Restored to order…

Tags

Fly Rod, Martinez & Bird, Restoration

The restored Martinez & Bird Windrush fly rod

I recently gave an old Martinez & Bird fly rod to Richard Narewski to restore, it wasn’t in too bad a condition but was in need to a bit of tidying. There were several whippings where the thread had become brittle and loose.
Several of the guides were a little corroded and the rod just looked a little tired. I originally purchased the rod from John Andrews, a purveyor of fine vintage tackle who takes up station in Spitalfields Market on a Thursday, normally seen between the hours of 7am and 3pm drinking mugs Victory Gin. In its original state the rod was worth the £25 I paid John and was probably fishable.

My friend Bob introduced me to Richard a few months back. Hidden under Richmond Bridge was a small workshop from where Richard operates, building and restoring rods to a very high standard. We met with Richard during the week to take delivery of Little Tales restored rod. It was beautiful done, the light honey coloured cane worked well with the ruby silk intermediate and guide whippings.

Unfortunately earlier that day we learned that Richard had been the victim of a break in, his shed at home had been broken into and the perpetrators of the crime had stolen his hand made spinning rods, Korum rod bags, Korum fishing seat, all his terminal tackle and his prized Gary Fisher bike.

We had time to share a jar or two of Young’s Special at the White Cross, partly to cheer Richard up and give us time to talk about our recent fishing exploits in Cornwall. Richard makes great spinning rods, light spinning rods were what was required to fish some of the rocky outcrops of the coves we found.

Bass Fishing In Cornwall

Tags

Bass, Books, Camping, Cornwall, Falmouth, Fishing, Helford Village, Maenporth, Pandora Inn, Vintage

I apologise for the lack of posts on my blog of late but lack of internet service has been the primary reason. Both on the North Norfolk Coast and in the depths of Cornwall internet or mobile service just isn’t great but the upside to this is that if you are away on holiday you do feel you are away from it all.

Bass Lands

Our recent journey took us to Maenporth on the outskirts of Falmouth. We were camping at Pennance Mill Farm, tucked away in a valley with a trickling stream and only minutes away from a sandy beach surrounded by rocks.

We were in an ideal location for a spot of bass fishing but after a week of searching out the quarry we can only report that this year we blanked. However, we did find some great marks and also some great tackle shops on our journey. I was pointed in the direction of The Tackle Box, now run by Art Of Fishing who focus on bass fishing with light rods and a great selection of lures and soft baits. What I did find in Falmouth was a second-hand bookshop with a good selection of vintage fishing books of which I purchased those that related to Rock Fishing something I was going to be doing over the next few days.

On one outing to Helford we came across the Shipwrights Inn a fantastic pub nestled in the heart of Helford Village that served fine Cornish Ales and Tarquin’s Dry Gin, the first Cornish Gin I’ve been aware of. If you find yourself in Helford Village this Inn is a worth a visit.

Last Stop Tackle Shop Lizard

The most southerly tackle shop I found was on the Lizard, this being run by Phillip and aptly called The Last Stop. This gem of a find is tucked away in an out building of a farm-yard and had a more than adequate array of tackle that could more than answer the needs of the most discerning bass fisher.

Our visit to the Lizard was capped off by an evenings Whippet Racing in aid of the RNLI, this weekly event was amusing especially when you can enter your own mutt for a race at the end of the competitive stuff.

First light, bass fishing on the morning high tide.

A couple of early starts of high spring tides resulted in no sightings or knocks by those predatory fish but we did manage to catch a fresh supply of sand eels that swam in the deep gully we found on one secluded beach. This beach was however frequented by those in the know, some deciding to sleep out overnight and catch both tides.

Bass Creek, a deep inlet full of sand eels

After a brief conversation with two fellow fishermen it was clear that the lack of mackerel off shore had an impact on the lack of bass around. Even with large numbers of sand eels visible there seemed to be few fish chasing them down. I did learn of one fisherman that managed to catch a 6.5lb bass off the point to the entrance of the large gully I had fished the day before.

I tackled up with a Dexters Wedge at the end of a trace of mackerel feathers but ended up resorting to changing the rig to much smaller feathers in order to catch a few sand eels to use as bait suspended over the rock on an Eva Float later, however this didn’t result in any takes. Simply, the fish weren’t there, well not where I was fishing.

Young Tales was having a ball as he was accompanied by a school friend on this holiday and her family were a delight to be around. We managed to get in some crab fishing down by the Pandora Inn and an early morning fishing excursion to Swanpool resulted in numerous small Pollock taken on Sabiki lures.

We will return again later in the year and maybe the bass will be inshore in greater numbers, who knows what we did take away with us were some treasured moments and memories that will last a lifetime.

Bass Fishing In Cornwall

Tags

Bass Fishing, Beach, Cornwall, fishing books, Fishing Tackle, Lizard, Maenporth, Sand Eels

I apologise for the lack of posts on my blog of late but lack of internet service has been the primary reason. Both on the North Norfolk Coast and in the depths of Cornwall internet or mobile service just isn’t great but the upside to this is that if you are away on holiday you do feel you are away from it all.

Bass Lands

Our recent journey took us to Maenporth on the outskirts of Falmouth. We were camping at Pennance Mill Farm, tucked away in a valley with a trickling stream and only minutes away from a sandy beach surrounded by rocks.

We were in an ideal location for a spot of bass fishing but after a week of searching out the quarry we can only report that this year we blanked. However, we did find some great marks and also some great tackle shops on our journey. I was pointed in the direction of The Tackle Box, now run by Art Of Fishing who focus on bass fishing with light rods and a great selection of lures and soft baits. What I did find in Falmouth was a second-hand bookshop with a good selection of vintage fishing books of which I purchased those that related to Rock Fishing something I was going to be doing over the next few days.

On one outing to Helford we came across the Shipwrights Inn a fantastic pub nestled in the heart of Helford Village that served fine Cornish Ales and Tarquin’s Dry Gin, the first Cornish Gin I’ve been aware of. If you find yourself in Helford Village this Inn is a worth a visit.

Last Stop Tackle Shop Lizard

The most southerly tackle shop I found was on the Lizard, this being run by Phillip and aptly called The Last Stop. This gem of a find is tucked away in an out building of a farm-yard and had a more than adequate array of tackle that could more than answer the needs of the most discerning bass fisher.

Our visit to the Lizard was capped off by an evenings Whippet Racing in aid of the RNLI, this weekly event was amusing especially when you can enter your own mutt for a race at the end of the competitive stuff.

First light, bass fishing on the morning high tide.

A couple of early starts of high spring tides resulted in no sightings or knocks by those predatory fish but we did manage to catch a fresh supply of sand eels that swam in the deep gully we found on one secluded beach. This beach was however frequented by those in the know, some deciding to sleep out overnight and catch both tides.

Bass Creek, a deep inlet full of sand eels

After a brief conversation with two fellow fishermen it was clear that the lack of mackerel off shore had an impact on the lack of bass around. Even with large numbers of sand eels visible there seemed to be few fish chasing them down. I did learn of one fisherman that managed to catch a 6.5lb bass of the point to the entrance of the large gully I had fished the day before.

I tackled up with a Dexters Wedge at the end of a trace of mackerel feathers but ended up resorting to changing the rig to much smaller feathers in order to catch a few sand eels to use as bait suspended over the rock on an Eva Float later, however this didn’t result in any takes. Simply, the fish weren’t there, well not where I was fishing.

Young Tales was having a ball as he was accompanied by a school friend on this holiday and her family were a delight to be around. We managed to get in some crab fishing down by the Pandora Inn and an early morning fishing excursion to Swanpool resulted in numerous small Pollock taken on Sabiki lures.

We will return again later in the year and maybe the bass will be inshore in greater numbers, who knows what we did take away with us were some treasured moments and memories that will last a lifetime.

Mountains to Marsh

We were back in Yellowstone Monday to do more exploring. Having never been to this part of the country we were more than happy to play tourist. So after a nice breakfast at the Trouthunter Lodge we were back on the road to the Park.

We started the day with a stroll around the Norris Geyser Basin (though we did stop at Gibbon Falls on the way).

We didn’t hang around too long as we were a little “geysered” out from the day before (probably not good when in Yellowstone). We were really looking forward to the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone so we made our way eastward toward Canyon.

The view of the Canyon and Lower Falls from Artist’s Point was spectacular. It truly was one of the most amazing sights on the trip – maybe even my favorite spot in the Park. I’m a sucker for canyons and…

View original post 223 more words

Crabbing in Norfolk Part III or is it Part IV

Tags

Art Of Fishing, Bass, Cley next the Sea, Crabbing, Falmouth, Fishing, lure, Norfolk, RNLI, Wells-Next-The-Sea

 Another year, another adventure on the North Norfolk Coast, but all too brief.

We could only manage to get away for a few days in the County of The Big Blue Sky, Nelson’s county. Our destination was Wells-next-the Sea on the North Norfolk Coast and the location of the Pinewood Caravan Park. This has become a sanctuary for Tales household for our annual vacation to this part of the country, it’s one holiday we look forward to.

Pinewoods has been a caravan park since the 60’s, much changed and developed however is a quite and well maintained park with excellent facilities.

Crabbing in Wells-next-the-Sea

It was within minutes of arriving that young Tales demanded that the crab bucket and net was needed, the annual crab net hurling competition started and within two throws one large crab found its way into the net having been tempted in this year with up-market bait of cod instead of the usual bacon or pork off-cut, the latter being by far thPe best bait.

Crabbing at Wells-next-the-Sea

The harbour walls were awash with people leaning over the rails looking down into sea, lines cut the water and on occasion the whole contraption would be cast followed by cries and tears. I did manage to help one person retrieve their net by snagging the bright yellow line that flowed in the incoming tide by attaching a small hook and ledger weight and casting it out, after several attempts we succeeded. 

This year is wasn’t quantity for young tales but quality, having netted one of the largest crabs for several years it seemed to answer the initial desire so my normal hours of net hurling was cut down to a respectable 45 minutes.

Under grey clouds.

Under stormy skies my own fishing exploits resulted in a blank, I was not after crabs but a prized silver bar of Norfolk bass. I decided to spin with a line of feathers tipped with a small Dexters Wedge and fished in the deep gully that now runs close the RNLI Lifeboat Station. After an hour or so with not even a knock I felt that I should have been fishing with fresh bait instead.

Steve, the bass fisher.

The following evening at low tide I met Steve, a well dressed fisherman that was targeting bass and flatties. Tackled up with extremely light gear, small jig heads, poppers and spinners he made his way up the beach casting his baits a fair distance with his beautifully balanced rod, line and reel. Fishing 6lb line he could cast his 5g jig head 30 yards and work the current perfectly. We chatted for a while about the virtues of fishing light gear and he pointed me in the direction of a tackle shop in Cornwall called the Art Of Fishing, where I could acquire a fine 7-8ft spinning rod like the one he was fishing with. As Cornwall is our next location a visit to the shop in Falmouth will be on the agenda, so thanks to Steve for the advice.  I hope he managed to catch a fish, as the last I saw of him was as an isolated silhouette of a figure in the distance but with ripples here and there of mullet or possibly bass on the evening tide.

So onwards to Falmouth for our next adventure.

See http://www.artoffishing.co.uk

Gone Fishing…

Tags

Fishing, Holiday, Norfolk

The bags are packed and off we go to the North Norfolk Coastal Path for another adventure.

Waterways and Rivers of Norfolk

Tags

Abu Cardinal, Bass, Chris Clemes, Coastal Path, Fishing, Fly Rod, Mitchell 306, North Norfolk, Salthouse, Wells-Next-The-Sea, Weybourne

 

Norfolk waterways and rivers

It’s that time of year when we pack our bags and head to the North Norfolk Coast for our annual vacation. This year it will be a short stay as we will also be heading to the south-west to Falmouth and the Lizzard in a few days time.

The Chapman Shelford split cane rod

The car will be packed with a couple of vintage sea rods, a fly rod for bass fishing and we’ll take a new addition to the collection of rods a Chapmans Shelford split cane rod. Paired to these rods will be a dependable Mitchell 306 and Abu Cardinal 77 for the sea rods, an old Shakespeare Beaulite for fly fishing for bass and a Mitchell 300 for the Shelford.

The Chapman Shelford split cane rod was a great find, purchased from a lady in Manchester, it was the prized rod of her late husband.

The Shelford and Amwell were both 11′, 3 piece bottom rods made in the 50’s. Chapmans made an Amwell SP during the 60’s but the longer 12′ and 14′ Hunter version were made in the mid fifties. These rods are now fetching good money on the second had market and a mint condition Shelford or Amwell will set you back £150-250.

I recently saw a ‘Peter Stone 600, 10’, 3 piece and a Peter Stone Ledgerstrike 2 piece make £295 on eBay. Some other split cane coarse rods have been trading hands at £600-700, does this indicate a trend towards vintage rods and a preference to cane over modern carbon composites?

I will be writing up about my recent meeting with Chris Clemes and his fantastic Harmony and Symphony fly rods which I tried out in Green Park in St James’s of all places. These split cane rods I classify as ‘tools of the trade’, simply one of the most balanced and beautifully made rods I have ever tried, effortless casting with silk line and married to one of his own hand-made reels that are made with the precision of a watchmaker. See http://chrisclemes.co.uk for further details.

detail of the Chapman Shelford

I hope to be able to report back in a few days details of our fishing exploits and hopefully a picture of a bar of silver from the beach at Salthouse or Weybourne. There will be without question the annual crab catching competition from the Albatros moored at Wells-next-the-Sea see http://www.wells-guide.co.uk whilst I partake in a pint of Woodforde’s Nelson’s Revenge or Wherry Bitter.

Rainbows in the shadows…

Tags

Fly Fishing, Hardy Viscount 130, Montana, Nymph, Robins Wood Fishery, Sportfish

A trio of Robins Wood rainbows

A fine trio of Robins Wood rainbows fell to a slowly fished size 10 Montana fly. It was possibly the hottest day of the year, the sun was radiating its full heat by mid afternoon and there was little shade except for the wooded Herons Lake and the lower lake known as Kingfishers.

Little Tales decided to fish the lower lake where the temperature seemed a few degrees lower. In the late afternoon dappled sunlight and close under a tree a couple of rising fish could be seen. With a short cast in order to flick the line under the tree and a slow retrieve allowing the nymph to drop in the surface film it wasn’t long before a solid take took the tip of the Sportfish #4 rod round in an arc and put a bend in it as the fish headed deep and undercover of the over growing bramble on the bank to our right. This hard fighting fish was putting the vintage Hardy Viscount 130 reel through its paces with several runs from left to right and one strong run out ahead of us that took the line off the reel with speed and gave some concern as to if we would ever land this fish. After a good 10 minutes the fish swam straight towards us and by stepping back we could turn the fish over to net it.

A couple of casts in the same area saw the fish move beneath the surface, with a hard take on a gentle retrieve, again another 3lb rainbow made our hearts race as we struggled on such light tackle to control this strong fighting silver bar. There were several splashes as fish broke the surface chasing damsels that flew close to the surface. Casting into the shade once more the line was pulled with force as another hungry rainbow was tempted by the slow retrieve. What saw looking to be a blank in the heat of this scorching first August summers day turned out to be one of the better days at this beautiful Surrey fishery.