On Tuesday morning I was privileged to join the family and friends of Noel Griffith, formerly of Ballindine, Co. Mayo at Spiddal Pier to mark the first anniversary of Noel’s passing.

Noel was an accomplished and dedicated sea angler, a founding member of the Galway Buccaneers SAC, and a great friend to anglers from far and wide. His enthusiasm for the sport was legendary, and there was scarcely a mile of Conancht coastline that he had not fished, and many more further afield, including trips to Norway and Scotland in recent years. I first met Noel on a beach during a competition many years ago, when we were pegged beside each other. Fishing was slow, and we had plenty of time to chat. He was a very engaging person, and everyone who knew him would tell you that he could talk for Ireland – he would chat to anybody who would listen! He took no prisoners, mind, and was straight talking when he needed to be, but he never fell out with anyone who didn’t deserve it! He had a great sense of humour, and his friends would all agree there was never a dull moment when Noel was in your company.

Family and friends of Noel Griffith took a short trip on the Maighdean Mara in Galway Bay, to mark a year since his untimely passing and to scatter his ashes in the ocean he loved to fish.
Family and friends of Noel Griffith took a short trip on the Maighdean Mara in Galway Bay, to mark a year since his untimely passing and to scatter his ashes in the ocean he loved to fish.

Two of the local charter skippers, John Fleming and Kevin MacGabhann, very kindly took the assembled group out into Galway Bay to scatter Noel’s Ashes and cast a wreath into the bay to remember him. Noel had fished aboard Kevin’s boat many times, and loved Galway Bay, so it was a fitting place for him to be laid to rest. Friends travelled from near and far, including Al Marsden from Belfast, a longtime close friend of Noel who spent many weekends and holidays fishing with him in the west of Ireland. Alan Kelly from Galway Buccaneers also organised a guard of honour from local anglers for Noel’s last journey.

The group also cast four red roses into the bay to mark the passing of the crew of Rescue 116. The rescue helicopters of the Irish Coastguard are a familiar and reassuring sight to anglers on the Irish coast, and their grief and loss is shared by the angling community. Noel fished Belmullet on many occasions, and without doubt he would have been one of the volunteers searching the coastline there in the days after the tragic events of last March.

Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam dílis.

Flowers to commemorate the memory of Noel Griffith, whose family and friends gathered to scatter his ashes in his beloved Galway Bay. RIP Noel
Flowers to commemorate the memory of Noel Griffith, whose family and friends gathered to scatter his ashes in his beloved Galway Bay. RIP Noel