David Murphy has a theory pertaining to a fishing mark located on the inner wall of a large pier that he occasionally casts a line off, that the resident conger eels become very active during early September. Arriving at this conclusion over numerous visits to the hot spot where he has scored spectacularly or blanked in equal measure, David hit the jackpot yet again in a September week of Indian summer weather so typical of early Autumn in this jurisdiction.
Baiting up a short wire trace with whole mackerel David placed his bait about 10 – 15 feet out from the inner wall. Fishing over low water there was no more than 1.5 meters over the congers head when it swam from its lair and delicately picked up the offering. Giving some line David chose his moment and struck into the fish, well hooked a tug of war now commenced with the angry conger corkscrewing and thrashing about close to the steps which David had earmarked for landing. Careful not to slip on the slimy granite and with the help of a friend David managed to manhandle the eel topsides. Using a forceps the conger was quickly unhooked and photographed, in the process managing to scare the bejaysus out of a female passerby, before being returned to Davy Jones locker. A good nights work, one happy angler and a theory very much endorsed.
Further reading, click on: Congers by the Double.
Tags: Angling, Conger eel, Fishing, Ireland, Mackerel, Pier fishing, Sea Angling, Sea Fishing, shore fishing
