🦔 🎣 🐦⬛ The hedgehog, the perch angling session, the bird feeding station and the radio slots
The video begins with a brief sighting of a hedgehog in our back garden.
I had returned from a game at Park Hall and was actually working on my blog in the living room when I saw the creature beneath the bird feeding station.
Although it disappeared very quickly back into the border, nevertheless I could hear it as it continued to forage for slugs and snails.
The conditions were ideal as the garden was wet after previous rain during the evening.
Although I didn’t set an alarm, I was still up at the right time to go fishing the following morning.
It wasn’t as if I was tossing and turning all night either, with waking on my mind.
I’ve enjoyed my small pond fishing of late, especially when I’ve gone for the prawn after perch approach.
That’s what I did on this occasion as well and, although it will never be as productive in terms of quantity as fishing with maggots, nevertheless there is something special about targeting and catching species with a particular bait.
It took a while before I had the first bite, fishing shallow water between the lily pads.
However, even though it was just a small perch, it meant that at least I wasn’t a blanker.
As you can see from the video, I also added more fish to the tally before I returned home.
Tackle: Greys Prodigy TX 12’ rod. Shimano 3500M reel. Maxima Chameleon 4lb line. Drennan 1.2g waggler. Drennan Super Specialist size 18 hook.
Nature notes: Two grey wagtail sightings of a bird in flight across the water. Single Kingfisher sighting. A very vocal muntjac calling from beyond the pond.
Once home, I did what I do every day, which is to replenish the food on the bird feeding station in the garden.
There’s more on that in the video, which may be helpful if you are thinking of feeding our feathered friends yourself.
Finally, as far as headline topics are concerned, I recorded my weekly Bayside Radio slots with Jeff Pearson.
Fishing over the last week has been pursuing perch on a pond and tackling tench on a lake, so when Jeff asked me, as he always does, how it has been going that was my reply.
It’s nice to get questions each week as well, which is good for engagement but, above all, it’s a privilege to have a platform from which to promote angling to the wider world.
There was plenty to talk about in Welsh football, with two of our four clubs progressing on the European stage.
We recorded earlier than usual because I’m off on my UEFA Champions League travels tomorrow.