Short eel sessions
A few hours at the right time and in the right place is all you need!
I just love eel fishing. Everything about it appeals to me. I like the warm feeling in the summer nights, and the simplicity of the methods I use. Bait choice is easy, and it’s either a bunch of worms or a chunk of fish that goes on to my size four hook. The rig is invariably a running leger set up utilising a two ounce weight and a short hook link of about eight inches. My main line is 20lb breaking strain mono and so is the hook link. You can make it more complicated if you wish, but that set up has worked well for me for as many years as I can remember.
I sit on the bank if it’s dry, or relax in a lightweight chair, as I’m only going to be out for an hour or two. That’s enough for me nowadays. I could fish all through the night, but I can’t face the next day feeling like death-warmed-up anymore. I very often find that a result comes early, and I always have the option of staying longer if the fancy takes me.
As the sessions are so short, I often dispense with alarms and lay the rods on the ground and use a piece of light aluminium foil as a bite indicator. A huge part of the magic is when the foil goes scraping along the ground. In the still of the night you cannot help but hear it clattering up to the butt ring.
The eel does not have to be a big one to give me pleasure. A modest sized two pounders put up a good fight, and often lead me into thinking it’s much bigger. Really big eels, those over four pounds to me, come now and again, and I find them just as awesome to handle and inspect now as I ever did.
As they slither back into the water, I feel very satisfied that I’ve come face-to-face with one of natures most fascinating creatures. After a shower and a mug of hot tea, sleep comes easy, and I dream of doing it again!