The Tiny River Alne - Dew Beaters and Dial Plates

Sunday just gone water on the table not wine, in-fact as I type this 19 days without an alcoholic beverage whatsoever. Lockdown and the weeks break to North Devon ones intake had increased to plainly eyebrow rising levels, so the Wife and I decided to take September off the booze to not only give the liver a bit of a rest, but ones bank balance too.

I'm sleeping better, the resting heart rate lower and already I've lost a few pounds. Fishing can help with that though because for this session I was roving a little river 5 mins from ones abode. 13,000 steps in four and a bit hours where with the river, well almost a brook really in places being that low it needs some bank to be covered just to find some fishable deeper areas.

Now the word brook is used to describe a large number of the thousands of streams which are to be found in these islands. They vary enormously in character, the extremes being brooks of the chalk stream district and those of the hill and moorland country which, in many respects, have only their name in common.

The chalk stream brook, with its comparatively quiet waters and better food supply, is able to support larger trout than the brook of the wilder country. This does not mean that large trout are not caught in these more vigorous brooks, glass-case specimens are taken every year but, generally, the emphasis is on numbers, not size.

Food is often difficult to come by and in such places life is a ceaseless fight to get enough to survive. Between these extremes come the rest of the brooks, parts of which may show some of the characteristics of both the chalk and hill brooks and require the appropriate techniques if we are to make the most of the sport they have to offer.

One of the advantages of brook fishing for trout is that, even today, much of it can still be obtained simply for the asking, or the outlay of a very modest fee. This is a great consideration when we realise that the present-day trend in fishing costs is ever upward and that game fishing on many of our rivers is a sport in which only the richer clubs or private owners can indulge.

I stumbled upon this stretch when we were out in the car one day and I noticed a signed nailed to a tree with the syndicate details. I've been a member now for a few years and managed some nice fish mainly in the winter when I target the chub. When it's very low like it was for this session trout and chublets are the target. I've yet to see another fisherman and most of the time it's just me enjoying this area of the Warwickshire countryside.

Now the opening up of new water and the reclaiming and restocking of polluted stretches does not keep pace with the needs of the growing numbers of anglers who find it increasingly difficult to obtain fishing which is not costly and overcrowded.

The solution is to turn to the smaller streams and hill brooks and it is surprising how many hold trout and are worth fishing. The better brooks inevitably cost more to fish but this is only to be expected and the extra cost must be balanced against heavier fish and possibly easier fishing.

One thing is certain, there is fishing to satisfy all tastes and all pockets. The brooks have something to offer which no other kind of fishing is able to reproduce.

Perhaps it is the variety of scenery and endlessly changing character of the water or the fact that they can provide almost every problem a trout fisherman has to learn to overcome.

To consistently catch fish under such conditions you must treat each type of water separately and once you have learned to vary your methods according to the needs of the moment you are well on the way to becoming an all-round trout fisherman.

The reason why brook fishing is still largely uncommercialised is, undoubtedly, that much of it is off the beaten track and it is in these very places that we will get some of our best sport. Also, because of the limitations imposed by their size on the number of rods that can be used at any one time, brook fishing will, fortunately, never be as expensive as the best river fishing.

The size of the fish rarely compares with that of the larger rivers and there is no doubt that many brooks could be greatly 'improved' as fisheries. But it will be a sorry day for brook lovers if the great improvement ever begins. Gone will be that wonderful feeling that you are a privileged visitor in an excitingly unspoilt and natural little world, a feeling which means so much to the people who fish there.

The fascination of the brooks and I suppose small rivers also is a very difficult thing to try and describe but it is always there waiting to soothe or excite you, in whichever mood you happen to be. Men who did their first fishing as children in these tiny waters and have later experienced the thrills of the finest salmon and trout fishing the country has to offer, return to the brooks and still find pleasure in their untouched freshness and vitality.

Sam has taken to them as I have, given the choice of Tunnel Barn or bullheads at the brook, Im lucky that I already know the answer. Now once he has mastered the techniques he will have more time to spare to study the countryside around him and I should like to think that he will eventually feel, as I do, that a day on a good brook is first-class sport and a branch of fishing which will take some beating.

Anyway back to the fishing, fishing a small Salmo Rattlin Hornet I managed 4 brook trout, the last fish a proper scraper launching itself clear of the water and if I was in to that sort of thing almost fit for the pot, probably getting on for a couple of pound. The Chub I lost well over 4lb I'd say, sadly it did me over good and proper. The small weir oddly didn't produce anything, but as I said it'd very low and shallow at the minute.

With the kingfisher keeping my company and birds of prey patrolling the area like drones, what's not to like. I love this sort of fishing especially as it's so convenient. So why not go and have a look at those neglected brooks and small rivers yourself. In these bust times it's a tonic for the mind, it really is. The fish many not be big, but who cares, it you don't get this sort of fishing you never will.

Warwickshire Avon - Eellogofusciouhipoppokunurious and Eikonology

Eellogofusciouhipoppokunurious ,Yes this monstrosity of a word, all thirty letters of it, warrants a definition that is a grand total of four letters in length.

Good !!!!

Now Japanese A5 Wagyu Picanha just happened to be the best piece of beef I'd ever eaten. The piece was Miyazaki beef which is 100% Fullblood Japanese Wagyu from the Miyazaki Prefecture.

The texture was like nothing else and not only that but the beef flavour is amplified to such a degree it's a shame not all beef takes like it. The taste dial is wound up a notch and then it's turned right round so it off the scale.

A meal to remember, it really was !!!!

The breed of cow that is used is Kuroge Wagyu, also known as "Japanese Black". It is one of four Wagyu breeds that exist today, with Kuroge being the largest of the four main Wagyu breeds.

Miyazaki Wagyu is recognised for its cherry red color, tender texture and great dense meat taste. 

The snowflake-liked fat is evenly distributed and produces a non-greasy flavor. It begins to dissolve at the temperature of 25 degrees Celsius, melting right in the mouth.

The standards of grading beef consist of Yield Grade and Quality Grade. "A" of "A5" means the yield grade, while "5" shows the quality grade. The Japanese beef grading system has 5 quality grades, marbling, meat colour and brightness, firmness and texture of meat, colour, and the lustre and quality of fat.

It really doesn't get any better !!! a dry aged piece maybe, hmmm ?

Now in official sumo, it is custom to present the champion sumo wrestler with one Miyazaki cow. Miyazaki prefecture is the only region in Japan that raises cattle by their breeds and biological types. 

The Miyachiku co-op consists of about 400 farmers spread across the Miyazaki Prefecture. The Japanese farms are much different than farms that we are used to in the fact that the average amount of cattle that one farmer will harvest at a time is only 4. 

This allows the farmers to pay attention to detail, take much better care of their animals, and focus on each individual animal's needs. The animals are fed a diet mostly of wheat and corn for an average of 900 days.

This is about 8 times longer than most cattle that is consumed in our market. Each individual farmer has their own proprietary feed ratio. 

The idea of Wagyu being fed beer and massaged by Japanese women is a myth apparently, however the farmers are allowed to feed their animals whatever they deem appropriate.

Maybe there is a farm or two out there that practices this technique, well lets hope so, just to keep the dream alive.

Anyway to keep the dream alive of catching a 6lb Chub, (a 5lb'er is Soooooooo last year) it was out with the Wagyu, well ok, not quite, some cheap Boswell Farm Tesco cheapo cuts. The Chub of late have been mugging me off so to speak because it's been hit or miss if I'd hook them or not.

They have been really crafty these Chevin even when ditching the hair and fishing a bait banded to the shank of the hook, they still managed to stick their fins up and managed to escape capture. 

For this dusk in to dark session though it was out with something different, something I'd hope a Chub would be less cautious about.

I wasn't quite ready to use the coconut mushrooms and flumps I'd commandeered as that was for another session I'd had planned but still, I was hoping a change might bring some success where previous methods had been left wanting. Another change was I'd fish next to some cover too rather than open water.

The water is gin clear at the minute and even though when the light goes maybe a bigger fish was lying in wait here rather than being out with the crowd.

Before all that started though an hour with the lure rod to try and pick something up in this predator clear water. With the water devoid of all fish beneath the polarised sunglasses usually the lure will get the perch at least coming out of their hiding places.

It didn't take long either, after about 5 casts I was in, only a small perch but at least it wasn't a blank. Its fellow perch army following him in to the bank to give it some moral support.

So with the sun setting it was out with the steak near the swim with thick cover. Usually the fish start to top and move around when the light levels go, but not this evening. The fish were very suspicious in their absence. In-fact an hour and a half in to proper dark not even a tentative pull on the chub rod, all very odd.

No Chub :( still nice to be out, a few hours is great to keep me on the straight and narrow.

(Not Quite) The Close Season Zander Quest Pt.168 - Contortionists and Chasmophiles

A change of food in the bird feeder from peanuts to sunflower hearts was a revelation in lockdown. You see soon after the change the species of birds arriving in the Newey garden was a joy to behold. Even the Wife was taking an interest and she had never been that bothered before, she was quite happy with the finches and tits.

Now Sunflower hearts are the kernels of black sunflower seeds. This means that the husks have already been removed and so the hearts are easy for the birds to eat. They are a highly nutritious food which is rich in oil and protein and so provide valuable energy for wild birds.

Not just wild birds though, you see, the husks in the main are smaller than the bird feeders holes so any movement of the feeder from an inquisitive squirrel, or from a strong gust of wind, many of the husks fell to the ground and left a carpet of food for any passing animal.

Yeap, you guessed it, a rat....

Not just one or two of them either, a whole family of them, bugger !!!!

Hmmmm, decision decisions, so out went the sunflowers and it was back in with the peanuts....

The problem was after a couple or three weeks the eyebrow raisers that were a welcome sight were replaced with the humdrum, dare I say it, sadly back to just tits, and believe you me, I don't say that lightly. So a compromise I wonder ?, half and half, peanuts first, a handful of sunflower hearts and then filled to the brim with more peanuts.

All was going well for a few weeks, in-fact not only had the many species of birds returned in numbers but rodents were suspicious in their absence, because there was still falling husks albeit not in the numbers as before.

However that was about to change you see when I was bankside this morning a message from the Wife I had a grim job to do when I got back home. Seemingly a contornanist and rather large rat had managed to get himself inside the bird feeder and then couldn't get himself out.

Properly wedged bless him and probably with all the blood rushing to its head and the ensuing struggle passed away at the dinner table. 

Not a pretty sight either because when I got back to remove its corpse flies had already taken hold. If took some brute force to get out so God only knows how it managed to get fully in there in the first place.

A landing net pole to get it down, the Wife's gardening gloves to remove it ( ssshhhhhhh )

Anyway back to the session, I'm a bit river'd out at the minute. The conditions are not helping and the fact I've not caught anything decent for a while I fancied a change of scenery. 

I suppose a chance look a club I'm in facebook page that showed a double figure Zander being caught (>80cm) if I recall got my interest up again.

For this short session I headed to an area usually kind to me to try and at least get a bite so back to my usual tactics. Two deadbait rods and a roving approach, roach on one rod, smelt on the other....

I had planned to fish for almost 5 hours but it was a lovely morning and the boats started to move quite early on. Not usually a problem but it's difficult keep the baits static as the canal can turn in to a river almost. 

The first fish was a rather skinny and long pike that came within 10 minutes of putting the smelt rod out. There is always fish there, usually Zander though but not this time. In-fact I fished the swim again right as the end of the session and managed a small Jack.

It reached 23 degrees during the day as I type this and as soon as the sun came up the fresh morning turned in to being very warm indeed. 

The Zander were a struggle to track down however eventually one did grab the smelt when the float was dragged off line and I assume in-front of its face so it acted on its predator instinct. The float submerging entirely such the confidence it had managed to snare an easy meal.

Not a bad fish either and gave a pretty decent scrap. A passing cyclist taking a picture for his Dad who apparently has just started to target them himself. 

The boats just became too frequent and I just couldn't settle properly so I put an end to the session a couple of hours early for the rat extraction. 

I wouldn't say I miss canals that much, because the close season quest is more necessity than anything else, but I do love catching Zander, they up there with my favourite species. 

Over 168 sessions in to the quest, that double figure fish remains as elusive as ever....