I know of a mark a bit nearer......there's been at least one caught off the Red Wall.....on the Channel

 

I don't know your area but as gulp says walls, old harbour walls that have potential holes in them is where iv caught a few, I find if its a fishing boat harbour you get a few as the fisherman sometimes throw some by catch in the harbour

 

Brixham breakwater.
Walk almost to the end and fish inside the breakwater, there are the remains of an old jetty, thats where the congers are, only need to lob it out about 15 yards .
Was talking to some anglers down there who were fishing for them, they said anything up to 50 lb.
They were tying rocks on as weight with weak line, just so they could lob it out, if the fish takes the bait the rock breaks of and you have to pull the fish in as quick as ya can or it ends up back in its hole.
Guess ya gunna need some strong tackle.
Good luck

 

Agree, definitely a good spot and worth going to as its a nice place too, bit of a long drive though?

lighty

 

had 1 nice conger from chesil dragons teeth myself and seen a few more nice ones caught there

 

If ur down plymo anytime can show u a few places, just depends where due to tide times an size.

 

'Be careful what you wish for' was advice given to me on Skye.
Bloody right.
Horrific things. Prehistoric.
Don't mind snakes, but eels proper freak me out.

Two bits of advice - don't use a wire trace and omit to pack a T-Bar or very long pliers.
And, have a towel handy.
Shiver.
LOL

Had a nightmare with one and told my sister about it.
She lives down in Devon and told me about her tough, commercial fishing local friend who pulled up one of his lobster pots, with a BIG one in.
It got out, into his small boat.
He was standing on the gunwhales at the front debating swimming to shore and abandoning ship.
Eventually he managed to crawl round the gunwhales to the engine at the back and bring the boat ashore, where he jumped out and had to ask mates to deal with it.
She says he still shivers about it too, and cannot bear it to be mentioned.
Ha!

 

'Be careful what you wish for' was advice given to me on Skye.
Bloody right.
Horrific things. Prehistoric.
Don't mind snakes, but eels proper freak me out.

Two bits of advice - don't use a wire trace and omit to pack a T-Bar or very long pliers.
And, have a towel handy.
Shiver.
LOL

Had a nightmare with one and told my sister about it.
She lives down in Devon and told me about her tough, commercial fishing local friend who pulled up one of his lobster pots, with a BIG one in.
It got out, into his small boat.
He was standing on the gunwhales at the front debating swimming to shore and abandoning ship.
Eventually he managed to crawl round the gunwhales to the engine at the back and bring the boat ashore, where he jumped out and had to ask mates to deal with it.
She says he still shivers about it too, and cannot bear it to be mentioned.
Ha!

BIG GIRL

 

Why not nip across the border....there's more than you can shake stick at in SW Scotland.....

 

Could you put me on any marks please mate, thanks for all the great replies

 

Go past wales Wales turn west down the Somerset Coast, plenty of the loathsome things to be caught there. Enjoy wrestling with one in the mud of Burnham on Sea, or drag one up the wall from Watchet Harbour... or from the comfort of the back of your car at Blue Anchor.

 

Could you put me on any marks please mate, thanks for all the great replies

I've only fished from the Isle of Mull but there were plenty there. Suggest you put a help note on the SW Scotland region. Plenty of deep water and rough ground marks I'm sure on the mainland.

 

closest area for you would be the walney channel in autumn. my mate pete has had quite a few including one well over 20lb on a crab bait intended for plaice. he says you can see them sunbathing in summer lying vertical against the dock walls at times. they come out the dock in autumn to feed up prior to winter time so it would be as good a place as any to try for you.

all the rock marks in south west scotland can produce them. the marks where you cast onto sand or broken ground tend to fish at the same time as the walney channel, but the marks onto rough ground like those around the mull or along the borgue shoreline can produce them all summer long.
cheers rab

 

closest area for you would be the walney channel in autumn. my mate pete has had quite a few including one well over 20lb on a crab bait intended for plaice. he says you can see them sunbathing in summer lying vertical against the dock walls at times. they come out the dock in autumn to feed up prior to winter time so it would be as good a place as any to try for you.

all the rock marks in south west scotland can produce them. the marks where you cast onto sand or broken ground tend to fish at the same time as the walney channel, but the marks onto rough ground like those around the mull or along the borgue shoreline can produce them all summer long.
cheers rab

Was that the one landed on the flattie rod?

 

Go past wales Wales turn west down the Somerset Coast, plenty of the loathsome things to be caught there. Enjoy wrestling with one in the mud of Burnham on Sea, or drag one up the wall from Watchet Harbour... or from the comfort of the back of your car at Blue Anchor.

Agree but a bit of a trot from Cumbria

 

Would be interested in the answer as to how many of you guys actually like catching them, once you have satisfied that initial inquisitiveness?

 

Would be interested in the answer as to how many of you guys actually like catching them, once you have satisfied that initial inquisitiveness?

Stick a crab pot down get an eel, stick a cod bait out get an eel, try somewhere new get an eel, try a cod mark get pestered by straps.

 

We don't get in the Thames Estuary so they are a novelty. We had a week in a cottage in Watchet about 15 years ago when my boy was little and the only congers I'd ever seen were those from mid channel wrecks out from Newhaven. My first session from Watchet harbour wall produced an 8lber, Blue Anchor a 12lber and one about 6. My final session at Minehead Harbour produced 5 but they were 3-5lb and my first shore caught tope so for me they were a welcome change.

 

Yes, small ones like that aren't too hard to deal with.
20lbs and up and you suddenly realise they have the bodies of a slimy anaconda, but the head and jaws of a rabid Pit Bull. LOL

 

Was that the one landed on the flattie rod?

ye, was a cracking fish on gear that light !
cheers rab

 

Breakers yard at Cairn Ryan used to be full of congers. My pal lost a telegraph pole sized one, well over 30-40lb Got it to the surface on a Century long Ezee sport and a boat reel with 50lb mono. Damn thing was thrashing about and decided to dive, he hung on drag tightened up and the rod went bang and eel gone. Heard of a few big fish from there and remember watching Stuart Creswell getting one after another on the ebb letting his bait run from the end back under the pier.

Had them to 20lb from the shore at the mull of Galloway but I think you'd struggle to get much bigger. There was a one a good few years back from Balcary I think of 63lb on a cod bait, it's the Scottish record.

There used to be the Loch Goil conger championships, when I was a kid I remember my dads pal winning with one 22lb, we ground baited the area with an onion sack full of mackerel and herring. It definitely produced the goods.

I have to say conger can be frustrating and at times very finicky, a bit like mullet fishing but a lot more exciting. One of my favourite fish, they can fight going backwards and can spin like no other fish.

 

How do you disgorge deep hooked ones, out of interest?
I realised that, if you have a decent bait on a hook, you cannot even get one of those Gemini type disgorger down to bend.
Or, do you just bonk 'em?

 

Pliers, cut the trace or cut the hook. They aren't the scary beast people make out, have you ever had a catfish, seen a few off the boats and had them off the shore in Iceland, I put a coke can in the mouth of one and it crunched it up and put puncture wounds in it!!! My dads mate had one 9lb from the shore at Eyemouth that was snapping away, my dad pushed the Scarborough rod but down its mouth and it clamped onto the butt! He was claiming the shore record for it but got beaten only a month or so later by a huge one from further north. I got one of the teeth and they were like a camels teeth, huge big fangs.

 

Do they calm down, if you cover their eyes?

 

Do they clam down, if you cover their eyes?

Don't know about that, I just found there was no chance of holding the blighters without cloth.

 

Conger blog:

http://evocativeangling.rocks/2015/12/19/2015-dont-dream-its-over-century/

Dorset has a large stretch of coastline from Portland to Swanage, they show all along there, the trouble is that you won't get much gear back, rotten bottoms rigs are a must, they are pretty prolific in the 3-10lb variety with the bigger ones there too. If I just wanted a conger of any size then chesil or durdle door beach would be your best bet at night with fish as bait (mackerel or cuttle can be great). Those beaches are relatively clean and you'll be able to fight the conger on your terms if the sea isn't rough. If you fish over rough ground you'll need to be hoisting the eel quickly into the mid water before it dives into a reel and to do that you may want to think about 30lb mainline and a strong hook pattern, I use wire of 80lb, some use mono of around 200lb. If you choose chesil, the time after a blow can be excellent for them, just make sure its safe enough to fish.

Cheers

Chris

PS. Keep your hands and anything you want to keep well away from their mouths. The teeth aren't a good scene.

 

Conger are not as bad as people make out, its a nice little fight when u get a 25lb + on your line. I'd rather fish for conger than any other fish

 

I've never fished for conger but I do a fair bit of freshwater eel fishing and thought perhaps the way we calm them down on the bank might work for congers. Small eels are a nightmare (as are straps it seems) as they won't stay still and wrap everything in slimy knots but once they get a bit bigger they tend to be easier to handle. If you fight an eel it will fight back.. handle them softly and they usually keep calmer.

First off, cover their eyes with a wet rag.

If that doesn't work, leave their eyes covered and stroke the eel along it's side with the palm of your hand.

If that doesn't work either, with eyes still covered, turn it on it's back and stroke it again. Be careful with this method though, it sends them into a state of tonic immobility (similar to sharks) and freshwater eels will just lie there indefinitely, until they die.

If none of that works... **** knows!

Not saying any of that will work on congers but might be worth a go.

 

When I was a lad [and TV was B&W] I was on a charter boat oot from Troon, well old ships lifeboat tbh, and some chap pulled one in.

Now there wasn't much room to maneuver onboard but the "skipper" knew the tricks and they worked, a sleeping conga on the bench type seat covered up.
Unfortunately someone [else] wasn't paying due attention and as congy was off in the land of nod he lifted the cloth/towel just as the sun came out.
.
.
.
Talk about rocking the boat!!

 

PS. Keep your hands and anything you want to keep well away from their mouths. The teeth aren't a good scene.[/QUOTE]

Indeed. Caught a strap a few weeks ago and got a little distracted while disgorging. It took one look at my index finger and went for it (while on land)
Quite a bite they have. No blood but i certainly felt it.

 

Around 25 years ago I was on a fishing/camping holiday in Scotland near Arrochar on Loch Long. One night there was a commotion outside, there were launches and helicopters patrolling the shores and we were later told that a diver had gone missing. His torch was found but there was no sign of him. They searched all night until he was found the next morning a couple of miles down the loch, walking down the road staggering and incoherent and still clutching his knife. I understand he had to have a hospital stay including time in a decompression chamber. He had come across a very large conger that was covered in fishing line and they became entangled and had a mighty battle as it dragged him down the loch before he managed to cut himself free. I've never particularly fancied a tussle with one since then myself!:BigGrin:

 

this is an easy one go to Wales Barry dock night fish from any of the jetties with a street lamp that comes on and use squid or any bait they like youll get lots over 10 and 20 prob need a dropnet to land em easy about 7 feet to the water from the jetty