I Will make sure theres one on the island for you Kevin

Just come on site for first time for a week or so Steve. Well done on getting this far with your project. Do you want some eels for the lake or are you gonna let them gain access naturaly, If so dont ask me coz I dont catch many.

I have done everything i can to allow the eels to get into the lake naturally there are no barriers from the lake to the river, i am working with the EA on this and will be discussing with them the possibility of stocking some eels. These would need to be young eels or mature eels from a prison water thus allowing eels to migrate that may never been able to, i am in the process of designing a way of retaining eels leaving the lake so they can be recorded / measured etc and then sent on their way.
The lake was finished yesterday and now it needs to fill and have the planting of trees etc there is 6 inches of water covering one end and incredibly there was already a Heron stood in it, well he will have a bit of a wait for his meal.

Sounds like a dream come true. Well done Steve. Its amazing how the natural world is quick to exploit a new opportunity. As I was filling my very modest new garden pond I heard a strange buzzing sound, looked up to see a large diving beetle dive bombing through the air, splash, and swim straight to the bottom ! I have also had a heron, and amazingly, a grey wagtail visits now and again to have a snack of aquatic flies etc.
Are you ready for a cormorant though do you get many down there Steve ?
Regards Orbeel

Hi Orbeel yes we do get many commorants down here had one at 6am on a live Skimmer bream one morning fishing a big res. I have installed a few Gabion Baskets in the lake as well as numerous sunken pipes and as an extra precaution told the adjacent farmer to look out for any very rare black phesants that might pass by.
The other problem i might have to deal with now is a possible otter so looks like otter fencing will have to go up, this dream costs a fortune before a fish even enters the water. Mind you watched a nature program last night with the perfect fish for my lake the Electric Eel, watched in amazement as it made a hungry caiman dance the electric irish jig, love to see Duffy try his pants only photo with one of them

steve u just want to see me in my pants , shall i book a room at winter meeting ?.

nick

yes that would be a good idea just as long as its at a different hotel to me

forgot u are sharin with rosey ant u ? it will be like trains , planes and automobiles those are not pilliows .

nick

and i bet i wont be Steve Martin will i

Pardon my ignorance, but what is a gabion basket ?
Can we also put an end to mentioning Nick in his undies, my missus suspects that eel fishing is a codename for something completely different
Regards Orbeel

Orbeel a Gabion Basket is a galvanised mesh basket 1m x 1m they are wired together and filled with clean stone to form retaining walls and strengthen banks suffering erosion, but i have just put a couple of rocks in them and sunk some in the lake the eels and fish can enter through the holes but comorants etc cant get them. Great for predator prevention but not to be cast to otherwise its goodbye rig.
Regarding Nicks undies i think we should arrange a hypnotist to attend the winter social and remove that vision from all our minds once and for all!

got some new ones .

nick