From left to right: Tour leader Peter Irwin in the green t-shirt, Antony Dowell behind him, Daniel Storey with the glasses on, friends Martin Irwin and Lewis Pattinson, Willy Hall, and Ed Thompson (Picture: SWNS)
When you think about a typical British lads’ holiday abroad, what comes to mind?
Lots of boozing, a probable trip to a strip club, and partying until the sun comes up? Sounds about right.
But how about catching a giant fish?
Well that’s what 31-year-old Daniel Storey, from Carlisle, did earlier this week.
He landed a giant 250lb (113kg) catfish in a river near the town of Mequinenza, in north-east Spain.
The roofer and angler of 10 years said he was ‘over the moon’ by his find.
He said: ‘I really never expected this. Catching a massive fish like this is something you dream of.
Daniel, 31, landed the giant catfish in a river near the town of Mequinenza, in north-east Spain (Picture: SWNS)
Peter, left, of Monster Catfishing Tours was running the angling trip at the time of Daniel’s massive catch (Picture: SWNS)
‘I’ve never caught anything close to that big so I didn’t know what it would feel like, and I only realised it was quite special because of the reaction of my friends.
‘I didn’t even realise how amazing it was until people from the village were patting me on the back the next day.’
Daniel was with his friends Lewis Pattinson and Martin Irwin, both 32, on the first day of a week-long fishing trip with several others when he made the impressive catch.
It took Daniel 40 minutes to reel it in, and it had to be brought out using a massive sling.
After the lads took photos with the giant fish, they returned it to the water in the river Segre.
It was certainly a fishing trip to remember (Picture: SWNS)
It was later identified as a Wels catfish, which weighs around 120lb on average. The record weight for the species is 297.6lb.
It was more than 8ft long, which is almost double its average length.
The catfish eats smaller fish and birds by using its long whiskers to feel and taste, and has more than 250,000 taste buds.
Peter Irwin of Monster Catfishing Tours was running the angling trip at the time of Daniel’s monster catch.
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The 41-year-old, who has lived in Spain for 14 years, said: ‘It’s a brilliant catch, and extremely rare – it’s a once-in-a-lifetime event.
‘This is the biggest I’ve ever handled.
‘I’ve seen people come fishing here for 20 years and not catch anything like that.
‘It really was their lucky day. I don’t usually take people out fishing on day one but they insisted.’
One huge fish caught in India recently was so big four people were needed to carry it.
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‘This is the biggest I’ve ever handled.’