Trotting for wye barbel

[Steven Ballard]

When I'm at the wye this weekend, im going to spend a few hours trotting, using corn probably, was going to target the chub and dace, but wanted to be using strong enough line as to have a good chance of landing a barbel should one come along. What b/s line do people reccomend ? I'll be using a speedia reel. Cheers

 

[Gwyn Jeffs]

Whenever I'm on the 'pin trotting on the Wye I always err on the side of caution and use 8lb Trilene XT straight through.
Its diameter is low enough that the chub aren't deterred, while its strength is amazing. An epic 15 minute battle with a mid twenty salmon that grabbed my corn last summer is testament to the durability ( unfortunately the hook pulled at the net ).

I could drop lower, but the chub tell me I don't need to and I have insurance for any time a barbel grabs the bait, without subjecting them to a prolonged fight or having no chance and leaving hooks in fish or having them dive into snags.

I'd rather play it safe from a barbel point of view, at the possible cost of a few less bites, even though I may not actually be fishing for them ( I often trot for an hour or two at the start of a session while my feed settles ).

 

[Neil Smart]

When I'm at the wye this weekend, im going to spend a few hours trotting, using corn probably, was going to target the chub and dace, but wanted to be using strong enough line as to have a good chance of landing a barbel should one come along. What b/s line do people reccomend ? I'll be using a speedia reel. Cheers

Sounds like a plan, have you considered using small carp pellets? The less oily ones, light in colour, apparently they do very well for Chub and Barbel, loose fed and on the hook, desperate to give it a go myself.

 

[Mark Harridence]

Silstar Match Team 7.9lb (0.20mm)

Cheers
Mark