This and That

 The weather's been a bit ripe of late, or haven't you noticed? I actually had a week in West Wales and it didn't rain. Do you realise how rare that is? Anyway, it's been affecting the fishing and my ability to withstand the heat. I did have a short session at Pembroke Docks and managed a few gobies, corkwing wrasse and tiny pollack. However, I had an enormously satisfying day, allow me to elucidate.

I stopped off at the fishing spot a few days before actually fishing it. I chatted to a couple of lads who were obviously novices but who were happy spending time by the water. One of them told me that they were having a mid-life crisis and had taken to fishing, he then tried explaining the benefits of being away from phones, family etc. I cut him short and politely said that I didn't need to have fishing sold to me. 

When I arrived, rod in hand, a few days later, one of the guys was chatting to another bloke, but cut that off and he followed me down to the large platform I was going to fish from. It transpired that he had yet to catch a fish with his lures. I explained that I was using a light rod and a two-hook rig baited with prawn aimed at species not size. His eyes were wide as I set up and he soaked up everything I was saying like a sponge. Despite being in his thirties, it was like having a child hanging on to my words. 

Mini Pollack

Corkwing Wrasse

I had felt a couple of light knocks and he said he'd love to just feel a bite for the first time. I handed him the rod and stood back. He became excited at the first knock and ecstatic when he hooked something. Alas, as a small pouting reached he surface, it rolled off the hook. I got him to get straight back down and he was soon holding a bucking rod and landed a small Corkwing Wrasse. I shared his joy and enthusiasm; it was a great moment.

Gobies

My new friend was due to leave for work, yet still he chatted, asking countless questions. I gave him the rod again, and he landed a goby; this was the cherry on the cake. He left on a mighty high which we all felt when we had our own first fish. It made me feel good.

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And so to Somerset

Despite my more laid-back approach to fishing, I have had trouble getting my head around a strip back to my old haunts. I'd arranged to meet up with Paddy, but I wanted it to be a specialist trip and mulled over locations for way too long. I was struggling a bit with my back, an aftereffect of some people's idea of furniture comfort. When you stay in a beautiful cottage, you don't expect to be crippled when sat watching the telly. Due to my overthinking and aching back, I came close to calling off my trip.

I shook myself out of it and decided that a casual day session on a drain would be ideal. One of those days when the float frequently sinks and the landing net is needed at least a couple of times. Add to this that I would be sitting next to my old mate who I've fished with for sixty years. By 'eck, just typing that makes me feel old.

The day before we met, I drove around looking at the various options. Force of habit may be responsible for my choice, and we met just below the sluice at Greylake on the King Sedgemoor Drain, an area I know very well.

Glorious Sedgemoor

There was a stiff upstream breeze and a lot of slimy 'Gorilla Snot' weed about. Any bait fished deep in mid-river was smothered in the stuff, so I opted for the fairly clear nearside ledge. Bites were immediate, with a minute perch and a few rudd before Paddy arrived. He soon had his customary lighthouse of a float sitting proud of the river on a ledge he found to the right of the swim. 

One of the countless rudd

Not exactly a monster

You think this is slimy?

This one left my net in a right state

The conversation was largely about the downside of getting older as well as many happy memories from the past. He was getting mostly roach, but he did have a dace and a bleak. I had a couple of oddities for the drain in the shape of two small chub. I even needed the landing net on a couple of perch. I did get my net wet twice more as I landed a couple of Sedgemoor's finest, dark, and extremely slimy bream. The day panned out pretty much as I expected and very enjoyable it was too.

The day was heightened by the bird life. Where the sky used to be full of lapwing and golden plover, we saw little and cattle egret, a great white egret flew past too. Best of the lot was a couple of cranes lifting off from the bird reserve behind us. 

We said our goodbyes, I had one last dig at his golf appointment for the next morning and a promise that we would be meeting up again in the not-too-distant future