TOP 5 TIPS

1 On venues where you can fish worms, try a bunch of maggots too. Eels have a liking for grubs.

2 When fishing for eels I want to offer minimum resistance to a taking fish and use an open bail-arm. Many modern alarms need resistance to work and won’t register a take – I haven’t found anything better than the old Optonics.

3 For general fishing where pike aren’t an issue I use 50lb abrasion-resistant braid and an Amnesia hooklength, but I always take some 15lb wire with me to combat pike if I’m using deadbaits.

4 After a blank night or one spent catching only small eels I would move swims. These creatures are territorial and follow distinct hunting paths.

5 When netting an eel, wait for the head to touch the spreader block before lifting, and then do it swiftly. Eels are one of the few species that can swim backwards, and you can easily lose them at this point.