On Wednesday 25th September, 28 Anglemog members survived crossing the Strood & met at
Colchester Oyster Fisheries at East Mersea near Colchester, Essex. for a tour of their facilities, the
first stage of a day visit to Mersea Island, sometimes referred to as ‘The Best Kept Secret in Essex’, &
is the UK’s most Easterly inhabited island, situated between in the estuary area between the
Blackwater & Colne rivers. A dismal weather forecast meant a few Mogs stayed tucked up in their
garages & tin tops used instead. Fortunately, although overcast, the rain held off.
Following a very welcome coffee, tea and an excellent selection of cakes in their very nice function
room with beautiful views over the Pyfleet channel, towards the River Colne & Brightlingsea, MD
Paul Harding gave us a very interesting talk about the history of oysters in the Pyefleet channel,
which dates from Roman times when Colchester (Camulodunum) was the capital of Roman Britain &
is a little unique in that the beds are leased from Colchester City Council rather than the Crown, to
the creation of Colchester Oyster Fisheries in 1966 & where they are today, (having survived a
serious fire, the pandemic as well as other setbacks) supplying top restaurants & hotels countrywide
with both Colchester oysters as well as Lobsters, delivering 6 nights a week. In addition they offer a
wide range of seafood including platters via their website.
He described the differences between ‘Native’ (not to be eaten unless there is an ‘r’ in the month!),
& ‘Rock’ oysters & how the Colchester/Mersea oysters are ‘farmed’; dredged from the mineral rich
river bed, compared to, for example, Whitstable where the oysters are grown in nets.
Following the talk, members were taken to the Oyster room where the oysters are graded. Paul then
showed us how to open the oyster correctly & several of us sampled wonderful fresh Colchester
oysters.
From East Mersea there was a short drive to Coast Road, West Mersea & reserved Anglemog
parking spaces at West Mersea Marine Car Park & a walk to the Victory at Mersea for lunch, & yes, a
couple Tollesbury & Mersea Native Oyster Fishing Company Ltd. of members did have oysters!
After lunch, while others had leisurely walks around the waterfront area of West Mersea, 17
members boarded two launches from the Hammerhead & took the ten minute trip to Packing Shed
Island in the Strood Channel.
Our ‘drivers’ landed us safely on the Island & we then went into the Packing Shed. Paddy, one of our
drivers gave us a brief history of the Packing Shed; it was originally built in 1890 by the Tollesbury &
Mersea Native Oyster Fishing Company Ltd. to clean & sort oysters for the flourishing Mersea oyster
industry, employing 60 fishermen. Oysters were shipped to London by Thames barge to Billingsgate
Fish Market in London; some of those same Thames barges can often be seen off Mersea today. This
first Packing Shed was badly damaged in 1890’s & rebuilt in 1897; this shed was used until the
1950’s.
It was used occasionally by ‘The Company’, but was left to rot; however, it survived the great storm
of 1987. A group of local volunteers decided it should be restored, & in 1992, it was opened as a
benefit for the local community. It is still owned by the Tollesbury & Mersea Native Oyster Fishing
Company Ltd. (also owners of the renowned Company Shed restaurant) but leased to the Packing
Shed Trust at a peppercorn rent. It’s now open for private functions, as well as special events
organised by the trust, such as cream teas. There are a number of oyster fishery artifacts , photos &
documents on display, together with the wonderful views of West Mersea, the Blackwater Estuary,
Bradwell etc.
The future? There is concern that both the Packing Shed Island itself will be subject to erosion, & the
island could disappear, but also Mersea ‘harbour’ will gradually silt up as a result. However, through
Mersea Harbour Protection, English Nature & the Environmental Agency have arranged for material
from the dredging of Felixstowe/Harwich harbours to be loaded onto Packing Shed Island to
hopefully alleviate the threat to both the Island & the harbour area..
Paddy & Colin then returned us safely back to the Hammerhead safely navigating the incoming tide.
The end of a very full day on Mersea Island.
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