Trudging the Erewash

I just had to have another look at the river so decided to visit the next section upstream from Toton at Long Eaton. There had been 10mm of rain overnight the first for ages, and the skies were still leaden. but I was still optimistic, it takes more than a bit of overnight rain to upset the Trent....But not the Erewash!
Chocolate brown and pushing through,all features of the river were well hidden, and this being my first visit to this stretch I was struggling to tell if the pegs I was trotting through were normally deep glides or shallow riffles. I ended up switching between trotting and laying on in the bits of slacker water I found. but generally only gave each swin a few minutes before splashing and slithering along the muddy track to the next spot.
I had reached the arear of the footbridge when a snag parted my hooklength and I fumbled around all my pockets in search of my hook wallet. With dismay I recalled leaving the wallet on the ground in the first peg I had fished, meaning to pick it up...
I had no choice but to troop the half mile back to the first peg, and fortunately the wallet was still where I had left it. I then dropped tot the last peg on theis section, below the bridge. The river is wider here, and the reduced pace made for more confortable trotting. I still got no bites though... Anglers fishing the Erewash Canal had fared no better, so on the lookouf for somewhere productive to take Mentalor next weekend I hopped back into the car to try the canal at Beeston. There was only an hour or so of good light left by the time i made my first cast. Feeding a dozen pinkies every couple of minutes there were plenty of topping fish in the swim but I was getting no bites with size 18 with double pinkie. I fined down to a size24 to 12oz line and a single pinkie and immediatey started getting some action. Over the next 40 mins I caught bleak, including a very nice 58 gram specimen ( I'm suprised how light bleak weigh, relative to their length!), a couple of roach, a hybrid, a single silver bream and a cute baby bronze bream. I also took a minnow and a pair of perch. I fished until I could no longer see the float, but the bites had dried up 10 mins earlier, after the last perch.
Throughout the session pike had been constantly harrying the bleak, breaking the surface on several occasions - I wasnt equpped to take a pop at them, But next weekend I'll be back with my apprentice. There should be plenty to keep us going...