H.Avon Severals Fishery

[dorsetsteve]

Hi Guys,
I’m hoping someone will help. Severals is now my local fishery and where I’m targeting the Barbel. Trouble is I don’t think I’m getting it right. This year is my second year on the fishery and last year I only weedled out 3 Chub and one Barbel, over about 4 months fishing once a week for upto 5 hours. This year has been better, I’ve caught more Chub that than in a single session but the blanks are frequent, in fact sessions where I do catch are the exception. I understand that the Barbel will be hard won but I’d expect to pick up at least one Chub a session? The last three sessions I’ve caught 1 6oz Dace in 12 hours total.

The approach I’m using is to target swims I see fish in during day light, I visit the fishery a few times a week for an hour or so to see what’s going on. I then cast into these areas with a PVA bag full of pellet and an a few boilies. Then a boilie as hook bait. I will often get Chub knocks which dislodge the lead and drag the bait away from the baited area, equally I don’t connect with these fish despite quite savage (at times) takes. I’ve tried shortening the hair, scaling down to 6mm pellets etc and still the same result.
As you can imagine I’m getting pretty dispondant.

Not expecting secrets or to be handed your hard earned knowledge just a few nudges in the right direction. PM me if you’d rather not discus publicly as I know this is a tight lipped fishery.

 

[O.C.F.Disorder]

My advise would be try some other methods of fishing and a wider range of bait. In the summer should be able to catch nice chub on bread, maggot, worm or even a simple spinner with ease.

 

[108831]

The trouble is Avon barbel don't like seeing hooked chub twisting in the swim so avoidance is the key,meaning even more fishless sessions,very difficult as barbel on the Avon are scarcer than they were,are you seeing barbel,if so are they feeding,or in numbers,in 2's,3's etc,I'm afraid your only options are to extend your hair to 15mms or so,heavier lead than required,or to go the expensive route of casters on a big hook,which Avon chub will not touch.

 

[Tee-Cee]

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[dorsetsteve]

Cheers guys. I can catch the Chub else where just the Avon that’s proving difficult.
Cheers Whitty. Do you mean a 15mm gap from the bend of the hook to the bait?
I’m seeing Barbel, only in one location. There’s 3 of them they move in pick up an item then move off again. Singularly or in pairs. Never do they appear together and stay getting stuck in.

 

[108831]

Cheers guys. I can catch the Chub else where just the Avon that’s proving difficult.
Cheers Whitty. Do you mean a 15mm gap from the bend of the hook to the bait?
I’m seeing Barbel, only in one location. There’s 3 of them they move in pick up an item then move off again. Singularly or in pairs. Never do they appear together and stay getting stuck in.

Ah,if there is ranunculus nearby,as there nearly always is on the avon,there are probably more than three,it is quite normal behaviour and yes from the bend of the hook,as I've said on another thread chub will pull hard trying to loose the bait from the hair,try trimming boilies to release more flavour and look different,different sizes of boilie and double boilie.

 

[dorsetsteve]

Cheers for the tips. I will give that a go. I’ve been using CC Moore’s Pacific Tuna or the Odyssey XXX, relatively confident in that choice.

 

[108831]

Any good bait will work,try feeding said swim just with your boilies,half baits,just to see response,no pellet...

 

[Philip]

equally I don’t connect with these fish despite quite savage (at times) takes.

If your getting savage takes and connecting with nothing then changing to fishing an upstream presentation can sometimes solve the problem.

 

[Keith M]

If there are Barbel in my swim and I don’t want to hook the Chub that are picking up my baits I will try extending my hair (as Whitty has already said) and more times than not this solves the problem.

I don’t worry about any savage takes that don’t result with a hooked fish as these are usually Chub which are moving off with the bait held between their lips and as long as your bait isn’t being broken down or removed it will usually end up back on the deck once the bait is pulled from the chubs lips by the weight of the lead; and is ready for the Barbel to pick up and give their usual 4 foot takeaways.

I can usually prove this is happening by either shortening my hair so that my bait is lying against my hook shank or hooking the bait directly onto my hook; and these savage takes usually result in me hooking Chub.

NB: The really big Chub which are often feeding on their own away from a shoal don’t always follow the same rules and often swallow the bait straight away but these are usually far less common anyway, plus I don’t really mind hooking these

Keith

 

[dorsetsteve]

Cheers guys. Itching to get out and implement some changes. The main issue I’ve always had when finding Barbel is no matter what I do, feed first and wait, bait in and feed, PVA and wait there’s a common outcome, they move in, pick up some bits hang around for 20 minutes then leave without taking the bait. I’ve tried different hooklength lengths, back leads etc but this is the most common problem I have. I’ve never successfully stalked one out.

 

[O.C.F.Disorder]

Have you tried a more finesse approach?

 

[thecrow]

Have you tried not feeding or feeding very little to try to get them to pick up what is on offer including your hookbait? It seems to me that not enough fish are coming into the swim to compete with each other for food taking a bit, leaving and possibly returning later.

 

[dorsetsteve]

In what respect re finesse. The average fish is a double.

 

[dorsetsteve]

Have you tried not feeding or feeding very little to try to get them to pick up what is on offer including your hookbait? It seems to me that not enough fish are coming into the swim to compete with each other for food taking a bit, leaving and possibly returning later.

The PVA bag isn’t huge, like a satsuma sized offering? I haven’t tried just a hookbait in the asumpstion they simply wouldn’t be drawn to it? Is that a misunderstanding on my behalf?

 

[thecrow]

The PVA bag isn’t huge, like a satsuma sized offering? I haven’t tried just a hookbait in the asumpstion they simply wouldn’t be drawn to it? Is that a misunderstanding on my behalf?

Its always worth a try, how many Barbel are caught on what becomes a single bait after the freebies have either washed away or been eaten by silvers?

 

[dorsetsteve]

Its always worth a try, how many Barbel are caught on what becomes a single bait after the freebies have either washed away or been eaten by silvers?

Very true. After an hour I don’t expect much of the small pellets etc are still there.

 

[108831]

Maybe you'll have to be carpy with them,feed them just a few boilies for a few days and not fish for them,then feed the same amount with yours being below the feed.

 

[O.C.F.Disorder]

By "finesse" I mean smaller hook, lighter line, smaller weight

 

[thecrow]

By "finesse" I mean smaller hook, lighter line, smaller weight

Using that would in weedy water and targeting the Barbel would only end in one way.

Barbel are not usually overly tackle shy.