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Fishing for Perch on the River Nile in Egypt - Part 1 with Ade Kiddell
Firstly, I hope everyone is managing to stay safe and family and friends are surviving lockdown and finding new ways to keep occupied in these difficult times. With some form of lockdown looking like it might continue for the foreseeable future and with travel restrictions in place, it is likely that most holidays whether with family or fishing-related will have to be put on hold.
In my younger days, I had a list of a few places I wanted to visit to catch fish. At the top of my list was Mahseer in India, closely followed by fishing for sturgeon in Canada and then to capture some Nile perch. Let me take you back to a trip I made to Egypt in search of the Monster Nile Perch of the River Nile and fishing in Lake Nasser.
About Lake Nasser
Lake Nasser is the largest manmade lake in the world, the lake as it is today was created in the early seventies when the High Dam at Aswan was built, flooding many Nubian villages and historical sites. The lake is over 300 miles long and as wide as 25 miles in places, with depths as much as 600ft it is more like a sea than a freshwater lake. The fact that a mountainous valley was flooded as the waters rose gives Nasser its unique landscape. With many islands’ deep gorges and shallow areas that change as the waters of the lake rise and fall during the year by as much as 80 foot.
Preparing for Fishing in Egypt's Waters
Accompanying me to Egypt would be Steve Ames and his partner Lynda. This would be Steve’s fifth trip to Lake Nasser, and so his experience was vital in selecting the right equipment for the job. For trolling we would use Shimano multiplier reels loaded with 50lb Fireline attached to a 100lb mono leader. Rods would be Daiwa 5lb test curve catfish specials. For fishing from the many rocky islands that we would visit we used 3lb test carp rods with large fix spool reels, 30lb Fireline and mono leader. Steve also packed a fly outfit with which he planned to have some fun fishing for the tigerfish and puffers around the lake.
After a 6 hour flight from Gatwick, a taxi and a boat ride later we were at our accommodation near Lake Nasser and the River Nile. As we woke the next morning to the honey light of the sunrise we were soon greeted with a mug of tea and within minutes were on our way. The plan was to motor down the lake for a couple of hours before having breakfast. Then to start fishing immediately after breakfast, this would give myself and Steve time to rig up our gear as we travelled.
After a basic but none the less tasty breakfast of an omelette followed up with bread and jam washed down with plenty of tea, I was ready for the off and we started fishing a little after 10 am with the temperature already up in the '70s. With floating weed a problem and as we passed over the flooded islands that were ideal feeding grounds for our prey the risk of hooking debris increasing it is essential to feel for the action of the lure and if in any doubt the lure was retrieved and checked.
Great Lures for Perch Fishing
Having never fished this style or location before, it took a bit of getting used to with the action of the lure almost pulling the rod in, but Steve’s experience soon had me fishing more confidently. Various lures were used depending upon the depth we were fishing, for deeper areas, we used Depth raiders, Ernie and Sorcerers and for the shallow marks Shad Raps and smaller countdowns.
All lures were first treated to a new set of much stronger hooks and for lures with three sets of hooks the middle treble was removed. With the aid of an essential set of split ring pliers, all hooks were reattached with a very strong split ring. Whilst fishing we would often have the lure hit rocks etc., as we trolled and would have to sharpen hooks as we fished.
The main form of fishing would be trolling lures behind the boat, as the Yamaha outboard chugged us around the various fishing marks that Morad had selected. The fish finder on the boat is essential to find the many peaks and troughs around the lake. With a depth of say 100ft very rapidly changing to just 15 or 20 ft it was critical we passed over such areas where the Nile Perch would lay in wait of a tasty meal.
Giant Nile Perch on the Fly
I remember the excitement as Steve shouted “fish on” and Morad cut the Engine as the clutch on Steve’s reel played an angry tune as the unseen fish went on a furious run, seconds later around 20lb of Nile perch cleared the water and shook its head in an attempt to shed the lure some 60yds behind the boat. A few minutes later our first fish lay in the boat with the hooks removed and pictures taken it was soon returned to fight another day.
We had only been fishing around 10 minutes after returning Steve’s fish when it was my turn. Without warning the rod was almost torn from my hand then a violent shake of the rod and scream of the reels clutch had me crying “fish on”. The first run was soon over as the fish again jumped clear of the water, every twist and turn of the fish is transferred to the rod via the braided mainline. With the fish safely boated and unhooked and some photos were taken I was well pleased to return my first ever Nile perch a good specimen around 20lb.
After a lazy lunch, we were soon trolling again and Steve once again managed to boat a fish around 20lbs. The day was all too soon over with the sky almost ablaze as a spectacular sunset signalled the end of the day. If I can take one memory from Egypt it will be the daily glorious spectacle of sunrise and sunset.
Check AD Blog next week for more of Ade Kiddell's experience of fishing in Eygpt.