Trent Carbelling - The long walk

It was Friday evening, my favourite time of the week and i had arranged an evening trip to the Trent with Keith. The area we had chosen was one id not fished for a few years due to the club losing access and it being one hell of a walk. With the distance involved it was decided between us that we should take my carp barrow and take turns pushing it. The weather was overcast but hideously humid and the sweat was pouring of us as we manhandled the barrow throught the undergrowth. It was bloody hard work but ten times better than carrying the gear on our backs  and we were setting up in our chosen swims in next to no time.
Nobody had been up there for ages and we both had to beat a swim out to get near the river. The flow in front of me was very powerful and i found that i needed 6oz to hold bottom only a third of the way across. It was a bit better along the margin and 3oz was more than adequate. After casting in and baiting up it wasnt long before i began to get a few indications as the downstream rod tip began to show up the odd chubby tap. The river appeared to be rising a little and there was quite a bit of flotsam coming down which kept snagging my line on the upstreamer and moving the lead out of position.
Despite the knocks, no proper pulls ensued and the evening was fast becoming night-time. A couple of Bream and a Carp head and shouldered over the downstream rod and i was confident of a bite at any minute. Suddenly the upstream rod buckled over and i found myself connected to an angry Barbel. It made full use of the heavy flow and had me thinking it was bigger than it actually was but on the bank it went 9lb exactly, a fine start!

A pristine 9lber

Shortly after returning that fish i heard a whistle from upstream and went up to find Keith doing battle with a lovely Barbel which turned out to be 10lb9oz, his first Trent double of the season. I headed back to my swim but nothing more was forthcoming and it wasnt long before Keith whistled once again. I got there just in time to net a nice Trent Common of 14.8, the man was on fire!

Keiths Carp

He went on to lose a fish to a hookpull  just prior to packing up which was a slightly disappointing end to a pretty successful evening for us, it was certainly worth the walk and i saw more than enough to make me head back up there again sometime soon!

Trent 'Carbelling'

After my Zander session the other night I was fired up for doing a full night for them on my next trip out. My old mate Phil was also keen to have a bash for them so we arranged to hit the river on Saturday night. By the time Saturday morning came around the Zander bug had waned somewhat and we decided to try a different stretch of Trent with Carp and Barbel in mind instead, fickle or what!

We got to the river at around 5.30pm and set about baiting our chosen swims and getting the camps put up. The stretch in question very rarely produces during daylight hours and you could be forgiven for thinking there are no decent fish to be had there whatsoever. After dark though it's a completely different story and the river literally comes to life in a way that I've never seen anywhere else. My swim, although very wide, had no more than 3ft of water anywhere in front of it and a clean gravel bottom. I'd not fished it before myself but it's noted spot for river Carp amongst the regulars down there so it had to be worth a go. Phils swim upstream was around 6ft deep and a little slower paced.

As expected neither of us had any indications up until dark when suddenly my upstream rod tip started banging around. It was a very Chubby bite but I bumped it off on the strike so I'll never know for sure. A similar bite occurred around half an hour later and I struck at thin air. By now it was properly dark and fish could be heard splashing all over the place, the atmosphere was electric and we both felt that a proper take was imminent. Nothing happened though and at 11.30 I decided to turn in for the night. I'd just made myself comfy and was gently nodding off when suddenly my downstream rod was nearly pulled into the river! The rod took the strain as I desperately tried to pull the fish away from the snags downstream and fortunately I managed to turn it. Phil had heard the take and he suddenly materialised next to me with the landing net in hand. The fish surfaced in the torchlight and turned out to be a nice Barbel which was soon netted. At 9lb12oz it wasn't quite the double we both thought it might be but still a very nice fish anyway, I was certainly pleased!

 After that I was buzzing and really struggled to sleep, in fact by the time my next bite came at 2am I don't even think I'd actually slept a wink. Another rod wrenching tug had me thinking I might be on for another Barbel but upon picking it up I was instantly disappointed. The strange jagging on the other end meant only one thing, Eel! I really wasn't looking forward to getting the thing on the bank and wrestling with it in the dark but it had to be done. Five minutes and 2lb of writhing slimy mess later, the offending creature was back in its watery home leaving me with the angling equivalent of a car crash to sort out, nice. Once sorted I was just drifting off to sleep when I heard Phils buzzer go. I could hear splashing and sounded fairly sizeable so I headed up to assist. I got there just in time to net a nice double figure common, a good result from what was another new swim to us.

By the time that was done and dusted it was gone 3am and I was dead on my feet. I hit the sack and once again my rod signalled a bite as I was drifting off. I hit into something decent for a few seconds before it came off, I reeled in to find a couple of large barbel scales on the hook and I cursed my luck. After recasting I heard Phils alarm shrieking again but I was too tired to care, I finally went to sleep. My slumber was broken a little by a couple of knocks that didn't develop into anything further and it was around 8.45 when Phil eventually came round and woke me up. He'd had a Bream and a Barbel of around 7lb just before first light and nothing since. The sun was shining as I had breakfast and once again the river looked dead. Darkness is definitely the key factor when it comes to catching on that stretch and i will certainly plan future trips accordingly.

Good to be back!

Friday 17th June

At last the much anticipated time had arrived to fish some running water! I finished work at 12.30 and hurriedly made my way home to collect my kit and have some dinner before heading to the Derwent to hopefully do battle with some of its Barbel.
I had an area in mind already and because its a good hike from the carpark i was extremely confident of having the whole stretch to myself, i wasnt to be disappointed. A couple of fields away from the carpark and it was fairly apparent that nobody had been this far down for months judging by the thick undergrowth encroaching the barely visible path. Fighting through heavy foliage in search of that perfect Barbel swim is all part of the exitement for me, i was in heaven!  Eventually, after about 20minutes of walking i came to some open fields and my fancied area.
The first swim i setup in was one of those spots that really jumps out at you, a really obvious one with a fallen tree in the water mid-river and a deepish looking run down the inside of it which screamed Barbel! I got setup, cast a boilie alongside the snag and sat back to await events.
After a short while i began to get a few bangs and taps on the rod-tip before eventually hooking and landing my first fish of the new season, a nice Chub of 4.8.

I couldnt get another pull after that so i moved on and tried a couple of other swims. During this time the weather closed in and it began to drizzle. No more bites were forthcoming so i looked for a swim i could settle in till dark. The spot i decided on was fairly shallow but had some nice overhanging trees which looked like they could be hiding a fish or two.
After around an hour or so my rod-tip absolutely buckled over and the bait-runner hissed. I lifted into the fish only to find myself backwinding imediately, i applied some side strain in an attempt to steer it away from some snags on the far bank downstream but unfortunately it made it and transferred my hook into a branch.
The rain had really set in now and did nothing to improve my mood as i re-rigged and re-baited. The river looked dead, nothing was showing whatsover so i was quite surprised to recieve a couple of taps on the tip which turned out to be the prelude to a properly savage bite which lifted the rod butt off the floor!
I hit into it but i could feel the line grating on an unseen snag mid-river and i was no surprise when the line parted shortly afterwards. I packed up after that, i know when ive been beaten and this was one of those occasions. To add insult to injury, my car went tits up on the way home and its looking like i might have go and get another one sooner rather than later, bugger!


Sunday 19th June

I was Trent-bound for my next trip and my mate Keith joined me, it was his first time on the stretch we targetted so i was determined to try and get him a Barbel. We had a walk to recce some likely looking areas and i was surprised to see that nobody at all was fishing this popular area on the first weekend of the season. The was a chap upstream in the distance but that was it so we had our pick of the pegs.
The first swims we setup in proved to be quite difficult to fish mainly due to the amount of drifting weed coming down, This stuff was the bain of my life last season and it seems to have shown up even earlier this year. Anyhow, we moved upstream to swims where we could fish down the inside margin and have a realistic chance of a fish or two.
Keith got off the mark almost imediately with a couple of smallish Chub but i couldnt settle and after an hour or so i was on the move again. I was drawn to one spot in particular, its a favourite winter Chub spot of mine but this time it looked cock-on for Barbel. There wasnt enough water in front of me for two rods so i concentrated on just the one. The weed was still pretty bad but i was fishing upstream and the bait was holding position for much longer than in the other swims.
Eventually the tip sprang straight and then nodded violently as a heavy fish made off with my boilie. I knew it was a Barbel straight away due to its ability to hold station in the heaviest flow before taking line as it swam upstream in it. The thing pulled my arm off for a bit before i finally netted it and after weighing it at 9.10 i knew my season had begun proper.



After returning it and recasting i sat back to watch the sunset, the river was absolutely alive with fish of all sizes and the scene was in complete contrast to the other night on the Derwent. I just knew the action wasnt over yet and it was no surprise when i had another take and found myself connected to another heavy fish out in the main current.

The first run had me thinking Barbel but then it calmed down and thumped away in the depths in a very Chub-like fashion. I got my first glimpse of it under my feet and it turned out to be a small Carp! It weighed just shy of 10lb, A typical Trent Common.

As the light faded i had quite a few more taps and bangs but no more hookups and i suspected that Chub were responsible. After packing up i walked down to Keith and it turned out that he too had some nice fish under his belt. No Barbel on this occasion for him but six Chub to nearly 6lb was a good result i thought. Anyway, thats the first weekend of the new season out of the way, its good to back on the rivers again, onwards and upwards!

The Inglorious 16th and slightly beyond

Wednesday June 16th
River carping
I opted to fish opening night this year as hadnt done so for a number of years and thought it would give me a chance of getting my season off to the best possible start. The Carp on my local river were to be my target and i arrived at my chosen peg along with Phil at around 7.30pm on the 15th.
The weather had turned overnight from being cool, overcast and breezy to calm, bright and sunny. This, combined with the current low and clear condition of the river would surely make for some tough fishing i thought.
By the time it started to get dark, everything was just about ready, swims plumbed and baited, rigs tied, houses in place and cold beer cracked open, all we had to do was wait till midnight.

The magic hour finally turned and after a bit of awkward casting in the dark the rods were soon positioned. Both of us had a couple of liners straight away and soon enough my right hander, which had been placed along my downstream margin, picked up a Bream of about 4lb. Soon after, Phil also had a similar sized Bream. I really hoped we wouldnt be plagued by these all night but i neednt have worried, other than a few more liners, we had no further action for the rest of the night.

It was bright sunshine when i awoke and there was no signs of fish to be seen along the whole stretch other than the odd Bleak jumping. I decided to pack up and head to another section of the same river armed with some Perch gear.


Trying for Stripeys
After falling asleep on the sofa when i got home it was much later than i had anticipated when i finally arrived back at the river. As i drove into the field it was obvious that no-one else had been down yet as the grass was right up to the car windows!
I quickly found a likely looking spot and set about catching some livebaits. It turned out to be proper bite a chuck stuff as a succession of small Roach,Perch and Bleak soon filled the livey bucket up. The sun was really burning but i still fancied my chances of a decent stripey especially with the small fish being so active.
Yet again i was destined to be thwarted though. Despite dropping in 4 different swims i couldnt even muster a half hearted pull on even the juiciest Roach i had. This was very unusual for the area i was fishing because normally in the past the takes come thick and fast, so much so that i often run out of baitfish and end up having to catch more to keep up.
I eventually packed up quite dispondently. Maybe the Perch had moved to faster flowing more oxygenated water? I had just the weirpool in mind..........


Thursday June 17th
Weirpool perch? i dont think so!
I arrived at the weirpool at about 7am and, like yesterday afternoon, i set about catching some livebait straight away. Again, like yesterday, it was a bite a chuck and soon enough the paternoster was out there doing its thing.
Within 10minutes the rod-tip banged over savagely and then sprang straight, i reeled in a very dead Roach which bore the usual hallmarks of a perch attack, stripped scales and a tattered tailfin. I rebaited, recast and then set up a free roaming rig on my other rod. This was basically just a chubber type float set to 3/4 depth with the shot bunched up about 12 inches from the single size 4 hook which was attached to a short length of fine wire to counteract any rogue Pike which might be about.
I liphooked a livey and trotted the float down the weirpool. It got to the end of the run completely unmolested so i slowly and deliberately wound it back up the run. It got about half way back when a Pike suddenly erupted clear of the water behind the float with my Roach in its mouth! The thing led me a merry dance, tailwalking all over the pool before throwing the hook.
After this i headed across the weir to try a run or two down the far side away from the disturbance. After about 3 trots down i found myself connected to another Pike . It didnt look very big but it was a fiesty one, again tailwalking everywhere but the hookhold was much better on this one and soon a fish of about 6-7lb was on the bank.
After this i couldnt raise any more takes so i packed up and planned an evening trip to the mighty Trent in search of some Zander.
First Zander trip of the season
Phil joined me for this trip planning to fish the stickfloat to see what he could pick up. Niether of us had fished the area before but it looked good for a bite or two. The weather was still hot and sunny with a gentle breeze but i have caught Zander from this river in these conditions before so i wasnt too concerned.
I rigged up half a dead Roach and cast it along my downstream margin into about 10ft of water. As i was setting up my second rod the bobbin on the one id just cast started to bounce before steadily climbing towards the butt-ring, my subsequent strike met nothing but thin air. Typical Zander i thought. These fish are usually very finicky at the best of times and ive pulled out many a hair in the past trying to convert these positive looking takes into fish on the bank. Ive tried hair-rigging and allsorts to no avail. The best hookup rate ive found is with a simple scaled down pike snap-tackle arrangement but this tends to result in a lot of dropped takes too so even now im still trying to find the ultimate Zander hooking rig!
I recast and then placed my second rod in the central channel about a third of the way across the river in around 12-15ft of water. The whole stretch is very deep with a steady but very powerful flow to it, an environment i think the zander are well adapted to.
After about 10minutes the rod in the channel was away and a Pike of around 7-8lb was duly landed. Once i rechucked it was another half hour or so before i saw any more action, the channel rod banged a couple of times and the bobbin dropped, i hit it and felt a heavy thumping on the end, i got it near the surface and got a glimpse of something very zanderlike but it came adrift before i could get a decent look, bugger! Just after that it was the margin rods turn. The tip wrapped around and line was pouring off the baitrunner but again my strike met no resistance!!
I recast to the same spot and as i tightened up i was met the strange sensation of something pulling on the other end! It stopped so i put the rod down see if it would develop and sure enough the line began to pull off the reel again. I hit it, nothing, talk about frustrating!!
After that flurry of action i had one more take just before dark from a small Pike of about 3lb. Considering ive not fished the stretch before it certainly gave up so action so Ill be back there in the very near future for sure.