Making Memories

[SuperGoose75]

Just a few photos from a few hours after the mackerel. My 10yr old boy caught his first rod caught fish "A coalfish''. The first evening turned out very wet and windy and I was catching single good sized Mackerel (the Chopping board is 16'' long) 

Another evening it was a glorious weather-wise but nothing was taking.  I explained to my boy that you don't go fishing with the sole intent of catching fish. High tides and the sun going down, there are certainly worse ways to spend an evening.

 

Edited September 13, 2022 by SuperGoose75

[Ultrastu]

Fabulous  .

Time very well spent .I remember vividly  catching Mackrell off a jetty in  Scotland when I was about his age .

[30-6]

Absolutely brilliant, the smile on his face says it all. Have the best one framed so he can look back at it, but it will stay in his memory for ever.

[Dave at kelton]

I was 4 when my father and grandfather took me and have returned to the same spot to teach my grandchildren. It sows a seed that will germinate into a lifetime of enjoyment…well done.

[ditchman]

i bet those mackrel tasted good

[Agriv8]

1 hour ago, ditchman said:

i bet those mackrel tasted good

Fresh line caught after a day’s fishing like a pint after a days beating it always taste better if you feel you’ve earned it.

well done to both of you !

Agriv8

[ditchman]

25 minutes ago, Agriv8 said:

Fresh line caught after a day’s fishing like a pint after a days beating it always taste better if you feel you’ve earned it.

well done to both of you !

Agriv8

its weird i know ....but i like horsradish sauce with fresh caught mackrell and brown bread and butter.........

[marsh man]

Some excellent photos there Supergoose of one very happy young man , I have never caught Mackerel but that is not to say I haven't eaten then , I have sat on many Scot's Herring drifters when they came up to the fish wharf on a Saturday morning to unload the Herring , if I saw a Mackerel poking out from the 100s of Herring I would point it out to one of the crew who was filling the baskets up and he would chuck it up to me , sometimes I would get a lift when the steamed up the river to moor for the weekend and other times I would walk back the mile or so to get back home with often a dozen or more Mackerel strung up through the gills .

Happy days , that small part of my life always left me with a soft spot in my heart for the folk from Scotland and how friendly they were around 60 years ago .

[SuperGoose75]

5 hours ago, Ultrastu said:

Fabulous  .

Time very well spent .I remember vividly  catching Mackrell off a jetty in  Scotland when I was about his age .

Thank you! Making memories is what it is all about. It is hoped he will look back with fondess in the years to come as well.

4 hours ago, 30-6 said:

Absolutely brilliant, the smile on his face says it all. Have the best one framed so he can look back at it, but it will stay in his memory for ever.

Thank you! Getting one printed is a great idea👍 The season is not over yet, there is Mackerel to be caught yet.

3 hours ago, Dave at kelton said:

I was 4 when my father and grandfather took me and have returned to the same spot to teach my grandchildren. It sows a seed that will germinate into a lifetime of enjoyment…well done.

Fantastic! A great family tradition continued,long may it last.

3 hours ago, ditchman said:

i bet those mackrel tasted good

They did indeed. Simply seasoned with S&P and fried in butter and finished with a squeeze of lemon juice. More importantly my boy liked them and said they tasted like Tuna. He was surprised to learn that Mackerel were in fact small Tuna. I want to try and smoke a few next season

1 hour ago, Agriv8 said:

Fresh line caught after a day’s fishing like a pint after a days beating it always taste better if you feel you’ve earned it.

well done to both of you !

Agriv8

Indeed! Thank you.

1 hour ago, ditchman said:

its weird i know ....but i like horsradish sauce with fresh caught mackrell and brown bread and butter.........

Interesting, I like horseradish sauce with beef, so might be ok with fish too. A posh fish finger sandwich maybe 🤔 

1 hour ago, marsh man said:

Some excellent photos there Supergoose of one very happy young man , I have never caught Mackerel but that is not to say I haven't eaten then , I have sat on many Scot's Herring drifters when they came up to the fish wharf on a Saturday morning to unload the Herring , if I saw a Mackerel poking out from the 100s of Herring I would point it out to one of the crew who was filling the baskets up and he would chuck it up to me , sometimes I would get a lift when the steamed up the river to moor for the weekend and other times I would walk back the mile or so to get back home with often a dozen or more Mackerel strung up through the gills .

Happy days , that small part of my life always left me with a soft spot in my heart for the folk from Scotland and how friendly they were around 60 years ago .

Thank you Marsh Man. Sounds like great memories you have,as you were part of the great herring industry that was part of Yarmouth and of course the Scottish herring ladies. A hardy breed of females which were anything but squeamish.

My part of the coast is also famous for its herring fishing. It was written that when rowing a boat in the lough when the herring were in, it near impossible to row as the water was thick with fish.

I've fond memories of, when local fishermen caught a haul of herring, they would go around the doors knocking and when you sent out a plate you got it filled with herring for very little money. The fish would be fried that evening and the house stunk for days. I look forward to buying and cooking a few herring in the coming weeks. Our boys fish way up in Norway where they reckon the waters are thick with big herring.

Edited September 13, 2022 by SuperGoose75

[marsh man]

Good evening Super Goose .... You took me back to a bygone era when you said your smelt for days , Ours not only smelt of Herring for days it more than likely stunk for weeks if not months , certainly till the drifters went back home just before Christmas , the fisher girls were legends around these parts and I can well remember seeing these women of all shapes and sizes walking four of five abreast and all of them arm in arm , they were either laughing or singing one of there folk songs , you always knew they were fisher girls because the end of there fingers were always covered in plasters where the gutting knife had slipped when gutting the Herring out , they used to say that these ladies were that quick gutting a Herring that they could do at least sixty in a minute , this make it one a second , and watching some of the You Tube clips , I can well believe it . 

My father's mother was part of the family of Eaststicks who were well known in the Yarmouth Herring industry and owned several drifters , in fact we have still got one in the river that is now a floating museum ( Lydia Eva ) which was the name of his wife I believe , she did like her nightly bottle of Guinness and no doubt one or two more besides , when ole Harry Eastdick died she did receive a few bob from his will , how much we didn't know but the ole boy was pretty well off , well time moved on and my dads mother passed away and we thought we might had got a little wind fall , there must had been very little wind at the time as we got nothing , not a penny , in fact my dad and his two brothers had to beg steal and borrow to pay for the ole gals funeral , whatever she got she blew it all on her favourite drink , and to be honest , I didn't blame her one bit , mind you , they were not my thoughts at the time 

[SuperGoose75]

14 hours ago, marsh man said:

Good evening Super Goose .... You took me back to a bygone era when you said your smelt for days , Ours not only smelt of Herring for days it more than likely stunk for weeks if not months , certainly till the drifters went back home just before Christmas , the fisher girls were legends around these parts and I can well remember seeing these women of all shapes and sizes walking four of five abreast and all of them arm in arm , they were either laughing or singing one of there folk songs , you always knew they were fisher girls because the end of there fingers were always covered in plasters where the gutting knife had slipped when gutting the Herring out , they used to say that these ladies were that quick gutting a Herring that they could do at least sixty in a minute , this make it one a second , and watching some of the You Tube clips , I can well believe it . 

My father's mother was part of the family of Eaststicks who were well known in the Yarmouth Herring industry and owned several drifters , in fact we have still got one in the river that is now a floating museum ( Lydia Eva ) which was the name of his wife I believe , she did like her nightly bottle of Guinness and no doubt one or two more besides , when ole Harry Eastdick died she did receive a few bob from his will , how much we didn't know but the ole boy was pretty well off , well time moved on and my dads mother passed away and we thought we might had got a little wind fall , there must had been very little wind at the time as we got nothing , not a penny , in fact my dad and his two brothers had to beg steal and borrow to pay for the ole gals funeral , whatever she got she blew it all on her favourite drink , and to be honest , I didn't blame her one bit , mind you , they were not my thoughts at the time 

Good Morning Marsh Man, yes I've watched them youtube films about the Herring Industry in Great Yarmouth in bygone days, long before my time but I take an interest in such things. There was some hustle and bustle and it looked like mayhem, but somehow also looked to have run like clockwork with many hands making light work of things. There is a fishing port here called Killybegs, and you know you are getting close to the town, even when you are a few miles away as the stench hits you. I can well imagine how bad Yarmouth was back then going by the videos I've watched.

I suppose its like anything though, you soon get used to it and think nothing of it. I remember when we were doing some construction work in a ''cheese factory'' one time and for the first few days it turned our stomach's, but after a bit ot didn't bother us.

Sorry to hear your Old Gran was fond of the ''Black Stuff'' and you never got the inheritance...ARTHUR has a lot to answer for in many,many case's 😃

Edited September 14, 2022 by SuperGoose75

[ditchman]

15 hours ago, marsh man said:

Good evening Super Goose .... You took me back to a bygone era when you said your smelt for days , Ours not only smelt of Herring for days it more than likely stunk for weeks if not months , certainly till the drifters went back home just before Christmas , the fisher girls were legends around these parts and I can well remember seeing these women of all shapes and sizes walking four of five abreast and all of them arm in arm , they were either laughing or singing one of there folk songs , you always knew they were fisher girls because the end of there fingers were always covered in plasters where the gutting knife had slipped when gutting the Herring out , they used to say that these ladies were that quick gutting a Herring that they could do at least sixty in a minute , this make it one a second , and watching some of the You Tube clips , I can well believe it . 

My father's mother was part of the family of Eaststicks who were well known in the Yarmouth Herring industry and owned several drifters , in fact we have still got one in the river that is now a floating museum ( Lydia Eva ) which was the name of his wife I believe , she did like her nightly bottle of Guinness and no doubt one or two more besides , when ole Harry Eastdick died she did receive a few bob from his will , how much we didn't know but the ole boy was pretty well off , well time moved on and my dads mother passed away and we thought we might had got a little wind fall , there must had been very little wind at the time as we got nothing , not a penny , in fact my dad and his two brothers had to beg steal and borrow to pay for the ole gals funeral , whatever she got she blew it all on her favourite drink , and to be honest , I didn't blame her one bit , mind you , they were not my thoughts at the time 

interesting ..........

my mrs was related to the Mastersons and also Lake...(who until recently ran a boat out of Kings lynn).................i hope to god we arnt related 

[landowner]

Superb!

[marsh man]

5 hours ago, SuperGoose75 said:

Good Morning Marsh Man, yes I've watched them youtube films about the Herring Industry in Great Yarmouth in bygone days, long before my time but I take an interest in such things. There was some hustle and bustle and it looked like mayhem, but somehow also looked to have run like clockwork with many hands making light work of things. There is a fishing port here called Killybegs, and you know you are getting close to the town, even when you are a few miles away as the stench hits you. I can well imagine how bad Yarmouth was back then going by the videos I've watched.

I suppose its like anything though, you soon get used to it and think nothing of it. I remember when we were doing some construction work in a ''cheese factory'' one time and for the first few days it turned our stomach's, but after a bit ot didn't bother us.

Sorry to hear your Old Gran was fond of the ''Black Stuff'' and you never got the inheritance...ARTHUR has a lot to answer for in many,many case's 😃

Looking back at all the fish oil we must have poured down our stomach didn't do us much harm as five out of the six children my mother had are all still alive and they range from just over seventy to my eldest sister who is coming up for 82 , we didn't know till a bit later on in life that Herring , Bloaters and Kippers were all the same fish which we had at least once a week and for a change we had a plate of rows and milchards , again both from a Herring , which were known locally as the Silver Darlings.

The heyday might well had been before my time when they spoke of having over 1000 drifters going in and of the port , in fact it was 1913 as the most successful year when 12 million tons of Herrings were landed and there were 227 Yarmouth boats and 742 Scottish boats came down this way to fish , between all of the boats they landed 824,213 crans which were 854 million Herring  that had a street value then of over One million Pounds and all the fishing was done in three months with most of the catch going to Russia and Germany , they were the good days , the bad days were when later on in time they had to go back out to sea to dump there catch as no one no longer wanted that many fish , a bit like Pigeon shooting this day and age .    

[400_racer]

@SuperGoose75   great photos there SuperGoose

 

21 hours ago, marsh man said:

The heyday might well had been before my time when they spoke of having over 1000 drifters going in and of the port , in fact it was 1913 as the most successful year when 12 million tons of Herrings were landed and there were 227 Yarmouth boats and 742 Scottish boats came down this way to fish , between all of the boats they landed 824,213 crans which were 854 million Herring  that had a street value then of over One million Pounds and all the fishing was done in three months with most of the catch going to Russia and Germany , they were the good days , the bad days were when later on in time they had to go back out to sea to dump there catch as no one no longer wanted that many fish , a bit like Pigeon shooting this day and age .    

Hi Marsh Man, i have family in Helmsdale in the north Scotish highlands, it is a coastal harbour town, and the major industry used to be fishing, including the big herring catches you talk of.  We visit most years, this year we went back in the museum there, and it talks of how the fishermen used to start in Scotland, and follow the herring run south all the way to Norfolk, catching huge numbers along the way.  Not forgetting the onshore crew, mainly the wives, sorting and packing the catch in barrells.  Amazing really, a hardy bunch.  This was after the highland clearrances, which forced them to have to find a new way of making a living, lots turned to fishing.  

[marsh man]

10 minutes ago, 400_racer said:

@SuperGoose75   great photos there SuperGoose

 

Hi Marsh Man, i have family in Helmsdale in the north Scotish highlands, it is a coastal harbour town, and the major industry used to be fishing, including the big herring catches you talk of.  We visit most years, this year we went back in the museum there, and it talks of how the fishermen used to start in Scotland, and follow the herring run south all the way to Norfolk, catching huge numbers along the way.  Not forgetting the onshore crew, mainly the wives, sorting and packing the catch in barrells.  Amazing really, a hardy bunch.  This was after the highland clearrances, which forced them to have to find a new way of making a living, lots turned to fishing.  

The Herring fishing was a major form of income to my town and not forgetting Lowertoft , It stated that in 1907 the town was swelled by a extra 10,000 people who made the exodus down from Scotland for the three months Herring fishing , these would have included the fishermen , curers , coopers , fisher girls and the general helpers .

These would start arriving at the end of September and the numbers would build up in the 100s , I never saw it , but they did say that when all the boats steamed up the river for the weekend rest you could cross the river by going on the moored boats from one side to the other and our river is quite wide.

The shops done well out of the Scot folks as the fishing off ours was the last they done till after Christmas and the crews would take home a lot of Christmas shopping , my mother worked at the sweet rock factory in town and I used to take them a lot of sticks of rock that were rejects , nothing wrong with the rock but the letters in the middle might had merged or even with a wrong spelling , these were exchanged for a scoop of fresh Herring that more or less filled your wicker bag up .

Most of the boats came from Fraserburgh , Peterhead , Buckie and I believe some came from Banff , all wooden  boats and kept in a very good order .

[SuperGoose75]

2 hours ago, 400_racer said:

@SuperGoose75   great photos there SuperGoose

 

Hi Marsh Man, i have family in Helmsdale in the north Scotish highlands, it is a coastal harbour town, and the major industry used to be fishing, including the big herring catches you talk of.  We visit most years, this year we went back in the museum there, and it talks of how the fishermen used to start in Scotland, and follow the herring run south all the way to Norfolk, catching huge numbers along the way.  Not forgetting the onshore crew, mainly the wives, sorting and packing the catch in barrells.  Amazing really, a hardy bunch.  This was after the highland clearrances, which forced them to have to find a new way of making a living, lots turned to fishing.  

Thank you. This video may be of interest.

Lots of great viewing on the British Pathe channel.

 

 

Edited September 15, 2022 by SuperGoose75

[SuperGoose75]

An hour on the wet fly at the evening rise. First tine using a fly rod after some ''dry casting'' on the green. Wasnt long getting the knack of it. No Seatrout on this occasion but hopefully in the near future🤞

[ditchman]

outside with yer dad with rod and fly..........1

inside with yer gameboy...............................0

 

how can a computor and electronics compete with that....it cant and never will

this is what "parenting" is

 

[Cranfield]

Thats a lovely picture, something he will never forget. 

[Old Boggy]

23 hours ago, ditchman said:

outside with yer dad with rod and fly..........1

inside with yer gameboy...............................0

 

how can a computor and electronics compete with that....it cant and never will

this is what "parenting" is

 

Totally agree there Ditchie.

I attach a photo of one of my nephew`s lad with his first trout. He will certainly remember that fish for life.

They live in Switzerland, don`t have television by choice and the three boys are allowed an hour a day on a laptop for educational purposes only. The parents aren`t allowed to drive the kids to school, so no school run. Bike or walk only. All their hobbies are out of doors.

When he first moved there, he befriended a local policeman and happened to mention a couple of kids misbehaving locally. "Give them a bloody good clip round the ear, that`s what we do" was the copper`s response. They certainly don`t ascribe to our woke society over there. We could well learn from them as I don`t think that there is much crime there, but I fear it`s too late and sadly that`s what this country was like 50 or so years ago. 

OB

[ditchman]

i remember the first trout i caught.....i was staying with my godfather..... and his friend sandy (a local factor) took me fishing on the river Annan just outside Lockerbie....caught a loverly big brownie on the fly next to the bridge just outside the town................

i remember every minit of the fight ...........and i remember eating it when my godmother fried it .............that was a long time ago

[SuperGoose75]

On 31/05/2023 at 11:23, ditchman said:

outside with yer dad with rod and fly..........1

inside with yer gameboy...............................0

 

how can a computor and electronics compete with that....it cant and never will

this is what "parenting" is

 

Cheer's 👍 I do try, although no point in telling lies and prentending I am a model dad with a model boy. He spends a fair amount of time on his Xbox and phone like most other kids his age.

I am giving him snippets of my childhood and hope he takes something from them as he grows. 

 

On 31/05/2023 at 12:51, Cranfield said:

Thats a lovely picture, something he will never forget. 

Thank you.

2 hours ago, Old Boggy said:

Totally agree there Ditchie.

I attach a photo of one of my nephew`s lad with his first trout. He will certainly remember that fish for life.

They live in Switzerland, don`t have television by choice and the three boys are allowed an hour a day on a laptop for educational purposes only. The parents aren`t allowed to drive the kids to school, so no school run. Bike or walk only. All their hobbies are out of doors.

When he first moved there, he befriended a local policeman and happened to mention a couple of kids misbehaving locally. "Give them a bloody good clip round the ear, that`s what we do" was the copper`s response. They certainly don`t ascribe to our woke society over there. We could well learn from them as I don`t think that there is much crime there, but I fear it`s too late and sadly that`s what this country was like 50 or so years ago. 

OB

Great photo of a happy boy with his first trout 👏