River Foyle River Resource

RIVER FOYLE

River Foyle was compiled by Adrian Evans in 2011. Rivers of the World is a Thames Festival project delivered in partnership with the British Council’s Connecting Classrooms with support from HSBC Global Education Trust. www.riversoftheworld.org

River of Life River Foyle

The River Foyle is about twenty miles long, being formed upstream of Derry between the town of Lifford (County Donegal) and Strabane (County Tyrone) by the junction of the rivers Mourne and Finn. They are known as three enemies because the Foyle is tidal right up to this point and at high water the three turbulent rivers do seem to ‘fight’ each other as they merge. The River Foyle is the fastest flowing river in Europe of its size. Meandering swiftly through Derry, the River Foyle is about 300m wide and at high tide, about 13m deep. The river merges with Lough Foyle, a sea inlet, before discharging into the Atlantic Ocean. The River Foyle and Lough Foyle take their name from a mythical character, Feabhal Mac Lodain, who is said to be one of the semi-divine people known as Tuatha De Danann. The lough is said to have erupted suddenly, drowning Feabhal and casting his body ashore. It is possible to walk alongside the river for most of its length as it flows through Derry itself. Just below the walled city the river widens and opens up on its eastern side into Rosses Bay which is one and a quarter miles wide. From here the river narrows into its final channel before passing Culmore Point, about four miles below the city, where it opens out again merging into the sea. The Foyle is also known for the unspoilt naturalness of its banks and channel, and the richness of its plant and animal communities. The photograph below left is

taken looking downstream mid-way between Strabane and Derry. The Foyle system is one of the most important salmon river systems in Europe with thousands of salmon passing through the narrows at Magilligan Point each year, pouring out of the north Atlantic and surging towards their spawning grounds in gravel streams high in the hills of Donegal, Tyrone and Londonderry. Otters are found throughout the system, while a small population of the now rare freshwater pearl mussel is still present in the upstream reaches. One hundred and twenty kilometres of the Foyle and its tributaries is classified as an Area of Special Scientific Interest.

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River of Life Lough Foyle

On the north-eastern edge of the City of Derry, on the shores of Lough Foyle, large expanses of sea and mudflats were reclaimed in the middle of the nineteenth century. Today, these lands are protected from the sea by miles of sea walls and dikes. The area is an internationally important bird sanctuary, ranked among the top 30 wetland sites in the UK. The brackish dikes behind the shore of Lough Foyle support a

community of swamp vegetation which includes the rare saltmarsh grass and the spiral tasselweed. Lough Foyle is wide and shallow, and for centuries birds have flocked to the rich mudflats here with hundreds of thousands of them piling in over the autumn and winter to take advantage of the safe refuge and excellent feeding ground it offers. Whooper swan, pale-bellied Brent goose, wigeon and bar-tailed godwit (pictured left) winter in internationally significant numbers as do more than 25,000 swan, white-fronted goose, curlew and redshank. There are magnificent birds of prey too like buzzard, kestrel, merlin, peregrine, sparrow hawk and, rarely, gyrfalcon. The Foyle has also seen other wildlife like dolphins and seals, and has some of the best oyster beds and rich fishing grounds. In November 1977 an Orca killer whale swam into Lough Foyle in pursuit of a late salmon run. To the delight of thousands, in Derry city and from miles around, he stayed in the Lough for several days before being coaxed back into open water. His apparent inability to find his own way back out to sea had already caused him to be dubbed Dopey Dick.

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Polluted River Polluted

Maintaining clean waterways for our native salmon and trout is no easy task. The Loughs Agency prides itself on managing one of the most successful salmon fisheries in Western Europe. Their Adopt-A-Stream Programme provides an opportunity for groups to get together to tidy up and look after a local stream or river. Waterway cleanup projects create valuable positive learning experiences and help the environment and local community immensely. The Lough Foyle wetlands are of global significance because they support internationally important numbers of birds. Wetlands are constantly under threat from development and pollution. The latest figures reveal that in 1998/99, a total of 45,086 wetland birds were recorded at Lough Foyle, but in 2006/07 that number had dropped to 34,850. Issues of concern include loss of habitat due to the airport runway extension, and the potential impact of aquaculture and dredging. The Banksy-style graffiti piece pictured left emerged via art workshops at a youth club in Derry. Kids from the Fountain Estate have been working on a graffiti-art mural at the front of the Cathedral Youth Club in August 2010.

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Resourceful River Big Freeze

One of the worst winters ever seen in Derry was that of 1740. The river froze so hard that people could walk across. A fire was lit on the ice some distance out from the Ship Quay and crowds gathered round to witness the roasting of an ox. In the winter of 1813-14, usually seen as one of the really bad winters of the modern era, the River Foyle was solidly frozen over. Derry's thousand foot-long wooden bridge built in 1790 fared badly. When the thaw commenced, the melting ice around the uprights along with ice coming downstream caused 350 feet of the central spans to break away. It was a spectacular sight that left the remainder of the bridge in great danger of being swept away. It took months to rebuild and the Corporation could not find the funds to meet the repair bill. As a result the bridge was impounded and folk had to use the ferry to get to and from the city. Today’s Foyle Bridge (pictured left) opened in opened in May 1984 and carried over 30,000 vehicles a day. From early December 2010 to the first week of January 2011, temperatures plummeted again and, to the consternation of few and the delight of many, the River Foyle froze again (see photo of Craigavon Bridge above).

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Working River Docks

Derry developed as a trading port. The surrounding land was rich for agriculture and 94% of Derry’s exports were in linen, beef, bacon, pork, butter, eggs, hides, flax, corn meal and flour. Derry built up extensive trade connections with Britain, Europe and the colonies in America. And, right through to

the onset of the Second World War in 1939, when the last transatlantic steamer sailed from the port, Derry was one of the principal emigration ports in Ireland. One of the most notable shipping lines was the McCorkell Line whose most famous ship was the Minnehaha (pictured left), known as the "Green Yacht from Derry". Such was the exodus that Cities of Derry and Londonderry were founded by ex-pats in the state of New Hampshire, USA. Derry possessed an ideal situation. She stood at the head of a virtually land-locked Lough Foyle, 24 miles long and only 2 miles wide at its head. The Lough was sheltered from the prevailing westerly winds by the Inishowen peninsula, thus making it, in the age of sail, a harbour of refuge: accessible and safe in all weathers. Owing to her westerly situation Derry was seen as being halfway between London and the American colonies; a Derry ship “is no sooner out of the river, but she is immediately in the open sea and has but one course”. Derry’s strategic position as the United Kingdom's westernmost port led to it playing an important part in the Battle of the Atlantic during the Second World War. Ships from the Royal Navy, the Royal Canadian Navy, and other Allied navies were stationed in the city, and the US military established a base here. The large numbers of Allied personnel in the city provided Derry with cosmopolitan colour and romance while local men served abroad. At the conclusion of the Second World War, some 60 German U-boats surrendered on 8 May 1945 in the city's harbour at Lisahally (see photo above).

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Working River Working boats

Although the River Foyle is navigable (with care) all the way upstream of the city centre Craigavon Bridge, there are very few boats on the river these days. Traffic is now more or less restricted to pleasure boats with the occasional tanker coming in the refinery at the northern end of the town. A tour of the Foyle on board a small cruise ship called the Toucan One once provided tourists the chance to travel along the River Foyle from Derry city centre to Greencastle County Donegal on the shores of Lough Foyle. However, because of a lack of funding from various sources, this venture has now come to a standstill and the Toucan One lies rusting on its mooring along Queen's Quay in the city. The traditional fishing boat of the northern Irish coast, known as the ‘Drontheim’ would be a rare sighting. The Drontheim is characterised by a double-ended (i.e. the bow and the stern are almost identical), clinker-built hull (the planks of her sides overlap) and a retractable centre-board. They were two-masted and they also routinely carried four oars. These days, the easiest way to get on the water is via the Lough Foyle car and passenger ferry, which takes 20 minutes to cross from Magilligan Point in County Londonderry to Greencastle in County Donegal and runs every day.

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River City The Maiden City

Based on archaeological evidence, the Derry area is believed to be one of the oldest continuously inhabited places in Ireland. Even as late as the sixteenth century the hill was associated with taboos and superstitions, indicating a pre-Christian religious significance that was probably attached to the site of the ancient oak grove that gave the city its name. Old Derry was rightly likened to an island because in very early times the River Foyle had divided, east and west, around the central hill of the town.

The western branch had flowed roughly along the line of the present-day Lecky Road and Rossville Street. By 1600, however, this branch of the river had virtually disappeared and most of the low-lying western area had turned to marsh, now called the Bogside. Derry was the first planned city in Ireland and it remains one of the finest examples of a walled city in Europe. The Walls were built during the period 1613-1619 as defences for early seventeenth century settlers from England and Scotland. The Walls, which are approximately 1.5 km in circumference, are completely intact. The Walls form a walkway around the inner city and provide a unique promenade to view the layout of the original town which still preserves its Renaissance style street plan. The modern city preserves the seventeenth century layout of four main streets radiating from a central Diamond to four gateways: Bishop's Gate, Ferryquay Gate, Shipquay Gate and Butcher's Gate. Derry is the only remaining completely intact walled city in Ireland. It is one of the few cities in Europe that never saw its fortifications breached, withstanding several sieges, including one in 1689 which lasted 105 days, hence the city's nickname, The Maiden City. In 1921, Derry suddenly became a border city when the Irish Free State was founded. The city is just 2km from the border with County Donegal in the Republic of Ireland. In recent years, Derry has grown steadily both in terms of industry and population and is now Northern Ireland’s second city and the fourth largest city on the island of Ireland.

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River City Troubles

The city has long been a focal point for important events in Irish history, including the 1688-1689 Siege of Derry. The 105-day siege is still commemorated annually by the marches of the Apprentice Boys in the week-long Maiden City Festival. Discrimination against Roman Catholics by Unionists controlling both Northern Ireland’s government and the local authorities inspired several Civil Rights marches in 1968 and early 1969, blocked or attacked by the RUC and the B-Specials, which in turn led to the establishment of Free Derry. The starting point of the Troubles is often dated to the three-day Battle of the Bogside on 12th August 1969, when Republican rioters fought the police so effectively that the British government drafted military units

into the province to enforce peace. Although the troops were initially welcomed by many Nationalists, relations soon turned sour, at least partially due to vigorous propaganda by the IRA. On Sunday 30 January 1972, a peaceful civil rights march in the Bogside ended in tragedy when British paratroopers shot 13 unarmed civilians dead, and wounded another 13; one further man later died of his injuries. It was not until 2010 that a reinvestigation found all of those shot were unarmed, and that the killings were both “unjustified and unjustifiable”. On publication, the Prime Minister David Cameron, made a formal apology on behalf of the United Kingdom. Derry is split geographically and demographically by the River Foyle. The pair of bronze statues situated at the west end of Craigavon Bridge entitled 'Hands Across the Divide' by Maurice Harron (left) ,.eloquently speaks of this split. The river separates part of County Donegal in the Republic of Ireland from parts of both County Londonderry and County Tyrone in Northern Ireland. It also divides the city in another way. The eastern side (Cityside) is mostly Catholic, whereas the western side of the Foyle (Waterside) is mostly Protestant. At the 1991 census, the population of the Derry Local Government District was approximately 69% Catholic. Due to the presence of two bridges over the river in Derry, some people choose to attempt suicide by jumping into the deep and fast moving Foyle. 'Foyle Search and Rescue' was established as a charity in July 1993 and has adopted the role of protecting human life in the River Foyle from the Craigavon Bridge to the Foyle Bridge. Between 1993 and 2008 it dealt with more than a thousand people in distress.

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River City Derry / Londonderry

Derry is one of the oldest continuously inhabited places in Ireland. The earliest historical references date to the sixth century when a monastery was founded there by St Columba or Colmcille, a famous saint from what is now County Donegal, but for thousands of years before that people had been living in the vicinity. This monastery, founded by St Columba in the mid 500's AD, is the earliest known use of the word Derry (in the language of the Celts, 'Doire' meant 'A Grove of Oak Trees').

The city’s name was changed from Derry to Londonderry in 1613 to reflect the establishment of the city by the London guilds. While the city is more usually known as Derry, Londonderry is also used and remains the legal name. Officially, within the UK, the city is known as Londonderry. In the Republic of Ireland, the city and county are almost always referred to as Derry on maps, in the media and in conversation. The name Derry is preferred by nationalists and it is broadly used throughout Northern Ireland's Catholic community, as well as that of the Republic of Ireland, whereas many unionists prefer Londonderry. Official road signs in the Republic use the name Derry, whereas those in Northern Ireland bear Londonderry (sometimes abbreviated to L'Derry), although some of these have been defaced with the reference to London obscured. From April 2009, Irish passport holders who were born in the city could record either Derry or Londonderry as their place of birth. Interestingly, “Legenderry” is the name picking up popularity amongst a younger generation who don’t want to be labelled by the name they choose to call their city. The city is also nicknamed the Maiden City by virtue of the fact that its walls were never breached during the Siege of Derry in the late seventeenth century. It is also nicknamed Stroke City by local broadcaster Gerry Anderson, due to the 'politically correct' use of the oblique notation Derry/Londonderry (used by BBC Television). A recent addition to the landscape has been the erection of several large stone columns on main roads into the city welcoming drivers, euphemistically, to "the walled city."

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River City Crossings .

The River Foyle is the fastest flowing river in Europe for its size, making the construction of bridges to cross it difficult. The city's first bridge across the River Foyle was built in 1790 and this led to the founding of what is now the Waterside area of the city on the east bank. In Derry, the main crossing point, there are two bridges. The south bridge, the older of the two, is Europe's only road traffic double decker bridge, and is officially known as the Craigavon Bridge (popularly called the Blue Bridge). In fact, the lower deck was originally used for rail traffic, before being converted to a roadway.

The northern bridge, known as the Foyle Bridge, is a much larger bridge and was built to accommodate large ocean vessels at a time when it was envisaged that the city would need to accommodate such vessels. However, this proved unnecessary as the main port was moved several miles north of the city and the large vessels it was designed for never had to come so far south. The Foyle Bridge is the longest bridge in Ireland. Outside of Derry, the only bridge to cross the River Foyle is Lifford Bridge, which was built in the 1960s between Lifford, the county town of County Donegal on the western bank of the river, and Strabane, a major town in County Tyrone on the eastern bank. Derry’s new Peace Bridge (illustrated above) aims to unify the two historically divided parts of the city. It will connect the historic city centre on the west bank of the Foyle with a proposed mixed-use development on the site of the disused Ebrington Army Barracks on the east bank. The 315m suspension bridge will be the biggest single regeneration project in Derry since the Foyle Bridge was built over thirty years ago. “Third Bridge” (pictured left) commissioned by Sustrans, the cycle network from artist Noah Rose cleverly plays on the North South political divide in Ireland. Two viewing structures made from a disused railway foot-bridge cut in half; each half installed opposite the other, cantilevered out over the river to form a bisected bridge across the River Foyle. At night the empty span is connected by a laser light, a virtual bridge, to symbolise the uniting of the divided halves.

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River of Culture Angling

The Foyle and other rivers in the catchment area are famed in angling circles for catches of brown trout, sea trout and salmon. Angling has the potential to bring considerable economic benefits to Northern Ireland. Since 1995, approximately £9 million of investment has been allocated to improve angling and to encourage angling tourists to visit Northern Ireland. Many of the Foyle rivers get great runs of sea trout from mid-July onwards. Salmon anglers on the Foyle system

enjoy healthy runs of larger salmon moving into the system from August onwards, and over recent years salmon of 20lb+ have been landed. The river is tidal and fishes best when the tide is out and when there are low water conditions upstream in the tributaries. The season runs from April 1st to October 20th. Some waters are in public ownership, some are in private, while others are leased to clubs. The village of St Johnston, which lies on the County Donegal bank of the river, is a major fishing settlement on the Foyle. Local man Patsy Mc Hugh (left) had the fish of a lifetime on 18 May 2010. Taken from Lifford Bridge, at the confluence of the River Foyle and River Finn, the monster weighed in at 33½ lbs! Many think that with careful investment, the River Foyle could be one of the top salmon-producing rivers in the country. The Loughs Agency, a cross-border agency with responsibility for the River Foyle, Lough Foyle and surrounding waterways, runs an angling academy which provides introductory courses for those who have never even picked up a rod before, and for those who would like some professional coaching and advice from the experts. Angling aside, the river is also home to a number of sporting clubs and a small mooring facility has been recently added for small yachts outside the Derry City Council offices in the heart of Derry. The main sports on the river are canoeing, sailing and rowing. People take part in water-skiing and jet-skiing in the summer.

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River Culture Foyle Days & Nights

There are many river-based events to enjoy throughout the year and many more in 2013 when Derry will become the first city to be designated UK City of Culture.

Over the second weekend of June, Foyle Days Festival encourages people to remember the city’s maritime history and

heritage while enjoying a great family day out. The Festival is a fun-filled family event that offers the perfect weekend with something for everyone. Past events have included a Royal Navy patrol ship open for public view; water-based activities such as kayaking and an eco tour on a Canadian Bell Boat; a visit by a number of tall ships; a portable diving pool with scuba-diving sessions; supervised canoeing with the Foyle Paddlers and eco-based tours of the River Foyle, exploring the riverbanks and creeks of the tidal Foyle. Derry City Council’s Biodiversity team is on hand with information on the importance of Lough Foyle and River Foyle systems for wildlife and you can learn about local rivers that are internationally important for many different fish, mammal and bird species. The Foyle Days Festival also features Nature trail quizzes and craft activities for children while adults can learn more about Derry’s Local Biodiversity Action Plan. The annual Boat Race between the City of Derry Boating Club and the Bann Rowing Club takes place on 25 September. The two teams compete for the coveted Carlingford Cup, a trophy dating back to the 1860s, which had been raced annually on the Foyle up to the late 1960’s. Encouraged by a revival in the sport and the increase of marine leisure activities on the River Foyle, the two clubs decided to revive this annual event. On October 31st, the Banks of the Foyle Halloween Carnival (known in Irish as Féile na Samhna) claims to be Europe’s greatest Halloween celebration with haunted houses to explore and pirate cruises on the Foyle. There’s a world famous carnival parade followed by a spectacular fireworks display over the River Foyle.

Documents

River Foyle River Resource