20-year quest ends with 13lb 10oz barbel

Andrew Harris made a 100-mile round trip to the River Kennet and was rewarded for his efforts with this 13lb 10oz barbel.

The Hemel Hempstead-based rod’s previous four trips had resulted in blanks and he feared his unlucky run was going to continue when he lost a big fish on the first night of his trip.

He preserved, however, and continued to feed a mixture of casters, small pellets and hemp and his 16mm pellet hookbait wrapped in paste was eventually picked up by his new personal best.

“It’s taken me 20 years to catch one this big,” he told Angling Times. “I thought I was going to have to let the fish go without taking a photo when thankfully another angler walked passed who was able to do a couple of pics.”