As the title of this post tells you, i havnt been able to go fishing recently. School holidays, decorating and visitors from abroad have kept me awayfrom the riverbanks.
I have attempted to make two trips recently but have had to canel both at the last minute due to DIY commitments.
However a trip to Blackpool gave me the chance to visit West Coast Angling supplies (a fortuitous rain storm gave me a good excuse to shelter in a tackle shop for half an hour) where i picked up these lovely MAP stick and avon floats.
The next day, i took Lucia and our visitors for a walk around the north coast of Holy Island which is located off the west coast of Anglesey. I have searched for a rock mark called Mackerel Rock for quite a few years now, and finally discovered its location during our walk ( guesses for what its famous for). Again the weather was terrible, but this didnt alter the beautiful dramatic scenery which we were hiking through.
The waves were crashing against the cliffs sending huge plumes of water into the air and even though i had brought some tackle with me i thought it safest to leave it in the back of the car. I did find some hardy/foolhardy souls braving the elements on the leeward side of the mark, but the some of the waves were very high and i wouldnt have liked to fish there myself let alone take non fishing visitors there- see photos.
The RSPB reserve which we walked through was both beautiful and exposed. There are huge expanses of gorse, heather and other wild flowers which carpet the ground, much like the machair regions of the Hebrides. These lead all the way down to the cliff edges a good 50 to 100 feet above the sea.
The main blooms of these flowers are in May and June when this area is nothing other than spectacular however the recent wet spell has seen a resurgence of the blooms much to our luck.
Our visitors leave on Monday, but a work trip to London, and Matthews rugby mean that i am not going to be able to fish midweek. I am going to be paying special attention to the weather forecasts this week as i hope for two days on the river next weekend.