Freelining tactics produce 12lb 9oz barbel
It takes a lot of skill and patience to use freelining tactics in a river when it’s running high and coloured, but Sean Room showed he has these virtues in abundance when he landed his biggest barbel of the season in the shape of this 12lb 9oz specimen.
Sean, from Spondon in Derby, was fishing a short four-hour session on his local River Derwent when the fish fell to the ‘rolling meat’ method.
The fish was taken on his only bite of the day, and was beaten with a rig constructed from 15lb mainline, straight through to a size 10 hook carrying a large chunk on luncheon meat.
10lb 15oz barbel tops six fish haul
Ron Cooper wasn’t put off when he arrived at a stretch of the Lower River Severn to be faced with a rapidly rising river and went on to land six barbel topped by this fish of 10lb 15oz.
Knowing that conditions would be difficult, the 64-year-old retired policeman decided to fish just one rod with a lump of luncheon meat on a simple running rig setup.
He said: “There was lots of debris and trees coming down and, sadly, a dead cow. I was struggling to keep control with all the extra water pushing through and I had to keep reeling in to clear my line.”
Ron’s winning presentation consisted of a size 4 Drennan Specialist hook attached to a 12lb mainline and a 5oz lead to hold bottom.
Angler celebrates birthday with pb barbel
Gary Edmonds couldn’t have asked for a better fiftieth birthday present than this new personal best barbel of 14lb 9oz from the River Lea.
The Hertfordshire-based rod fooled the impressive specimen just as it was getting dark with a lobworm hookbait on a simple running rig tied with a size 5 Drennan Super Specialist Barbel hook and a Korda Supernatural supple braid hooklink which he kept pinned to the deck with a small piece of tungsten putty.
“I wanted to catch something special for my birthday, but my son Sam and I couldn’t decide what to fish for,” he told Angling Times. “I knew there was a big barbel that lurked along this certain stretch which hadn’t been caught since September and as I rarely get the chance to do any barbel fishing we decided to have a go for it. I’ve been really lucky in the last two trips to catch to River Lea personal bests, as on my previous session I caught a 17lb 13oz pike.”
Matchman nets a giant chub and barbel in two casts
Matchman Gareth Drury showed the specimen brigade how to do it when he banked a 10lb 4oz barbel and a 7lb 3oz chub in the space of two casts from Lancashire’s River Ribble.
Gareth used two unflavoured cubes of Dynamite Baits luncheon meat on a bomb rig to take both personal bests from an undisclosed stretch.
For the full story see this week’s Angling Times.
Big barbel dominate at Lingmere
The vast shoals of carp shut up shop during the latest event at Lingmere Fishery but Dave Woodworth still enjoyed a memorable day out after he netted seven barbel for a winning 30lb 10oz.
After selecting peg 5 on the Match Lake at the Wirral complex, the Wallasey Tackle Box rod decided to use the waggler with double red maggot for silvers but was given a shock when a 7lb 14oz barbel fell for the approach early.
Several others showed up during the rest of the day to help him fend off the competition of John Powers who needed just 11lb 8oz for second spot.
