Dave Robinson is no stranger to catching big fish, having recently been awarded the Specimen Angler of the Year award in our National Angling Awards 2024. However, it doesn't matter how much you know or how long you've been fishing, there is always room for improvement as he found out on a recent session on the River Lea, where a tactical change saw him land a monster chub!
“I’ve always been led to believe that chub are one of the more catchable species in our rivers," Dave told us.
“But this hasn’t been my experience with the ones that I fish, and simply bouncing cheesepaste around certainly wasn’t going to cut it this winter."
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“In previous years, I’d catch a couple of chub early on, mostly in late autumn, and then, if I was lucky, I’d get a few more towards the end of the season."
“This winter, though, conditions have been tough, even for these supposedly ‘friendly’ fish."
“This year, I decided on a different approach. Instead of wandering around with paste, trying to land it in front of a chub, I went for a more static strategy, baiting up two or three swims on arrival with a large bait dropper."
“Stealth has always been a priority for me, especially when adopting new techniques, but this winter I had to let that go."
“Armed with my baiting-up rod, dropper, and a half-bucket of hemp, maggots and chopped worm, I introduced between six and 10 large droppers into promising areas. Then, I split my time between these swims, focusing on them alone, rather than trying to fish every swim," he explained.
“I was keen to use PVA socks of maggots, but the rate at which my rig and bag fell through the water didn’t match that of the dropper."
“My rig often landed further downstream than the bait I had put out, the bag acting like a parachute. So, I switched to a maggot feeder, which I found landed in precisely the same spot as my loosefeed."
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“The elasticated stem inside the feeder also eliminated concerns about the fish shaking the rig loose with the lead. The ‘bungee effect’ worked brilliantly, making it an excellent method, not only for chub, but also for roach. I went with a light 4ins fluorocarbon hooklink, paired with a size 12 wide gape hook. I mounted a single fake maggot on the shank and, most of the time, I added a real one as well."
“Fishing like this,especially in the dark, took some getting used to, but I felt more confident with my method as winter went on."
“I also mixed in some hemp and chopped worm to stack the odds in my favour after dark. I’m not confident enough to rely on maggots alone at night, and I never have been."
“This style of fishing is certainly something I'm going to add into my fishing each year moving forward, especially when the rivers are low and clear. I believe it made all the difference to the recent capture of this immaculate 7lb 2oz fish from the River Lea."
“My thoughts are now set firmly on the river, where I know there are some real monsters."
“If I can’t catch another this campaign, my hopes for next season are higher than ever.”
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