A Review of Molyneux

Nick Hilton spent the week at Molyneux in September and did a cracking informative write-up. 

After spending a week at Molyneux in France with Wally and Helen, I thought it would be nice to write a short review to try and help promote their lake as it really is a hidden gem that could always do with more people knowing about and trying to spread the word of the great work they are doing over there.

Molyneux is a 13 acre lake situated in Normandy which took us about 3 hours to get to from Calais (not counting the small deviation - French for diversion - that got us lost in Rouen but that’s another story). This lake is absolutely stunning in every sense of the word with beautiful willows, pines, and birch trees lining the lake and the islands with lots of soft fruit foliage lining the borders to keep the lake self-contained and secure.

With 2 islands at one end of the lake, this gives most of the swims something to aim for and from what we found the island margins appeared to be the one of the patrolling routes for the fish as most of my fish came to baits planted by bait boat just under the protruding trees but not too tight that the fish needed to climb up the bank to get to it.

Molyneux (Belated) May Report

Wally, Bailiff at Molyneux, fills us in on a busy week at the lake earlier this summer...

A long awaited week was finally with us, our friends Dom and Gemma were visiting for the week as part of the last leg of their European motorhome jaunt.  Firstly as always on a Saturday morning we breakfasted and waved the previous weeks guests off through the gate and onto their journey home. This week we had limited the number of anglers visiting to three, and they soon arrived excited and eager to get started.

40.10, Ricky

We welcomed them with a cuppa and a chat about the previous weeks captures which soon fired them up even more.

Rick and Jake were brothers while Jason was a mutual mate. We set off around the lake for a wander and a look round. The fish were on fine form and a few showed  here and there as we wandered round. Ricky and Jason decided to fish the double swim, whilst Jake started his quest from the social 1 swim.  The guys set off for their respective swims.  Helen and I had a quick tidy up and sat ourselves down with a cuppa.

Dom and Gemma arrived a little later, the idea was they were stopping with us for the week to recharge their batteries and for Dom to wet a line and try to tempt one of or big girls to feed.  After a catch up, a few cups of tea and a  good laugh Dom set off for Jack’s swim.

Molyneux continues to amaze… 15 known 40lb+ carp

Richard – 41.12

After such a momentous weeks fishing at Molyneux it seemed only right and proper that I post up a few photos over and above the normal half dozen that accompany the week’s report.

With five new forty pound carp caught it is a very exciting time for Molyneux and this takes the number of known forty pound plus carp to 15.

Amazing really, when you think that just two years ago we had only 2 different forties in the lake. Testament to the quality of the water, and the feeding program we have initiated.

Molyneux Report to 4th May 2013

Lake record grass carp caught & five new forty pound fish landed… Saturday morning and the phone rang bright and early, the Dawson party were at the Molyneux gate already!

I opened the gate and welcomed them back to the lake. I often say how good it is to see old faces back at the lake and this group are no exception. James, his father Richard, and friend Reece were back to fish again, and had brought with them Matt who was a non angler here for the social side of things. We put a cuppa in their hand and explained that we would be with them as soon as we had finished serving breakfast and had seen our previous weeks guests off.

James with a 40lb 8oz Mirror

Breakfast was served, our goodbyes were said and we waved off the previous weeks group. A short while later another of the week’s anglers arrived, Richard and his non angler girlfriend Shannon were welcomed and introduced to those already here. Not long after our final angler Nick arrived with his father Paul who was also a non angler.

The guys chose the swims that they would like to fish, and as Nick’s father was planning to disappear each day to play golf I insisted that Nick fish close to Nick who he knew from the UK, purely… read more here

For more information & catch reports from Molyneux follow the link - French carp lakes

Double Trouble at Molyneux

Fishing at Molyneux produced these two beauties for Neil Spreadborough this month…

Neil

 ”20 fish in total, including 9 over 30lbs. Excellent hosts in Wally and Helen, just left us all to it. If we wanted anything it was there. Can’t fault the place at all, 5*”  Neil Spreadborough, May ’13

For more information, feedback and photos from Molyneux follow the link - French Carp Lakes 

Double Trouble at Molyneux

 Fishing at Molyneux produced these two beauties for Neil Spreadborough this month…

Neil

 ”20 fish in total, including 9 over 30lbs. Excellent hosts in Wally and Helen, just left us all to it. If we wanted anything it was there. Can’t fault the place at all, 5*”  Neil Spreadborough, May ’13

For more information, feedback and photos from Molyneux follow the link - French Carp Lakes

Biggest Catfish to date comes out of Molyneux

35lb Mirror – Keith

The anglers due this week at Molyneux were old friends from last year, which is always so nice, as it is truly a pleasure welcoming back familiar faces to the lake. Having been before they had predetermined what swims they were going to fish, mostly the same as last year. Keith opting for Social 1, with his mate Steve next door in Social 2. Another Steve headed for the Barn swim, while Troy chose to fish from the double swim. Jason started off in the Pines, and Bish chose the cabin swim where he fished last year.

Saturday was spent finding the old spots, and baiting up, and after dinner we enjoyed a lovely social evening with the lads in the dining room having a chinwag and a few beers. I don’t think anyone fished Saturday night as they were tired after the journey.

36.08 – Steve

The following morning a few speculative casts were made at first light hoping to pick up a fish before breakfast. Only one angler Keith was successful in this and after casting out into open water in front of the social swims landed a corking mirror of 34lb’s. Not a bad start to the week.

The rest of Sunday nobody managed to catch possibly due to the cold North wind which whistled across the lake. Monday sadly was much the same story, and at teatime Monday the guys still had only the one fish between them.

With the weather due to change significantly no one was too concerned and we all felt confident that with a little sunshine and a change of wind things would improve greatly. How right we were. Monday evening the wind died right down, and looked set to change. The temperatures without the wind chill immediately improved and so did the fishing.

At 1.30am Steve in the barn landed a new lake record Catfish weighing in at 62lb 4oz… A cracking beast almost as long as Steve was tall.

62lb 4oz New Lake Record – Steve

At 4am Keith hooked and landed his second of the week, a 21lb 8oz Grass carp. Steve then landed two more from the barn in quick succession, a 31lb 3oz mirror and a 14lb mirror, one of the few double figure mirrors coming through. Steve Taylor in Social 2 was next off the mark with a 28lb 4oz mirror at 7.30am, and then Steve in the Barn swim landed another just before reeling in for breakfast, this one was a 20lb 4oz common.

Things were looking up, and with the light S/E breeze springing up after breakfast it could only improve. Steve in the Barn landed two more Mirrors in the afternoon, weighing in at 28lb 3oz, and 29lb 2oz respectively.

Tuesday night and a few of the big girls came out to play. The first fell to Steve in the Barn, a little after midnight, landing a lovely 35lb mirror. The next mirror caught was a massive new pb for Bish in the Cabin swim at 36lb 3oz. The next was caught at first light, Keith in the double swim landing the largest of the week so far at 36lb 6oz. He followed this up with a smaller mirror of 26lb 4oz just before breakfast.

36lb 6oz – Keith

Jason who had been fishing the boat swim with little success decided on a move after breakfast and I gave him a hand round with his gear to Jack’s. He had seen a few fish showing down in the shallows early in the morning and thought it worth a chance.

At lunchtime Steve In the Barn caught what can only be a lake spawned Grasscarp weighing in at 14lb’s. Keith then had two decent mirrors in quick succession between 5pm and 6pm, a 30lb 8oz mirror and a 29lb mirror.

Just after midnight so technically Thursday there were two fish caught almost simultaneously at either end of the lake. Jason, proving that the move was worthwhile, landed a gorgeous 22lb common, and Steve in the Barn landed another Catfish, this one tipping the scales at 39lb exactly. Keith then caught another cat at 2.45am, this one weighing 27lb 12oz.

The next fish caught was at 4pm, and was a 20lb 10oz Grass carp landed by Steve down in the Barn, he was having a whale of a time down there and was catching consistently throughout both day and night. A short while after Keith caught our second ever double figure Grass carp at 17lb’s. They don’t normally breed very successfully in lakes, preferring to do so in running, or at least moving water. Tucked away as we are in a valley, it is testament to the water quality that we seem to be seeing fish which have obviously grown on in the lake as none were ever stocked as low as these.

Later that evening, Jason in Jack’s landed his first thirty of the week, a nice long mirror of 30lb 4oz.

36.03 – Bish

On Friday conditions were absolutely perfect and it was to be a cracking day for fish. It started at just after midnight, Keith in Social 1 landing a 22lb 6oz mirror.

Then at 5.30am Steve in the Barn swim landed a beautiful mirror of 37lb 5oz, as he put this back, another of his rods rattled off and resulted in a 23lb 9oz mirror. Keith then landed another just after first light, another mirror, this one weighing in at 25lb 10oz.

At 8.15am, Jason in Jack’s landed another scraper thirty at 30lb 2oz.

At 9.30am Troy landed his first fish of the week, a 20lb 4oz common. I don’t think the constant bellowing and noises he was making had helped in his cause.

After breakfast Steve who had been persevering in Social 2 moved into Stones after seeing fish in the channel. He then proceeded to have three mirrors in a short space of time during the afternoon. Proof that keeping your eyes peeled and making the effort to move can pay off. His first was 29lb 12oz, his second weighed 26lb 4oz, and his third weighed 27lb 4oz.

37.11 – Steve

Steve in the Barn also got in on the afternoon fun with another chunky mirror weighing in at 36lb 8oz. Troy whose voice had obviously gone by now then landed another at around 5pm, his second common, this one weighing 22lb 3oz. Just before he reeled in for the evening meal Keith managed a 26lb 6oz mirror.

At 10pm Jason landed his third thirty of the day and this one was a bit special, a gorgeous 30lb Grass carp.

At 11pm, Steve in the Barn landed a 30lb 3oz mirror, and at almost the same time Keith in Social 1 landed a 35lb mirror.

Steve in the Barn, then caught a 37lb 11oz mirror, just stealing the biggest carp of the week crown off of Keith by 6oz….

In the early hours of the morning there were to be two more fish banked. Steve in the Barn had yet another, a 23lb 3oz common, and Steve in Stones finished up with his largest of the week with a 33lb mirror.

All in all a good week, with every angler catching, and from only one fish caught by Monday evening they finished up with forty fish for the week between six of them. A very good result in the end.

Good to see you all guys, it was a pleasure as always, and we hope to welcome you back with a warm smile and a cold beer sometime soon..
Wally

For more information, videos and feedback from Molyneux follow the link - French Carp Lakes

A week’s fishing at Molyneux

38.06 – 12yo Brett

The weather leading up to the arrival of this week’s anglers at Molyneux had been awful. On Thursday and Friday we had snow falling and settling to a few inches, and an icy North wind that was making the low temperatures feel so much colder. 

Saturday morning and our first guests of the week arrived. Loretta and Brett, we were surprised that rather than a couple they were in fact Grandmother and her 12yr old Grandson, who was to be fishing.

This was a little awkward because our rules clearly state that nobody under the age of 16yrs old is to fish the lake unless supervised by an adult angler fishing in the same swim. This is purely due to the size of fish in the lake and, like all rules, for fish welfare and of course the angler’s safety.

We couldn’t of course ask them to go home, so I made sure that Brett understood to call me if he landed a carp and whatever time it was I would go out and help him with the handling, photographing and weighing of the fish.

Our other angler Jason, turned up a short while later, and after the initial cup of tea and chat we all wandered off for a look around the lake. 

Lake Map

Brett was going to fish the cabin swim, where his Grandmother would spend the week, and Jason decided to fish Social 1 and concentrate on the back of the island.

The weather was still very wintery and chilly, with an evil Northerly wind cutting across the lake and through to our bones.

The guys got themselves set up and organised and were soon fishing.

Brett called me around 11pm to say he had a fish on but was struggling to land it. I shot along to his swim and found he had a good fish in close, but it was refusing to co-operate and plodding up and down the margin. I took the net and after a few minutes of Brett wrestling with it to keep it away from his other lines I managed to net it for him.

Immediately looking down on the fish I knew it was a very long fish, we took it up to the unhooking area, where Brett unwrapped his prize. A stunning orange coloured mirror, almost as long as his weigh-sling. I took some photographs and we weighed it. At 35lb’s exactly it was Brett’s largest fish by a long way. His previous pb being 19lb’s caught on a day fishing at one of his local waters. He had not even spent a night in a bivvy before this first night.

The following day was just as cold and windy, except there was rain to contend with as well. Both anglers gave their best but sadly nothing was to be landed.

Monday was slightly milder and more importantly stayed dry for the whole day. Still nothing came out. Monday night was the first night we have had this year where the temperatures didn’t drop below zero… Hopefully things were about to change for the better.

Tuesday morning at 3am Jason landed a cracking mirror of 38lb 12oz. He lost another at around midday, before landing a second at around 8.30pm, a 28lb 8oz mirror.

38.10 – Jason

That night was much milder yet again, and at a little after 1am I was woken by the sound of my phone. Brett had hooked another fish. I shot down, and between him and Loretta they had managed to get this one into the landing net.

I broke the net down and rolled it up to lift. That was when I realised just how big the fish was.  I lowered it onto the unhooking mat where we opened up the mesh of the net to reveal a proper lump of a carp. On the scales it proved to be 38lb 6oz.

38.06 –  Brett

At 7am, Brett had another, a much smaller common this time weighing in at around 10lb’s. I later learnt that Jason had lost a fish overnight.

At 3pm on Wednesday Jason landed the first Grasscarp of the year at a healthy weight of 31lb’s, in stunning condition. These truly are a lovely looking fish.

In the early hours of Thursday morning I was roused from my slumber again by a phone call from Brett. He had landed another big carp. I got dressed quickly, glanced at the clock and found it was 4am.

I jogged down to the cabin swim, where I broke down and rolled the net once more. Once again I was  amazed as I tried to lift this carp. It was even heavier than the previous two, and by some way!!

I struggled to the unhooking mat, where I gently laid it down, I lifted off the mesh and there was an old friend….. Big Lin, our only named fish, and the largest in the lake. Brett had just broken his pb once again… but by how much… We lifted her onto the scales where they settled at 47lb 6oz, a new lake record, and a massive new pb for Brett.

47.06 ‘Big Lin’

Meanwhile Jason was having a mare, having lifted into thin air three times during the night after what seemed to be a run. I sat with him having a cuppa during the morning when he lost yet another. He lifted into a moving fish, felt a couple of knocks and it simply dropped off.

At 3.30pm he finally landed one, a lovely looking mirror of 31lb 9oz. Hopefully the spell was broken.
At 11.30pm he landed another mirror, this one 25lb 4oz.

At 5.45 am on Friday, Jason was to land another, this one a 23lb mirror. Then at 7am Brett landed another good carp. I shot up to his swim to help him and found another very chunky mirror in his net, this one weighed in at 37lb 12oz. He followed this up an hour later with a 13lb common.

37

Jason then caught a 16lb 2oz common at around 10am, the warmer weather was certainly making a difference to the catch rates.

At lunchtime Jason rang me to come and photograph a big mirror. I got to his swim, and together we lifted his sling from the water. He opened it onto the unhooking mat and there to my surprise lay Big Lin in all her Glory. Unbelievably she had been caught twice in less than 30hr’s, I had known her to come out twice in one week, but never quite this quickly.

Second time round – ‘Big Lin’ – Jason

She was weighed in very gusty winds which made getting an accurate weight difficult, but we settled on 46lb 12oz… a few ounces lower than the previous day’s weight. She behaved impeccably for the photo’s and off she went quite happily. The remarkable thing for me is that she is at record weight, yet appears to be carrying no spawn, her belly was empty. The irregular weather is obviously slowing them down. It will be interesting to see when they will spawn this year and what she weighs if caught just prior to this.

At midnight on Friday night I got another call from Brett, he had caught another, this one weighed in at 30lb 3oz. During the photo session, Jason called across the lake to see if I could photograph one for him.

I shot round there to find he had a 37lb mirror in the net, whilst we were attempting to photograph this one, another of his rods went into meltdown. He landed this one without too much ado, and found it to be another grass carp, this one weighing in at 22lb 8oz.

All in all a good week’s angling, despite the weather at the start of the week. The fish had certainly become more active during the course of the week, and some stunning lumps were caught….

Very well done to Brett who, for now, holds the Lake record with a weight of 47lb 6oz….

Wally, Molyneux Owner
For more information, articles, videos and feedback on Molyneux follow the link -French Carp Lakes

Winter Wonderland at Molyneux French Carp Lake

Winter Wonderland at Molyneux French Carp Lake

February 5, 2013DavidNo comments

Like most of you in the UK, we have had our share of chilly snowy weather here at Molyneux over the last few days.  Thankfully we’ve not had the amounts of snow that seem to have covered large parts of Blighty, but it has certainly made life around the lake a little more difficult.

The water has been switched off at the mains for over a week now, in the hope we will not have the problems in the shower block that we suffered last spring.

The lake is frozen so the feeding program has had to be curtailed for the time being. Prior to the freeze the fish had remained active, especially after they have been fed.

Despite all the problems it brings, who can help but love the way that a blanket of snow transforms the landscape. It was also Rudie’s first sight of snow, and it was hilarious to watch him rolling and playing in the snow……

French carp lakes – Molyneux

Molyneux Carp Lake in France – End Of Year Report

Molyneux Carp Lake in France – End Of Year Report

December 31, 2012DavidNo comments

Well as I type this report we are midway through December, Virtually all the trees have lost their leaves, and Molyneux looks stark and bare compared to the summer months. Helen has forced me to watch Elf and Miracle on 34^th street over the last couple of weekends, so I guess Santa is almost on his way once again. We have been sorting the van out ready for our Christmas trip home to see the family, and Rudie is booked in to see the vet prior to our departure. So all that remains, is for me to summarise our year at Molyneux.

It is our second year at the lake although our first as leaseholders, and what a year it has been.

We have had some wonderful people over, with many old friends from last year returning to spend another week on the lake. We have made many new friends over the course of the year and are already seeing some of them booking for next year. Nothing gives us more pleasure than knowing people want to come back to the place. We have worked so hard since we arrived to improve both the lake and it’s surrounds and also the holiday experience we offer to both anglers and non-anglers alike.

This year started with a very cold February, we did not see temp’s over -9 for more than three weeks. At night it was dropping to as low as -18. . The Lake was frozen solid, and there was thick snow on the ground. This was a blow on a number of fronts, We had no water as everything had to be turned off, and we relied on bottled water to drink, and melted snow to wash up in Thankfully we were warm and cosy in the van most of the time although even with the heating left on low we were waking to temperatures of around -3 in the van. I was having to kick Helen out to of bed to turn the heating up before I dare climb out. Bless her!

It unfortunately meant that the work we had planned to do during this time went by the wayside. Though as soon as it started to thaw we had plenty to do. The shower block suffered most with pipes, taps, and even the mains valve bursting due to the extreme weather. With no previous plumbing experience other than changing a washer here and there, I was mortified. Andrew the owner was a massive help and although not much more knowledgeable about the job in hand than I, between us we put everything back together, replacing parts where they needed to be and mending and soldering whatever else required it.

March saw the start of the anglers arrive, and the first were a wonderful group of guys from the Southampton area. One of their number, Sam smashed our lake record with the very first fish of the season. The Big Linear last caught at 43lb 6oz, was now up in weight to 46lb 8oz. What a start to the year. Also during March with the help of our neighbour Tony we installed a kitchenette in the cabin, helping to make it even more comfortable for those booking it. Our plans to turn Jack’s into a double swim sadly had to be put on hold as we couldn’t get the chainsaw back in time from being serviced. At the beginning of April I travelled down to Le Mans to pick up a gorgeous little bundle of fluff who we decided to call Rudie, a 10 week old Border Terrier puppy who has become much loved by Helen and I and all the anglers that have come to know him during the year.

As the next few months went on we welcomed many anglers old and new to the lake and there were so many hilarious events and incredible captures that it is impossible to mention them all. Many anglers smashed their pb’s. New forty pound carp were caught, the largest common in the lake was caught at 43lb 8oz.  Things were going from good to Incredible.

The highlight of the year for us personally happened on 10^th June when completely out of the blue a small unknown car drove down the track to the lake. It contained both of our sons with their girlfriends. Craig who has lived in Australia for the past five years and his gorgeous girlfriend Kristy had flown over and picked up our eldest son David and his lovely girlfriend Steffi, and they had driven over to surprise us for Helens birthday. It was, once we had both got over the initial shock of seeing them all, a marvellous week full of laughter and good times. There were parties, barbeques and far too much alcohol consumed. The anglers we had with us at the time were a cracking bunch of guys and joined in the celebrations wholeheartedly, as did our Aunt and Uncle who were also here visiting, helping to make it such a special time for everyone. A week Helen and I will never forget. Later in the summer our Aunt and Uncle returned to help with the job of tidying up and painting and decorating the shower block both inside and out. It is always so nice to see them and we are pleased to know that they enjoy the place almost as much as we do.

As the summer rolled on into September the numbers of anglers increased after the slight lull of the height of summer, and they were not to be disappointed with some huge catches and monster fish to show for it. One angler Dave Faulkner managed a record 34 Carp and Catfish during his week with us, a very good angler Dave made the most of his trip and caught 16 thirties and 1 forty amongst his fish. Although we specify that Molyneux is by no means a runs water it shows that with application, skill and a little luck that some fantastic catches are possible.

This year in general we have seen the numbers and size of fish caught increase beyond our wildest dreams. Last year we had almost 100 anglers visit catching between them around 150 thirties, 50 of which being over 35lb’s. There were also two known forties which had come out a few times during the year.

This year with around the same number of anglers we have had almost twice the total of fish caught. Amongst them 263 thirties, exactly a 100 of which were over 35lb. The number of Forties has increased to nine different fish, caught a total of 19 times. The catfish record has increased from 45lb’s to 58lb’s with a good number of forties as back up. The large Grasscarp have been active with the largest of the year being caught at 38lb’s, though we know there are grassie’s over 40lb’s which despite being seen from time to time are proving to be difficult to bank. Overall an Incredible year, with plenty of potential for further improvement next year.

All too soon we were preparing to turn the clocks back as Autumn rapidly approached, the leaves on our multitude of trees turned glorious golds and yellows and the sun which we had enjoyed for so long disappeared to be replaced by rain and windy conditions. The nights drew in and our thoughts turned to the jobs we had planned to do. We have made a start removing the dead trees off the large island, and thinning out the brambles hopefully reinvigorating growth and improving the overall look.

One of the first jobs for next year is to turn Jacks into a double swim, we also plan to install a satellite dish which will provide English tv within the cabin. We also plan to install a kitchen into the dining room area, and a proper charging station for boats, mobiles and dvd players etc. There is wire to cover the platforms which can be a little slippy when wet, there is also gravel to place on swims and a multitude of other jobs to be completed prior to the anglers arriving in March. No rest for the wicked.

I must end by thanking all the people who have helped in making our first year proper at Molyneux so very special.

David, Bridget, Linda and Julie from Angling Lines for their help, advice and efforts during the year. Andrew, the lake owner, for giving us the opportunity, his help around the place and for running Helen to the shops on a regular basis.

Nico,  a French angler and good friend who helped with the repairs to the shower block.

Tony, our neighbour for all his help at the start of the year and his assistance in installing the kitchenette into the cabin, without which I would never have managed.

My Uncle Phil, for his help with painting the shower block in 35 degree heat. Thank goodness for Desperadoes, it saved our life on more than one occasion.

Mark Jones, an angler and friend for bringing over our order from Quest baits when he visited in March, and of course all the other anglers who have brought over bits and bobs, especially those that have brought Helen a ready supply of Galaxy chocolate.

And last but not least all of the anglers, old friends and new alike who visited and helped make our year so special, without them none of this could happen, and we are very grateful to you all. Thankyou for helping to make our dream of running a carp fishery come true and so enjoyable. We look forward to seeing you all again next year, the beers will be chilled, the fish will be bigger and Molyneux will be better than ever.

Merry Christmas to each and every one of you. May you have a wonderful time hopefuuly wrapped in the bosom of your families, and very best wishes for the New Year.

French Carp lakes – Molyneux

Molyneux Report to 10th November 2012

Molyneux Report to 10th November 2012

December 27, 2012DavidNo comments

Scott & his 41lb mirror

Saturday morning and with John and Carol packed and on their way we awaited the new anglers who were due to arrive at Molyneux. The phone rang around mid-morning and we learnt that one of our parties had suffered a mini disaster as a strap holding some of their gear on the roof had snapped resulting in a rod bag and it’s entire contents flying off and ending up under the wheels of a lorry. The rods, and reels inside the bag were all smashed and completely ruined.

There was also some damage to a new bivvy which had recently been bought, though thankfully this as not beyond use. A very sad start to their holiday, and a salutary lesson to us all. If anything is to be transported upon the roof it must be strapped down and then double strapped to make sure there is no chance of it slipping or moving. Tack is very expensive these days and we need to ensure that it is not going anywhere during the journey.

The other pair of anglers we were expecting Colin and old friend who had first visited in March of this year, and his good friend Scott arrived full of the joys of spring and raring to get going. Colin had very kindly arrived bearing gifts of Chocolate for Helen which is always very welcome and is sure to put any angler in her good books from the off.

We chatted and informed the anglers of recent events at the lake over a steaming mug of tea after which we wandered around the lake. My mobile rang as we arrived back at the kitchen announcing the arrival of the other group Joe and Dave. They drove around to the kitchen and over a cup of tea explained the drama’s they had suffered. They had managed to find a tackle shop in Rouen where Joe had replaced his damaged rods with a cheap set sufficient to see him through the week.

I took them for a walk round and they decided that they would like to fish the double swim, Colin and Scott had previously showed an interest in fishing the social swims so as usual it negated the need for a draw as everyone was happy with their choice.

The guys set off and sorted themselves out in their respective swims. I loaned Joe a reel to help him out, and took around the bait that the guys had pre-ordered. They came up to the kitchen for their evening meals and we arranged that the following day I would take them out in the boat and bait up their swims.

That night there were no fish caught. The following day the weather improved so far as fishing was concerned overcast with the wind picking up, and things were looking good for a bite. Almost immediately after dinner the first fish was caught. Scott was the lucky angler in Social 2 he enjoyed a good scrap with the fish before it finally came over the drawcord of the net. On the scales it was weighed at 41lb, a fish which had been caught at 40lb in September. To say he was delighted is and understatement. What a start to the week! Overnight there were no more fish caught.

The following day Scott landed another mirror of 26lb’s at around 1pm. At 2.30pm Joe in the double swim caught his first fish, a chunky 30lb 14oz mirror. In the early evening of the Monday Joe caught his second thirty of the week in the shape of a cracking 37lb 1oz mirror. At 9pm Colin caught a 16lb mirror.

In the early hours of Tuesday Scott caught a 23lb 8oz common. He followed this up at lunchtime with a 30lb mirror. Dinner was eaten and a beer or two consumed and the guys headed back to their swims. At 10pm Joe had another thirty with a 30lb 15oz mirror. A short while later Colin caught a 29lb 8oz mirror.

Overnight Scott added to his tally with a mirror of 38lb 4oz. He followed this up at 11am with a 18lb 2oz common. Strangely that evening Colin in the next swim caught a different common of exactly the same weight. The weather which had been overcast and showery was certainly not harming the fishing.

Thursday saw an incredible couple of hours fishing for Scott, when at 12.30pm he caught first a 32lb 10oz mirror, followed quickly by a 37lb 14oz mirror, and less than an hour later by a 38lb 8oz mirror. A short while later he finished his flurry with a 16lb mirror.

In the early hours of Friday morning Scott continued his amazing run of form with a 37lb 1oz mirror. Colin then got in on the act with a 31lb mirror, half an hour later catching another, a 26lb 8oz mirror. Scott then caught yet another thirty at 30lb 8oz. That evening Colin caught a 33lb 8oz mirror, Scott caught a 32lb 3oz mirror, and Dave who had been struggling in the double swim caught a 30lb 15oz mirror. Overnight Colin managed one more fish a 31lb 5oz mirror.

Altogether a good weeks fishing with Scott really getting amongst them, Colin and Joe landing a few good thirties, finally even Dave who had struggled through the week landing his much craved for thirty by the end of the week.

It was good to see Colin again, as well as meeting his friend Scott, Joe and Dave had endured a horrendous start to the week with the loss of their tackle, hopefully their experience at Molyneux during their stay went some small way to make up for it.

French Carp Lakes – Molyneux

Molyneux Carp Lake – Report to 3rd Nov ’12

Molyneux Carp Lake – Report to 3rd Nov ’12

December 19, 2012DavidNo comments

With no anglers visiting the lake in the week leading up to the 27^th November, it meant another week of hard work for Helen and I which included us starting to remove the dead trees from the large island. Sadly it has been left to grow wild for a number of years and the brambles have taken over strangling the life out of anything else trying to grow. So we set to work improving the overall look as well as improving the chances for the beautiful trees trying to get a hold over there.

As the week all too quickly came to an end we prepared to welcome a husband and wife party who were staying in the cabin. John and Carol arrived late Saturday morning, having had a horrendous journey. They missed the ferry they were booked onto, and had to wait two hours until they could get on to one. Then there was an emergency with rescue boats having to go out to a yacht in distress in the channel which meant that they had to sit off Calais until the problem was resolved as the emergency boats were given priority at the port of Calais. Such a shame as most people comment on how straight forward and easy the trip is.

They were understandably tired upon arrival and after a cup of tea Helen took Carol down to show her around the cabin whilst John and myself had a wander around the lake. He was very impressed with the place, and even more so when he learnt he had the place to himself for the week. I left him to set up, and get himself organised.

They wandered along for their evening meal at the appointed time, after which John said he doubted if he would fish that night preferring to get his head down and have a fresh start in the morning.

Sunday morning we went out in the boat and had a prod around his swim, and dropped off one or two H block markers in open water spots. He baited these spots and commenced fishing in earnest. Sadly he lost a fish during the Sunday night, and so again we baited up the following day. Monday saw a few fish showing in and around the baited areas, which was a good sign, John set himself up for another nights fishing. He lost one during the late evening to a hook pull after playing it for a wee while.

At 6am he was rewarded for his efforts with a take followed by a good tussle before landing a 28lb mirror. Once again the daylight hours were slow, although once again there were fish showing. At 7pm that evening he landed his second fish of the week with a fine 30lb mirror. Overnight he sadly had two takes both of which he lost, one to a hook pull, the other a screaming take which when lifting the rod was met with no fish on the end.

He decided to move into the double swim on Wednesday and try his luck there. Sadly it was to be no better, resulting in no fish overnight. He moved back into the cabin and back onto his original spots which he felt more confident with. His confidence was proved to be right, as at 3am he landed his third fish of the week another mirror, this one weighing 29lb’s. Friday night saw another fish lost sadly, and on Saturday the process of packing down began. It had been a pleasure to meet both John and Carol, and we thoroughly enjoyed their company during the week.

Weather conditions permitting he hadn’t done too bad, with 8 takes and 3 fish landed, but for a few hook pulls it might have been so much better.

French Carp Lakes – Molyneux

Molyneux To Extend The Range of Quest Carp Baits They Offer

We will be continuing to stock Quest Baits in 2012 as they proved to be so successful last year at Molyneux.  We have also extended the range of flavours available.

These will of course include the ever faithful Ghurka Spice which caught more fish last year than any other boilie. I’ve added to this Rhahja Spice, Chilli Chocolate, Fruity Trifle, and two brand new boilies being very successfully feild tested at the moment by Shaun and his team. Magnum White which has already  accounted for a lot of very good fish, and also Squidberry which is due to be released by Quest in March this year.

We are also stocking the full range of matching pop ups, and a range of the incredibly popular Pimple Pops. I would like to thank Shaun Harrison very much for his help and advice in compiling what we hope will be a comprehensive range of big fish catching baits for Molyneux Carp Fishery.

Bait will be in stock from 24th March, and any orders should be forwarded through to me.

French carp lakes

The Carp Hunters Session at Molyneux

A video of photo stills created by the Mr Sansford party (AKA The Carp Hunters) who fished Molyneux in 2010…

Anyone for Ice Skating on a Carp Lake?

A Frozen Molyneux

Well the temperature dropped to -9 overnight here at Molyneux and the cold stiff Siberian wind dropped off causing the lake to freeze up. It is currently -5 outside, although the skies are a gorgeous blue.  It really is a beautiful sight!

This is only the second time I have seen it completely frozen, the other being when we arrived in early January last year.

Late Winter Update from Molyneux French carp Lake

Molyneux in its winter clothes

Well like most of Europe we are feeling the biting Siberian winds over here at Molyneux. Temperature today is -4 with a wind chill it is nearer -11… and after our wander around the lake this I can confirm that it is truly bloody cold.

Thankfully the lake is still liquid, though without the wind I doubt this would be the case. The skies are bright blue, and the lake is looking stunning.

I have taken some photos which I will post up shortly. Helen and I have been busy clearing branches brought down by the winds, and strimming and tidying, doing all the jobs that need doing around any lake at this time of year.

We are looking forward to the spring when anglers start to arrive, although there is a lot to be done between now and then.

No rest for the wicked  :-)

Wally & Helen