Cats from the Caspe on the EbroTWO YEARS AGO I travelled to the remote, unspoiled town of Caspe in Northern Spain, to fish the River Ebro for its now famous Wels catfish. The trip was a real success and a feature was published on FishingMagic.
On our previous trip, six of us went out there and all had great sport with five out of the six of us catching fish of 100lb plus, which these days, is the accepted target weight for a specimen cat. During this visit the approach was the traditional predator tactic of fishing, with live baits from both the bank and the boat. I was fortunate enough to have caught 100lb plus fish, both from the bank and boat, which gave me a good insight into both methods. I have to confess, that at the time, it was all quite new and quite exciting to me. My favourite was fishing from the boat where we would cover miles of river, drifting huge floats against the masses of sunken trees and rocky outcrops. The takes were awesome; sometimes the huge cats would crash out of the water as they smashed into the unfortunate carp livebait. When fishing from the bank, we fished what were basically stepped-up pike paternoster rigs, with a weak link that would break when the cats hit the baits. A tenth anniversary celebration – could I get away with it?The trip was a hugely enjoyable one and I really wanted a return trip. This in itself is unusual, as I rarely return to the same place, as there is just so much fishing out there. I try and sample as much as possible on each opportunity I get to travel abroad. For me a weeklong trip was probably out of the question but then my wife suggested we took a weekend away together, to celebrate our tenth wedding anniversary. A little seed of an idea began to germinate. I couldn’t possibly get away with that…could I? I called Martin Walker at Catfish Capers, explaining the situation. The way we fished previously, a two day trip would be almost unrealistic considering the amount of time it took to catch baits, load the boat, move from swim to swim, etc. This meant that a lot of your day was spent in the preparation, and much less in the actual fishing. I was a little worried that two days would simply not afford me the chance of some good action. I had heard (who hasn’t) about the cat’s dramatic switch to pellets as a food source and Martin assured me that two days was plenty of time to enjoy some awesome fishing. Before I knew it I had booked a cheap flight to Barcelona and Martin agreed to provide at a very reasonable price, some accommodation right by the river and all the tackle, bait and permits required. A romantic villa in the Catalan region…but no mention of catsI had explained that my wife would be accompanying me and asked for accommodation that would be suitable. I don’t mind sharing with a dozen hairy arsed anglers but I’m not sure Lisa would be as keen on such an arrangement! I wanted her to be able to enjoy herself for a couple of days before we travelled into Barcelona for a night on the town. At this stage, I have to confess, I’d told Lisa we were going to a romantic villa in the Catalan region of Spain, no mention of fishing for cats or the Ebro just yet…
Within a few hours of leaving Manchester I was gazing out over the rugged landscape of Northern Spain. Vultures, kites and even eagles soared across the valley, rising high on the evening thermals over the distant mountains. Superb accommodationThe riverside accommodation was superb; three beds, kitchen, large living area, BBQ and ample secure parking. But perhaps best of all was a barrel of cold beer set up on the shaded veranda from which you help yourself and settle up through an ‘honesty’ agreement at the end of the week. With a cold beer in my hand and two days of fishing ahead of me a huge grin spread across my face. To say I was contented would have been a bit of an understatement. A few more draught beers (well quite a few actually) shared with our guide, made for an interesting and thoroughly enjoyable first night and in the early hours of the morning I stumbled to bed looking forward to the events of the following day.
As you would expect, despite last nights intake I was up with the sun, all these years and I still can’t sleep properly the night before I fish. Lisa had decided to stay in bed so the guide and I took the leisurely walk down to the river, literally at the bottom of our garden. This is what made the location ideal, I was able to come and go as I liked without having to drag the wife out of bed in the early hours. She could rise whenever she felt like it, walk down to where I was fishing, or just stay on the patio with a cold beer and a book. The halibut pellet revolutionA swim was chosen and a liberal supply of pellets introduced mid-river using the boat before a string of 21mm halibut pellets threaded on a hair were cast into position. This was all so different to my previous trip. I believe it all started when the guides over the last couple of years had begun baiting swims with halibut pellets to attract the hordes of carp in the river, the catfish had switched onto them big time and moved the carp out of the swims.
This had revolutionised cat fishing on the Ebro and multiple catches were now possible in a short timeframe and although I really did enjoy the challenge of livebait fishing, the more productive and prolific pellet attack was almost made for a short trip like mine. A slow start, and I was worrying about the beerThe river was very low and this meant that some of the swims were inaccessible by boat, but I was assured that big fish had been taken from the area in front of the villa, so I was happy with the location. I was however informed that no one had fished this particular spot for a while so I didn’t expect instant action. I knew it could take some time to attract the cats into the area, so regular casting and frequent trips in the boat should cause enough commotion to get the inquisitive fish into the area. The sun came up, the mist started to burn off the water and still no fish. I was getting a little twitchy, not through a lack of fish, it was just that I’d left Lisa with a barrel of beer and was worried there would be none left when I returned for lunch. Before we packed in for the morning I had my first fish. A spirited fighter of around 60lb, which punched way beyond its weight as it used its long flank in the fast water, to strip yard upon yard of braid from the spool. A liquid lunch and then we were really fishing!This was the signal for lunch, it was noon and the sun was now beating down. I decided to return to the villa and relax for a while. After a hearty lunch (mostly liquid), Lisa and I walked down to the river in late afternoon leaving the guide to finish his lunch. I cast the rods into the baited area. Almost at once I began to get a few indications on the rod tips to show that large fish were moving around in the swim. I decided to recast all four rods to cause a bit of commotion and this seemed to have the desired effect. The downstream rod quickly tore off and after about 10 minutes I grabbed the bottom jaw of my first ‘ton’ of the trip at 112lb. Before I could weigh the fish my other rod was away and after a bit of persuasion Lisa held onto my fish while I hit the other rod and a smaller cat of around 85lb was soon lay against his bigger mate. Now we were really fishing!
Despite her initial reluctance, I insisted on Lisa taking the next fish, having explained the mechanics of the clutch and baitrunner and explaining that on no condition should she let go of the rod she was ready for action. It came soon. The rod was bouncing on the rest and threatening to disappear into the Ebro as she sauntered over to it. (Yes, you and I would run, but I could almost see her checking her nails as she glided towards the disappearing rod butt). When she turned the reel handle, disengaging the baitrunner, the fish pulled her a good few feet forward before she regained control, but regain control she did. Using a butt pad and a lot of patience she pumped the fish slowly to the side where I grabbed its lower jaw and slid it ashore. I knew it was a good fish and it tipped the scales at 116lb about 115lb bigger than her previously biggest fish. Don’t you just hate it when they catch a bigger one than you?
To be honest I was made up she’d had that fish. It made my day and we decided to stop fishing soon after and go into the local town for a bite to eat and of course a few beers. Not a bad start to the fishing at all. 30lb ratfish all over the placeAlthough cats were my target I could easily see that there would be some tremendous ratfish (sorry carp) fishing to be had on the same section of river if that kind of thing takes your fancy. Locals with no more than an Avon rod were taking 30lb commons from all over the place with dog biscuits and sweetcorn as baits. Early and late morning the margins were literally crawling with huge fish. I dread to think what a couple of serious carp anglers, with a proper baiting campaign, would achieve. I suspect the catches would be staggering, both in numbers and size of the fish caught. Spectacular fishing further downstreamIf the sport in the river below the accommodation was good, the only way you could describe the fishing further downstream would be spectacular. The following day we were taken to one of the swims where pellets had been introduced regularly and I was assured that the fishing would be manic. Again things had changed since my last visit. Rather than travelling from a base camp by boat we drove off-road for several miles in a Land Rover loaded with all the tackle and an inflatable boat for baiting up. After an interesting, if somewhat bumpy journey, we pulled up at one of the most stunning fishing locations I have ever visited. With the Land Rover parked just a few meters from where we would be fishing we began to unload the gear. Under our feet the white sand shelved gently down into the warm shallow margin where the rods would be positioned and I could make myself and more importantly Lisa, comfortable. Again this location was ideal for an angler to bring his wife or girlfriend. With plenty of shade, an ice box full of drinks, fresh sandwiches and a couple of magazines the wife was as happy as a pig in poo. Although in a few minutes I wouldn’t be. The far bank, perhaps 100 – 120 yards away consisted of a shear cliff face, rising abruptly into the clear blue sky, huge boulders 30-40 feet long lay in the river creating areas of slack water. There were creases and boils in the current where the big cats would undoubtedly be lying. The whole scene was awe inspiring. The guide had told me to be ready for instant action, big cats would be actively searching the swim for pellets introduced the day before and it was likely that one of the rods would be away before the fourth rod was cast. Hooking them would be one thing, getting them out would be anotherAs all anglers could probably guess, my excitement was getting the better of me and I was fumbling with the rigs and had to steady my hands to bait the long braided hairs with pellets. I looked across at the boulders and vortexes of water on the far bank. I was minutes away from doing battle with huge fish in powerful and turbulent water. I knew hooking them would be one thing, getting them out of there would be quite another. Substantial gear would be needed and fortunately the tackle supplied was more than up to the job in hand. Fox had supplied purpose built 12ft rods with a test curve of 4.75lb and these were used to punch the 8oz leads to within a couple of yards of the far bank boulders. Reels were large, Shimano fixed spool versions, which were loaded to the rim with 65lb braid, with a size 2/0 extra strong single hook, to complete the set up. Big? It’s ******* huge!Just as the guide had predicted, within minutes of the first bait being cast across the river the alarm screamed in protest and a strong strike resulted in me being pulled several yards forward as the fish sought sanctuary in the mass of rocks and sunken boulders. I leaned into it hard, determined that it would not find refuge. As this was going on one of the other rods was away and I shouted at Lisa to put down the magazine and grab it before the cat emptied the spool. By the time mine was chinned, Lisa’s fish was foaming the margins. With mine estimated at around 90lb it was quickly returned without weighing and I grabbed Lisa’s fish and tried to drag it ashore, I couldn’t. “Is it big?” she asked….
“Big, it’s ****** huge!” came the less than gentlemanly reply as I dragged it into the weigh sling. I’d say 137lb was big wouldn’t you. I told you I wouldn’t be happy in a few minutes. We had only been on the bank 10 minutes and she had smashed my personal best into oblivion. In fact she had landed two fish on the trip, they just happened to be the biggest two at 116 and 137…there is no bloody justice in this world I’m telling you. However these were just the first of many huge fish that would test our tackle throughout the day. Each and every hooked fish would make several long powerful runs, the first of these usually being the most aggressive and prolonged as it headed back across river towards the snags. Finger pressure on the spool was combined with a tightly set clutch to slow down these runs and although this often burned your skin on the more violent bursts, it was necessary to try and keep them from the danger areas. To keep them coming pellets were introduced regularly throughout the day, the plan being to keep the fish actively searching the swim and with the exception of a couple of quiet spells, fish came steadily. I have to say it became back-breaking work. A few fish were unavoidably lost either in sunken snags or from hook pulls but most were landed then quickly and safely returned with only those fish estimated to be over 100lb weighed and photographed. I upped my PB to 131lbWith the number of fish I was taking, it was only a matter of time (I prayed) that I hooked up with a biggie and eventually I upped my PB from 118 to 131 following another typically exhausting fight. From that fateful first cast (yes she did catch the biggest fish of the trip) at around 11am, to my last at about 6pm, I landed a total of nineteen catfish, with six of these being 100lb plus fish up to a new personal best of 131lbs. Although she wasn’t too bothered about the fishing, and was happy for me to take the runs, the sport was so hectic at times that on several occasions my second rod would be taken whilst I was playing a fish forcing Lisa to take control and she went on to take a further 9 cats with four of these also being over the ton.
By the end of the day I was hot, tired and physically exhausted, which is not surprising considering I had landed around 1,500lbs of fish. We were both knackered, we could hardly lift our arms and straightening my back became an ordeal. As we prepared to leave Lisa and I were lifting the boat onto the Land Rover, she turned to me and said. “I’ve just thought, this is supposed to be a bloody romantic anniversary!” “Shut up and put your back into it” was the curt reply. You take a girl away, she catches the biggest fish of the trip and all she does is moan…..there is just no pleasing some. Travel and Holiday DetailsA lot of people still believe that fishing of this calibre is unattainable to them but the reality is that nothing could be further from the truth. It is readily available to all anglers, with any level of experience. Unlike a few years ago there are many travel angling companies that specialise in foreign trips and this makes trips like mine surprisingly easy to arrange. When you also take into consideration the advent of cheap flights from Manchester and Liverpool, Europe in particular is now a much smaller place and it is now quite feasible to arrange, at a reasonable price, trips that a few years ago would have been unthinkable. By using a guiding company like I did, you can travel with no more than a rucksack and have all tackle, bait and, more importantl, permits waiting for you upon arrival. I used ‘Catfish Capers’, a well-known company specialising in superb carp and catfish holidays on the Ebro. Its owner, Martin Walker, is very flexible and can tailor a break or week long holiday to your precise requirements. If you are interested in sampling the exciting fishing the Ebro has to offer, I would recommend you visit his website at www.catfishcapers.com or contact him direct on 01494 488382 or email at catfishing@supanet.com
Footnote:To be serious just for a moment, I’d like to thank Lisa for being such a good sport. Not many wives would put up with an anniversary trip like this but she joined in fully. Out-drinking the guides, catching the biggest fish and generally letting me get on with it made it a trip to remember. A cheap meal in a tapas bar in Barcelona that night was the least I could do. I do spoil that girl… |
