What was your most gut-wrenching, painful fish loss? Perhaps the fish of your dreams at the edge of your net?
I remember a few.
Aged 12, in Helensburgh, Scotland. I used to stay at my cousin's house and fish every day off the pier for mackerel. Day after day a huge mullet used to drift around the pier and be assaulted with around 40 spinners on its head. It heardly even used to spook, just slowly drift away without paying the remotest attention to these spinners. It was uncatchable.
One holiday, I had lost my only spinner. I tied on a huge hook and was messing about. The Mullett came in to the usual cacophany of gasps, cries and general awe. For some reason I put a couple of swan shot on and a huge piece of crust from my chicken butty. I chucked it out and before I knew it the line tigtened. I struck and saw this thing panic. "I'VE GOT IT!!!!!!!!" I cried and all the local kids ran to my side. It kicked around for ten minutes then, invariably, just as one kid climbed down a ladder to try to land it, it just fell off. I nearly chewed the butt of my rod.
I remember a few.
Aged 12, in Helensburgh, Scotland. I used to stay at my cousin's house and fish every day off the pier for mackerel. Day after day a huge mullet used to drift around the pier and be assaulted with around 40 spinners on its head. It heardly even used to spook, just slowly drift away without paying the remotest attention to these spinners. It was uncatchable.
One holiday, I had lost my only spinner. I tied on a huge hook and was messing about. The Mullett came in to the usual cacophany of gasps, cries and general awe. For some reason I put a couple of swan shot on and a huge piece of crust from my chicken butty. I chucked it out and before I knew it the line tigtened. I struck and saw this thing panic. "I'VE GOT IT!!!!!!!!" I cried and all the local kids ran to my side. It kicked around for ten minutes then, invariably, just as one kid climbed down a ladder to try to land it, it just fell off. I nearly chewed the butt of my rod.