Winter Bait changes

[Graham Elliott 1]

I'm interested in what other barbel anglers do to try and improve chances once the weather gets colder and the water temperature drops.

Increase the leakage or add flavour to your hook baits / feed?

Change to a more digestible mix like milks for example

Keep on with the same bait as you used all season so far?

Do you amend your loose feed levels...if you use any?

Any other thoughts?

 

[sam vimes]

Graham,
on the Yorkshire rivers I tend to stop specifically targeting barbel altogether. Far too dull for my liking. I'll fish for chub with worm, maggot, caster, meat and boilies. If a barbel comes along, so much the better. The only other river I usually fish for barbel on is the occasional trip to the Trent. In that instance I tend to stick to my usual baits and just reduce the quantities used, unless I get lucky and they're feeding hard.

 

[Bob Hornegold]

Add another tablespoonful of Sainsburys Tandorri Masarla Powered to my 4/5pints of Maggots ?

Bob

 

[Sean Meeghan]

Unlike Sam I do think that it's perfectly possible to catch Winter barbel in the frozen North. It might be interesting to look at my learnig over the last four years or so. Here are my initial thoughts on Winter barbel. Here is where I learnt a significant lesson and Here is how I approach it today.

Now I'm not linking to articles as an ego trip, but because they take you through my learning process on Winter barbel and because some of you won't know they exist.

I went through the less bait more flavour, but only in mild flood, to a belief that barbel can be caught throughout the Winter if I really want to. I'm convinced that live baits such as maggot and worm are the key to this and that once the year has turned barbel prospects are good almost despite the weather.

Obviously if we get conditions like we had early this year it might slow down sport a bit, but in a normal Winter it's always wortha go.

 

[sam vimes]

Unlike Sam I do think that it's perfectly possible to catch Winter barbel in the frozen North.

Never for one moment did I suggest that it's impossible, just that the action is generally far too slow for my liking.

 

[Graham Elliott 1]

Thanks for the feedback so far. My barbel fishing rarely starts till now so I just love the winter challenge. Away from pc at moment. Sean. Will have a good look at your approach when back home in a few days away from this blackberry thing!

 

[Simon K]

I suppose a lot depends on the water you're fishing and what the barbel population is like.

When I was targeting them through the season on the Lea, I found decent quality boilies (and maggots) would score throughout, it was just a question of whether it was cold and clear or mild and flood as to which bait to use (and how much) and when the feeding spells would be. Single boilie with paste in flood, several pints of curried maggots and hemp in cold.

 

[Neil Maidment]

When I was (occasionally) targeting barbel, Sean's ponderings were a revelation for me and boosted my confidence when bites were hard to come by. Mind you his version of winter tactics were several degrees colder than mine, what with Sean being from up north! Lots of good stuff in his articles (and some very nice photography).

Restricted to mainly the Dorset Stour and Hants Avon, I used to fish double or triple maggot, starting with a tiny feeder which was often replaced quite quickly with a straight lead. But mostly that tactic didn't really get an airing until I was satisfied trotting the float wasn't going to work on that particular day!

Must try and get out this winter and give them another go!

 

[cg74]

I suppose a lot depends on the water you're fishing and what the barbel population is like.

When I was targeting them through the season on the Lea, I found decent quality boilies (and maggots) would score throughout, it was just a question of whether it was cold and clear or mild and flood as to which bait to use (and how much) and when the feeding spells would be. Single boilie with paste in flood, several pints of curried maggots and hemp in cold.

Simon pretty much echoes my thoughts.

If fishing a prolific water, Middle Severn etc in low cold water; maggots are unbeatable, just keep em going through your swim.

If fishing for odd fish and if the water is up; boilies or pellets wrapped in an oily, spicy and strong scented paste. With very few freebies being offered, if the swim looks/feels like it may yield a few fish I might feeder fish pellets, using low oil carp/coarse pellets or broken boilies in the feeder and dampened oily and spicy pellets as the bung.

In essence the only major change I opt for; is everything in moderation.

Graham, I though it'd be you offering us the advice, not the other way around.

 

[Graham Elliott 1]

Thanks for all the comments and views.

I really enjoyed your last article Sean about your current approach. It seems the barbel up North are generally more active (probably due to lower ambient temperatures throughout the year) in the winter months ..possibly.


Your thoughts on searching them out mirror my own. IMO it would appear that possibly lack of natural food and lack of anglers baits can sometimes spark the fish into activity if offered an easy meal OR being tempted by bait coming through the swim. Your particle main feed mirrors my own very much.

I have managed 3 doubles of the Loddon in a session when the ice was forming in my rod rings but......the water temperature was up due those SW winds and rain you mention.

I might well go back to using a few of those maggot things after some of the comments and insights.

I asked the question because I was thinking of trying some lightly flavoured mini boilies lightly fed in really cold water conditions instead of my usual monster crab steeped, highly flavoured baits.


Interesting views Thanks.


Graham

 

[sam vimes]

It seems the barbel up North are generally more active (probably due to lower ambient temperatures throughout the year) in the winter months ..possibly.

That may need a little rephrasing before it comes close to being true IMO.
If the suggestion was that Northern barbel might stay active in lower temperatures than their southern bretheren, then perhaps. I really can't see there being any chance on God's green earth that northern barbel generally more active in the winter months (when compared to those in the south). If it were the case I, and plenty of others, would not be wasting time and money travelling to the Trent and the banks of the Yorkshire rivers might be a little more busy than the almost deserted that they generally achieve in the winter months.

 

[Graham Elliott 1]

Hi Sam. you said

"If the suggestion was that Northern barbel might stay active in lower temperatures than their southern bretheren, then perhaps."

Thats what I was trying to say, obviously not clearly enough. I did say possibly...

Trent to me is a long way north.......

 

[jasonbean1]

The variables involved are complex and it's a trial and error approach for me as drawn me my own conclusions....along with good info from locals when travelling.

I've found on a lightly fished section of the middle severn where pellets dominate... even in the winter when there's rarely an angler on the bank carefully fished pellets will always outscore maggots in the cold

but on the Wye in hereford where there's lots of anglers all year pellets are unbeatable for barbel in the summer but in the winter they're a waste of time and maggots get them going.

I think if I could fish a stretch of the wye which rarely seen an angler or a pellet a careful approach maybe would outscore maggots...who knows?

The only difference I can see for that reasoning is the amount of pellets going in when they can't really stomach them...less anglers less pellets, it's fair to pressume most pleasure anglers after barbel on both rivers will be using pellets and will not be taking 4 pints of maggots...simply because of the costs.

And if you started to pick and choose your weather conditions (fair weather) you might be missing out on some surprises

Cheers
Jason

 

[sam vimes]

Trent to me is a long way north.......

It's a fair trek south for me but the vastly greater numbers of barbel and the fact that the river doesn't rise in quite such an upland area means that chances of catching on a winter foray are far greater.

 

[Graham Elliott 1]

Hi Sam.

Yes as a generalisation a river with a very high number of barbel will generally be easier whatever the conditions. I'll be heading up the Trent for a couple of weekends myself now I'm back from my 6 months Wye adventures.

Jason.

I agree with pretty much everything you say, especially your observations on the Severn. I have however found over the past 4 seasons staying on the Wye that the pellet still scores very well in the winter especially for the bigger fish. Mind you feeding very little but lots of groundbait flavour.


I'll be mainly fishing the Thames (hard) and Loddon (can be ) this winter with a few Kennet days.

Graham

 

[gingerbeard]

Interesting forum thread, especially Seans links. Thanks for sharing that.

 

[jasonbean1]

Graham...I have to say my wye experiences over the lat few years in hereford have totally exceeded my expectaions. to be on heavily fished stretches of a river (by modern times) and catch many barbel and big chub nets as been mind blowing.

It's been simple mind you...go to woody's buy a ticket... he points you to the right area...tells you how to fish it and what bait to use.

bit of common sense and you are on to a winner..

in the words of wayne glossop "i'm living the dream"

cheers
Jason

 

[Simon K]

Graham...I have to say my wye experiences over the lat few years in hereford have totally exceeded my expectaions. to be on heavily fished stretches of a river (by modern times) and catch many barbel and big chub nets as been mind blowing.

It's been simple mind you...go to woody's buy a ticket... he points you to the right area...tells you how to fish it and what bait to use.

bit of common sense and you are on to a winner..

in the words of wayne glossop "i'm living the dream"

cheers
Jason

I can see why people like it, but I think the lack of a real challenge would bore me rigid in fairly short order. To be fair, I recently spent a couple of days on the Wye in Graham's wonderfully hospitable company and had a few fish in "unfavourable" conditions and it's a beautiful part of the country, but I wouldn't want to spend the rest of my fishing days there.

Good ol' Wayne. He'll be a Super-Mod on there next season.


Or he'll be on the Dark Side. :wh

 

[jasonbean1]

it's the same for me simon, the anglers who live around the wye perhaps don't realise how lucky they are to have a river like that on there doorstep..but I wouldnt want it to be my local, it's nice to travel up there once or twice a year and enjoy it.

living in oxford where it's barely worth targeting barbel anymore the choices of where to travel to are quite simple...the kennnet just down the road along with some other decent rivers but they all have bloody crayfish and to fish a river without them is a pleasure in itself!

this years been my first on the lower and i've got to say it's totally gripped me, spent alot of time down there, had 3 miles of river to myself apart from the odd weekend match...lots of fish, but it's took alot of bait and patience, been a standard boilie,hemp and pellet approach throuh the summer...will be interesting fishing it through the winter to the end of season...just to see if there is any need to change the bait approach or tactics

Cheers
Jason

 

[Simon K]

it's the same for me simon, the anglers who live around the wye perhaps don't realise how lucky they are to have a river like that on there doorstep..but I wouldnt want it to be my local, it's nice to travel up there once or twice a year and enjoy it.

living in oxford where it's barely worth targeting barbel anymore the choices of where to travel to are quite simple...the kennnet just down the road along with some other decent rivers but they all have bloody crayfish and to fish a river without them is a pleasure in itself!

this years been my first on the lower and i've got to say it's totally gripped me, spent alot of time down there, had 3 miles of river to myself apart from the odd weekend match...lots of fish, but it's took alot of bait and patience, been a standard boilie,hemp and pellet approach throuh the summer...will be interesting fishing it through the winter to the end of season...just to see if there is any need to change the bait approach or tactics

Cheers
Jason

Very true. Yes, to fish a river without crays for a change was mind-blowingly pleasurable!