During our recent visit to Anglesey we had a break from walking or sea fishing and took a rail journey, by steam, from Caernarfon to Porthmadoc on the Ffestiniog & Welsh Highland Railway.

The scenery was magnificent as the train wound its way through the mountain of Snowdonia, made more so by the fact that we’d upgraded our seats to first class (it’s unlikely we’ll do it again for some time so we splashed out) so we were in the observation carriage at the end of the train which had a huge curved glass window at the rear, giving great views of the mountains and hills of North Wales as we sped (or trundled) past.

The carriage was amazing, with beautiful woodwork and individual small armchairs and although the snacks and drinks were basic they were of good quality and the service was great, especially considering that most of the ‘staff’ were volunteers.

At the other end we had a fish and chip lunch at the award winning Spooner’s Café & Bar – in Harbour Station then spent a few hours exploring Porthmadog harbour and Borth-y-Gest before reversing the journey.

Our return train was pulled by a different engine and we travelled in a ‘Pullman’ coach which was exceptionally comfortable – made more so by the fine bottle of Madog’s Ale, brewed in Porthmadog, I consumed along the way.

If the weather forcaste looks good, and you’ve nothing planned, I thoroughly recommend it.

The Frog spawn has arrived a  little earlier than last year in Queens Park, Bolton, but considering just how cold last year was not surprising.

So I present to you… the annual photo of gloopy Frogspawn.

The flower in Queens Park have started to show, this Primrose being one of the first, and I’m expecting to see the wild Garlic flowers any time now.

With all this warm weather it’s no surprise that the wildlife in the park is getting a little ‘frisky’. The Mallards and Moorhens are pairing up and laying claim to their little bit of water. I’ve seen a pair of Kingfishers patrolling up and down the River Croal and the Peregrines are once more making a welcome nuisance of themselves over the town hall keeping the resident Pigeon population under control.

A new one for me this week was an 16 Spot Orange Ladybird, it was just walking up a sun drenched tree – apparently a ‘warm’ weather species which just goes to show how mild it has been this week.

No fly fishing this weekend as my favourite fly rod has gone in for a repair although I may try and get out and about somewhere, although doing what I’m not too sure yet…

Traveling the globe and risking his life, Wade searches for these mysterious freshwater predators, on a mission to test the myths surrounding these almost supernatural creatures.

I’ve caught a few “monsters” in my time but nothing quite so awe inspiring as some of the fish Jeremy catches (pardon the pun) on camera, definitely worth watching, “River Monsters” hits the Discovery Channel on Tuesdays at 10pm.

Rik Mayall is brilliant as a Flash Diehard type character, and the Bombardier beer isn’t too shabby either :)

We’ve not been sea fishing for a while but we’re making up for it soon with a week on Anglesey so we’ve been getting our kit together and doing all sorts of home and garden maintenance type things before we go away. Even though I’m supposed to be getting stuff ready for going away I couldn’t resist a quick walk along our local River Douglas, not for any specific reason, just because it’s been a nice day.

Nothing unusual to report although if the number of Small Tortoiseshell butterflies flitting round the nettles is anything to go by it looks like they might be making a bit of a recovery – at least I hope so. Birds are all doing the pairing up thing and it was good to see the Swallows swooping over the fields chasing the insects being thrown up as the tractors plough. Although not unusual in itself we have noticed a lot more Orange Tip butterflies this year – I’m not sure if we’re just more observant or if there are more than normal – I suppose we’ll see once the summer arrives.

Every time I walk along the River Douglas it reminds me just how lucky we are to live in such a fantastic place, not just Lancashire, but the UK in general and even on your local patch you can sometimes find something a bit different to photograph or a new look for an old subject.

Take the above as an example, looks almost alien – like some sort of science fiction film set but it’s the dried mud on the side of the River Douglas. I’ve been trying to photograph it for a while but it’s either too wet and messy or too dry and powdery, today it was just right…

If your in the area how about renting out a cottage at Easy Cottages for your walking holiday in Lancashire

Spring is in the air and it’s time for all creatures great and small to start doing what the birds and the bees do best – yes – it’s time for some good old fashioned sex.

Everywhere you look at this time of year you can see all types of fauna paired up and ready to make whoopie. During the past few days I’ve made the most of the weather and spent a fair amount of time wondering round Queens Park, Bolton. As well as the usual suspects of Sparrows, Great Tits, Blue Tits, Long-tailed Tits, Ducks and Geese the Green Dock Beetles seem to have come out of hiding earlier this year and are certainly making the most of it.

As well as these beautiful little bugs the new growth on the Hazel and Alder is covered in deep blue Alder Leaf Beetles getting busy in the making little beetles department.

No fishing for a while as we’ve been making the most of the weather and planting a few flowers and more veg. in the garden but we’re going to Anglesey soon for a week which theoretically should coincide with the Bass arriving – at least that’s what we’re hoping…

With the Daffodils showing and the wild Garlic and Bluebells just itching to burst into flower we’ll be seeing lambs soon and I can’t wait, this Winter seems to have been a long one…

I did manage to get out for a look at our local River Douglas boatyard during the huge Spring tides a week ago. Seeing the pontoon against the banks of the river and the yacht in the above picture I must go and have another look because I’m sure it’s risen above the banks of the river and is sitting on the edge of the flood plain. It must have been a pain to get it back into the centre of the river. The barge on the right of the photo is almost always high and dry, I’m amazed the thing still floats.

So that’s it, no much of an update – more an “I’m still here” type of post. Hopefully we’ll be getting out doing something we want to do such as fly fishing, sea fishing, walking or generally anything but decorating or those things things that you have to do but never want to.