Jack Russell
26-06-2011, 09:24 PM
Looks like the holiday god's may just be smiling on me for once. After almost a week of strong winds and squally rain, I get up this morning with a few nightshifts off to warm sunshine so best be out and about doing a bit of beach bushy stuff. I'm planning two nights out up on the estuary to the North of here fishing and foraging, camping in the dunes from tomorrow so today is a trip out to stock up on bait and check the sea conditions, I've got the prawn net and a daypack so come with me and I'll show you a bit of Wilderness West Wales. I live right in the centre seafront tourist trap and
there's daytrippers pouring in so we'll head South and I'll show you the views once we reach the access point to the Ceredigion Coastal path over
the cliffs and off to Aberystwyth and beyond.
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3295/5872348306_fe1bb94a94.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/wildernesswestwales/5872348306/)
home view (http://www.flickr.com/photos/wildernesswestwales/5872348306/) by wildernesswestwales (http://www.flickr.com/people/wildernesswestwales/), on Flickr
Looking North,down on my seaside home it's always nice to get up over this first clifftop, From here most of the year round you'll have it to yourself. If you're into birds of prey you can keep your eyes peeled from here on, these days you'd have to be the most unlucky person in Wales not to spot red kites riding the thermals and cruising over this rabbit rich stretch, majestic.
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3154/5871619773_c43425d1ba.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/wildernesswestwales/5871619773/)
My prawn fishing grounds (to the South) (http://www.flickr.com/photos/wildernesswestwales/5871619773/) by wildernesswestwales (http://www.flickr.com/people/wildernesswestwales/), on Flickr
Facing South. If you look at the next set of cliffs you can see the coastal path running alongside the edge. From here it's just a little over 8 miles to Aberystwyth with some fairly steep but short ascents and descents to negotiate but the management of the path has meant that steps and boardwalks are increasingly
appearing along the route to make it easier in tough weather. Down below is what we're here for though, my lovely prawn beds. These shelves are home to the little fellers with the blue boxing gloves on, true multi gilled prawns not shrimp. We'll probably have a look for some peeler crab while we're down amongst the pools and a month from now we'll need a good hook with us to pull out the odd pot sized lobster from underneath the really deep shelf.
Now I could show you the local knowledge on collecting bait (and nice big human bait) on these slippery, jagged outcrops but it'd be a shame to have to kill you and the other local netters would sever my tongue so you'll have
to google the knack (not that that will do you any good). An hour of grubbing knee deep in pools provides enough mid sized bait prawn and a good show of peeler, enough to cover my first tide tomorrow,(no need to be greedy this early in the prawn season) after that I'll use side catch as bait. So time for a brew and a bite, be a shame not to have a few prawns and some crusty bread and butter for our labours but bear in mind we won't catch any nice big fat fingerlings til the Spring tides in July and beyond. There's small wrasse in most of the pools (a few getting swatted by the net) and we've already had our first two showings of gannets diving close to shore (if you've never witnessed hundreds of birds turn themselves into
javelins and make deep white streaks into the surface of the sea have a look for it on David Atten'b it's an amazing sight) but no dolphin yet so
the signs are good for my target species over the next couple of days, the king of Welsh coastal seafish.Tide's at bottom, I'll take you up the North end and show you how quickly the terrain here changes.
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3213/5871790075_6e6c390896.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/wildernesswestwales/5871790075/)
the office (http://www.flickr.com/photos/wildernesswestwales/5871790075/) by wildernesswestwales (http://www.flickr.com/people/wildernesswestwales/), on Flickr
This is where I'll spend the next few nights, in amongst the dunes and the marshland beyond which is dotted with creeks and tidal runs from the main Dovey estuary. The fishing here can be outstanding and the signs are good with nice water temps and a lot of "grey ghosts" swimming uptide in the creeks which means......there will also be SEABASS!!! Even in June you'll be hard pressed to bump into another soul once you move away from the beach and the nature reserve visitor centre.
Now this is the reason I moved here, perhaps the best beach on this stretch of Cambrian coast. Why does that matter??
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3262/5871790169_6f3ab5e157.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/wildernesswestwales/5871790169/)
freeride (http://www.flickr.com/photos/wildernesswestwales/5871790169/) by wildernesswestwales (http://www.flickr.com/people/wildernesswestwales/), on Flickr
Because after play, comes proper play.
Well boys and girls, hope you're not bored by now, I'm allowed 5 piccies to the post so I set my target at that (more to come when I get back from the estuary area, hopefully) off to check my kitlist. Thanks for looking in
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5308/5872417714_131843d9bf.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/wildernesswestwales/5872417714/)
Laters! (http://www.flickr.com/photos/wildernesswestwales/5872417714/) by wildernesswestwales (http://www.flickr.com/people/wildernesswestwales/), on Flickr
Jack
there's daytrippers pouring in so we'll head South and I'll show you the views once we reach the access point to the Ceredigion Coastal path over
the cliffs and off to Aberystwyth and beyond.
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3295/5872348306_fe1bb94a94.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/wildernesswestwales/5872348306/)
home view (http://www.flickr.com/photos/wildernesswestwales/5872348306/) by wildernesswestwales (http://www.flickr.com/people/wildernesswestwales/), on Flickr
Looking North,down on my seaside home it's always nice to get up over this first clifftop, From here most of the year round you'll have it to yourself. If you're into birds of prey you can keep your eyes peeled from here on, these days you'd have to be the most unlucky person in Wales not to spot red kites riding the thermals and cruising over this rabbit rich stretch, majestic.
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3154/5871619773_c43425d1ba.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/wildernesswestwales/5871619773/)
My prawn fishing grounds (to the South) (http://www.flickr.com/photos/wildernesswestwales/5871619773/) by wildernesswestwales (http://www.flickr.com/people/wildernesswestwales/), on Flickr
Facing South. If you look at the next set of cliffs you can see the coastal path running alongside the edge. From here it's just a little over 8 miles to Aberystwyth with some fairly steep but short ascents and descents to negotiate but the management of the path has meant that steps and boardwalks are increasingly
appearing along the route to make it easier in tough weather. Down below is what we're here for though, my lovely prawn beds. These shelves are home to the little fellers with the blue boxing gloves on, true multi gilled prawns not shrimp. We'll probably have a look for some peeler crab while we're down amongst the pools and a month from now we'll need a good hook with us to pull out the odd pot sized lobster from underneath the really deep shelf.
Now I could show you the local knowledge on collecting bait (and nice big human bait) on these slippery, jagged outcrops but it'd be a shame to have to kill you and the other local netters would sever my tongue so you'll have
to google the knack (not that that will do you any good). An hour of grubbing knee deep in pools provides enough mid sized bait prawn and a good show of peeler, enough to cover my first tide tomorrow,(no need to be greedy this early in the prawn season) after that I'll use side catch as bait. So time for a brew and a bite, be a shame not to have a few prawns and some crusty bread and butter for our labours but bear in mind we won't catch any nice big fat fingerlings til the Spring tides in July and beyond. There's small wrasse in most of the pools (a few getting swatted by the net) and we've already had our first two showings of gannets diving close to shore (if you've never witnessed hundreds of birds turn themselves into
javelins and make deep white streaks into the surface of the sea have a look for it on David Atten'b it's an amazing sight) but no dolphin yet so
the signs are good for my target species over the next couple of days, the king of Welsh coastal seafish.Tide's at bottom, I'll take you up the North end and show you how quickly the terrain here changes.
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3213/5871790075_6e6c390896.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/wildernesswestwales/5871790075/)
the office (http://www.flickr.com/photos/wildernesswestwales/5871790075/) by wildernesswestwales (http://www.flickr.com/people/wildernesswestwales/), on Flickr
This is where I'll spend the next few nights, in amongst the dunes and the marshland beyond which is dotted with creeks and tidal runs from the main Dovey estuary. The fishing here can be outstanding and the signs are good with nice water temps and a lot of "grey ghosts" swimming uptide in the creeks which means......there will also be SEABASS!!! Even in June you'll be hard pressed to bump into another soul once you move away from the beach and the nature reserve visitor centre.
Now this is the reason I moved here, perhaps the best beach on this stretch of Cambrian coast. Why does that matter??
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3262/5871790169_6f3ab5e157.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/wildernesswestwales/5871790169/)
freeride (http://www.flickr.com/photos/wildernesswestwales/5871790169/) by wildernesswestwales (http://www.flickr.com/people/wildernesswestwales/), on Flickr
Because after play, comes proper play.
Well boys and girls, hope you're not bored by now, I'm allowed 5 piccies to the post so I set my target at that (more to come when I get back from the estuary area, hopefully) off to check my kitlist. Thanks for looking in
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5308/5872417714_131843d9bf.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/wildernesswestwales/5872417714/)
Laters! (http://www.flickr.com/photos/wildernesswestwales/5872417714/) by wildernesswestwales (http://www.flickr.com/people/wildernesswestwales/), on Flickr
Jack