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Special Fish we have lost

Mark Swaby

Mark Swaby

Senior Member
Today i was speaking to a young man who is after his first 2lb roach,he told me his woe of losing a fish well over 2lb during the summer which rolled on him and came off,he still feels the pain.I told him two stories of lost fish, one a possible record Chub that came off of the size 20 hook down on the Dorset Stour a number of years ago.It was almost beaten, 3 times the fish dived for the rushes in front of me, the forth time the hook popped out.I sat with my head on the ground for some time. Dave who also fished the section had caught the same fish the week before 2 oz under the record,I still feel the loss. Another time whilst fishing the Frasier river in British Columbia i played a massive 700lb plus sturgeon for 2 hours only to have it cut me off under a sunken tree. My mate said 'its only a fish',the pain for 2 days in my body said different. What 'special' fish have you lost ?.
 
Mark. Still trying for my first Britford roach over 2lb.

The second time I fished there I hooked a real monster that when it flashed I thought it must be a bream until it came to the surface. ( As they do). No sooner had I said aloud...please don't come off....it did! How big? A lot nearer 3 than 2.

On Loddon I once hooked a barbel that stayed deep for 10 mins until I had three half chances to net it in strong flow. The hook pulled but even when I lifted the net I thought it maybe was in it. Utter despair.

2 weeks later a pal had her 19lb+.



Graham
 
About 20 years ago I was lure fishing on the Grand Union Canal at Slough at the back end of the season. The water was as clear as crystal and you could see every detail of the supermarket trolleys and old bike frames that littered the canal bed. It was great fun to see pike chase the lure and strike, often at your feet. A big Ondex spinner was hit at the end of a retrieve by far the biggest perch I have ever seen. It twisted and turned a few times and the spinner popped out of its mouth. It would have been a PB that would still stand today. I felt numb and can still feel the disappointment. I fished the same stretch many times but never saw a perch to match the one that got away.

Steve
 
My special fish was a Haddock n chips from the harbourside cafe in Padstow, a damm seagull swooped down and nicked it whilst I was watching boaties trying to moor up.
As far as fishing is concerned, I lost a big river carp one time, only saw its dorsal as it surfaced , then took off like a steam train upstream.My Barbel gear ws no match.
The wife once lost what must have been a HUGE conger when we were fishing off Weymouth, the beast pulled her along the side of the boat to the transom, and the rod just kept bending, the drag locked up,on the reel, I was holding her around the waist but we were both getting forced further over, the skipper saw what was happening and cut the line.We couldnt tame it on a 50lb class stand up Tuna stick and 100 lb braid.
Suppose it could have been a submarine !

Dave
 
In 1997 I was fishing lake Nasser with my son for its famous Nile perch. I hooked one that was enormous which managed to throw the hooks before we could boat it. Our guide turned to me and said that it was well over 100 lbs, which didn't make me feel any better. I had packed up smoking several years earlier but immediately scrounged a cigarette, which I half smoked before throwing it away. It was foul and I have not touched one since.

The happy postscript to this tale is that a few days later I caught one of 146lb that was a world line class record that stood for just a few weeks. That made my previous loss totally unimportant, but I can still vividly recall that moment!
 
A couple of memorable losses for me this last year, I'm not that bothered about weights generally and dislike the hassle of weighing unless it's very special and I do seem to have a knack of estimating weights pretty accurately. This June I caught a very big Roach approaching 3lb from a backwater which I'm sure the OP knows well. I landed it and unhooked it in the net and put it back in the water to recover while I got the scales and camera ready. I took out the net and no Roach! I did have a big hole in the net though, probably been munched in the close season.
Went on a Conger trip out from Langstone in September hoping to beat my PB of 50lb and there had been quite a few 80lb + fish taken from the wreck and returned previously. Some by anglers on the boat. Sport was fast and furious and we all had quite a few, my BIL had a 65lb er, then I connected with what the skipper described as a BIG fish by the way it was fighting, after battling for some time with this beast it came off, I still keep telling myself I should have given it a bit longer with the bait before getting it off the bottom.
 
Lost a huge Barbel on the lower Severn about 7 years ago..When I had it on I actually thought it was a river Carp due to the big run it went on, managed to get it under control and very steadily played it carefully trying to gain line back, my mate was waiting with the net and everything looked like it was all going to plan....I guess on reflection myself and my mate were privileged to see such a Monster, but you've probably guessed it, it came off on about the third attempt to net it..This fish would of easily beat my PB off the Severn which is 15lb 12oz, on reflection, I would guess it would smash the current Severn record..Always astounds me that the Severn has not given up some of the hidden monster Barbel which I am sure are swimming about..
 
Monster Loddon perch a few months back. Saw it follow all the way to the bank before it engulfed my spinner under my feet. It was the largest perch I have ever seen, and I still see it's stripes in my nightmares now. :eek::(
 
I have lost many myself, but the one that my wife and I reminisce about the most was one that she once had on. Now, bear in mind that my wife is not an angler...she is to angling what Genghis Kahn was to the 'Love thy neighbour' movement, but this was one of those things you just 'do' when on holiday. We were in the Maldives, and they always lay on an evening fishing trip for the guests each week, local dhoni (open boat with a crew of 3 or 4) sunshade/rain cover, handlines, chopped up skipjack or similar for bait...drop the 4 ounce lead over the side, feel it down, then sit and wait. Bit like similar trips from Padstow or wherever...but warmer.

We were all catching small stuff, same every trip, but fun...and some very pretty colours. Suddenly my wife said she thought she had hooked the coral, so I hauled on it for her, felt slight movement eventually, so handed it back and told her to wind it up. Ten minutes, and much slow hand over hand stuff on her part later, the biggest stingray I have EVER seen was laying unmoving just below the surface, an extremely perplexed fish that obviously had no idea it was hooked, but had gently been coaxed to the surface by the soft touch of a woman. Now I don't know exactly how big this thing was...it was dusk by then, although you could see the outline of the thing. What I will say is that they had a stingray that they had affectionately named Bob, which came to a viewing hole in the floor of the over-water restaurant every night, to be fed by the waiters. Bob was roughly five to six feet across. The thing my wife hooked may well have been Bob's mum....

The crew went apoplectic when they spotted it, rushing around in a blind panic until one found a knife and cut the line. My wife was sorry to see it go as it slowly sank out of sight...but I dare not tell her what might have happened if the thing had realised it's plight and decided to go home in a hurry. With some of the line (at a guess, 100lb b/s mono minimum) wound around her hand, she would have been in serious trouble had that crewman not moved quickly. Neither of us will ever forget that trip, but to this day she has no idea of the danger she was in. Bless :D

Cheers, Dave.
 
Two that spring to mind.

First was a carp hooked on float tackle on a small club lake in Essex, shot off across the lake and made it to the lilies on the opposite bank, managed to coax it out and back across to where I was fishing. Quite pleased with myself as I was using a 1.7lb hooklength, played it for a while and soon had a few other club members up on the bank watching me. Brought it in close and just as it moved off again one of the carp lads announced that it was a known 20, at which point everything went slack and I was left with the pigtail at the end of the line where the knot had failed.

Second one was a couple of seasons ago on the Avon just below Ibsley bridge, floatfishing with a pin and light trotting rod, had a few small dace when the float dipped and something was pulling back much harder! Had it on for 20/25 minutes, gaining and giving line in equal measures and thought I was making some progress when it decided that enough was enough and just rolled over snapping the 3lb hooklength. Suspect it was a Barbel, but never saw it, spoke to John Levell later that day who informed me that a good double had been caught along that stretch the previous week.
 
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