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Will the Barbel record ever be threatened....?
- Thread starter Andrew Firth
- Start date
Alex Gowney
Senior Member & Supporter
Alex, the "notable angler" you mention told me at the time that he reckoned about 14lb ! thats inftation for youHaving seen the pics, (the bloke that took them lived in the same village as me), i would say that even that was pretty optomistic.
Inflation indeed Simon, my information came from a TWA employee who also saw the photos.I was not even living in the area then and never saw them. It is, of course, very difficult to gauge weight from photos and to my knowledge this fish was never weighed. To put it into context, even a 14 pounder would have been some fish from the Cherwell 30 years ago. Ironically, it would probably have even more merit today..
Mark Nicholls
Senior Member & Supporter
Grateful for the tip Jon
Simon Lush
Senior Member
More merit today ? i doubt that Alex, back then very few people even knew they existed in any numbers in the river, a 14 would have been a monstrous fish from anywhere and nothing short of Stellar from the Cherwell !!
Chris Turnbull
Senior Member
Grateful for the tip Jon
Is it a Dead certainty?
Adrian Williams
No Longer a Member
Alex Gowney
Senior Member & Supporter
It was said a bit tounge in cheek Simon, meant to illustrate the sorry state of the river now, as opposed to back then.
Simon Lush
Senior Member
Amen
Lee Fletcher
Senior Member
Monster myth?
Dear All,
It is my belief, that barbel of monstrous proportions, can literally turn up from "any" river that contains healthy barbel populations. Also my belief is that river size has little to do with it aside from possibly big river barbel being harder to track down initially. Big river monster barbel are also less likely to be caught simply because the majority of big river banks are hardly fished, due to the fact that most that target big fish go to the "named" areas only. And it is along these vast hardly fished big river stretches that huge dark shadows glide, unseen and unnoticed in deep pools where they grow massive. I think it was possibly Fred Buller who said "big pike thrive on neglect?" The very same doctrine can be applied to any fish species in that if they are left alone amid healthy watery environments that are rich in natural food, they will grow very large.
Using the tidal Trent as an example of "big river" fishing, we see the same fish coming out from "known" areas much the same as we see on smaller rivers simply because anglers only congregate around certain areas. So as anglers are we only catching a representative number of big fish simply because we only fish a restrictive amount of river bank? By the same token isn't it the same story on smaller rivers?
Wandering along the watery places near my home I see truly huge fish that I'm sure have never seen an anglers net or angler’s bait, so I'm sure its water quality that plays a big part in fish growth today with angler’s bait only playing a minor role especially along big rivers.
Will the barbel record ever be threatened? I believe it is threatened every time an angler cast’s bait into pools containing them.
Every year I hear tales and stories of huge barbel coming out. Most are fanciful fiction but some are verified as being absolutely true. One such story coming to me was not an angler’s capture but a result of an EA Fisheries survey conducted a couple of years ago along a small river I know. The particular stretch was sluggish and not known to contain any barbel at all. But during the survey which involved electro fishing to determine a sample of the fish population a 19lb barbel came to the surface!!! Now granted it was the only barbel to surface but none the less it conjures up the reality of huge fish living in unknown unfished areas.
Regards,
Lee.
Dear All,
It is my belief, that barbel of monstrous proportions, can literally turn up from "any" river that contains healthy barbel populations. Also my belief is that river size has little to do with it aside from possibly big river barbel being harder to track down initially. Big river monster barbel are also less likely to be caught simply because the majority of big river banks are hardly fished, due to the fact that most that target big fish go to the "named" areas only. And it is along these vast hardly fished big river stretches that huge dark shadows glide, unseen and unnoticed in deep pools where they grow massive. I think it was possibly Fred Buller who said "big pike thrive on neglect?" The very same doctrine can be applied to any fish species in that if they are left alone amid healthy watery environments that are rich in natural food, they will grow very large.
Using the tidal Trent as an example of "big river" fishing, we see the same fish coming out from "known" areas much the same as we see on smaller rivers simply because anglers only congregate around certain areas. So as anglers are we only catching a representative number of big fish simply because we only fish a restrictive amount of river bank? By the same token isn't it the same story on smaller rivers?
Wandering along the watery places near my home I see truly huge fish that I'm sure have never seen an anglers net or angler’s bait, so I'm sure its water quality that plays a big part in fish growth today with angler’s bait only playing a minor role especially along big rivers.
Will the barbel record ever be threatened? I believe it is threatened every time an angler cast’s bait into pools containing them.
Every year I hear tales and stories of huge barbel coming out. Most are fanciful fiction but some are verified as being absolutely true. One such story coming to me was not an angler’s capture but a result of an EA Fisheries survey conducted a couple of years ago along a small river I know. The particular stretch was sluggish and not known to contain any barbel at all. But during the survey which involved electro fishing to determine a sample of the fish population a 19lb barbel came to the surface!!! Now granted it was the only barbel to surface but none the less it conjures up the reality of huge fish living in unknown unfished areas.
Regards,
Lee.
Chris Pearson
Senior Member
Lee,
Great to hear from you.
At your age you really shouldn't be walking in remote "watery places" on your own,give me a shout if you need some support you never know when an emergency might arise
ATB
Chris
Great to hear from you.
At your age you really shouldn't be walking in remote "watery places" on your own,give me a shout if you need some support you never know when an emergency might arise
ATB
Chris
David Hall
Senior Member
Lee Fletcher
Senior Member
Dear Chris,
How are you long time no see. How is it up where you live, very hot?
As for walking on my own in watery places you simply would be amazed by what I see and the fact there is not a single other angling soul there!!! Far too hot for me to fish at the moment so I spend any spare time I have going out just looking in likely fish holding places. You know the sort of places, deeper pools and the pools beneath over hanging trees. I was watching five perch the other day that I would put around the four pound mark easily. They were just shading themselves beneath the dense branches of a overhanging willow I had climbed up. Quite an amazing site watching the fish slowly cruising around the pool as the shafts of sunlight cascaded down illuminating their stripey bodies, green flanks and ruby red fins. Come the autumn I will be keeping a date with those fine fellows.
Regards,
Lee.
How are you long time no see. How is it up where you live, very hot?
As for walking on my own in watery places you simply would be amazed by what I see and the fact there is not a single other angling soul there!!! Far too hot for me to fish at the moment so I spend any spare time I have going out just looking in likely fish holding places. You know the sort of places, deeper pools and the pools beneath over hanging trees. I was watching five perch the other day that I would put around the four pound mark easily. They were just shading themselves beneath the dense branches of a overhanging willow I had climbed up. Quite an amazing site watching the fish slowly cruising around the pool as the shafts of sunlight cascaded down illuminating their stripey bodies, green flanks and ruby red fins. Come the autumn I will be keeping a date with those fine fellows.
Regards,
Lee.
Chris Turnbull
Senior Member
I know of one potential record breaker if she is still alive.... but to spill the beans in these threads would invite a load of half-baked flack about semi-domesticated, boilie fattened fish, hard done by otters and unethical fish chasers. I've probably said too much already?!!!
Personally nothing would please me more than seeing the record blown apart by a monster fish from a huge river like the tidal Trent though I'll not hold my breath waiting....
Personally nothing would please me more than seeing the record blown apart by a monster fish from a huge river like the tidal Trent though I'll not hold my breath waiting....
Paul Boote
No Longer a Member
Ethics. Yes. Now I happen to know that that 16.25-pound fish I had two years ago is knocking on probably 19 pounds now. But would I fish for her? Nope - I began to be chased (and even my domestic shopping purchases noted) about my local area by a "stalker" and several perma-grinning traders and residents I didn't know from Adam from 2006 onwards when I was fishing a certain river daily and, owing to mix of part inspiration and part luck, found myself "taking the river apart". I have found as I get older that, sometimes, it is best to walk away slow at just the right time, and so preserve some very nice memories.
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Lee Fletcher
Senior Member
Dear Chris,
How are you buddy? Well I hope.
A big record breaking fish from a big river? Tidal Trent perhaps? Could well be and from any big river. But I suspect if it does the capture will probably emulate Howard Maddocks one from the Severn. Being completely out the blue with an unknown fish? Another side to this story is the undoubted fact such a capture may well come from a small river in the form of an unknown fish or one that has been kept very quiet by a mere handful of anglers as to actually existing?? Traditionally specimen angling has been sewn upon a tapestry of "those in the know" catching the bigger fish first. Times have I suspect changed some what in that many anglers, or more than in the past at any rate, being able to keep tight lipped about what they catch from where? What transpired at Adams Mill rightly or wrongly resulted in many barbel anglers keeping quiet about the venues they fish. Added to which a fair amount of experienced specialist anglers now days just don't attach the same reverence to record sized fish in the same vein as they used to. Many are merely happy to just go fishing and now see the big fish scene as something unimportant that they would much rather avoid?
How you doing Jon? Must try and get together for some stalking.
Regards,
Lee.
How are you buddy? Well I hope.
A big record breaking fish from a big river? Tidal Trent perhaps? Could well be and from any big river. But I suspect if it does the capture will probably emulate Howard Maddocks one from the Severn. Being completely out the blue with an unknown fish? Another side to this story is the undoubted fact such a capture may well come from a small river in the form of an unknown fish or one that has been kept very quiet by a mere handful of anglers as to actually existing?? Traditionally specimen angling has been sewn upon a tapestry of "those in the know" catching the bigger fish first. Times have I suspect changed some what in that many anglers, or more than in the past at any rate, being able to keep tight lipped about what they catch from where? What transpired at Adams Mill rightly or wrongly resulted in many barbel anglers keeping quiet about the venues they fish. Added to which a fair amount of experienced specialist anglers now days just don't attach the same reverence to record sized fish in the same vein as they used to. Many are merely happy to just go fishing and now see the big fish scene as something unimportant that they would much rather avoid?
How you doing Jon? Must try and get together for some stalking.
Regards,
Lee.
John Walker
Senior Member
Lee, now your latest posts are the ones like you used to keep us fascinated with mate about time we had a tale or two from you again...j.w
Chris Pearson
Senior Member
Hi Lee,
Not too bad up here in The Dales heat wise as it is very overcast but muggy however it's becoming very dry,we've had to ban all smoking,BBQ's and campfires in Padley Gorge due to a high risk of fire.
Don't be a stranger on here I'm sure there are lots of us that really appreciate your musings.
On the subject of the new record I'm fairly sure that the Tidal has already done that and probably will do again but fortunately most regulars don't feel the need for 15 minutes of fame and the ensuing hassle that it would create.
On a recent fish-in the published news of a large fish nowhere near the record resulted in a queue at the back of the peg before the successful angler had even vacated the swim!!!
ATB
Chris
Not too bad up here in The Dales heat wise as it is very overcast but muggy however it's becoming very dry,we've had to ban all smoking,BBQ's and campfires in Padley Gorge due to a high risk of fire.
Don't be a stranger on here I'm sure there are lots of us that really appreciate your musings.
On the subject of the new record I'm fairly sure that the Tidal has already done that and probably will do again but fortunately most regulars don't feel the need for 15 minutes of fame and the ensuing hassle that it would create.
On a recent fish-in the published news of a large fish nowhere near the record resulted in a queue at the back of the peg before the successful angler had even vacated the swim!!!
ATB
Chris