15/09/2024 - Three Bites = Three Chub
My best chub at 4 lb 10 ounces
Yesterday Monday I was booked for a guiding session with Bill to see if he could catch a sea trout, now most people would say the river wasn’t suitable being bank high and coloured. I’d seen enough sea trout moving the day before so we chose to try. As I often say you can't catch unless you try. The forecast was light rain showers and fifteen to twenty mile an hour winds from the south west, the wind strength was correct, but what they described as light rain showers, were certainly wrong, I described them as heavy rain showers.
We soon got kitted out with wet weather gear, I then put together a size six weight outfit then attached a Dunkeld pattern to the cast, at the waterside I had Bill fish down the quieter margins where there was around three feet of water over gravel bottom. After about an hour in the heavy rain, Bill suggested an early lunch. As I was cooking lunch, I casually said “Its good chub water today” Having served his lunch and made two mugs of tea, we sat chatting when Bill casually said “Why don’t you try for a chub, you know I like watching you fish” I replied “I can’t do that, my job is to look after you” After perhaps twenty minutes I said to Bill “OK I will fish for half an hour”.
Having put together my chub fishing outfit 11ft Avon action rod with a fixed spool reel, loaded with ten pound braid, I attached a float stop to hold the plasticine, then a size 4 barbless hook. I had some sausage meat and bread in my bag, as I was going to fish when Bill went off home, then I would get a taxi. I told Bill I got three swims to try, fifteen minutes later I’m in the first swim, I had a rough idea of how much plasticine I would need, having moulded it around the float stop about two feet from the hook, I baited with a piece of crust then moulded a bantam size egg of sausage meat around the crust, its an idea I have used for years finding it very successful. Having cast out I sat holding the rod with the line over my index finger, ten minutes no more I felt a determined pull, striking the rod was suddenly well bent as line, was literally ripped off the spool.
I had to just let it run, then it stopped for a few second giving three big head shakes, I thought “This could be a good five pounder the way it was taking more line”. Eventually the fish stopped, I increased the pressure, but all I could do was wait until it stopped the head shaking, then I got a few feet back on the reel, suddenly the fish changed direction heading for a far bank tree that had crashed in the water last winter. As it did so, it moved upstream, I was able to gain some line, then pull its head in another direction, gaining more line. Apart from the occasional head shake it tended to hang in the fast water, slowly the pressure started to tell on the fish, I was gaining more line and control, soon I spotted the plasticine. Slowly I pulled the fish towards the net, but it wasn’t ready yet, as some line was taken. Suddenly the fish rolled on the top head shaking and swirling, I tried to take control, then it was coming towards the net, suddenly it then dived again taking about three or four feet of line, in the next minute it was mine as I drew the fish over the net then lifted. On the scales it weighed 4 lb 15 ounce.
Two more Good Chub I then moved upstream to my next choice spot catching a 4 lb 10 ounce fish, in the next swim, then I had a 4 lb 6 ounce fish, three good chub in just about half an hour. I then put my tackle in the car and carried on my duties. Sadly Bill didn’t catch a sea trout, but hooked four fish, but they all go off. At the end I decide not to fish on and get a lift home from Bill.
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