Sun, sweat and sulking carp.

This week started with high expectations as the wicked n/e wind had dropped and all looked well. Little were we to know that saturday saw the start of a heatwave that would see daily temperatures in the high 30’s and night time just a little cooler. Water temperature has risen to 29c for the first time since we have owned the lakes and as a consequence the fishing remains slow. The tally so far is only around 20 fish including just the one 30 and a couple of 29’s along with a few smaller fish. A catfish of around 40lb (not weighed) has also graced the bank but other than that the conditions really are more tropical than carpy. As I write this blog I am running with sweat and the anglers are either catching for fun out of Poplars or skulking in the shade of the tree’s. Its times like this that a wooded lake can make life a little more bearable as opposed to an open lake where there is little relief from the sun. All our hopes are for the promised storm that seems to hover on the horizon but never quite arrives and I am confident that a downpour and drop in atmospheric pressure will see the carp up for a good feed. I have spoken to 5 lake owners this week and its strange in as much that 5 of us have the same story to tell on catches (with one lake having just 4 carp out so far to 12 anglers) and it seems that most of France is suffering in much the same way.

We had a little episode reported this morning that a couple of the anglers witnessed what appears to be a coot being taken by a big catfish !!! Its something i have actually witnessed on another lake but was not aware that our cats were into to waterfowl. With lots of big fish crashing around in the nightg and showing at times over the baited area’s I am confident that a change in the weather will see a change in the fishing fortunes. Lets hope that tonight is the night !!

A tough week but lots of fun !!

The week has come to a close with the overall winner being the weather !! The lads (and dads) worked gamely to winkle out a fish or two and each day saw a few more for the catch report but not without lots of effort. The weeks total was just 38 fish which is one of our lowest ever but certainly is no reflection on the efforts of our anglers. You can have the best equipment, the best rigs and the best bait but if the carp do not want to play then you are bxxxxxxd !! I have the greatest admiration for the enthusiasm and good spirit that this weeks anglers showed each day and I will say a big well done to Jack, Ian, Brian, Arrun, Brian and Mark (not forgetting Marie) for being such great company in such a difficult week… I am well pleased that all of them have rebooked for next year.

The total catch was 38 fish including a cracking 40.5lb mirror to Bob and a further 12 carp over 30lb. Lots of new pb’s this week with Ian having both a mirror and common of 28lb, young Jack a mirror of 32.4lb’s and Arrun a superb 37.4lb mirror. Brian also had a new common record and son Mark a new mirror pb. Top rod was Bob who managed a superb bag of 30lb+ carp plus his 40 in his 15 carp catch. Strange to say but we failed to see any of the big commons this week and wait expectingly for their appearance in the coming weeks.

Happy Birthday Jack……………….16 yrs old today !!!

And his presents …

And his new pb of 32lb4oz.

Wednesday morning update.

With a lovely group of anglers on this week consisting of 3 father and son combinations it has been lots of fun and banter but not so many fish as I would have liked. With a strong north easterly wind and clear sunny skies fishing has been slower than usual with most fish coming either during the night or early in the morning before the wind picks up again. The N/E wind has been a feature for a few weeks now and certainly has slowed things down for many lakes. Yesterday alone I had 3 fishery owners phone me to see how we were doing with reports of very low catches….one lake in Normandy had just one carp for 8 anglers up to wednesday morning!! One thing is for certain and that is along with a change in the weather will come a change in fortunes with some cracking catches on the cards. One pleasing aspect of the fish so far caught is that they are in superb condition with most of the spawning damage now healed.

Despite the doom and gloom we have seen some lovely fish out topped by yet another 40 banked by Bob at 40lb 7oz. There have also been 6 x 30’s out with the best of them being a cracking 37lb 8oz mirror to Arrum. Total catch so far is 23 fish and lots of new pb’s for the lads included. Yound Jack had his 16th birthday celebrated here on tuesday and his dearest wish was to catch a 25lb carp (only recently broken the 20lb barrier). Well, on cue came his new pb at 27lb 14oz …….well done Jack, next in line is that first 30 !! Jacks father Ian has also had both mirror and common pb’s.

Brian (and wife Marie) has been camped up on the shallows with son Mark and so far have had little luck. A nice 25lb common to Brian last night has compensated somewhat for the several good fish he has lost with Mark also losing an estimated ‘big 30′ at the net. In fact its fair to say we have seen more fish hooked and lost this week than for some time so with a little luck the catch rate could have been a good bit higher. With a change in the weather forecast for tomorrow afternoon it will be interesting to see how the fishing responds.

You will remember the lone duckling I wrote about a week or so ago well, you will be pleased to hear that it is now bigger, fatter and getting its adult plumage so that really she (yes a she) has done so well to survive when her 11 siblings failed to do so. The lake at the moment is home to several large broods of duckling and a couple of families of coot as well. The grebes have not appeared to have produced any young so far this year but we are hoping that they are just leaving it a little later than usual.

Arrum and his new pb at 37lb 8oz.

A pb mirror for Ian.

And a pb common for Ian.

Yound birthday boy Jack and his new pb carp.

Jack and his first sturgeon.

Brian and his new pb common.

Bob found that his first ever 40lb carp was to much of a handful on the mat so opted to put it back without a picture rather than stress the fish out any further. A great attitude, putting the welfare of his quarry before pictures !! I do have it all on video though so not all is lost.

Below is a picture of Bob in action.

A good ending to week 12

With conditions improving as the weeek progressed we saw more and more good fish being banked. The lads learned quickly and using crab boilies over big beds of pellet managed to amass a catch of 53 fish including a 55lb catfish, a 44lb common and a 40lb mirror. Considering the slow start to the week the total to the 4 Dutch anglers was eventually very good and they are to be congratulated on their efforts. All the lads had new pb’s with Jurien topping the list with catfish at 55lb, common of 44lb and mirror of 37.5lb, Simon had a new pb with a 40lb mirror whilst Renais, who had never caught a carp before arriving here, had a best of 37.3lb. Lambert also had a new mirror pb of 34.1lb.

Spawning seems to have been completed and the fish are looking in good condition with just a few spawning wounds left to heal. All is looking good for the remainder of the season.

Total catch for the week was as follows.

1 x 55lb catfish

1 x 44lb common

1 x 40lb mirror

5 carp between 35 and 40lb

15 carp between 30 and 35lb

9 carp between 25 and 30lb

12 carp between 20 and 25lb

9 x doubles

A cracking mirror for Simon

A lovely spawned out mirror for Simon

Jurien and his 44lb common

Quietly does it !!

After the laughter and banter of a week with the Cumbrian lads we have a very quiet and peaceful week now in progress. With 4 nice Dutch lads booking the lake exclusively the positive is that the lake seems very peaceful and quiet and the downside is that with all 4 anglers on one bank the carp can keep well out of the way should they so chose. Having said that some nice fish have been banked already with a total of 18 so far including 8 x 30lb+ carp and two catfish at 55lb and 28lb. The big cat came when 2 of the lads were away at the shops and after seeing Jurien playing the fish for about 20 mins I decided to stroll round and see what was causing such a struggle. Lambert was snoring loudly in his bivvy at the other end of the lake so could not be called to help so I sat quietly in the bivvy to keep dry, filming all the action, whilst Jurien battled away with his catch. After around 1hr the fish was no closer to being netted than when it was first hooked and to add a little more interest to proceedings another of Juriens rods took off with a screaming run. I lifted into the fish and passed the rod to Jurien whilst I held the ‘cat rod’ and proceeded to give a little and take a little as the cat held out in the middle of the lake. A cracking 29lb mirror was duly landed, weighed and photographed and Jurien took over the cat rod once again. The fight lasted one and a half hours and the catfish turned the scales at 55lb. Best carp so far are a 34.1 to Lambert, 34.2 to Reinier, 33 to Simon and 30.8 to Jurien.

The importance of using a quality fishmeal freezer bait was make very obvious over the weekend with the lads using readymades over their own pellet for the first 36hrs and catching just the one carp. Once they changed to our crab boilies over our high fishmeal pellet they had around 25 runs landing 16 fish in the next 36hrs. Its not just our bait that catches but I really suggest that if you are bringing your own over then you select a good quality fishmeal based bait in either fresh or frozen form.

Trevor the terrapin has left us I am afraid!!! The little fellah was spotted by several of our anglers over the past couple of years and quietly got on with his lonely life around tha lake. We rescued him from the vidange point a couple of months ago and released him, non the worse for the experience into the lake. Yesterday Sophie found him squashed on the road !! the saddest thing was that although in a pretty ugly mess he managed to lift up his little head and looked at her.

Jimmy put him out of his misery will a well aimed blow from a shovel !!!

Jurien and his 55lb Catfish.

A nice 30 for Simon.

A good mirror for Jurien.

Thursday update.

The Cumbrian lads are having a great time with some nice fish interspersed with lots of banter and the odd glance of sunshine. In fact the weather has been pretty awful for this time of year with lots of rain accompanied by very strong winds. Thankfully, today was warm and sunny with no more than a breeze to ruffle the surface. The catch so far is 56 fish, mainly carp but also including a couple of sturgeon and a 28lb catfish. Best of the week fell to Tony who was left minding Darrens rods whilst he went for some beers to celebrate the 38.8lb common he had just banked. Both commons gave a great scrap and first Darren and then Tony had to take to the water to play the fish. For Darren it was a bitter sweet moment as he had just landed his best ever fish only to see it bettered by another run on the same rod. The difference was that this time is was Tony that took the accolades as he gamely fought the big common for around 20 mins. Although the general stamp of fish out this week is smaller than we normally see there have still been some cracking fish banked. Tony has had the 40.7lb common followed by another pb, this time a mirror of 39.4lb and a first cat at 28.4lb. Darren has banked some lovely fish and in addition to his common of 38.8lb(pb) he has also banked mirrors of 36.2lb(pb) and 36lb. Mike has worked hard for his fish and was rewarded by a 37.8lb mirror, another pb. Giddy, Steve and Willy have all caught and although none has yet tackled a real lump they have enjoyed some great sport with doubles and 20’s. Now that just leaves Andy………….the original Stella kid !!! Just how  one fellah can get through so many bottles of Stella each day and yet appear completely normal is one of the mysteries of life!! We have arranged to set up a bottle bank behind his swim to ensure he can dispose of his empties without have to drag sackloads to the house each morning. Anyway, between supping Andy has managed a good few fish topped by another pb in the form of a 30lb mirror.

Tonight ther lake is calm and some big fish have been crashing so hopefully we will see a few more added to the tally before dawn.

Oh, by the way… our lonesome duckling is still with us and growing bigger by the day so with a bit of luck the next week will see it big enough to have a very good chance of reaching adulthood.

Tony and his 40.7lb common.

A 39.4lb mirror for Tony.

Tony again, this time with his first catfish.

Darren and his 38.8lb common.

Darren again, this time with one of his 36lb mirrors.

And yet another good 30 for Darren.

Now a few from Andy.

And one for Stephen.

And one for Giddy.

And Mike with a spawned out mirror.

And finally Willy with a stunning mirror and his first sturgeon.

The weather has been a big factor in recent weeks and this week is no exception with lots of rain and strong winds unsettling the fish and certainly making the fish a tad more challenging than we usually expect at this time of the year. Find below a couple of pics taken by the lads that just about sums up the week so far.

View from The bivvy by Stephen.

The morning after by Darren.

The start of Week 11

The lads arrived late on saturday and only really started fishing after breakfast on Sunday morning. The weather has changed since last week with heavy rain with us for the next few days and then warmer, sunnier weather moving in once again. Fishing prospects are looking good and with 19 fish out so far the lads are happy with life. Biggest fish is 37.8lb to Michael followed by a 33lb mirror for Anthony and some nice 20’s for the rest of the lads.

I feel that the past few weeks have seen the heaviest spawning yet experienced here at Le Moulin du Mèe and the aftermath has left lots of the fish carrying damage suffered in this period. One suspicion I have held for some time seems to be borne out by some of the fish caught recently. I believe that carp will feed heavily on fry at certain times of the year and in particular following spawning when protein is needed for tissue repair and growth. I helped land several fish yesterday that all coughed up well chewed fry onto the mat. That perhaps explains why the expected feeding frenzy expected following spawning fails to materialise….instead the carp are feeding heavily on the abundant roach fry and ignoring traditional baits. I have long suspected that the larger fish that seem to disapear for weeks at a time are likewise preoccupied on fry which also explains the high growth rates we are seeing.

The new broods of waterfowl are now to be seen all over the lake with several broods of ducklings and a couple of young coots to be seen. The kingfishers seem to have had a succesful breeding and are to be seen feeding in the margins throughout the day. We had one early brood of 11 ducklings that were abandoned by their mother. As each day passed the ducklings were to be seen in gradually diminishing numbers with predators picking them off one by one. At the beginning of last week we were down to three and by the end of the week down to just one. The remaining little chap seems to be managing to survive all alone and each morning I anxiously look out for him and sure enough he appears and each time seems to have grown a little. A real little survivor that hopefully will manage to make it through the next week or so until he is stronger and more able to fend for himself.

Week 10 ends with a bang.

Week 10 was a bit of a grueller with very hot sunshine and a strong north easterly blowing most of the week. That, together with the completion of spawning left the fishing difficult and unpredictable. The final count was 60 fish comprising 56 carp, 3 sturgeon and a solitary catfish. Pick of the crop was the last night 42.4lb mirror for Emiel closely followed by a 40.4lb mirror to Paul. Both fish had spawned. Some nice 30’s were also banked, 11 in total with the best being mirrors of 39.8lb, 38.6lb and 38.3lb. The big commons failed to show up this week with the best being a brace of low 30’s followed by a handful of 20’s. For much of the week the larger fish seemed to be lying up in midwater with very little interest in feeding and it was a change in the weather on friday that produced better conditions and the 2 forties that were banked. Sadly, some of the fish were marked up from spawning with one or two having some nasty abrasions on their flanks. I think next year we will put in spawning mats to try and ensure that damage is reduced to just minor scrapes. A couple of big 30’s for Emiel. Paul and his 40. Emiel and his 42.4lb mirrror. You can see the spawning rash and the damage to the root of the tail caused by spawning. In another month the carp will once again be healed up and the rash cleared.

Change in the weather and a change in fortunes !!

With the north easterly blowing all week the fishing has been far from what we would normally expect at this time of year. Daytime fishing has been very slow with most takes coming at night. The lake was devoid of feeding signs and even when I took to the boat I failed to find feeding fish and only spooked a few from the shallows. Those fish caught were generally of the smaller stamp with the bigger fish just not showing any interest in feeding at all. Yesterday evening the wind dropped and for the first time all week we had fish bubbling and jumping all over the lake. Hopes were high that an improvement in fortunes was on the cards.

At breakfast I told Mark that I had dreamed he would catch a 22 kilo fish that day and other than a few chuckles  very little credence was given to my prediction. Well, later in the day Mark had an epic fight with a catfish that bottomed his scales at…………………………………………..22kilo !!! Take heed thou non believers !!!!

Mark added a 25lb mirror and a 32lb mirror overnight and Emiel had a stunning 39.8lbmirror and a 31.8lb common as well as a couple of other fish and Mike also bagged a 30lb mirror. A few other fish were also banked last night giving a total for the week of 41 carp and a single catfish.

We are hoping that today will bring further catches and more of the bigger girls will get on the feed. I am hoping for a big common (I predicted that Paul would have one today !!!) to see how they have faired after spawning but so far just one common over 30lb has been banked this week.

Emiel and 39.8lb mirror.

A 30lb+ common for Emiel.

A double whammy for Roy !

Roy and a one eyed mirror.

Another 30+ for Emiel.

Week 10 commences

Well, with the hot weather continuing accompanied by a strongish North Easterly wind the carp are still rather contrary to say the least. Spawning appears to have stopped in the main lake but has just started in Poplars and the mill pond so there is a possibility they may decide to give it another go on Etang du Mèe whilst conditions are right. With 18 carp up to 38.3lb’s out so far the fishing is slower than normal but at least most of the lads are seeing some action. Quite a few of the ‘phantom runs’ are being experienced where the bobbin lifts steadily and the baitrunner gives line but when the rod is lifted there is nothing there!! This is often a feature around spawning time and the assumption amongst fellow lake owners is that it is caused by shoals or preoccupied male fish picking up the line on their dorsal fins. I am not so sure but until another explanation comes up I will have to go with this one. Paul used his graphic echosounder to locate the fish earlier today and we found huge shoals lying up about 30m from the dam and holding at around 1m from the surface. Paul tried a zig rig right in the middle of the concentration of fish without so much as a bleep and this evening put a good spread of bait in the area so it will be interesting to see what tonight brings.

On a sour note I will confess that we lost a low 20 mirror today. It had been dead for about a week and seems to have been a casualty of to energetic spawning. I had been warned many times that losses at this time should be expected but as we have gone 3 seasons without a problem it came as a bit of a shock. Other than a few scratches, usually at the root of the tail, the carp so far caught have been in very good condition which is good to see however the loss of even one fish is rather disapointing.

I have put together the video of the draindown and loaded it onto youtube (type in carpdreams) so if you excuse the soundtrack you may find it interesting viewing. In a day or so I will have a link to both video clips on our website and hope to be adding more as the season progresses. I will keep you all updated with any new additions as and when they are loaded up.

Emiel and his 38.3lb mirror.

A 33lb mirror for Roy.

Michael and a 30lb+ common.

Another good mirror for Roy.

And one for Danny.

And lastly a nice common for Emiel.