2lb 1oz roach from a river
Former Angling Times reporter Jake Benson has been in fine form, highlighted in the capture of this very special river roach of 2lb 1oz (above).
Not one to shy away from a challenge, Jake targeted a Midlands river not traditionally known for the species after spotting a small group of redfins there in the summer.
Recalling the capture of his new personal best Jake said: “To catch it the proper way, on trotting gear, from a river, made the capture far more special.”
The fish was caught on the stick float with a double caster hookbait presented alongside a decent helping of hemp.
One of the greatest river perch hauls ever!
A phenomenal haul of specimen river perch topped by a monster of 4lb 4oz has been taken by specialist James Champkin.
The arrival of colder weather seems to have spurred the nation’s sergeants into a feeding frenzy, and this latest catch is further proof that now is the perfect time to target one of the country’s most sought-after coarse fish.
James, who works for the Angling Trust, took advantage of the sudden cold snap to bank nine perch over the 3lb mark, including the four-pounder, from a stretch of the River Lea in Hertfordshire.
Over three short trips, none of them more than a couple of hours long, the Leighton Buzzard angler used worm and maggot tactics to fool all nine stripeys, in what turned out to be a fishing fortnight to remember for the 25-year-old.
James said: “I’ve managed to find perch in a new area of the river to me so far this winter, and the results have been amazing.
“All fell to a quivertipped lobworm while I sprayed red maggots over the top to attract small prey fish. The pace of the fishing at times was frantic, with bites coming from the moment the worm hit the riverbed.”
James tempted his fish on 1lb tc Avon rods with ultra-fine, 0.5oz fibreglass quivertips to encourage positive bites from the perch.
Completing the set-up was 6lb mainline and 4.4lb fluorocarbon hooklengths connected to size 8 wide-gape hooks. Two SSG shot were mounted on a short length of line to form a running link-leger.
“Despite what many people say, I’ve found that big perch often give very positive bites when you use a fine tip, slowly pulling the quiver right round,” James added.
“If you do receive a very delicate bite it inevitably results in a pike!
“I’d actually caught a jack pike earlier that morning and as soon as I hooked the big perch I just thought it had to be another pike, such was its weight and power.
“It powered off and I had to really give it some stick – expecting a pike to pop up I wasn’t too concerned about losing it, but suddenly I saw a flash of black stripes and I started to play it a bit more carefully!
“At 4lb 4oz it was just 1oz short of my personal best but no matter – what a perch it was!”
Seven pound chub just keep coming!
Late autumn’s incredible run of big chub shows no signs of abating with the capture of three seven-pounders topped by a fish of 7lb 14oz.
This one was banked by West Sussex angler Alex Warren, who made the most of rising water temperatures and overcast conditions to hook into the fine specimen.
Targeting the famous Railway Pool on Hampshire’s Royalty Fishery, Alex used a bait dropper to introduce an enticing mix of hemp and casters soaked in CSL liquid before casting his maggot feeder rig over the top.
This incorporated a size 16 Drennan Plus hook mounted with four red grubs.
He told Angling Times: “After landing a couple of 3lb-plus fish early in the day, I knew it would take a while to regain the confidence of other fish in the area – so I rested the swim and baited little and often to draw them out from the shadows.
“Early in the afternoon, I had a thumping bite and felt a heavy fish make for the deeper water under the bridge.
“After a few tense moments and a few brutal runs aimed at bankside snags, I scooped up my prize. The Royalty bailiff arrived just in time to witness the scales reading 7lb 14oz!”
The River Trent played host to the next big chub capture in the form of a 7lb 5oz beauty for Brett Longthorne.
The 3 Foot Twitch Baits-backed angler continued his run of fine form on the waterway when he landed six chub over 5lb on 10mm 3FT Baits SG1 dumbells tipped with fake corn.
He said: “I started fishing for barbel, but the chub soon turned up and I started to receive lots of knocks. I then switched to smaller hooks, baits and shorter hooklinks and finally managed to hook into some fish.
“They were all over 5lb, but the 7lb 5oz fish was truly special.”
Patric Kyte rounded off the three specimen chub catches when he hooked into a 7lb beauty on the Great Ouse in Bedfordshire.
Patric had planned to fish the Trent for chub but due to having to help his son, whose car had broken down, he cut the trip short and headed to the Ouse, which was much closer to home.
It was a decision that was to pay off in spades when the seven-pounder devoured his paste offering. “When I got it to the net I was surprised at how heavy it was,” he added.
“I called my dad down who weighed it and took some photos,” he said.
giant river perch heads bumper week for species
STRING of big perch catches rounds off the incredible flurry of specimen fish to be reported to Angling Times this week.
Topping these captures was a 4lb 6oz sergeant caught by England Youth International and Sensas Mark One squad member Josh Newman.
The 15-year-old latched into the giant while pleasure fishing with worm on the pole on a stretch of the River Glen near Spalding.
Josh told Angling Times: “I was stunned when it surfaced but not surprised, as I’ve had perch up to 3lb 8oz here in the past. I am confident that 5lb-plus perch are in the river.”
Martin Paget has also been getting among these hungry predators, and on a recent session landed a 4lb 1oz fish from a tributary of the River Thames.
Martin said: “The fish put up a great fight, which made me think I had hooked a pike.”
The chunky Thames stripey was caught on a light running leger set-up, combining 5lb mainline tied to a size 8 Drennan Super Specialist hook and lobworm as bait.
The Great Ouse is another river with a reputation for large perch, and it certainly lived up to that when Phil Mapp caught a 4lb cracker from the Linford Lakes stretch of the river.
Recalling a truly memorable session, Phil said: “It was definitely a day I’ll never forget.
“I leaned into the fish which then came up, displaying an amazing tail-walk before darting beneath overhanging branches.
“I managed to slip the net under it eventually and could tell it was big due to the shoulders on it.”
Phil’s clonking fish also fell to lobworms presented on a touch-leger rig.
It was yet another river that provided a surprise for George Gorst when he backed up a personal-best Trent barbel with a new perch pb just 48 hours later.
The fish weighed 3lb 13oz and was caught from a section of the River Ribble near Preston.
Nash star Alan Blair rounded off the fantastic week of big perch catches when he landed an amazing haul from Cornwall’s Upper Tamar Lake.
His catch totalled nine perch with five over the 3lb mark – the largest being a 3lb 9oz specimen.
Better known as a carp bagging machine than a specimen perch fisher, Alan borrowed some carp tactics and tempted small baitfish into the swim with Nashbait Spod Cloud groundbait.
32lb pike pb chews on a turbo smelt
Carl Hill landed this massive 32lb pike during a two-day boat fishing session on Chew Valley Lake near Bristol.
Despite choosing a prime time of year for the species – the reservoir is open to predator fishing on selective days in October and November – fishing was initially slow for the Leicester angler.
However, casting Turbo Smelts tight against the weed line prompted a savage take. This is Carl’s new personal best for the species, and is his third pike over the 30lb mark.
Monster roach are on the feed
One of the UK’s greatest hauls of specimen roach has been taken – a trio of three-pounders to 3lb 3oz backed by seven fish over the 2lb mark!
The sensational catch was made by Mark Woodage just a few days after taking another stunning roach haul: “I originally planned to fish the Hampshire Avon, but I decided to try the southern stillwater I’ve been targeting instead. The conditions were awful, with bright sun and cold winds, but I managed to catch seven roach, six over 2lb and the biggest 2lb 14oz. A few days later I returned with my angling buddy Jim Innes, when conditions were much better.
“I fed hemp and maggots around 65 yards out in a clear silty area and had the 3lb 3oz roach, alongside another of 3lb 1oz, one of 3lb, and seven other 2lb roach. Jim also landed a personal best-fish of 2lb 14oz.
Mark continued: “I’ve had more blanks than I care to remember here. It’s been hard going, but the rewards have been incredible.”
Mark caught his fish on helicopter rigs incorporating a Drennan Feeder Bomb filled with maggots and hemp. His hooklinks were made up of 5lb Drennan Supplex fluorocarbon and size 18 Drennan Wide Gape hooks. He used Drennan Avon/Quiver rods for the roach to cushion the fight.
Darryn Stolworthy also got in on the roach action, landing a 2lb 10oz fish from a Norfolk water. Braving the savage wind and rain, Darryn cast a maggot feeder to tempt the fish along with another specimen of 2lb 3oz.
Monster perch on the munch!
The perch season has exploded into action in one of the best weeks so far for this exciting species.
Last week we reported Matt Atkins’ phenomenal 5lb 6oz stripey... and now he’s followed it up with a stunning 5lb 5oz fish.
In the same session, the predator ace also landed one of 4lb 3oz and a couple of three-pounders.
Matt said: “It’s unbelievable really. I was happy to have caught the 4lb fish, but to catch this latest 5lb 5oz perch is incredible.”
Targeting the same Lea Valley venue as before, he put his faith in a feeder-fished lobworm.
Chris West also got in on the big perch action with a 4lb 12oz fish from Kings Weir fishery on the River Lea. Chris told Angling Times: “I initially thought the fish was a pike, but my legs turned to jelly when I saw it turn and realised it was a perch.” The fish nailed a 7.5cm Fox Curly Tail soft plastic lure in a perch pattern, and is a personal best for the Herefordshire angler.
Edward Matthews added to the week’s perch haul with a 3lb 13oz specimen taken from a Midlands reservoir. He used a vibrantly coloured jig to bring the bite from an equally flamboyant golden fish.
Sam Witan continued the action with a cracking 3lb 11oz perch from Reading’s Wasing Estate Fishery. Using a lobworm on a jig head, Sam was twitching his bait along the deck when the striped specimen engulfed his bait.
A mobile approach was the key to success for Dan Eaves, who landed a 3lb 7oz perch alongside several other good fish. Targeting a Thames tributary in Surrey, Dan found a few pockets of fry and cast out a chartreuse Kopyto Shad. After a very subtle take, Dan hit into the fish, and after a few heavy head shakes he knew it was a quality specimen.
Simon Rumsey rounded the week off with an ancient-looking 3lb 5oz perch.
The fish, which is a new personal best for Simon, took a Savage Gear lure and fought hard for the safety of marginal snags.
After the capture, Simon said: “I was totally blown away and was pretty much in a daze the whole of the next day.”
Biggest pike of the season hits bank at 39lb 3oz
The biggest pike of the season so far has been caught from Chew Reservoir – a 39lb 3oz monster.
The huge predator was banked by 46-year-old Paul Slade during a two-day session at the Bristol water. It’s the venue’s largest recorded pike of 2018 since its gates were opened to bait and lure anglers at the beginning of October.
Paul struck gold on the second day of the trip after the first provided very little – a lone jack pike providing the only sport for him and his fishing buddy.
Paul told Angling Times: “On day one we fished Walley Bank, and although my mate managed a jack, I didn’t have a single run all day.
“We decided on a new location for the next day and got to the bank for 6am.
“I dropped my gear at my chosen swim but a quick search with the torch suggested there might be too much weed directly in front of me, so reluctantly I moved further down the bank to try and avoid it.”
Once settled in his new swim and finding out it was clear of weed, he used a bait boat to deposit his deadbaits in an area with a depth of 9ft.
Come 9.30am and Paul’s bite alarm sprang into life – indicating something large had picked up his joey mackerel offering.
“My strike met with solid resistance and the fish almost immediately came to the surface and kited left – even at distance you could see it was big, but as it got closer it simply got bigger,” Paul explained.
“It gave a great account of itself and I was more than happy to let it do its own thing a bit further out, high in the water and away from the weed.
“That ploy worked a treat, and I took the opportunity to hopefully steer it past the weed into the waiting net.
“My fishing buddy Ralph netted it first time – no dramas, apart from the fact that I was staring at the back of a fish so wide you could ride on it!
“The rest of the day was a bit of a haze, but I managed a jack, a double and then a very hollow
27-pounder.
“I was over the moon with the day, especially seeing it’s been so tough on Chew this term.”
14lb bream falls for micro pellet
Brett Longthorne added to his recent run of impressive form when he scooped up this cracking 14lb 1oz bream during his latest session.
The Manchester-based angler targeted a Northern stillwater with a Method feeder approach with scalded micro pellets around the frame to tempt the fine fish into a feed. He used a 10mm 3FT wafter on the hook which proved too irresistible for the slab.
Brett said: “At 7.30am I had a take, and after a short fight I managed to net the bream, which is my third over the 14lb mark this season.”
Paste fools monster chub
A PASTE-wrapped Sticky Krill dumbbell boilie has helped Alex Warren put this chunky 7lb 4oz chub in the back of the net.
The West Sussex-based angler targeted the prolific Throop Fishery on the Dorset Stour to claim the fine chevin, which beat his personal best by exactly 2lb.
He told Angling Times: “The pictured fish was caught an hour before sunset, after trickle-feeding boilies and resting the swim for a couple of hours.
“I had barely put the rod on the rest when it knocked once and whacked round. “After a short but intense fight, I scooped the net under a massive, weed covered fish.”
Incredible week for Autumn perch
The capture of a host of specimen perch this week proves that now is the perfect time to target these popular predators.
A superb 3lb 12oz stripey tops the list of big ‘threes’ reported to Angling Times this past week, and it was banked by Korum-backed ace Rob Thompson during a recent excursion to a Midlands river.
To help tempt a big perch into the swim Rob drip-fed maggots to attract shoals of bait fish – a tactic that didn’t take long to prove its effectiveness.
Rob told Angling Times: “I’d just nipped out for a quick session and fancied one particular swim where I’d had a big perch snatch a dace off the hook a month or two back. Unfortunately, someone was already there so I had to try somewhere completely new.
“The swim was fairly pacey, so I introduced the maggots and some chopped worm just off the main flow.
“I cast out my lobworm hookbait and soon after I received a powerful take.
“This was the biggest perch I’ve had for quite a few years, and probably the hardest-fighting example of the species I’ve ever caught.
“It shot straight across the river to the far bank and then kited upstream, just missing a tangle of branches.”
Rob’s perch-crunching tackle consisted of a Korum Neoteric tip rod, 6lb Xpert reel line to a 4lb 12oz hooklink and a size 6 Korum Xpert hook.
Further south, and just a week after banking a pair of perch weighing 3lb 5oz and 3lb 7oz,
Phil Askew returned to his favourite stretch of river in Suffolk to bank a 3lb 6oz beauty.
The perch fanatic used a bait dropper to introduce a bed of chopped worm into his swim, and started to receive regular bites 30 minutes later.
He said: “I caught this perch on my last cast of the morning, and thought at first that a jack pike had grabbed my lobworm hookbait.
“It wasn’t until I saw it on the surface that I realised it was another giant perch, so I was relieved to see it hit the landing net cord shortly afterwards.”
Meanwhile, on the Thames, a budget rod set-up enabled Brandon Rich to bag a 3lb perch.
Targeting his local stretch of river at Caversham Lock, the 18-year-old joiner from Reading worked a 7cm lure close to the bank to bring the take.
His tactic also produced other, smaller perch as well as a pike and a chub.
Similarly to Rob and Phil’s catches, avid Angling Times reader Robin Piper had worms to thank for the capture of a cracking 3lb 4oz perch.
The angler from Kent targeted a bed of lily pads on his local club water, and didn’t have to wait long for a take.
He said: “I cast next to the pads, thinking a perch would be lurking there, and my hunch paid off five minutes later when the tip arched over.”
Robin’s tactics, which incorporated a running leger rig and a size 12 hook tipped with four dendrobaena worms, also helped him hook an even bigger perch which was sadly lost in a tangle of lily tubers.
Shock roach tops 2lb mark
After landing two nice perch, Frank Partington was ‘over the moon’ when he realised he was connected to this stunning 2lb 10oz roach.
The fish was caught from a Leigh and District AA water, and is a new personal best for Frank, who fished a groundbait feeder with a bunch of maggots on the hook.
Pristine pair of river perch
Phil Askew took advantage of favourable conditions to land these two beautiful perch weighing 3lb 7oz and 3lb 5oz from a Suffolk river.
He told Angling Times: “It was a good session which saw me catch fish right from the start. Normally it takes a bit more feeding to draw the fish in.”
The cracking stripeys were caught on quivertipped lobworm presented on a size 6 Drennan Specialist wide gape hook.
Go after big chub after species has an incredible week
The season’s best chub of 8lb 5oz tops a bumper list of fish caught in a fantastic week for the species.
Backing-up the mid-8lb fish were a pair of seven-pounders alongside several more of 6lb-plus to round off a tremendous run of form on southern rivers.
The 8lb 5oz fish was landed by southern specimen angler Matthew Hartshorne, who connected with his prize on a night fishing session.
At the time of Angling Times going to press, Matthew was unavailable to provide additional details of his catch, although it was banked from a section of the River Thames in Maidenhead.
This massive fish was followed by a thumping 7lb 2oz chub caught by Leighton McDonnell.
Targeting the River Great Ouse, Leighton fished with paste wrapped around a cork ball suspended 18ins off the bottom.
Speaking of his capture, Leighton said: “I fed 50 pieces of paste across two swims after hearing the fish splashing as it searched for fry in the margins.
“It was on my third cast when I hooked this very fat chub that spewed out fry in the net!”
Stewart Barnes also had a sensational session, landing a 7lb 6oz chub alongside a 10lb 1oz barbel. Targeting a gravelly spot behind streamer weed on the River Great Ouse above Bedford, Stuart legered two 10mm boilies wrapped in paste alongside just four boilies fed in a PVA bag.
The third ‘seven’ fell to Paul Restall in the shape of a 7lb beauty. He hooked into the fish from a stretch of the Hampshire Avon, but Paul believes there were even bigger fish in his peg.
“I spotted a shoal of large chub, and I’m sure some of these were even bigger than the fish I landed!” he said. He legered an 8mm halibut pellet over 4mm and 6mm feed alongside crushed hemp and halibut groundbait to tempt the impressive specimen.
Patience was key for Andrew Tredgett, who landed a cracking 6lb 13oz River Lea chub on his latest outing.
He said: “I located a shoal of big chub and barbel under a bush and fed them pellets for a week before casting a 15mm boilie on a short hooklink to nail the fish.”
To round off a sensational week, Derren Burr scooped a stunning pair of chub including a monster of 6lb 15oz and a smaller one of 5lb 10oz. Fishing the River Great Ouse, the angler from Leighton Buzzard, Bedfordshire made the most of a quick evening session and landed his fish in consecutive casts using 8mm halibut pellets alongside PVA bags filled with 3mm samples.
Hold on tight for double figure barbel!
James Champkin’s phone call to his girlfriend came to an abrupt end when his rod lurched round to the savage bite of this 14lb 8oz barbel.
James bagged the big bertie while fishing tight to an overhanging tree on a picturesque stretch of the Hampshire Avon.
He told Angling Times: “I half stumbled, half rolled down the steep bank while trying to slip on my chest waders. That proved impossible after I’d picked up the rod, so I ditched the waders and walked out into the shallow margins in just my shorts and socks!
“The fight was absolutely mental, but with steady pressure and a tight clutch I managed to scoop up my new pb,” he said.
James’s rig consisted of a 10ins braided hooklength and a double 10mm boilie hookbait.
Is this Britain's best barbel venue?
The River Trent is well-known for its double-figure barbel – but Gunthorpe Lock Fishery manager Ian Potts reckons his pegs offer ‘the best barbel sport in the land.’
The passionate Trent angler backed up this big claim recently with a remarkable catch from the area known as ‘The Island’ – where he landed no fewer than 33 barbel, 20 of which were in double figures.
Of these, four were between 10lb and 11lb, eight were between 11lb and 12lb and another eight were over 12lb – with a 14lb 7oz giant topping the lot.
Ian told Angling Times: “There are several reasons why there are so many big barbel at our fishery.
“We have a big weir here, which produces lots of natural food for the fish. And with the good flow the weir provides we have barbel that use a lot of energy day to day – this means they need to feed more.
“The habitat elsewhere on the stretch is perfect too, with fast gravel runs, deep water,s nags and weed beds. That means the fish don’t have to travel far to find safety, a source of food or somewhere to spawn.
“Perhaps the biggest factor that makes this fishery so good, though, is the amount of anglers’ bait that has gone in over the last few years.
“This, no doubt, is helping the fish pack on the pounds.”
Ian’s catch came on Vortex Baits CKO Hydro Shrimp bolilies presented on Hybrid Tackle hooks with a PVA bag of freebies attached every cast. He recommends fishing the Trent at night, which is prime bite time.
This isn’t the only stretch of the Trent producing big catches of barbel, though – as proved by Paul Mersh.
On a recent trip to an undisclosed weir on the river he took 25 fish in just 12 hours. The catch included five of 12lb-plus, two 13lb-plus barbel and two over 14lb fish. He described the session as “simply awesome”.
Paul’s fish, like Ian’s, fell to boilies, but this time from Flaming Further. Paul presented them on a hair two at a time and wrapped in a big ball of paste.
These were cast 80-100 yards into the weir with approximately three kilos of freebies.
Incredible week for roach as redfins go on the feed
Experts believe Britain’s roach shoals have gone on a ‘feeding frenzy’ after a string of sensational river and lake catches to over 47lb!
Leading the week’s best bags was Wayne Anderson, who pole fished casters on Norfolk’s River Thurne and was rewarded with an incredible 47lb 6oz of roach.
The fish – anywhere between 4oz and 6oz – were all taken close in on the pole with casters, and Wayne’s catch won a match in which the top five all had over 25lb.
The River Trent at Burton also got in on the silver fish act with a string of double-figure weights.
Despite poor river conditions, the recent three-day festival was a triumph for roach anglers, as river regular Wayne Swinscoe explained: “The river was low and crystal clear,” he said. “However, the fish went on a feeding frenzy, especially the roach, and all sections fished really well.
“Over the course of three days multiple 20lb bags of roach were taken, topped by a thumping
38lb 9oz net of redfins caught by Ian Shaw, who fished casters and tares from peg 3 at Shardlow.”
Anglers on Yorkshire rivers also had some fantastic roach sport to report, as was highlighted in the Upper Calder Champs on the stretch at Brighouse.
The match was dominated by Andy Miller, who caught a cracking 21lb 7oz net of redfins on the pole at 11m with maggots over groundbait.
Bradford No1 AA match secretary, Matt Foster, reported the event to Angling Times.
He said: “The river fished so well that 10lb of roach finished 21st!”
It wasn’t just the rivers which provided anglers with silverfish action this week either, as one of the country’s ‘forgotten fisheries’ sprang into life.
A fantastic 32lb 12oz of roach was needed to win at Alton Reservoir, in Suffolk, a venue made famous for producing massive bags of bream for visiting anglers.
The man behind the catch was Ian Torn, who fished maggot, caster and corn over groundbait on the 13m pole line.
Match organiser Sean Bere was delighted with the result.
He said: “Alton is a venue that match fishing seems to have forgotten since its bream-filled heyday in the 1990s, but the fish are still there – as recent fantastic catches of roach have proved.”
Roach were also the mainstay of many catches at Tamar Lakes near Bude, Cornwall, where multiple 40lb bags were taken in the recent Preston Pairs Festival.
One of these was taken by Simon Poynter, who caught 313 roach for a massive 40lb 8oz.
Simon fished a 5m whip to hand and switched over to the pole over the same line whenever he needed better presentation.
t’s not just roach that have been filling anglers’ nets, as 75-year-old Dave Riley proved with a 90lb bag of ide from Butts Lake at Aston Park Fishery in Sheffield.
These fish averaged between 8oz and 12oz, and were caught on maggot fished shallow.
Bills Lake, at the same fishery, also saw a 65lb bag of chub caught up in the water.
fishy boilie tempts wye barbel best
Targeting a new stretch of the River Wye proved to be a golden decision for Mark Doherty, who slipped his net under this torpedo of a 13lb 5oz barbel.
After a biteless three hours fishing in the morning, the Monster Baits and Dips-backed angler moved swims and received a powerful take on his first cast.
Mark’s new Wye best fell to a halibut, garlic and tuna boilie fished in conjunction with a blockend feeder filled with hemp.
biggest two-fish catch ever in uk?
midweek overnighter has produced one of the biggest-ever braces of freshwater fish – two monster catfish weighing 85lb and 105lb.
The mighty pair fell to Catfish Pro Team member Richard Wetton at Crow Green Fishery in Essex, alongside two smaller moggies, to top off an incredible session.
An ecstatic Richard told Angling Times: “I have had good nights on the fishery before catching 10 or 11 fish to 50lb, but that doesn’t compare to this recent trip.
“When the first one screamed off I knew from the moment I hooked it that it was a big one. It battled for 15 minutes before hitting the net, and that was just the 85.
“The next slow but constant run saw me connect with an even bigger fish that fought hard for 20 minutes with neither of us prepared to give in.
“When I got it in the net, I just sat there and took it all in. I had just achieved my target for the season – a 100lb-plus cat. Let’s say I had little sleep after that mad 40 minutes, with the adrenaline pumping from the madness.”
Richard caught both fish on halibut pellets fished on a brick rig. His specialist tackle consisted of 11ft Cat Tamer rods and big pit reels loaded with 99lb braided mainline. Attached to this was a 1oz inline lead and a 16ins, 120lb Catfish Pro hooklink tied to a Pro circle hook. Richard added: “You can’t really turn a big cat’s head when it wants to go. So you hold on for dear life, and fingers crossed the gear will hold out.”
15 blue sharks from a kayak
Catching a huge fish from a boat certainly gets the adrenaline pumping – so imagine how these three anglers felt after they caught FIFTEEN 70lb-plus blue sharks while fishing from kayaks.
Mike Burnett, Greg Bowes and Mark Kemble together form the members of ‘Yak Life’ – a team of kayak-fishing enthusiasts who target the UK’s coastlines in search of big fish. Once a year they head out to the Celtic Deeps off the Pembrokeshire coast in pursuit of giant blue sharks.
Speaking to Angling Times, Mike described the trip and the moment a group of sharks circled their craft. He said: “We were right on our limit weather-wise as the swells were quite high, but we knew the sharks would be there.
“On the day we set out from Swansea aboard Lady Jue 5 and headed 40 miles out to the Celtic Deeps with our kayaks on board.
“Once on location and aboard the kayaks we sat in the chum trail created at the back of the boat – it was just a matter of time before one of the floats went under.”
To help muscle the sharks up from the depths the three used strong rigs incorporating short 400lb wire traces and 10/0 size hooks, mounted with whole mackerel or Ammo squid.
These were fished to a depth of 60ft with a plastic bottle or toilet ballcock used as a floating indicator.
“The float would shoot under and line just blitzed off the reel,” Mike added
“The swells were massive, so we had to really concentrate to keep our balance during the fight.
“We put our legs either side of the kayak to do this, but it’s a daunting prospect as you know other sharks are swimming all around you.
“As soon as you gain line and get them to the surface they battle on down again, and this can happen up to three times – the fight you get from a blue shark is just incredible.
“At the end we had 15 between us, but we did catch 42 last year – although these latest sharks were much bigger.
“It was Mark’s first trip targeting the blues and he managed to catch the biggest one at around 125lb, which was a fantastic sight to witness.”