Chris BishopWEST NORFOLK AND FENS: With a couple of weeks left, I won't be the first to pronounce this season a total washout. "Fishing..? Haven't been in six weeks, you should see the snow we've been having," a mate in Scotland e-mails.Chris Bishop

With a couple of weeks left, I won't be the first to pronounce this season a total washout.

"Fishing..? Haven't been in six weeks, you should see the snow we've been having," a mate in Scotland e-mails.

A bright, high pressure day which saw a few runs on Saturday turned to blizzards by Sunday morning, leaving many waters frozen.

Those who look to the drains and rivers to end their season are going to find them swollen and mucky.

Around the pits the trees are starting to bud and the woodpeckers are drumming in the woods, showing there's not long left.

If you're planning your last few days of the winter one thought to console.

It can't get any worse next season - no, really it can't.

On a brighter note, will another record-rocking zander come from an Anglian reservoir next season?

Predator fans who've endured a slog of a season in the Fens might be tempted to give the ressies a go, with Grafham, Rutland and Pitsford on their doorsteps.

Michael Dollan's 22lb zander, caught near Grafham's dam wall, might well whet a few appetites.

This isn't easy fishing, with location being the first problem, closely followed by the difficulties in fishing in 80ft or more of water.

Dollan's zed slipped up on a mackerel tail, but vertical jigging has been the method many have adopted, hopping small rubber lures and jigs up and down just off the bottom.

This isn't cheap fishing either, with boats costing around �25 a day, plus �15 for a pike permit. Dates for this year are October 1 to November 21 at Pitsford; October 12 to November 28 at Rutland and October 11 to November 28 at Grafham.