Bumper week for perch with this Ouse monster topping the bill!
Perfect weather conditions this week have seen huge perch go on the feed, with big catches and huge individual specimens landed in an incredible week for stripeys. The biggest fish reported to Angling Times was this mint-conditioned 4lb 6oz perch, part of an impressive haul taken on a lure by former Drennan cup champion Jamie Cartwright.
He visited a stretch of his beloved Great Ouse and used a light jigging outfit to put together a catch that included fish of 3lb 1oz, 2lb 15oz, two at 2lb 14oz and 2lb 6oz. The Northamptonshire Specimen Group member’s biggest fish is a new lure-caught personal best and falls just 3oz short of his overall perch pb.
“My eyes were truly opened to the effectiveness of lure fishing when I caught 15 perch from a swim I’d been struggling to get bites from on conventional tactics and baits,” Jamie told Angling Times. “I had worms and maggots with me but I didn’t even take the lids off the tubs.” Jamie used a 9.5cm Savage Gear shad presented on a 7g jig head teamed with a size 2/0 hook.
Lure fishing ace Sam Edmonds also got in on the big perch action with a stunning 4lb 2oz specimen from a southern river. The Abu Garcia-sponsored angler also reached a personal milestone, because the capture was his 100th perch over 3lb caught from the UK. His latest fish took a Texas-rigged Berkley Havoc Rocket Craw in Green Chartreuse.
He said: “Unbelievably, this was the only bite I had all afternoon. I was hoping to reach the milestone of 100 three-pounders before the season ended, so to do it with a perch of 4lb 2oz is more than I could have dreamed of.”
A long-term campaign in search of a new personal best ended in fine style for Matt Fernandez when he took a fin-perfect 4lb fish from a southern stillwater. The Cygnet Tackle and Dynamite Baits-backed angler had spent several years in search of a huge perch, and struck gold with a link-legered king prawn hookbait. He said: “Landing a 4lb perch has been a top priority of mine for years, and I’m delighted to have finally got there.” Two more fish weighing 2lb 6oz and 2lb 10oz capped off a memorable hat-trick for the Southampton all-rounder.
It’s not just dedicated specimen anglers that have been getting in on the perch sport – England capped matchman Callum Dicks bagged over 50lb of the species from the River Wye.Fishing peg 89 in Hereford, the Maver-sponsored star worked with long pole and worm hookbait to find several perch over 3lb, with the best of the bunch going 3lb 12oz. Callum said: “The Wye perch fishing rarely gets the credit it deserves. Hopefully, this will show people just how big these fish grow in the venue.”
Monster 5lb River Thames perch is caught while lure fishing
This is one of the biggest Thames perch ever at 5lb 5oz.
Justin Beale described the fight that the huge fish put up as ‘the most ferocious that he’s ever experienced’ when he fished a snaggy area.
Justin Beale's huge 5lb 5oz Thames perch was caught on a lure.
The experienced specialist certainly knows exactly where the venues big predators hang out when it’s carrying extra water and milder winter sparks fish into feeding.
After searching around areas among the sunken trees in his swim, he decided to cast his lure into open water and this is when he set his hook into the specimen.
“Big perch don’t spend all of their time around snags as they venture into open water to hunt and that’s where this fish was when it smashed into my lure,” said Justin.
“It was on my fifth cast on a really slow retrieve when I got the take and it came straight to the surface, shook its head and then I didn’t see it again for around 10 minutes. The fight was incredible.
It’s a capture that further proves Justin’s intimate knowledge of the vast waterway as this is the third perch over 5lb he’s banked as he’s previously landed fish weighing 5lb 9oz and 5lb 1oz.
The winning bait was a Keitech Swing Impact that was coupled with a light rod, 4lb braid and a fluorocarbon leader.
“Some anglers spend way too long on the bank,” Justin continued.
“I watched the weather charts and saw the warmer weather coincided with the influx of extra water and I knew exactly where the big perch would be. You only need to be in the right place at the right time and for me this is usually for an hour or two after work and this was the case on this occasion.
Molehill Soil Tames Huge River Perch
MOLEHILL soil has helped tempt the biggest perch of the year so far, a stunning 4lb 10oz specimen.
The huge fish was caught on float tackle by former match fishing ace Tony Hopley during a day on the Derbyshire Derwent.
After suffering countless blanks on the tough river, the angler from North Wingfield, near Chesterfield, drew from his match fishing background to turn his fortunes around.
Using molehill soil as one of the main ingredients in his dark groundbait mix, the Perchfishers member introduced four balls laced with casters into the crease of the current.
“I’d been fishing with static rods during most of my 20-odd sessions on the river without success, so I decided to change to more of a match fishing approach,” said Tony, who won the 2003 Division 1 National on the Stainforth & Keadby Canal while fishing for Matlock.
“My mix was half molehill soil and half Sensas PV1. This is really just an attractor, and my groundbait has no food content apart from the casters. I also loosefed a few red maggots over the top to keep the swim active.”
After laying his trap, Tony expertly edged his Dave Harrell Avon-style float through his swim with a dendrobaena hookbait fished an inch off the bottom.
The presentation was too good for the huge fish to resist, as his only bite of the session saw him smash his 3lb 8oz pb from the same venue last September.
“I wish the perch hadn’t come straight to the surface because it didn’t do my heart any good at all!” Tony continued.
“It did its best to get buried in the snags, but I got the better of it.
“Winning the Division 1 National was the highlight of my angling career, but this comes very close.”
Tony Hopley caught this 4lb 10oz using molehill soil