Darren, John and I arrived at the fishery gates at about 11am on Saturday 13th June 2009, knackered from the overnight journey; I do love the M25 on a Friday night! This was our third trip to Kevin Maddocks’ French big-fish water, Mar-Pêche, a stunning 25-acre lake situated in the river Yonne valley, near the town of Montereau, where the Yonne joins the Seine. This stretch of the Yonne has produced a former world record for a river-caught carp at a staggering weight of 81lbs. Once again, we had booked the whole lake for our exclusive use. The facilities on offer at the fishery are pretty good with most swims having a tap for water. On each of the 3 sides of the lake from where fishing is allowed (there are no swims on the West bank) there is a hut which has electric points (English and Continental style plugs) for charging mobiles, bait-boats (although bait-boats are banned as an experiment for 2009), walkie-talkies etc. Also in the hut are a fridge and a freezer, a luxury for a week in France. The huts behind ‘Hobbits’ and ‘Squirrels’ Drey’ each house a flushing toilet. There is also an additional toilet block with a couple of showers sited on the North bank along with two caravan/chalets available for hire. If you hire one of the chalets, you are guaranteed exclusive use of the nearest swim, either ‘The Jetty’ or ‘Fallen Tree’. As to the stock, Kevin estimates that there are about 150 carp in the lake, with 4 different fish having been caught at over 70lbs and a further 10 over 60lbs. The average size of carp must now be close to 40lbs, a fantastic French venue for the serious angler. There are also several catfish in the lake running to a weight of 160lb.
Kevin also has another French water, ’The Labyrinth’, just a few minutes’ drive from Mar-Pêche. His website www.lesbeauxlacs.net has details of both fisheries.
Kevin was on hand to meet us and to let us know how the lake had been fishing over the previous week. There had been several forties, a handful of fifties, a couple of sixties and, the highlight of the week, a new lake best of 71lb 2oz, a fish known as ‘Barbie-Jo’ from ‘Left-hand Hobbits’. Remarkably, this fish had come out twice in a couple of days, the second time also breaking the 70lb barrier at 70lb 12oz from ‘Heron Point’. So, no pressure on us to catch then!
On my two previous visits I had fished the swim known as ‘Right-hand Hobbits’ and this was where I was keen to ‘plot-up’ for this trip. The swim is probably the most consistent on the fishery over the course of a year and commands a great deal of open water, with the lake being approximately 240 yards wide at this point. The depth is pretty even, dropping away from the steep marginal shelf to about 12-13 foot. The bottom appears to be a uniform depth and made up of firm silt with small patches of gravel. With our trip being later in the year (mid-June) than our previous Spring-time visits, the marginal shelf was quite weedy. A wooden platform separates this swim from ‘Left-hand Hobbits’ and is handy for the playing and sacking of fish in the deeper water.
Darren and John were being their usual non-committal selves, not wishing to declare their swim choice. After a walk round the lake, this situation hadn’t changed. Unsurprisingly, there were a number of fish in ‘Romany bay’ as this swim hadn’t been fished during the previous week and offers the fish a degree of sanctuary. Eventually, decisions were made and Darren dropped me and my mountain of gear off in ‘Hobbits’. John had decided on ‘Fallen Tree’ from where he could also cast a rod or two into ‘Romany Bay’ and Darren dropped in next door to him in ‘The Jetty’. Having the whole lake to ourselves gave each of us the option of a move later in the week if our first-choice swims proved unproductive.
Running on adrenaline, I quickly put up the bivvy and, with the gear stashed away, it was time to get the marker rod out. Having fished the swim before I had a pretty good idea of the layout of the swim, however, after a few casts it was apparent that there was a lot of blanket and silk weed across the bottom of the lake, nothing too bad. An hour or so later and I had identified a couple of spots that were clear enough for decent bait presentation. To the right hand side of the swim I found a nice gravel spot which sloped up gradually from left to right, with the depth 12ft 6in to 11ft 6in at about 80yds, perfect for a couple of rods. To the left of the swim I found two further spots at about 90-100yds where I could feel the lead down on the marker rod with a firm ‘donk’. With time and energy running out, it was time to set the rods up. For the two longer range spots I had borrowed some Free Spirit 13ft, 3 1/2lb tc Hi-S rods from my mate Norman, no chance of being under-gunned then! To these I fitted my Daiwa Emblems loaded with 16lb GLT Pro Clear. For the business end, I attached 3ft of ESP 45lb lead-core, with a spliced in Korda size 8 swivel at one end, to the main-line using a Keith Moors’ knot. A Korda 4oz tournament lead was fitted via a Korda lead-clip and tail rubber. A small hook-link clip protected by a short length of silicon rubber would enable me to quickly change hook-links, but to start I attached a short 25lb Kryston Mantis hook-link with a size 6 Korda Kurv hook. The hooks were tied using the standard knotless-knot with a small stripped-back section of the Mantis and a long hair as I would be using 24-30mm hook-baits. For the shorter range gravel spot I set up my Harrison 12ft, 3lb tc Ballistas, coupled with my Shimano Baitrunners loaded with 12lb Berkley Big-game. Again, lead-core leaders with the lead-clip system were attached. A 3 1/2 oz distance pear lead was sufficient to hit the shorter distance. To this I attached, via a clip, a short hook-link constructed from 15lb ESP Sink-link with a size 6 Korda Kurv hook, again tied using the knotless-knot with a long hair for the large hook-baits. For baiting-up I would be using Mainline Activ-8 in 22mm, rolled for me by Alan at Tasty Baits. For hook-baits, I had hand-rolled and air-dried some 24-30mm boilies in the same mix. All 4 rods were cast out to the spots (having clipped-up to the marker) and, with a scattering of boilies around each baited rig; it was ‘game on’! Time to sit back, prepare some food, have a beer and then get some much needed sleep.
Sunday morning dawned without so much as a bleep. After some breakfast and a visit from
Kevin, I reeled in the rods late morning. All the baits came back relatively clear of any bottom weed, so presentation was ok. I like to rest the swim for a few hours during what I consider to be the unproductive part of the day, allowing fish to enter the area without being spooked by lines. It’s a confidence thing. It also gave me the chance for a walk round the lake and to catch up with Darren and John. Having spoken on the walkie-talkies, neither of them had had any joy either. After lunch and a few beers, I returned to my swim to spend a while further investigating my spots with the marker rod. I was very happy with the gravel area in the right-hand side of the swim but felt I could search out some better spots to the left. After a few casts with the marker I had a couple of clearer spots marked up. The 4 rods were cast out to the spots and again I scattered about a dozen baits around each rig with the throwing-stick, not tight as I wanted the fish to be actively searching out the freebies.
All too soon Monday morning came and brought with it some showery rain. At about 08:30, during one of the bright intervals, my left-hand rod was away. As I struck into the fish, I shouted ‘hauling’ only for the hook to pull! I think Darren and John were genuinely gutted for me.....not! I reeled in, checked over the rig, re-baited and, was about to re-cast, when the left-hand rod of the pair fished on the gravel spot went into meltdown. This time I bit my tongue and struck into a fast moving carp. The fish felt heavy and after a brief but spirited battle I slipped the landing-net under a very big mirror carp. I unclipped the hook-link and, after putting the rod down, carried my prize to the waiting unhooking mat. I peeled back the folds of my landing-net to reveal the flanks of a typically French-framed carp and a new PB. I removed the hook-link, secured the fish on the mat and readied the sling and scales. After zeroing the scales with the wetted sling, I transferred the fish to the sling and, using my landing-net pole to steady myself, I lifted the sling off the ground. The scales read off a weight of 57lb 2oz. Bloody Hell; I’d smashed my PB by over 12lbs! By this time the light rain had returned, so I decided to sack the fish for a while. I rattled off a text to Kevin to inform him of my capture and he replied that he would come up to photograph the fish when the rain left off. Soon the rain stopped and everybody gathered for the photos as I struggled to hold the fish for the cameras. With the pictures in the can, metaphorically speaking, the fish was returned, leaving me wondering how I could ever top that. Once again I reeled in at about midday to rest the swim and celebrate my new PB with Darren, John and a few beers (you’ll see a theme developing here). Later that afternoon I returned to my swim to prepare for the night, brimming with confidence.
With no reason to change tactics, all 4 rods were soon cast back out on the spots, together with the usual scattering of boilies. The night was again uneventful and as the morning wore on I thought my chance for the day had passed. I was on the
point of reeling in for the day when the right-hand rod fished to the gravel spot roared off. I picked up the rod and struck as an angry carp pulled back. The carp managed to find the safety of a weed bed but with steady pressure it was soon on the move again. I slowly gained line and before long the fish was close in to the bank. Unfortunately, the carp dived into the marginal weed and everything locked-up. I waded out into the lake to get a more direct pull on the carp but was unable to gain any more line. John had noticed my predicament and had rushed round to offer his assistance. Luckily there was a boat moored alongside the nearby platform for just this reason and John quickly manoeuvred it into position above the weeded carp from where he could see the tail of the fish waving in the weed. He told me that I was attached to a very big mirror carp and not to panic (which obviously had the opposite effect). John managed to free the main-line and the carp came to the surface from where he got it into the landing-net at the first attempt. He bit through the main-line just above the leader so that I could put the rod down and give him a hand to get the boat nearer to the bank. Kevin appeared in the swim just as we transferred the fish in the rolled-up net to the unhooking mat. He had seen John in the boat from his house and guessed that I’d had another. John had estimated the carp to be near 70lbs, but Kevin was a bit more conservative, thinking that he recognised the carp as the one known as ‘The Animal’ (later confirmed). The great fish was gently placed in the sling and John and Kevin lifted it onto the scales for me to read off a weight of 64lb 8oz. I’d now smashed my recent PB by a further 7lb and my previous PB by nearly 20, wow, what a result!
We rested the fish in the deep water off of the platform, which gave me a chance to recover before we did the photos. With the fish returned safely to its watery home, I could celebrate with a beer or three with John and Kevin (who had a soft drink as he was recovering from Shingles). As usual, I reeled in to rest the swim for a few hours during the afternoon and to join John and Darren for some lunch, cooked on one of the stone barbecues sited around the lake.
Surprisingly, the following night and morning were uneventful, with no action to my rods.
Things remained quiet also for Darren and John on the opposite bank and as mid week approached they were both considering a move.
However, things picked up on Wednesday night through to Thursday morning. I’d just decided to get my head down at
about 11:30pm when a few minutes later one of the long-range rods ripped off. I picked up the rod and struck into the fish. To avoid any problems with the marginal weed, I decided to play this fish from the platform. After a short struggle I had the carp wallowing in the deep water in front and could see that I was attached to a large common carp. The fish went into the landing-net at the first attempt and I unclipped the hook-link. I collapsed the net and, making sure that the carp was safely secured, I carried it to the unhooking mat where I removed the hook from the bottom lip. In the beam of my head-lamp, I could see that this was another very big carp, certainly over fifty, possibly even sixty! I secured the fish in the wetted sling and lifted it onto the zeroed scales. I again used the landing-net pole to steady myself to get an accurate reading of 58lb 12oz. Not wishing to sack this fish overnight, I tried Kevin on his mobile and he soon arrived with his camera to do the pictures. With the fish returned and the rod re-cast I got back into my sleeping-bag to reflect on what was turning into a stunning week and we were still only halfway through!
A few hours later, just as dawn was breaking, the alarm on the other long-range rod sounded. Once again I was in! I moved to the platform to continue playing this fish and soon had another common ready for the net. This fish was soon on the scales and a weight of 43lb 1oz was recorded. I sacked the fish in the deep water accessible from the end of the platform. After re-casting and a brew, I drifted back off to sleep, only to be awakened by the alarm on the same rod a couple of hours later. I picked up the rod, struck and made my way to the platform where I soon slipped the net under a big mirror. On the scales this fish went 49lb 8oz and I had another prize in the sack for a morning photo shoot. After the early morning text, Kevin turned up to do the pictures. I think he was enjoying this session as much as I was. I know he takes a great deal of pride in the quality of the carp and the fishing at Mar-Pêche, which is a testament to the hard work he has put in over the years. As the sun climbed in the sky, I reeled in as usual to rest the swim and enjoy a few beers and another ‘barbie’ with Darren and John.
Meanwhile, John was well pleased with a new PB, a mirror weighing 52lb 2oz, caught from a rod cast into 'Romany Bay' from his swim 'Fallen Tree'. Darren, again without any action from 'The Jetty', decided on a move to 'Heron Point' after seeing a few fish crash out.
Later that afternoon, I returned to my swim to get the rods out for the night. The sun seems to set much later in France (yeah, I know they’re an hour ahead of us here in the UK, but it stays light until well past 10:30pm) and I had been sitting, watching the water. During the week the carp had been very active throughout the evenings, rolling all over the lake. I must have crashed out on the bed-chair as I was suddenly awakened by the alarm on the right-hand rod fished on the gravel spot. I quickly struck into the fish and again moved onto the platform. Eventually I had another colossal mirror safely in the landing-net. On the unhooking mat I was drawn to the intricate starburst scaling on the tail and recognised the fish as ‘Cluster’ from the picture board in the hut, one of the known sixties. The scales recorded a weight of 57lbs, down in weight,
but who cares about a few pounds when fish are as magnificent as this. With the fish safely sacked in deep water, I soon had the rod back on the spot and was back in my sleeping-bag.
A couple of hours later, as the sky brightened, the same rod was away once more. After yet another arm-aching battle I had another big mirror on the unhooking mat ready for weighing. On the scales and a weight of 55lb 1oz was read off. I sacked the fish alongside it’s slightly bigger companion, realising that I had just had a brace of fifties in the night! Kevin turned up to do the photos after receiving my text informing him of my latest captures. ‘Cluster’ looked even more impressive in the light of day. Maybe the pictures don’t do the fish justice but the sight of her will remain with me forever. With the pics done and both fish returned it was time for breakfast and a brew. With no further action through the morning I reeled in at midday as usual to rest the swim for a few hours and grab some lunch (and a beer or three).
John had caught a double during the night from his baited spot in front of ‘Fallen Tree’ (a double from Mar-Pêche being a rare capture indeed) and Darren had lost a fish from his new swim during the morning.
By late afternoon I was preparing for the last night, the week seeming to have flown by! With the four rods cast out I could sit back and enjoy my last evening in France with a curry and a beer, watching the water and savouring the atmosphere. I was going to miss this next week! Eventually, as darkness fell, I reluctantly climbed in the bag; sleep was going to be difficult as the events of the past week kept playing over in my mind. However, I must have dropped off as I was dragged from the bag by the alarm on the same rod that had produced the last two fish (that little gravel area was certainly doing the business). A short fight ended with a big mirror rolling into the out-stretched net. Once on the unhooking mat I could see that the tail of the fish was deformed with part of the top lobe missing, possibly as a result of some early damage. Carefully I 
placed the fish in the weigh sling and up onto the scales. The needle spun round to register a weight of 57lb 6oz, giving me my sixth carp over 50lb of the week. Kevin, once again, responded to my text and turned up to do the photos in the morning. He recognised the fish as ‘Arfur’ (from ‘arf a tail).
Having returned the fish, it was time to start packing away, our week over. We were hoping to be away by about 11am, which would give us plenty of time to get to Calais for our return ferry.
John had caught another small fish for Mar Pêche, a mid-thirty, off of his baited spot in ‘Fallen Tree’ and Darren suffered another blank.
Prior to the trip, I had said (a little bit tongue-in-cheek) that my target would be a fifty during the week. Not for minute did I think I would end up with two forties, five fifties and a sixty.
Surely the session of a lifetime..!