Chub Fishing with Lures

I love using floating crankbaits on the river for chub, and not just in the winter months, I’ve found lures work really well in warmer conditions too. At the start of the season, I decided to spend more time on the River Lea fishing for chub fishing with lures. I like the way the chub smash into the lure on the retrieve, it really gets the heart pumping and is great fun too.

You can view a full video of this session and my approach to Chub Fishing with Lures on my YouTube channel – please click here and subscribe to follow more of my angling adventures.

I travel light with just a jig rod, reel, net and rucksack moving around the river, from swim to swim. If I don’t find the chub in one place, I’ll move on, with a few casts in each swim before moving upstream and along the river bank. I may drop back into the same swims on my way back downstream, sometimes the chub will be there on my return. Catching chub can be quite straightforward, once you’ve found them, it’s all about location.

I pack all of my terminal tackle and forceps in my rucksack and attach my unhooking mat. I carry a single rod and landing net, and I’m good to go.

If you want to try chub fishing with lures then the tackle needed couldn’t be simpler. I use a Korum 7ft Snapper Cult Finesse jig rod that casts lures between 5 and 15g. A small reel loaded with 10lb braid and a fluorocarbon leader. Normally I use a leader of 7lb breaking strain, but this is more like jungle warfare, so I stepped up to 10lb.

The river at this time of the year is very clear, so I decided on three lures in different colours and sizes to tempt the chub from their lair. I chose Salmo Rattlin Hornets that dive down to about a metre, depending on how hard you crank them on the retrieve. I change them regularly to see which type the chub prefers.

You can have an awesome time moving around the river searching out the chub. Sometimes you look and don’t think the chub are there, and suddenly there’s a flash or a little bit of movement and you know you’re in the right spot.

When you find them, they’ll sometimes follow the lure and not take it. This can be annoying, but at least you know the fish are there. When this happens, I pay off a bit of line and use the flow to my advantage. I recast and speed up or slow down the retrieve until I get a take. You just need to control the lure until it travels at the right speed and depth to tempt the chub into smashing into it.

As the lure floats, you can let the flow of the river take it into areas you can’t cast into. I cast upstream of a bush or overhanging tree on the opposite bank and allow the lure to float under it, tempting the chub out of their hiding places to attack the lure on the retrieve.

To improve the hooking rate and reduce the risk of snagging, I remove the front set of treble hooks on the lure. I don’t think it’s necessary to have two sets of treble hooks when fishing for chub or perch. They don’t have huge mouths full of teeth, like pike do. I also pinch down the barb on two of the hooks, leaving just one barbed.

I’ll always test the adapted lure to make sure they are swimming okay and I’ve not impeded the action by making changes.

I’ll change the lure until I find one that’s working, alternating between different colours and sizes until I get it right. In this session, the Chartreuse Blue was doing the business, the chub were absolutely smashing the lure on the retrieve.

If you enjoy surface fishing with floaters for carp, you’ll love lure chub fishing with lures. You don’t need to carry a load of gear, but it’s really important to have some Polaroid glasses, as they take away the surface glare and help you to see the fish to cast to. You’re virtually blind without them.

I’ll certainly be doing more lure fishing for chub in the summer months. You can have a fantastic time and I love a mobile approach. It just shows that fish don’t need to be massive for you to enjoy your fishing.

YouTube Gallery

Please see a few videos below. For the full range of videos then please visit my channel and subscribe.