Spring is nearly here!

[pollygog]

Another fly fishing trip to Chirk fishery on Wednesday, our favourite venue is located on the Ceiriog river and it turned out as another superbly pleasant day, what a difference weather-wise to last Sunday.
The road the fishery is on is the Glyn Ceiriog road that runs around the back of Chirk castle and the steep wooded bank on the castle side has the most spectacular sight this week, the biggest mass of wild garlic I have ever seen!
Just strong garlic smelling white rafts of it for hundreds and hundreds of yards, its a shame it smells so strongly really as its quite pretty, it also dwarfs the bluebells!
Below is one of three fish I caught there, a Blue trout which I believe is actually a type of Char, I also caught a decent Rainbow trout, and a small (about a half pound) Tiger which is a hybrid between an American Brook Trout and a Brown Trout.
Walked the dogs by the river this morning and for a change we crossed over the style at the back of the allotments and headed up river on the North bank of the Elwy.
First thing we noticed is the Sandmarten are back nesting in the north side bank, this despite their nests being dug out by badgers two years on the trot!
Such a pleasant site on such a lovely morning seeing them hawking low along the river and hearing them twittering as they darted in and out of their nesting holes in the riverbank.
The river was the lowest I've seen it so far this year, down to summer levels at last, no signs of any rising trout though, a worrying sign! for me at least.

[pollygog]

Well the weather lately seems to have chucked a variety of seasons by the day at us. A period of unseasonably warm dry weather quickly changed to wet and cold last Sunday at Dolgellau, this was immediately followed by warmer sunny weather mid-week.
Then, another dramatic change and in such a short period of time as
Nigel and I went to Snowdonia fly fishing on Monday this week and it was strong winds with the odd driving sleet shower but mostly bitterly cold. I had thermals and double skin trousers on and a brand new insulated fishing coat so it was mostly my hands suffered making it difficult casting. We possibly both need certifying I know, but the fishing was fairly good, just four Rainbow to the net but for a total weight of just on 14lbs. Two fish each caught as it turned out in the 4 hours we managed to fish, see pic below of first two caught, one ate all the pies by the looks of it as they are both the same length! Top fish is 5lb, bottom fish just under 31/2lb.
Looking down toward Anglesey's Puffin Island by late afternoon we could see the increasingly strong wind was whipping up the seas to a foam around the rocks by the lighthouse with white horses on the crests of the waves well out to sea, it was rough!

[pollygog]

A picture of stress relief in action, almost but not quite, the same feeling you get when you cuddle a warm puppy!
This pic is from a warm pleasant day early last summer.
We keep Koi for a number of reasons but the big bonus for a lot of us is the stress relief engendered by feeding or just simply observing our precious charges.
Its now a well established fact that stroking a cat or dog or watching fish is stress management in action.
My moment of pressure valve relief when I was still working was getting home and our three dogs jumping all over me in excitement then going to my pond and feeding and watching the Koi, with a brew in my hand of course.
That feeling, the stresses of the day and the half hour drive home just slipping away,gradually replaced by a more soporific contentment and bliss!
The cute little frog sitting on the grey plastic waterfowl remained there while I hand-fed the Koi, they actually pushed it away in their enthusiasm as food gathered around its base and no, I did not kiss it!

Next club meeting is 8.00pm at the Farmers this next Wednesday the 3rd May folks.

[pollygog]

The Wren goes to't, and the small gilded fly
Does lecher in my sight
Act 4. King Lear.
W. Shakespeare.

Saw this copulating couple on a mild rainy morning, 17th March this year, so I thought the above quote quite apt.
On the male toad you can clearly see the raised glands containing Bufotoxin that run across the shoulders from behind the toads eye, its this that gives the toad an extremely unpleasant and toxic taste.
The Common toads Latin name is Bufo bufo hence Bufotoxin!
We salute the memory of tame Kevin who died (but not eaten!) at the teeth of a Hedgehog, gone but not forgotten.
We may be looking at his son, or brother?

[pollygog]

"Ne'er cast a clout till may be out"
How very true this old saying is, may being a reference to the blossom not the month, as its been quite chilly of late! The first may (hawthorn) blossom is just coming into bloom on The Common St Asaph this morning, about a week or so to full bloom.

30th April to 6th May is National Hedgehog Awareness Week and Facebook are running a programme for it.
Sadly the founder of the now flourishing British Hedgehog Preservation Society, Major Adrian Coles died just weeks ago on the 27th March this year. He was known nationally as Major Hedgehog and did an enormous amount of work on behalf of our rapidly declining hedgehogs.
Anyone who watched the BBC's Countryfile yesterday would have seen an interesting programme on hedgehogs rescue and rehabilitation.
Remember this cute little hedgehog!
It had gotten itself tangled in fruit netting and we think its mother got trapped in the bird ground feeder within days of each other in the lovely summer of 2013.
Our local hedgehogs continue to entertain us with their regular nocturnal visits as they trigger our security lights and also leave their jobbies on the lawn!
They are the gardeners friend though as they get through some slugs and snails in a night.

[roselanekoi]

I visited the RSPB reserve at Burton Mere a few days ago and saw this little fella. Not the most welcome of visitors to a bird reserve in the breeding season.

stoat.jpg (134.08 KiB) Viewed 15058 times

As anyone who's ever tried photographing wildlife will know, it can be very difficult to get the focus spot on and the stoat is slightly out of focus. The moorhen below was a much better model and let me get quite close to photograph him.

moorhen.jpg (144.72 KiB) Viewed 15058 times

[pollygog]

Photographing wildlife is very difficult as you say Colin, it's mostly depending on chance for something rare like the stoat to pop up unexpectedly, or, is it just weasels that 'pop' up?
Two interesting photo's though.

[roselanekoi]

Over the years I've driven past Cadair Idris many times and always said I was going to climb up it one day well last Wednesday I finally got around to doing it.

Accompanied by my brother we parked up at the Dôl Idris car park at the junction of the A487 & B4405 at Minffordd. At about 3 miles the Minffordd path is probably the shortest footpath up Cader Idris; although it involves the greatest ascent (2,850ft, 869m). I didn't count the number of steps but there were a hell of a lot of them and we eventually arrived at the summit some 3 hours later.

Cadair Idris.jpg (123.26 KiB) Viewed 15019 times

The summit of Cadair Idris is called Penygader and is the peak to the right of the photo, the lake in the foreground is Llyn Cau.

No one is certain where the name Cader Idris (Idris’ chair) originates. Some maintain that Idris was a national hero, killed in battle against the Saxons round about 630 A.D. Some insist that he was a giant, and yet others link Idris with the legend of Arthur.

In the car park there was reference to the the walk made by Mary Jones in 1800. This 15 year old girl walked barefoot from nearby Llanfihangel-y-Pennant to Bala to purchase a welsh bible, a distance of around 24 miles, but this walk is for another day.

Anyway, in case you didn't think I'd made it to the top, here's a picture of a rather windswept me at the summit.

Cadair Idris summit.jpg (104.13 KiB) Viewed 15019 times

[pollygog]

That's certainly the hard route you took Colin, the recommended route for me anyway is the 'Pony Path' that runs from just past the very lovely Gwernan Lake, there is a very good pub (same name) alongside the lake I would recommend too. This route is admittedly longer, but a lot easier on your knees!
Sometime next month we have to scatter my brother in laws ashes on top of Cader Idris as requested by him.
Having been up there you can appreciate the rugged beauty and solitude of the place.
Cynthia saw a rare sight, a stoat in its white winter coat sitting on a wall whilst she was riding a horse (a Welsh Cob) along this road by the Gwernan when she was a young girl.

[pollygog]

Out fly fishing again last week at our favourite venue, Chirk with the usual suspects but this time with a new angler to the fold, our newest Koi Club member, Alan.
He'd not fly-fished before but he took to it like a duck to water; loved it! especially when he got to take two lovely Rainbow trout home.
My first fish of the day was truly a whopper!
I was convinced I'd beaten my previous best Brown Trout out of sight, Sian the owner saw me playing the fish and came around lake to identify it as a 'very large brownie' and to net it for me and very unusually, said I could kill it and take it home.
That was unprecedented as the rule is, all brownies are returned.
Nigel and I weighed it, seven pounds 5 ounces!
I couldn't help noticing though that the belly was quite silvery and it had black spots down its flanks. Took another photo before I cleaned it and went on internet to try to identify fish. It looks like I caught an Atlantic Salmon not a huge Brown Trout,(see picture below)
That was a bit disappointing as I've caught salmon four times that size in Canada and caught several salmon here in UK of around eight and ten pounds.
Still that's fly fishing at Chirk though, you just never know what you will catch?
Got home and fed my Koi and saw a lovely sight, a swarm of mayflies fluttering and dancing over my pond on a pleasantly warm sunny evening, a perfect end to a perfect day.