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one rod or two

Simon King said:
Jon Frisby said:
One thing i will say is if you do fish more than one rod, ensure its secured, set the drag and not the baitrunner, QUOTE]



:confused:

Do you mean, set the drag, if you don't have a baitrunner?

I assume you're not suggesting leaving the baitrunner function off, if you have one?
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Yes in my own litle world i use the drag the BTR only comes into play when i rrequire it, my drag isnt set too tight though, i want line to give, but at the tension that i want, not hard but not too little. In a nutshell i dont really use the BTR.
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After reading many this thread I have looked back on how I fish.

2 rods where baitrunners are being used (I only use alarms if I am tired and may drop off to sleep) I am never far from my rods as I like watching the tips before the reel screams

1 rod if I am quiver tip/touch ledger fishing with a reel without baitrunner and no chance of nodding off (well ok, a small chance in nodding off;))

I use hair rigs on baitrunners so no point in striking (ever) when reel screams when a simple lift is all thats requied and a baitrunner gives a few extra seconds before you need to pick rod up!

I bait the hook on a quiver, when tip moves i strike, Otherwise rod flys in or you miss the bite anyways as i swear fish use a knife and fork to remove baits if not struck at the right time......

Just what I do and am confident in doing.. I feel 2 quiver tips could cost more fish as all small movements could be shy bites or weed! with 2 rod tips twitching all the time it would take the relaxation i find in fishing:D
 
Richard Parsons said:
Simon - well put. We can't all fish the Wye every week :)
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It doesnt matter what river you are fishing mate, the primary concern should be the welfare of the fish. I know these days you have baitrunners, but as everybody knows - barbel can cover ground rapidly, which will almost certainly end in the fish being tethered in a snag by the time you have buggered around with rod one.

At the end of the day, it's each to their own - if it works for you with 2 rods, then best of luck. :cool:
 
one rod too

only use one rod on the medway as its far too snaggy and wouldnt want o risk hooking into two at the same time and one getting snagged and possibly damaged as a result and i dont use hair rigs so need to concentrate for bites each to there own though.
 
i find fishing two rods on a small river an absolute nightmare, and much prefer the roving/single rod approach. However and on the same vibe of a previous post, 2 rods on a large river not a problem and move down to the single rod when they are having it. Roll on June.
 
Last 2 seasons on the middle severn ive just use one rod for a few reasons.Its to much hard work with two rods and I feel im not putting 100% both rods. Also I tend to roam around alot now on the middle and carring 2 rods is a pain .Having a few trips on the lower this year there I will use 2 rods
 
Mark de Lancey said:
At the end of the day, it's each to their own - if it works for you with 2 rods, then best of luck. :cool:
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That pretty well sums it up, Mark (or mate, if you like). I usually fish only one rod anyway but, as I said, on rivers less prolific than the Wye (which includes most) bites are sometimes at a premium and it's advantageous to fish two rods, where the swim allows.

Contrary to what you've written, I believe the river being fished is one of the main factors, when deciding 'one rod or two':rolleyes:
 
I've had the dreaded double hook up happen a couple of times now and so this is what I now do: As soon as I'm into a fish I play it softly with the rod low and parallel to the water so as not to 'pull' the fish up and they do seem to put up less of a fight as long as they're hugging the bottom. I then stand across the 2nd rod and grip the butt below the reel with my legs (calves) and wind it in like crazy!
It works a treat and I've never lost a fish doing it and never had a double hook up since.

It does look very unelegant though :eek:
 
Richard Parsons said:
That pretty well sums it up, Mark (or mate, if you like). I usually fish only one rod anyway but, as I said, on rivers less prolific than the Wye (which includes most) bites are sometimes at a premium and it's advantageous to fish two rods, where the swim allows.

Contrary to what you've written, I believe the river being fished is one of the main factors, when deciding 'one rod or two':rolleyes:
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I guess we will have to agree to disagree then Mr Parsons (i hope this more formal tone is better for you). I also hope that the next teathered barbel i free from the base of a tree on the Bristol Avon is not the result of an angler fishing two rods. Cue sarcastic eyes - :rolleyes:
 
Ok let's all agree that the Barbel primarily is a shoal fish, and therefore would it be safe to assume then that if by using two rods then a double hook up is a distinct possibility?
Seems to me to be bad practise in using two rods as the potential for a snagged fish is very real, no pussy footing around with me, ''with depends on what river you are fishing'' rubbish.
Just a selfish practice I reckon.
 
Neil Smart said:
Ok let's all agree that the Barbel primarily is a shoal fish, and therefore would it be safe to assume then that if by using two rods then a double hook up is a distinct possibility?
Seems to me to be bad practise in using two rods as the potential for a snagged fish is very real, no pussy footing around with me, ''with depends on what river you are fishing'' rubbish.
Just a selfish practice I reckon.
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Quite an aggressive stance that Neil.

I see you live in Tewkesbury, the lower Severn is one place where you can use two rods in total safety.
Far from being the shoal fish of the middle river the fish on the lower tend to be nomadic, travel in small groups and only congregate in certain well known feeding areas.
I would suggest that double hook ups from barbel are a very rare occurrence, your biggest problem down there is avoiding the bream.
 
Adrian Williams said:
Quite an aggressive stance that Neil.

I see you live in Tewkesbury, the lower Severn is one place where you can use two rods in total safety.
Far from being the shoal fish of the middle river the fish on the lower tend to be nomadic, travel in small groups and only congregate in certain well known feeding areas.
I would suggest that double hook ups from barbel are a very rare occurrence, your biggest problem down there is avoiding the bream.
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Yes I was on reflection, but I wasn't thinking of the Lower Severn, I rarely do, and I am sure you are right they are very nomadic down here:) In fact I reckon to target barbel seriously below the weir you would need a carp anglers approach and a week away from the missus.
But I will stand by my point in a general sense that in most circumstances a two rod approach is risky, which I think has been demonstrated by even the most competent of anglers. I am thinking that this is a carry over from those that are either once or still are carp anglers, which is common practice on a still water, but a different set of circumstances with barbel on a River.
 
Neil Smart said:
Ok let's all agree that the Barbel primarily is a shoal fish, and therefore would it be safe to assume then that if by using two rods then a double hook up is a distinct possibility?
Seems to me to be bad practise in using two rods as the potential for a snagged fish is very real, no pussy footing around with me, ''with depends on what river you are fishing'' rubbish.
Just a selfish practice I reckon.
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"Just a selfish practice I reckon."

And I reckon that's just your selfish opinion.:p
 
Neil Smart said:
Yes I was on reflection, but I wasn't thinking of the Lower Severn, I rarely do, and I am sure you are right they are very nomadic down here:) In fact I reckon to target barbel seriously below the weir you would need a carp anglers approach and a week away from the missus.
But I will stand by my point in a general sense that in most circumstances a two rod approach is risky, which I think has been demonstrated by even the most competent of anglers. I am thinking that this is a carry over from those that are either once or still are carp anglers, which is common practice on a still water, but a different set of circumstances with barbel on a River.
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I sense a slight back track, what about the Thames around Oxfordshire where the chances of catching a barbel are between very low and bugger all, do us Oxon anglers get the privledge of fishing two rods, or does that make us "carpy" types?

Picking up on the underlined section, what on earth is meant by "most circumstances"?
 
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Neil Smart said:
Ok let's all agree that the Barbel primarily is a shoal fish, and therefore would it be safe to assume then that if by using two rods then a double hook up is a distinct possibility?
Seems to me to be bad practise in using two rods as the potential for a snagged fish is very real, no pussy footing around with me, ''with depends on what river you are fishing'' rubbish.
Just a selfish practice I reckon.
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Agree 100%
 
Colin Gordon said:
I sense a slight back track, what about the Thames around Oxfordshire where the chances of catching a barbel are between very low and bugger all, do us Oxon anglers get the privledge of fishing two rods, or does that make us "carpy" types?

Picking up on the underlined section, what on earth is meant by "most circumstances"?
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Well I did wonder how long it would take you, so thought of your well being.:)
The fact that the barbel count on a river may be lower on 'your' rivers doesn't make it any more acceptable,.I believe in fishing 'two up', for the reason I gave that when and if the barbel do move in then having to possibly neglect a hooked fish whilst attending to the other rod is just not on, in any sense of the word even, with your carpy hat on.

Surely you must agree?:(
 
Neil Smart said:
Well I did wonder how long it would take you, so thought of your well being.:)
The fact that the barbel count on a river may be lower on 'your' rivers doesn't make it any more acceptable,.I believe in fishing 'two up', for the reason I gave that when and if the barbel do move in then having to possibly neglect a hooked fish whilst attending to the other rod is just not on, in any sense of the word even, with your carpy hat on.

Surely you must agree?:(
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I agree that it would be neglectful to put all your attention into one rod and ignore a second one (if two rods are being employed). Same as its wrong to neglect one rod, if only using a single rod set up.

Thing is Neil, you clearly don't grasp the facts on many rivers shoals of barbel are a very distant memory, small pods of 2-3 fish are at best all some can expect to see on their local rivers.

So work out the odds:
Catching one barbel = At best very slim.
Catching two barbel in one session = Nigh on non existent.
Catching two barbel from two seperate areas of a swim simultaneously = Well you work it out.....



My advice to any aspiring barbel anglers considering using two rods:

Ignore all the tosh written earlier in this thread.
Simply rely on your own common sense, evaluating the pros and cons involved in each fishing situation (like should always be done); snags, chances of catching (and frequency) etc
 
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