Taoiseach Bertie Ahern
and General De Chastelain
launch 'Hooked on the Moy'

“Hooked on the Moy” Magazine could not have asked for a better launch in spring 2000 when the first edition came rolling hot off the press. In May of that year, two of Ireland’s leading figures came together to wish the River Moy and this publication every success. The Taoiseach, Mr. Bertie Ahern T.D. and General John De Chastelain, Chairman of the Decommissioning Body in Northern Ireland were guests of honour at a reception in Dublin which was attended by over 250 guests.

On opening formalities, the editor of ‘Hooked on the Moy’, John Geary, welcomed both the Taoiseach and General De Chastelain and thanked them for taking time out of their busy schedule to attend this unique launch. He gave some background information on the River Moy to the assembled guests and later paid tribute to the North Western Fisheries Board, the owners and angling clubs along the river, the contributors to the magazine, the advertisers and all the people who helped make the publication possible.

General De Chastelain, a keen fisherman himself, spoke on the topic – ‘Fishing - for peace and tranquillity”. There was unprecedented interest from the national press on the night with camera crews from the BBC, RTE, TV3 and Reuters attending the launch of the magazine. With the Peace Process at a momentous juncture at that particular time, the media were anticipating major political statements to be made, but instead the two men stayed clear of politics and enjoyed a night of fishing and friendships.

General De Chastelain said it was a distinct pleasure for him to attend the launch. He said he had met John Geary on a visit to University Collage Galway a couple of years ago and through conversation they discovered a common interest in angling.

“I am a fisherman. I love fishing and there’s nothing more I like doing than heading off with my fly rod and fishing bag.” He said he had accepted the invitation to speak at the launch because he was so impressed with the magazine when he received a copy. “It will help not only the fishing business in the West of Ireland but a lot of anglers too.” Over the course of his speech, General De Chastelain said he was greatly looking forward to fishing the River Moy in the near future and having a day on the Ridge Pool.

In a most humorous speech, the Taoiseach admitted that he was not an angler himself, but that angling and politics had much in common! “In angling and politics, it is vital to know where to stand, to choose the right tackle, to find the right bait and to patiently wait until you see the enemy hooked. Anglers like politicians also have a good eye for the weather and the way the winds and tides can change,” he jestingly said.

“I am here to say that I am ‘Hooked on the Moy’. I am hooked, not as an angler, but as leader of a government which values the Moy and indeed all our great salmon rivers as vital assets. The Moy is one of the finest salmon fisheries in the world. We want to keep it that way. Mr. Ahern said that over the past few years, an investment of almost £2m under the Tourism Angling Measure had greatly assisted the River Moy with salmon habitat development.

“Great credit is due to John Geary and everybody concerned with the publication. It is beautifully presented, extremely well researched and well written. It is a wonderful initiative and is a prime example of what can be achieved through local partnership, bringing together local knowledge and information about the Moy into one publication.

The Taoiseach continued: “New Tourist anglers join an elite group which includes my colleague David Andrews, General John De Chastelain and big Jack Charlton who likes nothing better during his leisure time than putting a few salmon ‘under pressure’”.

Mr. Ahern said he knew that after a day’s fishing on the Moy, that many ‘fishy’ stories are swapped in the local pubs around Foxford and Ballina and that as the night gets later the salmon somehow usually get bigger!

Mr. Ahern said the magazine is of tremendous value to our efforts in attracting tourist anglers to the Moy Valley region, “where even when the fish aren’t biting, there is always the magnificent scenery to admire, with Nephin mountains and Lough Conn out to the west and the Ox Mountains to the east.”