Hardest fighting fish?

[no-one in particular]

For want of something better to do I make it, (I included the suggestions made by those that might need a bit of therapy)
mullet 5
salmon 3
mahseer 3
catfish 3
tiger fish 2
gudgeon 2
barble 2
chub 2
bass 2
ide 2
sea trout 1
marlin 1
bonefish 1
rainbow 1
dace 1
grayling 1
mackeral 1
kingfish 1
hallibut 1
sturgeon 1
carp 1
blue trout 1
bream 1
perch 1
crucian 1

 

[Chris Campbell]

It will always be a subject of varied opinions and people who can't see their nose in front of their face because their bias. I have had pike come in like a sack of tatties and had others ripping line of the reel running hard and jumping out the water. Had salmon never had them fight very smartly they have just took off down the river but great fighting. Also had some roach give a good account of them self on light tackle. Heard the Roach/Bream hybrids fight well will be trying to catch one next year.

One fish I have not heard mentioned is the Broad Billed Sword Fish according to anglers in Australia. One guy described it as if you had a 600lb Marlin and a 200lb Sword fish and tied a rope between them the Swordfish would win hands down.

 

[AdsW85]

This is a debate that has been going one since man first used a hook.

If we are talking of British freshwater fish, then I would list "Fighters" and "Non-fighters".

Under fighters I would list in order of precedence and starting at number 1:

1: Rainbow trout in prime condition, particularly the "blue trout" mutants.
2: Atlantic Salmon
3: Common fully scaled river carp
4: Seatrout.
5: Male tench.
6: Barbel
7: River perch
8: Eels.
9: Grayling
10: Brown Trout
11: Dace

And now the species that don't fight:

1: Chub
2: Bream
3: Roach
4: Rudd
5: Pike (although I might make an exception with loch pike in Scotland)
6: Crucian Carp.

This is based on my own experience and covers British fish in British waters.

As to the hardest fighting freshwater fish I have ever hooked. I am torn between 4 species.

1: Southern African Tigerfish
2: Vaal River Smallmouth Yellowfish.
3: Zambezi Chessa
4: American Smallmouth Bass

And now saltwater fish.

1: The humble Thick Lipped Mullet, found in many seas and oceans of the world.
2: The Yellowtailed Kingfish
3: Springer or Ladyfish.
4: Bluefish or shad
5: Leervis or Garrick.

This is based on the fish I have caught. All fish are on a size for size basis. I have hooked marlin and shark in my life but because of their size they are difficult to rate.

But we get one of the hardest fighting fish in the world around our estuaries most summers, the mullet of course.

I would love to know the biggest Chub you have ever caught to class them as non fighters is insane. Any river fish fights that's why river Bream are better than lake Bream they fight don't get me wrong nothing compared to other fish on the list but they at least fight but Chub are better fighters than Perch and when you hook a 6lbs Chub you will know about it but even the little fellas fight and all river fish do. I agree with Pike considering that they are predators they don't fight anywhere near like what carp or even tench do and is why I have shifted my target species last few years but I would like to catch a big 30lbs Pike as I have only got a PB of 22 and my Carp PB is 28 but a Carp of 22 is definitely a harder fight than Pike of 22.

Catfish though are the hardest fighters I ever had in UK 53lbs Cat felt like 150lbs Carp.

I caught the first fish of my season on the local river a Chub probably only 1lbs and the fight was great for such a small fella. Following day I caught Chub 6.2 I was convinced I had a Barbel at first they were my first ever Chub and they are very underestimated so I guess you have only caught em on single maggot or roach Chub hybrids maybe Bream Chub hybrids maybe I dunno but Chub are lbs for lbs one of the strongest we have in this country they just don't get much bigger than 7 or 8lbs consistently unfortunately

 

[AdsW85]

A lot of species vary dependent on where you catch them. I've had large bream in Yorkshire come in like wet sacks whereas some in Ireland fight like tench and in one local lake here in France, 2lb bream run and leap when you strike. Similarly with chub. A Dearne chub fights all the way whereas those I've caught in the Wharfe give up after one run.

What is the best fisght depends on what you want;- a thrilling running battle or a dogged static brawl.

And, the fight often is dependent on the tackle used. Catch a trout on a carp rod and you get a different experience to catching it on a fly rod. They just run around in circles.

Of the species I've caught I'd rate grey mullet as the top fighter pound for pound. It has the speed of a sea trout with the endurance of a carp. And, unlike some fish, eels for instance, they run and run, meaning an exciting fight rather than a static tug of war.

River carp also fight better and seem to run more than lake stockies so I'd put them up along with barbel as joint second, with sea trout and salmon close behind.

Of the sea species pollack take some beating on sporting tackle, but the king daddy in UK waters has got to be the halibut or tuna, both rare captures these days. In the 1930's Yorkshire was the tuna fishing capital of the world and anglers would bring in fish over 800lb. Imagine being connected to something that could pull a 16 foot wooden rowing boat with crew for hours?
Halibut fight really doggedly so I'm told and can set off on a crash dive taking all the dozens of feet of hard-earned line with them. That's two fish I'd love to catch.

All river fish fight better than lake fish and even better than canal fish as well but best fight I have ever had was easily the blue marlin and then the barracuda of what I have caught also black bass are good for fighting on spinner like perch but double the strength would like to try large mouth Bass as well.

But I am a member of Farnham Angling Society and we are lucky to have 32 lakes and rivers which we can use Yateley lakes are on our permits and the lakes still holds originals some lakes also stockies and then also there is generations of stockies x originals and so on. Now catch a Copse Carp these are solid original fish a 40lbs fish is like catching a 55 to 60lbs stockie from Badshot Lea for example which is our main match lake so fish are fat and heavy not solid different catch entirely

 

[Alan Whitty]

Sadly, you can't compare the fight of a big catfish to that of say a 6lb mullet, as a 6lb cat would give up the ghost a long way short of that mullet, also as a lover of barbel, sadly river carp fight just as hard, chub fight hard, but in comparison to a barbel sadly no, if you hook a 6lb chub on 8lb mono and gave it the butt you wouldn't get broke,try it with a 6lb barbel, comparison are futile as each species has its lover, some love dace, they say they fight, no, they twist and turn just like grayling(a beautiful fish), you never see a dace try to run, as you say, river bream fight harder than their stillwater cousins, but the moaners are hooking them on 10-12lb line, try fishing for them with 3-6lb line, it's all relative if you want sport and not a number prize....

 

[peterjg]

The hardest fight from a fish I've caught was from a 38lbs 6oz catfish - for comparison it fought far harder than the 8 carp over that weight which I've caught. The trouble is that catfish are just so ugly, on the bank they are like a docile smelly slug!

 

[@Clive]

I find that small catfish, under 50lb or so fight very differently to the huge ones. If you hook one of the big ones it is like a carthorse, slow and unstoppable whereas the 50lb and under are far more likely to make fast runs. But in general the fight of many fish can vary from water to water and in individual fish. Bream in the Charente fight like barbel usually. But you get the odd one that gives up easily.

For my money black bass and mullet are the hardest fighting fish under 10lb.

 

[John Aston]

In terms of what I have caught (no point in my arguing the case for fish I've never even seen) I'd say , in order -

Rainbow trout (grown on , not freshly stocked )
Big wild brown trout
Barbel
Carp
Salmon
(Summer) pike

That is it , in terms of real fireworks and spectacle . Seatrout would be on the list , I'm sure, but I have caught very few .

Solid, doughty fighters include (winter) chub , tench and grayling - and eels of course .

The worst fights I have had are from Ide - usually .

 

[mikench]

Nothing to write home about but I once caught a Tarpon which was a struggle. I failed to land it or come close as it shed the hook on one on many breaches. I once caught something big and strong from a boat near Aberdaron which pulled my 8m meter boat whilst anchored and from the stern. Thankfully it pulled the hook and I never saw it. Another vote for gudgeon on light tackle.

 

[Steve Arnold]

The strongest fish, for it's size and that I have caught, must be the Amberjack. This is one of several I caught off the Florida keys.......

Amberjack have an amazingly powerful crash dive when hooked and never give up fighting. There was a catch limit of two per angler on the boat that day, believe me you REALLY did not want the second fish to eat your bait!

For stamina I would rate the porbeagle shark and fights with these fish ,off Dunnet Head Scotland,could last between 30 minutes and 1.5 hours.

Carp in a fast river have a heck of a turn of speed, I have ended up swimming to follow a few now. Usually it's those in the teens of pounds that are the liveliest.......

Just look at the build of that carp, not your ORDINARY carp, for sure!

Seatrout are wonderful to hook, my biggest was about 4 pounds but even the 12 oz fish are great sport on light trotting tackle. Most of them go airborne and throw the hook though! No photos of them, all were on 35mm slides lost to damp!

 

[Steve Arnold]

.......and I almost forgot about the PERMIT.....how could I possibly forget catching several of these on a light spinning rod and 12 lb line with free-lined shrimp baits. Florida Keys again.....

The first one that took my bait emptied the spool and cut me off! Permit are legendary sporting fish for the inshore angler, some even catch them on the fly!

 

[Steve Arnold]

I was fishing a fairly shallow swim on a lake that I hadn't fished before about a month ago. I was going to post on here about it but never found the time. I hooked several small bream about 1 - 1.5lb they all jumped clear of the water some several times and fought far harder than trout of twice the weight, weird or what?

Mullet do take some beating pound for pound as do Smoothhounds. Cod are the sea equivalent of bream. Sea Bream put up a good fight and fight in a similar way to Crucian Carp. Stingray caught in shallow water go a bit, as do tope.

After reading these posts I have come to a conclusion about "fighting fish"......it all depends!

That comment about cod, most times I would agree. But most of the cod I have caught have come from murky water, clouded by sand or silt stirred up by the waves and tides. Basically the poor cod does not know where it is going, it is relatively blind!

I have fortunately fished for cod over wrecks off Plymouth in clear water, using light tackle and shads/lures. The usual sizes of the cod were around 10 lbs and they gave a better account of themselves than the pollack that we usually rated highly for bending our rods. But there were some bigger cod and they often made us and our tackle look totally inadequate, just steadily plugging their way back down into the wrecks until they cut us off. If they could see where they were going they are incredibly dogged in going home!

We got a few decent cod out, but lost more.....

.....and as a little teaser, how about rating the worst fighting fish? For me it is Arctic char, these my son and I caught from a loch in Scotland.....

They just lump about a bit on the line, but are probably the very best freshwater fish for eating!

 

[@Clive]

What about pollack Steve? Some of the mid water pollack takes off Dingle were like hooking the pit lift freefalling on its way down the mine shaft. Clear water, strong tides = muscular fish.

 

[Steve Arnold]

What about pollack Steve? Some of the mid water pollack takes off Dingle were like hooking the pit lift freefalling on its way down the mine shaft. Clear water, strong tides = muscular fish.

Don't get me started on pollack Clive........I have had many small boats and spent so much time fishing light tackle in the kelp beds around the Scottish coast. It's proper hunting, searching out these fish close to rocky headlands and reefs, finding the tide runs and hidey-holes of the pollack.

Lures, ragworm, sandeels.....even feather lures at times! Magical fishing....and I even kept a few pollack to eat (not TOO many though!)

I tied those feathers myself, long before Sabiki lures were known about in the UK. A little fluorescent bead, some Mylar tinsel and a few strands of luminous material. If you ever see a herring or sprat on a dark night you will understand the importance of luminous or phosphorescent materials in sea lures. Those tiny lures caught some quite big fish!

This was part of my fishing life for about twenty years.....

At one time (after my wife left me!) I had three boats in my driveway, two of them mine and my fishing buddy parked his there as well. Ah!.....the benefits of being single!

PleEEEASE! don't get me all maudlin and nostalgic!

Anyway, fishing the river Lot in the south of France is not such a bad "second -best"........and now being married to a good woman who (I think!) understands me .

I was getting a bit old for all that boating stuff anyway, I just have not got the "sea-legs" anymore!

 

[Aknib]

The worst fights I have had are from Ide - usually .

I couldn't agree more!

I've had some clonking Ide from a former club water which Kev still fishes and it's as if they've been taking karate lessons from Bream but still don't get it.

 

[The bad one]

On this one you'd have to compare fish species of equal weight. So let say 6lb and British fish excluding catfish and sea fish.
Barbel, Salmon, tench and carp equal, eel, chub, pike, Seatrout, Brown trout, zander even though not native, bream.

 

[Philip]

A 6lb Mullet if it can be considered in the freshwater category would get my vote. They are brilliant sport on light tackle and a pin.

 

[seth49]

one of the best fights I’ve had of a fish was a 7 1/2 lb overwintered rainbow trout, from a large reservoir not far from here, it did two seventy yard approx runs and then fought for another five minutes plus before I could net it, that was on 9 weight fly gear.

ive had salmon that fought well, if they had been in the river a day or two and were rested from running up the river, I hooked a very large salmon below a weir near here, which didn’t seem to know it was hooked, it just carried on up the weir and through the fish pass cutting me off.

plenty of good scraps of carp and barbel, but the hardest fight I had was from a 38 lb conger eel of a wreck of torquay back in the seventies, I fought it up from deep down , and then it went back for the bottom when it saw the boat.

 

[Steve Arnold]

one of the best fights I’ve had of a fish was a 7 1/2 lb overwintered rainbow trout, from a large reservoir not far from here, it did two seventy yard approx runs and then fought for another five minutes plus before I could net it, that was on 9 weight fly gear.

ive had salmon that fought well, if they had been in the river a day or two and were rested from running up the river, I hooked a very large salmon below a weir near here, which didn’t seem to know it was hooked, it just carried on up the weir and through the fish pass cutting me off.

plenty of good scraps of carp and barbel, but the hardest fight I had was from a 38 lb conger eel of a wreck of torquay back in the seventies, I fought it up from deep down , and then it went back for the bottom when it saw the boat.

Your comment about rainbow trout brought back a memory!

Loch Awe in Scotland is famous for its scenery, size and unpredictable weather. There have been more than a few anglers drowned in it's depths over the years!

But the loch has huge net cages to farm rainbow trout and there have been many escapes from these farms of huge numbers of rainbow trout. Some of the "escaped" rainbow trout have grown large and it is thought that they may now be migrating down the river to Loch Etive (saltwater) and may even be returning to Loch Awe and breeding.

Certainly the several rainbow trout I caught in Loch Awe were around 4 pounds in weight and absolutely fin perfect. Not the usual ragged finned and stunted "stockies" that you expect to see.

The suggestion is that these farmed fish find conditions suitable here for spawning and have reverted back to being migrating steelhead trout.

Certainly these rainbow trout were in a league of their own for putting up a spectacular fight!

 

[John Aston]

Ragged fin stockies were common in the 80s and 90s but I can't remember when I last had a badly conditioned rainbow . I often help the stocking chap at our little lake in a valley on the moors and even straight from the fish farm they are nearly all almost fin perfect. But God ,the manky black ill conditioned horrors I endured from some lakes and reservoirs in the late 70s....awful things