maffy

Good luck.

Firstly You need to just catch a carp. The guy you talked to will be fishing for BIG carp. You need to catch one the big ones can come later. On the River Lot I use 18lb nylon or 50lb braid lines and 3.5 test rods, 3 test rods are fine. Instead of using expensive boilies use particles you can get maize and smaller bird seed particles that you can get from Gamvert in france. Cook them if you can but a 3day soak for the maize or 24hrs for the bird seed will be ok. Bait up each day for three days if you can. Just turn up and fish if you can't between 5 and 10k each bait up will be enough. Try variouse depths if you can sometimes the fish will want to be shallow sometimes deep. Boilies are great to bait up if you can afford them if not put in what you can afford. Use big baits on the hair I use anything from 24-30ml and often use two 30ml baits on the hair to try to avoid the chub/barbel and target the Big carp. Most of all don't stress to much if you don't catch one just enjoy the scenery the carp will come if you keep at it. Different streches of the river have different numbers and sizes of fish. try and find a stretch with a higher population of carp. Best of luck and I may bump in to you next september!! There are some wels catfish in the river around st cirque lapopie they will beat you up !!!!

In the context of this thread frenchboy your preaching to the converted!

Yep Guy thats the spot I fished. Did three nights for one lost fish that I hooked doposite bank downstream towards the canal. Beautiful place though I did worry I wouldn't be able to get the car back up the steep slope down to the swim. As it happened I got out by putting my foot down and crossing my fingers!!

Thanks for the info Guy. I fished the lot at the cele mouth in sept. Caught no fish but was treated to an awesome vista!

The first thing to do is get down and do a 48hr session that includes lots of watching, listening and use of the marker rod. Find an area that appeals then pre-bait it regularly. Dont be afraid of deep water anything upto 30ft would be ok. Your never going to catch numbers of fish regularly but with the possibility of a 60lber it only takes 1 fish to make lots of hard work worthwhile.

There are other rivers out there mate. The marne, mosselle, petit rhone,Lot, Garrone, Tarn. To name a few. pick one and do some research on the internet. He who dares wins!!

I'm also an addict of the public lakes and rivers. It's great to find more of you are still out there taking the chances, risking the blanks and experiencing the joy of catching fish you know you realy deserve. thre arn't many of us left and long may that continue!

Go here http://thebigcarphunter.com/ Look at previous posts loads of info.

Licences are available from chez pieres. It should cover most of the south of france. If it doesn't cover the lot you'll need to get a 'stamp' from the lot region. some local cafes sell them, A tourist office or a tackle shop.

To be honest mate I don't know never fished out of the 'night' fishing periods. hopefuly someone else can tell you.

If you have an ambition to fish this carp mecca go. Yes it can get busy and yes it is not easy fishing but the lake is a magical place and realy has to be experienced to appreciate it's beauty and the challenges it presents. During august no night fishing is allowed but despite this many fish are caught. I've never been there and been unable to find anywhere to fish but have been and not been able to get my prefered swim. It will probably be very hot in august so go prepared!

some orellana pics I went with matt at fat angling top guiding service http://www.fatanglingtours.com/

I've been using this site for a while scoll. I'm glad of the opportunity to thank you. Great source of info Thanks

Are there still restrictions on rowing your baits out ? If so what are they? Is gerrards cafe still open? if not where is the safest place to park your car? When are the busiest times? Cheers gratefull for any replies

Concentrate on the cut throughs and the middle. I found the margins to be not the most productive. Bait, All the usual suspects fit the bill Boilies, maize, tigers, hemp, groats. Don't go mad with the bait at first. 3-4k of particles and 1-2k of boilies over 24hrs. be prepared to move if its not happening after 2-3days and bait up other spots in preperation. if using boilies as hookbaits use 18mm or bigger, hard, or even covered with mesh or shrink tube. The seine contains poison chat (small catfish) that will murder soft baits. It's a while since I've done any 'Wild' fishing in france. But I'll be getting back in the saddle this year. Its very hard work fishing the rivers but when you get the results you know you deserve it and to me the fish are far more worthy than any from over stocked comercial lakes. Good luck.