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The Forgotten River

The River north Esk Penicuik

May 2011 A Sunday afternoon after some heavy rain showers it was time to have a look at the river as I had looked at it in winter in its winter wonderland glory. It is now summer and I was hoping to see signs of some sort of recovery. Well I was not disappointed, First sign of something good was the Mallard Ducks feeding on the river. Second good sign was the Dippers were still in there usual places from where I used to see them. Camera in hand I took some photos of the birds feeding and the dipper roosting on his normal perch. However there was something missing signs of Fish.

Although the water was slightly discoloured I could still see the bottom, from up on the bridge. Normally in years gone by you would have seen trout in abundance sadly I can say, I never saw one. Further down the river at what we used to call the Joiners pool another well known spot for trout signs on the trees that there had been some fishing action recently as there was plenty of nylon hanging from the tree branches.

Looking into the water I could not even see any minnows or stickle backs, which used to be in abundance at this corner pool, and a lack of green weed on the rocks and boulders was a sure sign that things are still not quite there yet. Fifty yards down river signs were improving the rocks were covered in green weed. This will be a starting point on my next trip with the rod to see if I can establish what the fish state actually is. To be fair the areas that I looked at are about the only accessible areas where the younger generation would consider fishing. So it could just be that these areas are over fished but I somehow doubt that.