13.03.14

Last-Gasp Monster For Macey - Dean Macey

The last week of the river season is always a mad rush to try and achieve those targets that have been
elusive. For me this was simple. The rivers had been up and pushing all winter and with the mild temperatures, I only had eyes for barbel. With
that box ticked a couple of weeks back I turned to my long-term goal of upping my chub PB, which stands at 7lb 2oz. With only a few days of the season left and the water running off the rivers nicely, there was
never going to be a better time to try.

I managed to get a couple of full days off work and with the whole day ahead of me I would fish big baits at first and last light, and through the day I would attack my chosen swim with my Mainline Activated maggots. I found a nice swim on my first trip
and nicked a fish of just over 5lb within the first hour. So I bait dropped a few droppers of hemp and maggot then went for a wander. In that time someone, and rightly so, decided to fish the swim and on last
light managed a couple of smaller chub around the 4lb mark. With this in mind, and knowing that the fish were moving from their hideout up to the bait I had put in, I decided to head straight for the same swim the following day in the hope that the three fish to come from that area so far were making way for something slightly bigger.
This time I stuck to my plan and there was no way I was going to move. All or nothing. The first hour or so produced no action so I droppered some more hemp and maggot but this time went in straight after rather than waiting as I normally do. Don't ask me why, I just had a gut feeling that they were, getting on the feed quickly. My hunch was correct and after just 20 minutes the tip slammed round and I was connected to a chunky chub that held in mid flow with its giant mouth wide open. No dramas occurred and she was
soon safely resting in my net. I knew she would go 6lb but was very surprised to see the needle spin round to 6lb 14oz. Not the monster I was hoping for, but the day I go home disappointed with a 6lb-plus chub will
be the day I get my golf bats out and hang up the fishing sticks.

Roll on next season.

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