Love the anticipation in new chub swims: the outcome unknown!
On the previous evening I packed a multitude of baits to target chub on one of Mark and myself's favourite little rivers. I set out to fish with my feeder rod and a nice light reel making a fine matching setup for the roving and holding the rod in tight swims. I brought liquidised bread to fish in the feeder, as well as some maggots which I had left over from an aborted plan the previous week. After taking a while to find a swim we liked the look of, we settled down in a nice pool which had a nice run off into a darker sheltered section with a nice weed raft which certainly looked good for a bite. Mark opted to start to work the top of the swim with maggots and his stick float gear and was landing plentiful dace after working the swim with maggots. I quickly set up a simple feeder set up with merely a float stop on the line (for an adjustable tail) and flicked it to the weed raft area. As expected, I knew if indication was to come it would come quick, and this was no exception with a few finicky taps becoming an a slow accelerating pull round on the tip. After a confident strike, I knew I had a chub of some description on and after a nice fight, it was in the net. It was a nice conditioned little chub to start the session off with nice bold colours.
Nice encouraging start, a decent conditioned little chub
After this fish, it was obvious the swim had gone dead and with Mark's dace catch rate becoming slower, we moved slightly upstream of this area. This swim, Mark certainly knew held fish and where I had missed a good bite in the past. After missing one slow bite from an unknown source, I suddenly saw a Ghost Carp move into view in my near margin as I was putting more liquidised bread in the feeder. Despite lowering my bread flake offering in its path, it was far from interested as to neither inspect yet alone touch the bait. After a while I saw a fair few carp emerge in group and go on a regular patrol route together. Mark who had been slightly upstream had scaled up with a different reel and we both lowered in static baits into hopefully the path of a carp. After a fair while of watching the fish going over the areas where our bait was, it was clear they had no intention of getting their heads down, therefore Mark and I decided enough was enough and next time to try baiting up for them first prior to fishing.
Mark checking his worm!
After this, we decided then to try an area where we have both caught some half decent chub. Mark opted to fish a nice shallow run off or a nice slacker pool where he had managed some nice chub, dace and the predictable trout on this chalkstream. I opted to choose one of my banker swims slightly upstream of Mark, sticking with my feeder approach. It was not long until I had a good tap before the tip just flew round. I struck and was into another nice little chub. (Sadly due to a focus failure I won't be using a screen grab).
Waiting for the tip to go!
We realised time was getting on and we were both hungry, therefore we headed back for Mark's car to retrieve our food, as well as Mark realising he now had to pack up and leave for home. He kindly emptied the remainder of his maggots into my bait box and drove me to a section of this river down the road that I have grown to know quite well. I had plenty of maggots and caster left from an aborted plan last week, so I headed into the first banker swim I had discovered when I first this venue - I see this swim as part of the birth of my love of river fishing! I casted in my maggot feeder opting to fish 2 white maggots and a red on a size 14 and it wasn't long until I had a tap on the feeder and a missed bite. The bite was pretty electrifying and bouncy, with me reeling in some seriously sucked back maggots, therefore I expected it to be a dace which had gotten away it. I casted in again in pretty much the same area and waited. After receiving one delicate tap, a few seconds later the tip slowly flew round. I lifted into a good fish and I was one hundred percent sure as soon as I saw my line moving for the snags on the far side of the swim, that I was into a nice chub. After holding the fish and gradually pulling it upstream away from harm's way, a couple more lunges of desperation in its bid for freedom, and then it was mine!
One of the better chub of the day!
I took the time to take this nice picture (above) and promptly released the fish upstream. It was a nice long chub in nice condition. After this, I decided to put the camera away, as I felt like just relaxing as I had got a picture to put up on my weekly update. The final result was 4 chub and a few nice dace to around 8oz. No surprise for this stretch, but not having done much maggot feeder fishing on rivers for chub, I went home a very happy angler knowing that I had a few stunning chub and bonus dace!
A lovely closeup of a roach Mark had before I arrived
Big thanks to Mark for coming down and joining me, always an enjoyable chap to fish with. Mark has had some very impressive captures of late including a cracking Personal Best chub of 6lbs 4oz! You can follow Mark on
Instagram: @chapsout
Facebook: Team MAG
Here's a video of Mark's recent successes!
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