“I recently visited Chew Valley Lake for just the second time in my life to target its impressive pike stocks on the fly.
“After I’d caught a small jack early on, my boat partner Nick managed a 17-pounder, before I then had another solid pull. On connecting with it, the fish ran straight towards me, giving the impression that it was only small... but then it woke up!
“It was only when she rolled near the boat that I saw the scale of the fish that I was attached to, and when we finally had her in the net I could put my heart back where it belonged… and not in my mouth!
“At 31lb 10oz, this pike was a true ‘unit’ of a fish, with a chest like a barrel. I’d never caught one over 20lb on the fly before, so I’d skipped membership of that particular club and gone straight over the magic 30lb mark!
“I felt an incredible sense of achievement, because I know that some anglers wait many years to catch a pike like this!”
