I often get requests for help from anglers via my website www.teambarbel.co.uk but when a request arrived in my inbox from a Dutch Barbel angler I was quite surprised

The Mighty River Waal

I had never thought of Holland as a country in which the rivers might hold Barbel. I answered the query and the reply came back with more requests for help. This went on for a few days before my new found Dutch friend Frans Vogels told me of his desire to fish in England for Barbel. My reply went something like “you can come over whenever you like, but more importantly when can I come to Holland”

I left Norwich just after 18.00 and took a steady drive to the port of Harwich and within a few minutes of arriving I was on board the Stena Hollandica and looking for my cabin for the overnight ferry crossing to The Hook of Holland. After a couple of beers I retired to my cabin and got my head down for a few hours the next thing I remember was the alarm ringing its ugly tune.

With the Tom Tom set for Frans address in the Nijmegen area of Holland I was soon off the ferry and on my way and very soon covered the 80 odd miles. Frans was waiting for me and after our extensive web chats over the previous few months I felt I had known him for years. Thankfully like many Dutch people Frans can speak good English because I sure couldn’t speak any Dutch.

After a cup or 2 of green tea, tackle was sorted and we were on our way to the river, the plan for the first day was a look round some sections of the mighty River Waal and then some fishing. The Waal certainly is a mighty river, 4-500 metres wide in places and with heavy industrial boat traffic, not for the faint hearted. Massive barges weighing up to 25,000 tonnes carrying everything from scrap metal to brand new cars pass the rod tip at the rate of a round 30 an hour.

Because of its vast size and strong currents to prevent serious flooding and erosion problems the Waal has many breakwaters that extend out into the river up to 100 metres from the bank. Constructed from rocks they are around 5 metres wide and are very solid structures, they make good fishing platforms, the Dutch call these Kribs.

Fishing wise for the first day or so I intended to fish my way, a large groundbait feeder stuffed with pellets then plugged with some Sonubaits Hemp and Hali Crush, and a hair rigged pellet on the hook. Frans meanwhile would fish the Dutch way, a small feeder filled with a mixture of hemp, corn and cheese, with a piece of cheese hair rigged on the hook.

The weather was overcast with an odd shower, Frans Told me we couldn’t fish the Kribs if it rained, I thought maybe he was a fair weather angler and didn’t like the rain, once it rained I found out why, the rocks turn very slippery once they get wet, it was like fishing on a glacier, and very very dangerous.
It didn’t take long for Frans to get his first Barbel, a scamp of 3 or 4 lb but none the less it brought a smile to his face and an even bigger grin to mine.

Not long after that first action the rod tip nodded again and Frans offered me the rod and my first piece of Dutch Barbel action. The fish about 5lb was safely netted and returned, with cheese the successful bait for both fish. Before we called it a night we both managed 2 Barbel and retired very happy.

The next morning was much brighter and we set off to fish a different area a few miles downstream of yesterdays success. Frans often adopts a mobile approach and fishes a Krib for an hour, if it doesn’t produce he moves on to the next and so on, Krib hopping as he calls it. The first Krib didn’t produce so we hopped along to the next favoured one and awaited some action.

Setting a chair up on the Kribs was almost impossible so I gave up early in the trip and sat on the rocks, short of taking a hammer drill and masonry bit there was no way I would get a bank stick in either. So I was very glad I took along my Korum double rod river tripod, lightweight easy to carry and very stable once lodged in the rocks it was very sturdy and with the front rest extended I was able to position my rods so the line stayed well clear of the rocks in the water around the Kribs

The first action of the day came when I had a small Barbel of around 3lb on a maggot, with no further action we moved back upstream a few miles and took in sites of the river as we went. Frans is not only very knowledgeable of the river and its surroundings he is also well respected amongst anglers in Holland for his angling skills and experience.

We ended up back on the Krib we had caught from the evening before and Frans didn’t wait long for the rod top to lunge over and a hooked Barbel test his tackle once again. Frans had another quickly after and when his rod went for the third time he again offered me the rod which I was happy to take and land a lovely Barbel of over 9lb. With the score of 3 on the cheese and 1 on the maggot, the pellet attack I had planned was failing miserably I had to act.

Before we left the Krib for the evening I deposited around 2 kilos of mixed pellets and around a gallon of hemp into the river, I also balled up my remaining Hemp and Hali mix and deposited that with a few big splashes as the heavy grapefruit sized balls hit the water. I told Frans we had played it his way for 2 days with only light feeding and Krib hopping if we hadn’t caught, now it was time to fish it my way, feed heavy and bring the fish to us.

The boats on the River Waal