After waiting for a slight rise in water temperatures, a mild front rolled in and he found the river had risen by a few degrees – conditions in which he’d caught good chub before. Heading down to a favourite haunt, in his third swim of the morning he had a violent tug on the rod tip and something picked up his paste bait. Hitting into a solid mass, Gavin could instantly see it was a huge chub in the low, clear water and played it gingerly. As it surfaced in the edge, Gavin says the fish ‘grew and grew’, and he let out a huge sigh of relief as it hit the net. Weighing 8lb exactly, it’s a fish that’s known to roam huge distances across the estate, showing up randomly from time to time in different places.

Well done Gavin!