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French barbel fishing

Matthew Burke said:
I’m off to Fumay in September 🤗
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Which bend?
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1594793027301.png
 
Bonjour tous le monde. :)

I have lived in France for the last 8 years or so and am acquainted with the area Jamie is moving to as part of the River Gartempe valley falls within my working area and we have visited the other parts. Dependent on which part of the Gartempe you intend to fish you will catch barbel, especially from the Montmorillon through St. Savin and beyond. Size wise, you'll probably find plenty of 3lb fish with the odd 4lb and topping out around 5lb. This is the same for many rivers in this region in my experience. The post from Lee Williams is interesting as I fish the Vienne regularly and have never seen or heard of anyone catching barbel over 5kg. I hope that it is true, but if the figures had been quoted in lbs and not Kgs I would have agreed whole heartedly.

The Gartempe is I believe a tributary of the Creuse which is not a noted large barbel river. Salmon are being re-introduced and I have seen parr in the Gartemp near to St Ouen sur Gartempe.

The River Vienne isn't too far away and there are places you can expect to catch barbel above the usual 3lb stamp. The Vienne in places has carp to mid-forties, but the barbel in my experience top out just over 9lb. In France a 4Kg or roughly 9lb, barbel is regarded as a true specimen and not many anglers have seen fish over 6lb. I saw a newspaper article of someone catching a 3,7Kg fish from a Vienne tributary so rare are these captures.

The Charente is another of my local rivers. Both the Charente and Vienne are roughly the same length of the Severn albeit with larger catchment areas. Whereas the Vienne is a freestone, rocky river akin to the Wye, the Charente is for much of its length a chalk stream. From Angouleme downstream it is navigable and so has locks and weirs plus lots of riverside access via the 'Chemin Halage' or towpath.

I have had scraper 9lb barbel from both rivers fishing deeper channels with particle baits. French rarely fish for barbel so mostly the fish outside the 'carpe de nuit' areas haven't seen baits. Donkey chokers and the latest flavoured boilies are wasted on them. Better with boiled whole maize grains or small 6mm or so pellets. I do better with squid & krill than halibut. Luncheon meat and home made pork meat balls are readily taken by carp, chub and smaller barbel, but all the heaviest fish I have caught have been on maize or 6mm SK30 pellets. The heavier you feed the more bream you will catch on the Charente. Not so applicable on the Vienne as bream are less common. If you fish luncheon meat or large meat baits in September through to November you are asking for trouble. The large catfish are most active in the period and will trash your barbel gear.

If you are looking for large barbel then the rivers north of the Loire catchment system and in the east of the country will give you the best chance of avoiding the hoards of 3lb shoal fish. The Seine system, the Aine and Oise and the Rhone system are probably the best bets. I have heard of monster barbel being seen in the rivers of the south-west; Lot, Dordogne, Tarn for example, but despite a lot of research and many questions to fellow French barbel addicts I have not seen the proof or photos or catch reports to substantiate the rumours.

Anyone coming to France and intending to fish away from the 'Parcourse de Peche' zones I would advise bringing a latex landing net and long handle to give you a fighting chance in areas where the banks are high and overgrown.

Hope that helps.
 
Clive Kenyon said:
Bonjour tous le monde. :)

I have lived in France for the last 8 years or so and am acquainted with the area Jamie is moving to as part of the River Gartempe valley falls within my working area and we have visited the other parts. Dependent on which part of the Gartempe you intend to fish you will catch barbel, especially from the Montmorillon through St. Savin and beyond. Size wise, you'll probably find plenty of 3lb fish with the odd 4lb and topping out around 5lb. This is the same for many rivers in this region in my experience. The post from Lee Williams is interesting as I fish the Vienne regularly and have never seen or heard of anyone catching barbel over 5kg. I hope that it is true, but if the figures had been quoted in lbs and not Kgs I would have agreed whole heartedly.

The Gartempe is I believe a tributary of the Creuse which is not a noted large barbel river. Salmon are being re-introduced and I have seen parr in the Gartemp near to St Ouen sur Gartempe.

The River Vienne isn't too far away and there are places you can expect to catch barbel above the usual 3lb stamp. The Vienne in places has carp to mid-forties, but the barbel in my experience top out just over 9lb. In France a 4Kg or roughly 9lb, barbel is regarded as a true specimen and not many anglers have seen fish over 6lb. I saw a newspaper article of someone catching a 3,7Kg fish from a Vienne tributary so rare are these captures.

The Charente is another of my local rivers. Both the Charente and Vienne are roughly the same length of the Severn albeit with larger catchment areas. Whereas the Vienne is a freestone, rocky river akin to the Wye, the Charente is for much of its length a chalk stream. From Angouleme downstream it is navigable and so has locks and weirs plus lots of riverside access via the 'Chemin Halage' or towpath.

I have had scraper 9lb barbel from both rivers fishing deeper channels with particle baits. French rarely fish for barbel so mostly the fish outside the 'carpe de nuit' areas haven't seen baits. Donkey chokers and the latest flavoured boilies are wasted on them. Better with boiled whole maize grains or small 6mm or so pellets. I do better with squid & krill than halibut. Luncheon meat and home made pork meat balls are readily taken by carp, chub and smaller barbel, but all the heaviest fish I have caught have been on maize or 6mm SK30 pellets. The heavier you feed the more bream you will catch on the Charente. Not so applicable on the Vienne as bream are less common. If you fish luncheon meat or large meat baits in September through to November you are asking for trouble. The large catfish are most active in the period and will trash your barbel gear.

If you are looking for large barbel then the rivers north of the Loire catchment system and in the east of the country will give you the best chance of avoiding the hoards of 3lb shoal fish. The Seine system, the Aine and Oise and the Rhone system are probably the best bets. I have heard of monster barbel being seen in the rivers of the south-west; Lot, Dordogne, Tarn for example, but despite a lot of research and many questions to fellow French barbel addicts I have not seen the proof or photos or catch reports to substantiate the rumours.

Anyone coming to France and intending to fish away from the 'Parcourse de Peche' zones I would advise bringing a latex landing net and long handle to give you a fighting chance in areas where the banks are high and overgrown.

Hope that helps.
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Great reply mate, I’m relocating to France with my family, I love the french way of life. How did you find the transition?
 
For me there was no problem adapting. But I find that it is often the ladies who struggle after the initial holiday effect wears off. I have seen it with some of my customers where the lady concerned has left behind a busy life, family, colleagues and a purpose in life to find a large vacuum once the initial excitement of French life has worn off. There aren't the same distractions to occupy them and during the three worst months, weather wise, it is often difficult to find somewhere to go or something to do. My wife struggled between months 3 and 9 after arriving until she joined a choir and exercise class and that lead to forming friendships with people she would never have encountered in normal life. That has expanded and gives her an outlet to get away from the house on her own when I am out working or fishing.

It also pays to book a trip back home or somewhere like Spain during the wet winter months of November - January if that is possible. Just to break up the boring spell.
 
Hello Mr Clive, hopefully get over next year , once the cats are fed and watered still adapting to North lincolnshire, my mrs will hopefully be singing in the back garden of one of her choir members over here shortly!IMG_0251.JPG whats a fattwa ?
 
Clive Kenyon said:
For me there was no problem adapting. But I find that it is often the ladies who struggle after the initial holiday effect wears off. I have seen it with some of my customers where the lady concerned has left behind a busy life, family, colleagues and a purpose in life to find a large vacuum once the initial excitement of French life has worn off. There aren't the same distractions to occupy them and during the three worst months, weather wise, it is often difficult to find somewhere to go or something to do. My wife struggled between months 3 and 9 after arriving until she joined a choir and exercise class and that lead to forming friendships with people she would never have encountered in normal life. That has expanded and gives her an outlet to get away from the house on her own when I am out working or fishing.

It also pays to book a trip back home or somewhere like Spain during the wet winter months of November - January if that is possible. Just to break up the boring spell.
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The good thing for my wife I suppose, is. She is keeping her uk job , apart from that, we don’t really see anyone, we live quite remote anyway, no walkable shop etc. I’m moving to a village called bussiere poitvine, not far from le dorat
 
Alex Dalton said:
Hello Mr Clive, hopefully get over next year , once the cats are fed and watered still adapting to North lincolnshire, my mrs will hopefully be singing in the back garden of one of her choir members over here shortly!View attachment 11440 whats a fattwa ?
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Hi Alex, don't worry. I will keep those swims I told you about under observation awaiting the arrival your retro fibreglass rods. I think that you cannot expect to get used to north Lincolnshire until you grow extra digits!
 
Jamie Warren said:
The good thing for my wife I suppose, is. She is keeping her uk job , apart from that, we don’t really see anyone, we live quite remote anyway, no walkable shop etc. I’m moving to a village called bussiere poitvine, not far from le dorat
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I pass through there regularly. Your best option for decent sized barbel is on the Vienne between L'Ile Jourdain downstream to Lussac les Chateaux. Not too far from you. I can point you to a couple of good swims once you are settled.
 
Hi men ,

Clive , I'm planning a couple of days at Jourdain in November , just a day session near the town. Carp is the target but I would not shake a barbel off it it comes along . What access like ?.

Hatter
 
Access to the stretch near to the viaduct is possible, just head for the camp site or club nautique. You can drive right to the water side. I found it very snaggy when I fished it. Also the Jousseau barrage upstream of the town has a road running all alongside it. They are the chief carp venues. In November the river could be running higher than normal and coloured though, so Jousseau may be the best bet. The easiest way to find the road that runs all along it is to go to Availles-Limousin and take the small road that goes past the camp site and parcours de peche. Keep on that track until you go uphill and come to a small bungalow and take the road to the left. You can follow the bank for about 3Km. When you continue to the end turn left at the junction and that will take you to the main dam part and you can find your way back to L'Isle Jourdain. Doing it the other way around might entail missing the little junction.

There are larger carp to be found not too far away from L'Isle Jourdain. However when I have been down there I have come across people feeding large quantities of corn into the swims in preparation for (illegal) night fishing, so the chances of catching in day time if this still is the situation, are slim.

The larger barbel are found elsewhere. And because of the rarity of finding accessible deep water with a good flow, the number of swims that hold the larger specimens are few and far between.
 
Clive Kenyon said:
Bonjour tous le monde. :)

I have lived in France for the last 8 years or so and am acquainted with the area Jamie is moving to as part of the River Gartempe valley falls within my working area and we have visited the other parts. Dependent on which part of the Gartempe you intend to fish you will catch barbel, especially from the Montmorillon through St. Savin and beyond. Size wise, you'll probably find plenty of 3lb fish with the odd 4lb and topping out around 5lb. This is the same for many rivers in this region in my experience. The post from Lee Williams is interesting as I fish the Vienne regularly and have never seen or heard of anyone catching barbel over 5kg. I hope that it is true, but if the figures had been quoted in lbs and not Kgs I would have agreed whole heartedly.

The Gartempe is I believe a tributary of the Creuse which is not a noted large barbel river. Salmon are being re-introduced and I have seen parr in the Gartemp near to St Ouen sur Gartempe.

The River Vienne isn't too far away and there are places you can expect to catch barbel above the usual 3lb stamp. The Vienne in places has carp to mid-forties, but the barbel in my experience top out just over 9lb. In France a 4Kg or roughly 9lb, barbel is regarded as a true specimen and not many anglers have seen fish over 6lb. I saw a newspaper article of someone catching a 3,7Kg fish from a Vienne tributary so rare are these captures.

The Charente is another of my local rivers. Both the Charente and Vienne are roughly the same length of the Severn albeit with larger catchment areas. Whereas the Vienne is a freestone, rocky river akin to the Wye, the Charente is for much of its length a chalk stream. From Angouleme downstream it is navigable and so has locks and weirs plus lots of riverside access via the 'Chemin Halage' or towpath.

I have had scraper 9lb barbel from both rivers fishing deeper channels with particle baits. French rarely fish for barbel so mostly the fish outside the 'carpe de nuit' areas haven't seen baits. Donkey chokers and the latest flavoured boilies are wasted on them. Better with boiled whole maize grains or small 6mm or so pellets. I do better with squid & krill than halibut. Luncheon meat and home made pork meat balls are readily taken by carp, chub and smaller barbel, but all the heaviest fish I have caught have been on maize or 6mm SK30 pellets. The heavier you feed the more bream you will catch on the Charente. Not so applicable on the Vienne as bream are less common. If you fish luncheon meat or large meat baits in September through to November you are asking for trouble. The large catfish are most active in the period and will trash your barbel gear.

If you are looking for large barbel then the rivers north of the Loire catchment system and in the east of the country will give you the best chance of avoiding the hoards of 3lb shoal fish. The Seine system, the Aine and Oise and the Rhone system are probably the best bets. I have heard of monster barbel being seen in the rivers of the south-west; Lot, Dordogne, Tarn for example, but despite a lot of research and many questions to fellow French barbel addicts I have not seen the proof or photos or catch reports to substantiate the rumours.

Anyone coming to France and intending to fish away from the 'Parcourse de Peche' zones I would advise bringing a latex landing net and long handle to give you a fighting chance in areas where the banks are high and overgrown.

Hope that helps.
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Clive it's the River Claine in Poitiers that my cousin says he catches Barbel whilst carping. I believe there are 3 weirs in the one city stretch alone.
 
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