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An individual, of no great importance, who is unable to see the natural world as a place for competition. I catch fish, watch birds, derive immense pleasure from simply looking at butterflies, moths, bumble-bees, etc - without the need for rules! I am Dylan and this is my blog - if my opinions offend? Don't bother logging on again - simple!

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Saturday 26 December 2015

A Boxing Day result

It was just after 06.00 hrs that I drove off, into the darkness, headed for a small drain out on The Ash Levels. I've taken a few pike from the venue, in the past, and felt that it would be a good bet for a bite, or two, although the fish were unlikely to be big.
The dawn was a drab affair, cloudy skies masking the rising sun and a there was a boisterous wind blasting across the marsh, although it remains very mild: 13C! As the light intensified, a few Fieldfares left their roost, noisily passing overhead towards the distant orchards. I got three rods out before 07.20 hrs and sat back to watch the dawn. Within the hour, I had a couple of bleeps from the middle rod (red dyed trout) and a short lift on the monkey - bloody eels! Twenty minutes later and my left hand rod was away - 1/2 mackerel, dyed yellow, was picked up by a pike and, after a spirited battle, found itself engulfed within the folds of my 30" barbel net. A nice plump little fish which registered 10 lbs 4 oz on the Avons - result! I've got hold of a tiny tri-pod, on which I used my camera to obtain a series of record shots.


The rest of the session saw a "jack attack", on the mackerel again, but it was very quiet and I watched a distant Short-eared Owl battling against the wind. Why an owl would attempt to hunt under these conditions is a mystery - although hunger might play a part, these winds have been blowing for a prolonged period and owls will have struggled to find food recently. A  few distant Greylags and a soaring Common Buzzard were about the best of the rest. Nice to be outside and very happy with the fish.

2 comments:

  1. Seasons greetings Dyl. Or is it sessions greetings?
    Glad to see you're getting among them. Here in NZ the highlight is watching a Caspian Tern catching more fish than me just yards away.
    Since I bought my mother in law a laptop and got her a broadband connection, I thought I might just send this message.

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    1. Rich - festive greetings to you and your family also. That's an awful long way to go for a Caspian Tern! Hoping your trip is living up to expectations and you are enjoying better weather than we're experiencing here in the UK. I'm hopeful of getting a few more sessions in before my return to work, on the 4th Jan. Take care and safe journey home - Dyl

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