Hopey

Wondering if anyone has been here recently and has any tips they would be willing to share? Its a campsite in the Picardy region of France with 2 fishing lakes and a stretch of river. I am going for a family camping holiday there in a few weeks. Its not a fishing trip, its a family holiday, so wont be granted too much time to wet a line, but gonna take a bit of stuff and hoping to grab a few hours here and there...and would be good to be able to maximise that time if anyone feels generous enough to offer tips on lake, swims, tactics, baits etc... the going species seem to be carp and sturgeon....but id be happy with anything to be honest done some research and there seems to be plenty of info out there but nothing recent. would appear that back in the day it was a quality venue, but then it got hammered and deteriorated a bit... there was potentially a fish kill, potentially some fish moved, potentially some changes to rules and prices....and a bit of disagreement as to whether it was any good or not anymore....although impression i get is that it became not good enough for purist carpers, but potentially still pretty good for pleasure anglers just looking for a bend in the cane (which is the camp i am in)....but all that chat was for the most part over 10 yeas ago.....so I have no clue what it is like currently....the site havent given me much info either. So this is a mega long shot, but if anyone has any current-ish info they could share that would be amazing... Thanking you

What do my learned friends consider to be the best carp day ticket water in the Surrey area for a pleasure angler hoping to catch his first 20lber. When I mean best I mean: decent average size of fish (i.e. reasonable chance of a twenty); fish in good condition; not stupidly easy, but catchable (i.e. shouldn't blank); peaceful, featureful waters; clean/safe/well-run places; respectful anglers; fishes well year round and the fish respond to varied tactics (rather than exclusively boilie/leger.....not that I mind that, but it nice to stalk as well, ge3t them on the top etc) I very rarely get a chance to night fish, so somewhere that is pretty reliable in the day tight lines

Hi all I live in Molesey and am looking for a winter chub campaign. I am not a club member and not looking to join one. I would just like to know of a few stretches I can target, particularly any noted for chub. I have fished the Mole near the Wilderness. Caught roach trotting maggots or bread flake, but never got through to the chub. Also enjoyed some great pike fishing. Also fished the bourne round Chertsey meads. Caught chub in the summer floating bread on the surface, but only ever had chub in winter /autumn. I’m probably just a rubbish chub angler! But if anyone can recommend any good, free stretches of any river to try within a 45min drive of Molesey I would be keen to hear … Tight lines this winter

Kenj thanks for this - really useful! would never say no to a barbel...! out of interest I was looking at that stretch you mentioned on googlemaps ... there is a stretch of the river colne and the colne brook that head upstream from Iver Road - which one were you referring to or are they both good? out of interest do you know if it is flooded / fishable at the moment? thanks once again

Hello everyone I live in Kingston-upon-Thames and am interested in fishing this little river for the first time. Can anyone tell me where the free or day ticket stretches are? The nearer Runnymede/Heathrow/West Drayton/Uxbridge the better in terms of being able to get there easily. Is the stretch at Farlows any good? I am mainly looking at Chub, although I am happy with anything... If anyone is willing to share any info on specific areas, tactics etc, that would be greatly appreciated... happy hunting

What makes certain species thrive in either numbers or size in certain waters compares to others Examples: the wye is known as one of the best barbel waters in the country. It is large and the water is very clean and oxygenated. As a result the barbel are numerous. However a fish of 12lb is very big, whereas much smaller rivers, for example the Loddon can hold fish to nearly 20lb? Or in some waters the number of chub is high, but a fish over 4lb is unlikely whereas in the Lea, it is very difficult to catch, but if you do get one 6lb+ is very realistic, and record fish are certainly a possibility Equally why can certain ponds contain carp that just keep growing and growing whereas in other waters they seem to reach a natural peak around upper 20lbs? With predators it kind of makes a bit more sense….i.e perch flourishing where there are no pike or pike flourishing where there is a lot of food…trout reservoirs etc….but even then you might have one stretch of river full of jacks, and another similar stretch which has a high number of bigger fish Not sure if there is an easy answer….maybe there is and I sound stupid (!)….but always baffled me…? Thoughts?

I got bought some tackle for my birthday from my work mates. Lovely gesture, but they are not anglers themselves and obviously didn't really know what to get. Some of the stuff was fine, but amongst the treasure trove was a packet of about 6 insert wagglers, unbranded. They were useless, firstly the shotting on the side was on the whole wrong, secondly they all leaked. I don't think you need to break the bank, but I wouldn't go with the cheapest

Well for anyone who is interested we stayed here in the end First of all it is fair to say the accommodation is amazing….lovely log cabins with hot tubs. Lovely part of the world with nice villages, pubs, walks etc As for the fishing, can’t grumble at all. As we were with the wives we couldn’t take the micky, so we only had two half days, one morning, one evening. We tried 2 of the 4 lakes (we didn’t try the match lake, which I think is meant to be the easiest. The others were morning interesting looking to us). Even though we were well into December we caught plenty – roach, rudd, decent perch and a good number of carp up to about 6lb….all on pretty basic conventional tactics, baits etc…carp on ledgered pellet or meat (didn’t go for corn or bread and boilies not allowed), fish a chuck on waggler/maggot, and perch on worms….being winter didn’t need to use too much loosefeed I reckon you could absolutely smash it in spring / summer Fishing free for guests; and I think only £5 on a day ticket – bargain really You wont break any records here, but if you want pretty easy/enjoyable fishing, in a not particularly busy fishery, in a lovely part of the country, with amazing on site accommodation; then you could do much worse. I would also recommend this place for families who want to take their kids fishing for the first time and guarantee them some action…cracking learners venue

thought I would try again on this thread, as I haven't been to the place yet, but will be going next week. anyone know anything about it? mainly will be targeting perch and carp any info would be great tight lines

cheers all yep next season I am pretty sure I am gonna join Farnham. membership starts on April 1st so got loads of time And yep I agree a day of recce probably well worth it...

Cheers Matthew, Great info. Yep, location is a bit of a hassle. I live in Kingston, so none are exactly what you would call close by, but I am used to diving up to an hour or so for my fishing, so it doesn't put me off too much. I just like the idea of doing my fishing at picturesque, well-tended, slightly less-pressured venues, with knowledgeable, respectful anglers (not to say people who fish day ticket waters / commercials / free stretches are not knowledgeable and respectful, but you certainly do get a few annoying ****ers!) It means Farnham is the furthest away though, which is a shame as it looks amazing - also I didn't realise about the exchange ticket which would be a real added bonus. My problem with fishing is always time - I work a pretty long day up in London, so I generally only get out at weekends. Its also really hard to explore and get to know venues, other than the local stretch of the Thames. If I went for Farnham I reckon I would realistically get 10-15 sessions a year (which for me still easily justifies the expense), but then I have the quandary of, do I focus on one venue and really try to get to know it and have some success off it, or mix it up and try and bit of everything...? Anyway I'm looking forward to getting on one of them next season.... decisions....?

Morning piscators I live in surrey and, although there are some interesting free river stretches and some good commercials, I am beginning to think about joining a club for the first time. Does anyone have any opinions on the best? I am a real all-rounder….I don’t fish matches, and generally don’t go for big bags of silvers….but really enjoy targeting decent fish of any species. Particularly enjoy chub, barbel and pike on rivers, and carp, tench and perch on still waters….wouldn't say no to any species though really.... I don’t mind a challenge or the odd blank (i certainly have plenty of experience!), but I don’t consider myself an expert of any particular type of angling…so probably not looking for anything too tough. Options I am considering are: Farnham Woking Leatherhead Dorking Any thoughts?

Hi all, anyone know this place? It is near Rutland Water in Leics. Small coarse fishery with accommodation Me and my bro are staying there with our other halves for a few days….hoping to escape for a few hours on the bank a couple of times Couldn’t find loads of info on-line….but there are 4 lakes, one of which is a match like and most info on-line is about that one. Seems full of small carp and seemingly pretty easy. But not much interest in that lake. Ideally hoping for a bit more of a challenge where the fish go a little larger...although to be fair we'd settle for any bend in the rod So has anyone been and got any info on the other lakes? What’s in them, baits, tactics, swims etc?? We are going in early winter…. Will probably look for snaggy areas and go for perch with worms/maggots on the waggler with one rod. And target carp on the other rod with a pellet/hemp, meat/corn approach….probably on a feeder set up… Any tips would be most welcome tight lines

cheers for advice...will have a crack and see how I get on!

Hi there Does anyone know much about this small river, near Uxbridge, west Drayton - Fray's River On Googlemaps it looks like it winds its way through a lot of green space and lakes (I know there are a few commercial pools and syndicate lakes nearby) But what about the river itself? Is it free? Or are there free stretches…in which case where are the free stretches? And what is in it? Have heard rumours of big chub and some barbel? What else….? And where are the good, fishable, accessible and, crucially, free stretches etc….? cheers