and asked why not… “Because he’s fed up looking at you on TV!
P.S.
After the show was screened it was the talk of the country… people really didn’t know what to believe… was it true or not, they asked… particularly those who lived inland and had no experience of fishing. The highlights of the show were repeated at the end of the year and nominated as the RTE ‘Show of the year’.
Pearse is just a memory now… a memory however, that will never fade. My wife Jean suggested I should write this as we loved the story and his great imagination so I hope you have enjoyed it too. He was a legend… a lovable rogue who enjoyed life to the full. A good candidate for “The Most Unforgettable Character…
Judd
First thing this morning I got a call to say Pegasus had broken her mooring and was drifting up the river… just what I needed with a NE wind howling outside. However, I got her back within the hour and thanks to all those who called and assisted… actually, I got about ten calls!
Getting back to Grandad…
Fishing was his thing and as a kid I loved to listen to all his stories…
One day he caught a fish so big…
When he opened the fish he found another fish inside…swallowed whole.
When he opened that fish… (you guessed it)
He found another fish swallowed whole.
When he opened that fish he discovered…
$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$
A duck sitting on two eggs in a nest
He told me great stories about the time he was in Dawson City Alaska living in a tented village mining the Klondike for gold in 1897.
One night he and his partner Joe found themselves in the final
of a competition to find out who could tell the best lie.
Joe was first to go so he stood up and said…
I’m the strongest man here…
I’m so strong I once swam up Niagara Falls!
Grandad was declared the winner when he stood up and said, “and that’s the truth…
because I was there”
Jean is worried that if I don’t get out fishing soon I could become a liar too.
…and my good friend Frank Loftus says…
All fishermen are liars except you and I
and now I’m beginning to wonder about you!
P.S. The prize Grandad won for the best lie in the Klondike is sitting on my desk right now. It is a solid gold cast of…
A duck sitting on two eggs…
Have a nice day!
Yes, today is a cold one with a weather warning in place so I postponed today’s fishing with my buddy Joe.
However, the good news is we can expect it dry towards the week-end with very little wind when I will be fishing with some of my old regulars.
Grandad loved to tell me about how good he was at doing stuff.
He grew a head of cabbage so big…
It was so big he had to use a tractor and chain to pull it out of the field. On the way out it got wedged between the gate posts and he had to trim it with a chain saw.
Grandad never told lies!
Next time I’m going to tell you about the big fish he caught…
Stick around! Judd
My Grandad was the best shot…
Late one winter’s night he heard some geese flying over the house.
He grabbed his gun from over the fire place, fired two shots up the chimney and in the morning he found two dead geese in the front garden!
My Grandad never told lies… Judd
April 23/12… I first set foot on Bartra island in 1949 and bought my first boat in 1959. There is a lot of water under the bridge since then I can tell you.
Now, for the third time, I am witness to the transition of the channel from East to West. It moves from the shore of the old fisheries Ice house in Scurmore to the ‘cockle strand’ on the Killala shore.
When Ballina was a commercial port with regular shipping the harbour launch and it’s powerful engine would rake the bottom to deepen these new channels. The ‘Rake’ was like a large pallet but on a much larger scale. It had metal spikes protruding from it to scour the sand which would be swept away in the tide. Overall this helped to speed up the change from East to West where as now we must wait for mother nature to do the job… one step forward and two steps back!!
The first journey on the estuary each year never fails to hold your attention. ‘Sounding’ the channel with the Sonar for new sand banks hidden beneath the surface can sometimes leave you and your boat high and dry so the best time to do this is with a rising tide.
This year is no exception… thousands of tons of sand moved over the winter and two new channels have opened. Many of the Buoy markers are now on sand and well off the new channel. The first RED buoy after Hicks’s is in shallow water and the deeper water can be found over towards the Green Buoy. Here you steer a straight course East towards the RED Perch north of the Ice House. Ignore the two Green Buoys close to the Ice House. They are now in shallow water.
Heading on towards the Enniscrone back-beach keep well right (starboard) of the first GREEN Buoy… it is in shallow water. Be very cautious rounding the sand towards the goal posts!!
Another new channel has broken through south of the Goal posts which avoids the last three GREEN Buoys but best not to use it until the tide fills for two hours or so.
Not to worry though… after you scrape the bottom a few times you’ll get the hang of it. Judd
South Africa is a wonderful place… great food wine and sunshine but they don’t tell lies over there like they do in this part of the world.
“My grandads clock was so old… the shadow of the pendulum wore a track on the wall”
An Irishman can’t survive without the craic in the ‘local’ where you can hear one lie to beat the next
It’s great to be back!
I’m back and fishing… off to a flying start with fish every day.
You need your winter woolies with the chill in that north wind I can tell you.
The good news is we have fresh run sea trout in the lower estuary. The water is too cold for the fly and the fish are deep… on the bottom feeding on shrimp and I am getting them on mackerel strips.
The water quality is pretty decent and should get better when that north wind turns.
The local divers have been telling me about the amazing water clarity in the bay during that good spell of weather some weeks past… lets hope that was not our Summer!! Judd
Well, here I am in South Africa with my wife Jean on our annual visit to this wonderful place. We live on a plateau just outside Knysna in the Western Cape overlooking the Indian Ocean on one side and a beautiful Lagoon on the other side. The lagoon is tidal and is very much like our Moy estuary… full of boats and teaming with a big variety of fish.
However,I am not here to fish… golf is my thing out of season and I am a member at Pezula golf club. I have a golfing friend here from the UK and he has a boat so we head out accasionally and catch for the braai.
My 2012 season is approaching fast and I am beginning to get the buzz already. Pre season bookings are up on the last few seasons so fingers crossed for some decent fishing weather this year.
Here in South Africa they are beginning to talk about the changing weather patterns and concern being expressed by the growers… one crop in particular… tea!
I will be home April 3rd just in time to service engines and boats and launch into the new season April 17th.
I have enjoyed getting calls and emails from new and regular clients over the past few months. The diary is filling up and the atmosphere is building… I can feel it in my bones!!
Just had an email from Fisheries to say the first salmon of the season was caught on the Moy 28/Febuary. This is the earliest date the “first fish” was reported for many years so well done Martin Conroy. This is the third year running where Martin has landed the first fish of the season.
Have a great season everyone… safe boating and good fishing!
Judd
I have just read the following…
Herewith my story… I am writing it on the eve of the half century, therefore my readers may be assured that my experiences are red hot though 1949 is dying hard in a cold north-easter. The bells are ringing it out… the minute hand of the clock slowly climbs the hill and as it passes the summit a new note of gladness and hope seems to echo through the cadence of the chimes. The old year brought me many happy days in the pleasant places and I feel that if the new year is as generous with its thrills I shall be enjoying life to the full.
In describing the attractions of Irish angling it is often a difficult matter for an enthusiast to lean lightly on the pen, after chasing his shadow for hundreds of days, or suppress his natural feelings of exuberance when big fish or big catches are being talked about. Such occasions are the acid test of an Irish angler’s modesty and veracity. It is ofter hard to convince people who are under the impression that fishermen are prone to exaggeration when speaking of their sport. I have often heard it said that a fisherman only tells the truth when he calls another fisherman a liar. I am the first to admit that is is not in any spirit of sarcasm that we, as a class, are the subject of jokes, as it is always in a humorous vein our exploits are referred to. As a general rule, fishermen’s stories have a high entertainment value in any company. So with these introductory remarks I have pleasure in submitting an account of my most recent experiences in the Ballina district which comprises some of the finest salmon and trout fishing in North Mayo… Fresh Water Fishing in Ireland by Larry Gaffey (1949)
P.S. My good friend Frank “the Yank” Loftus says…
“All fishermen are liars except you and me… and I’m beginning to wonder about you!
I 1949 Larry Gaffey published his book Fresh Water Fishing in Ireland. I have just received a photo copy of the section on the Moy estuary from his grandson Peter… I like his writing and here are some excerpts.
The dedication: To My Grandson Peter Gaffey… a small token of appreciation for the intelligent interest he takes in everything that swims, from tadpoles to Tarpon.
…On my first visit many years ago I indulged in pleasant recollections as I sailed up the the Moy estuary in the twilight of an August evening, on a flood tide with a full moon licking the crest of one of the Ox mountains, on the County Sligo border, and nearer, in the foreground, the remains of Rosserk Abbey and Castle Conner ruins… both reminders of the historical associations of the district. It was a most memorable day and one of many that I have enjoyed since first came to Ballina the headquarters of my activities.
The courtesy and friendship to be found all over North Mayo is no novelty to me for I have been revelling in it for a good many years whilst fishing Loch Conn from Crossmolina, Cloghan, Pontoon, and I sampled a similar brand of civility whilst fishing Loch Mask from Tourmakeady, Ballinrobe and Cong.
With my discovery of the Moy estuary I feel that I have struck a new lode. Such a variety of angling amidst such charming surroundings it would be hard to find, and I feel that if my many fishing friends in Dublin and elsewhere only knew of the wonderful possibilities there would be a stampede immediately to take part. The fishing is entirely free through the kind permission of the proprietors of the Moy Fishery Company.
…The usual method of catching them is by trolling, narrow-shaped kidney spoons or a cast of lures, the latter about three inches long with three single hooks placed in a row under the body. The favourite lures, which can be purchased locally are Blue Zulu, Alexandra and The Peacock. The spoon in general use is about two and a half-inch wide at the head, tapering to three- quarters of an inch at the tail with copper back and silver inside. Sometimes spoons with these colours reversed are more killing,
due, I believe, to having different visibility in different light and depth of water. When the surface of the water is rippled by a good breeze, a three inch all silver spoon generally does well.
… I have watched the sun complete its course in the heavens and I only realised that the day was over when I saw the setting sun gilding the curly head of proud old Nephin Mountain in the distant skyline. Then, and only then, did I wind up and say, “To-morrow is another day”… and there’s lots more… Judd