Chub were first stocked in October 2009, then again in November 2011 and November 2017. They were little more than fingerlings, i.e. as big as your index finger.
The above pictures are of one of those "stockies" which have clearly grown on well. Although this fish was not weighed it was a good 15" or more long.
The latest picture shown the Chub held in a 2ft landing net! It was caught with a loaded method feeder and sweetcorn in the Main Lake.
Quite a few Chub have been caught but this was the first time that the owner witnessed the capture and was on-hand to photograph it.
More chub were stocked in November 2011. These Chub are now roughly 2lb in size!
Roll-on the next 18 months as Chub Fishing at the Fishery should become tremendous?
Early mornings, and the afternoons at the Fishery with dog biscuit’s on the bottom in the margins. Soft hook-able, dog biscuit’s like Baker’s Beef or Chicken, plus bait banded pellet or soft biscuit’s like Chum Mixers, a sharp size 10 or 12 hook and 6lb line, it should be really good.
Try ledger fishing a dog biscuit as a “pop-up” which is an excellent bait and method. Other good bait’s include sweetcorn, luncheon meat, paste, beef tongue (in tins), fresh or frozen cockles, muscles or prawns (not those in preservatives) fished in the margins. Plus, Worm and Maggots will catch plenty of good Roach, Bream and Chub.
You should find them in the margins and especially where there is a flow of water. Try trotting in the flow and watch the behaviour of your float. Fish a couple of inches over-depth. As soon as the behaviour of your float alters - strike, and always strike before your reel in - just in case! One angler, known as sausage man, fishes the margins at the Fishery using a float road, pole float and fresh sausage as bait. The takes are extremely fast, so he holds the rod at all times. He misses many but he also catches lots and many, mainly Carp 8-10lb about 12” from the bank.
This method works for all fish, not just the carp. Chub anglers at the Fishery do not use pods and snooze, they have the rod close by at all times. I would recommend having the handle of your rod resting on the edge of your seat next to your thigh. That way when a fish bites the rod is immediately to hand, no stretching to a pod or down to the ground.
By the time it takes to stretch out the fish will have had your bait and spat the hook out. Remember, a fishes reaction time is 10 times faster than yours. By the time you’ve spotted your float, indicator or what ever move, the fish has had the hook and bait in his mouth, stripped it, found the hook and spat it out, and you’ve thought “oh, I’ve got a bite”! So, you have to be quick, no lazy fishing here. Although boilies are a good bait, they’re not normally a bait for chub.
Although, those that use the smaller sizes, 8mm etc. have done exceptionally well over the winter months, especially when their bait has been tipped with sweetcorn. All the fish here, even the small Roach will take a bait on a size 10! As we’re not heavily match fished they’re not particularly hook shy.
What will change your catch rate is the presentation of your bait, no long tails from your knots. I’ve always found that the grinner knot presents the bait superbly, is a strong, small and neat knot.
If you don’t know how to tie it ask me and it would be a pleasure to show you how I tie grinner knots the easy way, my way. Usually when angler’s are not catching it is usually they’re knots and how they tie them that are letting them down. Their hooks are not “in-line” but sit at an angle to the line, so when they strike instead of the hook pulling in to the fish it pulls out, away from the fish. With a grinner knot the hook is in-line with the line and so moves accordingly. Once I’ve tied a grinner knot for an angler, they usually catch before I walked 10 yards away! Presentation is everything!
Chub can be caught using various methods including float, ledger, feeder, free-lining (in a river an awesome method - hold the line lightly between your finger and thumb waiting for the "pluck" on your bait before striking), spinning with lures and even fly fishing.
The Fishery venue will determine the best method. A medium rod with a fixed spool reel fitted with a minimum of 3lb line should be used. Hook size of 16 up to a 4 but this will depend on the size of the bait used. I use barbless hooks because they cause less damage to the fish and are easier to unhook.
A typical approach when chub fishing in rivers or flowing waters is trotting. Use a stick float or in faster waters a big Avon or a Loafer that carries a lot of shot.
The float and shotting pattern will depend on the speed of the water flow and where in the water the chub are located. Plumb the water to get the depth and start by stringing the shot out button style and letting the float and baited hook flow at the same speed as the water. The baited hook needs to be in front of the float so hold back (stop the float) for a couple of seconds every couple of yards or so.
(the reason for this is the current nearer the river bed is slower than the surface so holding back the float will allow the baited hook to stay in front - you’ll get the hang of it!).
When trotting remember to feed every cast. After a few run throughs if you get no bites try altering the shot by moving it nearer the hook or bunching every second shot together.
If fishing a fast flowing water try using an Avon type float and fix the shot nearer the hook to keep it closer to the river bed. Another method is free-lining. This is ok where there is little flow on the water.
Attach a single swan shot (SSG) about a foot up the line from the hook and fish a large piece of luncheon meat or bread. The bait will bounce along the river bed and hopefully be intercepted by the chub.
The feeder rod can also be used. Make sure you use enough weight to hold the bait on the bottom of the river bed. Start with a 24 inch hook length, bait your hook, fill you feeder with maggots or casters and cast in. If after a few casts you don’t get a bite try varying the hook length from the feeder until you start getting bites Chub can also be caught on plugs and spinners. On slower moving rivers / waters try fishing floating crust. This can be a perfect approach on its day. Chub love bread so don’t be afraid to use quite large pieces or made in to a paste with blue cheese.
Worms, lob worms, redworms, cheese (especially the smelly cheese), cheese paste, bread (either crust, flake or paste), maggots, pinkies, casters, pellets, hemp and tares, wasp grubs, slugs, black slugs are a good chub bait, sweetcorn, luncheon meat, sausage meat, berries and elderberries, shrimps, cockles (fresh not frozen or pickled in vinegar), boilies. For the bigger chub use a bigger bait. Chub are also caught using plugs and lures (not allowed at Nineoaks) and also by fly fishing.
Some tips.
1: Don’t tackle up on your peg, but tackle up away from your peg as chub are very wary fish and easily scared away. Also, the vibrations from your movements can frighten the chub away as can your profile against the skyline - so stand well back and ideally up against some trees and bushes.
2: Once hooked a chub will swim straight for any rushes or the nearest obstacle like posts, submerged trees or tree roots and snag you up.