The Traditional Fisherman's Forum

Chub fishing certainly throws some surprises. A nervewrecking fight of back swimming and arial lunges.

Fantastic fish. I love catching bigger eels on the Thames. Sadly they're quite rare these days.

My - that is a super eel - and becoming sadly rarer everywhere.

It's great to see Eels being caught seeing how the numbers have dropped over the years and what a nice surprise.

A great eel. Unfortunately, there are fewer and fewer eels in Germany either.

I bet that was a real surprise when you hooked it and don't they fight well, especially when they go backwards towards an obstacle or into mud looking for a grip.

Not everyone's favourite but they do scrap well, particularly in reverse gear! They are an important predator/scavenger in our delicate water environments. You are doing very well CC

Thanks for your kind comments.
For me it was a huge surprise. The last time I caught an eel was over 20yrs ago. Back in the 90's I used to catch plenty of them too, thick ones, some were almost black in colour! Their fight is like no other, back swimming, then rushing towards you at speed slacking your line, they can turn on a sixpence that's for sure. I really like eels, I love their mystery and history, so to catch one after all those years really made my night.

A wonderful fish, and great fighters also. I used to go fishing for eels at dunwear ponds and combwich pond in Bridgwater, Somerset when I lived down there. I didn't catch many using tiny deadbaits or lob worms, a few around two to three pounds a season was about the norm, but one day I landed a 4lb 2oz eel, and boy was it a struggle getting it onto the bank, and then the real fight started. Other than catfish I put eels second in the fighting league, but first once they are out of the water they are a nightmare when they have a bit of size to them. It's over 20years since I caught a eel of any size also. Great fishing CC.

A wonderful specimen, not caught an freshwater eel since the early eighties