Common Carp will be the best fish to use, try stay away from using indigenous fish such as Mudfish and especially Yellowfish. You will need to catch a carp between 20 and 30 centimeters in length as this is the perfect size bait for a large Barbel to pick up.
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What time of year is best for barbel fishing?
Muscular, torpedo-shaped bars of gold – for me, big barbel are the ultimate quarry for late summer and autumn. Many anglers rely on fishing during the hours of darkness to outwit the largest specimens, but big barbel can be readily caught throughout the day if you ensure you follow a few simple rules.
How do you fish for barbel on a river?
What is the best bait for barbel fishing?
Effective baits include luncheon meat, maggots and sausage. Barbel often lurk in holes during the day, calling for fine tackle with small baits in order to tempt them out. Worms are generally considered the best bait for barbel.
Where is the best place to catch barbel?
In terms of swim choice on smaller rivers in low / normal water conditions, you will find barbel almost anywhere, from slow deep pools to fast shallow glides and everywhere in-between. I do however find that barbel love to be close by to some form of cover, be that weed, rafts, submerged snags or overhanging trees.
Are barbel hard to catch?
Generally, barbel are not that difficult to catch – as long as you have them in your swim, of course! Moving swims is made much easier if you make a point of being organised with your tackle.
What size hooks for barbel?
TRY USING SMALL HOOKS They also allow you to use smaller particles. There are many small hooks such as the Korum Specimen that are strong enough in size 14 and 12 to cope with big barbel. I use them for small baits such as 8mm pellets, mini boilies and single grains of corn.
How long should a barbel rig be?
The hook length can be 6 inches to 6 foot. Some anglers catch barbel on carp style rigs, just 6 inches in length, whilst others swear by using long hook lengths up to six feet in length. The average hook length is probably more likely to be between two & three feet in length.
Are barbel fish good to eat?
Barbel roe is poisonous and causes vomiting and diarrhea in some people. However, the fish itself can be eaten and recipes are available in The Illustrated London Cookery Book by Frederick Bishop.
How do you set up a barbel rig?
Where do barbel feed on a river?
They are fairly obvious to the naked eye, you can often get deep glides that hold barbel and also very shallow ones depending of the uniform of the river. These are good areas to look for barbel and often indicate a clear gravel bottom in which barbel love to feed over.
Does barbel like cheese paste?
Cheese paste has a better consistency than bread and is attractive to most of our species of fish, I’ve had trout and eels and a mate had a pike on the stuff! But, in the main, I use it for chub and barbel although it is a top bait for carp and roach.
Does barbel like sweet corn?
Sweetcorn is one of the top baits for carp, barbel, bream, tench and sometimes big roach, although most species would take it as a bait. Tinned sweetcorn can be found ubiquitously in supermarkets and at your local tackle shop.
What bait works at Vaal Dam?
The best way to determine this would be to hold the rod steady with some tension and if there is a pulsation then pull the rod as a fish has taken the bait. Live bait is by far the best choice. Worms, minnows, soft-shell crayfish, and leeches will offer the best results.
What is best size boilies for barbel?
Both carp pellets and halibuts, their more oily cousins, make fantastic barbel baits. The small 4mm-8mm versions are great for feeding via a bag, in a feeder or by hand. The bigger varieties from 10mm and upwards are great for fishing on the hair or in a bait band.
Can you catch barbel on lures?
If you can get the cast right, watching a barbel pounce on your lure as it hits the bottom is an awesome sight. I’m amazed at how eager they can be to chase down a lure, often beating chub to it.
How do you find deep holes in a river?
Does barbel eat bread?
Bread for Barbel Many anglers have listened to my advice and not only caught their first barbel on crust but often their personal best. Remember bread has been used for a hundred years or more and it’s still good today.
Does barbel feed during the day?
Barbel are, in fact, not just creatures of the night but one of the most voracious of daytime feeders.
Does barbel bite in winter?
WInter was very successful for me last year I caught barbel right through the winter even when temps got down to a max of 9′ in the day. We caught just about every weekend without fail even in the dead of winter.
How do you catch the big barbel?
What are the best barbel hooks?
- Marine Halibut Pellets and Pre-Drilled Marine Halibut Pellets.
- Big Fish River Groundbait and Busters.
- Frenzied Hemp and Snails.
- Meaty Marine Pellets and Meaty Fish Bites.
- Crave Boilies and Crave Tuff Paste.
- CompleX-T pellets and CompleX-T boilies.
How do you make groundbait for barbel?
What is a size 4 hook used for?
Use the smaller #4 for insects like crickets and grasshoppers to target Trout and Panfish. The light wire keeps these fragile baits in tact, and the long shank lets you easily remove the hook.
What line is river barbel on?
Like any big river you need at least 2lb test curve rods and 15lb mainline. That may sound very heavy, but there are a lot of very big fish in the river now, add to this the vast collection of rocks and snags the carp-like tackle makes sense.