Monster Carp

Wow, welcome to Bosnia.

- This is one incredible adventure.

Yeah, aaahhh!

- Three fishing mad amigos,

travel the world with one thing on their minds, carp.

That's a real beast, that is.

I'm Ali hamidi.

Have you got any spicy sausage?

I'm Tom dove.

This is the worst idea I've ever had.

And I'm Neil spooner.

She's in the net, get in!

Together, we are angling across the planet,

to find the biggest carp in the world.

Good lord have mercy!

- As a species, they've grown to mythical sizes.

Oh that's big, that is big.

- But our journey changes myth to reality.

Yeah!

- For carp, we will take you on a wild ride,

to some glorious locations.

- That is a powerhouse, in a carp like that.

We'll sample the food.

- Just chew Tom.

We'll sample the culture.

Ha, oh no.

- But most of all, we'll catch monster carp.

Yes!

This is obviously what we come here for.

[Suspenseful sounds into rock music]

- Our carping adventure, is taking us on a journey,

to the Balkan peninsula, in southeastern Europe.

A region that not long ago,

was involved in a brutally traumatic conflict,

due to the Yugoslav wars.

- But today is being rediscovered,

by travelers lured off the beaten track,

and that includes intrepid anglers.

And this week, we're heading to not one, but two countries,

Bosnia, and our first stop, Serbia.

We flew into Belgrade, it's capital,

and headed straight out of the city,

towards our first fishing destination.

Okay, Tom, over to you.

- Right round there, which one, which one?

Keep going, keep going.

- We'll actually be fishing for carp in Bosnia,

but first we're heading 50 miles north of Belgrade,

to a Serbian fishing lake,

called jazeera jocka, in belo blato.

This lake holds all sorts of species,

from carp, catfish, perch, and pike, also known as esox.

- Yeah, esox is a better name than pike,

isn't it, don't you think?

- It's a bit more powerful isn't it.

- Yeah, I'd rather be called that than pike.

- The lake itself is 1350 acres,

and boy does this place have some features.

It's got loads of them.

Reed-lined margines, huge weed beds,

and a jungle of underwater snags, that fish absolutely love.

Ahhh, what glorious day.

- Lads, I know we're here for carp,

but today we're here for monster pike.

- And let me guess, you've caught a big one before.

32 pounds to be exact!

It was my first ever pike, at the bright ol' age of 12.

- Blimey, at that age, that must have literally,

been twice as tall as you.

Nah, this is the bad though,

I haven't got a picture to prove it, right?

- Didn't happen, didn't happen.

- And I've never actually beaten it, ever since.

- It's a hard one to beat, that.

Maybe today.

Maybe, maybe.

Should we go?

Let's get crackin'

come on then, rock and roll.

- 12, he definitely didn't catch it on his own.

No pictures.

Hey, I was strong at 12.

- One species of fish I've not targeted that much,

is the pike, and it's mainly because,

they've got really, really sharp teeth,

and I've always been a bit concerned they could hurt me.

They could bite me.

They're quite big, ferocious lookin' animals,

and there's nothing more impressive, than a big esox.

- The pike gets it's name,

from it's resemblance of the pole-like weapon,

known as a pike, used in the middle ages.

It's predation status makes it feared, by smaller fish,

and has even been known to eat small birds,

swimming on the surface.

- These fearsome fish grow to huge sizes,

and have been caught in this lake, to over 40 pounds.

So, to add a bit of spice to this already,

exciting type of fishin', whoever catches the biggest esox,

of course get first choice of swim,

at our final destination.

Our first stop was to a snaggy-area,

in the middle of the lake.

To catch these predators, we're using a technique,

called, "lure fishing".

- Here we go boys, this is what we're casting out.

It's a big, rubbery, shad-like number.

Because we're casting into the snags, have a look at that,

the hook is actually buried inside the lure,

and the idea is, that you can pull that,

through absolutely anything, okay?

The only time that hook's gonna pull out,

is hopefully when a big, old esox, comes along,

and smashes it, and the hook on the strike,

will come out, and penetrate into the pike's gob.

So, great little technique,

and made for this sort of situation.

So, I've given them way too many casts in advance.

I am gonna now, carry on.

- Yeah, it's alright saying all that,

but look at Neil.

I'm snagged!

- Well there ya go, in theory it's wonderful.

To catch these pike,

we were gonna have to work for them.

Cast and retrieve, was the name of the game.

But we were now approaching midday,

with the sun high in the sky,

light-levels are now at their brightest.

- What absolutely worst time of day,

to go for a little fishin'.

If someone said, "go and catch one now, for a tenner.",

you'd be strugglin'!

- And the sun seems to be effecting some,

more than others.

Yay, oh no!

- And with only a hat being caught,

it was time to move on to another spot.

For this, we moved around the lake to a very weedy area,

with large Reed beds, in the margins, full of snags.

A perfect ambush point for pike.

- And it wasn't long until we had our first hit.

Yes, yes!

Yes "dovey"!

- Yes "dove-stick", we are on!

Get this lure in, and get the net setup.

- Yes, yes, don't come off!

Do not come off, nooo.

- This pike has gone straight into the weed,

and snagged dovey up.

Fish on?

- At least I'm sure, there's something down there.

It can't be, oh he's there.

Nooo.

We lost him.

No.

- That's one-nil to the pike, so with our tails

between our legs, we headed to another spot.

Hopefully we'll have a chance to get our revenge.

It wasn't long, until the pike were hunting our lures.

Oh, no, took it.

Did it actually take it.

Took it out my hands.

This pike wasn't going to give up easily.

Ahhh.

- Sorry al, but if you can't catch it,

I'm having a go!

Wait don't Nick my fish.

Too late, oh you're on!

You're on and you've got him.

Get the net!

Wait, wait, hold him.

Ahhhhh yeah!

Get in, he's not a monster,

but at the minute he is first place.

- I've never seen a face like it, in my life.

You were so scared.

With spooner now one up,

it wasn't looking good for Tom and I.

As the sun starts to set, and light levels drop,

time was running out.

- Oy, stop, stop, stop, stop.

Alright.

- After 4987 casts each, I've had enough.

Tom, should we let him have it?

- Yeah, you can have it down the bank.

I'm so bored of casting this rod.

Yes.

- I don't know how we're gonna decide,

who gets second choice, but for now,

we'll just let you enjoy your victory.

Yeah, well done.

- Thanks lads, it's a team victory.

- It's not mate, it's your victory.