On May 14th 2011 The Environment Agency Wales (Northern Area) held a fishing open day for anglers and the public at the United Utilities, Llyn Brenig Visitor Centre. The EA kindly offered the CSTP a stand there to promote the project. Nigel Milner and Nik Tysklind from the Bangor University team spent the day there and we met several anglers who were already involved with the programme and others who expressed interest in helping.

Brace of sea trout from the tide

Two anglers who returned scales in 2010 were Dyfed Jones, from Foxon’s Tackle Shop, Ruthin, and Alan Cuthbert, who runs the anglers’ website, Campaign for the Protection of Welsh Fisheries (). We were able to show them the scales from their fish on a projector and how they are read. It was great to see them get absorbed by the life stories of their fish. As experienced anglers they knew all about sea trout migration of course; but for others it was a revelation to learn about the extensive migrations and habitat changes experienced by that the trout living in their local rivers. So, a good day that hopefully will lead to more samples as the project develops.

Alan Cuthbert (left) and Dyfed Jones examine a sea trout scale at the Brenig Open Day