What tackle do you need to get on the banks?

Rods and Reels - Click the images for further information

Obviously the most important tackle items to any fisherman, a rod and reel will become very precious to an anlgler. I still have my first ever barbel rod, which I pull out when I'm going through a bad patch and it always seems to change my fortunes!!

There are two main types of rod you should be looking at when it comes to river Barbel fishing. The first is an Avon or fixed tip rod which tend to have more backbone and be less sensitive than the other option which is a quiver tip. An avon style tip has larger rings and will not clog with weed so easily, the rings are also fewer in number. Quiver tips are not ideal for heavier lines of 10-12lb and are often left redundant in a Barbel anglers rod case.

For general Barbel fishing I would suggest a 1.5-1.75lb test curve feeder rod, preferably supplied with 2 or 3 quiver tips ranging from 3-5oz. A rod like this will enable you to approach a number of different situations in different ways. Many modern Barbel anglers will say that the need for a quiver tip whilst Barbel fishing has long since gone, but I beleive that given the right situations a quiver tip can be invaluable.

A good 'do anything' rod would be a Fox Barbel Dou XS. I have one of these and I use it for nearly all conditions apart from the heaviest of floods.

Above is my J.W Youngs 12" Barbel rod, rated at 2lb and supplied with an Avon top and a spliced in 3oz quiver. This is what I would call a little treat to myself!! Recently purchased and still nice and clean, it is a fantastic rod with a heck of alot of poke right the way throught to the butt. I have used it once so far on the River Severn in flood, casting upto 8oz leads and landing fish to 7lb with ease. This is a great big water, big Barbel rod!

Above is my Fox Barbel Duo XS. This was my first serious Barbel rod. Supplied with a 1.75lb test avon tip and 3 quivers in 3,4,5oz carbon quivers and a 4oz glass (softer) quiver. I have landed fish to nearly 13lb on this rod and it felt like it had more to give. I have used this rod in severe flood and it will cope, but I feel it excels on a big river at a normal to high level. Capable of casting 4-6oz which should normally be more than enough.

Ah, my first Barbel rod. A shimano 'Catana' heavy feeder rod. It is my only 3 piece 12" Barbel rod. I would guess at a test curve of 1.5lb test curve and noticably lacks the capability to fish a larger river at anything but a normal level. It is however, a fantastic rod that is more than capable of landing a 10lb plus fish if you take care. You could not buy a better first Barbel rod than this!! I still use mine occasionally, and it does seem to be lucky, even with some of the rings held on with electricians tape!

Above is my Daiwa 'Pro Barbel' which is a nice rod, very soft and best suited to lower water. Again supplied with two quivers of 3-4oz it does not have the raw power of the top two rods, but is capable of landing some big fish. It features a slightly longer than normal, full cork handle which shows the Daiwa quality. If you are fishing a smaller river than the Severn or when the water is low then this could be a good first rod for you!

I have briefly gone through your options as regards rods. As I hope you would now be aware, a rod needs a reel. This is fitted by a screw lock device which come in various different brands etc. If you are looking to buy a rod and reel, I would suggest going to a shop and having a feel of the rod and ask if you can attach the reel you like. Some reels do tend to fit some rods better than others! If you already have a rod and are buying a reel, take your rod down to your local tackle shop and try the reels and Vice-versa!

The Classic Shimano Aero baitrunner reel. I opt for a 6000 series for added power and a slightly larger spool. You will also notice that all my reels have the double handle facility. This gives the reel a better balance and when you have cold hands and are fumbling around in the dark are sometimes easier to find! The Shimanos are all rear drag with the baitrunner settings just above the main drag. These reels last for years and will NEVER let you down. They come with 2 spools, one of which you should load with 8 or 10lb and the other with 12lb, so you can take the spare spool and change it as conditions dictate. The baitrunner funtion is really essential when Barbel fishing, unless you plan on holding the rod for the entire session. You can clearly see the baitrunner swith just above the rear drag on the pictures above. It simply allows line to be taken under the minimum of pressure, allowing the spool to spin free as the fish takes the bait and the rod hoops over rather than the fish taking the bait and your rod into the river! As you lift into the fish, half a turn of the handle disengages the baitrunner and you are ready to do battle.

This is the Okuma Max 4 Camo, which is one of the many alternatives to the Shimano Baitrunners. The Primary difference being that this one is front drag and the cost to buy. The Shimano is over twice as much as the Okuma, but hand on heart, I can honestly say the Okuma will serve you well. The Okuma has an equivalent to the baitrunner called a freespool system, mounted in a similar way to the Shimano. Some anglers swear by front and some by rear drag systems. I personally prefer rear, but you may be different!

This is a Shimano Stradic 3000 series. The king of Shimano reels without a baitrunner funtion though. The reason that is of no concern is that I use this for link ledgering or tiny maggot feeders always holding the rod. If you can afford one, buy one!! They are the strongest, smoothest, most precise reels I have ever used!

Rod rests are all a matter of personal choice. You can get ones aimed at the Barbel angler specifically or the more general 'do everything' not that well ones! I tend to use the ones above or similar. If I could only take one type of rod rest with me it would be the one right in the middle which is a John Roberts Barbel Rest. These hold the rod superbly and have a very deep channel to allow your line to run free. Even in the strongest of flows it will hold your rod well. There is a cheaper one on the far right that is adequate, but is fixed on a rather flimsy aluminium, extendable bankstick. The blue one is for quiver tipping, so you can move the rod up and down the rest to adjust resistance. Many anglers prefer the rest similar to the green one, with a flexible section of tubing. I really like these, unless it windy, due to the rod only supported from the one side. The one with the red top is just a piece of bent aluminium, which as a rod rest is useless, but is good for hanging lamps on or pinning the butt of your rod down whilst answering a call of nature! The best thing to do again is experiment. I would try flexible more rubberised rests, purely because the rod can tend to slide around on the harder, more plasticy ones.

Quiver

Now you have gone out and bought all your gear you need a method to carry it all comfortably and safely. You do have options - you can go for a ligthweight quiver like I use or a fully enclosed, but heavier, carp style rod case. On the left is a two rod Korum quiver, which in my opinion is the best value onthe market. It can carry nearly all the gear that the carp style one on the right, but is about a quarter of the weight! It also has a carry handle and a thick padded neck strap - It retails at about £25 and is fantastic!!

Fish Welfare

The matter of fish welfare is something that is being, quite rightly so, brought more and more into the spotlight. It is very much at the forefront of most competent anglers mind, both during and after the fight and maybe even more so during the release. Unhooking mats, orignally used for Carp fishing are now considered a must for Barbelling. For the sake of £10, everyone can do their little bit!

Another thing which should be carefully considered is the tye of net you decide to use. People making the transition from Carp fishing to PROPER fishing, oops, I mean river fishing will already have their humungous carp nets, which will do fine although a little heavy to carry and hold in the flow. If you are purchasing a new net, I would recommend a specialist Barbel net. I use a spoon shape Team Daiwa one with a fairly coarse mesh which will allow the net to be held easily in the strongest flow.

The most important thing about your net will be the size. If you get a tiny match fishing type spoon net then you could potentailly injure fish trying to squeeze them into an undersize net. Any good local angling shop will advise you on the type and size of net that you'll need. I use a Gardner Barbel Specialist net which is pretty big, but is coarse enough to not drag in the current.

Your unhooking mat really only needs to be a small/medium one compared to the huge carp ones. I use a small Korum one, which is plenty big enough for a large Barbel. It also packs down nice and small, doubles as a seat cushion and costs just under a tenner. It also has a Korum label for any 'Tackle tarts'!! Please note the forceps which are in position ready for action!

Essential kit! - Below is a selection of things I always take with me when I go fishing.

Small forceps - For badly hooked fish
Scissors - For cutting line and tape
Bait drill - For drilling holes in boillies and pellets
Baiting needle - For threading hair rigs
Korum bait needle - As above
Disgorgers - I find useful for smaller fish
Swiss Army Knife - Allsorts!!
Baiting Hook - For threading baits
Spoon - For feeding me!
Electrical tape - Running repairs

On the right is the top tray of my bait bucket which includes all the bits and bobs that I know I'll use regularly and as such need to be easily accessible to me.

Above - A headtorch is an invaluable piece of kit for any angler. Whether you have an early morning session, an all night session or indeed and afternoon session where you get carried away - have your headtorch in your bag and you have hands free lighting for as long as you want it!! I always say to anglers only have it on when you need it to see, don't have it flashing all over the place scaring the fish!'

Above - The Rigbin - Wow what a piece of kit. A small tub a bit bigger than a can of pop which will hold 10 ready made hooklinks safe and secure. Gone are the tattered bits of old card (or in my case beermats!) and rig boards with little pins. This is the thing to hold any type of hooklink, thus saving you valuable time on the bank and avoid uneccesary cold hands in the middle of the night!

A comfortable angler is a happy angler!

A trip can be completely ruined if an angler is not comfortable. A good sturdy chair is a must, like mine below it must have extendable legs with mudfeet, so it can be set up properly on uneven/muddy banks safely. You don't have to spend a bomb, mine is a cheap and cheerful one which has lasted for around 5 hard seasons and is just about still going strong. Ideally you want to try and get one that is the right size for you, has enough padding over the frame, has a good carry strap and above all is'nt too heavy. Afterall you may need to walk several miles with it!

So now you have the rods, reels, tackle box and chair you could head out now. Right??!!

Wrong! Before going to the bank, think about what you may need during the cause of the day. An essential at anytime of year is a good pair of field boots to keep the warmth in and the water out. I like TF Gear ones because they are nice and light, breathable but still warm in the winter time. As you can see from below my boots are lay on my fishing coat. Have I spent £100's on it?? NO. An Army parker is what you need. Completely waterproof, lovely and fleecey inside, fleece hood with peak and longer than an average coat so you don't get a draft up your back. £30 off the net from an Army Surplus shop. Fantastic, never go without it even in the summer - it can still turn very cold at night!

On the right below is something that, I feel, most anglers would be completely miserable without. Something not to skimp on is a good quality Thermos Flask, or two if you drink tea by the gallon like me. The stainless ones are best because the glass ones will often break inside with the slightest knock. As well as your tea you want some food. Sandwiches are ok for a day on the bank, but for a night you want something hot inside you. Why take a stove and carry it miles when you can heat some soup at home and put it in a food flask like the one on the right? £15= hot soup to go with your buttered rolls and tea. Can't go wrong!!

If you prefer a fresh cuppa and like to live it up a bit you can get nice cuttlery sets and a Kelly/Storm kettle to make a fresh brew in 2 mins flat. I like to take the Storm kettle when fishing with friends and use the flask when I'm alone.

A few little essentials which must never be forgotten are your scales ( you never know when a PB is on the cards!), Polarised glasses for fish spotting and a mini camera tripod so that should your PB show itself and nobody is about you can still get a good snap!

Lastly, now you have all the gear, you need to consider how you'll carry it all to your chosen swims. I use a Barbel Specialist rucksack for carrying all my gear and a TF Gear stalking belt is I'm wandering around fishing multiple swims. Just make sure that you have some nice big pockets, a large main compartment and most importantly big tags on the zips that can be grabbed with cold pinkies and easily accessible compartments.

Go equipped in a way that suits the type of fishing you intend to do, but try to give yourself options when you arrive. If you take a bait bucket with a top tray you can rove around a bit.

What you need to get started............