I believe that a huge wels catfish could be behind the monster myth, but to prove it, I need to catch a big one.

Something at least seven feet long.

Yeah.

Yeah, I felt like a break, but actually that's, um, works out.

I have made contact with something in the pope.

I guess that's the main thing.

And I have more time.

Wells are wily fish.

They rarely fall for the same trick twice.

So I switch up my technique on my bait.

My guide Yuri suggests I put live nightcrawlers on my hook.

The idea is, you lower it down just off the bottom.

Imagine, my knee is the bottom, and then it's up in the water and then down on down.

But what you're hoping is that this is going to get in the face off a catfish on dhe.

If I was a catfish, that is gonna be quite appetizing.

Particularly is hanging in front of me.

And then suddenly it moves.

That reflex takes watching the screen.

I'm trying to see what depth we are.

I can also see the base.

I'm moving the bait up and down I'm adjusting.

Is the depth changes on what I'm also doing is using this clunk to make a sound which is known to get make catfish active.

It's thought this mimics the sound of other catfish feeding, triggering anything that's down there to start moving and investigate.

I'm using my hands so I can feel when there's a take and if a take happens, I'm gonna be very quick.

I'm gonna grab the line.

I'm gonna set the hook.

If I get it wrong with a big fish either I'd lose my fingers.

All right, be over the side.

It's a serious is that?

But whatever may be lurking in this river is not falling for my trickery.

Oh, cold court.

Yet I felt something.

There we go.

Something actually took the worms, but it didn't inhale the whole thing, so I came close.

Uh, not close enough.

That was that was a near miss.

As daylight fades, we set up for our all night vigil on the island below the dam.

You're next.

We're gonna be fishing.

Avery.

Long distance beyond what is possible to cast.

So We're gonna position the Bates very precisely.

Using the boat, we are going to attach the tackle to the rock with a thin piece of line.

And the idea is when a catfish takes the bait, the force of that will break that week.

Line base is gonna be a rainbow trout.

Yeah, it's just basically now driving out positioning, Right?

Okay.

You know what I'm doing now?

I'm making sure the line is absolutely tight.

Yeah, I think that could be good.

So switch the whole on, If anything, a soldier in the night, that's gonna sound.

I'm gonna be out.

Pull, sash.

It's now just a waiting game.

The worst case scenario is I'm here for the next 10 or 12 hours and nothing happens.

On the other hand, something could happen at any moment.

Wait, Right.

That's a cake.

Yeah.

Yes.

This is a good fish.

Good fish tail walking the line.

Yeah, I pulled all the way.

Uh, yeah.

Is this a heavy fish?

Happy fish.

He's going the other way.

I need to keep the line clear of snags.

If the fish wraps it around a rock, it will all be over.

Hold this office belly is hitting the shallow water Now trying Bring in the middle Here, it's coming in.

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah!

Uh, look at this way.

Go!

Let's go Song contest.

Uh, start that in maybe seven feet.

Two inches.

It's clear that wels catfish are growing large enough here to account for the recent Lake monster sightings.

If this isn't a monster of the deep, I don't know what is.

This is just skin covered in slime.

Then you've got these tentacles.

This is a fish that navigates and hunts by field on breeding.

The vibrations in the water is one reason why catfish do so well in muddy rivers like this with low visibility.

But the big thing that you just can't help but notice is this enormous mouth.

This isn't a fish takes dainty bites.

This is a predator that swallows big prey whole just a massive fish.

Massive.

So the big question is the Lake Garda monster one of these.

Um well, if you're talking about a report in the 16th century, or in fact, anything up to the mid 19 hundreds, then absolutely no, that's quite possibly would have been a sturgeon.

But what about Now this water behind me connects with Lake Garda.

And if a fish like this could be here, then there's every reason to suppose that there might be something like this hiding somewhere there.

On a few glimpse to this creature breaking the surface of Lake Garda, you'd be left in little doubt that you'd seen a moment stop.

Okay?

And who knows?

Maybe one has even taken up residence in the cave beneath the island, like the beast reported in the 16th century.

But from everything I've now seen, I think the Lake Garda monster could well be a double act.

With early stories inspired by a sturgeon and some of the more recent sightings by a giant Wels catfish, I came to Italy to look for a riel, flesh and blood creature that might explain the legend of the Lake Garda monster.