THE smallest things can make the difference in specimen fishing, as Ringwood angler Gavin Barrett knows full well after landing this 8lb chub from the Hampshire Avon.
After a slight rise in water temperature thanks to the arrival of a mild weather front – conditions in which he’s caught good chub before – Gavin headed down to a favourite stretch, and in his third swim of the morning had a violent tug on the rod-tip as something picked up his paste bait.
After hitting into a solid resistance, he could see he was connected to a huge chub in the low, clear water, causing him to play it ‘gingerly’. As it surfaced in the edge, Gavin said the fish just ‘grew and grew’, and he let out a huge sigh of relief as it hit the back of the net.
Gavin Barrett – 8lb chub