Angler Aidan Traynor had a deep river monster tipping the scales at 23lbs.  He reports from the Clare river:

On the hunt for “river monsters” myself and Mike were yesterday on the Clare river, conditions were perfect for a bit of lure casting.   We were into the fish after a few casts with Mike landing the first esox a fish of about 8lbs.    I wasn’t far behind him with a nice jack .  Then things went quiet for awhile until we decided to head for home.  One last cast for me when I felt a big thud hit the lure !   I knew it was a decent fish  and after 15 mins of leaps and deep diving we landed my p.b a true river monster weighing 23lbs.   After a quick weigh and a photo we released her gently back and off she swam into the darkness…

Cracking  23lb pike on the Clare river
Cracking 23lb pike on the Clare river
Away she goes...
Away she goes…

Aidan Traynor - ripples on the Clare river

Tight lines,

Aidan Traynor