The end of the mackerel fishing season. A reason for mourning the last days of this beautiful, iridescent fish – a staple “crop” from the sea in Cardigan Bay.
Aberaeron has been voted the best place to live in Wales over the last year, and so it is. The annual Mackerel Festival celebrates the passing with a procession through the town, a Deep-South funeral band, and mourners in black weeping and wailing as the (papier-mache) fish is carried slowly to the beach next to the Yacht Club. Visitors and local alike line the streets and police stop the traffic as it makes its final journey to south beach.
After the traditional sermon, everyone piles into the bar until sunset when the mackerel is set on fire and launched into the sea. A perfect Bank Holiday weekend! I might even join the mourners next year…
