''Has thr Trent got the potential''.

Derek Gibson

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I'm thinking here of Zander that could rock the record. Don't discount it fella's, fish were caught last season that raised a few eyebrows. What do you think?
 

thecrow

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As everything else that swims in it seems to grow very big I see no reason why Zander should be any different, my money would be on the tidal to produce a really big fish.......... if it hasn't already.
 
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Some very big fish also came out as far upriver as above Nottingham last season, I reckon it could well produce a new record over the next five years or so.
 

sam vimes

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I wouldn't know how big the zander record is. However, I know that an acquaintance of mine took the Trent record a season of two back. I've only ever seen one zander in the flesh. It was on the Trent, caught on a halibut pellet intended for barbel, by the very acquaintance I mentioned earlier.
 
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I've only ever seen one zander in the flesh. It was on the Trent, caught on a halibut pellet intended for barbel, by the very acquaintance I mentioned earlier.

Iirc the current (or previous?) record from the Severn was caught on a hali pellet or something similar like a fish flavoured boilie.
 

sam vimes

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The national zander record appears to be 21lb 5oz. The Trent record is 18lb 10oz. I've heard of plenty of 15lb+ zander being caught from the Trent too. That does suggest that it's got plenty of potential for the species.
 

john step

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They are my bogey fish on the Trent. I have had them when piking but do you think the b*ggers will let me catch them by design.

I have hooked a couple by design but they came adrift at the net and cocked a snook at me as they swam away in the torchlight.

They had better watch out this season though:D
 

flightliner

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Had four mini sessions mid reaches last winter, landed two, several "funny" takes to strike at with no end result. Often written off as Zeds but I think some of em could well likely be eels.
Potential certainly.
 
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Having had the experience of being connected to one on heavy pike tackle and seeing it on the surface on the non-tidal I will say that anyone banking a big one will need to be seriously tooled up.

I got smashed to bits without a hope in hell :eek:
 

Derek Gibson

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Having had the experience of being connected to one on heavy pike tackle and seeing it on the surface on the non-tidal I will say that anyone banking a big one will need to be seriously tooled up.

I got smashed to bits without a hope in hell :eek:

Me too Steve, and I ''was'' using seriously heavy gear, heavy duty jerk bait rod and 50 pound Power Pro braid, the brute spooled me. That was several years ago now but I'll never forget the occasion.
 
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Me too Steve, and I ''was'' using seriously heavy gear, heavy duty jerk bait rod and 50 pound Power Pro braid, the brute spooled me. That was several years ago now but I'll never forget the occasion.

It's a horrible feeling ain't it!

The most difficult part for me was trying to comprehend what I saw and what had just happened, I started looking into specialist gear back at the time which might have given me a chance of landing one but decided in the end that they were too few and far between to be worth targeting, even on a sleeper rod whilst doing other things.

I'm not so sure though.
 

swizzle

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Wow, I never had a clue? Any guesses at size? They must be some lumps to do you like that!
 
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Wow, I never had a clue? Any guesses at size? They must be some lumps to do you like that!

I've no idea to be honest but certainly upwards of 40lbs in my case and that's a very conservative estimate, the fish that broke the surface looked to be a good 5' - 6' long.

There are some reliable rumours of a couple of babies coming out in a match on Newark Dyke, around 2 1/2 lb and the deeps around Farndon Marina are rumoured to have thrown up some big fish to a quiet few who target 'em.

Clifton is also a supposed hotspot, there's a guy who went in the river to clear it of snags who's had some good fish and I met the fella who does STOTA baits out on the bank one day, he was pictured in a fair few of the weeklies with a 38lb Trent common from, iirc, Colwick area and he said he was fed up of getting smashed up by cats which gives you some idea of their brute power considering what he's managing to land.
 

sam vimes

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Wow, I never had a clue? Any guesses at size? They must be some lumps to do you like that!


The thing I saw on the surface was about five feet long and doing a fair impression of a log. Only when it went past slowly with the flow and then came past again against the flow did I cotton on to what it was. The thing I hooked may well have been smaller, but was still big enough for 10 lb line to have no impression on.
 

flightliner

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Back in 1990 I was feeder fishing on a day ticket reach of the river when I heard an angler above me say to his mate that he had a strange looking Barbel. Curious I went up and had a nosey. No, not a Barbel but a cat of some twelve ounce or so. I asked if he wanted a foto , he agreed and the pik featured in the angling times. The guy also told me that a friend had taken one the same in a match that weighed four lbs.
All a long time ago now, almost twenty seven years or so.
If they bred then its easy to imagine the river holding a few rather large ones!
 
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