In reply to Post #589
I can just remember the bombers flying over my village of bayston hill i must of been about three years old. and sitting down looking out of the bedroom window the sky was red and grandad said that is Liverpool burning it seems such a long time ago. He started me fishing i was only about three years old we would walk down the road to what was called the prill and i would fish with a garden cane and cotton for line and match stick through cork for a float and a bent pin for a hook. What i did not know at the time there was no fish in the prill but it was grandads way at keeping me happy and i would stay there for hours watching that float in fact i loved every minute of it. We moved on from there and fished the rea brook we only caught minnows but they were great fish to a young un like me he taught me how to set a minnow trap which has served me well over the years. And identify the different animals and birds . It was 1947 when it came to an end it was a very big shock to me we went to feed the pig and my grandad collapsed one week latter he was dead it really affected me as he was only 52 years old and you did not think about death when you are that young i was devestated and it took some time to get over it. At the same time i lost my farther who got killed fighting in the war but i did not know him very much as he had been away for years, it was not like loosing grandad as i went everywhere with him. well you have to get on with life and my mother managed to get a house and we moved in we also had a lodger who was a land army girl. they were great days you could go anywhere i was only about five but i soon learned the way of the country side i would spend every hour i could down the fields watching the wild life. even at that age i would be off birds nesting no one would touch you . mum used to worry when i went fishing i only had a bambo cane rod and a wooden reel but soon manage to catch the odd chub or roach i could not swim but soon learned myself in the brook. The land girl would bring a horse home with her at times or a pony i would be on its back when no one was watching and would be away for a ride no sadle and i hung onto the horse main it was great fun. i would ride down to bomere and look at the pool. i would get a telling off from mum when i got back as she was frightened i would fall off but i never did i was fast becoming a jack the lad well more latter
I can just remember the bombers flying over my village of bayston hill i must of been about three years old. and sitting down looking out of the bedroom window the sky was red and grandad said that is Liverpool burning it seems such a long time ago. He started me fishing i was only about three years old we would walk down the road to what was called the prill and i would fish with a garden cane and cotton for line and match stick through cork for a float and a bent pin for a hook. What i did not know at the time there was no fish in the prill but it was grandads way at keeping me happy and i would stay there for hours watching that float in fact i loved every minute of it. We moved on from there and fished the rea brook we only caught minnows but they were great fish to a young un like me he taught me how to set a minnow trap which has served me well over the years. And identify the different animals and birds . It was 1947 when it came to an end it was a very big shock to me we went to feed the pig and my grandad collapsed one week latter he was dead it really affected me as he was only 52 years old and you did not think about death when you are that young i was devestated and it took some time to get over it. At the same time i lost my farther who got killed fighting in the war but i did not know him very much as he had been away for years, it was not like loosing grandad as i went everywhere with him. well you have to get on with life and my mother managed to get a house and we moved in we also had a lodger who was a land army girl. they were great days you could go anywhere i was only about five but i soon learned the way of the country side i would spend every hour i could down the fields watching the wild life. even at that age i would be off birds nesting no one would touch you . mum used to worry when i went fishing i only had a bambo cane rod and a wooden reel but soon manage to catch the odd chub or roach i could not swim but soon learned myself in the brook. The land girl would bring a horse home with her at times or a pony i would be on its back when no one was watching and would be away for a ride no sadle and i hung onto the horse main it was great fun. i would ride down to bomere and look at the pool. i would get a telling off from mum when i got back as she was frightened i would fall off but i never did i was fast becoming a jack the lad well more latter
In reply to Post #590
over the years ive done a fair bit of stalking the wily brown trout. a favorite method was free lining a little red worm especially on the one i would lie down on my belly in the under growth drop the worm in the side of the brook and let it trundle down. you would get two sharp taps and away it went you were in. i caught loads using that method i would leave home at first light and be back for breakfast long before the keepers and bailiff were about i would catch ten or twelve they all weighed about a pound or more and made good eating and my family neighbours and friends were always grateful . as i said in an earlier thread i only ever got caught once and that was because i had taken some one with me and he would not run he was petrified so i stayed with him. I never ever took any one with me again for many years quite was the order of the day and i always had my ears and my eyes were always open i would see the keeper long before he got anywhere near i have crawled under the brambles and nettles on quite a few occasions and would get very badly stung by the nettles mum was always rubbing calamine lotion on my arms hands and face and it did cool them down quite a bit. Condover brook was another it was stocked full of brownies and the keepers kept a very strict eye on it if you got caught there you certainly ended in court. condover was known for the big estates and it was a huge pheasant and partridge shoot and they employed lots of keepers as i have said old bell was the head keeper and not much got past him the locals were scared to death to even go on the property. so i did most of my poaching at night .i got chased a few times and hid up a few trees but i never ever got caught. The keepers dogs were a real worry as bell had alsations and they were really nasty, and would really bite well thats all for now more latter
over the years ive done a fair bit of stalking the wily brown trout. a favorite method was free lining a little red worm especially on the one i would lie down on my belly in the under growth drop the worm in the side of the brook and let it trundle down. you would get two sharp taps and away it went you were in. i caught loads using that method i would leave home at first light and be back for breakfast long before the keepers and bailiff were about i would catch ten or twelve they all weighed about a pound or more and made good eating and my family neighbours and friends were always grateful . as i said in an earlier thread i only ever got caught once and that was because i had taken some one with me and he would not run he was petrified so i stayed with him. I never ever took any one with me again for many years quite was the order of the day and i always had my ears and my eyes were always open i would see the keeper long before he got anywhere near i have crawled under the brambles and nettles on quite a few occasions and would get very badly stung by the nettles mum was always rubbing calamine lotion on my arms hands and face and it did cool them down quite a bit. Condover brook was another it was stocked full of brownies and the keepers kept a very strict eye on it if you got caught there you certainly ended in court. condover was known for the big estates and it was a huge pheasant and partridge shoot and they employed lots of keepers as i have said old bell was the head keeper and not much got past him the locals were scared to death to even go on the property. so i did most of my poaching at night .i got chased a few times and hid up a few trees but i never ever got caught. The keepers dogs were a real worry as bell had alsations and they were really nasty, and would really bite well thats all for now more latter
In reply to Post #592
thanks pete great read mate i remember minnow traps!!! as a kid not many bullheads now adays brings back funny memorys there few years ago keep it up fella your right to many "instant carpers and anglers" nice to know some people still love our countrysides tight lines mate!!
thanks pete great read mate i remember minnow traps!!! as a kid not many bullheads now adays brings back funny memorys there few years ago keep it up fella your right to many "instant carpers and anglers" nice to know some people still love our countrysides tight lines mate!!
In reply to Post #593
As you already know i have a deep love of the country side although i fish and shoot i don't kill indiscriminately all that is shot is eaten.I hear so many people say you should kill this and shoot that yes you should control but not anilate every thing in sight we must learn to live in harmony with our wild life. Mink are fast becoming a problem in my area there is no control as the mink hounds have now been banned hunting with dogs. the mink have devastated some of the wild life on the severn killing ducklings moorhens and such they are vicious killers some say trapping is the answer but you cant in a built up area its quite a problem. one animal above all i certainly don't like that is the brown rat filthy creatures and disease ridden i have seen farms locally over run with them. i have seen the poison put down for them around the farms and hedge rows i really don't like the method as it kills other wild life. the rats seem to move onto the farms around November if not before its when the hedge rows Get to wet and food scarce. one method i have seen used with great success is shooting them at night around the farm buildings with an air rifle i have a friend that does it on a regular basis and does a good job for the farmers and regularly shoots up to 250 in a night the farmers are very grateful as i said in an earlier thread that how you can acquire some good fishing one good turn for the land owner and if he has some good waters he may let you fish them I have been watching the peregrines the last couple of weeks they nest in the quarry not far from my house lovely birds but alas they are not always safe two years ago some idiot stole there eggs they are now watched night and day and so they should be. As they were on the endangered species list for a number of years i really thing they have recovered well in the last few years well a bit more latter
As you already know i have a deep love of the country side although i fish and shoot i don't kill indiscriminately all that is shot is eaten.I hear so many people say you should kill this and shoot that yes you should control but not anilate every thing in sight we must learn to live in harmony with our wild life. Mink are fast becoming a problem in my area there is no control as the mink hounds have now been banned hunting with dogs. the mink have devastated some of the wild life on the severn killing ducklings moorhens and such they are vicious killers some say trapping is the answer but you cant in a built up area its quite a problem. one animal above all i certainly don't like that is the brown rat filthy creatures and disease ridden i have seen farms locally over run with them. i have seen the poison put down for them around the farms and hedge rows i really don't like the method as it kills other wild life. the rats seem to move onto the farms around November if not before its when the hedge rows Get to wet and food scarce. one method i have seen used with great success is shooting them at night around the farm buildings with an air rifle i have a friend that does it on a regular basis and does a good job for the farmers and regularly shoots up to 250 in a night the farmers are very grateful as i said in an earlier thread that how you can acquire some good fishing one good turn for the land owner and if he has some good waters he may let you fish them I have been watching the peregrines the last couple of weeks they nest in the quarry not far from my house lovely birds but alas they are not always safe two years ago some idiot stole there eggs they are now watched night and day and so they should be. As they were on the endangered species list for a number of years i really thing they have recovered well in the last few years well a bit more latter
In reply to Post #594
In reply to Post #594
i loved to watch the salmon jump the weir at shrewsbury. not any more i think last year seven fish were caught in the sixties and seventies if lucky you would catch them in a day
whether it's because of the netting at sea by the big Russian trawlers or the netting in the estuary or pollution i just dont know but they have certainly disappear to what they were years ago the environment agency still stock with parr so we will have to wait and see. when we fished for other species we always saw the odd salmon show not any more i certainly wont be spending thirty quid to find out i really hope the river recovers to its former glory but i very much doubt it.
Another thing i really like is sea fishing and love to be out on a boat when i worked at shrewsbury police station i formed the west mercia sea fishing club and had a very big membership. we fished a lot from Aber north wales with a chap called Vic haig he had three boats and was very well know and a respected skipper. i loved every minute we caught porbeagle shark to over two hundred pound tope dog fish Skate conger eels, we always tagged the tope and shark and returned them and it really amazed me how far they would travel we had Tags returned to us from as far away as Australia what a distance that fish had wandered amazing. A lot of my freinds never really learned they would be sea sick but never missed a trip i loved it ruffer the better
one funny incident that happened while fishing but not so funny at the time Vick always fished what they called the targets it was used by the Raf to test there misiles and this one day they never informed him they were testing the first thing we saw was a great big misile coming straight at the boat it missed us by ft you could have touched it very scarry it was out of control and crashed in some ones garden further down the coast good job it was not armed it could of been quite nasty But as Vick said if it had hit us armed or not it would have put a fair old hole in the boat more latter
i loved to watch the salmon jump the weir at shrewsbury. not any more i think last year seven fish were caught in the sixties and seventies if lucky you would catch them in a day
whether it's because of the netting at sea by the big Russian trawlers or the netting in the estuary or pollution i just dont know but they have certainly disappear to what they were years ago the environment agency still stock with parr so we will have to wait and see. when we fished for other species we always saw the odd salmon show not any more i certainly wont be spending thirty quid to find out i really hope the river recovers to its former glory but i very much doubt it.
Another thing i really like is sea fishing and love to be out on a boat when i worked at shrewsbury police station i formed the west mercia sea fishing club and had a very big membership. we fished a lot from Aber north wales with a chap called Vic haig he had three boats and was very well know and a respected skipper. i loved every minute we caught porbeagle shark to over two hundred pound tope dog fish Skate conger eels, we always tagged the tope and shark and returned them and it really amazed me how far they would travel we had Tags returned to us from as far away as Australia what a distance that fish had wandered amazing. A lot of my freinds never really learned they would be sea sick but never missed a trip i loved it ruffer the better
one funny incident that happened while fishing but not so funny at the time Vick always fished what they called the targets it was used by the Raf to test there misiles and this one day they never informed him they were testing the first thing we saw was a great big misile coming straight at the boat it missed us by ft you could have touched it very scarry it was out of control and crashed in some ones garden further down the coast good job it was not armed it could of been quite nasty But as Vick said if it had hit us armed or not it would have put a fair old hole in the boat more latter
In reply to Post #596
As i have said i have been a bit of a jack the lad. Things we did when i was young you would be prosecuted for today.. it was anything to make money then . as i have said we lived on rabbit and i sold them for about sixpence in the 1950. it was good money and i could then buy tackle to continue my love of fishing. we used to take the fruit out of the many orchards and it was always very welcome by the family and neighbors.
I loved to go ferreting i had a couple of gills and a big old hob i would be away most Saturdays in the winter and i poached most of the land around home and in the middle fifties before the mixy you could literally catch hundreds i never did. 12 couple did us proud it fed the family and i could sell some to the local shops. another thing we did to make money was sell fire wood we made a grappling hook fixed to a long rope to it, and when the river was in flood we would stand on the foot bridge and catch any wood coming down on the flood, we made good money doing this and would stock pile it at home when it was dry cut it up and sell it for two shillings and sixpence a bag to our neighbours this is the way we lived it was hard and at times and we struggled but we got by.. as i have said we picked any coal we found by the railway lines and brought that back home it really helped mum and dad out. If you did that today you would be in serious trouble if caught. We made all our own fishing weights out of the seals from the many pigeon crates that came to the station every Saturday they let go thousands of the birds and i would be there picking the lead seals. i would melt it down and make the weights for my fishing cheaper than the shop all you could buy those days ,was the old round bullet lead or the coffin lead we made our own shapes and sizes. I also made the ammunition for my catapoult from the same lead wich i used for my rabbiting. well a bit more latter
As i have said i have been a bit of a jack the lad. Things we did when i was young you would be prosecuted for today.. it was anything to make money then . as i have said we lived on rabbit and i sold them for about sixpence in the 1950. it was good money and i could then buy tackle to continue my love of fishing. we used to take the fruit out of the many orchards and it was always very welcome by the family and neighbors.
I loved to go ferreting i had a couple of gills and a big old hob i would be away most Saturdays in the winter and i poached most of the land around home and in the middle fifties before the mixy you could literally catch hundreds i never did. 12 couple did us proud it fed the family and i could sell some to the local shops. another thing we did to make money was sell fire wood we made a grappling hook fixed to a long rope to it, and when the river was in flood we would stand on the foot bridge and catch any wood coming down on the flood, we made good money doing this and would stock pile it at home when it was dry cut it up and sell it for two shillings and sixpence a bag to our neighbours this is the way we lived it was hard and at times and we struggled but we got by.. as i have said we picked any coal we found by the railway lines and brought that back home it really helped mum and dad out. If you did that today you would be in serious trouble if caught. We made all our own fishing weights out of the seals from the many pigeon crates that came to the station every Saturday they let go thousands of the birds and i would be there picking the lead seals. i would melt it down and make the weights for my fishing cheaper than the shop all you could buy those days ,was the old round bullet lead or the coffin lead we made our own shapes and sizes. I also made the ammunition for my catapoult from the same lead wich i used for my rabbiting. well a bit more latter
In reply to Post #597
Over the years i have got to know many keepers and most if not all are really clued up regarding nature. when i got to know old sam and old bell and lots more beside it was there job to clear any vermin that was a threat to the peasants and partridge. they would rear literally thousands of pheasants this was done on the rearing fields the keeper or keepers more or less lived there in a rearing hut they would put all the pheasant eggs under broody hens in wooden coops there would be rows of these coops. While the hens were sitting the rearing field had to be prepared by putting tunnel traps all around the hedge rows it was really a full time job at this time of year and i can remember well poor old sam's wife did not see much, of him while the rearing was going on I can remember all this but it was fast coming to an end and it would not be long before they started to use electric incubators some keepers and estates also bought them as chicks putting them in huge release pens.
one thing i did not like was the use of strychnine thank god those days have now gone they would inject eggs or a dead rabbit and leave on the many rides in the woods it was mostly put down to kill the crows but it killed most other things not good i am afraid but that's how things were done in my younger days The keepers killed most things Hawks owls jays magpies the rats were killed with arsenic which in those days you could buy from the chemist and mixed with barley flower would be spooned down the rat holes they would get a penny a rat and two pence for most other things owles jays magpies hawks. I have seen badgers foxes stoats weasels all killed and hung on the keepers the fence they did not earn big money about a couple of quid a week and worked really long hours. poaching was a big issue and could keep them really busy. ha ha. i know this has nothing to do with fishing but its what it was like when i was a boy and ite the history of our country side. more latter
Over the years i have got to know many keepers and most if not all are really clued up regarding nature. when i got to know old sam and old bell and lots more beside it was there job to clear any vermin that was a threat to the peasants and partridge. they would rear literally thousands of pheasants this was done on the rearing fields the keeper or keepers more or less lived there in a rearing hut they would put all the pheasant eggs under broody hens in wooden coops there would be rows of these coops. While the hens were sitting the rearing field had to be prepared by putting tunnel traps all around the hedge rows it was really a full time job at this time of year and i can remember well poor old sam's wife did not see much, of him while the rearing was going on I can remember all this but it was fast coming to an end and it would not be long before they started to use electric incubators some keepers and estates also bought them as chicks putting them in huge release pens.
one thing i did not like was the use of strychnine thank god those days have now gone they would inject eggs or a dead rabbit and leave on the many rides in the woods it was mostly put down to kill the crows but it killed most other things not good i am afraid but that's how things were done in my younger days The keepers killed most things Hawks owls jays magpies the rats were killed with arsenic which in those days you could buy from the chemist and mixed with barley flower would be spooned down the rat holes they would get a penny a rat and two pence for most other things owles jays magpies hawks. I have seen badgers foxes stoats weasels all killed and hung on the keepers the fence they did not earn big money about a couple of quid a week and worked really long hours. poaching was a big issue and could keep them really busy. ha ha. i know this has nothing to do with fishing but its what it was like when i was a boy and ite the history of our country side. more latter
In reply to Post #598
Another part of my life and always will be is watching foxs. i could not count the times when some one has asked me to take them out to see a fox's in the wild
Success in watching foxes in the field depends on a number factors time of year and the patience of the observer. You must have a certain knowledge of the country side and some understanding of the foxes highways and a must is a good pair of binoculars. tracks are not so well defined as badgers and partly lightness of the fox's step have found that a fox keeps to the field margins and does not like to cross a ploughed field but that is my own observation. usually i can smell a fox before i even see him on a wet morning in the dew i can follow him for miles across a grass field this time of year is when i would take some one with me and i would show them fox cubs the earliest i have seen them was in january but that is rare i have watched them night and day a fox uses its acute sense of hearing when hunting small rodents and i have watched old foxy in a field you would think he was asleep lying down not a movement rabbits playing near by and magpies mobbing him im sure he was giving the rabbits a false sense of security then all of a sudden he would have one and away he would go to cover to eat his prey
i have watched the cubs out side the earth and they have not known i have even been there and have come that close i could of touched them. mum would bring their food mostly rabbit but i have seen hedge hog chickens all sorts. i had cubs in my garden the vixen brought them every night and i would feed them chicken legs they were quite tame and could feed them by hand. But the fox can do some damage and will take young lambs when they have young cubs to feed and this soon puts the farmers back up and he wants rid of the offending animal this is my life and and i would live it all again if i could more latter
Another part of my life and always will be is watching foxs. i could not count the times when some one has asked me to take them out to see a fox's in the wild
Success in watching foxes in the field depends on a number factors time of year and the patience of the observer. You must have a certain knowledge of the country side and some understanding of the foxes highways and a must is a good pair of binoculars. tracks are not so well defined as badgers and partly lightness of the fox's step have found that a fox keeps to the field margins and does not like to cross a ploughed field but that is my own observation. usually i can smell a fox before i even see him on a wet morning in the dew i can follow him for miles across a grass field this time of year is when i would take some one with me and i would show them fox cubs the earliest i have seen them was in january but that is rare i have watched them night and day a fox uses its acute sense of hearing when hunting small rodents and i have watched old foxy in a field you would think he was asleep lying down not a movement rabbits playing near by and magpies mobbing him im sure he was giving the rabbits a false sense of security then all of a sudden he would have one and away he would go to cover to eat his prey
i have watched the cubs out side the earth and they have not known i have even been there and have come that close i could of touched them. mum would bring their food mostly rabbit but i have seen hedge hog chickens all sorts. i had cubs in my garden the vixen brought them every night and i would feed them chicken legs they were quite tame and could feed them by hand. But the fox can do some damage and will take young lambs when they have young cubs to feed and this soon puts the farmers back up and he wants rid of the offending animal this is my life and and i would live it all again if i could more latter
In reply to Post #599
I will carry on a bit more about my life time of fox watching and hope not to bore you to much. i have in my life time shot a good many foxes but only when they have been a threat to the farmers live stock. i was asked a few years ago to clear some foxes by much wenlock in shops. when i eventually found them. they had cubs i just could not kill the vixen or her mate. why some will ask she had five cubs and two pure albinos snow white beautiful animals. in my 68 years it was the first i had come across and felt they should be given a chance to survive so i walked around the earth leaving my scent and hoped she would move them going back two days latter she had indeed moved them i never saw them again .
a bit more about foxes at birth the cubs weight on 100gm but they can and do vary in weight from the same litter. and they soon increase in weight at six weeks they can be about 1;160gm and will steadily increase till mid winter when they then become sexualy mature and breed. it is surprising how foxes varry in weight the biggest i have seen was over twenty pounds a monster one thing in recent years that has put my back up is the release of foxes caught in the cities and and then let go in the country side it does happen and on quite a big scale. a farmer friend caught two chaps releasing onto his land there were about twenty foxes they just can not look after thier selves and do not know how to hunt plus some are full of disease. my study of foxes has been a fasinating part of my life i could say so much more on then subject but i will not i do not want to bore you to much. a little bite more latter
I will carry on a bit more about my life time of fox watching and hope not to bore you to much. i have in my life time shot a good many foxes but only when they have been a threat to the farmers live stock. i was asked a few years ago to clear some foxes by much wenlock in shops. when i eventually found them. they had cubs i just could not kill the vixen or her mate. why some will ask she had five cubs and two pure albinos snow white beautiful animals. in my 68 years it was the first i had come across and felt they should be given a chance to survive so i walked around the earth leaving my scent and hoped she would move them going back two days latter she had indeed moved them i never saw them again .
a bit more about foxes at birth the cubs weight on 100gm but they can and do vary in weight from the same litter. and they soon increase in weight at six weeks they can be about 1;160gm and will steadily increase till mid winter when they then become sexualy mature and breed. it is surprising how foxes varry in weight the biggest i have seen was over twenty pounds a monster one thing in recent years that has put my back up is the release of foxes caught in the cities and and then let go in the country side it does happen and on quite a big scale. a farmer friend caught two chaps releasing onto his land there were about twenty foxes they just can not look after thier selves and do not know how to hunt plus some are full of disease. my study of foxes has been a fasinating part of my life i could say so much more on then subject but i will not i do not want to bore you to much. a little bite more latter
In reply to Post #600
In reply to Post #600
believe me i wont get bored ready your stuff, i look forward to the next update
believe me i wont get bored ready your stuff, i look forward to the next update
In reply to Post #600
Best thread on the forum...keep it coming Pete
Best thread on the forum...keep it coming Pete
In reply to Post #603
thanks james and tom for your kind remarks very much appreciated. i have had such a wonderfull life but i worry that my story and nature snippits may bore some people thanks once again
thanks james and tom for your kind remarks very much appreciated. i have had such a wonderfull life but i worry that my story and nature snippits may bore some people thanks once again
In reply to Post #600
I have had a wonderful life and lived and breathed the country side and every thing in it from the animals to the flowers and the trees. I have walked the paths of shropshire over hills and fields and valleys iv slept upon the bracken deep within the woods. i have listened to the night sounds and have heard the vixen scream. calling to her mate and cubs this has been all part of my life. when morning breaks you come across the babbling waters just below the wood it slowly menders through the meadows, on the shore tussocks of rush point their stems skywards. over the months they have hidden a mallards nest and now she proudly displayed her young. the stream its is lined with alders casting shadows and shade over the glistening water. the brown trout lies below the bank awaiting any morsel that may come by. its now June you see the metallic blue flashes of the dragon fly his translucent bulging eyes looking out for some succulent insect it is a formidable hunter hawking to perfection as it hovers darts in search of prey. you hear a familiar plop its the water vole the largest member of the vole family when i was a kid we called them water rats when startled on the bank it dives into the water and heads for cover the water vole is mainly an early morning riser and it is at this time of day it is usually encountered busy cleaning his chestnut coat it often gets mixed up with the brown rat but is nothing like it both species can swim well but the brown rat swims on the surface and the vole has a tendency to submerge under the water the vole is a shy harmless creature but it will and does defend its territory and its Joice of mate. you will see the flash of the kingfisher its vibrant colour of blue as it dives for the minnows to take back to its young brood in the hole under the river bank the sand martins flit about they two have nests in the bank. i spin the little brook and catch a couple of the brown trout to take home for breakfast as i wander home across the fields the buzzard hovers in search of Rabbit a lovely sight to watch and is quickly joined by his mate and they both soar upon the wind high above the meadows more to come latter
I have had a wonderful life and lived and breathed the country side and every thing in it from the animals to the flowers and the trees. I have walked the paths of shropshire over hills and fields and valleys iv slept upon the bracken deep within the woods. i have listened to the night sounds and have heard the vixen scream. calling to her mate and cubs this has been all part of my life. when morning breaks you come across the babbling waters just below the wood it slowly menders through the meadows, on the shore tussocks of rush point their stems skywards. over the months they have hidden a mallards nest and now she proudly displayed her young. the stream its is lined with alders casting shadows and shade over the glistening water. the brown trout lies below the bank awaiting any morsel that may come by. its now June you see the metallic blue flashes of the dragon fly his translucent bulging eyes looking out for some succulent insect it is a formidable hunter hawking to perfection as it hovers darts in search of prey. you hear a familiar plop its the water vole the largest member of the vole family when i was a kid we called them water rats when startled on the bank it dives into the water and heads for cover the water vole is mainly an early morning riser and it is at this time of day it is usually encountered busy cleaning his chestnut coat it often gets mixed up with the brown rat but is nothing like it both species can swim well but the brown rat swims on the surface and the vole has a tendency to submerge under the water the vole is a shy harmless creature but it will and does defend its territory and its Joice of mate. you will see the flash of the kingfisher its vibrant colour of blue as it dives for the minnows to take back to its young brood in the hole under the river bank the sand martins flit about they two have nests in the bank. i spin the little brook and catch a couple of the brown trout to take home for breakfast as i wander home across the fields the buzzard hovers in search of Rabbit a lovely sight to watch and is quickly joined by his mate and they both soar upon the wind high above the meadows more to come latter