The fifth day of Advent…

The frost was thick on this fifth day of Advent, the sky was clear at 4.30am when started to get myself together for a flight to Glasgow.

It is evident that Christmas will be soon upon us, trees, hedgerows and gables are all festooned with Christmas lights. Music on the car radio down to Gatwick resonated with Christmas classics and everywhere I went during the day the sounds of 50’s and 60’s reminded me of my early childhood.

As this weeks draws to an end there is a little excitement at the thought of getting the decorations down from the loft, putting on a Christmas carol playlist, heating up the mulled wine and easing into the Christmas spirit.

On the forth day of Advent

Nature brings beauty to the hedgerow in winter in all manner of ways. Seed heads, fruit and coloured stems of rubis demonstrate the way that nature presents itself. Whilst the festive season fast approaches I can’t help but look around at nature’s baubles, stars and ribbons. Holly, rose hip, mistletoe and ivy all add to the dressing of Christmas. The abundance of berries are nature’s larder to get the wildlife through the harsh winter month.

On the third day of Advent

I bring you an image of nature’s own winter decoration, these beautiful rose hips adorn the hedgerows allowing food for birds, mice and a valuable source of vitamin C for the human kind.

On the second day of Advent…

I bring you a vintage birch sap tap. These are placed in the trunks of Birch trees in early spring to draw off the rising sap. Birch sap is used in many ways, can be harvested to produced a think dark syrup or Birch sap water.

Another year, so here is a post for the first day of Advent

Sheer pressures of work, balancing out mental and physical health have pushed me to focus on other areas of my life than writing my blog. There has been little fishing over the year but what I have done has been rewarding.

There has been little if any vintage tackle purchased and very few visits to car boots, to be honest Mrs Tales has banned my from adding to my collection. My one therapy for the year has been my focus on the allotment I have been asked to take care of whilst neighbours have moved away for a while. I have to say the allotment has been great fun and very rewarding.

We’ve only been fishing a handful of tines during the year, a few fly fishing forays and a few sea fishing trips targeting bass. One trip on a boat with Robin Howard who runs a boat out of Brighton Marina was great fun and productive with a couple of PB achieved by young Tales and myself as I caught my first cod of the year on a soft bait.

Hopefully 2020 will afford us the time to do more fishing.

On this first day of Advent I present you with a box full of vintage pike floats.