14lb barbel from the River Trent

Rik Johnson was on the verge of calling it a day and heading home – but was glad he didn’t when he hooked in to this cracking 14lb 12oz Tidal Trent barbel.

The manager of Chapmans Angling had arrived at the Nottinghamshire waterway to be greeted by a river carrying an extra 3ft of water.

Using 8oz of lead to hold bottom he cast around large open end feeders for five hours to no avail.

He said: “I’d just started to tidy my things away when I saw a slight pull on my downstream rod which quickly developed in to an aggressive take. I eventually landed the ‘14’ and decided to stay on for a few more hours.”

It proved to be a wise decision as Rik went on to land a further six barbel to 12lb.

Barbel future boosted by fresh stock

A project has been launched to secure the future of some of the nation’s most prolific big barbel rivers.

Numerous waterways have seen an unprecedented number of specimen fish reported this season, with both the River Nene and Derbyshire Derwent producing several fish over the 16lb-barrier since June 16.

Despite the optimism over the form of these venues, concerns have been raised that very few small barbel have been landed, leading to the fears that the top class action could soon peter out once the current crop of big fish die off.

Efforts are now being made to eradicate those doubts, with Environment Agency staff stocking thousands of small barbel in to several rivers across the country.

Two locations on the Nene have welcomed new introductions, with stretches at Earls Barton and Irthlingborough both gaining 750 fish.

Several stretches of Derbyshire Derwent controlled by the Earl of Harrington’s Angling Club have also been earmarked for similar stockings.

Club treasurer Teresa Parr is confident this will provide a major boost to the waterway. She said: “It's going to help secure the barbel fishing for the future which is very important and this in-turn will attract more people to fish what is an up-and-coming waterway with huge potential.”

The EA have also shown their commitment to help the species flourish in venues that are not yet renowned for barbel, with Yorkshire’s River Aire receiving a top up of 3,000, and its neighbour the Dearne being stocked with the same quantity – its first introduction of the species for a decade.

Barbel Society chairman Steve Pope has welcomed the move and told Angling Times: “It’s really great news that the EA continue to stock barbel as not only does it help spread the species and bolster existing stocks, but also help revive venues that have suffered from predation.”

Surprise 14lb barbel from Great Ouse when carp fishing

A session targeting carp on the River Great Ouse produced a worthwhile surprise for angler Paul Andrew when he landed this fine 14lb 11oz barbel on a boilie.

The Olney & Clifton Fishing Association member, was fishing a wide deep stretch at Olney in Buckinghamshire when the huge fish tore off with his hookbait during an early morning session on the waterway. Witness, Dave Partridge said: “It was a shock because he caught it in an area which is not known for barbel while targeting carp but I’m sure he will be happy with this capture.”

Lone hookbait tempts 16lb 14oz Nene barbel

A single hookbait was all that Nigel Bryans needed to tempt this huge 16lb 14oz barbel from the River Nene.

The 50-year-old from Peterborough hit the headlines 12 months ago when he caught three 16lb-plus fish in a week, followed by the capture of the current river best of 17lb 8oz. And now he has taken his second ever biggest barbel from an undisclosed stretch of the east midlands waterway.

With a warm front and a bit of rain forecast, Nigel aimed to take advantage of the ideal conditions and after arriving at the waterway late in the afternoon he received his one and only bite of the trip two hours later.

“I had spent a short time walking the banks before deciding which swim to fish for the evening,” Nigel told Angling Times.

“When it’s dark I fish my hookbait on its own without any free offerings. This is because I want the barbel to home in on my hookbait as the main attractor and not be grubbing around on the bottom.

My favourite bait is a 1ins piece of luncheon meat which I flavour with a bit of garlic.”
Fishing 12lb mainline, a 15lb braided hooklink and a size 10 Nash Fang hook on a running leger rig, Nigel flicked his bait a third of the way across the river to a spot where he had a feeling the fish would be.

“I was sat under my brolly, trying to hold it in place in the strong winds, when I saw my rod tip going mad. I picked it up and the fish took me 20 – 30 yards downstream before turning around and heading the same distance upstream. It then tried to dive into the inside weeds but I managed to stop her and she was mine,” he added.

Lifelong dream achieved with double-figure barbel

A lifelong dream to catch a double-figure barbel was finally achieved for Jim Perrin after he landed three huge fish in the space of a week, including this superb 12lb 3oz specimen from Throop fishery.

Jim was given a guiding session with expert angler Kenny Parsons as a Christmas present last year and made full use of it when the pair recently headed to the famous stretch of the River Stour. Having already landed a fish of 12lb 2oz from the River Kennet just days before, Jim cast into a deep swim baited with boilies and hemp where he hooked the fish along with a number of smaller fish. Anyone interested in a guided session with Kenny should call: 07770 637300.

Floods produce a 16lb 5oz Tidal Trent barbel

One of the biggest ever barbel to be caught from the Tidal Trent has been landed by Wayne Glossop – this 16lb 5oz specimen.

The all-important bite came right at last knockings as the Sheffield-based 24-year-old was about to reel in after what, up until that point, had been an uneventful overnight session.

“It wasn’t the typical powerful barbel take, but was fairly slow and steady,” said the Climax Tackle barbel consultant. “The fight wasn’t quite as straightforward as I hoped it would be, though, as the river had a lot of extra water on which made playing the fish that little bit harder. And then when I got down to the edge my landing net caught on a tree stump and I broke the spreader block. I had to wade in to the margins and somehow managed to net the fish. At first I thought it was a small double but once I got it up on the bank and pulled the mesh apart I realised it something a little bit special.”

Wayne has targeted the Tidal Trent’s barbel stocks for the last three years and has enjoyed a productive season by adopting a roving approach and fishing numerous different areas of the midlands waterway.

“I had a new pb of 14lb back in June and have caught several smaller doubles. This fish, however, is in a different league.”

Wayne found success with a 16mm home-made boilie which he hair-rigged on a size 6 Fox SXC hook and a 4ft Camotex Soft 25lb hooklink.

Another angler to take advantage of the ideal conditions was Staffordshire’s Gary Morgan who landed a 17lb barbel from an up and coloured River Dove.
Due to the pace at which the water was pushing through, the 43-year-old simply dropped a large lobworm hookbait in the edge.

“At 8pm my rod was almost dragged in,” Gary told Angling Times. “The fish just hugged the bottom and I struggled to move it. After 20 minutes I eventually got the better of it and netted my prize.

“Most anglers on the river use boilies or pellets but I thought that with the flood water a natural bait would give me a better chance of catching,” he added.

Expert's advice delivers new personal best barbel

Jerry Higham spent a day on the Warwickshire Avon with Angling Times columnist Paul Garner and was over the moon when he won the battle with this 14lb 8oz personal best barbel.

It’s clear to see why Paul’s guiding days are so popular after he passed on his knowledge to the Manchester-based rod, who attracted the impressive specimen into the swim with the introduction of broken boilies and hemp.

His rig was positioned close to his own bank where a crease in the river was formed and Jerry beat his prize with the help of 12lb mainline, a 12lb fluorocarbon hooklink and a size 10 Nash Uni hook.

15lb barbel from the River Nene

Jamie Cartwright has continued his impressive run of form and just days after landing a brace of 7lb-plus chub from the Great Ouse he banked this 15lb 5oz barbel during an evening session on the River Nene.

The Northants Specimen Group member decided to get away from the heavily pressured areas of the waterway and headed to a quiet stretch which he knew received little attention from other anglers.

Arriving just as the light was fading Jamie adopted his favoured barbel approach, offering a large homemade boilie on a size 6 ESP D7 hook and a 15lb Korda N-Trap hooklink set up as a running rig with a 2.5oz grippa lead.

“The first hour had been very quiet and I was just about to reel in to move to a different area when my tip wrapped round,” he told Angling Times.

“My mate and I have been searching for a few new areas on the Nene and this is one we’ve had our eyes on for a while. It was the third time we’ve fished the stretch and this is the only bite either of us have had from there which suggests it is a very low-stock stretch. This fish was a great result, though, and has encouraged us to have a few more sessions down there to see what else turns up.”

20-year quest ends with 13lb 10oz barbel

Andrew Harris made a 100-mile round trip to the River Kennet and was rewarded for his efforts with this 13lb 10oz barbel.

The Hemel Hempstead-based rod’s previous four trips had resulted in blanks and he feared his unlucky run was going to continue when he lost a big fish on the first night of his trip.

He preserved, however, and continued to feed a mixture of casters, small pellets and hemp and his 16mm pellet hookbait wrapped in paste was eventually picked up by his new personal best.

“It’s taken me 20 years to catch one this big,” he told Angling Times. “I thought I was going to have to let the fish go without taking a photo when thankfully another angler walked passed who was able to do a couple of pics.”

14lb barbel from River Loddon on 6lb mainline

Specimen hunter Mark Erdwin proved that you don’t need strong gear for big barbel after landing this 14lb 4oz fish on just 6lb mainline.

The 34-year-old Shimano backed rod caught the specimen whilst fishing on a local stretch of the Upper River Lodden in Berkshire and was the largest of two double figure fish he landed during a productive session: “The fish were very wary and bites were proving hard to come by so I scaled down my gear a little and switched to natural baits, feeding maggots and casters and using double lobworm on the hook” he said.

Mark used a low resistance link ledger rig with four SSG shot, Daiwa Sensor mainline and a size 12 Ashima hook to land the fish which is now his new personal best from the river.

Secret paste tempts huge barbel brace

Specimen angler Geoff Collins topped off a phenomenal week for barbel enthusiasts when he took the biggest brace of the season with fish 18lb 10oz and 15lb 12oz from a Midlands river.

Sport on running waters up and down the country has stepped up a gear during the mild temperatures and the Northamptonshire rod became the envy of thousands of others when he took the unforgettable duo – which also included the biggest individual specimen from any venue this season - on a lump of homemade paste.
With the water coloured and rising, he embarked on a quick evening session and it didn’t take long for him to break his previous best by 8oz with the smallest of the pair.

The best was still to come, though, as a delicate tap on his rod tip turned into a solid wrap round. “It charged off to the far bank and five minutes later I saw the silhouette of the fish - it looked huge,” he said. “The first attempt at netting it failed but I didn’t make any mistakes on the second chance.

“I couldn’t believe what I was looking at when I saw it on the matt. I’d smashed my pb twice in an hour and all the disappointment of not fishing much this year soon disappeared,” added Geoff, who used 12lb mainline and a size 7 Drennan Barbel hook.

Lewis Baldwin also achieved his season’s goal of setting a new personal best for the species when he caught a 17lb 10oz barbel just a foot from the bank.

The 32-year-old, from Stratford-upon-Avon, broke his previous ‘pb’ by 3lb 10oz when he set his sights on a midlands river.

Recent rainfall had caused the water levels to rise so he presented his boilie hookbait close to the near bank where the flow was at its weakest. He also introduced minimal bait due to his chosen stretch being heavily pressured.

A bait dropper full of hemp at the top and bottom of his swim was enough to keep the specimen in the area and a tiny PVA bag filled with two crushed boilies was nicked onto his size 7 Nash Fang hook that was finished with a hair-rigged boilie.
“On stretches which see a lot of pressure it’s important not to overdo it on the bait front,” he explained. “I only really add the PVA bag to ensure that my hooklink straightens out and gives me a good presentation.”

Joe Royffe needed just an hour at one of the UK’s toughest river fisheries to smash his barbel pb with a 15lb 6oz fish that topped a brace of specimens for a combined weight of 27lb 4oz.

The venue regular used 12 CC Moore Meteor boilies wrapped in matching paste and hooked the biggest of the pair just 10 minutes after casting out at the Fishers Green stretch of the River Lea in Hertfordshire.

Shortly after returning the specimen his rod tip was pulled round again resulting in his second double of the session at 11lb 14oz.

New personal best barbel from deep water

Time spent looking for areas of deeper water on the Dorset Stour proved worthwhile for Gareth Trigell who landed this personal best barbel of 13lb 12oz.

The Hampshire-based 44-year-old spent two hours looking for a suitable spot and then baited a two gravel runs with a mixture of Dynamite Baits Hemp and halibut pellets.

He said: “My rod hooped over just as it was getting dark. The fight was heavy and dogged because of the deeper water but after it made several attempts to weed me up it was safely netted.”

Gareth used a Dynamite Baits Marine Halibut with Sea Salt boilie fished on a short hooklink with an inline lead inside a solid PVA bag filled with hemp and pellets.

Two 14lb-plus barbel in two weeks

Andy Childs has been in a rich vein of form landing two 14lb-plus barbel in as many weeks from Kings Weir on the River Lea.

The venue regular, who has fished the stretch for over 40-years, kicked off his run with a 14lb 1oz specimen which fell to a CC Moore boilie wrapped in paste.

“My rod was almost dragged in by the power of the take,” he said. “I returned a week later to find the river in perfect condition after the recent rain. I used identical tactics and just after lunch I received a typical barbel bite.”

A long a powerful fight followed which resulted in a barbel of 14lb 12oz.

“I’ve been told that this is one of the biggest barbel ever caught from Kings Weir,” he added.

First session on Trent produces 14lb 3oz barbel

Julian Barnes’s first session on the River Trent this season proved to be a productive one as he banked a series of big barbel to 14lb 3oz.

Having shunned the Nottinghamshire-waterway for several months he decided to enjoy an evening session on a known hotspot.

Despite low and clear conditions he still felt confident of finding the fish and legered a 10mm Quest Baits Raja Spice boilie over a bed of mixed pellets.

Several barbel to 10lb 9oz and a chub of 5lb 3oz came after the first few casts but he saved the best until last with the biggest specimen rolling over the net in the early hours of the morning.

His successful rig was made up of 15lb mainline, a 4ft, 12lb hooklink and a size 10 Drennan Barbel hook.

13lb 12oz Soar barbel triumph

You don’t need to sign up to an expensive syndicate water to land big fish as James Wainwright found out when he banked a 13lb 12oz barbel from a club stretch of the River Soar.

The Loughborough Soar AC member fed a large bed of hemp and pellets over a slow moving area of the peg before presenting a 15mm boilie over the top.

His decision to use a big offering paid off shortly afterwards and after a tense battle the specimen rolled over the waiting land net.

It was beaten thanks to a rig that consisted of an 18 inch coated braid hooklink and a size 8 hook.

For more details on the club visit www.loughboroughsoarangling.co.uk

Barbel personal-best doubled in memorable session

Ian Halford’s short session on the Hampshire Avon produced one of the most stunning fish of his career as he banked a 13lb 13oz barbel.

The venue regular visited the prolific Royalty Fishery stretch of the waterway and sought expert advice on which of the swims to visit.

He eventually settled upon an area known as Mugs Hole and used legered luncheon meat to tempt the all-important wrap round.

His catch was made even more impressive when he revealed that the barbel almost doubled his previous best for the species.

14lb 1oz barbel caught in match

A fundraising match to collect cash for a brace of groups dedicated to improving fish stocks ended in style as winner Kevin Dyer banked a 14lb 1oz barbel from the Hants Avon.

The venue regular was taking part in the event to help boost the coffers of The Avon Roach Project and Barbel Society and took home the honours after the big specimen fell for a legered meatball.

Over 70 fishermen got involved in the annual get together, with angling icons such as Chris Yates donating tackle to raffle off in aid of both causes.

By the end of the day they had raised £6,000 to help both outfits push on with various schemes.

Macey lands his biggest barbel of the season

Former Olympic athlete Dean Macey has landed his biggest barbel of the season – this 13lb 10oz specimen from a southern river.

The Guru-backed rod arrived at the waterway with just an hour of light remaining and headed to a peg which he had seen a few fish in and baited up on a previous session.
Three bait droppers of Hinders Small Elips and Mainline Baits New Grange pellets were introduced before he left to swim to rest while he got the rest of gear ready.

He said: “I lowered my rig in just as the sun dipped behind the trees. I didn’t have to wait long until, without warning, my rod tip slammed round.”

After a powerful fight he beat his prize with an 18lb Korda Super Natural hooklink and a size 10 Guru MWG hook.

Evening walk pays off with 11lb 2oz barbel

Experienced specimen angler Rob Thompson spent an evening stalking a couple of swims on his local River Derwent where he landed this superb looking 11lb 2oz barbel.

The 39-year-old Loughborough Soar Angling Club committee member had to endure a bed of stinging nettles to get access to his swim so he could cast his feeder in the water before the fish struck late in the session. Using dampened pellet and a whittled down boilie on a hair rig, Rob had to work hard to land the fish from a snag infested swim using a size 6 Korum Xpert Power Hook to a 10lb braided hooklink.

160-mile round trip results in 16lb 15oz barbel

This 16lb 15oz barbel was a just reward for Jim Reece who made the 160 mile roundtrip from his home in Flintshire to fish the River Dove.

Arriving at the Staffordshire waterway early in the evening, the 23-year-old Airbus UK settled in a swim which allowed him to cast to an overhanging willow tree on the far bank.

His alarm burst into life just after midnight as the impressive specimen picked up his triple 10mm spicy boilie hookbait offered in conjunction with a cage feeder filled with crushed boilies and pellets.

He said: “I travel to the Dove every week. It is a long way, but when there’s fish like this on offer it’s well worth the effort.”

He beat his prize with a 2ft 12lb mono hooklink and a size 8 hook.