DEAN Herbert was left a ‘nervous wreck’ after connecting with this prehistoric sturgeon on the River Trent near Nottingham.
Hailing from South Elmsall near Pontefract, Dean was fishing a tidal section of the river for barbel. But after landing decent roach and bream, by midday Dean, who is a machine driver for a civil engineering company, had yet to catch his target species.
“I’d been fishing pellet on one rod and worm on the other,” he said.
“It’d been slow on the barbel front, but I then received a few taps and rattles on the tip, which I thought was a roach, but after picking up the rod, it didn’t really feel like one.
“The next thing I knew, a huge fish jumped 3ft out the river, and I could see it was a sturgeon! My composure fell to bits - I was a nervous wreck! It went mental, like nothing I’d hooked before, but thankfully after a series of powerful dives and runs, I finally slipped the net under the remarkable fish, which weighed 19lb 5oz.
“After sitting down, a little bit dazed, to try to get my breath back, I began fishing again and a little later landed a cracking roach that equalled my pb of 2lb 4oz. The barbel never showed, but it was a fantastic session, and one that I’ll never forget.”
