Mourne and Derg reports w/e 7 May 2011
Posted by admin on May 9th, 2011 - Comments Off on Mourne and Derg reports w/e 7 May 2011
Mourne O for the power of prayer! Rain finally arrived late on Friday night, with heavy thundery showers falling around Castlederg and Omagh. On Saturday morning the Derg showed little more than a couple of inches but by lunch-time it was up about three feet and dirty, combined with a few inches in the Strule. The Mourne rose about eighteen inches and as expected after the dry weather it was also dirty. By Sunday morning the Mourne had fallen back but remained at a good fishable height and just about clean enough for a fly. I fished on Sunday evening downstream of Sion Mills but saw nothing; it was evident that heavy showers up-river were affecting water levels with small rises of only a few inches stirring up dirt and combined with a strong gusting southerly wind hitting the back of your neck, it made for testing conditions. That’s my excuse anyway!
Fish were still landed during the week even during the dry bright sunshine with several caught between Strabane and Sion Mills. As usual, the Gravenue and Lifford Bridge featured. There was also a couple of fish played and lost above Victoria Bridge on Sunday morning which is encouraging for upper Mourne beats.
The outlook for the week ahead looks promising with short spells of rain forecast throughout the week; this should be enough to keep the Mourne fishable and encourage a few more springers to leave the Foyle. Hopefully a few grilse should start appearing soon as well.
Derg Nothing to report.