Photo 01 - Gordon with his PB of 13lbs, Nice one mate!
A severe test of our recent works!
As you will be aware there has been some very wet weather with the Cappercleuch valley taking a severe beating. Ian sent me the following short videos showing the extent of the downpour.
Our tree planting area was overrun with water but largely our trees remained in situ. The damage toll was five trees lost without trace, three protectors lost but recovered next to a wall, two wooden stakes snapped in half and 4 stakes flapping about loosened by the wind and rain.
Photo 02 - Big Al, co winner of the heavy trout cup & £10.00 Well done mate!
Similarly our bank reinforcement was given a huge challenge as millions of gallons piled into our structure. I am pleased to report that the structure remained largely intact in spite of the huge flow of water. We lost three bundles from the top sections as the water lifted them off the iron stakes. It is clear that the original method used by the Wild Trout Trust which we employed will not be up to the job! Their work on lowland soft flow rivers has not the robustness to withstand the extremely high flows of water encountered in the loch area.
Photo 03 - showing the odd fallen tree!
Consequently we will modify the existing iron poles to accept heavy gauge fencing wire which will be pulled over the top bundle of willows and staked into the ground using heavy duty re bar tent pegs. The structure however has stood up very well and it looks like the initiative will be successful! We now need to complete this section of work, sit back and see what happens; doubtless there will be many more downpours before the winter ends! Incidentally the levels of water in the videos above were surpassed on the Wednesday morning. One heck of a lot of water!
Photo 04 - Showing our reinforcing work largely intact.
Loch keeper to the rescue!
I thought i would pick up the various bundles of willows lying around the shore and transport them down to the Kirkstead burn where they will be used to complete our bank strengthening work. Conditions were reasonable and certainly no problem for our Arran boat which I would be using towing one behind the other.
Photo 05 - The remains of a cock salmon at Kirkstead. Nothing is wasted in nature!
The journey down to the burn was uneventful and I secured the boats and unloaded the cargo. I spent about an hour and a half securing trees replacing stakes etc; meantime the weather had worsened considerably with very heavy winds and driving rain. The boats meantime whilst still firmly anchored were broadside on to the wind with waves crashing into the boats filling them with water. This was not good!
Try as I might I could not get the powered Arran’s bow to remain facing into the wind for long enough to power out! The unpowered Arran meantime had been filling up with water at an alarming rate and I was completely soaked from the waist down, my thigh waders having filled up to the knee with very cold St Mary’s water as the waves crashed into me.
Photo 06 - Nice and calm on the way down.
At this point my hands were blue with the cold and I decided the only option was to give Ian a call to see if he could help. Like the trooper that he is he appeared in no time and we tried several times to get the boats out occasionally getting the powered craft out but by then the half filled Arran had firmly wedged itself on to the beach.
It looked like a no win situation and beaching both boats on the bank looked likely. By this time Ian’s wellies had filled up with water as the waved crashed into his legs and he also was beginning to feel the cold! We decided on one last shot and when the Mariner engine took up the slack Ian with perfect timing gave an almighty push and the second Arran was free!
The twenty five minute journey back keeping to the shoreline seemed to take forever as the mighty Arran crashed through wave after wave engendering albeit temporarily a kind of sea sickness like nausea. Ian like a proper guardian angel stopped at all the lay bys to monitor my progress and eventually we reached the boathouse and disembarked bruised, battered, soaking through, absolutely freezing but glad to be back! Yes whilst life was never at risk, it was an ordeal I could have done without but around the point of the village hall I got to thinking if I could envisage a worse scenario!
I then quickly realised it could be much worse! Imagine having to recount the lengthy list of Con – Dem economic predictions that have failed to materialise or having to sit through an entire hour recounting the life of lowbrows Jordan and Peter Andre! Now that’s punishment!
So a lesson learned, to be aware of the weather that is going on around you no matter what you are doing and that re launching craft is extremely difficult when heavy wind and water conspires against you! Once you are wet you will get very cold very quickly! The Arran coped admirably with the heavy swell and that at least gave me a degree of comfort! The Mariner also didn’t bat an eyelid at having to power a heavy boat with some water in it and towing one which was almost half full of water! They say all’s well that ends well and indeed this is the case! St Mary’s loch has many faces capable of changing in an instant, ranging from calm peaceful tranquillity through to unremitting unfettered violence!
Ian I cannot thank you enough for your assistance today, had it not been for your swift appearance I could still be there! When I phoned Ian an information box appeared on the phone saying the battery level was critical so further phone calls would not have been possible! Sometimes it is the simplest things in life that give us the most pleasure. A long hot water blasting by a power shower – absolute heaven!
Photo 07 - The boathouse tree as it was!
Boat house tree gets a haircut!
Yes the contractor engaged to trim the tree appeared on Friday and set about the task. I was not able to get any photos of this work in progress but have a look at the finished result, it is a very good job very well done! All the overhanging branches have now been removed making the boat house a much safer place! I know a few members will now sleep a good deal sounder now that this has been done! One more thing to tick off the to do list!
Photo 08 - The tree as it is now, job done!
November angling report.
Only Pike appear this month with most credit going to the wee loch with respect to numbers if not weight. Four Pike were landed between 10 -16lbs and nine Pike were recorded between 7 – 10lbs and seven Pike between three and seven pounds. Angler numbers were low with 23 angler days recorded. Biggest catch in numbers as usual falls to Kris Olson well done mate! Oh and Les said to tell you that you are for a dookin next time we see you!
Membership Renewals
Renewal applications are now being accepted for the 2012 season. There is no increase in the membership fee of £30.00, a fee which we have managed to cap since 2004. Members desirous of membership renewal should send a cheque for £30.00 to John Wright 8 Castle Place Dunbar EH42 1JD
Photo 09 - 1919 explained below!
War Memorial date mystery solved!
Following a comment left by one of our readers Frank Green from Edinburgh sent me the following link which explains the reason 1919 is used on some memorials as the end of the Great War! First World War dates on war memorials 1914-1918 are the most common dates for the First World War found on war memorials obviously commemorating the year the war commenced and the year the armistice was declared, on 11th November 1918.
However, it is not unusual to find the dates 1914-1919 on First World War memorials. The 1919 date refers to the year when the Treaty of Versailles was signed. This was the peace treaty drawn up by the nations who attended the Paris Peace Conference and officially ended the state of war between Germany and the Allied Powers when it was signed on 28th June 1919.
Some war memorials also feature the dates 1914-1921, although this is less common. On 25th August 1921 the United States of America signed a separate peace treaty with Germany, the Treaty of Berlin.
As explained above, there are no ‘rules’ for war memorial inscriptions so any of these dates are correct as the local community decided to use the dates which were most appropriate.
Frank thank you for clearing this up for us it is most appreciated. For more information visit http://www.warmemorials.org/uploads/publications/117.pdf
The wider world in my view!
A tale of two windbags!
Motormouth dipstick, (puns intended) Jeremy Clarkson commenting on the oppressed workers forced into strike action by the inept Con Dems would have them shot in front of their families! Yes a disgraceful comment by a clueless public figure that excels only at putting his foot in it just like the half witted gasbag Mr Kens who tried to attack us. An idiot millionaire with no cognition of what it takes to survive under the relentless persecutors of the poor and needy, the incompetent fools that are the hapless Con – Dems! Karen Jennings of UNISON led the charge to demand an apology, something which he initially said he would not do! How satisfying then to see him squirm and apologise after being advised by people who could gauge the revulsion he had generated!
Similarly Con –Dem supremo gormless David Cameron pooh poohed the one day strike describing it as a damp squib!
It was obvious to everyone but him that the biggest national strike since the general strike of 1926 had just taken place! When confronted with this fact on TV the following morning he capitulated, ate humble pie and agreed it had been a very big strike indeed! Looks like the damp squib turned out to be a supersize banger that exploded in his face! He followed on by saying that fresh talks would be started immediately! Just amazing what a reality check and a helping of humble pie can achieve!
Two gasbags, the sum total of whom amounts to nothing! Two people of limited worth who would be better suited to being the 53rd and 54th cards in a pack of playing cards! Yes just another example of how perverse our society has become!
Till the next time – Tight lines!
4 comments:
Hi mate, your tale about being marooned at the lochside rang a few bells with me. The very same thing happened to me but I only had the one boat. The conditions were frightening and I had to walk 2 miles to get help as there was no way to relaunch the boat. As you say no life was at risk the same in my case but its frightening neverless. Good to see your habitat work is standing up to the weather. Also interesting about the memorial dates news to me!
Keep up the good work.
John
I am interested in the photo of the cock salmon It looks to me like it has been savaged and eaten by an otter. Do you have otters up there and what is your stance?
regards
Hello John, its been a while my friend! Mother natures power is completely awesome and it is good every now and then to get a reminder of what she is capable of conjuring up! I thinke we are boyh wiser because of our respective experiences. Yes on the whole our works stood up very well but we will now carry out some modifications. The memorial information is new to me as well!
Thanks for your comments and don't leave it so long next time!
cheers
Richard
hello Dave, I gave the head a brief examination and it was a very fresh kill! Usually if a carcass lies for a couple of hours the the local black men usually begin to feed on it starting with the eyes. I have no forensic knowledge but I would agree that an otter is a likely culprit. We have them here, but they have not wiped out our stock of fish and it is a great honour to witness such creatures at work and play! Our policy towards them is one of tolerance and up to this time we have lived in relative harmony! The two pike heads found recently were cleanly cut off ruling out otters. And the local farmers/hands are very good at telling us if any carcasses are found.
Many thanks for your comment.
Regards
Richard
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