Mr Ballard couldn’t believe the size of the bite (Picture: BPM Media)
A British angler was lost for words when he hooked the biggest catch of his life and managed to nab a 222lb catfish.
Ditch Ballard, 37, encountered the huge creature while fishing in Spain, as it dragged his boat for an hour after getting a bite.
The catfish was 9ft long, making it 3/4 of the length of Ballard’s boat – with the plucky fisherman describing the wrestle as the ‘biggest battle of his fishing career.’
At the time, temperatures in the River Ebro were freezing, making Ballard’s efforts even more impressive.
Ditch Ballard described his encounter with the mammoth fish as the ‘biggest battle of his fishing career’ (Picture: DitchBallard/BNPS)
‘With an air temperature of -3C the wind chill actually made it feel unbearable,’ he recalled.
Ballard, who moved from Watford to Southern Catalonia six years ago said: ‘I was carp fishing, but the bend in the little 10ft rod suggested I was likely attached to a catfish.
‘The line was uncontrollably ripping off the reel so I untied my boat and set sail, without pausing to grab my hat or my shoes from the bivvy.
‘The next hour was simply painful; as my muscles fatigued and the adrenaline wore off, my body temperature began to crash, and I found myself crouched in the bottom of the boat trying to hold on whilst shivering uncontrollably.
‘Eventually the leader knot appeared in the darkness and I knew my prize was close.
‘What I didn’t know is just how far I had been towed down river – I was now over 1km from home.
‘I struggled to put on the gloves and began hand lining, putting way more pressure on that hook than should be possible. I needed this battle to be over one way or another, so I just pulled with all I had left in me.
After taking pictures with the huge creature, Ballard released it back into the water (Picture: DitchBallard/BNPS)
‘Each time the fish ran I nearly lost a digit, as by this time my hands were so cold they weren’t really doing what my brain was telling them.
‘With the rod fully compressed, and the drag on the reel screwed up tight, I was actually lent back into that fish with all 13st of me.
‘If the line had snapped at that moment I would have almost gone overboard into 6C water.
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‘Eventually over 2.5m of catfish surfaced, and I managed to get a hand on its jaw.
‘I was physically and mentally exhausted but had to give one last push to secure my prize.
‘It was the biggest battle of my fishing career, yet I wouldn’t wish it on anyone!’
After laying his catch down to photograph its immense size and strange appearance, Ballard released it back into the water.
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The struggle lasted almost an hour.