River Mersey Conger Fishing
River Mersey Conger fishing can be done year round at some marks, others will produce at random.
One of the best times of year to fish the Mersey for Conger is in late Autumn. Late October and November see them being caught all over and as far down as Otterspool.
Obviously every year the fishing is different and looking back it appears to happen in cycles. Its hard to predict but the Mersey does seem to come alive with them every few years. It could simply be down to a good spawning year. 2020 seems to be one of those years with a high amount of catches reported.
Regardless of any cycles November sees Congor coming out of structures and moving around more. This allows anglers to target them in open waters and moving across beaches where it would normally be difficult to catch them.
Size wise the typical Conger caught in the river Merey are around the 6lb mark. That said there are also some good size fish to be found in some areas. Venues that hold fish and give you the best chance of landing one have typical Conger habitat features.
Sections of the Mersey close to areas that contain water at both high and low tides. As well as structures they can use to hold up in when resting. There are rumours of a beast or two in the Alex dock, as well as the smaller strap Congers. A good place to start your Conger hunt is the area around the Seacombe ferry terminal due to it providing an almost ideal habitat for them.
To effectively target Conger on the Mersey or indeed anywhere, the right baits must be used. Fish or squid baits work very well, in my opinion Pouting is a cracker for Conger. A swivelled strong trace is a must as with sharp teeth and a strong spin then can quickly destroy rigs.
Night time is best when fishing for Conger as they leave their lairs to feed. They will actively hunt and also scavenge food, preferably fish but squid baits work well too. Conger will also be more active at times of slack water, outside of this you have more chances on smaller tides.
The current record weight for a shore caught Conger is 68lb 8oz and was caught in Plymouth.
The cover photo is of Ben Dobson of the Facebook group Wirral Sea Fishing Adventures. This nice Conger was caught while fish at Perch Rock on the end of the Wirral.
Top tip – make sure you have a drop net.
Tight lines.
