Oncorhynchus mykiss (blue) the Blue Trout

 I've caught many rainbows in my time but last weekend I caught a rare genetic mutation of a rainbow trout, a Blue trout. Its said that for every 3 million trout eggs that hatch only 30 of them will be blues. The photos don't do it justice but it had the most vivid Blue back I have even seen and it's sides where the silveriest silver I've ever seen ! There was virtually no pink on it at all.

 

As I said the pics don't show it very well but the top is the blue the bottom one is a regular rainbow

Again it's hard to make out the colouration but if you zoom in around the eyes and head the blue is very noticible. This fish fought better than any rainbow I've caught before and was an aerial ballerina, incredibly impressed with its colouration and fighting capabilities, I hope I am lucky enough to catch another !

Hoary plantain

 Of the six types of plantain found in the UK this is the last of the land grown varieties, hoary plantain.

Easily recognised due to its downy leaves its usually found on limestone and chalky areas.

Its edible and has been used as a food source in Britain since early roman times 

It's also a medicinal in the same way the other plantains are but rarely used due to its relative scarcity in ulster. 

Stagshorn plantain , plantago coronopus

 A lot of people are familiar with the 'regular' plantains we often find, that is ribwort plantain and broadleaf plantain, but a lot of people aren't so familiar with the other species of plantain that can be found in the UK, and this is one of them. Stagshorn or bucks-horn plantain, so called because its leaves look a little like deer antlers, tends to be a coastal plant though it can grow inland when roads or path ways are regularly salted.

Though not as medicinal as the aforementioned plantains, this one is slightly more palatable. Books say it tastes like parsley which I dont find at all,  I find it slightly bitter and salty though not as bitter as ribwort, it has a succulent texture and isn't the worst wild edible I've tried and I suppose would be fine mixed with other salad plants rather than just on its own. It has been used as a salad leaf and there are now commercially grown varieties used for salads. I haven't tried any of these commercial varieties but there must be some demand for them if they are now farmed for food. 

The search for samphire

 Although not the time of year to forage for this tasty coastal delicacy we needed to find an area that supports an abundant amount. However the areas in which this salty sea vegetable grows are salt marsh and mud flat and are quite rare around the northern Irish coast. However after some research and a day of travelling we did find what we were after. Dead and dried plants were easily identifiable from last years crop and the young shoots were showing ready to be harvested later in the year. Its quite difficult to identify simply from its dried remains but not if you know what to look for !

Ephesians 6 verse 12

 

Deep dark Brown Trout from a hilltop lough

 Thought I'd post a few pictures of some of our recent fishing escapades to far away mountain top loughs. Nothing much to say so I'll let the pictures do the talking 

 

Mini crankbaits for trout

 As you know by now I'm an avid angler and lures are my passion and speciality. I've been doing a lot of trout fishing lately and experimenting with different lures to see if there is any common denominator in trout crankbaits, the results seem to be keep it small with a fast tight wiggle and it seems to make all the difference 

Nice brownie on a small firetiger crank

Unusual for a brownie is the deep red flesh, usually a sign on a shrimp and fish feeder..

Nice fat rainbow on a crickhopper crankbait in er..firetiger lol  , is there a pattern emerging here ?

The rod I caught the rainbow on was made in Kenneth Rankins shop in Belfast, a hollow glass hand built beauty that my Dad bought me for my 14th birthday, so it's nearly 40 years old now. This faithful companion has been with me on many an adventure and caught nearly every freshwater and quite a few salt water fish around the island of Ireland, it was a pleasure to bring it out of hibernation and put it to good use again.