HOW CATCH BARBEL ON THE BUG
The majority of the articles you will read on bait for barbel fishing will have you believe that meaty and spicy baits are the only way to go when targeting the prince of the river, and whilst they do account for a good number of barbel captures over the season, let me tell you quietly that barbel also enjoy a sweet-tasting bait just as much, if not more!
I started using The Bug for my barbel fishing back in 2023 and it was clear straight from the outset that they had a real liking for the bait, with numerous captures falling to it, also resulting in my Middle Severn personal best of 11lb 10oz.
My Middle Severn PB of 11lb 10oz
Using a mixture of the 12mm and 15mm Bug boilies, along with some of the Bug mini dumbbells, complemented by a mini dumbbell on the hair, was the winning tactic, but being an angler who seeks to try and get as many bites as possible from a swim, and as I’d used The Bug and Calanus Hydro liquid combo to great effect in my carp fishing, I decided to give it a go for the barbel and it was an inspired decision!
Certainly an inspired decision
Covering the boilies in the liquid and allowing it to be absorbed into the bait multiple times and then dusting the boilies in Insect Meal made a great bait even better, as my catch rate increased to a point where I was getting double takes or takes straight after recasting!
I was using the mini dumbbells that had also been soaked in Calanus Hydro as hookbaits, which were perfect when I was recasting regularly, but being a soft-ish bait, after a few hours in the water, the chub, which also loved the bait, would pull it from the hair, so for the sessions when a bit more patience and stealth was needed, I used the 15mm Hard Hookers cut down to a barrel shape and again soaked them in the Calanus Hydro.
I switch to Hard Hookers if I need to sit it out for bites
It’s not just barbel that have a love of The Bug, as I’ve caught numerous chub over 3lb up to a PB of 5lb 7oz. Pretty much anything that swim seems to enjoy it, as I’ve landed roach to just shy of 2lb and even river carp as well.
Give The Bug a go when you are next out barbel fishing!
My PB chub caught on The Bug
A river carp that also took a liking to The Bug
