Iceland Earth's Wildest Waters: The Big Fish

The world's wildest rivers...

deepest oceans...

and most spectacular lakes

are home to some extraordinary fish.

Across the globe, people have developed ingenious ways

to catch them for survival...

and for sport.

Get it, get it, get it! Lift up!

The power is just unbelievable.

I think I've got Jaws on here.

Now, eight British anglers swap their ordinary fishing haunts

to compete in the world's wildest waters.

The feeling I get is just pure excitement.

We haven't got a clue what we're in for.

Through extreme temperatures and dangerous currents...

..they'll learn new techniques...

Oh, my shoulders are burning.

..and explore unfamiliar waters...

This is about as far removed from anything I do at home

as going and landing on the moon would be.

..in a fishing competition that spans the globe...

One little fish could change everything.

..competing with the elements and with each other

as they search for the most incredible fish on the planet...

That is why I go fishing.

..judged by experts from around the world...

..and UK fishing legend Matt Hayes, who'll be watching their every move.

I've fished everything from the local canal

to the biggest oceans in the world.

He'll be looking for the ultimate angler.

My job is to suss out how much is down to luck

and how much is down to skill.

This is about finding the best of the best.

Have they got that extra spark that I call watercraft,

a sixth sense, an ability to be able to think like a fish

and come up with tactics to match?

Each week, the judges will send one person home...

I just know I can do better than this.

I'm going to learn. It's a competition.

..whilst the rest continue to the next country

and the next leg of their global expedition.

Only one can win.

At the very edge of the Arctic Circle is Europe's last wilderness...

..Iceland.

From the hot springs surrounding its biggest lake...

..to the depths of its freezing fjords,

these waters will be the first test of endurance for our intrepid eight.

If you've fished in the UK, you might think, "Oh, it's not so bad,

"we're used to the cold." This is on a whole different level.

And when the wind starts to blow and you've got a blizzard going,

it's a pretty intimidating place.

They will have never fished anywhere like this.

This is like the moon! One small step for Man...

Yep, the end of the world, here we come.

In Iceland, Matt will be judging alongside Vala Arnadottir,

a professional fly-fisherwoman.

Few people know these waters as well as her.

The fishing in Iceland can be very challenging.

Our season starts in April,

and you can see fishermen completely freezing.

You know, they can't even tie their tackle!

And there's snow everywhere.

As a fisherman, to be in Iceland,

it's one of the places that you want to go to to fish,

and it's killing us, really, not to know what's out there.

This is a pretty alien situation for me.

I have no idea what I'm going to be up against.

Over the next week,

they'll need to adapt skills from home to succeed in unknown waters.

Nothing fazes me.

There's nothing you can throw at me about fishing

that's going to faze me.

For one of these anglers,

this first leg of the expedition will be their last.

Welcome, everyone, to the Westfjords of Iceland.

This week is all about endurance.

You may all think you know about cold-weather fishing,

but this takes it to a whole new level here.

I'm very excited to have you all here, so welcome to my country.

As you can see, it's very beautiful even though it's cold

and I really hope you enjoy your journey.

So, Matt, will you explain to everyone

about this specific challenge?

This challenge isn't about catching the biggest fish.

It's not even about catching the most fish.

It's about catching the most variety of species.

But, of course, that would be too easy.

-Oh, here we go!

-So you're going to be doing it from a kayak.

But because there is a lot of luck involved in fishing,

we are going to be taking into account location,

technique, type of bait used.

You've got three hours. Go fish!

-This is going to be interesting.

-Exciting.

-Give it to me, boys!

-Good luck.

-Good luck, mate.

-Let's take these two.

-OK.

-Bagsy the red one!

-OK.

There are two key things for the fishermen to remember -

a catch only counts if they touch the fish

and all fish are to be released unharmed.

They each have a kayak and an identical kit of fishing essentials.

-Let's see what we've got.

-I think there's everything here we need.

What on earth is that?

I'm hoping to catch a fish on this rig.

What type of fish? I don't now.

Whatever's out there.

So, how many different species are there in this fjord?

We've mainly got a lot of dab. We've got the pollock.

Then we have the cod, that's easy to catch, compared to the monkfish

and the scorpion fish, which are much harder.

Some of the fish feed on the bottom.

They're rooting around for worms, and crabs and molluscs.

Some of them will feed around the rocks.

Some of the fish will be up in the water layers,

so it's no good just sticking to one technique.

It would be great if they could actually make some changes,

and we'll be looking for that.

Never, ever in my life before have I sat in a kayak.

Is that the clutch and the accelerator? I'm not quite sure.

I'm fairly comfortable in a kayak.

Normally, I'm in the kayak with my husband Johnny,

so normally he paddles me around like a princess whilst I fish

and he paddles, so it could be an interesting day for me today.

Jo only discovered her love of angling

when she met her childhood sweetheart when they were both 16.

When I met Johnny, it became apparent that

if I was going to see him at all, I would have to go along fishing

with him, but soon enough his passion for fishing

rubbed off on me.

If I haven't got Johnny next to me, it'll be difficult.

I think that I'm so used to having him there

and it's going to challenge me to see what do I actually know?

But I would hope that in my head,

I'll have a little Johnny to try and tell me what to do for the best!

Let's do it.

Let's go.

Bear in mind you've only got three hours.

Keep an eye on that, yeah?

OK, we're off.

Iceland is an island in the far north of the Atlantic Ocean

and the first test for the anglers is in the Westfjords.

As the newest country on the planet, the nutrients from the volcanic rocks

wash into the rivers, lakes and oceans,

making these fjords fertile grounds for all kinds of species,

from the flatfish on the bottom to the cod that dominate further up.

Do you know what? They're all shooting off over there.

-Well, shall we go that way?

-We'll go that way, yeah.

-Oh, it's rather nice this, isn't it?

-It's relaxing, isn't it?

-Yeah.

Did you watch the boat race the other day?

Matt and Vala will be watching the anglers' fishing techniques,

as well as keeping tally of everyone's catch.

-Shall we get the lines in the water?

-Yeah, that's the thing to do now.

Right, I've got these tiny little hooks on with tiny bits of bait,

so fingers crossed, we're going to give that a try.

The anglers have been given the basic tackle needed for sea fishing -

a rod and a reel of line.

A lead weight of just the right size takes the hook to the desired depth,

but crucially, they need something to attract the fish.

It could be a man-made lure, like a tiny imitation fish,

or a worm or a piece of squid

that looks or smells enticing.

We've given them quite a choice of stuff to use,

and the way they change that will determine what they catch.

I hope they will put on maybe squid first.

It is very visual for the fish, it's white and it's smelly.

Squid would certainly be on one of my hooks

and maybe something like mackerel.

-What have you got now, squid?

-A bit of squid and a bit of mussel.

So, this misconception that many people have

that you just drop the rod in and leave it...

No, no, there's so much to it.

You know, you've got to change the baits around,

make sure everything looks good as well.

How long have you been fishing for now?

-And I don't mean on an Icelandic fjord.

-Since I can remember, really.

My first ever fish was, like, a gudgeon.

-You remember your first fish?

-Yeah, I remember my first fish.

-How big?

It was literally only about that big.

Ripon grew up in Bedfordshire and he still fishes

on the same stretch of river his father took him to as a child.

When I started fishing with Dad, I was four or five years old.

I was a bit afraid asking Dad for a hook, etcetera,

so I used to nick Mum's sewing needles and pins

and used to make little hooks out of them.

When you're fishing, there's a certain smell to the water.

There's no other smell like it, it brings me back

to when I first was fishing with Dad.

Oh, I thought I just had a bite then.

Yeah, fish on!

-Whoa, good one!

-Fish on!

Fish on!

-What have you got?

-Like a little plaice or something.

-Oh, it's come off!

-Oh, no.

-For God's sake!

When an angler thinks there's something at the end of the line,

a flick of the rod at just the right moment

should set the hook in the fish's mouth.

I hooked it and it just wiggled me off.

Really frustrating because it doesn't count, I didn't touch it.

This technique is known as striking

and can mean the difference between success...

and failure.

-GEOFF:

-I think I had a bite, then,

um, and I struck it too soon.

Geoff's had two bites while we've been here

and he's struck them both too soon.

His nerves meant that he reacted far too quickly

and he's missed his chance now.

It looks like many of them are actually striking too soon.

They should really know, they shouldn't do that.

But Dan...

and Phil

are taking their time.

Fish on, Phil?

I had a knock.

-BOTH:

-Fish on.

It's only a small, flat fish, but at least it's a fish.

The hook comes out easy. OK? And back he goes.

All the anglers are using barbless hooks which are kinder to the fish.

And Phil's flatfish, a dab, is the first catch of the day.

I'm going to change my rig now

because I don't to be catching the same again.

And I'm just going to go from there and see what else I can pick up.

Fish on!

Great.

But others aren't far behind.

Oi-oi!

Fish on!

Fish on!

I've caught my first fish in Iceland

so I'm very happy about that.

I've got a cod.

That's one species.

A nice little scrap on the way up. There it goes.

What have we got here?

Right, this can't hang about.

This little guy.

Only a tiddler. I think it was one of those scorpion fish.

It's a weaver type thing with its big fins. Like this.

Geoff has been fishing for over 60 years

and his first catch is one of his earliest memories.

I was on holiday with my mum and dad down in Kent

and there was an old boy fishing and he gave me a worm

and he helped me cast out and I caught my first fish

on rod and line and it was a little baby trout and it was about so big.

It had all the spots and it was wet and slimy,

everything that a little kid loves.

It was a magic thing for me.

Two hours left.

Dan,

Phil,

Geoff, and Sam

all have one species each.

That's cod off the list, we want to try some different bait now.

The fact the cod took the prawn

means they're obviously tuned into that at the moment

and I've already caught a cod today.

It's a multi-species challenge so we'll try something different.

Emma is still hoping to strike it lucky

by sticking with her first choice of location and bait.

I'm just drifting gently, hoping that I might meet a fish.

I haven't had any luck so far

but I'm waiting for the really big fish

and that is going to happen any moment.

You're looking very relaxed.

Do you know, all I need now is a vodka and tonic

and it would be absolutely perfect.

What do you have on your hook right now?

I have got a great big massive squid.

How far is this from the normal fishing you do in Wiltshire?

This is about as far removed from anything I do at home

as going and landing on the moon would be.

Emma comes from a long line of fishing fanatics.

So, inevitably, it became her passion, too.

I was a total tomboy as a child.

I have to say, I was probably a bit feral

and used to spend most of the time riding around on a pony,

bareback, or fishing.

Getting dressed up was my idea of a complete nightmare and still is now.

SHE LAUGHS

# Bobbing along

# Dee-dee, dee-dee, dee-dee... #

Well, Emma looks like she's enjoying a day out at Margate or something.

She's having fun. But she really is drifting around aimlessly.

I think she has more bait on than I had for lunch today.

-We're not going for sharks here, are we?

-No, no.

-She's feeding the ocean, that's for sure.

-Yeah!

Bait isn't the only option open to the anglers.

-Phil, shall we try further out?

-Yeah.

Jigs, or lures, are artificial fish

made from metal, wood, or plastic.

Attached to the end of the line, lures come in all shapes and sizes

to draw the attention of and then hook predatory fish, like cod.

You're just dropping it into the water.

What we're going to do is lift the rod

and let the lure flutter back down.

It's a bit like playing with a kitten with a ball of wool.

What you're trying to do is make the kitten grab it.

You're putting it in the fish's face

and you're trying to get it to strike.

Let's have a jig here.

Jig here.

Most of the anglers are switching between natural bait and lures.

Only James is using both.

The original one I had on was that lure there.

It's a weighted lure.

I wasn't catching anything, so I used the baited trace

but I've taken the lure off, so I've got the best of both worlds now.

Ahoy there.

How are you doing, Ben, are you all right?

Are you listening to all the other kayaks? All your competitors?

Yeah, I heard Geoff shout before so obviously he's had one.

That's why I changed my tactics.

No. That was definitely it.

A thud, thud, thud.

It's just the bottom, there. Sorry, mate.

Don't worry about me.

Sorry, man, I'm concentrating here.

-There we go.

-You've got one?

-Yeah.

Oh.

There we go. That is an absolutely tiny, tiny, little tiddler.

-Every little fish counts.

-They all count. I'm off and getting it.

I think that fish partly counts as mine, by the way.

'There's just an hour left and three anglers have yet to catch -

'Ripon...'

Come on, fishes.

'..Emma...'

Aargh!

'..and Jo..'

Let's stop messing about and go and catch some fish.

Just change our tactics slightly.

Come into the shallows here

and see if we can use bait to catch a flatfish.

My toes and fingers are a little bit nippy.

At the minute, I'm so determined to try and catch a fish,

I'm not really noticing.

-EMMA:

-Oh, oh, I think I've got something.

-You've got something?

-Oh, yes. Here we go.

I think I've got a fish on the line.

But it's not moving how...

you would sort of expect a fish to move.

Emma has either got on a very big fish or she's hooked the bottom

and I think she's playing quite a big fish.

So there's something out there

that's eaten that huge piece of bait.

It's taking a long time.

-I don't know what she's doing.

-It doesn't look like she knows.

There might be something down there that's rather flat.

Do you get halibut in this bit?

With time running out, any new strategy could be worth a go.

I'm going to try fishing against the rocks of the jetty

in the hope there will be some small rock species.

-RIPON:

-That's quite a paddle, isn't it?

Right. I think I will keep trying.

There's always the next cast. It might be the one.

-EMMA:

-Oh, what do these fish feel like when you catch them?

I'm looking to see what's going on with Emma - she's been playing that for a while.

Emma has now been struggling with her catch for 45 minutes.

I don't know what to do!

Going to help her will cost Dan his own valuable fishing time.

Will you give me a hand? Will you have a go at this

-and see whether you think it's the fish of the bottom.

-Yes.

Unfortunately, I think you've hooked the biggest

volcanic piece of rock that's in this fjord here.

There's not much time left.

I'm going to go for it now, I'm going to move even closer.

That's definitely a take.

Fish on!

I've got a flat fish.

Yes! I'm so thrilled.

There are a lot of places around the world were the birds

congregate like that, they're there for a reason, they could be

small fish, and where there's small fish, there's bigger fish.

So, last chance saloon.

I've had two bites sitting here,

which is two bites more than I had out there.

This just feels fishy, it feels better,

one little fish could change everything.

Oh, look, look!

Wa-hey. >

In he goes. Two species!

-EMMA:

-I think I've really mucked up that challenge, I'm afraid.

Fish on!

It's a flat fish. It looks like a plaice.

I changed my position.

I think that might have won it.

-GEOFF:

-One last cast.

-JO:

-Yeah? Something on there.

-Another one of those funny fish.

-Yay.

I think it's a little bit bigger than the first one.

Time's up, everyone.

Rods up.

Get in!

The three hours out in the fjord are up.

Six anglers return to shore with catches to their names.

But Ripon and Emma failed to land anything.

-Anyone cold?

-Freezing, mate.

-THEY LAUGH

Well, congratulations, everyone.

You have survived your very first Icelandic challenge.

I think they did, overall, pretty well.

It's cold outside and it's not in everyone's

comfort zone to be out in a kayak.

I thought it was good in parts.

-A couple of individual pantomimes.

-Yes, Emma,

you got stuck there for quite some time.

-Ripon, you didn't catch anything.

-I lost one.

Sometimes, you just have a hard day. It's not the last day of fishing.

Keep your head high.

'Ripon and Emma may have scored zero today

'but Dan, Phil, Geoff and Sam all caught one species each.'

We actually have two fisherfolk here who caught two species.

James and Jo.

But we can only really have one winner.

So, we've decided to go with the person who caught the most fish

and that is Jo.

Congratulations. THEY APPLAUD

Your prize, Jo, is that you get the advantage tomorrow.

You get to choose your team.

I'm really, really pleased how that panned out.

as fishing showed us today, you can spend hours fishing

and not getting anything and it all happens in the last few minutes.

-Let's put more wood in here.

-What a great day.

I seriously thought that last fish I caught had clinched it.

But...

everyone would be gutted.

Since we're in Iceland, we should have some local Icelandic delicacy.

My favourite. This is fermented shark.

Cheers, everyone, you look very excited. Cheers.

-Yeah, lovely.

-VALA:

-Lovely!

That's disgusting.

'I would like us all to catch more fish.'

As we say in fishing, tomorrow is another day.

The competition is still there to be won.

And we will be trying harder tomorrow.

Overnight in the Westfjords,

the temperature's dropped below zero

and, now, the anglers are facing

the second sea fishing task of the expedition.

The cod is one of the most important fish in Icelandic waters

and has been since Viking times.

Today, our anglers are going to have a go using traditional

cod jigging techniques that have helped shape these communities.

-It's looking a little bit lumpy out there today.

-It is, isn't it?

Well, this week is all about endurance, and true to form,

the wind just picked up and the temperature has dropped.

And, today, you're going in search of

one of the most important fish in Iceland,

-the cod.

-Get in.

-Way!

And, today,

you're giving up your sport fishing for commercial fishing.

Commercial fishing is one of the largest contributors

to our national income.

The traditional way of fishing for cod is jigging for it.

But this is jigging equipment like you haven't used before.

This is all about your endurance, about your stamina.

So, go out there, do yourself proud, and don't let us down.

Yesterday's winner, Jo, your prize was to choose your own teams.

OK. I feel like I'm choosing a sport team

and having to leave one person behind.

But I'm going to choose Dan, I'm going to choose Sam,

and I'm going to choose James.

-Sorry, everybody else.

-Right, go fish.

'Each team will be on a boat crewed by local fishermen.'

Let's go, let's go, let's go.

'They'll be helping them prepare the rigs they'll use to catch the cod.'

We want two this side and two the other side, don't we?

'The team with the heaviest haul will win the challenge.'

An average adult cod can weigh over 20 pounds,

so the equipment used to catch them is heavyweight, too.

A thick nylon line is attached to a winch, not a rod.

A heavy lead weight is tied

to the end of the line

and above it are coloured rubber lures

designed to imitate sand eels.

The weight takes the line

down towards the seabed

and then the whole rig

is jigged up and down.

I've actually done this style of fishing,

with winches and everything.

It's really hard work because the weights are very heavy

and when they're cranking them up,

it really does burn into your muscles.

But it looks like they are really transferring their skills from home.

Like, they are tying the knots.

So, I think it's good that even though they are not used to deep sea fishing,

it looks like they are really getting the hang of it quick.

But that's what I think is fascinating about fishing -

you can always take some little parts or your mental thinking ways.

It's only the thickness of the line which we're not used to.

We're not used to using anything like this thing.

I've ruined that.

It's a mess.

You put six or seven turns in it,

and you take the bottom part of the loop,

you pass it through, you pull it tight.

-And there you go.

-I've tied these knots before.

It's a good universal knot

that can be used in many different situations.

Sam has been fishing since he was six years old

and it's now his way of unwinding from the stresses of life.

When you've been in work all week in the concrete jungle,

doing your thing, earning your pennies, paying your bills,

it's a real... I guess you could call it a form of escapism.

Some people would do yoga or they'll do meditation.

For me, fishing does exactly the same sort of thing.

People say it's very zen, fishing.

And there's a lot to be said for that.

You now have a long journey out to those fishing grounds.

It's going to be cold, it could be pretty bumpy.

Once you're there, you've got one hour.

Good luck.

-Here we go.

-Here we go.

-Out to sea!

-All right, guys. See you later.

The seas around Iceland are so productive

because of the convergence of two bodies of water.

The warm Gulf Stream from the south

meets cold Arctic waters from the north

and this collision of currents brings nutrients pouring up from the depths.

These feed the plankton which support the whole marine food chain,

from the smallest to the biggest creatures in the ocean.

Oh, yeah, there, there.

I've never seen a whale before

so I'm having a lot of firsts on this trip.

Let's hope I get our first catch of Icelandic cod.

Iceland is one of the world's leaders in sustainable fishing.

Strict quotas protect fish stocks

and the cod here are huge and plentiful.

I'm actually up here at the business end of the boat with Captain Henrik.

We are looking at the sea chart.

That is our road map, it's taking us to the areas

where we know we will find the biggest shoals of fish.

After following the map to the fishing grounds,

the captains have a fish finder

which uses sonar to pinpoint the shoal.

-GEOFF:

-We have a skipper here and he knows exactly what is down there.

My tack is to do as I'm told by those that know.

And those that know are the boatmen on this craft

because both of them have been fishing this whole area

all their lives, and one of them is older than me!

OK, team, the captain has actually now got us

into a really good position.

Come on, you scurvy dogs, get at it.

Go fishing.

'The captains have cut their engines

'and the boat should drift above the shoals of cod.'

Gloves on, ready for action.

'Any fish caught today will be taken back to town and sold.'

-Fish on!

-Way!

First fish already.

Team, what I've found is it's better working it by hand.

-Working it by hand?

-Rather than on the wheel.

-Okey-dokey.

Phil's idea of jigging by hand may make it easier

to feel if a fish takes the hook.

Fish!

It's nice that I've got one.

Oh, it's come off! Rats and double rats!

-GEOFF:

-I've had two and I've probably lost another 20.

Another one on now. This feels a good fish, actually.

Fantastic fishing. Lovely cod. He's about eight to nine pounds.

It's the biggest cod I've ever caught.

I'm looking for one bigger now.

Phil has been fishing since the age of seven,

using a stick as his first rod.

But for him, it's not just about the catch.

It's just the emotion of getting out there

and being amongst other anglers.

You might not be the one that catches, but you're amongst a team.

99% of the time, they'll help you out and say I've caught two on this,

try this, because everybody wants everybody to catch fish.

It's gone a little bit quiet. It does that from time to time.

As soon as Phil and his team have landed their first few cod,

they are on the hunt again.

-GEOFF:

-I've got two fish.

If all four of us can get two fish every five minutes for an hour,

we can probably flatten the other team. Very easily.

But we don't know how well they're doing yet.

WINCH SQUEAKS

Oh, this one needs oil.

HE LAUGHS

Jo's team are still fishing on their first spot.

-JO:

-None of us appear to have been catching anything.

I've just seen them pull a cod into their boat

so currently we are losing and I don't like losing.

The pressure is on.

It's quite quiet. I thought there would be more action.

More frenzy. And more fish.

Maybe it is because there's not a lot of fish

going on down under right now.

If nothing is going on, they need to change their tactics.

And the best way is to move.

Halfway through and Jo's team have stuck it out long enough.

We're just bringing the lines up now

so we can move to a different location.

But it's quite a long way down

so we've got quite a bit of spinning to do.

On the other boat, being constantly on the move

and jigging by hand is proving a winning combination.

Get in! Get in there, my son.

Cracking!

Whoa! You little beauty!

Oh, yes, baby! That's a good 'un.

I have to keep a tight line.

-Because it will slip the hook.

-That's a beauty. Feel the cod.

No. Missed again.

Look at that beautiful fish. Wonderful markings.

They have absolutely no idea how beautiful they were.

As a team, we're doing, I think, well.

I don't know how well the other team are doing.

But we're certainly filling them up now.

I've lost my lead at the bottom.

It's a little bit of a pain, having to re-rig.

Has a sense of disaster right now.

We've been to one fishing spot, moved to another, lost a rig. No fish.

-What happens now?

-Looks like they are getting a bit anxious.

I had a word with our captain and he saw some fish going on.

Come on.

Ah.

Tough. Tough.

It came straight off. It was on, it was off.

I just felt it, it jumped, and it was definitely a fish.

I think it's time we moved to a new location, what do you say? Yeah?

Skipper? New balls, please, as they'd say in Wimbledon.

Both boats head off for one final push.

I've got a sweat on. It's hard work pumping that up and down.

There's still probably about ten minutes left

so we've just got to keep trying right until the very last second.

Obviously, we've had nothing, our boxes are empty.

And we're seeing those guys with fish.

So it's bit of a problem at the moment,

the fact that they've got fish and we haven't.

-OK.

-OK?

You start doubting yourself as a fisherman

when you're not catching anything. All you can do is keep trying.

I think with this type of fish, if you catch one, you will catch more.

We've been working as a complete team,

from all the plans about how we were going to attack this.

We believe we're in the lead, but we're not really sure,

-they could be thinking they are in the lead. So...

-JO:

-Oh, yes!

Finally! It took its time today.

The anticipation and the weight was killing me. But here we go. Finally.

-Get in.

-Yep. Fish.

I started using it by hand because you can get a feel for the fish.

-There's another one.

-He's got two on.

-JO:

-Two!

I'm elated with that, really pleased with that.

Whoo!

Come on. King of the cod.

I think we must have drifted over a cod area.

We've all had some fish come on board just now. So...

You never know, we might get a few more.

-I'm on.

-You're on? Wait.

-Last minute.

-Gone.

-Gone?

-RIPON:

-My shoulders are burning.

This lead weight at the bottom has smashed me to pieces.

Time's up.

Lines out of the water, please.

OK, everybody, that's it, lines out of the water.

How many did we get?

At the end of the week, individual performances will count

when Matt and Vala decide who makes it through.

But, for now, the winners of today's task

will be the team who has brought home the heaviest haul.

-Vala, we were watching Jo's team.

-Yeah.

I'm pretty happy seeing the team working so well together.

Sam, you were pretty good with the knots, showing the team.

You all went first with the red lure.

Maybe it would have been a better strategy

putting different colours in the first

to see which one works the best.

Matt, what about the team that you were on the boat with?

Phil, you innovated by working out very quickly

that hand lining the equipment, rather than relying on the winches,

was a winning tactic. That was impressive.

But the truth is in the fish boxes.

Jo's team caught, today, just under 20 kilos.

Which leaves us, Matt, with the other team.

Who caught just over 34 kilos.

-Wow.

-Very good.

-Well done.

-OTHER TEAM APPLAUD

That makes you our winners today. Congratulations.

-I'm starving.

-Yeah, so are we.

Well done.

You guys floored us!

We did our best. I think we put in a sterling performance all round.

-We all worked those winches good and proper.

-Well done, boys.

They thought that they were the youngsters

and they were going to whip us, but not today.

Experience showed today. We were all proud of that.

'Halfway through the Icelandic part of the expedition

'and the anglers enjoy a traditional meal in the village.'

-Fantastic.

-Wow.

-WAITER:

-That is cod.

-It smells amazing.

-Do you want some of this, mate?

-Go on then.

-Lovely.

That will do, bud.

'Tomorrow, they will be leaving the coast

'and the tough world of sea fishing behind.'

Oh, God, that's good.

I'll go so far as to say that's the best piece of cod I've ever eaten.

You know the fish hasn't travelled far, that's for sure.

That's amazing. So, yeah, top marks there.

SEAGULLS CRY

For the second half of their week in Iceland,

the anglers are travelling inland.

300 miles south to its biggest freshwater lake,

home to one of the country's magnificent fish,

the Icelandic lake trout.

The judges have set the anglers their hardest challenge yet,

to master the most technically difficult of any kind of angling -

flyfishing.

I love flyfishing. I feel very, very confident with this

because it isn't far off what we do in Great Britain.

But the 40mph winds

and driving rain is making visibility terrible.

Fishing in this weather is not going to be easy.

Theoretically, I should be fairly comfortable

in this method of fishing, I do a lot of flyfishing at home,

but I've never really fly fished in conditions like this, ever.

Most of the anglers have flyfishing experience.

Dan and Ripon are novices.

I've only been flyfishing for about three months.

I can cast from a fly rod,

but in these conditions, it could go anywhere.

Fly fishing is not a strong point of mine.

I can cast when it's nice weather.

This wind is not going to be helping me at all.

The elements are certainly against us today, but I can tell you

they are in the favour of the fish that live in this lake.

And this geothermal activity, the volcanic activity, have created

the largest brown trout on the planet. This is Vala's home turf.

She is going to be watching you like a hawk.

It's not just about the fish you catch

or the fish you don't catch, it's about your technique,

it's about how you approach this next part of the expedition.

This is your last chance to shine. After this, one of you is going home.

-Go, fish!

-All right.

-Let's do it. Thanks very much.

-Let's go fishing.

-Let's go fishing.

Here we go.

This lake is over 30 square miles of glacial water

filtered through black volcanic rocks.

I'm sticking with you, mate.

The fish might not be far out, you know.

The weather, the wind, it's not easy fishing at all.

We didn't expect the challenges to be easy

but this one is very extreme.

They've got nine hours to catch the biggest trout they can,

giving the judges plenty of time to watch their technique,

casting the flies that give this style of fishing its name.

What I've got on is a little black thingamyjig.

It just looks really good fun.

Flies, like lures, attract the fish

and come in a huge range of size, shape, and colour.

To mimic anything from a tiny insect to a small fish.

What you're trying to do with these flies

is imitate something that the fish might feed on.

When they're out the water, they look like nothing you've ever seen

but when it's moving through the water,

it's like a fish. They look a lot different when they are wet.

Until you find what they're taking a feed on,

you should chop and change.

So, we'll give this one a go and see what happens.

The basic equipment for flyfishing is a long, thin rod, a reel,

and a tapered line.

The fly is attached to the end, but unlike their sea fishing,

no weight is added.

The skill in flyfishing comes from

whipping the rod backwards and forwards

so the weight of the line itself

propels the fly across the water.

The object of the exercise, really,

is to get the fly as close to the fish as they can

in these conditions.

Where is the fish? How do you know?

Well, this is where they've got to use a little bit of intuition.

I really want to see them moving around.

If there's nothing going on,

change the fly, don't be standing for two hours at the same spot

because nothing is going to happen.

Choosing where to fish is going to be key to their success today.

They are free to pick their fishing spot

and then decide if and when to move.

I've chosen this spot because I believe

this is a geothermal sink hole here, pumping warm water in.

So, this is going to be a warm spot in the lake and hopefully

it's a case of sitting tight and waiting for the fish to move through.

If I get the fly choice right, there's every chance of hooking up.

There's nothing like the thrill of hooking a decent fish on a fly rod.

It's just you and the fish,

nothing else on the line to get in the way, nothing else to cause drag.

It's just a man against fish with the fly rod.

I'm going to start here because the way this wind is gusting,

if you can get the line in the air,

the wind will put the line out for you.

Fly-fishing is just fun. It's one of those things that I like doing.

Aah! Let's get this loop out.

The wind has caught it and wrapped it around the rod tip.

HE SIGHS IN EXASPERATION

Aah!

This is the biggest nightmare going.

I would love to catch one of these big old trout, and I expect to.

Brown trout are found all over the world

but the ones here are exceptional.

They're huge, voracious, lake trout,

the biggest and feistiest in Iceland.

I've seen the pictures.

They're seriously prehistoric looking,

incredibly beautiful creatures.

And, by all accounts, they don't half go some as well

so that will be another one to tick off the bucket list.

Two hours gone and no fish so far.

The weather is changing.

Although a drop in wind will make casting easier,

it could cause the anglers different problems.

I've just had to get out of the water because obviously

with the wind dropping, it's causing too much disturbance for the fish.

Trout have extremely sharp eyesight.

If you can see them, they can see you.

The water is so clear,

any disturbance will put the fish off completely.

There's the fish out there.

-Fish on!

-Fish on!

I'm just trying to keep tension on the line.

Whoa, whoa. Whoa.

Hey, they're hell of a fighters here, mind.

Get in! Yes! Yes! Eventually!

-Why-aye, man!

-Get on!

That's probably the nicest fish I've ever seen in my life.

Probably the most important one. I can't believe it.

It's going back. That was amazing.

Probably one of the hardest fighting fish,

for its size, I've ever caught.

With James the only angler off the mark,

everyone will want to know how he did it.

I changed lures

so it's more of a natural pattern in these big gory lures.

Hello, you jammy Geordie. What was the technique?

What was the technique?

-Turn your box over.

-It was...

-Yep. It was one of them.

-OK. Thank you very much, sir.

-Any time, mate.

Phil spotted what I was using and he's actually changing to one now.

So, everyone is just changing the setup.

I've done the hard work and the rest reap the benefits.

But there's definitely more fish to be caught.

Success in flyfishing depends on choosing the fly that looks

most like what the fish are eating on any given day.

It's a matter of trial and error.

Yo!

Or taking inspiration from someone more successful.

I let the young Geordie boy get the first fish

but I knew it wouldn't be long before I had one myself.

What a jammy sod he is!

Fish on.

It looks like Dan has caught one as well.

To me, it's the best feeling in the world.

Aaaah!

I'm going to learn, it's a competition.

Beautiful little fish. It's a great fly for such a tiny little fish

but let's get him back in the water now.

Off to fight another day.

-Congratulations, Dan, how does it feel?

-I'm chuffed.

I'm really over the moon.

I spoke to James after he caught his fish.

-You're all sharing information?

-Yeah, yeah.

I'm not a fly-fisherman

and I won't start to say that I'm a fly-fisherman.

-But I've just been and caught a fish so I think...

-You did!

-Sooner than some other people.

-Yes.

So maybe I am a little bit of a fly-fisherman.

Yeah. I think you are.

Halfway through the challenge to land the biggest trout,

and so far, only James, Phil and Dan have caught.

A happy fisherman is a fisherman who is catching fish.

So there's probably going to be a few unhappy people here today.

Ooh!

That was pants.

Casting the line is the skill in fly-fishing that takes practice.

If you can't get the fly out to the fish, you won't catch them.

Now the wind's died down, it should be a bit easier

but I'm still not managing

to get out as far as I'd like it to get out.

Repeatedly flicking the fly rod backwards and forwards

between 11 and one o'clock lets you pay out line.

At exactly the right moment,

the line is released to send the fly out to the chosen spot.

Start with a rod pointing at the water, a smooth lift,

pause, forward.

It's literally like tapping a nail into a piece of wood.

-I like this.

-A little bit of a pause.

-Look, I can do it while I'm looking at you.

-Yeah.

And the trick is not to actually fight the wind

because it's behind you, it's to work with it.

-And in actual fact...

-Whoa! I think I caught myself.

You did, you did. Actually, you did.

BEN LAUGHS

It's a whopper!

I tell you what, I'm impressed with Ripon's casting,

seeing as he's never used a fly rod before.

Ripon, casting is good, mate.

Thank you.

My fishing is more coarse angling.

Just the whole setup is totally different

but I've been teaching myself after the last three months,

just casting out in the garden and out on the road and stuff like that.

Geoff first learn to fly-fish over 30 years ago.

I'm making splashes all over the bloody place

because my casting style is very messy and very rough.

Oh, look at this. Not good, is it?

Well, Geoffrey, I think it's safe for me to take my glasses off.

-Now your line's out of the water.

-Mm-hm.

-How's it going?

OK, I'm losing a few flies, though,

-I'm damaging a few flies.

-I saw that.

You've got some rocks behind you.

Partially down to me and my casting which has never been brilliant.

As neither Geoff nor Ripon have landed a trout so far,

looking for a new spot to fish could be the answer.

I am tempted to move, I was thinking down there,

but it looks like Jo and Dan are still there. It's etiquette

to kind of, you know, see if there's a space that's clear.

I know it's a competition, but it's just fishing etiquette.

Some people have come a bit close

but it depends on someone's judgement, really.

-EMMA:

-# Dee-dee... #

Um...

Geoff, do you want me to move or something?

-I thought you were walking down the bank.

-Geoff, I'm just fishing this bit.

In front of you, there's a fish that keeps topping.

The thing is, I don't want to go down here and fish down here

if I'm going to get in your way.

I tell you what, you fish here, and I'll go somewhere else.

HE LAUGHS

Geoff, I have a bit of a thing about manners...

-I don't want to be in your way.

-No, but come on.

Just fish it.

I'm just going to go and calm down for a minute

because I am quite cross.

SHE SIGHS

OK. Calm down.

Who cares?

SHE SNIFFS

We had a misunderstanding.

I will speak to her later on and try and explain what happened.

And, er...try and straighten things out with her

because I think she is a lovely, lovely person.

One of the nicest people I've met, actually.

As Emma begins fishing further up the beach,

Sam is also changing position, after sticking to the same spot all day.

I'm going to move on to the beach

because they seem to be catching a few on the beach.

It's got to be on, doesn't it? Can't ignore the signs.

But it's not just the fishing spot he's changing.

I'm going for a bait fish imitation pattern.

I'm kind of working on the principle of big fly, big fish.

Fish on!

This looks like a good fish. Look at that.

Ooh, I had a bit of a tug, then.

Yes.

Come on, my beauty.

I've been waiting all day for this moment.

I see little beasties.

Wow. Come on, boy.

-It's powerful.

-Look at that. That is stunning.,

God, they're so silvery. Really nice little fish.

Yes! In the net!

Big stream of fly, big fish.

Emma, you have such a big smile on your face.

You know, I'm so, so pleased.

Poor fish has been tormented by kisses.

But I'm really excited.

That is beautiful.

That is what you come to Iceland for.

Bye-bye.

My heart is still pounding.

I'm just like a quivering mess.. Absolutely fantastic.

That is why I go fishing.

When they started, they were very, very grouped up.

It was almost as if someone had poured lead into their waders.

It was actually when they began to use the space

-that it worked for them.

-I think they really took James's lead.

He was the one who was constantly moving in the beginning

and he got his reward. He caught the first one.

If you take Sam, he was rooted to the same spot.

He claimed this little peninsular like it was his little kingdom

and he was going to fish it.

It's only when he moved out of that space that he actually caught fish.

And Emma, she found a nice little corner

and bingo, she gets fish.

Jo's experienced at fly-fishing,

but she's had no luck so far.

-SHE SIGHS

-No, I haven't seen any fish.

I haven't seen any fish rising, I haven't seen any fish swimming.

But there are fish in here because the lads have been catching them.

I'm going to feel a bit disheartened.

-Hey, Jo.

-Hi, Ben. How are you going?

-How are you?

-Yes, it's been a bit of a frustrating day.

What has been your strategy so far? Have you been staying in one place?

-Have you been moving?

-Well, no, I've been moving about a bit.

I've just come over here so I'll give this spot a go.

That wasn't very good cast either.

-You're being really critical of yourself.

-Yes, I always am.

Just half an hour left to catch the biggest trout.

What did you think of their casting, generally?

They are all very different from each other.

James is one of the best ones, casting.

I've seen Geoff just hitting the sand back a lot.

I don't know if the fly is still on. I hope.

Do you know who I think is the most improved caster today?

Ripon.

He is the least experienced fly-fisher in the group.

He is the most improved caster today.

-RIPON:

-At the moment, my body is just obliterated.

I'd love to stay on but at the rate I'm going, I don't think I will be.

Just going to keep fishing. If I worry about the time,

then that's just something else to worry about.

-JO:

-I don't normally get this frustrated.

I think it's just down to the fact that the pressure is on.

-SAM:

-It would be nice to get another one.

-EMMA:

-Come on. I know there's a fish here.

It would be absolutely fantastic

if somebody caught one at this 11th hour.

-DAN:

-Big, big, big fish out there.

I just saw his head come out of the water. There's loads of them.

Because I haven't caught yet,

the likelihood of going home is fast approaching, really.

Get out there. Not much time left.

I'm starting to ache as well.

We're all really fishing now to catch a bigger fish than Sam caught

cos that was a lovely fish that Sam caught.

(Fish, come on. Fish.)

-JO:

-Just know I can do better than this

so I'm a bit frustrated with myself, really.

That's it, anglers, your time is up!

Please bring your lines in.

No fish.

I'm not disappointed in the fact that... Well, I am disappointed

there were no fish on my rod. I just hope I've done enough.

Total respect to all of you for coping with horrendous conditions

at times. It tested you, but some of you came out on top.

-Well done.

-I liked your casting.

Some of you were obviously doing it for a long time before.

But, for others, it was a new thing.

I wish you had moved more throughout the lake.

-Some of you did. But I'm happy.

-This challenge was about the largest fish.

So, the winner of this part of the competition

with a brown trout weighing five pounds, nine ounces,

was Sam. Congratulations, Sam.

-Thank you very much.

-Well done.

-Cheers, guys.

-How do you feel?

Over the moon. It was a fantastic fish. It made my day.

Well, well done again. As you all know, part of fishing is about luck.

The judges were analysing your technique, your style, all of those things.

So, we are now going to retire to debate who is going home.

Enjoy your last few hours of Iceland.

You guys have a really tough decision.

You've got three very distinct different tests.

So, are you going to base this purely on statistics, the most fish,

the biggest fish, the greatest number of species?

-No.

-There's so much more to fishing than going plus and plus and plus.

You've got different styles of fishing,

you've got the fly-fishing compared to bait fishing

and fly-fishing is much more thought put into it, technique-wise.

-I agree with you.

-Yeah.

The third challenge was pretty tough

so I do think we do have to use some judgement.

I don't think we can just go on numbers.

James had been pretty solid throughout the competition.

-I feel he is confident in himself.

-And Dan has done incredibly well.

I think he's got great fishing instincts. I think he's done well.

And then of course, we've got Sam.

In the trout fishing, he stayed in one place

for a very, very long period of time.

And only when others began to make things happen

-did he actually follow suit.

-And then, of course, you've got Emma.

She really stuffed her game up with fly-fishing.

There's so much technique and thought that you have to put into it

-so I think she really went up.

-And we've got Phil out there.

I think he's steady, not amazing, but he's had decent results.

-And then we've got Geoff.

-In the first challenge

when he caught that scorpion fish...

It is pretty hard to catch, actually. That's not a common fish.

He started to come unravelled a bit when he came to the fly-fishing.

The problems with the casting, losing the points on his flies,

wrecking the flies. It wasn't so good.

He could improve his technique with the fly casting.

His back cast was throwing a lot in the sand in the back area

which is definitely not good, I feel.

I think, in the case of the first challenge,

Jo did show some flashes. We both agree on that.

But there could be a bit of luck in there.

I think that she knows how to fly fish,

she really needs to toughen up.

Were you disappointed that Ripon

didn't catch anything in that first test?

-In a nutshell, yes.

-He was actually improving a lot,

with the fly-fishing, he was getting better and better.

He hasn't caught the fish so he has to be down there.

I don't envy either of you coming up with this decision.

Yeah, it's hard.

It's much harder than I thought it would be, actually.

Some nervous faces here. It's been an incredibly tough decision, this.

But I can tell you there are three of you who are in danger of going home.

Ripon, Jo and Geoff.

Good luck, guys.

It's been a hair's breadth, I promise you. But the person going home is...

..Geoff.

-I'm really sorry, mate.

-Unlucky, mate.

Congratulations to the rest of you.

This was a brilliant experience and I can't...

I can't knock it, it's great. I really had a good time.

All those people back there, we all became very good friends.

Congratulations. See you on the next one, OK?

Mixed emotions, I tell you.

Really happy to go on. I really thought it was me. I really did.

I tell you one thing, there's one place you don't want to be,

is that front three.

A kid at Christmas, mate. I cannot believe it.

HE SIGHS

It's been probably one of the hardest weeks fishing I've ever had.

Hopefully, the next location is going to be warmer.

So, we're going to Cuba, are we?

Wow!

# We're going to Cuba! Duh-duh-duh-duh-duh-duh! #

Get that salsa mojito, boy!

Superb. How cool is that?

Sunshine. Shorts and flip-flops, most importantly.

Absolutely amazing.

Next time, Mother Nature strikes.

# Oh, what a beautiful morning! #

It's days like this that make you realise the true love of fishing.

The anglers learn to fish the way the locals do...

There you go. What have you got there? Double hook up.

..go in search of the elusive Cuban bonefish...

Probably the hardest fighting fish I've ever felt in my life.

..and the mighty tarpon.

It's immensely strong. Hugely acrobatic.

SHE GASPS

This is it, then.

Oh, that was disappointing.