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The warm breeze formed little waves on the river surface that gently lapped against the side of the twenty-one foot dory, causing it to swing slowly to one side; this in turn caused the ratchets on the multipliers to click as they released braid to compensate for the movement. There were six rods spread evenly in rod holders around the boat, powerful rods, five pound test curve and only just over nine foot long, they stood upright in the holders with the braid strung out from the tips heading down river thirty or forty metres.
To either side of the river rise red Triassic cliffs to an average height of eighty metres, upon which large numbers of black kites nest, they can be seen soaring in the warm air thermals where only the previous week ospreys had joined them. Half a kilometre down river was the swim where we had watched a wild boar swim the river before dragging his huge body out of the water and trotting off into the trees. The three of us in the boat were quiet, just getting used to the unaccustomed silence of the river valley, only broken occasionally by the sound of large common carp launching themselves into the air only to belly flop back into the water. The afternoon sun shone brightly overhead and the heat warmed the boat, reminding us why the locals thought siestas were a good idea! Still, mad dogs and Englishmen and all that!
The fish finder showed us anchored up over a depth of thirty feet; it was the path of the original river before the hydroelectric dam was built ten kilometres down river. Everywhere there were trees sticking their leafless branches out of the water providing a navigation hazard to those not familiar with the river, large rises and falls in the depth of the river were another hazard as the dam was often run off prior to rain fronts approaching the region.
Thoughts of an afternoon siesta were quickly dismissed as slowly onto the screen of the fish finder came large arcs representing the large fish down below, we were used to seeing these arcs but now we were seeing large numbers in a relatively small area. It was Johns turn on the rods and the anticipation was evident as he scanned the rod tips for any tell tale taps, suddenly one of the rod bent towards the river and the ratchet screamed as a large catfish took the bait turned and ………………………..
Hold up!!! Is this one of those Ebro articles about how some rich git goes over to a river stuffed with huge catfish and catches a few and comes back to boast how clever he’s been?
Well sort of, but the main purpose of this article is to convince you dear reader that it really is time you stopped reading these articles and go there and do it yourself.
Yeah right!!! We are married men (and women) with kids, we can’t spend a large amount of money and time on all the stuff that foreign catfishing requires, the boat, the trailer, the big rods and reels, the scales and weigh slings, all for what would probably be a once in a lifetime trip. Also what about the getting hold of licences, not to mention the food and accommodation? Even then there would be no guarantee of catching unless you knew where the fish were, it would take weeks just to learn the basics, forget it!
Fair enough, trying to do it on your own would be a nightmare, so lets look at the alternatives, there are several fishing guides around now that provide all the gear and licences.
At a price! They charge a small fortune and still don’t provide all we need, some of them sound cheap but charge for a lot of hidden extras. Very few include flights and accommodation can be incredibly basic, I want a trip that’s all in with a virtual guarantee of catching.
Hmmm difficult, location is an important part of catching catfish; if it is likely to be a one off trip then the more difficult venues should be avoided. Probably your best bet would be the River Ebro, which has a dense population of catfish to a good average size, around one in ten is over the magic hundred pound mark!
Yeah maybe! But I’ve read loads of articles about the Ebro and everyone is always very vague about where they are catching. Lots mention other catfish rivers in Spain like the Segre and Cinca, what about those?
Look at a map of Spain, find Barcelona (near the top of the east coast) then go west for approx one hundred miles and find the town of Mequinenza, this is Spain’s catfishing capital, it stands on the river Segre where the Segre joins the Ebro, the Cinca joins the Segre upstream of the town. In 1974/5 a German biologist Roland Lorkowski introduced 32 small wels catfish into the Segre just upstream of Mequinenza and this has been the home of the really big catfish ever since, we are expecting the first two hundred pound catfish to be caught by a British angler sometime this year or early next year.
Since then they have spread into the Ebro and have now been caught from stretches of the river all the way down to the coast. Also one kilometre upstream from where the Segre joins the Ebro is a large hydroelectric dam (the one mentioned in the intro of this article). Someone obviously moved some catfish into the river above the dam during the eighties as this is now heavily stocked with large catfish to one hundred and fifty pounds, the river above the dam is known as the top lake due to its large size and depth and is probably the best area in the world for consistently catching hundred pounders.
Alright now that sounds interesting, but is it getting hammered by hundreds of anglers at present?
No, due to its remote location and steep cliffs there are very few bank swims available from the few roads that bypass the lake, also all the best spots are out of casting range so a boat of some description is needed to get the baits out.
Has it been publicised a lot over here?
No but it will be soon, whilst I was there, Andy Little and Dave Kelbrick were just leaving, John Wilson was filming there, James Holgate and Geoff Parkinson were there, Joe Taylor was catching loads there and Andy Lush arrived as I was leaving.
Did they do any good?
They all caught hundred pound plus fish and Joe had caught lots of hundred pounders.
So are there any fishing guides on the Top lake?
Yes, there are two guiding groups, a German one and Martin Walkers Catfishing Capers, which is the group I went with. I chose Martins group because it was the closest to an all in package that I could find.
When you say “all in” what exactly is included?
Everything apart from the flights. The guides, the boats, the tackle, the transport, the food and drink, the accommodation, the licences, the bait, everything. During the week I was there I only had to get my wallet out a couple of times to buy my round of drinks in the Tapas Restaurant where we had tea every evening, the size of the steaks we ate had to be seen to be believed.
All very good but paying for the flights is going to bump up the price a lot!
That’s what I thought, but in this age of cut-price flights you can get really good deals. I was flying out of Luton to Barcelona so by booking early on the internet with Easyjet I was able to get a return flight to Barcelona on the dates and times I wanted for only sixty five pounds. Talking to other anglers on the trip that had come from Stanstead with another airline, they had got theirs for sixty pounds!
So how much does the all in package cost then?
It costs six hundred pounds, which sounds a lot, but it’s the same as I paid for a week in a caravan in Dorset a few years ago! Works out at fifty pounds a month, which shouldn’t be too much of a strain on the family budget. When you consider what is included in the package it works out as very good value.
What about the German company, what do they charge?
Initially it seems cheaper, a couple of hundred cheaper, but then all the extras kick in. Firstly there’s no transport from the airport to the camp so unless you drive all the way from the UK in your own car you are going to have to hire a car in Barcelona, drive a couple of hours up into the mountains, find the fishing camp and then leave it there for the week. Personally just the thought of driving in Spain puts me off that idea. Then if you wish to hire a fishing guide for the week it will cost a hundred pounds, bait and fuel for the boats is extra, other things like cleaning of the chalet will cost you as well. We worked out that to get the same kind of package as Martin would cost around eight hundred and fifty pounds for the week.
So describe a normal day out there.
It starts at a reasonable 8.30am when we fall out of our beds (three bedrooms per apartment), wash and shower and gather in the living room for a full cooked English breakfast prepared by Martin. Cereals, fruit juices, biscuits, etc are also available in the kitchen. Catch up on the news on the TV before heading downstairs to the transport. The apartments are situated above a Tapas restaurant in the village of Caspe, there’s a seven kilometre drive to the boat launching ramp at Chiprama. Martin uses two large dorys, twenty-one and eighteen foot, these provide stable fishing platforms from which several anglers can fish. Hundred pound plus fish can be brought aboard and photographed safely. The German company uses small boats that cannot venture out when the weather turns and I really would not like to try getting a big fish on board one, although having said that I did see several anglers do just that.
The day and evening is spent sitting on various hot spots on the river, catching big catfish and admiring the scenery and wildlife, if a spot doesn’t produce within an hour then a move is required to another swim. Alternatively you can be dropped off and one of the fishing guides will accompany you for a bank fishing session where he will row out an inflatable dinghy with a fish finder and position your baits in the best positions. Spanish law states a maximum of two rods per angler, so for every three anglers six rods are fished, usually runs tend to come to the same rods so rather than allocate rods to anglers we took turns as to who would have the next run, both on boat and bank. Lunch is provided in the form of a large cool box stuffed with ham and various cheeses, cans of soft drinks, biscuits, (try the raspberry jaffa type cakes, they’re gorgeous!) with large baguettes and cans of beer to celebrate any big fish captures.
Fishing finishes at sunset when we head back to Chiprama in the boats, there is no need to fish in darkness as the catfish feed well in the coloured deep water and its illegal to fish after midnight. Then its back to Caspe, a quick shower and change, (catfish slime sure does stick!) and downstairs to the restaurant for tea and a few more drinks at around 10.30pm, usually turning in well after midnight. The guides, Martin, Duane and Mark are with you from early in the morning and stay with you for tea so you can ask questions and get to know more about the history of the area and its fishing.
What about if I want to bring someone whose not experienced at fishing?
Not a problem at all, the guides explain how to use all the equipment and will hook the baits on for you and will do practically everything for you, just leaving you to hook and land the fish and they will give you advice while you are doing that for the first few times to ensure you have the edge in the battle, big catfish fight hard and will put an alarming bend in a five pound test curve rod!
What would be the best time to go?
The season is usually from March to November (although catfish can now be caught in any month) March and April are very good fishing months as the cats start to feed heavily and large numbers can be caught, however the weather can be variable at this time of year (spectacular storms!) also there is the possibility that the catfish may begin spawning which will cut down the catch rate. May and June are good but the heat may start to be a problem for those not used to it, also the mosquitoes start to make an appearance. July and August are very hot but the fish will still feed well. September, October and November are also good as the temperature starts to drop and the fish pack on weight, this is the time the records are broken.
So who are the guides you mentioned?
Martin Walker is a very experienced guide who ran catfishing trips to the River Saone and Tarn in France before settling on the Ebro. Duane Williams was a customer of Martins who enjoyed the fishing so much that he bought into the company! Mark Nuttall started fishing for catfish on the Ebro in 1991 when virtually nothing was known about them, he came back several times every year until he started working full time for a catfish guide on the Segre, then recently he moved to work for Martin.
So how do I know this is a good guiding company?
Just ask about the number of repeat bookings that catfish Capers gets, the real indicator of success.
So how do I get in touch with Catfishing Capers?
Phone 01494 488382 or mobile 07973 230957 or e-mail at catfishing@supanet.com or website www.catfishcapers.co.uk
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