ABC fishing upstream on the Danube, lures, tips, stories and better fishermen like me!

I personally fish occasionally in the Danube Delta or on the Danube, mostly during pike or shad breaks. Or on days when I want to quickly charge my batteries, in the evening, I choose the avata over other predatory fish, for its frequency and brutal attacks. From me and other better fishermen like me, Bogdan Doncea "Cox", Eugen and Petre German, Mălin Mușatescu, I recommend you to read this ABC fishing on the Danube with tips, lures, stories, videos.

Downstream fishing on the Danube, my charms

I start with the lures that I use for downstream fishing on the Danube. I always have a small kit of a few spintail Helic plus oscillating Typhoon and Oyster from Berti, cicada Strike Pro and Jackall, wobblere rattlin Strike Pro Flap Jack, Yo-Zuri Vibe, Jackall TN, some Wise Minnow cranks from Daiwa and minnows from Strike Pro, Salmo, Yo-Zuri. The last three lures I added to the kit are Kenart Flash, DUO Realis Vibration 68, HMKL Shad 65 MR. I didn't choose these three, but the situation itself, I told more here.

A rather rudimentary kit, I could say, compared to others, but I caught everything, one at a time. What is certain is that all lures have their moment, be they cicadas, spintails, rattlin wobblers, minnows, cranks or the old oscillating spoons.

And yet what is the number 1 lure in fishing downwind on the Danube?

If I had to choose one lure, it would definitely be the Helic spintail from Berti. In fact, it is also the first one I start fishing with. Why? Because I can cast it very far and fish it in all water levels, from the bottom to the surface, regardless of the strength of the current. It was certainly the number 1 lure in 2020, judging by the result of the Berti brothers, Helic manufacturers, from Danube Delta Predator Challenge.

"There are certainly anglers who don't know that "HELIC" is the name we gave to the first spinnertail we made over 20 years ago due, obviously, to the resemblance to a helicopter and the evolution of the paddle both on traction as well as on the downward trajectory. I even recently came across a mini-catalog that I used to send by mail to fishermen who requested it through a form posted on our website in 1999-2000, in which an early Helic appears, the first BERTI spinnertail. " – Petre German

Read here more about Helic and how Eugen and Petre German won the Danube Delta Predator Challenge.

Other catchy lures and tips for downriver fishing on the Danube

I invite you to also take a look at Bogdan Doncea Cox's kit for fishing with avat on the Danube, if this man didn't catch enough or big avats either, no one did.

"I have collected, in 20 years since I have been fishing in the avat, more than 400 lures of all types and categories that at various times responded to the strange habits of the avat. And they are not enough. The wrasse is probably the most unpredictable predatory fish in our waters. The fish that can take you from agony to ecstasy through the way it feeds. There are conditions when they attack almost any lure, but also frantic feeding times when they refuse any lure.” – Bogdan Doncea “Cox”

Read on here.

9 tips for fishing for big avats on the Danube, also by Cox!

"In the Sulina area we have to take into account one aspect: the Black Sea. Marine fish have higher nutritional value than freshwater fish, and vegetarians know this. But the situation can change depending on the elevation, the flow of the Danube, sea currents or storms at sea. Prey fish (horse mackerel, horse mackerel, etc.), shoaling fish can move very long distances. In order to be able to catch fish of notable size, it is essential in this area of the Danube to look for shoals of sea-prey fish." – Bogdan Doncea “Cox”.

Read on here.

What is more important in downstream fishing on the Danube? Lures or localization?

In my opinion, location is definitely number 1, not only at the front. Last year I did an experiment and fished for three days with a single Yo-Zuri Vibe wobbler, of course in an area where we knew they were present. I don't think it was the best lure, but I caught for three days without changing it, as you can see in the videos above, together with Ciprian Hriscă and Sorin Bontea. I recommend you also read the video descriptions from Youtube for more information or in the articles day 1, day 2, day 3.

As long as it is not too strong, the girls, the rods, fishing on the Danube!

Given that avat lures are generally heavy, so you can cast them far, the length of the rod is a matter of taste, from 1.90m to 2.4m. The important thing is that they are permissive on the tip, so as to soften the shock of the avat's bite, enough so that the lure does not jump out of his mouth. I personally prefer moderate-fast rods that approach the properties of fiberglass, at least when fishing with textile lines.

Monofilament yarns or textiles in downstream fishing on the Danube?

Both. I use monofilament either on stronger rods or when the baits are harder to fool, mainly 0.20-0.22mm diameter. Textile lines, 0.12mm-0.15mm, thick enough to support my lures, I use them when fishing with softer rods, in strong currents or when the baits are feeding frantically.

One last tip, reel fast in fishing downstream on the Danube!

How fast? As fast as you can and the reel or lures you are using allow. It's a tip I learned from Cox when he was giving me my first fly fishing lessons. Tip that I also use on shad or bass when fishing with crank wobblers. But that is another story that I will write soon. In short, use reels with as high a retrieve ratio as possible and get smoke out of them.

Journal of upstream fishing on the Danube, by Malin Musatescu

I couldn't close the article ABC fishing on the upstream Danube without an article by Mălin Mușatescu from the magazine Fishing For All. An abbot's diary that only he can relate so beautifully in writing.

"The aviators have to inhale the prey with the power of a 2000 Watt vacuum cleaner that accidentally hits a tennis ball under the bed. We feel that shock in the rod, in the bridge of the palm, in the elbow, shoulder, cranial box, in the cerebral cortex, in the crazy thought. What are you doing on the Danube near sunset, dehydrated, hungry, exhausted? had you forgotten Avat, overdose that comes in waves. In ten minutes you live what you failed to live all day. Avat after avat, pure delirium." – Malin Musatescu

Read on here.

If you liked ABC fishing on the Danube, read it too ABC Shore fishing with Elvis Vigu, spring, ABC tips fishing for pike on the Danube with Ovidiu Ursachi, ABC trout fishing with Alex Bucur, ABC perch fishing with Cristi Anghelina.