Heavenly
day at Ladybower
For various reasons,
mainly to do with age and health problems, I have not had anything like
the number of fishing trips that has been the norm for me for many years
now.
I particularly missed many of my weekly trips to Ladybower which has had
a great season with regular visitors getting limit bags of six trout on
many occasions.
However, towards the end of the trout fishing for the year I did manage
a trip to Ladybower.
I have heard that one particular religion among the many different beliefs
(I forget which it is) tells us that, yes, there is a heaven and a hell,
but they are not somewhere in the sky or deep in the earth’s centre,
but right here on earth and we humans create both of these heavens and
hells by our actions.
Certainly November 3 was a heavenly day for me. The morning was not encouraging
due to heavy overnight frost, but friend Neil and I arrived at the big
water reasonably early and the amazingly helpful boatman Nick Bundy carried
my tackle down to the boat jetty for me and helped me get into the boat.
Before long the sun was shining and there was hardly any breeze so fish
could be seen rising in the calm surface even though the temperatures
had finally dropped after that amazing summer.
It was a shortish day’s fishing now that the days are short but
to my great delight I landed a lovely rainbow trout that was pink fleshed
when cleaned and filleted at home that evening.
Also a lovely wild brown trout with big fins and lovely red spots. I enjoyed
seeing that fish swim away quite strongly when I released it because brownies
are out of season after early in October.
A lovely lunch in a nearby pub and meeting up with old pals made the day
one to remember, and help with getting the gear out of the boat and up
the slope to the road came in handy thanks to Nick and a wheelbarrow.
Thanks Nick you have given me so much assistance these last few seasons.
The only sad part of the day came when I saw fishery boss Alan struggling
to get about after he had a fall in the ice and hurt himself.