A British man who travels the globe in search of river monsters has shared some of his most extreme experiences.
David Watmough has spent the past 10 years finding and catching rare creatures from the deep.
It’s not a job for the faint-hearted.
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The 45-year-old from Blackpool often faces danger – having wrestled with a 220lb fish, fallen ill with deadly infections and even been arrested because of his passion.
But the dad loves his job so much he intends to “keep going” until old age.
“I have fished all over the world for rare monster fish and I’ve been in some unimaginable situations,” David told What’s The Jam.
“I go to dangerous and underdeveloped placed that are often on high alert travel lists.
“I’ve had malaria and infections that have caused worms to crawl under my skin from insect bites.
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“The corruption in some of the countries I’ve visited is intimidating to say the least.
“I’ve even been arrested for getting into situations where I didn’t understand the language.
“Despite it all, I’m hoping to keep going until I’m 90.”
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From beasts with razor sharp teeth and humongous mouths to your average fish, David has seen it all.
The fisherman has been to India, Argentina, Thailand and all of Europe, to name just a few locations.
He enjoys his hobby at home too, often taking his wife, Adelka and their two young children – Matilda, six, and Alfie, eight – fishing or camping.
David’s most memorable catch of all time is the Goliath Tiger Fish, weighing 132lbs.
Another impressive reel was the Goonch Catfish, captured while heading along the Ramganga river in the Himalayan foothills of India.
It was significantly smaller at 59lbs but this fish species can grow to 154lbs.
The heaviest fish he has found is the Mekong Catfish, weighing 220lbs.
This one wasn’t discovered in the wild but in a pay pond in Thailand.
Closely following this is an Arapaima he caught in South America.
By far the most fierce-looking fish he has captured are the Vampire Fish and the Black Piranha, which he found in South America.
For the past couple of years, the father-of-two has mostly stuck with travelling to Africa.
It is here that he also runs ‘Reel Monsters Ltd’ – a company that offers ‘hardcore’ fishing expeditions in the Republic of Congo.
David said: “I like pushing the limits in every way when exploring, and I always just want to go further and deeper up river systems.
“I have been passionate, even obsessed, with fishing from a young age, then it got serious.
“I have caught many freshwater monster fish, some over 220lbs.
“Most fish I catch are caught and then released, but not the Goliath Tiger fish in the Congo River.
“I feed them to hungry people in the village who have nothing.”
David travels to Africa four times a year and has developed close friends there who feel like family.
When he is at home in the UK, the expeditions are taken care of by his close friend, Kimbamba Mboussou Brice Berchano.
He said: “Kimbamba is so special to me.
“I originally set Reel Monsters up to try and provide a better life for him and his family.
“Even his children have my family name, Watmough.”
“Finding a genuine person to help you with organisation and logistics helps.
“There will always be some problems or stressful moments.
“When you finally get fishing you have no guarantees, but when you do fail you can’t give up.
“It’s been a big part of my life.
“In fact, it’s my drug so I will continue for as long as I can.”
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