[laurie]

Hi All
Well this is my first attempt to join a forum , so firstly i appologies if i am not introducing my correctly, secondly i have 2 left hands so that is my excuse for hitting the key board badly and making spelling mistakes.

My Name is Lawrence Finney and i come from a small village called Moira In county Armagh Northern Ireland. I am a qualified A.P.G.A.I. instructor in fly dressing and my three passions in life is:

1. Fly dressing traditional Irish Lough patterns

2. Fly fishing on the Irish loughs for Brown trout and Atlanic Salmon

3. teaching my 3 year old grand daughter the basics of fly tying which will be a big job but well rewarding.

I have carried out a few fly tying demonstrations in Ireland and at the British fly fair where i have met 2 off the finest gentlemen from the states
Ted Patlen from Long Island and Tom Travis from Montana.
If these guys are a taste of the friendship of you fellow anglers i am in for years of pleasure on this site

[mikeo]

Originally Posted by laurie

Hi All
Well this is my first attempt to join a forum , so firstly i appologies if i am not introducing my correctly, secondly i have 2 left hands so that is my excuse for hitting the key board badly and making spelling mistakes.

My Name is Lawrence Finney and i come from a small village called Moira In county Armagh Northern Ireland. I am a qualified A.P.G.A.I. instructor in fly dressing and my three passions in life is:

1. Fly dressing traditional Irish Lough patterns

2. Fly fishing on the Irish loughs for Brown trout and Atlanic Salmon

3. teaching my 3 year old grand daughter the basics of fly tying which will be a big job but well rewarding.

I have carried out a few fly tying demonstrations in Ireland and at the British fly fair where i have met 2 off the finest gentlemen from the states
Ted Patlen from Long Island and Tom Travis from Montana.
If these guys are a taste of the friendship of you fellow anglers i am in for years of pleasure on this site

Welcome to the forum -- and I've got many great memories of Ireland (family is originally from Sligo -- generations ago though) -- the music, the pubs, the Guiness, the whisky AND the fishing -- met one of the better Irish fly fishermen (had been on Irish National Fly Fishing team I believe) here in Canada (he was a friend of the then co-owner of one of Toronto's best Irish pubs, Dora Keogh's) -- but can't remember his name -- but we exchanged great fishing memories

[Frank Whiton]

Hi Lawrence,

Welcome to the forum. Very glad to have you join. I will be looking forward to your post. I wonder if you can post some pictures of your flies. Here is a link to a FAQ on how to post pictures.

Frank

[laurie]

Hi Mikeo
great to hear from you Whiskey and Guiness are the key words here.


Hello Frank
thank you for your warm welcome, these are some of some of the patterns we use over here, sorry about the poor quality photos

[Frank Whiton]

Hi Lawrence,

Thanks for the pictures but they are too small to see well. Those are nice display cases.

Frank

[laurie]

Sorry about that
The framed flies are the ones i have been producing for visiting anglers, as they usually like to take back flies of the Loughs they have fisheD.
these are blow up photos of some of them
The Carra May



The Claret Octopus

The woven Damsel Nymph



The Melvin Muddler


The Woven mayfly nymph


I hope these are ok
Laurie

[Frank Whiton]

Hi Laurie,

Thanks for posting some close ups. Dang nice flies. I really like the color of the woven body on the Damsel Nymph. Great work.

Frank

[mikeo]

Totally agree -- DANG NICE FLIES!!!!! -- Laurie very nice indeed -- any chance you might pop across the pond and come and visit us North Americans -- I'm very sure your fly patterns would be winners over here too

Liked the display cases too -- but really liked the close-ups -- and yes, Whisky and Guiness -- is there any other way to finish off a good day's fishing but with a Guiness to whet your thirst and a Whisky to warm your heart

Just curious the chap I met from Ireland in Toronto at Dora Keogh's -- would you have any idea who that was?????

Finally an old Irish toast I learned while over there years back (first of several visits): "May the roof over our heads not fall in and the friends underneath it not fall out". Always liked that one especially if we were toasting new friends met on the river after a good day's angling.

[laurie]

Hi Frank
Sorry i am late getting back to you, i got a phone call at 4.30 AM local time from one of the guys from the river Mourne to say that there was a big run of Atlantic Salmon coming though.
Needless to say i was late coming in to work today. coneected with 2 beauties around 8lb but did not beach them i used barbless hooks so i managed to release them untouched.
Thanks for the compliments on the tyings, i am at the moment finishing off a series of new patterns, a cross between the Irish Dabbler and a Muddler.
I will be trying them out on Saturday as we have a big competition on Lough Melvin.Once i get the photos took i will put them on a post for you to see
All the best
Laurie

[laurie]

Hi Mikeo
I would dearly love to come over to the states.
a friend of mine came over to fish north of yelowstone this year and it was that good he went back a month later.
I have the chance to go to chille in February so i am looking into that.
Regarding your aquaintance at Dora Keoghs, i know a few of the Irish internationals so it could be any one og them.
Last year at the British fly fair i met 2 of your countrymen Tom Travis and Ted Patlen. i don,t know if you have heard of them but they are a great bunch of lads , and i look forward to seeing them again this year.
Another person who i have corresponded with is Steve Burke of salmonfly.net he is a reallypleasant person.
You never know i might just be able to make it over next year.
I would like to try out my detached may flies and snatchers
Laurie