unusual tussles with a fish

flightliner · Oct 6, 2011

Over the years I suppose all of us have had the odd fish that gave more than the usual account of itself when being played to the waiting net.
Whats yours?

little oik · Oct 6, 2011

I had a 6lb carp approx this last weekend which was hooked in the tail.I was on 5lb mainline with a 4lb link. Was a bit of fun to say the least .It was a lot smaller than I had first envisaged.

akacrush · Oct 7, 2011

Some considerable time ago I was fishing on the Ulverston canal - happily landing roach and rudd. When all of a sudden my rod went U shaped as a jack pike of about 5lb decided to try maggots. ****** broke the wire on the top ring of my match rod before the line snapped, leading to a very quick course in rod repairs. Recalling it now, I still can't believe the wire would go before a 1.5lb hook length!

Ray Roberts · Oct 7, 2011

My old feller had a 12lb conger eel and 6ft of brass handrail at the same time from the wreck we were fishing. Those handrails put up a terrific fight.

goonch · Oct 8, 2011

I was touch legering for barbel on a big fish stretch of the Teme and my head was full of visions of doubles. As the light was starting to go I felt a tug on the line and struck. The fish was weeded after just a couple of seconds... and stayed there for the next 30 minutes

No matter what I did this thing just wouldn't budge. Maximum pressure did nothing. Complete slack did nothing. Every now and again the fish would shake it's head just to let me know it was still there and I couldn't give up

For reasons I still don't know the fish eventually decided to swim back out into open water. It was now almost pitch black and my (very patient) mate shone a torch into the water so we could see my prize as I brought it to the net. Only a ******* eel

mg:

waggy · Oct 8, 2011

Had an 11lb pike last month that started out as a carp, I thought.
During the same session my brother had a beautiful 4lb eel that started out as a good tench until surfaced.

flightliner · Oct 9, 2011

I once had a fifteen pound common carp swim up a pipe on the tidal Trent that was flooded. Took me and my mate about a half hour to get it out.

The bad one · Oct 10, 2011

Had quite a few tussles when the river running at fullbore with Barbus plasticus

Philip · Oct 10, 2011

I fished a little river once that was basically a rocky trout spate stream. However in one of the deeper pools I saw there were a few Carp swimming about and I thought it would be a bit of fun to try and stalk one out. However in order to get a bait to them I had to clamber up a big pile of rocks that overlooked the pool and due to all sort of obstacles like over hanging trees I only took a short 6 foot rod with me. The plan was that if I hooked a fish I would play it whilst climbing back down the rocks to my waiting net on the ground below. From the elevated position on top of the rocks I could clearly see into the pool and positioned some sweet corn were I could easily see it and sat back to watch events. After a few minutes a little Dark common ambled up and after a few inquisitory circles of the bait gobbled it down. I struck and was in. However the fish decided to dash up stream and through an over hanging tree…I was now playing the fish from high up on a rock with the line going through the tree branches. The best I could do each time was play the fish back through the tree till it was touching the bending tree branches but I just could not free the line. The fish would then race off again and I would play it back to the branches and then it would race off again. After several minutes of this it was clear no amount of tugging was going to release the line from the tree and clearly a plan “B” was going to be needed ! After deliberating the situation what I decided to do was try and climb down and wade up to the tree and release the line. The problem was the way down the rocks was on the opposite side of the rocks to the way up and was allot more difficult to do. I had a couple of attempts but it became clear I could not get down whilst holding the rod at the same time. I was well and truly stuck ! The carp was now knackered as well and was see sawing up and down in the current held by the line going through the tree.

Desperate measures were called for so what I decided to do was to throw my rod as far upstream as I could and then attempt to shimmy down the rocks and wade out to the offending branch as fast as I could, then free the line, pick up the rod, swim back past the rocks to the waiting net on the other side of them and then play the fish from there.

To cut a long story short, that’s exactly what I did. I half killed myself getting down the rocks and wading to the tree…I almost lost the rod as well as it was being washed downstream in the current and had to trace my way back to it along the line but clearly the angling gods were smiling down at me that day because once I got to the rod which was now back on the other side of the rocks and close to my net I wound down the loose line and amazingly found the fish still attached which I triumphantly netted.

It was only a small one but it remains one of my more memorable battles.

flightliner · Oct 10, 2011

You earned that one Phil.

unusual tussles with a fish

flightliner

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little oik

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akacrush

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Ray Roberts

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goonch

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waggy

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flightliner

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The bad one

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Philip

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flightliner

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