A Strong Gust of Wind

One day my dad and I wanted to go fishing for a couple of hours in the sea. You can only fish from the sea shore when the tide is high. The tide was high at the right time, in the afternoon, but it was very windy. It was my first time sea fishing, so I didn’t want to miss the opportunity despite the wind.

Down at the pier I could really feel the force of the wind. The wind pushed me backwards and I found it very hard to hold my ground. It wasn’t really a good day for fishing but the excitement pulled us through.

The rods were set up quickly. After ten minutes, my dad got his fishing line caught in the weeds. He worked hard trying to pull it out but when he finally did, the tip broke off his rod. He was not happy. And I wasn’t happy either. We were one rod down.

Dad was now casting with my rod. I was counting waves. Next thing, dad called me over because he had a bite. He gave me the rod to reel in the fish. I took the rod and started reeling, but he was fighting hard. I could see seaweed under the water. He was trying to head into the seaweed to try and get away.

I had to work really hard. My dad told me to keep the tension on the line.  It took a while but finally I did manage to bring him in. The fish had a lovely silver colour back and a bronze belly. We decided to keep him although he wasn’t very big.

But that wasn’t the end of the adventure. Dad told me to mind the fish while he would fish a bit further away. Now the wind grabbed the fish and pushed him into a hole in the rock where I almost lost him. It took me ages to get him back. I got him back when I got hold of his tail deep down the hole.

With all that wind the tiny pollock was the only catch of the day. Back home, my dad gutted him and then steamed the pollock. We served the fish with a wedge of lemon and a slice of bread. On a scale from one to ten with ten being the most delicious food you’ve ever had, I gave him ten points. Here he is.

My Favourite Things About Fishing

My mum asked me what the best thing about fishing is.

The best part about fishing for me is the feeling when I am reeling in a fish. The feeling starts like a ball of excitement in my tummy the moment I get a bite. Then it becomes a huge feeling. I feel it like an energy rushing through my whole body. When the fish is almost brought in, I start to tremble with excitement. I will still tremble when the fish is on the bank. It takes the splashing of the water against rocks and the river bank to calm me down.

That leads me on to my next favourite thing about fishing. Those sounds of the water against the river bank, the sounds of birds singing, and the sights and sounds of fish jumping out of the water I find calm me down. Being in nature is a bit like meditating and I love it because it makes me feel happy. It’s a different kind of excitement.

So, sometimes when there’s not much happening and there’s no bite and no action, my dad and I both sit down, or even lie down, we look into the sky, look at the clouds, or close our eyes and listen to the sounds around us.

Sometimes when I am doing my homework and I don’t like it, and it makes me feel crabby and frustrated, I recall those sights and sounds and all my favourite fishing memories and they make me feel better.

My least favourite thing about fishing is losing a fish. I feel this huge excitement after the bite, and the BANG it’s all gone. Then I feel so disappointed and frustrated. Sometimes after that I want to pack it all in and will say to dad we should call it a day. My dad will usually suggest staying for another while because he thinks we will get more fish. But I usually start feeling bored. But the sounds of the current and the sounds of nature will calm me down.

Cooking and eating the fish we bring home after a long day is my reward for staying with it. My dad says catching and cooking your own fish tastes so much better than buying it from the shop. I think that’s 100 percent true. My dad fries trout and salmon in butter. I would say that’s my favourite food in the whole world.

The photo is of the bank of Lough Mask. You can see the lovely current.

If you like fishing, what’s your favourite thing about it?



Regards, Cillian

Adventures in one of my secret Connemara hotspots

One of my adventures last summer brought me to one of my favourite Connemara lakes. Connemara lakes are great for trout, and some also have salmon but you’d have to be extremely lucky for a salmon to bite.

We called in to say Hi to my granny who lives in Connemara. She minded my little sister while dad and I took off fishing with a packed picnic. It was a warm overcast day early in the summer holidays. There was a lovely smell of flowers in the air.

We parked the car and while my dad got all the gear out of the boot I made friends with two donkeys who wanted to be rubbed. We then had a bit of a walk over fields, crossing walls. At one stage we had to climb over a boat.

I was spinning while my dad was fly fishing. As I was about to do my first cast I saw a nice size trout jump out of the water. I cast in his direction. No bite.

After a little while I got some bites but lost the fish every time. My dad had better luck. He hooked a nice size trout on a fly he made up and tied himself. I asked him could I reel it in. Dad handed me the rod and I reeled. My dad netted him. I was feeling so happy because there was my trout for lunch.

 We took a break at this stage to have our lunch. While we were eating we were listening to some moorhens who were making very loud noise. It sounded almost like dogs barking.

When we started fishing again there was no bite for ages. I start feeling a bit bored when there’s no action. I then got my rod into a tangle and had to give up casting. I spent a bit of time throwing rocks into the water and singing a few songs.

Only as it was nearly evening my dad finally got another bite on his fly. I had to run quickly for the net to give to my dad and as I did I almost fell in the water. So much excitement!

My dad handed me the rod to reel in the second fish. The fish was very strong and went into the weeds where I almost lost him. My dad directed me how to bring in the fish. Finally I succeeded. By then, it was time to call it a day.

The trout that almost escaped

Scene of the incident: The Clare River in County Galway near Tuam, a great place for trout fishing, and for salmon, too, if you are lucky.

This time I went on a fishing adventure with my dad and his friend Frank. Frank also brought his dog, Lucy. We were fishing with worms, for either salmon or trout.

I got a bite early on in the session. I had just been chatting to people who were passing by, next thing one of them said: “Look, your rod is bending.” I went to grab the rod and I started to feel really excited as I was reeling it in.

It was very easy to reel in... and when I pulled the fish out of the water, it was only a tiddler, a small trout, and my dad said I had to put it back into the water. You are only allowed to keep trout that is more than 13 inches long. So my fishing session started with a disappointment. But the day wasn’t done yet.

Next thing, Frank said: “I am going to catch a big fish.” I copied him and said: “I am going to catch a big fish, too!”  We had hardly spoken these words when Frank got a bite. His rod started bending fast. He said: “Here, Cillian, reel this in for me.” So I grabbed his rod and I reeled.

The fish was very strong. I had to give him some line, otherwise I would have lost him. Then I reeled him in for real. When I had him close to the river bank, Frank told me to put the rod upright. I think I held the rod a bit too high because next thing I lost the fish. I was trembling with excitement.

The fish jumped out of the water. As he came down he probably hit a rock. He must have been stunned because he lay in the water on his side and didn’t move... Lucy was barking at him like crazy to alert us. She gets very excited when she is fishing.

With the fish being stunned we had a second chance, but someone had to move fast. Frank came to the rescue. He grabbed his net and scooped up the fish.

The fish was about a two and a quarter pounder. He had a golden pattern with red dots. Frank gave the fish to me to bring home. Trout fried in butter once more...my dad is a master at cooking fish. I helped him to gut the fish and put the butter in the pan. Then I got to eat it all by myself, and it was scrumptious.

Cong Canal July 2017

19/11/2017

This is me at the Cong canal. I caught my first fish here when I was five years old. The Cong Canal is a good place for catching wild brown trout. It connects Lough Mask and Lough Corrib. In July of this year at the start of the school holidays my dad and I spent a day there. My friend Rowan was also there. 

I caught the first fish of the day, a two Pounder on a rod borrowed from a friend. I caught it on a ledgered worm. This means there is no float. There is a ball of lead which pulls the worm under the water as it rolls in the current. 

Then my dad caught a two and a quarter Pounder trout on a float fished live caddis. A caddis is the maggot of a sedge fly. Trout love all stages of the caddis.

We gave the first fish to my friend, and we brought the larger trout home. My dad gutted the trout, and fried it in butter in the pan. Salmon is my favourite fish, but trout fried in butter is really nice too.