cowley1963

Thanks David, I'm still full of it To be honest, I don't know the complete stock details. All of the lads on our week caught, and we're going back twice next year We loved the place that much! It's not easy, but French lakes aren't the pushover they used to be. I like the balance and feel of Moorlands. 15 odd acres stuffed with too many fish would be called catching not fishing When we turned up, it was full. We hired the lake for our week, then it was full again the following week. I don't know how hard it is advertised, but it seems to have paid off. I'd book early if your going. Thanks again, might see you on the bank one day. All the best cowley.

I have just returned from Moorlands, first time there. I have read this complete thread and will simply state things as i see them. We did the draw for swims and I came out last All the fish were showing towards the dam wall end of the lake, and by the time my pick came along, that end of the lake was pretty much taken, so i plumped for the entrance to the southern arm swim called 'the boneyard'. I ended up with 9 fish including 4 40's, very nice! The fish seemed to come out from different areas at different times of the week, so I can easily see how Robin managed his fantastic haul if he kept mobile and 'on' the fish. I tend to think of French holiday fishing as a mixture of fishing and holiday, but if Robin worked hard to stay with the shoals, all I can say is well done and great angling! His catch is definitely feasible. Keith fished from the dam wall for some of the week, and was very helpful. We had a mix of angling abilities and nothing was too much trouble. It was interesting to see his rigs, baiting approach etc, and some of our fish caught were due to mimicking Keiths approach. I really enjoyed my week here. It's not easy, you have to work at it. Proper fishing i'd call it. I for one recommend Moorlands. I'll be back! Cheers, Cowley.

It was originally called 'Wally's Lake' because of Mary Green's Father, Wally. The Green's own the caravan site that the lake is owned by. There's a picture of him in The Ranch House, holding a carp in the late 60's. I had a caravan there in the 90's, fished it every summer for about 10 years. There was the odd 20 in those days but mainly doubles, loads of them though. I caught 21 one morning, then went down the smugglers for lunch...great memories. There was never a fish called Wally in those days, guess that's evolved since

www.stillwaterleisure.co.uk

Fished it a couple of times, quite a nice lake. There's a small head of original fish and simmo's were introduced about 8-10 years ago. The middle of the M3 bank and oppsite in the tree line were good spots, although the tree line is a bit tight for a bivvy. Fish aren't too hard to catch but a big chuck is helpful sometimes. Don't be frightened to chuck a single at showing fish. A bit noisy with the M3 on top of it, but a nice water, think you'll like it. Good luck.

Only got as far as the 2nd. I'm guessing he doesn't use the ring then

Written by Stephen Donaldson. Blimey, six books. Can't put them down!

and re ticket just fish, they come round.

Hello mate Anywhere around the island is good, fish it really tight with light leads, or if you look at the lake from the horses field bank, there's a big overhanging tree on the right hand side of the lake, but you have to virtually sit on your rods or they'll be straight in there. I used to do well with trout pellets, salmon sinkers i think, and also with chops. If you're in open water, it gets weedy in patches, up against them is ok. Good luck, cowley.

Top dangling

Oh yeah, I seem to remember that although it's deep in the middle, there's a marginal shelf, maybe even a double shelf before it slopes away? Target them, nice tight presentation and loose line. Sit well back and don't even have the rod tips over the water at all. You'll be able to watch the airshow if you fish this weekend!

Hello again mate! One of the guys who used to be on my syndicate, and who incidentally is responsible for alot of the rules on the lakes , had a very successful spell on the res. I'm not sure whether he still fishes there, but knowing his mindset I can probably take an educated guess on his approach. He would have fished lunchtime til dusk, would have had a mobile approach, light leads and flick short to fish, spend hours looking for signs of fish, fishing for one fish at a time, i.e. little bit of bait sometimes with one rod only but most certainly no more than two. Don't know whether this suits your style of fishing but he is a very very good angler and was out-performing everyone else with the static bait up and wait approach. Be well interested to hear how things go, keep me informed! Cheers, Cowley

Is this the original wally's lake or the new lake over the back? Cheers, Cowley

I've fished Dreamlakes 1 five times. Up to two years ago it was superb, great fishing, great food and great bailiff's. Then three or so years ago they had a massive fish death. They attempted to resolve this by trading cats for carp with a local French guy, pound for pound. Good in theory but in practise, the big cats being taken out resulted in a kitten explosion (no big cats to eat them). It was impossible to catch carp because the kittens were straight on your bait. Head bailiff Matt and the gang have worked hard, painfully extracting the kitten's, albeit with the help of the hapless angler's over the past couple of years. To say the staff are un-helpful has probably been true over the last couple of years. Because of the dip in action they have been at the sharp end of angler's complaints. Whilst these complaints have been justified, it's human nature I'm afraid to clam up under these circumstances, remember they work there, they don't own it. Now, all the hard work has reaped its reward, and with the help of a boilies and plastic only rule, the action is now as good as ever. The staff, who were always excellent before, are now able to concentrate on the important stuff, like fishery management and making your holiday what you would expect. So basically, it's had problems but they seem to be resolved. And if they are, there's nowhere better, in my opinion. Cowley.

I'm off to the above venue early April. They offer the rental of a rowing boat for £70 for the week. Is this an advantage on this lake or a waste of 70 quid? Cowley.

Great point. Combine this with a great pair of polaroid's and it's just as exciting as free-lining crust. Proper fishing

France's weather is completely different to ours. Most lakes are situated 4-5 hours from Calais, in the champagne region. It gets hotter in the summer and much colder in the winter. Last year in early April, some lakes were frozen in the edge and it snowed heavily. Admittedly, it was cold here too early in April, but not that cold. I would worry about February/March big time. I've booked the week beginning the 5th April 09, and i feel like i'm chancing it. I wish you well, hopefully it could be an early spring and you'll be hauling! Be interested to know how you get on. Steve.

Thanks Blank. Going to google it now. Let you know how it goes. Steve.

I'm visiting my mum in law early november. As a reward (from her indoors) I'm allowed to take my fishing gear. Going to have a look at the Wensum (Chub and maybe a late barbel) but more interested in local carp venues. Any local tips fella's?

Try cross channel carping's 'Lac Tellait's.' [edited to remove link]

Could anyone recently returned from cross channels 'Tellaits' please post their results. I'm going early April 2009. Cheers.

So that's 9% on a pb, 90% disappointed and 1% feeling very unlucky! I think. Medic! I'm going for a lay down Cowley.

Have just booked 6 April 09. Fished it myself in 2001, but fish were alot smaller then. One of my fishing buddies fished it in September last year. He had 12 fish, biggest 43lb. He loved the place, his only complaint was no on site shower facilities. You get taken to a local camp site every other day so keep those bivs apart He said rent a row boat. Those that didn't struggled a bit. Cowley.

Yep boilies and plastic are just about all that's permitted. Might be worth taking some chops just to be a bit different? Cowley.

Good on you, the best of luck! I'll keep an eye out for your progress. Cowley.