Big lips

I'm exploring a few random places lately. Many places I've never fished before or places I've been to once and blanked. I'm armed with just my ultra light set up, a few plugs, rubber lures and some spinners. There's a good selection and I'm in with a chance of all sorts. I'm just enjoying a bit of chucking and what ever pops up is most welcome. I wouldn't say I'm targeting anything in particular. I'm not going to places where pike frequent, but picking them up along the way too along with hopefully a few other species. I don't think the perch have quite switched on in a few of the places I've visited but expect they shouldn't be far off. In the mean time, you never know quite what you might catch sometimes.

The wind was a bit crazy and it doesn't help you when you're on the light gear. Bows in your line when casting hinder the aim and then when the lure hits the water, the line catching in the breeze can bring the lure back up to the surface, away from your target spot or also make the lure work incorrectly. Add to that also, if you're not in contact with your lure you might miss a bite. So it was a bit frustrating, but since I was out I may as well persevere.

It was a bit slow and the typical banker swim of the lock gates hadn't produced. There were some small silvers taking stuff off the top in between all the junk that had gathered but apart from that nothing. I set off along the tow path looking for somewhere else the fish might be. In a canal they can be anywhere. Apart from bridges, canal narrowing and a few laid up boats there's often not much by way of a feature to target. There's usually little in the way of trees hanging over the water thanks to British Waterways and their chainsaws, but I eventually managed to find a bit of cover where something might be lurking.

I had to be weary of the wind, and so cast from low to my side at pace, trying to keep my lure under the few branches and the line out of the wind. Perfect cast. My little copper spinner hit the water right under the branch and right at the canal bank edge. I let it sink, I'd guess about four feet, and then started the retrieve. In no time the lure got smashed and my little Greys rod was bent double as I struck in to the fish. There was a mass of head shakes. Initially I was thinking BIG PERCH, but then that thought change to "what the hell?" when it set off like a rocket a good twenty yards. It then headed for the near bank, trying to get in under the vegetation. I managed to turn it and then guided it towards me, when I finally saw what it was as those big lips came in to view.

I had a carrier bag so popped the chub in and weighed it. At 5lb, this was a cracking fish on the lure and my pb lure caught chub to date. I've got plans to target the chub on the river this year and so hopefully a few more to go with this one.