Over the past few months I been working a lot on Canvey Island, I’m a gardener/handyman, and every so often I have had short periods of spare time during my work schedule so I have been visiting different areas of Canvey to fill that spare time.
Now I used to live on ‘The Island’ and the locals have a saying that ‘you never leave the mud’ and it certainly is true as prior to a few months ago I don’t think I had visited the ‘Mud’, locals name for Canvey Island if you did not already know, for a couple of years and now been there a couple times a week for the past 4 months or so.
So I only had 30 minutes to spare so after parking my van at the foot of the sea wall defence near the Lobster Smack pub I climbed the embankment and walked along the seawall towards Holehaven Pier. I used to fish along from this pier many years ago and have fond memories of catching plump flounder from the channel that runs not too far from the shore. Not a lot had changed along the wall here, not the prettiest place to visit as there is old gas jetties protruding out into the estuary in both directions showing how Canvey used to be a hub of industry in the past, still does to a lesser degree I believe. I walked back along the wall and down some steps to walk along a groyne which pointed towards the end of one of the jetties. This groyne I believe is covered by water at high tide but the water was on its way out whilst I was there. When I was in my early twenties I used to walk the mud here, at low tide, turning rocks over looking for peeler crab to use as fishing bait later the same day. I regularly found small flatfish and gobies hiding in the small pools that form around the larger rocks, I loved it and I should do more of it.
I know Canvey Island has always had a bit or a bad wrap but if you are in the area it is worth paying a visit and having a wander along the front there, you won’t be dissappointed.
Ahh memories…..
