July review

So, July has now passed and we're into August.

July was always the month I looked forward to for fishing on the Faughan. "The twelfth week...", that is something I always heard growing up from the older generation anglers on the Faughan.

The older anglers didn't bother taking their fishing licenses out until July in the past. They reckoned there was no need as they felt the fish only started to arrive then.

The 12th of July is a public holiday in Northern Ireland as the Orange Order celebrate King William of Orange's victory over King James at the Battle of the Boyne in 1690 with marching bands followed by members of various orange lodges. 

I used to enjoy the twelfth. Going to the parades and seeing my grandfather marching. Unfortunately, my grandfather's health deteriorated towards the end of his life. When he stopped marching, I stopped going to parade. I last attended the twelfth of July in the mid 90s.

My grandmother liked seeing the bands and lodges marching in the local village on the morning of the twelfth. That was in the village of Claudy. Which sits on the banks of my river Faughan, and was about 7 to 10 miles away from my house. My parents used to take my grandmother to Claudy to see the bands and I got dropped off at the river on the way. 

So, the Orange men had their traditional routes on the twelfth and I had mine. I did that for years upon years and usually caught fish. More recently, I haven't covered those miles on the twelfth but I usually always fish. 

It just so happened this year that we had a small rise on the river on the 12th. There had been some rain on the 10th into the 11th and there was just under a foot of water. However, it was very dirty water on the 11th and I didn't fish. 

The "glorious twelfth" dawned and there had been showers during the night which had kept the water topped up. 

I headed off to the river to see what it was like. It looked to have about 8 inches on it and still carrying some colour but more than clean enough. 

I tied on a couple of flies. One was a Black Shrimp variant I tied towards the end of last year from Chris Mann's book. The other was an Irish shrimp on the dropper. 

The Black Shrimp No. 2 from Chris Mann's book

I fished through the first pool with no joy. I moved onto the next pool down. I fished the stream into the neck of the pool,which was always a "taking spot". 

I cast to the far bank, as the fly came away about 3 feet from the bank, the line began to tighten, my heart skipped a beat, I lifted the rod, felt the weight and then... Nothing!!! I'd just had my first encounter with a salmon in 2019. For all the time it lasted. 

I fished on for another hour or so with no further success. 

I came home again and tied a smaller version of the black shrimp variant.

I went back to river that evening and tied on some smaller flies. One being the black shrimp I'd just tied with a Foxford Shrimp on the dropper. 

I went up the river in the evening. I got into the neck of the first pool I visited. By that time, the water had dropped another few inches. 

I cast to the far bank and just as the fly was reaching the middle of the river I felt a small tap, then another small tap and then weight. I lifted the rod and was delighted to fell weight still on the end of the line that was trying to go towards the tail of the pool. I had just hooked my first of the season. I would love to describe a blow by blow, long, drawn out fight, but I was so scared of it getting off that I had it in the net less than a minute after it was hooked. To say it was released fresh is a bit of an understatement. 

My first success of 2019. A Faughan Grilse around the 5lb mark

I fished the pool again but had no further success so moved onto the next pool. 

I fished the stream and had just entered the pool when I felt that undescribable feeling once again of the very second when a salmon takes a fly. The line almost stopping but actually being taken from you. Feeling the loop of line being taken from your hand as you lift into.... Nothing again!!! 

That was three salmon I'd encountered on the twelfth and I'd only managed to land one. At least I was off the mark. 

I usually do well with fresh grilse entering the pools. The pools now are very different than they were before the massive flood of 2017. I didn't touch or see another fish for almost a week. 

The following Thursday there was more rain and the river began to rise again with a lot of road wash in the river. I had fished through two pools and hadn't any luck. I then tied on a Willy Gunn and tried the neck of the pool. The fly was only about 6 feet from me when I saw a flash in the water. A salmon had risen to my fly and missed it. 

A Copper bodied Willy Gunn tied on a Waddington.

The next evening, I got into a stream and was just entering the neck of the pool again when the line tightened and a small grilse was on the surface kicking and splashing like a mackerel. I never like to see fish in the surface as it is usually a sign that they are not well hooked. I was just thinking, "I don't like the way this is going...", when the line went slack again and the fish was gone. 

We got our first proper rise on the 22nd of the month. That Monday evening, the water was just the way I like it. Big. There was just under 3ft on it when I went to the river. 

I was in my second pool of the evening and had fished it almost to the tail when I got one of those old "half hearted pulls" as I call them. It's almost as if the fish has just taken the tail of the fly without actually touching the hook. At least I'd touched something. 

In the next pool, I was about half way down the stream and just entering the pool when the line tightened again. Yes, Fish on! The fish gave a couple of splashes on the surface and then went down. "This might be better", I thought. I began winding line onto the reel when the whole lot went slack again. Another one gone. I got another half hearted pull before I went home again. Although I hadn't landed anything, it was one of the most enjoyable evenings I've ever spent at the river. 

I hooked and lost another one on the Thursday evening in low water. 

So, July appears to have stuck to tradition with the grilse arriving on cue on the glorious twelfth. 

Since then I've been in contact with 13 salmon and I've only managed to land one. Very frustrating to say the least. 

And now we're into August which I've always thought is a very dour month on the Faughan with fish being very difficult to tempt. 

I am hearing that there are fresh fish in the tidal section so perhaps, with some rain, we might get fresh fish in the pools again in the very near future. 

Hopefully August will bring me more luck and success than July has. 

Since I wrote the above we are now half way through August.  My luck has not changed!!! But that's for next month.