Dove maniacs

[Wolfman Woody]

Hahah!

Same story as Rik told me, but you've filled in more of the blanks. A real tale of triumph over adversity.

You can't it though, or so I was told by the FM members. You'll be up before the committee next for foul-hooking fish. Tsk-tsk!!!

 

[Graham Whatmore]

Great stuff. Thats a tale that will light up many a winter evening in the pub. You can almost feel yourself panting with exertion just reading it

 

[Ron Troversial Clay]

Interesting story.

Here's a question for you barbel bashers. What size do they fight the hardest?

From my own experience I would say about 7 pounds. The hardest fight I every had from a barbel was a 7 pounder from the Swale about 6 years sgo. On 8 pound line, 10 hook and 6 pound hook length it went like crazy all over the river. It took over 30 minutes by my watch to subdue.

I once played a fish on the Severn in the middle of Bewdley for over 3 hours. But I never saw it. It may have been a foul hooked barbel.

 

[Wolfman Woody]

That's an interesting one, Ron.

Are barbel like trout in that a 20lb trout has the same size heart as a 4 lb trout? Hence they don't fight as well becasue of all that extra lard they have to carry about. I'll ask around sometime.

 

[Ron Troversial Clay]

Trout is another interesting species the hardest fighting trout I have ever caught have been overwintered reservoir rainbows in the 31/2 to 4 pound bracket. Also some high altitude (7000 feet)rainbows in the same weight bracket have gone like stink.

I have had several double figure (Stocked) trout in my life that fought nothing like as hard. I much prefer the smaller reservoir fish.

 

[Ron Troversial Clay]

Those very big trout Jeff don't carry lard about I can assure you. The are all solid flesh and have had a diet of pellets.

Before they are released they are confined to quite small stew ponds, so they never have to use much energy up. Maybe the muscle is out of tone. Landing them is all about pulling a solid weight and they can take a long time. A bit like a cart horse compared to a race horse as **** Walker used to say.

 

[Wolfman Woody]

"Lard" was just a term, Ron.

If they have the same size of heart as a 4lber then they wouldn't be able to fight as long before the lactic acids (I think they are) start to build up n their muscle and you end up pulling against dead weight.

I don't want to get into trout, but just using them as a comparison if barbel are like them. Therefore your previous statement could be right that a 6-8lb barbel will fight the best, for it's size.

 

[Baz]

what a cracking story Graham, as has been said, the excitement comes through brilliantly. I would much sooner read something like this than someone pulling ten doubles out or whatever. Good exciting stuff.

 

[Baz]

Talking of small barbel being hard fighters, I caught my rod in mid air at the begining of the season by a six inch long barbel. It's in an article I have written which I hope to be putting on soon.

 

[Ron Troversial Clay]

I could be wrong of course. My 7 pound size rating is from my own experience. However what I will say is that Yorkshire barbel fight the hardest of all and I've caught barbel from 13 different rivers in England.

The worst are Hants Avon Barbel.

 

[Ron Troversial Clay]

I know what you mean Baz.

I'll bet none of you has had a barbel as small as me? About 4 inches from the Trent last year...)

 

[Frothey]

there is a lot of fat in farmed trout, wrap some in foil and bbq it. then see how much fat you pour out. thats also why the flesh isnt particularly pink...

 

[Baz]

While you are about Ron,
are there any short articles on **** Walker on the web? Ihave had a look but can't find anything much.

 

[Ron Troversial Clay]

I think it depends on the way they are fed Frothey. As I don't eat farmed trout from supermakets and refuse to do so, you may be quite correct. If I catch a trout that does not have pink flesh, and fortunately in the waters I fish it is a rarity, I sling it.

The very big stocked rainbows I have caught were taken from waters which do not allow catch and release. They have ended up being given away. Can't afford to have then stuffed or cold smoked.

Come on, back to barbel.

 

[Ron Troversial Clay]

As far as I know there are no articles about Walker on the web. I too have looked.

I really wish someone would write a book about Walker's life. People like me are not really qualified as we only met him and knew him over a short span of his lifetime.

Sorry, back to barbel.

 

[Baz]

Concerning the barbell that I said I caught touch ledgering last week and estimated at being a low double.
I had only just recast in about 4 foot of water, as I got hold of the line, I noticed that where the line entered the water, the line its self was tearing off upstream. I?m sure some of you will have experienced the same thing, but it just didn?t register with me that I had a fish on. It seemed like an age before I finally thought, strike you daft begger. This is how I came to lose it as I had given it too much time to head for the snags and couldn?t stop it. I did catch sight of it though. Most of the barbs that I catch are between 5 and 7 lbs, and these always go downstream.

 

[Steve King]

I caught a barbel of about 4" long from the Teme a couple of seasons ago. For its size it fought like stink and even jumped a couple of times - I was convinced it was a small trout until I landed it!

 

[Big Rik]

bitten by red ants, stung by nettles, scratched by thistles, knackered, sweating, climbing trees, scrabbling through bushes and running up and down banks, all for that old fart to drag in a 6lb bloody barbel.

Ungrateful old sod forgot his bloody wallet when we got to the chippy too.

Big Game has certainly gone up in my estimation though, that certainly got put through the mill (and the tree, the thorn bush, the reed bed etc)

 

[Baz]

On my session last week I said that I caught a chub first off in the usual manner of a rod wrencher, and then my swim went dead. The thing is I had baited the area and waited for about twenty minuets before casting in. So I was already thinking that the barbel had moved in and pushed the chub out.
After the chub I waited for a while before I got the first barbel, so I tend to think they were there all along.
From what I have heard, barbel will stay in a certain area even after being caught a few times, unlike the chub that will move to quiter areas. Does anybody know if this is true or not?

 

[Ron Troversial Clay]

Barbel are some of the most nomadic species of all. Way back in the 60s, We in the Northern Specimen Group did a barbel tagging project with permission of the river board.

We found that some barbel would move as much as 6 miles in a week. One particular fish which was tagged near Skipton and was catured in the Ouse below Beninborough about 4 days later. That's some distance.

We gave up the tagging project as the tags were damaging the fish.