Giant chub falls for sausage hookbait
GERARD O’Sullivan proved the pulling power of Peperami when this 7lb 8oz chub snaffled his sausage hookbait during a short evening trip.
The 29-year-old had prebaited his local stretch of the River Lea with pellets and chopped Peperami before returning two days later to try his luck – but he had no idea he’d be battling a new chub personal best within 10 minutes of casting out!
“After a crazy battle this old brute popped up and headed straight for the landing net, leaving me in complete shock,” Gerard said.
“I’ve only ever caught chub to 2lb so this catch was really something special for me.”
Gerard O’Sullivan’s 7lb 8oz chub fell to a sausage hookbait
Monster Lea chub banked
DESPITE his local River Lea being the colour of tea, Matt Hayes fished through the unsavoury conditions to bank this huge chub weighing 8lb 2oz.
Targeting a small slack on the far bank, the 43-year-old had to wait only a few minutes after casting out before his quivertip smashed over.
He told us:
“At first I thought it was a barbel as it was so heavy, but then this thing that looked like a grass carp surfaced, and I realised I’d hooked a truly monster chub!”
Matt’s new PB took a hair-rigged cork ball wrapped in cheesepaste.
Matt Hayes and his 8lb 2oz chub
Roving approach pays off for huge Lea chub
SWIM-hopping helped Steve Fenton put this chunky 7lb 6oz chub into his net on the River Lea Relief Channel.
The 67-year-old spent no longer than 15 minutes in each swim, casting his bread feeder and flake hookbait combination into the deep channel three-quarters of the way across the river.
It was a tactic that paid off shortly after dark, when his quivertip slammed round within minutes of him plotting up in a fresh spot.
“The belly on this chub was something else!” said a delighted Steve.
“It stayed deep the whole time and fought its corner all the way to the bank”
Steve Fenton and his 7lb 6oz chub
Monster chub falls to lure in high water - Robert Onicala
“I recently had a morning free before I had to work in the afternoon, so I decided to nip out to the Great Ouse beforehand to do a bit of lure fishing.
“The river was running high and coloured, so I knew it was going to be hard work, but I figured I’d give it a go anyway.
“Because I could only really fish the slacks close to the bank, I attached a 2ins Keitech Easy Shiner lure to a weedless hook to avoid snagging up, and began roving the bank.
“I got off to a great start and banked a number of small pike and perch before eventually hooking into something more substantial.
“At first I thought it was a bigger pike, but then this monster chub surfaced… and the panic immediately set in as I tried to land it as quickly as possible!
“I was really pleased with the result, because I’d spent most of the summer trying to catch a big chub but caught nothing that could compare to the size of this beast!”
Robert Onicala – 6lb 4oz chub
Winter campaign off to a flyer with 7lber - Adrian Eaves
“It was my first chub session on the River Thames this winter and the conditions were excellent. The river was running low and clear after the recent high levels and most of the autumn leaves littering the bottom had been washed away.
“After walking the section and feeding a few promising-looking swims with mashed bread, I headed back to the first and flicked out a lump of flake on a running lead set-up.
“No bites materialised in that swim but soon after dropping my rig into the second I had a very positive bite.
“Fortunately, it was a pretty uneventful fight in the clear water, with no snags to cause me any problems.
“It was real chunk of a chub and I was super delighted to get a 7lb-plus fish under my belt this early in the winter campaign.”
(This catch was reported before the third England lockdown)
Adrian Eaves and his 7lb 3oz Thames chub
Monster Avon chub falls on the pin - Darryl Hughes
“I took a couple of days’ leave from work to have a go at catching a big chub from the Hampshire Avon.
“On my first day off I drove to a favourite stretch of mine with a bag of boilies and baited a few bends, overhanging trees and slacks with the plan of returning the following day to fish them in turn.
“Arriving early, I started fishing and spent an hour in each spot before moving on – but I just couldn’t get anything to take my paste-wrapped boilie.
“The daylight was slowly slipping away, but I was determined to catch so I clipped an isotope on to the end of my rod and dropped into a swim on the bend of the river which had a deep hole close in.
“I lowered down my rig, and roughly 15 minutes later the ratchet on my centrepin reel spun away and I struck into a heavy lump that kited straight into the main flow.
“At first I thought it was a barbel from the way it took off, but I was able to guide it into some slack water where I lifted the fish’s head to reveal the unmistakable ‘gob’ of a chub, and a big one at that.
“She went into the net and the first thing I noticed was the size of the belly on it. It was the fattest chub I’d ever seen!”
Darryl Hughes and his 7lb 4oz chub
Is this Yorkshire's largest chub?
A CLUB match secretary believes he banked the largest chub ever recorded from a Yorkshire River when this 7lb 4oz specimen sucked in his breadflake hookbait.
Ripon Piscatorial Association official Nathan Proctor banked the thickset fish when he took advantage of the ban on competition angling to target chub on the River Ure with bread feeder tactics.
Casting tight to the far bank, Nathan’s rig had only been in the water for a few seconds before he struck into his new personal best.
He said:
“At first I thought it was a snag but after 30 seconds it moved and just wallowed in the flow.
“After five minutes I gained some line, but it woke up and I had to use my knowledge of the peg to try not to lose it in any snags!
“When we got it on the bank I was in awe of its size. I can’t find any records, but it’s got to be one of the largest chub ever caught in Yorkshire,” he added.
Nathan won a weekly Drennan Cup award for his catch.
7lb-plus chub result of early start - Trevor Pole
“AFTER spending the last two months chasing bream on a massive pit I decided to target some Great Ouse chub for a change. I headed to a stretch I’d not fished before and baited a few swims with cheesepaste. I had two chub to 5lb 8oz in one swim, so I decided to stay in my van overnight and get up early to fish it again.
“At dawn I flicked my link-legered paste to the far-bank slack and had two small chub before my tip whacked round again. It was a lovely plump chub, but I was wearing my reading glasses and didn’t think it would go over 7lb! It was only when I got it on the unhooking mat and took off my glasses that I realised its true size.”
Trevor Pole – 7lb 6oz chub
Thames giant is largest Drennan awarded chub of the season
A BOILIE hookbait has accounted for one of the largest recorded chub of the season, weighing it at a staggering 8lb 8oz.
The fine specimen, which fell to a hair-rigged 15mm Krill and Crab offering, was a new personal best by more than 1lb for its captor, Paul Faint, who travelled from his home in Essex to target the species on the River Thames during an overnight trip.
He said:
“When this chub surfaced and I saw how big it was, the adrenalin and nerves kicked in, but thankfully I remained calm and netted it safely.”
Paul Faint’s 8lb 8oz chub is the largest of the season that has received a Drennan weekly award
Chunky Thames chub on after-work session - Ryan Macdonald
“AFTER work I nipped down to my local stretch of the River Thames to spend a couple of hours fishing for chub.
“I found a fantastic-looking swim roughly 60m upstream of an overhanging tree and began baiting under it with a few whole and chopped 18mm boilies before casting out a matching boilie on a running rig.
“Clearly there were fish in the area because I received line bites from the start, but out of nowhere my rod just ripped off.
“I grabbed it and bent into the fish that gave me a slow, dogged fight – very unusual for a chub from this venue.
“The whole time I thought I had a big bream, at least until it surfaced at the net and I saw this big pair of rubbery lips in my headtorch light!
“At 7lb 2oz it smashed my old best of 6lb 8oz and, as a bonus, I went on to catch five more in the session.”
Ryan Macdonald 7lb 2oz Thames chub
Prebaited river spot throws up a giant chub - Robin Cave
“With the weather getting colder I decided I’d target one of my old chub haunts on the River Thames.
“I prebaited a swim for a week with 14mm boilies and 4mm pellets in preparation for an evening session in hope I’d catch one of the monster chub.
“Using a single rod, a running leger rig and a 14mm boilie hookbait, I crept into position, cast out and sat in the darkness, staring at my rod.
“All was quiet until 8.30pm when my rod-tip slammed over and I set the hook into this fish which felt like a big chub from the start.
“After a good five-minute scrap, I managed to coax her to the surface and into the net.”
Robin Cave – 7lb 6oz chub
How fish communicate
The fundamental ability to communicate is something we take for granted and is a skill that is common throughout higher animals. But what about fish?
Are they able to pass on information, such as the location of food supplies, warnings of imminent danger and the desire to mate? With the transmission of such information being so important for survival, it is hard to imagine that they cannot react to one another in some form or other.
Fish such as these barbel will react off other shoal members behaviour
Warning signs
Perhaps one of the most common forms of communication is body language and this is something that we see in many fish species.
If you have ever watched a shoal of roach or minnows moving almost as one as they turn in unison, then you will be well aware that fish do exhibit body language and react to each other. For this to occur, and for shoals to form at all, must mean that fish recognise other individuals of the same species. It is thought that this ‘imprinting’ takes place soon after hatching, with fish associating with those that hatch around them.
Body language in shoaling fish can also indicate the presence of danger, such as the approach of a predator. With an arched body and fins held erect, fish can signal danger very effectively. It only takes one individual to alert a huge shoal of fish to a threat, because the signal quickly passes from fish to fish.
This same form of body language could signal the presence of a rig or bait that some have been caught on before to others seeing it for the first time. It is unlikely that the naive fish know what is putting their shoal-mates on edge, but they are sure to react to it by being guarded.
Chub are a species known for being crafty and, in a bid to stop the fish relaying warning signals to any shoal mates in the vicinity, many specimen anglers go out of their way to retain any fish caught in a keepnet, or put them back well upstream of where they have just been caught (as most chub bolt upstream once returned).
Chub are known to bolt once returned, often spooking other shoal members
Show of strength
Most coarse fish do not have complex mating rituals or show off to their potential mates or ward off rivals. Other fish are much more showy. African cichlids use body language to perform complex mating rituals and to discourage competing males. The same fish also build large pits from which to display during their spawning courtship, the size of the excavation being linked to the size and fitness of the male.
Many species of animal, including fish, use displays to signal their strength to rivals. Even bream are thought to hold a territory and defend it from other males, primarily with a show of strength.
These non-conflict behaviours make a lot of sense, especially among species which have more serious armaments. Large sharks, for example, may swim parallel to other individuals in a show of strength that keeps them at a distance from their competitors’ razor-sharp teeth. They roll their eyes and arch their bodies to indicate their size and willingness to attack.
Pike can be very territorial and use signals to ward off rivals
Sound and vision
Some fish species are able to communicate by sending out sound waves. Fish have quite complex hearing organs buried in their heads that can pick up sound waves, in the form of vibrations, travelling through the water. Cod are able to communicate with their shoal-mates by producing a sound through their swim bladders. This low-pitched drumming can travel several hundred metres, alerting other fish of their presence.
Other fish species may make sounds as they crunch up tough foods, such as mollusc shells. This could alert and attract other individuals to potentially rich feeding grounds.
Rolling and especially jumping, often seen in carp and several other coarse species, could also be partially a response to finding good feeding areas and wanting to signal this discovery to other fish. The sound will certainly travel a good distance in water, much further than in air, so this remains one of several possible reasons for this behaviour.
Pheromones, chemicals produced by animals and plants specifically for the purpose of communication, are widely known and for many years were investigated in fish. While there still remains some evidence that fish can respond to certain chemicals in the water, especially around spawning time, much of the evidence suggesting that fish release pheromones when attacked or damaged by predators has now been debunked.
Although they don’t have the same communication strategies seen in other types of fish, exactly how coarse fish signal to each other remains a fascinating subject.
Rolling carp could be indicating to other fish that a good feeding area has been located
Opportunist cast nets 7lb-plus Trent chub - Alfie Naylor
“ON a barbel trip on the River Trent I’d spotted chub smashing fry on the surface near the far bank and, me being an opportunist, I just had to swap rigs and target them.
“I took off the long combi-hooklink and tied on a much shorter braided version before attaching a Nutrabaits River Plus boilie and a PVA bag of crumbed boilie and 8mm pellets to the hook.
“After around 40 minutes of fishing my tip smashed round and this fish tore off into the middle of the river, so I thought it was a barbel.
“When I got it close to the bank, though, and I saw it was a huge chub, my legs turned to jelly and I prayed it wouldn’t come off. Happily it didn’t!”
Alfie Naylor and his 7lb 4oz River Trent chub
Bigger baits the trick for crafty Ouse chub - Joe Royffe
“I’d been struggling to catch a big chub from the Great Ouse, but by switching to bigger hookbaits and targeting them earlier than normal this year I’ve managed to get a proper result.
“Over the last few seasons the stretch I’ve been fishing just above Bedford has been a really tough nut to crack. It’s 70-odd miles from home and there’s so much water to choose from, so locating the larger fish has been difficult. I tended to fish it from the end of October onwards, but winter floods made things even harder and I didn’t catch anything over 6lb.
“This year I decided to start my campaign earlier, so over the past six weeks I’ve been regularly baiting with 12mm milk protein boilies in the hope of drawing fish into the area.
“My first few trips were disappointing, with small roach and dace a problem. They were hanging themselves on the boilies I was using, so on my latest session I took a leap of faith and switched to much larger 18mm baits to try to overcome the problem.
“I got down to the river for 6pm and after loosefeeding a swim for an hour with hemp, I cast tight under the overhanging canopy of a fallen tree.
“About 20 minutes had passed when I had a twitchy, tapping sort of bite on the quivertip, which I thought was another small fish messing with the bait, but then the rod arched over and was nearly pulled out of my hands!
“I struck into a powerful fish which fought dirty and repeatedly tried to dive into the near-bank undergrowth as I drew it towards me.
“After I’d steered it away from the reeds and nettles it made a final bid for freedom by swimming back across the river towards the far bank, but with steady pressure and a bit of grunt I was relieved to scoop it into the net!
“On the scales this fish fell 6oz short of my long-standing PB, but it certainly felt much more rewarding after the long journey and all the effort I’d put in to catch it.”
Joe Royffe and his 7lb 4oz Ouse chub
Cracking Avon chub falls on the float - Gavin Barrett
“The Hampshire Avon is exceptionally low and clear at the moment, but recently I managed to find a deep far-bank run which I could trot a stick float down with hemp and caster.
“In a few hours I’d caught a few dace and a 3lb chub, but I’d run out of bait. I decided instead to just have a couple of runs down without feeding and just fish double caster on the hook.
“Halfway down the swim the float buried and I stuck into a solid weight that tried its best to get under the far bank.
“Luckily it came back and on to the surface – giving me an opportunity to guide it over a mid-river weedbed.
“After a few last-minute lunges I was able to scoop her up.”
Gavin Barrett – 6lb 11oz chub
Strong Dove chub takes bait on dark - Steve Moss
“Just before it got dark I headed down to the River Dove hoping to catch a chub or two.
“To help draw them into my swim I baited it with a good helping of hempseed and chopped worm before casting out a bunch of worms over the top.
“The plan worked as later on my rod tapped over and I struck into what was clearly a big fish as it hugged the bottom for most of the fight.
“Needless to say, I was really happy to see this one go into the net!”
Steve Moss – 6lb 7oz chub
Huge Dorset Stour chub fights like a barbel - Connor Threadingham
“Before the river season started, I spent numerous evenings travelling down to my local Dorset Stour to watch the water for signs of fish and to bait likely spots with a mixture of Elips pellets and squid boilies.
“One swim that took my fancy featured a narrow gravel run on the edge of some streamer weed, so I planned to fish an overnight session there to see what I could catch. It turned out to be a blinding session for chub and I walked away with a new personal best weighing 7lb 5oz, also catching fish of 4lb, 5lb, 6lb 1oz, 6lb 2oz and 6lb 4oz for good measure!
“To make my hookbait look more like a pellet, I trimmed one of the squid boilies down to a dumbell shape before attaching a PVA bag of pellets to the hook and lowering my rig on to the spot.
“From the way my new PB took off with the bait I thought I was playing a small barbel, but as the fight developed it lost momentum, yet still tried to take me into every snag possible!
“When I saw it go over the net I knew it was a new PB, but never thought in my wildest dreams it would go 7lb 5oz.”
Connor Threadingham – 7lb 5oz chub
Ouse still the king for monster chub
PATRIC Kyte’s last-minute decision to target the River Ouse instead of the Trent proved to be a superb choice when he slipped his net under this 7lb 12oz chub.
Atfer a slow start, the 61-year-old Northants rod’s fortunes improved when he found a near-bank snag.
“On my first cast I missed a typical ‘finicky’ chub bite with the rod on the rest so I cast back in but this time held the rod in my hands,” he tells us.
“Fifteen minutes later I felt a double tug on the line, struck and was into what felt like a really heavy fish.
“After pulling it away from the snag and nearside reeds and rushes I quickly realised it was a truly special chub.”
Patric’s 7lb 12oz specimen is his fifth-largest chub ever and fell to an 18mm boilie fished with a 60g groundbait feeder.
Patric Kyte and his 7lb 12oz summer chub from the Great Ouse
Snowman catches whacking Trent chub
SNOWMAN rigs are deadly on the carp fishing circuit but Mark Smith proved they’re just as effective for huge chub when this 8lb cracker devoured his hookbait.
The Trent newbie was targeting the sill of a weir on a middle stretch of the river and decided to switch to a bigger hookbait when his smaller boilies failed.
He says:
“I’d not had much luck on the Krill and Monster Crab boilies so I changed to snowman rigs incorporating a 15mm Nash Citruz bottom bait with a 12mm yellow Sticky Baits pineapple topper.
“It had just got dark when my left-hand rod was nearly pulled off its rest by what I thought was a barbel. When I saw a big pair of rubbery lips I was just gobsmacked.”
Mark Smith with his 8lb Trent chub
Truly special chub is over 8lb - Anthony Hart
“During a recent evening trip to the River Wharfe I managed to hook and land this stunning 8lb 1oz chub.
“There were some overhanging trees on the far bank which I knew from previous sessions held big chub, so I flicked out a 14mm Vortex Baits CKO pellet as close to the branches as I dared.
“A few knocks on the tip moments later revealed that there were some fish in the area, before eventually my rod wrapped round and my centrepin screeched!
“I knew it was a big chub from the off, but never did I think it’d be a truly special chub.
“When the scales read 8lb 1oz I was in disbelief.
“It had smashed my previous PB of 6lb 4oz by miles and I reckon it could be the new chub record for the Wharfe.
“I don’t think I’ll be catching a bigger fish any time soon!”
Anthony Hart and his 8lb River Wharfe chub