Sea Angler’s contributing editor, Dave Lewis, set anew record in January catching the very first broadbill swordfish on the fly in European waters. He explains how he achieved the feat and what you need to know to have a go and join his exclusive new club
As a young sea angler in the 1970s a bell was regarded as an essential item of tackle; no shore angler would ever leave home without one! I clearly remember fishing cold, frosty, star-spangled nights throughout the autumn and winter months, at a time when South Wales used to host massive runs of whiting. Not the pin whiting we mostly see today; these were good fish typically averaging around a pound apiece, and often weighing well over two pounds. Rarely would I return home not having caught enough for a decent meal or two.
When the whiting were running the most productive beaches, piers and breakwaters would be packed with anglers. The entire scene would be illuminated by the warm glow of countless Tilley lamps with the sickly-sweet odour of burnt paraffin adding a distinct tang to the salt in the chilly air. Almost every rod would have a bell clipped at the tip and at times you could anticipate the arrival of the next shoal of fish by the ringing of bells, as they worked their way along the shoreline.
These days no shore angler I know would dare to be seen with a bell on his rod. I cannot remember the last time I owned, let alone used, one. But earlier this year once again I found myself fishing beneath the stars in the chilly blackness of night, waiting for the ‘tinkle tinkle’ of a bell to alert me of a bite. This time I was fishing for broadbill swordfish, the mighty gladiator of the sea; a fish about as far removed from the humble whiting as it is possible to get.
On rare occasions sport fishing boats do come across swordfish during the daytime basking on the surface; however, if you want to catch one of these incredibly powerful fish when the sun is above the horizon, then deep dropping a bait in many hundreds if not thousands of feet is your best choice. Fishing at such depths is a tedious business where, more often than not, anglers use electric reels. In many parts of the world, if you want to catch a swordfish, this will be your best chance of success.
Aside from the incredible length of its bill, the most noticeable feature of a swordfish is its huge eye. For much of the day swordfish reside at great depths, living in a world of complete darkness, hence the size of their eyes. Their primary food source is squid, another daytime inhabitant of the oceanic abyss. When the sun sets vast quantities of k
