out of interest

[jason]

How many of you lads have fished the public lakes in france. One of my mates is wanting to take two weeks off work and just load the van with all the gear and bait and going fishing one of the public lakes over their. Anyody done this?

cheers jay

[richk]

Originally Posted by jason

How many of you lads have fished the public lakes in france. One of my mates is wanting to take two weeks off work and just load the van with all the gear and bait and going fishing one of the public lakes over their. Anyody done this?

cheers jay

Yep I have done it a few times and its great mate. Nobody around for miles, peacefull, no idiots. And the chance of some really big fish as well. Its cheap you can get permits from most of the local tackle shops, sports shop, Bars or Tabacs that are local to the lakes you want to fish. And if your near a large town then from the Tourist Information office. You will need a passport sized foto to go in your permit and buy the 12 month one as some of the Carte de Vacances they do have no entitlement to night fishing but the Annual permit will cover everything. Make sure that you know which are the Night Fishing areas as you dont want to get caught out by the Garde de Peche who do frequent visits. Most of the places that sell the permits will put you on the right track and a few have leaflets showing the authorised night areas.

Strong tackle is a must as these fish can put up a good scrap. 3 to 4 oz leads are fine. Take tigers as some have a lot of Crays or Poisson Chat. You cant use sacks on any public waters anymore in France so dont get caught out! You can use boats and ********* on a lot of them but the engine has to be battery powered. Some areas do not allow barbies etc and its a big fine if you are caught. Most allow 4 Rods. Cars can be left in your swim on nearly every one of them but on some access can be hard unless you have a 4x4 so its best to walk the Bank first and suss it out.

Anything else I can help with PM and I will do my best.

[skilledhandz]

Ive just come back from Ardennes area.The problem with trying to gather info is that no one wants to part with it as its so hard gather.If you want to PM me any questions i will answer.Its difficult out there once you move off the circuit waters if you want big fish.

[HAWTHORN]

Yep, we have done it a few times also. As Skilled Hands says, getting up to date info is the key.
However, all the waters which held big fish fifteen years ago still hold big fish now and there are not so many English fishing them.
Have a look at the old BK european guide and use the tinternet. Even if you don`t speak French you can still pick some info up from French carp web sites.