You have to match your reel line to the river, and the fish you are expecting to catch.
If you were fishing the Ribble then 6lb line would be considered to be light, as a barbel can easily smash you on line of that strength. Even a decent sized chub will take you to the limit on that sort of line, as some of them really use the strong current to their advantage. I use 8lb mainline to a 4lb hooklength on the ribble. One of my regular fishing companions uses 10lb mainline to 6lb hooklengths and often outcatches me. His reasoning being that there are some special fish in the Ribble and he would rather catch one than lose one.

On a river like the Douglas, where the flow isnt as strong, and the fish arent so big, then maybe 6lb is a bit on the strong side.
Your mainline really should be balanced with your hooklength i would be happy to use 6lb mainline and a 3lb hooklength, if i was chub fishing in a snaggy swim, but if i were trotting for roach in a snag free swim then i would be looking at using a 1or 1.5lb hooklength to 2.5lb mainline.

There are no hard and fast rules other than making sure the tackle you use is balanced.

Mike

__________________
http://manchesterfishingfiend.blogspot.com

You also need to consider the depth and strength of flow, as a gentle shallow river (such as the Gade in Hertfordshire, which used to be full of good chub) will need a very small float and light shotting to present the bait in an acceptable manner. I used to use a two inch quill float taking 3 No 4 shot, but anything up to four inches long taking 2BB shot would usually be acceptable; above that you'd struggle to get bites even from minnows. Such a small float cannot be controlled properly on reel lines exceeding 3lb bs, as the stronger the line the thicker and heavier it becomes - and a heavy line drags in the water, influencing the speed and path of the float, and thus the bait.

Conversely, long trotting for chub on the Hampshire Avon might require a float carrying 4 or 5 swanshot, and you can't strike the hook into a chub at thirty yards with a 2lb line without risk of breakage, so you need minimum 4lb and ideally 5 or 6lb - and a stronger rod to match. In both examples the target species are shoal chub between 2 and 5lb in weight.

It definately affects presentation, and can also cause fish to be line wary. On a small river you can think you are fishing in a barren swim that is in fact full with too heavy a line.

Trotting I'd probably normally fish no more than 4lb mainline to 3lb or lower hooklength. Will go 3/2 or even 2.5/1.5 if it is predominantly dace/roach i am after.

Key is to have well balanced tackle and a rod that will do the work if you do get a larger fish. Only time I would fish heavier than stated above is if there are a good head of high average weight chub, plenty of barbel about, or snags where i really need to be able to control the fish on its first lunges and runs.

Beautiful way of fishing trotting, and next to beginning flyfishing is something i intend to do a lot more this year than i did last.

Nice report by the way

__________________
Around the steel no tortur'd worm shall twine,
No blood of living insect stain my line;
Let me, less cruel, cast feather'd hook,
With pliant rod athwart the pebbled brook,
Silent along the mazy margin stray,
And with fur-wrought fly delude the prey

Thanks, I'm using 4lb line now and it does seem a lot easier to control and better to use

That looks very similar to the Teise in Kent after a small amount of rain fall. We have some superb chub up to 3lb.

My early experiences of trotting seems to point to having a good understanding of depth and applying the right shot formation to ensure both a good presentation and giving an ability to stay in touch with a bite.

Fishing with barbless hooks I believe means you have to keep the strike and the pressure on the fish to stop them coming off.

__________________
Carl

http://www.wandlepiscators.net/
http://teiseangling.co.uk/index.htm

TOMORROW THE TRENT COULD BE YOUR FISHERY! When are YOU going to JOIN THE ANGLING TRUST?

Try using some of the fine diameter hi-tec lines for hooklinks and you'll find they will be much stronger for the same thickness as, say, standard 3lb mono. MAP Carptek and Prestons Innovations Powerline are both good examples. Was down my local river (the Penk) today - very similar sized river - it was pretty well full to top of bank and heavily coloured but I still managed to tempt to tempt 3 chub (2.5-3lb) on light leger gear and breadflake. For some reason in "my" river legering consistently outscores trotting for the bigger fish - they prefer a static bait.

__________________