Brassy brace

Saturday lunchtime saw me heading out for a spot of chub hunting on a new reach of river.

I guess you could say I am a bit focused on them at the moment, admittedly I have a very good choice of rivers in my locality when it comes to the species, although some are more overlooked than others, waterways which are verging on almost neglected or ignored altogether and where a bit of homework can lead to some fruitful fishing.


It was a blustery day, but more mild than it has been of recent and without doubt a hint of springtime judging by the bird life activity, there were woodpeckers dotted about in pairs, the sound of them merrily hammering away at trees reverberated around me and at one point I had a Sparrowhawk land on a bough next to me, we shared an impromptu stare, his with a touch of disregard almost looking through me, before swiftly vanishing upstream. I tried to reach for the camera which I always have ready for a wildlife shot but alas it did not hang around. Not too long after this a Male Roe deer and his female companion sauntered into view, they looked content as they picked their way through the grass and had a good feed, she even stopped to poke her tongue out (that is what I like to think).

I had opted for a spot of link legering, chopping and changing between lob worm and a cheese paste recipe that has been catching me a few fish, a mixture of mature cheddar, blue cheese garlic and krill. Three perch later and I decided to make a change to the paste, a healthy piece was squeezed on to a size 8 hook and the bare minimum of free offerings placed downstream, sometimes less really is more and the scent trail this paste leaks off is akin to fermented shrimp combined with a pair of smelly socks!

Late in the afternoon as the drizzle set in I received a confident bite, the tip thudding round, this fish was rather bullish as it headed off toward a sunken branch on the opposite bank, a bit of coaxing and it was eventually back in the swim and ready for the net, a fine fish, long and chunky (5.1).

I pondered my options, I did not wish to release this fish back into the swim lest I spook any other chevin, so decided instead to keep it in the landing net and see if any others would be forthcoming. Twenty minutes later and that question was answered with another confident bite, this fish nearly had me in a snag, the line grating as I tried to stop it from making a headfirst dive into the undercut bank which had a few too many sunken snags for my liking. Sure enough it was a chunky fish, weighing a pleasing 5.10.

A brace of 5's (5.1 held and 5.10 resting on the mat)

Despite a few more inquisitive rattles no more fish were forthcoming and as daylight faded the blustery wind was soon accompanied by heavier rain, this was my cue to head off home. It had been a fine afternoon, the wildlife alone would have been reward enough, but this brassy brace was the perfect way to cap what had been a most enjoyable fishing trip.