A 60th birthday trip to a southern chalk stream proved to be the perfect gift for Mark Pardoe, after banking this immense 3lb 8oz grayling.
Arriving at the river with his son Harry, they found it running well above normal level, but the water remained clear.
“We were full of anticipation,” Harry said, “but initially we were pestered with trout.”
“After moving swim my dad was into another fish that we both presumed to be a trout due to its size, but when I was about to net it, we realised what it was.
“I shouted: ‘it’s a massive grayling!’, or words to that effect.
“A quick weigh revealed the fish to be 3lb 8oz – truly a dream fish.”
Not to be outdone by his dad, Harry also got amongst the grayling, landing multiple fish over the 2lb mark topped by a 2lb 7oz fish.