Dai Gribble’s float and flake tactics

As our rivers hit hot early-winter form, Dai shows you his ways with a chubber

RIGHT now our rivers are in perfect nick for some long trotting – one of the most satisfying ways to catch chub at this time of year.

Although they love hiding in the snags and cover from trees, in lower water conditions chub are just as likely to be found in mid-river, intercepting food items brought to them by the current.

After the dry summer and autumn the base flow in most of our rivers is extremely low, which means that even after floods these rivers will quickly return to normal levels, giving us perfect conditions for this tactic.

Trotting with a big float allows you to cover a lot of water in a relatively short time, which greatly increases your chances of locating chub.

Add in the fact that chub readily respond to a stream of bait going in and the prospect of a day catching a nice bag of these fish on the float is hard to resist.

One of the key skills to learn is how to control the float, especially if there’s a strong wind and chop on the water. I’ve found this is made much easier if you use a longer rod.

Most match-style float rods are fine for this style of fishing and I favour a 13-footer for most of my river fishing on the float.

On larger rivers, a 15ft rod is even better for control, but this has to be balanced against longer rods being heavier and not quite so nice to use.

Trotting for chub makes a great change from legering, and on the right day it can be extremely productive. Give it a go and I’m certain you’ll be back for more.