Chub Fishing Into Dusk - Life on the Bank

Yesterday’s afternoon session had me waiting until the light was almost gone before a decent chub finally rolled into the net! It was great to be back on flowing fresh water, keeping things simple and making the most of a short spell on the bank. There’s something lovely about squeezing in a river session without losing the whole evening with the family.

Nick marsh fishing — Good to be back on the river

Baiting a few spots and keeping mobile

On arrival, I baited a few spots rather than putting everything into one swim. With limited time available, that gave me somewhere else to try if a fish disturbed the water.

Sonubaits Spicy Sausage Pellets — Sonubaits 8mm Spicy Sausage Pellets

I had a couple of smaller chub and slipped them back before moving swims. Hard-fighting chub can certainly run riot, and I didn’t have time to sit around waiting for each swim to recover. Moving on meant I could try another spot I’d already baited, rather than starting from scratch after every fish.

Chub fishing tactics — We start with a couple of modest chub

That mobile approach is worth considering when chub and barbel fishing on small rivers. It isn’t about racing along the bank; for me, the idea here was simply to make the available fishing time count.

Simple pellet baits for chub

The bait was kept straightforward: ever-reliable Sonubaits pellets, with an 8mm Spicy Sausage Pellet-O on the hair and matching free offerings introduced sparingly.

An angler holds a clear plastic tub containing red cylindrical bait pellets, several with holes through the centre. — A closer look at my red pellets for chub.

I didn’t want to feed them up. I just wanted to nick a bite! On a short session, it’s tempting to keep adding bait to make something happen, but I wanted a few mouthfuls around the hookbait rather than a big meal.

Barbel fishing bait — Not a monster but always nice to catch a barbel

There are plenty of other options, including chub fishing with cheese paste, but this was an afternoon for sticking with pellets. Keeping the bait choice simple left me free to concentrate on the swims and the time remaining.

A better chub right on dusk

The decent chub kept me waiting until right on dusk, but it was a lovely way to finish. Those final moments made staying until the light faded worthwhile.

Chub fishing Hertfordshire — A decent chub right on dusk

Anyone else enjoying dusk being at a more sociable hour? I put that lovely chub back and met the wife in the pub by 7pm. Fishing dusk and still having an evening together is a pretty good combination!

A bit of rain should make the river look even better, and I’m hopeful about the coming months. Between short pellet sessions and alternatives such as trotting for chub, there’s plenty to look forward to. Great to be back on the river!