Please, please let the fishing conditions improve during February. Oh god, what a start!

Ever the enthusiast I predicted that the forecasted snow would be wrong and the six inches promised over night would only be two. Wrong, at 5am I awoke to nine and a half inches, of snow that is! I'd arranged to fish Willow with Michael Townsend from Monday till Wednesday evening and calling him at 5-15am found him to be fifty-miles down the M1. I explained the situation but then the phone died so not wanting to let him down started to load the car. As l closed the boot, getting covered in snow and looking like a snowman the phone rang. Michael had just driven through a blizzard and knowing that Willow hadn’t fished well over the weekend we agreed and took the sensible option to abandoned the trip.

Gutted at having to cancel, I sat at home wondering what to do when a text came through from Dai Gribble, cheekily mentioning something about whimping out on the trip to Oxford. Now I'm sure I read in his last blog something about checking the state of Willow before making the expensive 200 mile round trip. Obviously no one can fish a lake when its frozen but getting through nearly a foot of snow’s another thing, unfortunately l don’t have the luxury of a snow plough as my transport to a venue like Dai has!

After finalising a few articles during the day Monday and Tuesday morning I finally ventured out in the hope of making the river for a few snow scenic’s, shame my staff don’t have as much determination at coming to work! I was amazed that crossing counties into Berkshire that only a couple of inches had fallen and started questioning if the Oxford trip was possible but in hindsight the new girlfriends cooking on Saturday night had left me with a few stomach cramps to say the least, so it was probably best to stay close to home! No one had fished the river since the snow had fallen so I knew that a few chub would be obliging and after a four hour roving session managed six chub including four, four’s to a simple bread flake approach.

The following day I was back this time with a photographer as it seemed a great opportunity to get some action shots in the snow, maybe for an article but more so to get a cover shot for AT. The thaw had started and and with the cold melt plus salt from the roads finding their way into the river I knew it would be harder. Five swims before the first pull, but a soon as it came it was gone and I had to drop into the banker boundary swim for the goods to be delivered. The first bite saw a good fish lost then the next produced a modest chub but good enough to hopefully get the shot. The lakes are well and truly frozen and with temperatures expected to fall things look bleak for the next few days.