Playing stuck in the mud…

Tags

Brown Trout, Burns, Glenrothes, Grayling, Hampshire, Lower Itchen Fishery, Mortlach, Mud, Old, Rare, Single Malt, Trotting, Whisky

Having promise young Tales a trip to the Lower Itchen Fishery in order to catch a Grayling, today was the day. We headed South down the M3 at just after 7am.

There had been a fair amount of preparation, a weather watch, fresh bait and all the tackle assembled the night before in the drawing room.

Having arrived at the Lower Itchen Fishery at just after 9am a quick call was put into Clayton the Fishery Bailiff and River Keeper, later in the day he was also to be our saviour.

As it’s now late on Sunday evening I’ll write up a full account of our exploits tomorrow as both young Tales and I are exhausted but I will leave you a few pictures of today’s fishing foray.

It’s now time to raise a dram to Burns on Burns Night, a wee flight of Mortlach Rare Old for its fruit and spice notes and a more heady Glenrothes as I settle in for the evening to reflect on a memorable and wonderful days fishing.

We bid you a good evening.

Crimson Tide…

Tags

Grayling, Hardy, Lower Itchen Fishery Twisted Nose Gin, River Itchen, Vintage Tackle, Winchester

Where this week has gone I’m not sure but I have a full day ahead of me tomorrow, Friday will be an admin day with a few telephone calls to make, Saturday is Market Day and Sunday, yes Sunday is ‘ Dad I’ve got a fish day’, well hopefully young Tales will round off the winter with a pewter and crimson coloured Grayling in the net.

With freezing temperatures across the UK I imagine the rolling hills and meadows of Hampshire to have been covered in frost most mornings. The rivers that run through the County I will be coloured unless by chance the run off from the hills has slowed recently but from the looks of our nearby Thames tributaries they are still running fast and with colour. One thing we did learn this week was of a new Gin Distillery based in Winchester, so that will be worth a visit or at least to a local pub that stocks the Twisted Nose Gin, in order to taste its 10 botanical elixir.

All week young Tales eagerness has not dwindled, in fact by the time I got home this evening he was engrossed in watching YouTube videos of Grayling fishing, momentarily lifting his head in recognition of my presence he then looked back at the screen. I asked had he learned anything, a prompt response indicated that he had.

There were further deliveries today of vintage tackle to The House Of Tales, soon to be offered for sale. A package from West Lothian of dapping flies, a box of Mayflies from Yorkshire and a Hardy reel case from Wales. There are more packages to arrive from a recent buying spree. Hopefully I will have all the items listed and photographed before the end of the month in order to complete the new page on talesbytheriverbank .

Well it’s now time to shut the iPad down, a new day will soon be upon us and another day closer to walking the banks of the River Itchen in pursuit of ‘the lady of the stream, the Grayling.

Grayling…

Tags

Grayling, Lower Itchen, Morpurgo, Paxton, R.V. Righyni, Richard Walker, Sportfish, Vintage. Featherweight

Struggling to peel back the brown packing tape I was eager to open the brown card envelope to reveal the copy of Grayling by R.V.Righyni published in 1968 as part of The Richard Walker Angling Library. I have been trying to get a copy if this book for several months, not saying there are none around but at a sensible price.

Rare and hard to find angling books command high prices and many form collection or have been purchased by dealers. There are a few copies for around £25 but many are now £75 or more. I wanted to read up on these pewter coloured fish as young Tales had become obsessed with catching one. Before he left for school today I was instructed to call the Lower Itchen and the Timsbury Fishery and see if I could book us in for the coming weekend. For a ticket will set us back between £20-40 per rod so I have decided to act as the net carrier.

What is good about the arrival of the book from the Paxton Toll House is that it will form part of young Tales reading for the week, having signed his reading record usually for Match, Beano or titles by Paver, Pichon. Kinney or Morpurgo, I know this should hold his interest if for no other reason than to profess he knows more about fish and fishing than I do. Well it might be a case that we’ll fight over this title this week.

Well, before he gets home I’ll get on the phone to the fisheries and hopefully book us in. Young Tales will also be able to use his new second-hand Flyweight reel we purchased the other week so that he has a fully balanced outfit pairing his lightweight Sportfish rod to a reel spooled to the correct weight line, which will be a first. All of last season we compromised by using a slightly heavier line than the rod was rated for.

Well I hope the learning from the reading results in tight lines.

Vintage Hardy…

Tags

Alnwick, Betty's, Cheeseboard, East Coast, Hardy, Harrogate, Reel, Vintage Tackle, Yorkshire

After a couple of days in God’s County of Yorkshire, the town of Harrogate, home of the beloved Betty’s Tea Rooms and The Cheeseboard Cheese Shop I took the train back to the City that Andrews refers to as ‘pandemonium’.

The snakelike train carved its way down the East Coast through wintry showers and rain under an indigo sky until it arrived back at the restored and redeveloped Kings Cross Station.
After a rather tedious onward journey on the Piccadilly Line and a slow bus journey over the Thames I arrived back at a windswept and wet Barnes. Young Tales stood at the top of the stairs with ‘Bish’, a thread worn well-loved Jelly Cat sheep dangling by one limb. Bless him, he had stayed up to welcome me home if not to rub it in that Spurs were already trailing Burnley in the Third Round of The FA Cup by a goal after only 3 minutes, just the news I wanted as I struggled through the door with my bags.
Bags down, coat off then greetings were made as if I’d been away for a month.

I was then presented by young Tales with a white card box that was left by the door during the day. After peeling back the Sellotape I folded back the flaps revealing its contents, this being a vintage Hardy reel pouch in its distinctive blue and cream livery. Some earlier ones were red and cream but this one will house a Hardy Lightweight  reel that currently sits on the bookcase. The Reel pouch was probably made in the 70’s and now trade hands for £15-24. In good condition these are hard to come by but can still be picked up here and there. The Hardy Selvyt pouches if found will set you back between £20-35 for a small one and in excess of £60 to fit a salmon reel, again dependent on condition to their value, so I feel the hard cases or pouch better value protection for your reels.

We still await the delivery of the Heddon 300 in order for me to compare to a vintage Hardy Featherweight so hopefully a write-up by the weekend.

Fly me to the moon…

Tags

Fishing, Fly, Hardy, Lightweight, Reel

As bright as a moon and received today this Hardy Fly Lightweight series reel. So small that you wonder if it will manage to reel in a hard fighting brook trout but for over half a century these well balanced reels have been paired to light cane or graphite rods across the globe and played fish in many a chalk or hillside stream.

Detailed below this modern production model is married to a weight 3 forward taper floating line with fine tippet, ideal for early season dry fly fishing.

Fly, Feather or Lightweight

Tags

50 Years, Compare, Featherweight, Fly, Hardy, Heddon, Lightweight, LRH, Reel

Over the next few days I will review the range of ‘lightweight’ reels by Hardy. Having fished for over 30 years with my trusted LRH Lightweight reel I look at why we look to spend more money on modern reels when these are considered to be the one of the best ranges of reel on the market for over 5O years.

Interestingly enough I recently purchased a Heddon 300 for young Tales to pair with his Sportfish #3 rod. The reason why? It cost the fraction of the price of a Hardy yet seemingly is the same except for the colour and the red roundel badge. In fact the Heddon Flyweight is comparable to the Hardy Featherweight but instead of being a silent check has the a slotted pawl identical to the LRH Lightweight and a 2 screw latch dating it to early to mid 60’s.

Hopefully when we get it we’ll be able to see how close it really is and if it is the same in weight.

Pete The Street…

Tags

Artist, Bath, London, NEAC, Oil Painting, Peter Brown, Street Art, Streets

As I hurried through the streets of London today between meetings I came across Pete The Street Brown, a different kind of street artist.

A few months ago I saw this gentleman painting on Pall Mall, then a few months later under a grey sky painting in Jermyn Street in St James’s. Just before the Christmas break. Today he was just behind Fortnum & Mason painting a scene in the other direction. I couldn’t help but stop to ask who this painter was as he painted in a similar style to Rod Pearce an artist who I have acquired paintings from for my collection.

Pete The Street Brown can certainly put the oils down quickly, by the time I’ve had a meeting he’s nearly completed a painting. Using a muted colour pallet of Payne’s Grey, Davy’s Grey,Umber, Sepia, purple lake, blue black ,yellow ochre, naples yellow, Indian yellow making up a mix of stonework and highlights of street lights and reflections in the asphalt.

My meeting was brief with the artist from Bath but I hope our paths will cross again. I leave you with an image of the artist at work.

http://www.peterbrownneac.com or PeteTheStreet.blogspot.co.uk/

A day of flat calm…

Tags

Buckle, Flounder, Sea Fishing, Seaford, Sunset, Whiting

As it’s late in the evening I will leave a brief post. Today was the last day of the Festive holiday for young Tales as he will be back at school on Tuesday and tomorrow will be a day of preparation for the week ahead.

We headed off to Seaford, the sky was overcast and most of the journey was in fog. Once past Hassocks the sky started to clear and then by Lewes the sun was visible over the South Downs. As we turned towards Tide Mills we could see a para glider high over the old ruins that lay to the East of Newhaven Port. Young Tales had decided that today would be a day of beach fishing so we settled on a mark behind the Buckle Caravan Park know for flat fish and that was on the species list for young Tales.

To the left of us the RNLI were out on a shout and a crowed gathered on the beach, however after a while we realised they were practicing.

With three rods rigged and Tales eager each rod was cast in turn with variable accuracy and distance, within a few minutes the top of young Tales rod started to twitch and as the line was retrieved the first of the days whiting were landed. Over the next three hours more whiting took the bait until the long Diawa Sensor started to twitch, the distinctive knock of a flat fish. Once beached this small flounder was of keepable size and was earmarked to be his supper.

In typical form it was a to be ‘another cast Dad’, the sun had started to set and the tops of the rod had stopped rattling and the sea was heading off to France, yes it was time to pack up and head back to the outskirts of pandemonium.

Ostrea edulis…

Tags

Candles, Flory & Black, Kent, Native Oysters, Romans, Seafaring, Stout, Thames Estuary, Whitstable, Whitstable Oyster Company

The Native or flat oyster is the oyster that made Whitstable famous. Since before the arrival of the Romans these bivalves were abundant on the nutrient-rich waters that form the Thames Estuary. The location of Whitstable allows the rich Thames water to mix with the saltwater of the North Sea and in the shallows the water is warm providing the perfect environment for the algae that forms the diet of the native oysters.

Now being the prime season for oysters we decided that after the last few days of traditional Christmas food it was time for a change and there is nothing better than a plate of oysters, grilled lobster and Whitstable stout.

If you haven’t been to Whitstable then you should add it to your list of places to visit. A town with a historic seafaring legacy and if you didn’t already know it’s where the deep sea diving helmet was conceived. These days it is now a destination Kent Coastal town with a high street full of shops selling decorative items for the home, vintage clothing and furniture plus the iconic Whitstable Oyster Company restaurant and some great pubs and beachside oyster bars.

For the House Of Tales it was the last day out as a family before the commercial pressures of life kick in from Monday onwards. After the hour and a half drive from SW London we arrived in Whitstable in time for lunch, before we settled into our sea food lunch a quick visit to Flory & Black, a store that makes the best candles money can buy, they really do last and burn properly, one I purchased in February 2014 has only just finished.

Lunch consisted of a plate of Native Oysters, a grilled Lobster with garlic butter for young Tales and a locally caught sea bass for the good lady. I have to say the Whitstable Oyster Company restaurant is a great place, run well and has a great atmosphere, it’s consistently good. What is really great is that the location is on the beach so a stroll on the beach after lunch or dinner in the summer is a must. Today we watched the tide drop, the setting sun light up the sands, silhouette the groynes and The Old Neptune, the pub known as neppy situated on the beach near Island Wall.

I understand why the Romans were so keen on eating oysters, the Native Whitstable Oysters are what I consider to be the best.

New Year surprises…

Tags

Chelsea, Fishing Trip, Football, Igloo, Sea Fishing, Seaford, Spurs

Having planned a day out fishing with young Tales I was surprised when he decided to stay home and cuddle up with his cats and watch a mix of films, in reality it was just what he needed however he spent a good part of the day checking weather forecasts, tide times and recent catch reports on the iPad in preparation for a day out on Sunday to Seaford to target cod and flatfish.

The weather has changed and with the westerly winds and slightly warmer temperatures young Tales is optimistic about his chances of catching fish. With a 6.4 m tide on Sunday late in the morning he will have a good a chance as any in adding some more species to his catch list, in fact I wouldn’t be surprised if he caught a bass from this under rated venue.
It was Seaford where he first witnessed the thrill of sea fishing and where he really did get hooked on fishing. As he says ‘he loves fishing, football and formula one’.

Another surprise for today was the win at White Hart Lane for Spurs against their London rival Chelsea, 5-3 was not a score line I would have predicted, however I was pleased to see the blues buckle for once, it was back in the golden years for Spurs in the early 60’s that the whites hit five goals past the blues in a 5-2 victory.

I’m predicting young Tales will spend most of tomorrow planning his Sunday trip, tackle bags are already packed and I’ve been instructed to take the Igloo with us so we will be in for the long haul on both sides of the tide. I hope to detail a positive catch report on Sunday evening.

One addition to the blog in 2015 will be an increased focus on vintage tackle and items for sales so hopefully this will be ready over the next couple of weeks.