Meadow Lake, France

What is it like?

Meadow lake is a mature lake, set in beautiful surroundings of interrupted countryside making it the perfect setting to relax and enjoy your fishing trip. The lake was purchased by the current fishery owners in the year 2000 with the intension for this lake giving anglers non-stop arm action from 20lb plus carp. When catches have been up to 40 fish for the week for some anglers, it’s safe to say the vision for this lake has been achieved.

Whilst this is a 10 acre lake, the number of anglers allowed to fish the lake at any one time has been restricted to 6. The fishery owners have deliberately done this to give anglers an experience where you do not feel hemmed in by other anglers, you have huge water coverage per swim and also have the opportunity to rove round unfished areas of the lake if under the rod tip stalking is your thing!

There are 19 swims to choose from and depths range from 9 foot in the deepest area of the lake to around 3 foot in the shallowest (see lake map for details). All swims comfortably accommodate a bivvy.

What bait works well?

I kept the baiting tactics simple. I went for a Pacific Tuna and sweetcorn combination, two baits that I have found successful everywhere I have taken them. I did however, create a bucket of different shapes and sizes; I use crumbed, whole and chopped Tuna just to give it a bit of differentiation. To give the whole mix an added dimension, I also poured in a plenty of Hot Chorizo Extract to give a spicy edge in the water column.

How do you settle on a swim there?

Fish where you see them. The carp move around the lake a lot and depending on conditions you can find them in the shallows or the deeps. That said, there is such a good head of fish that generally you can find them in most places. If it’s hot, then the shallower spots work well. Bites are generally at nighttime and first thing in the morning so make sure you have your rods at the ready.

What rigs do you use?

Again, I am not one for overcomplicating my fishing so when on Meadow Lake I mainly use snowman rigs. A large 20mm Tuna bottom bait with a smaller Northern sitting on top is all I need. I mount this onto a hair rig comprising a strippable braid and a curved shank hook, blowback style. Nice and simple!

Top tip

Pay attention to finding an area to fish. There is weed in there so spend time searching for a little clear spot. The small the spot the better. This has been the most consistent way of catching in Meadow Lake for me. Use a little light lead, in conjunction with a braided main line, and flick this around, bumping it through the weed etc until you find one.