2lb Grayling for Phil

The digs were magic! we stayed at the Bateman Arms in Shobham and I would highly recommend it. We sat infront of the open fire having a chat about fishing with a few local ales, a hearty meal and friendly locals. Perfect!

We woke up the following morning and it was raining, intermittently hard but consistent. It was going to be a damp day. After a good fry up we headed out to the Leam beat on the Arrow that we had already booked and once again it was a great stretch as it ran between two weir's and meandered through, beech and alder woods, scrub and farmland.

Not quite as picturesque as yesterday but it had great variety to the fishing with many more pools to go at. Our first walk in and there was another otter, amazing. It was just on the far bank no more that 20 metres away and we stood and watched as it ducked and dived and played under the bush for a good five minutes. It's worth going just for that.

Phil found himself a nice bend and settled in. I on the other hand was a little nomadic and worked my way up the bank. It wasn't long and i heard Phil shout and he was into one on a gold head hares ear. It was about three quarters of a pound and with renewed confidence he persevered on and it paid off with another grayling this time much better and was measured at 42 cm - a little over 2lb. What a fantastic fish and a magic achievement on a damp day.

He had found a pocket of fish and the right depth and could have fished there all day. I on the other hand was impatient and continued my exploration up to the start of the beat fishing a short while in each pool i came across. Even though it had rained continuously and we were a little damp by now it was still great to watch you line come down stream with that anticipation.

Phil now had moved upstream to a second bend and had a brownie first chuck and then another grayling over a pound. He obviously was doing something right and had had brilliant day with 3 grayling, one over 2lb and a couple of brownies returned.

Although I never saw any fish in the flesh as I was always somewhere else so I am going to have to check the time stamp on the photos just to make sure!!

I had tried my heart out but with no success so my first grayling on the fly will have to wait for another day.

I am sure it will be worth waiting for!