Fishing the River Charente in France - June 2013

I am fortunate to have access to a little cottage down in the Charente-Maritime region of France as it belongs to my step-mum. It's a beautiful little place in a small village that is a 15 minute drive from the banks of the River Charente. This river is pretty special and unique in many ways. There are no weirs or barrages on it's lower length and the influence of the tide is felt some 60km upstream on big tides. Twice a day, every day the river rises and falls and changes direction. It is a deep, powerful river with an average discharge of 40m cubed per second at the mouth and a basin area of 10,000km squared!

The river is famed for it's huge head of carp which run up to 30kg in size and it's considered one of the finest rivers in the country for this branch of the sport. It is also home to the huge predatory Wells Catfish having produced specimens well over 50kg. Other freshwater species include roach, bream, chub, dace, crucians, eels, pike, perch and zander in abundance. There is also a huge head of migratory fish that run the river many, many kilometers inland in the form of the Allis Shad and the Mullet in the summer months.

Anyone can fish in the rivers in France, all it takes is the purchase of a 'Carte de Peche' licence from the local fishing shop. These can either be bought for the year, week or day. With the licence you are supplied with a great map of all the rivers and lakes in the region you have access to and a booklet describing all the waters, how to find them and how best to fish them. Very handy!

My licence and guide book that comes with it. 30 Euros for a week.

There is so much water in France and with relatively so few anglers it really is a pleasure to fish compared to the crowded and pressured waters of the UK. They have a sensible policy of what you can take (if you wish) and what has to be returned and a well thought out MLS for all of these species too. You are able to fish anywhere you choose and are able to cross any rural farm land to access the rivers of your choice. Night fishing is allowed for carp only (no live bait permitted after dark) on certain designated stretches, of which there are many kilometers. How civilised! I'm tempted to move there..........

Signs showing where it's possible to carp fish overnight.

I have only literally scratched the surface of the potential of this river. I first went for 3 days in 2006 with my brother and at the time we were both keen carp anglers. We spent 2 nights on the river and just picked a randomly good looking spot, piled a load of bait in and fished over the top of it. We had 4 runs the first night, being smashed up by nearly all of the fish bar one which I managed to land. Not huge, a mid double maybe....but what power they have!

My first ever River Charente Carp back in 2006

Due to the nature of their environment they are shaped like torpedos and made of pure muscle. So different to the over fed 'pigs' we have in our UK lakes here. The fish we lost must have been considerably bigger, but we'll never know quite how big. With our 2.5lb test curve UK carp gear we were seriously under-gunned. The second night my brother stole the show as he latched into a beast of a fish which we weighed at 21 lbs. From the way it was going we thought it was twice the size. Very impressive indeed - I can only imagine what a beast twice the size would do!

My brother with his 21 lb beauty back in 2006

I have just returned from a weeks holiday down there with my girlfriend who is very understanding of my fishy obsession. I dug my carp gear out of the shed for old times sake and also took all my usual float and feeder gear to target the other species. I didn't do that much fishing but spent 24 hours camped out by the river after the carp and a couple of evening sessions fishing the feeder to see what was about during the week.

I found the feeder fishing fascinating. The river is absolutely stacked with fish, there must be huge numbers in there. Catching bream, hybrids, small carp and crucians was no problem at all, the bream fight like tigers in this river too. My 6lb hook link was snapped on the first evening by something weighty, the rod just hooped over and kept on going. My tackle stood no chance, I suspect a lumpy carp was the culprit. I was disappointed not to have come into contact with any of the resident roach though....I do like roach.

A possible roach x bream hybrid  taken on the feeder and worm bait.

On the second evening I hooked something that had real pace to it, taking off upstream and stripping line off the reel in the process. I charged up the bank after it and regained some line with the fish thumping away and making speedy runs all the while in the strong current. The fish then broke surface and I was able to identify it as a good mullet in the 5 to 6 lb bracket. Unfortunately the hook popped out on the next run and the fish was gone. This was on a feeder fished worm 30km inland from the sea! Unlucky!

Surprisingly hard fighting Bronze Bream of the River Charente.

The carp fishing was great, I don't do a lot these days but the idea of incredibly hard fighting and wild fish from a river really gets me going. It was lovely to just sit there and take in the surroundings. There was plentiful wildlife to see - we got up close with a buzzard and had a kingfisher perch on one of the rods. Wonderful!

Bivvied up on the banks of the River Charente.

The bream were occasionally a pest, picking up my large 20mm boilies every now and then. We did manage to get one sizeable hard fighting common carp on the bank just after daybreak and lost another (probably bigger) as well a little later that morning. The fact that you are always in with a chance of a real leviathan is enough for me on this special river though.

Best carp of the 2013 trip for me, a lovely early morning fish.

We also managed a trip down the surf beaches of the Atlantic coast where we camped for the night. These beaches are awesome, undoubtedly offering some splendid surf fishing. I didn't have the right tackle with me to have a proper go but spent an hour at both dusk and dawn the following morning flicking a few lures around off a rocky headland for the bass. They weren't playing ball though despite good conditions.

Having a go for a bass on  the Atlantic Coast - they had other ideas though!

I will be back to France for sure, it's easy to forget just how much incredible fishing there is right on our doorstep. 4 hours on the ferry and a 5 hour drive is all it takes. There is much unfinished business on the River Charente for me. Until the next time!

My 3rd Indian Angling Adventure - Jan/Feb 2013

Scott, Markus and I with the van that took us all along the West Coast.

In early January 2013 I jetted off to India for my third angling adventure to the sub-continent, I had 6 weeks to travel and fish. I flew out to meet Scott and Markus, they had been fishing for a month already and got their hands on a van, a couple of kayaks and a basic shack that was to be our HQ for the duration. Upon my arrival there was news of some great Barramundi fishing action which was good to hear.

Red Snapper fillets left to dry in the sun by a local fisherman.

The appeal of sea fishing in India to me is the vastness of the country and the relative absence of other sport fishermen. There is so much ground to cover and it's a rare occurrence to find others fishing. Essentially, it feels like you have the whole place to yourself, especially so if you're prepared to get off the beaten track a little. Fisherman's Paradise. It's not to say the fishing is easy or on a plate, you must be prepared to work at it. But for those with a sense of adventure and willing to make the effort then the results are certainly there for the taking.

Out on the water with Baba, our friend and boatman.

With a base acquired on the coast we had somewhere to call home and stash the vast quantities of fishing equipment we were carrying. Every angling eventuality had been considered and catered for. From our HQ we were then able to run out on trips of several days and up to a week, taking in several locations and destinations as we travelled. 

Markus tries his luck at dawn, flicking a few lures from the rocks.

We carried all the necessary camping equipment and were therefore able to lay our heads wherever the van took us on a daily basis. It was a great way to travel, knowing that you had everything you needed with you. The fishing was number one priority and we were effectively self sufficient for days at a time.

Camping on top of the cliffs.

Compared to the 2010 trip where Scott and I did over 5000 kilometres each on scooters we were now travelling in comfort and style. The van was great. As well as being able to carry extra equipment we could strap the kayaks on the roof. This opened up a whole world of additional angling opportunities.

'India is Great' - painted on the back of a lorry. Yes it is!

Markus was with Scott and I for just my first 3 weeks, he had to fly home to Austria for work after that. We went on a load of incredible road trips as a group together and went to some amazing places. They were good times. After Markus left then Scott and I had a further two and a half weeks of fishing before I too had to leave.

Ah! Ice Cold Kingfisher...not much beats it after a long day fishing!

So it all started off chilling on the beach, acclimatising and sinking a few 'Kingfishers' for a couple of days. We then headed on to our HQ where the fishing could begin. My first night was spent camping out under the stars on a deserted beach at a spot we had fished many times in the past. It is a known Barramundi hotspot to us and seemed like the perfect place to begin our quest. It felt good to be back, all the hard work and preparation back home was worth it.

The quality of the Barramundi that can be found in Indian waters.

The fishing was pretty hot! Scott beached a couple of lovely Barra and I hooked two and lost two. I put that down to my over eagerness and being a little rusty. Not that I was worried though - we had six weeks of angling ahead of us.

Fishing baits at dusk on a surf beach as the sun sinks over the Indian Ocean

I've used Kayaks at various stages in my life and whilst growing up, but fishing from one was a fairly new concept for me. I had dabbled a little on the last trip in 2010 but nothing too serious. This time around I made the most of it and really got a taste for it. The advantages of having the kayaks are many and it really opened our angling up to many other opportunities that had previously been out of reach.

Have kayaks - Will travel!

Just about 10 minutes paddle out from our HQ were a set of inshore reefs and we spent a fair bit of time out there fishing these. It was great to wake at dawn and head straight out in the kayaks to fish them. There were plenty of fish around - snappers, groupers and reef fish of all different colours. We mainly either trolled round the reefs or cast a variety of lures back at the structure from the kayaks to entice a bite. Some days you'd get lots of action, others were quiet.

We even made the local paper! They were keen to tell our story of travelling and fishing the west coast.

The fish shown below is the first that I managed to catch from the kayak on this trip. . The fish took a liking to my rubber lure, giving my tackle and skill a good work-out. It bored down for the rocks below taking line on several occasions. It was an incredible battle but in the end, constant pressure from above won the day and my prize popped up by the boat. After unhooking and a couple of quick photos I slipped the fish back to fight another day. A great result.

A fine Blubber-Lip Snapper opens my account from the kayak. These boys play dirty and fight hard!

If not fishing from the kayaks we devoted our time to re-visiting old successful haunts and exploring new locations. The coast is absolutely littered with incredible fishing locations. The different habitats one encounters are enough to keep any fisherman entertained. There are surf beaches running into reefs and boulders all shadowed by towering mountains of rock, lagoon, bays and estuaries-a-plenty, mangrove swamps. The choice is endless and the fishing opportunities are numerous.

The reasons why we go all that way to fish are clear to see in this photo.

Sharks have never been of any significant by-catch in our experience. The locals seem to think that most of them have been fished out which is a sad thing to hear. However, Scott had caught a small Black-Tip Reef Shark some years ago at stunning surf beach. We have fished this beach several other times since then but never encountered any more. This was all set to change when we visited this time around.

Playing a nice fish in the surf at dusk

We made the long trek to fish the huge surf beach about half way through the trip. It's an awesome place and there's always some good fishing to be had there. Snappers, Rays, Guitar Fish and the likes. You never know what might turn up. We had the mother of all ice boxes with us and a great selection of fresh fish bait direct from a local boat. So we were well prepared as fresher really is better in my book.

Markus, Scott and I relaxing by the fire at one of our camping spots on yet another deserted beach

When we fished it this time round, within 20 minutes our rods were away and we were into the fish. Scott was first in and his rod screamed off with line melting from the spool. A great scrap followed and it wasn't until the fish got close in that we were able to see the characteristic shape of a sharks fin poking through the surf. It was a nice surprise and after that one we went on to beach probably near on a dozen fish between us ranging in size from 8 or 9lb right up to 25lb. They were Black-Tip Reef Sharks and all were released.

My first experience of catching Black-Tips from the shore. What beautiful creatures they are too!

Scott with the biggest Shark of the day. AWESOME FISH!

We went out in boats a few times and would often troll lures to see what could be tempted. There were some good fish to be had. The grouper were often quite obliging, darting out from their rocky lairs to intercept a passing lure. The one shown below put up a great scrap before being subdued and brought to the boat. This one quite liked my Yozuri Lure.

A Toby-Maru lure firmly wedged in the mouth a good sized Grouper.

Profile shot of a great looking Grouper (Malabar Rock Cod)

Other species encountered whilst out trolling in the boat were the usual snappers - Mangrove Jacks and Blubberlips. The Trevally species and the ever present Barracuda. On occasions we spent time popping for the Giant Trevally as well with Scott catching the biggest of the trip. And what a fish it was too!

A huge, bruiser of a GT fell foul to Scott's popper

I took a variety of home made bucktail-jig type lures with me and was able to test these while offshore in the boats. I have found them to be deadly and a very versatile lure. They are cheap to make too so I find I'm not so precious about loosing a few. As it turns out, my home made ones were up to the job and took numerous fish. The snapper and trevally were keen on them and I lost a big kingfish while out in the kayak as he bit through my 80lb leader.

Jochen our German friend with a nice Blubber-Lip Snapper on one of my home made jigs

A pretty little trevally takes another of my home made jigs

Whilst on one of our road trips we came across an amazing spot where there were miles of rocks and cliffs plunging in to deep water with lots of great looking areas to fish. There were a couple of local guys hand-lining when we arrived and they had not had much success other then a couple of small snapper. We set up camp on a grassy ledge on top of the cliffs looking down on to the reef below and then waited for the heat of the sun to mellow. After that we headed out to fish.

Camping up above some very fishy looking ground.

It turned out to be a good spot for us. After hiking for a long way across the treacherous rocks in the afternoon sun Scott and Markus got into some action. Markus caught a Sheephead Bream and Scott then managed to hook into a good sized Trevally. This was a really fine specimen and gave him a great fight from his perch on the rocks. I had been fishing elsewhere further back and just on dark after I'd caught up with the lads again I then caught a nice Fingermark Snapper that was always destined to become our dinner. So we ate well that evening.

Scott with his fine shore caught trevally. Good job mate!

Fingermark Snapper that was kept for the pot on this occasion

The fish known commonly as the Flathead can be found in the inshore waters of India and although having seen one very occasionally I had never actually caught one. They've generally been caught as a by-catch when fishing lures over sand for barramundi, but they are usually fairly small. I happened to catch one by accident one night in exactly these circumstances. I'm told it is a very big one by Indian standards so I was pretty pleased with it. Crazy pre-historic looking things they are too.

Nice big Flathead off the sand

As always the Barramundi fishing was up to scratch and we had some really great sessions taking fish from many different environments. These fish are really very versatile. They can be anywhere from miles upstream in a river to out in the open ocean. There really isn't much in fishing to beat the thrill of casting lures after dark for Barramundi. We encountered many specimens, big and small on this trip. They never fail to please with their dogged and often air-borne fighting style. 

Not every day you see one of these when you're fishing

I saved the best for last. I had caught a good few quality fish during the holiday but a real whacker had so far eluded me. On my last session before having to fly home two fish over 25lb came my way in the space of fifteen minutes. They fought like tigers on the light tackle and after the necessary photos were both released. 

The first and biggest of the pair. What a scrap! Tail-walking, leaping and screaming runs!

Swiftly followed by this brute. What a brace of fish to finish up on!

On past trips we had spent quite considerable time targeting the mighty Mahseer in the freshwater rivers of South India. These fish have been nearly all but wiped out in many places due to dynamite fishing and poaching. We had previously fished for them in the protected waters of a wildlife reserve where their numbers flourished and our results reflected the high population density of the fish in this safe haven.

Markus, Scott and Baba heading out in the boat for a bit of GT popping

Having the van this time round we decided that we should make an exploratory kayak trip up a beautiful river we had discovered deep in the jungle  on our last visit there. The aim was to see if the tumbling, crystal clear waters were still home to the Mahseer and also what other species were in residence.

Heading inland to the river for a kayaking expedition

It would be a largely exploratory trip as we knew very little about the fish stocks other than rumours and fisherman's tales we had been told. We simply had to check it out for ourselves, it was a wonderful change of scenery and pace from being on the coast.

Paddling up river through the jungles of Karnataka, looking for the elusive Mahseer and other freshwater species

From looking at the river it's easy to imagine that it is stuffed with hard fighting fish. The cobalt blue waters and tumbling rapids look very welcoming as they flow from one pool to the next and it was an incredibly beautiful place to be paddling around. We strapped all the provisions and camping gear we needed to our kayaks and headed off into the unknown trolling our lures behind us.

Pausing to soak up the scenery and snap off a few frames

We had seen a large Mahseer from a road bridge as we crossed the river on our journey to the campsite where we left the van and the locals assured us that there were 'barra machli' (which means 'big fish' in Hindi). As hard as we tried there was no action from these hard fighting specimens. They seemed to be conspicuous by their absence.

The obliging cyprinid species that kept us entertained during our paddling adventure

I saw a shoal of perhaps 25 small juvenile Mahseer all milling about under the branches of a fallen tree but could not tempt them to take a lure. They seemed very skittish and vanished as quickly as they had appeared. They didn't seem to be present in the numbers we had hoped for.

A local farmer we met after we camped on his land for the night

Fortunately there was another species of fish present that seemed to be in good numbers and were quite obliging. We are not sure of the species but believe it to be a carp variety, possibly a Carnatic Carp. Either way, they were beautiful fish and quite happy to attack our spinners and plugs. They really fought hard too.

Looking downstream at first light

Fine specimens indeed were these fish and a new species for us but not the Mahseer we so desperately hoped for. It's disappointing to find a lack of Mahseer but they have been persecuted for many years thanks to their high market value and tasty flesh, there are a lot of mouths to feed in India!

A gift to our farmer friend to thank him for letting us camp on his land

On the way back from the river we took a detour via the ancient city of Hampi. It was an amazing journey just getting there which was half the fun. On arrival the sight of the ancient temples and bazaars set amongst the ruins and giant boulder fields was quite a sight to behold and made the long journey all the more worthwhile.

Crazy sights on the road to Hampi....only in India!!

We spent 3 days just wandering around the dusty ruins, taking in the sights and snapping away with our cameras. It was great to soak up the atmosphere of the ancient ruins, imagining how life would have been when the temples were full of pilgrims back in the day.

A view of the Hampi boulder fields seen from high on top of a temple

We slept each night out in the boulder fields surrounding the town. Camping round a fire was far better than any dirty, bed bug ridden lodging in the town itself and afforded us much more peace and quiet. We rarely put our tents up though as we preferred to sleep by the fire.  On this occasion, due to the warmth of the rocks at night having soaked up the suns energy snakes could well have been a pest so we put them up.......and a damn good thing we did too!

A Langur Monkey chilling out amongst the ruins

During one of the nights I was awoken with a start and lay there in my tent sweating and a little confused why I was awake so suddenly. I just lay there, motionless and silent with sharpened senses, listening to hear if there was anything outside my tent. After a short moment there was an almighty roaring sound from just the other side of the canvas. The unmistakable call of the Leopard!

Some of the ruins at Hampi

I totally froze at this point in fear and just waited to see what would happen. I could hear the deep breathing of the animal as it circled my tent a couple of times. Fortuanately, after two or three laps it wandered off and I could here it's call disappearing off into the distance. A close one there! I'm very pleased we put the tent up on this occasion, waking up face to face with a big cat is not something I ever want to experience!

Sunset over Hampi

After Hampi, my time was up and I had to fly back home. Yet again India continues to wow and amaze me. My love affair with it's people, food, culture and fishing deepens with every visit. India really gets under my skin and I can't wait to get back there again. TIGHT LINES!

Scott boulder hopping at Hampi