Mel Shand

“The River Dee in Aberdeenshire flows for 88 miles from the mountains to the sea, and as a Director of the River Dee Trust I have come to know and love it, and the wildlife it supports, very well. The work of the Trust is guided by the principal of how we can better understand and support the river for future generations.”

I was brought up by the sea, at Fortrose on the Moray Firth, and have fond memories of trailing my hand in the water behind the boat as porpoises followed. Four years at Art College in Dundee meant the Esks and the coast at St Andrews were visited in almost equal measure, but St Cyrus has pulled my heartstrings since I was a teenager. I had barely dipped a fishing rod in the water when London beckoned but I soon came to my senses, moving back to Deeside in the noughties. I married a fishing ghillie called Hedge and in the best tradition of poacher turned gamekeeper, we came to the Finzean Estate in 2002 where we have raised three boys and far too many dogs. Our lives have turned with the seasons ever since.