First salmon, June 1992

[petekd]

Aged 15, first salmon, caught on a small gold and brown Devon minnow in the Crana river...... On trying to beach the fish, the line snapped and I jumped in on top of it to stop it from escaping :D . Not the first soaking I ever got trying to land a fish and certainly not the last...... I can still see the boil that fish made on the surface as it sucked in my spinner and turned. Ah, memories.....

[hairyconger]

Nice one petekd :D , once seen some rocket jumping into the crolly river in crolly(donegal) after a salmon on his way to be holy on Sunday :shock: :lol:

[cathalger]

Hi Pete,
Looks like a good size of a fish that? We went on a family hol to Downings in July 86, I was11. Fishin rods came too. We were out on a drive, 8 or us stuffed into a mark 2 escort. Going over Lackagh bridge we stopped for a look. Will never forget the shoals of salmon surging upstream, Ive seen salmon running many times since but not in the manner I saw that day, shoals of fish lunging their way up like dolphins surfacing. A big run of grilse.

My Da thought it'd be a good idea to let us have a throw, so me and my brother(aged 9) tried to throw weights and sea spinners to the fish. Couldnt even reach them with our 5 foot starter pack rods. But we got 5 or 6 crap casts and a bailiff showed up. Not surprising, we were fishing from the wee road that goes upstream from Lackagh bridge, there was a wee house in there too. My Da tried to reason with him that the fish were safe enough with us about and it was only to please us and shut us up we were having a throw, but yer man moved us on anyway, no aggro, it was more comical to him than anything.

The next time I was on the Lackagh was July 98. Legally this time, being instructed to have a go By Eddie Carr from Creeslough. Virtually in the gap of the stone weir I got a lovely head and tail rise to a size 12 Silver stoat double. Sea liced 3lb 4oz grilse, was over joyed. Half an hour later I had an identical rise in the same place but the hook didnt stick. Nearly had a brace.

The Lackagh is a great river but I think its a lot more expensive to fish these days.

I never fished the Crana myself, are you from Buncrana?

Cathal.

[johnfish]

some sight when there coming through that wee bridge on the lackagh,saw a run of at least 1000 grilse through it one day,i turned round to my mate and said pity we didnt see any big ones when straight away a twenty pounder swam under the bridge and as we watched accelerated to the suface and did a somersault ,amazing sight.sad news is i hear the lackagh is lucky if it gets 1000 fish a season now,and the cranas in trouble as well.

[cathalger]

I think they were all prolific rivers not that many years ago, its a cryin shame the way the fish have declined. I saw some bonkers runs on the Finn too, havent salmon fished much this past 8 years or so but my brother is still obsessed with it (thankfully Ive fully recovered) and says the Finn would break your heart. Fishless floods in late June when it should to be jammed with fish.

Still I think what I saw as a kid on the Lackagh in 86 the best run of fish I ever saw, we must have just landed as the tide came right, was mad. To see the like of that again I may go to Alaska!!

That 20 pounder must have been some sight going airborne like that.