Fishing report: 2 to 23 of August 2025

Some unbelievably good fishing this month with carp to 45lbs

To start the month we welcomed back Jean and Michael for their 3rd visit. They are massive fans of the venue and before they left last time,  they’d rebooked for next year. For them, it’s very much a holiday first, fishing second but that’s not to say Michael doesn’t take his fishing seriously.

With fishing limited to afternoons and evenings and a day trip out midweek, it means Michael hasn’t got a second to lose when he is on the water. Beausoleil can be a challenge for many anglers but having done the tuition on his first trip, Michael has an approach that he can rely on and it works. He banked 4 carp to 40 lbs which is excellent considering the limited hours.

Jean absolutely loves the place as well. She loves the peace and quiet, the wildlife, the trees, everything really. We are delighted that we’ll be seeing them again next year.

Lovely, lovely hosts. Fantastic two weeks. Booked for next year before we left!

Next up we welcomed Alex, Nicola and their son Harrison to the venue for their first trip. They’ve been coming to France for many years now and had booked with us for two weeks so they had time on their side to really get the most from the place.

They came prepared with a lot of bait, mostly boilie, and they weren’t shy in letting them have it. TBH it’s rare for me to meet anglers that go large on the bait quantity and are successful but if your rigs are good and you have chosen some good spots then you can have a very busy session!

And what a busy time they’ve had: 42 carp in 2 weeks for 2 anglers 🏆 Amazing work🏆 

Alex and Harrison worked really hard at their fishing and only had one night off. Even on their last morning they hauled another three out! I’ve rarely seen sessions like this. It was as if they had the angling version of the midas touch, everything they did resulted in another golden carp.

In one 24 hr period, they hauled out 12 carp between the two of them and I’m not sure that’s ever been done before. They were simply fishing on another level.

Bait & Rigs

On the bait front they used Sticky Manilla and Krill. They went through a few different rig styles but the one that worked the best for them is known as the German rig. It’s a rig I know but I’ve never even tied one. After a good chat with Alex, it gave me a better insight into the mechanics and the advantages that it offers over other options so it’s certainly now on my test list! 

Rather than doing what they normally do, which is to fish it with an in-turned eyed wide gaped hook and a kicker, they tried the chod Twisters that I keep in stock as they simply didn’t have enough of the right hooks with them. I suggested they ditch the kicker which was a bit of a leap of faith. Many anglers would frown at such a crude looking combination but all I can tell you is that it worked brilliantly.

Alex and Harrison have caught well in the past but this was by far their best ever session. Alex also really loved my simple inline running lead trick. He’d never had much luck with in-lines before but he’s definitely going to be incorporating them into his angling back home.

The whole family had a wonderful time. Nicola really enjoyed the luxury of her own space away from the fishing. The weather was amazing and they had a BBQ in the swims most nights. We are delighted that they’ve already re-booked for August next year and we very much look forward to seeing how they get on next time around!