There's snow way I'm fishing today....

...read the text message from my little brother, so I'd be fishing alone today. The overnight snow had left the local roads a bit of a mess. Still I have a 4x4 so that shouldn't stop me, or so I thought. There were no other car tracks in the snow as I headed up Marston Lane and took a left toward Hatton, the A50 and Ashbourne. What I had not factored in was the other road users. Thirty minutes later I was turning the car round, a jack-knifed lorry blocking the A515 and my route to Church Mayfield.

As I pulled up on Monks Bridge I was actually feeling quite excited about getting in the river. A new fleece bib and brace for under the waders should keep me nice and warm. It was a quick purchase yesterday, a few hours in the Derwent at Cromford has left me frozen to the core and something I was not keen to repeat.

As I walked up the river, my footprints the first in the snow apart from a fox, it suddenly occured to me that drivers passing on the A38 would glance up river and see this complete head case standing in the river waving a stick; what would they think?

I caught fish from the off. Nice healthy, fat and fit Grayling - nothing big, perhaps 12" the best fish but nice all the same. A team of three nymphs which were all being hit by the Lady of the Stream. I was certainly having more action than the Derwent of Friday. Glen Pointon and a few others are fishing the Upper Severn today, we were due to be fishing there instead of the Derwent but Birmingham airport had been closed Thursday night and I was left stranded in Holland. By the time my flight got in Friday morning it was too late to head to Cearsws, perhaps we will get another chance in a few days.

After half a dozen fish and a freshly brewed coffee it was time to head for home to pack for another few days away with business....it had been worth the effort...