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River fishing in France
- Thread starter Steve Arnold
- Start date
Thrasher
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That is literally fishing out the van.
Steve Arnold
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The long summer canicule (heatwave) finally has eased, but there is still no sign of real rain!
Fishing has been pretty dire and only the smaller barbel want to feed. I hooked a couple of carp in one session but with low water levels and lots of weed they quickly made my barbel outfit look inadequate!
Sally and I have had a few trips in the camper-van when the temperatures have dropped below 30c. No aircon and the van turns into an oven during the 35c-40c periods which have gone on for months this summer.
We found a lovely little campsite near Prayssac, about 90 minutes drive down the valley. Every pitch backs on to the river so I had a rod out most of the two days we stayed there.
Although a big silure had been caught the day before we arrived my 24mm boilie bait only attracted two runs, the first took me into the far bank snags (carp?) and the second resulted in this barbel....
There must have been plenty of smaller fish. I was getting constant small bites. Just too lazy to put out a bit of sweetcorn on a small hook!
A few days ago I spent an afternoon checking swims along my local stretch of the Lot, desperately looking for some flow. When I finally found a small section of river clear of weed I set up my carp rod and phoned my fishing friend. My mistake as he arrived and caught the only two fish...
a barbel of 4 lbs followed by that carp of 31 lbs!!!!!!
I had one screaming run taking about 30 metres of line - then the hook pulled!
Anyway, a few barbel yesterday from another stretch. Very early morning start and the fish feeding after the longer, cooler nights.
Bodes well for autumn, just need a few days of heavy rain!
Fishing has been pretty dire and only the smaller barbel want to feed. I hooked a couple of carp in one session but with low water levels and lots of weed they quickly made my barbel outfit look inadequate!
Sally and I have had a few trips in the camper-van when the temperatures have dropped below 30c. No aircon and the van turns into an oven during the 35c-40c periods which have gone on for months this summer.
We found a lovely little campsite near Prayssac, about 90 minutes drive down the valley. Every pitch backs on to the river so I had a rod out most of the two days we stayed there.
Although a big silure had been caught the day before we arrived my 24mm boilie bait only attracted two runs, the first took me into the far bank snags (carp?) and the second resulted in this barbel....
There must have been plenty of smaller fish. I was getting constant small bites. Just too lazy to put out a bit of sweetcorn on a small hook!
A few days ago I spent an afternoon checking swims along my local stretch of the Lot, desperately looking for some flow. When I finally found a small section of river clear of weed I set up my carp rod and phoned my fishing friend. My mistake as he arrived and caught the only two fish...
a barbel of 4 lbs followed by that carp of 31 lbs!!!!!!
I had one screaming run taking about 30 metres of line - then the hook pulled!
Anyway, a few barbel yesterday from another stretch. Very early morning start and the fish feeding after the longer, cooler nights.
Bodes well for autumn, just need a few days of heavy rain!
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Nice write up Steve - well done! ????
Steve Arnold
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Well, my fishing ego hates being out-fished! Alistair phoned me this afternoon telling me he had bought a new carp rod, he asked if I had an idea where to try it out.
This morning I had been down to a certain stretch of river to see our family guests off on a canoe outing. I noted there was some flow to the river and checked my river app to find that the Entragues dam had let out a lump of water the day before. That water was now coming through this section of the river.
I knew exactly where to fish and just the right spot to drop the bait!
Alistair arrived at my home and down the river we went. My bait was in the water within a couple of minutes - Alistair was way behind me!
About 30 minutes passed and I had two small pulls on the rod tip. It was a full 10 minutes later that the tip buckled down and the fish headed to the opposite bank. A tremendous fight ensued, the fish clearly visible much of the time. Rocks to the right of me, sunken tree to my left and a whole host of hazards in this swim.
That morning I had received some coated braid reputed to have "superb abrasion resistance". Fortunately it lived up to the hype and I finally got the fish to the net.
Weighed in the net and that wet net deducted it worked out at 38.5 lbs. Not my biggest, but it was a great sense of relief to get this fish out of a difficult swim.
I do look a bit bemused in the photograph - well, it's not often a last minute plan comes together so perfectly!
This morning I had been down to a certain stretch of river to see our family guests off on a canoe outing. I noted there was some flow to the river and checked my river app to find that the Entragues dam had let out a lump of water the day before. That water was now coming through this section of the river.
I knew exactly where to fish and just the right spot to drop the bait!
Alistair arrived at my home and down the river we went. My bait was in the water within a couple of minutes - Alistair was way behind me!
About 30 minutes passed and I had two small pulls on the rod tip. It was a full 10 minutes later that the tip buckled down and the fish headed to the opposite bank. A tremendous fight ensued, the fish clearly visible much of the time. Rocks to the right of me, sunken tree to my left and a whole host of hazards in this swim.
That morning I had received some coated braid reputed to have "superb abrasion resistance". Fortunately it lived up to the hype and I finally got the fish to the net.
Weighed in the net and that wet net deducted it worked out at 38.5 lbs. Not my biggest, but it was a great sense of relief to get this fish out of a difficult swim.
I do look a bit bemused in the photograph - well, it's not often a last minute plan comes together so perfectly!
Steve Arnold
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I am revising the weight of that carp due to not having reading glasses handy at the time!
Yesterday I weighed a barbel and the digital scales reading was much less than I had estimated. So I dug out my cheap reading glasses and took a better look at the tiny screen.
The weight was in big, bold numbers but in tiny print underneath was the word JIN. Turns out this is a Chinese measurement and it was set to that when I weighed the carp.
The scales had been used to weigh luggage in Kg and (someone!) had not set it back to POUNDS but to JIN!
At the time I thought it was about half as heavy again as the 31 pound carp my friend caught. Certainly it was bigger than my previous PB of 42 pounds.
Now the conversion from 38.5 JIN to POUNDS gives you 51 lbs. That is another target reached, though I am annoyed at screwing up the weighing.
Looking at that photo with the fish against my belly it does look so much bigger than any carp I have caught previously!
When you set yourself an ambitious target it's maddening to make such a silly mistake!
Grrrrr!But, whatever, it's such a lovely fish and a tremendous fight that I will always remember vividly!
Nice to see the thread back steve, cheers for the reports. Excellent stuff
Steve Arnold
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Late Autumn update, the "summer" weather continued until the first week of November! Great for us, but the river was low and the fishing difficult. But the fish were still there and occasionally feeding.
At the start of November a good weather forecast for the day, at breakfast Sally says "We should have a picnic at Vers, you could take a rod". Being a good husband I was not going to argue!
It's a lovely 35 minute drive down the Lot valley and the temperature was already in the 20c+ range by 11am. When we parked up in Vers we decided on a short walk before setting up for our picnic (and the fishing, of course!)
A very scenic stretch of the river here.....
We crossed Le Vers stream and the first pool was solid with tiny chub (I think!).....
A few yards downstream the pool was full of roach, a few bigger chub and perch cruised amongst them like kiddies in a sweet shop......
When we got back to the campsite stretch I set up our chairs and had a rod fishing in quick time, the first barbel was netted before the picnic was out....
A very pleasant few hours and Sally sat in the sun reading her book. Not bad for November!
My fishing buddy Alistair has joined me for a few sessions recently. His river angling skills are coming along nicely, but it's getting competitive now!
and still the occasional carp livens up the day!
Alistair managed that handsome carp and two barbel about 6 pounds.......on a session where I blanked!
We have found a new weir swim which has produced barbel, bream and roach. When the water level rises the little beach may not be fishable, but we will make the most until then!
à bientôt
At the start of November a good weather forecast for the day, at breakfast Sally says "We should have a picnic at Vers, you could take a rod". Being a good husband I was not going to argue!
It's a lovely 35 minute drive down the Lot valley and the temperature was already in the 20c+ range by 11am. When we parked up in Vers we decided on a short walk before setting up for our picnic (and the fishing, of course!)
A very scenic stretch of the river here.....
We crossed Le Vers stream and the first pool was solid with tiny chub (I think!).....
A few yards downstream the pool was full of roach, a few bigger chub and perch cruised amongst them like kiddies in a sweet shop......
When we got back to the campsite stretch I set up our chairs and had a rod fishing in quick time, the first barbel was netted before the picnic was out....
A very pleasant few hours and Sally sat in the sun reading her book. Not bad for November!
My fishing buddy Alistair has joined me for a few sessions recently. His river angling skills are coming along nicely, but it's getting competitive now!
and still the occasional carp livens up the day!
Alistair managed that handsome carp and two barbel about 6 pounds.......on a session where I blanked!
We have found a new weir swim which has produced barbel, bream and roach. When the water level rises the little beach may not be fishable, but we will make the most until then!
à bientôt
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Late Autumn update, the "summer" weather continued until the first week of November! Great for us, but the river was low and the fishing difficult. But the fish were still there and occasionally feeding.
At the start of November a good weather forecast for the day, at breakfast Sally says "We should have a picnic at Vers, you could take a rod". Being a good husband I was not going to argue!
It's a lovely 35 minute drive down the Lot valley and the temperature was already in the 20c+ range by 11am. When we parked up in Vers we decided on a short walk before setting up for our picnic (and the fishing, of course!)
A very scenic stretch of the river here.....
View attachment 35917
We crossed Le Vers stream and the first pool was solid with tiny chub (I think!).....
View attachment 35918
A few yards downstream the pool was full of roach, a few bigger chub and perch cruised amongst them like kiddies in a sweet shop......
View attachment 35919
When we got back to the campsite stretch I set up our chairs and had a rod fishing in quick time, the first barbel was netted before the picnic was out....
View attachment 35920
A very pleasant few hours and Sally sat in the sun reading her book. Not bad for November!
My fishing buddy Alistair has joined me for a few sessions recently. His river angling skills are coming along nicely, but it's getting competitive now!
View attachment 35921
and still the occasional carp livens up the day!
View attachment 35922
Alistair managed that handsome carp and two barbel about 6 pounds.......on a session where I blanked!
We have found a new weir swim which has produced barbel, bream and roach. When the water level rises the little beach may not be fishable, but we will make the most until then!
View attachment 35923
à bientôt
Belle mise à jour et photos Steve ! On dirait un endroit charmant. Une bonne lecture - merci pour cela!
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Great pictures and fishing well done
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Great catches & piccys well done
Steve Arnold
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With just two days to go before Christmas I just had to take advantage of this mild weather.
The forecast said a possible 17c in the afternoon with a little sunshine. My RiverApp indicated a healthy flow would come from the barrage late afternoon, so I just had to get back to the garden swim where I caught barbel a week ago.
It was 12.30 when I arrived at the river, surprisingly there was still a mist hanging over the water. But there was a good flow from midstream to the far bank, I was getting excited at the afternoons prospects!
At this point I made the decision to fish two rods, a quivertip close in as there might be a chub, my Korum Big Water rod for out in the current.
The quivertip rod took the first fish, a barbel. I decided to unhook that in the water, as is my usual way. Unfortunately I found the layer of silt deposited overnight was VERY slippery and I skated down into the river. I luckily stayed upright and my wellies found some grip on the stones before the deeper water! Deep sigh of relief, release the fish and then attempt to get back up the bank. No way would my boots find a grip and I had to resort to sticking my fingers deep into the bankside to pull myself up!!!!!
So, a difficult start. First mistake out of the way and a reminder to be more careful, the air temperature might be mild but a soaking in December would probably be fatal!
After composing myself I chuck the feeder out again and sit down for a coffee. Of course the feeder rod tip whacks down and I am into another barbel! As I lift that rod the heavy rod has the classic "3 foot twitch" and the baitrunner screams off! So I bully the first fish to the net, pick up the other rod and find a better fish still attached. A good fight and there are two barbel in my net!
Obviously there are plenty of feeding barbel in my swim, no need for two rods. As the flow is increasing I decide to just fish the heavy rod, also my fishing buddy may come down and he can share this swim.
Alistair arrives just as I hook into a 5 pounder. So he gets in a muddle trying to tackle up quickly, we all get that way when the bite is clearly ON!
Despite my frequent advice he insists on fishing two rods, even in difficult conditions. The flow is rapidly increasing as the barrage upstream is letting out a lump of water. Alistair struggles to catch a couple of barbel whilst dealing with the (inevitable!) tangles that come with fishing two rods with lightish weights. Hopefully, as my advice was ignored, the experience will impress on him what he needs to learn!
With the heavy rod I am able to fish a big weight upstream, keeping out of my friends way. Eventually, as the flow increases, I have to use 5 ozs - but these tactics work.
Seven more barbel hooked, including two over 6 pounds. Two of the barbel dropped off at the net as I had to bully them to stop them backing into my buddies lines.
During this four hours fishing the river first dropped about 6" then rose around 18". Now there is a healthy amount of water in the river system the upstream barrages and hydro-electric power stations can make fishing quite challenging!
This is the first December in the 5 years I have lived here to deliver me barbel. The water temperature is 11c just now, up 2c in a week. The barbel are making the most of it - and so am I.
Best Christmas present an angler could wish for!
This wonderful river keeps on giving!
Wishing all on Talk Sea Fishing a Great New Year for 2023.
bonne pêche
Steve A
The forecast said a possible 17c in the afternoon with a little sunshine. My RiverApp indicated a healthy flow would come from the barrage late afternoon, so I just had to get back to the garden swim where I caught barbel a week ago.
It was 12.30 when I arrived at the river, surprisingly there was still a mist hanging over the water. But there was a good flow from midstream to the far bank, I was getting excited at the afternoons prospects!
At this point I made the decision to fish two rods, a quivertip close in as there might be a chub, my Korum Big Water rod for out in the current.
The quivertip rod took the first fish, a barbel. I decided to unhook that in the water, as is my usual way. Unfortunately I found the layer of silt deposited overnight was VERY slippery and I skated down into the river. I luckily stayed upright and my wellies found some grip on the stones before the deeper water! Deep sigh of relief, release the fish and then attempt to get back up the bank. No way would my boots find a grip and I had to resort to sticking my fingers deep into the bankside to pull myself up!!!!!
So, a difficult start. First mistake out of the way and a reminder to be more careful, the air temperature might be mild but a soaking in December would probably be fatal!
After composing myself I chuck the feeder out again and sit down for a coffee. Of course the feeder rod tip whacks down and I am into another barbel! As I lift that rod the heavy rod has the classic "3 foot twitch" and the baitrunner screams off! So I bully the first fish to the net, pick up the other rod and find a better fish still attached. A good fight and there are two barbel in my net!
Obviously there are plenty of feeding barbel in my swim, no need for two rods. As the flow is increasing I decide to just fish the heavy rod, also my fishing buddy may come down and he can share this swim.
Alistair arrives just as I hook into a 5 pounder. So he gets in a muddle trying to tackle up quickly, we all get that way when the bite is clearly ON!
Despite my frequent advice he insists on fishing two rods, even in difficult conditions. The flow is rapidly increasing as the barrage upstream is letting out a lump of water. Alistair struggles to catch a couple of barbel whilst dealing with the (inevitable!) tangles that come with fishing two rods with lightish weights. Hopefully, as my advice was ignored, the experience will impress on him what he needs to learn!
With the heavy rod I am able to fish a big weight upstream, keeping out of my friends way. Eventually, as the flow increases, I have to use 5 ozs - but these tactics work.
Seven more barbel hooked, including two over 6 pounds. Two of the barbel dropped off at the net as I had to bully them to stop them backing into my buddies lines.
During this four hours fishing the river first dropped about 6" then rose around 18". Now there is a healthy amount of water in the river system the upstream barrages and hydro-electric power stations can make fishing quite challenging!
This is the first December in the 5 years I have lived here to deliver me barbel. The water temperature is 11c just now, up 2c in a week. The barbel are making the most of it - and so am I.
Best Christmas present an angler could wish for!
This wonderful river keeps on giving!
Wishing all on Talk Sea Fishing a Great New Year for 2023.
bonne pêche
Steve A
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Great report & photos Steve - well done on the Barbel, and thank heavens you didn't end up swimming!
Bonne année et meilleurs vœux pour 2023 ! Lignes serrées !
Bonne année et meilleurs vœux pour 2023 ! Lignes serrées !
J Richards
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Great read and photos mate. I still need to target a barbel. Only fish i am yet to catch
Lovely stuff
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Nice one mate great catches, piccys & write up
Steve Arnold
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Apart from a few barbel at the start of January the winter weather has slowed the fishing down considerably. First there was snow which stayed for over a week, unusual here, then weeks of frosts and temperatures down to -10c.
So I blanked a couple of times and lost interest, my old bones ache too much in these temperatures anyway!
February has seen the sun return, but still freezing temperatures overnight. I decided I needed a fishing fix and thought an afternoon at a swim facing the sun would be a good tonic.
I had two rods today. One was to try for the expected barbel and the other would cast a double 18mm boilie bait as far downstream as I could manage. Not much chance of a carp in February but it's a shame to miss the opportunity.
One of the reasons to pick this swim is to catch the winter sun, I hate getting cold now! Temperatures should reach 14 c this afternoon, despite it being -4 c this morning. In the sun, with no wind, it would feel much warmer!
My barbel rod had a couple of plucks, quite determined pulls but not hooked. I changed to a slimmer bait, two 10mm boilies and a thin coat of paste. Finally hooked a fish, a barbel of about 3.5lbs.
I dug my thermometer out to check the river temperature - it was only just 6 c. Oh Dear! or words to that effect! I felt my chances of a decent catch slipping away!
But I decided to stick it out with the big bait downstream, you never know!
A couple of hours past and I had two definite taps on that rod. Something was showing interest - patience required now!
Then the rod tip pulled down 6" and my hand reached the rod just as the fish took off. This fish ran 50 yds against heavy drag and I had to follow it downstream whilst dragging my landing net. It managed another powerful 50 yd run and was going around the river bend, fortunately the river level was dropping and I waded through the muddy bank to find the solid, stony river bed.
Now I only had my wellies on and the river was thigh deep this side. Easy decision to make, I wanted this fish badly, so I waded out about 20 metres so I could keep my line out of the trees.
Finally I stopped the fish before it reached the log-jam of trees under the cliffs downstream. It took about 15 minutes to bring the fish back upstream, a few more runs but it was tired now. So was I!
When I saw its profile I thought it might make 20 lbs. But once it was in the net I saw the width of its back, then when I lifted the net I judged this carp as close to 30 lb.
So after resting the fish, and regaining my composure, I decide to weigh it properly. Back up the bank it weighed 27lbs....and a bit!
A glorious February carp in great condition!
I took it back to the river, rested it for a few minutes. But it was still quite frisky and anxious to go home....
Despite being exhausted and soaked I put another bait out. One more good take, this time a 4lb barbel....
The sun had now dropped behind the cliffs and I was in shadow. Temperature would drop to freezing again soon so time for me to head home
So I blanked a couple of times and lost interest, my old bones ache too much in these temperatures anyway!
February has seen the sun return, but still freezing temperatures overnight. I decided I needed a fishing fix and thought an afternoon at a swim facing the sun would be a good tonic.
I had two rods today. One was to try for the expected barbel and the other would cast a double 18mm boilie bait as far downstream as I could manage. Not much chance of a carp in February but it's a shame to miss the opportunity.
One of the reasons to pick this swim is to catch the winter sun, I hate getting cold now! Temperatures should reach 14 c this afternoon, despite it being -4 c this morning. In the sun, with no wind, it would feel much warmer!
My barbel rod had a couple of plucks, quite determined pulls but not hooked. I changed to a slimmer bait, two 10mm boilies and a thin coat of paste. Finally hooked a fish, a barbel of about 3.5lbs.
I dug my thermometer out to check the river temperature - it was only just 6 c. Oh Dear! or words to that effect! I felt my chances of a decent catch slipping away!
But I decided to stick it out with the big bait downstream, you never know!
A couple of hours past and I had two definite taps on that rod. Something was showing interest - patience required now!
Then the rod tip pulled down 6" and my hand reached the rod just as the fish took off. This fish ran 50 yds against heavy drag and I had to follow it downstream whilst dragging my landing net. It managed another powerful 50 yd run and was going around the river bend, fortunately the river level was dropping and I waded through the muddy bank to find the solid, stony river bed.
Now I only had my wellies on and the river was thigh deep this side. Easy decision to make, I wanted this fish badly, so I waded out about 20 metres so I could keep my line out of the trees.
Finally I stopped the fish before it reached the log-jam of trees under the cliffs downstream. It took about 15 minutes to bring the fish back upstream, a few more runs but it was tired now. So was I!
When I saw its profile I thought it might make 20 lbs. But once it was in the net I saw the width of its back, then when I lifted the net I judged this carp as close to 30 lb.
So after resting the fish, and regaining my composure, I decide to weigh it properly. Back up the bank it weighed 27lbs....and a bit!
A glorious February carp in great condition!
I took it back to the river, rested it for a few minutes. But it was still quite frisky and anxious to go home....
Despite being exhausted and soaked I put another bait out. One more good take, this time a 4lb barbel....
The sun had now dropped behind the cliffs and I was in shadow. Temperature would drop to freezing again soon so time for me to head home
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