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The 10 minute warning

S

Steve Double

Senior Member
You cast in. It's likely that in some time in the first hour, or even first few minutes, you'll get knocks on the rod tip, or even one that makes the whole rod rattle. You know it's a chub and you sit on your hands. There's some consolation that at least you know your hookbait is in play.

Then it goes quiet. Where I fish, this is quite likely to be quietness that lasts hours rather then minutes. Then there's another knock, rarely more than a rod tip movement of an inch. You can't put you're finger on why this knock is different, but you know it is. You touch your head torch to make sure you can remember where the "on" switch is, and double check your landing net is where it is meant to be. You might even lean forward in your chair in anticipation.

Ten minutes pass - it's nearly always ten minutes - then wham, you're in, and battle commences.

That's been the scenario for virtually every barbel (I'm not counting the Wye!) I've caught this season. How I'd love an underwater camera to see what produces that first barbel knock. I nearly always back-lead so it won't be a liner, can't see how they're mouthing the bait without getting hooked, either. Are they churning up the gravel? I suppose fishing without mysteries wouldn't be the same.
 
I call them 'Donks' and if you are a barbel fisherman you probably know exactly what Steve means.Sometimes its that you have been 'done by a barbel and have to reposition the hookbait/and or change the approach.But it also tells you that there is a barbel in the area.When fishing the Kennet at Padworth about 10 years ago we used to hit those donks and they always resulted in a hooked barbel,but boy was it hard work.At the time the shoal barbel would occasionally give you a good rap round during daytime, but by hitting the donks with a lightning fast strike you could catch a lot more. It would be good to know if it is the same barbel that picks up the bait and drags the rod round 10 minutes later or is it a more greedy/stupid fish,the camera would tell.
 
One place I fish is gin clear. After casting you can actually see barbel swimming into the line and giving donks (or smaller dinks). So in this case the barbel were not even mouthing the bait. Eventually one might take it and you get a 3ft twitch. In daylight you can actually watch barbel reject a presentation (sometimes giving more donks) and change the presentation several times until although some still reject it, one eventually succumbs. After casting in I have also seen barbel approach the bait causing the rod tip to donk. Fear seems to drive them away and the swim empties of barbel. Then they return and so there are more donks until one eventually has the courage to pick up the bait and the rod hoops over. There's a fascinating underwater video of Barbel in London where barbel are repeatedly swimming over a bait until they seem to loose their fear, gain confidence and take it. Thus the effectiveness of "Bait and Wait". On the Royalty many years ago I was getting little dinks on legered crust. I lengthened the hooklink until the crust was visible under the surface so I could see what was happening and then the dinks turned out to be chub mouthing and rejecting the bait. Then I didn't bother watching the tip - just watched them mouth the crust and hooked everyone!

Sometimes I think I am so neurotic watching the tip I should ignore the rod and only pick it up when the baitrunner fizzes! I think I would become even more neurotic if there was an underwater camera - I might prefer not to know! On the Kennet some years ago I learnt not to grab the rod even if the tip went over several feet. I just waited until the handle took off the ground and caught it on the way up! Yet I have also caught barbel touch legering striking at almost imperceptible tugs. And I have also caught them when they have taken the bait on the drop before I have closed the bail arm! That's the frustration and the fascination of fishing!
 
Ian Sewter said:
One place I fish is gin clear. After casting you can actually see barbel swimming into the line and giving donks (or smaller dinks). So in this case the barbel were not even mouthing the bait. Eventually one might take it and you get a 3ft twitch. In daylight you can actually watch barbel reject a presentation (sometimes giving more donks) and change the presentation several times until although some still reject it, one eventually succumbs. After casting in I have also seen barbel approach the bait causing the rod tip to donk. Fear seems to drive them away and the swim empties of barbel. Then they return and so there are more donks until one eventually has the courage to pick up the bait and the rod hoops over. There's a fascinating underwater video of Barbel in London where barbel are repeatedly swimming over a bait until they seem to loose their fear, gain confidence and take it. Thus the effectiveness of "Bait and Wait". On the Royalty many years ago I was getting little dinks on legered crust. I lengthened the hooklink until the crust was visible under the surface so I could see what was happening and then the dinks turned out to be chub mouthing and rejecting the bait. Then I didn't bother watching the tip - just watched them mouth the crust and hooked everyone!

Sometimes I think I am so neurotic watching the tip I should ignore the rod and only pick it up when the baitrunner fizzes! I think I would become even more neurotic if there was an underwater camera - I might prefer not to know! On the Kennet some years ago I learnt not to grab the rod even if the tip went over several feet. I just waited until the handle took off the ground and caught it on the way up! Yet I have also caught barbel touch legering striking at almost imperceptible tugs. And I have also caught them when they have taken the bait on the drop before I have closed the bail arm! That's the frustration and the fascination of fishing!
Click to expand...

Totally agree, i love the mystery, it's what keeps me coming back
 
Steve.

Ask Ian Grant. I first told him about Loddon barbel about 20 years ago. As you know its not a group of fish on the Loddon!
 
Graham you told me about this on our first ever meeting on the Kennet. I'd had a couple of barbel and it had gone rather quite for an hour or two when I had a sharp rap on my rod tip and your exact words were " that's your ten minute warning" you'll have another soon. Sure enough I did.
Something that's always stuck with me.
 
I have a feeling that if you saw what was going on by underwater camera it might just do your head in!!!Similar to carp fishing with floaters where you get numerous abortive takes,I have a feeling that is repeated just as often with a bait on the river/lake bed esp on pressured waters
 
Here,s a little tip steve,when you get that little rattle ,take the rod off the rest and hold it ,touch leger style,when it moves again slacken the rod right off so the line is free,but be ready ,cos usually they whack it round when they think the bait is free, personaly,i think a lot of these "chub" bites are barbel checking if baits are tethered,i also like you fish with backleads 99% of the time just to fish with totally slack lines,and thats also why i dont use alarms,cause these types of bites dont register,
Regards;)
 
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