Angling

C ATFISH TIME!

IF YOU HAVE EVER WANTED TO LAND A WELS CATFISH THEN THIS IS THE BEST TIME TO ACCOMPLISH YOUR DREAM

By Clive Kenyon

Catfish probably more than any other species are most active at this time of year and also at their most aggressive. Lure fishing for catfish is becoming more popular and provides an exciting way to break your catfish duck. Catfish spend much of the daylight hours lurking close to the bank under the shade of trees or in the deeper parts of the lakes and rivers that they inhabit. They are not purely nocturnal, but do become more active at night. That is not to say that you cannot enjoy success in daylight hours as catfish tend to be more aggressive at this time of year and will readily take lures and other baits. When spinning for catfish it is advisable to use a lure that makes some sort of noise or vibration. A large bladed spinner such as an Ondex or Voblex or a large plug containing beads will do nicely as they send vibrations and sound out through the water that attract any nearby catfish. I am not a fan of latex jig head lures as they do not create as much disturbance as bladed spinners, but you can enhance your chances of success by adding a small rattle above your leader and working the lure and rattle with sharp tugs during the retrieve. Bait fishing is another reliable way of catching catfish and baits can include sea fish, squid, large halibut pellets and Frolicks dog biscuits. The latter are used successfully by anglers fishing the Seine in Paris to lure catfish up to 40kg from the river. Incredibly they use carp poles and up-rated elastic to land these monsters. It helps to take two rods and spin near to your bait to wake up any nearby catfish and attract them into the area that you have baited. Hooks must be strong and very sharp. Their mouths are very tough and many catfish are lost during the fight due to the hook coming loose. If you do lose a catfish whilst playing it my advice is to check your hook and re-cast to the same spot as quickly as possible. I have had several catfish immediately take a bait twice or more after having come unstuck. Catfish have thousands of small teeth rather like Velcro that will wear away your leader if it is not suitably tough. You can purchase Kevlar on spools to make up your own leaders or traces, or utilise strong mono’ of at least 40lb breaking strain. Your normal heavy carp or pike tackle should be adequate as long as there are no nearby snags. Landing nets should be as large as possible although I have had a few catfish of up to 25lb safely landed in my folding reservoir trout net when spinning for pike and zander. They can be landed by hand simply by grabbing the lower jaw with your non rod hand and dragging them into shallow water. It is advisable to wear a glove when doing this, but the worst injury you could expect to receive if not using a glove is lightly grazed pads on your fingers.

The Sound of Silence

There is a common misconception amongst non-anglers that fishing is a peaceful occupation. This was brought home to me recently while attempting to catch carp from one of the large lakes of the Haute-Charente. The birdsong by early summer had subsided from the deafening spring chorus of nightingales, orioles, cuckoos and frogs. It wasn’t them to blame for the disturbance. Just a few chaffinches and pigeons could be heard. There is a saying that in London you are never more than three yards from a rat. In France, even in the deepest countryside, we are never more than fifty metres from a chainsaw or other power tool, or so it seems. Forestry is big business in France and by definition, takes place in the countryside, not the cities. As does the hedge trimming, rotovating, harrowing and harvesting. Normally these sorts of activities cease between the hours of repas - midday to 2pm - but the French Air Force do not abide by those rules and their aerobatics and dog-fight training drone on for hours. To make matters worse a gas gun pigeon scarer was operating just across the water from me. The noise was incessant! There must be quieter ways to spend an afternoon – watching motor racing perhaps?

Warm Water Fishing

At this time of year water temperatures are at their highest and that can affect the behaviour and welfare of fish. As the water temperature rises the amount of dissolved oxygen that the water can absorb is reduced. Whilst fish can get by with a fraction of the oxygen that is contained in

air their requirements rise along with their metabolism in higher temperatures. Oxygen depravation causes high levels of stress in some species and some weak or old fish succumb as a result of a long lasting heat wave. Oxygen is absorbed by water is several ways including the effects of weeds, waterfalls, wind and rain. Weeds create oxygen in daylight and can provide a welcome oasis for any fish that inhabit the weed bed or are downstream of it. Waterfalls, wind, and rain break the surface tension allowing oxygen to be more easily absorbed and wind can also affect where the oxygen is concentrated. A moderate to strong wind will push oxygenated water downwind where, on reaching the lee shore will create an area where the dissolved oxygen is higher than on the opposite bank. If the wind is blowing towards shallow water in a bay then that whole area could be full of feeding fish. Similarly, just Catfish have thousands of small teeth rather like downstream of weirs and weed beds can be productive in Velcro that will wear away high summer. your leader if it is not Obviously wesuitably tough should not be targeting fish that are distressed by oxygen starvation and the signs of that can often be seen when carp and chub lurk just below the surface with their mouths gaping open. And extra care should be taken when unhooking and returning any fish caught in hot temperatures. You often see carp anglers with suspended cradles containing water that are used to unhook fish instead of an unhooking mat. I have come across these where the water has been left in the cradle so long that it is over 30C, much too warm for the welfare of the carp. For me, the best way to unhook a fish is whilst it is on the landing net and still in the water. If an unhooking mat or cradle needs to be used then it should first be wetted and cooled using water from the lake or river. It is always better to return fish as soon as possible and even more so at this time of year and sometimes they might need a little support in the landing net before being allowed to swim away.