Caught a monster Wels catfish on a Castaic 9" Hard Head Rainbow Trout pattern in the River Ebro in Spain on Monday. The guide estimated that this fish is the 20th largest of all time at 195 pounds and 2.45 meters long (about 8' 4" long). It was also insanely fat and I literally could barely wrap my arms around the fish. 150 pounders are rare, but fish this size are nearly unheard of.
BTW, the lure was nearly swallowed and we first had to extricate the lure before we "planted" it back for photos. The second hook was smashed flat so we cut it off for the photos.
If any of you watched River Monsters, then you saw Jeremy Wade catch a 145 pounder. He spent over a month, literally 24 hours a day to get a fish that size. I got lucky on the first day at 4:00 p.m. in a slight rain. We also got a couple other "tiny" ones at 80 pounds or so.
The fishing technique was casting lures to make a big splash. If you did not get a hit within the first two or three cranks, you reeled in and cast again. Wels are as predatory as a musky and eat anything they can fit in their mouths. They lie in ambush spots waiting for something to get too close and then they pounce.
Here are 2 of about 100 photos taken. I can't begin to explain how HUGE this fish was. It was absolutely like being hooked to a truck. Luckily, after an hour or so the fish ran out of gas. Amazingly, after we shot the photos the fish exploded away. I hope some day another other angler gets to tangle with this monster.
Many thanks to my German guide Oli (http://www.urlaub-nach-mass.com/) and also my German customer Markus. If you ever find yourself in Spain, drive to Mequinenza and hire Oli!!!
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