My last couple of colder weather sessions have been on the Wye this year, and I have to say how nice it is to get into some smaller fish and appreciate all of our Barbel, and the scenic places they inhabit! That`s still not to say I wouldn`t mind a Wye double, but I have been very lucky with them and had quite a few in the past seasons. So bites will do for starters…..

A sunny afternoon Barbel…the smaller of two, this one was 5.5lb!

The approach and tactics are similar on most rivers in these conditions, particle baits are favoured with maggots being the first on the list, then something smelly, meat perhaps, and a moderate amount per swim! Getting the maggots “in” can often draw all fish and therefore tempt the Barbel into moving to feed.

This done, you can usually get a few bites soon after!

The weather has turned the wildlife upside down, they don`t know anymore if spring has sprung or whether they missed it at Christmas! This said, there was much birdlife on the banks last week with over 10 breeds counted, including a Buzzard and Barn Owl working the field of corn stubble on the opposite bank for movement of they`re next meaty meal, (and a Cormorant, no longer a sea dwelling stranger to our rivers). Not so many birds yesterday though, with a biting North Easterly wind sending all for cover, and making the banks quite devoid of much life at all….though a couple of Barbel still awoke from their new found wintery slumber, and duly put my rod and line under strain!

A happy and content angler is left with the impending close season drawing ever closer…..

Good luck all, I hope you have a fantastic end to your river season.