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News
2010 CATCH REPORT
17th-24th Willow Lake Mr Cox had a very good week banking 35 fish including a new lake record of 45lbs 4ozs. During his stay he used amongst other things, 3 gallons of maggots to get the fish feeding. Hookbait was hair rigged maggots, or critically balanced Pepperami.- Good angling Garath, trying something different. 17th 24th July Firs Lake Mr Nicholls fished mainly from 9pm -10am the following day, as he had a few days out. he caught 11 fish and lost a couple, these were between 16lbs and 28lbs. The weather was hot for the first few days, then they had a thunderstorm which clearerd the air and the fishing picked up. He used Active 8, Tiger nuts or Brazil Nuts as hook bait. 10th-17th July Willow Lake Mr Sargent again had hot weather, but managed to catch "Chloe" at 42lbs 40zs three times !! he also caught 4 other Carp. 10th-17th July Firs Lake Mr Ellison had a very hot week with the temp. around the mid thirties making the fishing very hard, but he managed 7 carp to 29lbs. these were caught on Trigga/cranberry snowman or pop-ups on a chod rig. he only fished nights. 3rd-10th July Willow Lake Mr Hassan had a scorcher of a week with temperatures topping 40 degrees c. !! He caught 2 grass carp to 31lbs acommon of 31lbs, and a few Catfish, the biggest being 43lbs. Hallibut pellets or Fushion Boilies were the top bait. 3rd -10th July Firs Lake Mr Robinson caught a few fish 26th June -3rd July Willow Lake Mr sessions had a good week considering the weather was 30+degrees C. He caught 15 Carp to 34lbs and 6 Cats to 40lbs. He mainly fished early evening until midnight fishing tight to the far margin with chopped down Trigga tipped with plastic corn over a small amount of bait. 26th June - 3rd July Firs Lake Mr Lyes 19th - 26th Firs Lake Mr Thorpe had a slow week, he fished nights and caught 3 carp to mid twenties, so he found time to have a few trips out including local restaurants, the caves and chocolate factory twice !! 19th - 26th June Willow Lake Mr Birch caught a 20lb Carp and lost a couple. The weather was very hot, the fish spent most of the time on the top. he only fished days. 12th - 19th June Firs Lake Mr Wordsley fished mainly nights as the weather was hot, he caught 12 carp between 20lbs-25lbs and a Catfish, these were caught mainly on trigga boilies either tipped with something or re-shaped and fished over small amounts of free offering at various spots around the lake. 12th-19th June Willow Lake Mr Peacock had a nice relaxing time eating and drinking and generally chilling out, he still found time to catch 18 fish including carp and cats to mid thirties, these were mainly caught on finely balanced sweetcorn fished in PVA bags or over a small amount of pellet 10ft off the far margin. 5th - 12th June Firs Lake Mr Sargent Caught just one carp of 30lbs and a Catfish of 33lbs 5th-12th June Willow Lake Mr Schofields party had a very stressful time, this started before they even arrived ! but once they had sorted things out, they managed 11 Carp to 30lbs and a Catfish of 33lbs. 29th-5th June Firs Lake Mr Miller caught 10 fish including 4 x 30,s to 33lbs 22nd - 5th June Willow Lake Mr Campbell had a slow time, real mixture of weather, they caught a few carp, including a 42lb 12oz common. 22nd-29th May Firs Lake Mr Evens had a slow week, fish spawning and variable weather, not ideal, but he did have a few fish at the end of the week. 15th-22nd May Willow Lake Mr and Mrs Jackson managed 11 Carp, dispite them spawning for 3 days, these were topped with a stunning mirror of 44lbs 1oz. caught by Julie, her new PB, they also had 3x30's to 39lbs and 3x 20s. they fished mornings and evenings. 15th-22nd May Firs Lake Mr Cooper had a quiet week, not a lot happened for the first five days, as the weather was cold north easterly winds, then the weather changed and they caught a few carp to 30lbs and a cat of 20lbs. 8th-15th May Willow Lake Mat Mitchell had a cracking week banking 34 carp, these included 2 x40's to 43lbs 12ozs, 10 30's of which 7 were 36lbs+ 16 x 20's and 4 doubles. (not bad for a 2 acre lake!) The favoured bait was carefully balanced Tigers on long hairs, everything was well pinned down. Top Angling Mat 8th-15th May Firs Lake Mr Perkins had a grim week weather wise but he still managed to bag 10 fish, including a new lake record carp of 42lbs 8ozs, he also caught another 40lb carp, 2 x 30's to 36lbs and the rest were 20's these were caught mainly on Trigga. 1st-8th May Willow Lake Mr Mansbridge had a challanging week with cold northeastly winds.Fishing days only, they caught 1 x 40 ("Chloe" at 44lbs 6ozs ) 6 x 30's to 39lbs 12ozs, 9 x 20's and 4 doubles. 1st -8th May Firs Lake David Posse and his wife had a great week dispite the weather being a bit grim with mainly cold north easterly winds and some scattered showers and only the odd sunny day.But, he managed to catch 22 carp, this was made up of 7 x 30's to 37lbs 8 ozs, and the rest were 20's except two high doubles. He also caught 5 x Catfish. Most of the fish fell to Matrix boilies fished over about 20 freebes. 24th April-1st May Willow lake Mr Thorpe had a good week, fishing days only and having a couple of hours off for lunch,(when in France do as the French do! ) he still managed 16 fish including "Chloe" at 44lbs and a Common of 36lbs the rest were mainly 20's and 30's. He also caught a Catfish of 35lbs. 24th April-1st May Firs Lake Mr Waddiloves Party had a good week, they caught 5 x Cats to 32lbs, 5 x 30's to 35lbs, 17 x 20's to 29lbs anb a few doubles. they fished days only. The weather was hot 25+ most days. 17th -24th April Willow Lake Mr Jamieson was our first client, as we had the first 2 weeks of April, He was there with his wife and 2 young sons,. Fishing mainly afternoons and evenings he managed 12 carp, this was made up of 2 doubles 3 high 20's, a 29lb grass Carp, 5 x30's to 37lbs and a beautiful common of 41lbs 3ozs. Top tatics was to use trimmed down Tigernut boilies, fished over beds of hemp, maize and chopped tigers. Firs Lake – The Return Following our initial visit to the venue over Easter 2009 we made plans to return as soon as we were back in the UK. After consultation with the school holiday calendar we booked the same week again at Firs for 2010 to see if we could conquer some of the venue’s 30’s that had eluded us in 2009. Plans were made, ferries booked, rigs made, and soon enough Easter was upon us and we made the trip down to Portsmouth for the overnight ferry to Caen. As well as my wife and now 14 year old daughter my Dad was joining us on this trip. The car was a bit cramped but everything was squeezed in and we arrived on a sunlit Saturday afternoon to find Hugh making some final tweaks to the new swim at the road end of the lake. A quick chat and it became apparent that the first week had been a bit of a struggle. However, the weather had been set fair for the past couple of weeks and looked good for our seven days so I set about setting the rods up for the first night full of optimism. Rods out, bivvy up, dinner demolished and the sun set around 9pm without a bleep from the Delkims. Being the approach to a New Moon it was really dark once the sun had faded away. Last year the fish showed themselves regularly and this year was to be no different. They were again tucked in tight to the margin by the roadside. The LH rod was in pole position and it was this rod that signalled the first run just before midnight. A strong fight in the pitch black, but soon enough a 30.7 mirror lay in the net. Time to wake the house up to do the photos as was the deal ! The same rod was launched into the darkness and was away again a couple of hours later with a 19.6 common. Morning arrived and my daughter joined me hoping to up her PB. A run on the LH rod and she was in. After a bit of to-ing and fro-ing a new PB of 28.6 lay beaten on the mat. Excellent ! The rods were repositioned so that I had 2 rods on the margin as all runs had so far come from the LH rod. Over the course of the next night and day I had 3 further fish, all 30’s, with a best of 35.14. The RH rod had remained silent, and the fish continued to crash out of easy casting distance past the island on the LH margin, so despite 4 thirties in 2 nights a move was on the cards. The reasoning behind this was to get all 3 rods fishing, and by moving to the new road end swim this was possible as I could get all 3 rods onto the margins where the fish were still showing on a regular basis. Even on small venues and early in the season pressure moves the carp and you have to follow them. I also made sure that I kept everything pinned down and matched to the lakebed and that lines were slack, as inconspicuous as possible once the commotion of getting the baits in place was done. The move paid off as fish continued to come at regular intervals, and at all times of the day and night. Ellie managed to catch two more mirrors of 25lbs and 27lbs, and we even had a double take ending up with 2 twenties on the bank. The most memorable session lasted only 4 hours following a lengthy lunch in Vitre. I had two runs resulting in mirrors of 32.14 and 36.6. I stayed in the road end swim for 3 nights before a move back to the house end was made for the Thursday night. A few more carp were caught following the move including a mint 34.2 mirror and the smallest fish of the week at 13.6. This little common pinched my hookbait in the early hours of Friday morning from a spot that had previously only produced big fish. No chance to get it back there until after another nice lunch on the Friday. I only had a few hours to fish so I chose to fish 2 rods only. At 6.30pm on the Friday one took off as I slowly packed away and the final fish was landed, a mirror of 31.12. This made our tally for the week 20 fish with 8 thirties, 10 twenties and 2 doubles. I am sure that there will be many greater catches throughout the year, but I was happy with what we had caught so early in the season. If any lessons are to be learnt it would be ‘follow the fish’. Even if it’s a pain to reel in and re-cast just 10 yards either way it could affect things for the better. Don’t sit in a swim because you’re too lazy to move a couple of hundred yards. It only takes an hour or so on a lake of this size. Keep the rigs pinned down, use back leads and slack lines, and rigs you have confidence in. Use enough bait to get a bite and then start again. I also found that going into the local towns for a meal or shopping, and resting the swim (as well as keeping the rest of the party happy) often resulted in a quick run soon after starting again. Take a bird and wildlife book with you because whilst waiting for a run there is loads to see ranging from birds of prey and red squirrels to any number of birds you don’t often see in my back garden in Milton Keynes ! Luckily my Dad was there or many would have remained a mystery. As you can guess the time I spent in the house was minimal, but the house and it’s amenities were more than my wife, daughter and Dad required. Really we couldn’t find much to fault at all. So the cooker was hard to light (keep the dial pushed in for at least 60 seconds), or better still go out to lunch ! Sarah and Hugh have listened to requests from last season and the new shower is great. The unhooking cradles are also superb so the fish can remain in excellent condition throughout the season. All the fish fought hard and were in excellent condition as you can hopefully see from the photo gallery. I hope to come back to Firs again sometime in the future when the carp have grown further, but Willow is calling for 2011. The quest for a 40 begins now and we’ll see how we go with that…. Tight lines to all who fish Firs this season. It’s a great water but you’ll only get out what you put in. Kevin, Nicki, Ellie & Paul Stevens 10th to 17th April 2010
10th - 17th April Firs Lake Kevin Stevens had another fantastic week, he caught 20 Carp including 8 x 30,s to 36.6lbs, 10 x 20,s to 29.10lbs and a couple of doubles. These fish were mainly caught on maize or chopped boilies over small beds of hemp chopped tigers and maize with a blow back rig, his main line and "last yard" was all well pinned down. During his stay he moved 3 times to stay on top of the fish. Top Angling Kevin, Those who put in the effort reep the rewards. He still found time to visit the Zoo and go to the market at Chateau Gontier. 3rd-10th April Firs Lake Mr Marcham had a slow week, he caught 5 carp to 28lbs. The weather was a bit chilly with a cold North Eastly wind. 2009 CATCH REPORT 24th-31st October Willow Lake Mr Goddson had a great time, dispite an algie bloom they caught 2 x fourties (40lbs 11ozs and 44lbs 12ozs new lake record) 8 thirties and the rest were mainly mid or high twenties. Top tatics were either Zig rigs or single pop-ups over a handfull of Bankside baits boilies and "Gruba Pellets" most of the fish came from the silty gully. - Good angling lads. 10th-17th October Willow Lake Mr Waddelove and son had a good week, they caught 30+ carp including two fourties 5 thirties, and the rest were mainlly 20's 3rd -10th October Willow Lake Mr Walters had t tough week, they caught 3 carp to low thirties. 26th Sept-3rd October Willow Lake Mr Dickins had a slow week, he caught a couple of low thirties. 19th-26th September Willow Lake Mr Westgarth had a busy week, they caught 28 carp, including 2 x fourties (42lbs 8ozs and 42lbs 2ozs) 7 x thirties to 39lbs 4ozs, 12 x 24lbs+, and the rest were low twenties or high doubles. 12th-26th September Firs Lake Mr Pottier caught 13 carp to mid thirties. 5th-19th September Willow Lake Mr Dunns party had a quiet first week but it picked up a bit the second week, but the weather is still very hot there. They ended there holiday with 11 Carp including 9 x 20's and 3 x 30's to 39lbs and a few Catfish to 40lbs. 5th-12th September Firs Lake Mr Sargents party had a quiet week, they caught 2 thirties and 4 twenties. 29th-5th September Firs Lake Mr Henley had a good week fishing, they caught 31 fish, this was topped by a Mirror of 38lbs 8ozs, and a Catfish of 40lbs 3ozs, Dave caught 13 carp 2x30's the rest were 20's, Matt (aged 12) caught 7 carp including a 33lb Mirror and a pristine 34lb 7oz Common beating his PB twice ! Jane caught the rest - not bad as they only fished days. 29th-5th September Willow Lake Mr Cox had a hot week with the weather hitting 35 degrees for the first few days making the fishing tough, but they ended the week with 14 Carp, the biggest being a beautiful Common of 36lbs 9ozs, this was backed up by two other mid 30's, 7 x high 20's and 4 doubles and 4 Catfish. Top bait was Trigga or Tigernuts tipped with fake Corn. 22nd -29th August Firs Lake Mr Waddelove and family on there second visit, had a hetic start to there holiday, as they had caught 30 fish by Tuesday of there weeks holiday, then the weather changed and things went quiet. They ended the week with 35 carp including 6 x 30's and a new lake record mirror of 39lbs the rest were mainly 20's.Top bait was Tigernuts or Pineapple Pop-ups fished over pellets. They only fished days. 22nd-29thAugust Willow Lake Mr Wagstaff had a very pleasant week, the weather was mid 20's with lots of sunshine. Fishing days only, they caught 20 Carp including 2 thirties to 33lbs, thirteen twenties and the rest were doubles. Cell boilies and tigernuts were the successful baits, 15th- 22nd August Firs Lake Mr Stewart had a very hot week with temp, well into the mid thirties, but using either a snowman rig or single pop-ups, he caught 15 fish including a 29lb common a 32lb Mirror and a 30lb Catfish the rest were 20lb+. these came from mainly the the pads, or the l/h/s or r/h/s of the island fishing from the house swim. 15th-22nd August Willow Lake Mr Lane again had a very hot week with the temp. into the 30's, but he still caught carp of 40lbs, 35lbs and 30lbs. His son did very well banking around 15 Carp including a masive 42lb Mirror, 3 thirties, 2 grass carp of 30lbs & 28lbs, the rest were mid twenties. They only fished days. 8th - 15th August Willow Lake Mr Schires had a hot week with the weather up to 35 degrees some days, but he still managed 41 fish including Cats to 50lb+ and Carp to 40lbs+ ,he mainly fished nights as the weather was so hot. The favoured bait was Trigga, Maize or Cell. 8th - 15th August Firs Lake Mr Clive caught 30 fish including 6 x 30's biggest mirror was 36lbs2ozs, biggest Common was a perfect 32lbs2ozs. He also caught 5 x 27lb-29lb Carp, 11 other twenties and 11 high doubles. He still had time to do lots of trips out during the day including going to the local markets, sight seeing and as the weather was hot one day he went swimming. He fished 5 nights and a couple of days. 1st August - 8th August. Willow Lake, Bert and Family had a very productive week fishing, He caught 32 Fish including 7x30's to 36Ib and the rest were mailnly 20's and a couple of high doubles. He also caught 7 Cats to 40Ib. His favourite tactic was feeding a few spots in the margins around the lake with hemp,cat food and other particles, and float fishing over them with finely balanced plastic maize and a 360 degree rig. He only fished mornings and evenings. 1st August - 8th August. Firs lake, Mr Marshall had a busy week, Fishing mornings and evenings only, and site seeing during the day. He managed to catch 29 fish including 7x30's to 34Ib 10oz, 18x20's, 9 of which where 25Ib plus and the rest where high doubles. All these fish fell to stalking methods 25th July-1st August Firs Lake Mr King had a busy week, they caught 27 fish including mirrors of 35lbs4ozs, 35lbs, and 30lbs, 15 x 25lbs+, the rest were high doubles or low twenties. He also caught 2 x Catfish and "The Sturgeon" Most fish came during the cooler times of day or at night. 25th July-1st August Willow Lake Mr Gyngell had a hot week, but they managed to catch 6 Carp including 3 x30's, one of 34lbs and one of 31lbs. 18th-25th July Firs Lake Mr Roberts on there second visit had a good week catching 17 Carp including fish of 36lbs, 32lbs 29lbs 28lbs and 13 other 20lb+. they also had 5 Cats of 30lbs, 21lbs, 15lbs 13lbs and 12lbs. 18th-25th July Willow Lake Mr Peter Smith and his nephew had a very busy week, they managed to bank over 60 fish ! Peter caught 40 fish including 6 x 30lb+ and one 40lb+ and 13 x 20lb+. his tatics was plastic corn fished over a mixture of hemp and corn. 11th-18th July Firs Lake Mr White caught a Catfish of 29lbs, and Carp of 31lbs 32lbs and a few others of between 12lbs and 28lbs. 11th-18th July Willow Lake Mr Larcombe had a real mixture of weather, including rain, gale force winds, and sunshine, but his party still managed to catch 28 fish including a 41lb mirror and "Chloe" at 38lbs 5ozs, also 5 other 30's. there tatics were to fish boilies or maize over Redband pigeon conditioner and maize soaked in honey-deadly 4th-11th July Firs Lake Mr Hobbs had a very relaxing time "chilling" and sun bathing. they found time to catch afew fish too,-19 in fact, these were mainly 20's to 29lbs but they also caught 3 x 30's to 34lbs. 4th-11th July Willow Lake Mr Sessions had a very warm week, but they still managed to catch 24 fish fishing days/late evenings, this included carp to 39lbs8ozs. and Cats to 51lbs. they fished in open water for the Cats over beds of pellet, and tight to the mangins for the Carp, which included 3x doubles, 11 x mirrors of 20lbs+, 3 x 30's+ a 30lb Common and the rest were Cats. Top baits were Trigga or Cell and Hallibut pellets for the Cats. 27th June-4th July Firs Lake Mr Thorpes party (3rd visit) had a real scorcher of a week, by Wednesday the temp had reached 43c !! They spent most of the days on trips, but did do a few nights and managed to bank 12 fish with Carp to low 20's and a new lake record Catfish of 39lbs. 27th June-4th July Willow Lake Mr & Mrs Osborne-Carey had a slow start to there week as the temp. sored to the high 30s. then on Wednesday they had a massive thunderstorm and Robert caught 4 Carp in quick sucession. He ended the week with 14 fish topped by a beautiful 39lb8oz Mirror and a 38lb Catfish, these fell mainly to Mainline Cell boilies fished over mixed particles. His prefered spots were inches off the far bank. He also managed to stalk 3 or 4 fish from the margins to the right of Jims swim. 20th-27th June Firs Lake Mr Peacock had another warm week, they had a few trips out during the days and fished the evenings until about 1am. He managed to catch 8 fish to 28.8lbs, these fell to a couple of tigernuts on the hair over a bed of hemp and particles. 13th-27th June Willow Lake Mr Mitchells party had a warm couple of weeks with the odd thunder storm. They still managed a few fish inc. a Grass Carp of 29lbs, mirrors to32lbs, and a few Cats including one of 49lbs and another of 52lbs,these fell to Tuti Fruity boilies or small Hallibut Pellets. 13th-20th June Firs Lake Dels party had a quiet week, they caught 6 fish to 29lbs, but they did have a few trips out. 6th-13th June Firs Lake Mr Atkinson had a very wet and windy week, but they still managed to catch a few carp to just over 30lbs. 6th -13th June Willow Lake Mr Powleys party had a very busy time, they caught an incredable 65 fish,the biggest carp topped the scales at 37lbs,followed by 8 other 30's, 27 x 20s,and 28 doubles. May-6th June Willow Lake Mr Wiles and family had a warm week and the fishing was a little slow to start with due to the fish spawning, but by the end of the week they caught over 20 fish including "Chloe",who is now 40lbs 10ozs!- another 40lber. They also caught a 40lb Catfish. 30th May-6th June Firs Lake Mr Mitchell had a very hot weeks fishing, most days the temp. was in the 30's, but fishing nights only, he still managed 34 fish including a new lake record of 38lbs 15ozs, a 37lb mirror and 4 other 30's, he also had 16 x 20's, the rest were doubles and "Armless". Mr Mitchell caught well as he stayed mobile and fished for one fish at a time using just a handfull of Hemp and a few "DT" boilies fished just a couple of feet off the margins. 23rd-30th May Willow Lake Mr Miller and family had a quiet week to start with as the fish were spawning for 3 days, but afterwards the fishing picked up and they ended the week with 20 Carp including a superb 42lb Mirror, they also caught 5 x 30's, 7 x 20's and a few doubles. Top tatic was hair rigged hemp seed / particles, and a medium rare steak to tempt a Catfish ! 23rd-30th May Firs Lake Mr Blackwells party had a quiet week, they only managed to bank 9 carp, but it did include a common of 32lbs. 16th-23rd May Firs Lake Mr Jackson and his wife had a great week here fishing days only, they managed 39 fish between them, this included 9 x thirties,including a 34lbs 4oz mirror and a stunning 34lb Common, 7 fish of 25-30lbs, 11 fish of 20 -25lbs 8 doubles a Cat of 23lbs "Crackle", our resident Koi, and "Armless" our resident Sturgeon.Top baits were Dynamite Chocolate Malt and Spicy Tuna. Most of the fish came from the road end of the lake. 16th-23rd May Willow Lake Mr Parks had a very busy time at Willow lake, he caught 36 fish, including a 37lbs8oz Common and four other thirties, 15 twenties,11 doubles, 5 Cats to 48lbs and he only fished one night ! The favoured tatics were big beds of bait with two rods on it, and a roving rod with a solid bag with a white pop-up, and this rod kept on producing. 9th-16th May Firs Lake Mr Perkins managed 33 fish, this included 9 thirties to 36lbs, 16 twenties four high doubles, a Catfish, "armless" the sturgon and two Tench, not bad for one angler fishing days only ! 9th - 16th May Willow Lake Mr Hannaford fished days only and managed 22 Carp, this included 8 x 30,s to 39lbs and 9 x 20's and 5 doubles. He also caught 13 Cats 3 of which were 40lbs+ to 44lbs. His magic bait was Greenlip Mussel Pellet hookbaits, fished 2-3 feet off the margins. 2nd -9th May Firs Lake Mr Wilkinsons party caught very well, 44 fish in total this included 7 thirties to 36.2, 2 small Cats a Sturgeon and the rest of the carp were 20's. These all fell to Sensa Pro Biotic or Active 8. 2nd-9th April WillowLake Mr Possee had a very good week, banking a total of 42 fish and he only fished days ! These included 6 thirties, 24 twenties and the rest were high doubles. The tatics used were PVA bags with a few pellets and 40-50 loose Matrix boilies. 18th April-2nd May Willow Lake Mr Henleys party had a fantastic 2 weeks banking 77 carp including 4 x 40's to 42.5, 33 x 30's to 39lbs12ozs, 33 x 20,s to 29lbs 15ozs, 25 doubles to 19lbs, and a couple of stockies of 9lbs. They also had 5 Cats to 40lbs. Of the three anglers, only one did 6 nights, good angling! there tatics were Trigga boilies, fished over mixed seeds / pellet. 9th April-2nd May Firs Lake Mr Thorpe on his second visit to this venue, managed 12 carp and 3 catfish. The largest carp, a common, was a scale perfect Common of 30lbs, the rest ranged from high doubles to high twenties. The largest Catfish was 27lbs. The tatics used was fishing for one fish at a time with PVA bags with pellet and a few B5 boilies. The weather was a real mixture of heavy rain, sleat, frost and sunshine ! Stevens Family - Firs Lake - 11th to 18th April 2009
The long wait for the Easter break arrived and we were up and away early for the drive to the Eurotunnel. A kind trip around the M25 and down the M20 meant we could board earlier and we arrived in France around 9am local time. We made our way down and across France following the instructions and arrived on the outskirts of Laval around 3pm. A quick stop at the hypermarket to stock up for the Easter weekend and then the final few miles to Firs Lake.
First impressions as we drove through the gate were very positive. We had been on various holidays of this kind previously but had usually stayed in mobile homes so the site of the house at the end of the drive was welcome. Out of the car and into the house to investigate. The house was lovely ! Spacious and airy with 3 large bedrooms, a wonderful bathroom with jacuzzi bath and shower upstairs, and a large dining room, kitchen and lounge area downstairs. Not forgetting the table football room, which we all enjoyed. The car was hastily unloaded and various bags unpacked so we could take a look around the lake.
The lake itself was very picturesque. The water was very coloured due to the recent rain, but whilst walking around a number of bow waves and swirls appeared - they like it in the edge ! As time was pressing on dinner was started whilst I set up in the swim in front of the house. Tired from a days driving I decided the easy option was best for night one. Three rods were sent out towards the island margins with balanced hookbaits and PVA bags keeping it simple. All was in place by 7.30pm - bivvy up - dinner eaten. 25 minutes later and the LH rod was away - a strong fight close in and a 28.8 mirror was in the net. Lovely ! Blank averted and pressure off. Within the next 6 hours I had 5 more fish - 3 x 20's up to 29.2 (the biggest of the week as it happened). Sunday was a blank so Monday I moved to the road end of the lake where fish had been crashing since our arrival. Within an hour a 19lb mirror was landed. I remained in this swim until Thursday morning when I packed up and moved back to the house end. The sport from the hard fighting fish was excellent. I had 23 carp in total ending the week with a 29lb mirror and a 7lb catfish at the house end. All the fish were in excellent condition. Successful baits were maize (2-4 grains) and critically balance hookbaits. All were fished with a PVA bag or stick and I fished for one bite at a time. Twice I baited a swim with extra loose feed and on each occasion had a blank night from that area. I found that the nearer you could get to the margins of the island or the trees lining the driveway the more runs I got.
My wife and 13 year-old daughter accompanied me on this trip and had a great time using the facilities of the house (Sky for keeping up to date with the soaps). We also visited the local towns for shopping, lunches and swimming in Vitre. The local people were very pleasant and we were seen as more of a curiosity due to the number of English people they don't normally see.. A bit of French in the shops and bars go along way in this lovely part of France.
I would heartily recommend a visit if you want a relaxing time in peaceful surroundings. I truly hope that we will be back in 2010. Cheers Sarah & Hugh !
ADDITIONAL STOCK AT FIRS In February 2009 we added a further 25 carp to Firs Lake, these were mainly high doubles /low twenties, this will add to the already impresive stock of high twenties and thirties to the new lake record of 38lbs caught by Mr westerman in early August. 2008 CATCH REPORT 25th-31st October Willow Lake Mr Henshall managed to catch 15 fish, mainly mid twenties and a couple of thirties, but he also managed a mirror carp of 41lbs and a Catfish of 52lbs! 11-18th October Willow Lake Mr Waddelove on his second visit this year had a slow start to the week with only a couple of fish coming out up to Tuesday, them things picked up and he ended the week with twenty plus carp to high thirties. 27th-4th October Willow lake Mr Peters caught a new PB of 37lbs 12ozs, and 5 other 20's. 20th-27th September Willow Lake Mr Wagstaff had a good week with 20 fish to 34lbs 4ozs 13th-20th September Willow lake Mr Parks banked 21 fish, 18 carp inc.2 x 32lbs,10 x 20's (4 of which were 29lbs 12ozs) and 6 high doubles. He also had 3 Catfish of 35lbs,45lbs and 51lbs. 6th-13th september Willow Lake Mr Westgarth caught 7 x high doubles, 12 x 20's to 29lbs and a lovely 33lb mirror. These fell to Trigga fished over beds of Hemp. 30th-6th September Willow Lake Mr Ballbock banked 19 fish, mainly 20's but topped with a 33lb Mirror and a 45lb Cat. These mainly fell to Trigga boilies fished over hemp. He even managed a day at Euro Disney! 30th-6th September Firs lake Mr Cannon Managed to beat his PB 4 times with 6 carp, 4 of which were 30's to 35lbs and a couple of mid 20's. these were caught on Tigernut boilies. 23rd-30th August Willow Lake Mr Twists party had a good week (2 fishing) 6am-10am then off sight-seeing, then 7pm-11pm, they banked 30 carp to 33lbs mainly twenties. they used Tiger nuts or Maize as hookbait, and fished to the far margin over pellet and Hemp. The weather was mainly wet or overcast,but still warm. 23rd-30th August Firs Lake Nothing reported 16th-23rd August Willow Lake Mr Stewarts week was a bit slow, He caught a nice common of 21lbs and about 6 doubles, also a 36lb Catfish. 16th-23rd August Firs Lake Mr Weston had good week fishing nights only, he caught 9 carp (3 x 30's too 34lbs, and 6 x 20lbs +) and a 22lb Catfish He fished Tiger nut boilies over hemp and pellet. The weather was still hot 28-30 dergrees some days. 9th-16th August Willow Lake Mr Whittington had a good week with 5x20lbs+ carp (inc2x29lbs) 5x doubles and a 37lb Mirror. He also caught 7 catfish to 34lbs. The bait was Trigga fished over hemp and pellet. All the fish fell at night. 9th-16th August Firs Lake Mr Davison (1 fishing) banked 9 carp between 20lbs and 34lbs10ozs. he used Hallibut Dumbells fished over pellet and parti-blend. All the fish came at night. 2nd -9th August Willow Lake Mr Davis's party (3 fishing) caught over 55 fish including carp to thirty eight and half pounds and Cats to 34lbs and all beat there PB's. The bait used was Active 8 fished over Hemp and pellets. 90% of the action happened at night, with the witching hour being 2-4 am. Again bait boat was a bonus. 2nd-9th August Firs Lake Mr Westermans party (1 fishing) caught 8 carp including a 38lbs mirror, the rest were all 20lbs +. He also caught 2 catfish up to 33lbs. All the fish fell to Trigga fished over small amounts of hemp and pellets, with the use of a bait boat he could position his baits quietly and efficiently in the margins. The weather was hot and he only fished nights. 26th july - 2nd August Willow Lake Mr Palmers party had a Cat of 48lbs and about 15 Carp to 29lbs, the weather was hot and muggy he only fished days. 26th July-2nd August Firs Lake Mr Jacksons party had another very hot week, so fishing just night and going out during the days they managed 9 Carp to 29lbs12ozs and 5 cats again to 29lbs. These fell to Tiger nuts or Sensas Pro boiotic Boilies fished over hemp and pellet. 19th -26th July Willow lake Mrs Chandlers party had 7 cats to 32lbs and 24 carp which were mainly twenties, but they had one mirror of 40lbs. 19th -26th july Firs Lake Mr Moncurs party had a quite week, as the weather has been very hot and variable. they had 2 low thirties and a high twenty. 5th July -19th july Willow lake Mr McMillan (4) The fishing was a little slower for there stay, but they still managed a few fish topped by couple of thirties, 12th-19th July Firs Lake No fish reported 21st June-5th july Firs lake Mr Waddelove (4) caught 15 carp to 36lbs including 3 other 30's, the rest were 20lbs+. All these fish fell to tiger nuts or tiger nut boilies fished tight under a bush. He then had a week at Willow Lake, fishing from "Jims Swim" he managed a further 4x30's, including a 38lb Common, a 28lb Grass Carp and a further 20 x20's 21st June-5th July Willow Lake Mr Osbourne-Carey (3) had a great week, fishing from "The Armchair" he fished Trigga or The Cell, tipped with half a pineapple pop-up fished over particles and pellet.He managed 37 fish including 6x30's, biggest was a scale perfect Common of 36lbs ,closely followed by a 35lb mirror, he also banked 29x 20's. He then had the following week at Firs Lake here he met his brother-in law, but unfortunatly had to cut his holiday short and left early Monday morning. He caught 2x20's and a 38lb Mirror during his brief session. His brother in law stayed on and managed two more low 30's and 6x 20's. 14th-21st June Firs Lake The Morris Family (4) had a slow week,but they still managed 10 fish of 20-30lbs,topped by a 37lber. 7th-21st June Willow Lake Suzanne Cains Party (6) had another very sucessful couple of weeks, banking 94 fish doing days only! inc 2 x low 40's to 41lbs 30x30lbs, 31x 20lbs, 29x doubles, and a couple of Catfish to 30lbs. The weather was mainly warm, windy, overcast days.The favoured tatics were Trigga Boilies fished over Willow lake pellet,and a mixture of particles. 7th-14th June Firs Lake Mr Fords party (6) had a tough week, the fishing was slow, but they all beat there PB's and caught a total of 10 fish, 4 of which were 30's to 32lbs. The fishing picked up a little at the end of the week as Mr Ford caught 4 fish on the last day. 31st may-7th June Willow Lake-Mr James (6) managed 45 fish too 31lbs including a 28lb grass Carp, the other fish averaged 20lbs+The magic bait was Trigga, fished over large "method mix" balls of pellet/ hemp, fished to the far bank.Again they only fished from 12noon until 12 midnight.. 31stMay-7th June Firs Lake-Mr Roberts Party (6) managed 44 fish too 37lbs,(new lake Record) including 13x30lbs, the rest averaged 25lbs ! This included 3 Cats too 28lbs. These fish fell to Solar club mix boilies fished over beds of pellet or PVA bags fished to the margins.They only did 2 nights. 24th-31st May Willow Lake-Mr Woolgar, bailiff at the famous Horseshoe lake, in Gloucestershire, and family, had cool,damp,wet weather, (low pressure) and an excellent weeks fishing ! He and his 13 year old son managed to bank in excess of 55 carp, including two low 40's, and the rest were mainly 20's and 30's. not bad as they only fished days!! 24th-31st May Firs Lake-Mr Scotts party(4) Had a real mixture of weather,wet,drizly and sun, but fishing days only, they still managed to catch 25 fish 24 of which were 20lbs+, including five thirties too 36-5ozs , one 17lber and two cats to 29lbs. The magic bait was tuti fruiti boilies and halibut pellets over Firs lake pellets. 17th-24th May Willow lake- Mr Days Party (4) the weather was rather cool, and as the sun went down, it got rather chilly, but fishing days only they still managed 10+ 20lb carp, plus a few doubles, topped by a 32lb Mirror. Sharron Mitchell managed to coax a 48lb catfish onto the bank in between doing the cooking ! (photo to follow) She was using double 15mm halibut pellets from "The Armchair" swim. Mr Day fished "The Style" swim, most of his fish came from open water at 50mtrs, again using hallibut pellets. 10th-17th May Willow Lake-Mr Rudolfs party (T.B.C.) 3rd May-10th May Willow Lake-Mr Jamiesons party (4) one fishing, had an exceptional weeks fishing, netting a total of 24 fish including 6x30lbs, largest mirror 35.1lbs, largest Common 34lbs12ozs. He also managed 13 x 20's and 4 doubles,and a 15lb Catfish. During his stay, Paul also had a lovely brace of mirrors 29lbs, and 34lbs. The sucessful tactics were fishing from "The Armchair" to the far bank, and with the use of a Bait boat he could pin point his baits.The sucessful bait was Tiger-nut boilies over Hemp and Maise. 26th April-3rd May Willow lake- Mr Springetts party (3) had a mixture of weather, one min. it was lovely sunshine then the heavens opened and they had heavy sleet,5 mins. later sunshine again ! This did not stop them fishing, and catching...23 fish toped by a stunning 37lber and many mid twenties, also two Cats too 49lbs The sucessful bait used was Trigga, Scopex and Tiger nut Pop-ups. 26th April-3rd May Firs Lake- Mr Thorpes party (2) had a great week,fishing from 7am -11am then lunch...( when in France do as the French do) then fishing from 3pm -10pm then telly... he still managed 30 fish, inc. 5 x 30's to 34lbs, and 25 x mid / high twenties and two Cats to 29lbs. Most of these fish came from the margins. The weather was warmer, but still quite wet, and for a couple of days the fish switched off. 30th March-5th April Firs Lake- Tylers party (4) had a great start to the week with 2 thirties being banked with-in as many hours of arriving ! The weather was mainly wet and overcast all week, but it did brighten up towards the end of the week, There tally for the week was 8 x 30's to 33lbs, 14 x 20's and 9 high doubles. They also had a couple of Cats to 28lbs. 5th April-12th April Firs Lake- Mr Worsleys party (3) had a real battle with the weather, suffering from rain, wind, sleet and even a day of snow ! He still managed a couple of Thirties to 35lbs, and three mid 20's.
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