congers

Member Joined: Nov 12, 2008 Posts: 44 Location: swansea

anyone know of any good conger marks around swansea etc i know theyre mainly caught from boats in deep water wrecks etc but i fancy trying to catch one from the shore any help would be very gratefull?

Posted: Thu Sep 03, 2009 5:53 am

From mumbles pier, cast toward the lifeboat structure. Haven't caught one myself but I expect you'd get a few straps there. Hope you've got the tackle for it..

Regular Joined: Oct 14, 2005 Posts: 400 Location: Holyhead

Conger's are shy feeder's and will gently mouth a bait before creeping off with it. Once you strike you have to get it off the bottom before it wraps itself around a rock. They are unreal fighters especially close in (ie down the side) they dive, spin, thrash, grasp and bite through traces. You have to respect the Conger because it's not stupid. You will catch Conger anywhere and would recommend Rock Ledges, Breakwaters and Causeways. Fresh Mackeral on a flowing trace 10 yards out should do the trick. Remember to use strong swivels together with wire or 50lb plus mono snoods.

Posted: Wed Sep 09, 2009 9:49 am

Congers dont just do wrecks, you can stand about as much cjhance getting a 20lber from a shore mark aswell as a boat. They hunt more at night, hence why a reck in deep, darker water gets more fish in the day - however, even from the shore, its doable to catch them, in daylight & even on a bright sunny day.

They are known to swim from their holes, even into surf (at range) looking for food, and the best ground is to find an area where you know at mid tide, there is about 7-12 feet of water, patches of cleaner ground with snags nearby, and dark as in no lights above - but thats not a general rule.
Sea defenses are great, big boulders covered with water, cleanish ground infront & lots of small fish to eat.

Im not familiar with swansea, however look for harbour walls, sea defenses, anywhere were fish offal may enter the water, around the docks where there are goon snags / a graveyard of crap for them to hide in, old quaysides with holes in the wall covered at low water.
The rest is patience, good bait - a freshly killed pout is irresistable to them, pollack head, mackeral front, end or flapper, whole squid, combination of all three. BUT dont assume a big bait is best, a smelly bait that is smaller often gets a better pull than a lump.

Regular Joined: Oct 14, 2005 Posts: 400 Location: Holyhead

I heard that the best bait for Conger is Conger and it does not go down well with any British Conger Club member for obvious reasons. Anyone else hear this or is it just a myth.