The Forgotten Immensity

We last spoke back in August 2018; how has your carp fishing evolved since? Back then, you were spending a lot of time fishing on the large rivers and barrages in France.
“Hello again, and thank you for this, my second interview; I really appreciate it.

“It will be a quick answer for the first question, because my passion is the same and my enthusiasm for this kind of fishing remains unchanged. I am still in the game, and I spend a lot of time in my boat, searching for the unknown on the big French lakes and rivers. I still focus on the wild, unspoilt venues, seeking illusive, and perhaps forgotten-about carp.”

In what parts of France do you spend most of your time?
“I spend most of it in Southern France, where the sun shines and the vibes are good! It’s also where the big blue lakes are. I travel a lot with my fishing; driving two hours for only one night’s angling isn’t a problem, so the area offers many opportunities. Having said that, it’s sometimes an issue trying to balance my searching with staying focused on a water. My main objective is to fish, and to continue fishing as I try to understand a venue. Once I’ve caught a few fish and things have become a little easier, it’s time to move on and explore somewhere new. I also love the barrages in the Massif Central for the raw landscape they offer. In my opinion, though, nothing can beat the Rhône-Alpes and Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur regions!” 

Have you had many hairy moments when fishing some of these large rivers, barrages and lakes you angle on?
“Oh man! Yes, regularly. Over the years, though, I’ve become quite used to being in my boat in the middle of a storm, out in a large Alpine lake; sleeping with my waders on in the sleeping bag; or heading off fishing for four days with only a couple of apples to eat, just to keep the weight down! If you ask my closest friends, they will have plenty of anecdotes as examples of my stupidity, like the many nights I’ve slept naked during the spring, just because I have to be ready to jump quickly into my little boat. I’ll often have to head out to where there’s submerged vegetation, where the carp will run to. I know that with each run, I might have to jump into the lake and swim with my rod between my teeth, my net in hand, before I finally capture one of my target fish. I started doing this in just my underpants, but it’s easier without them—you have to go to the trouble of drying them after too! [laughing] I don’t look for comfort when I go fishing… I have all the rest of my life for that!” 

What is your general approach on your chosen venues? Are there chances for an opportunist angler, or do you have to play more of a long game, adopting a bait-and-wait approach?
“Bait-and-wait fishing is exactly the kind of approach I hate! I move a lot, sometimes four or five times a day, which is why I travel light! It all depends on the venue, but I love stalking during the day and a standard carp-fishing approach at night.

“Another thing I’m really really crazy about is sight-fishing, when I can spend the whole day just searching for fish. My rule is always the same: location first. Then, once I’ve found a group of carp, I will observe them and try to figure out a way of catching them. My strategy is always to try and catch as many as possible without disturbing the rest of the group. 

“When I arrive at a big lake, I will always search for fish. If I don’t find them, I will search for areas where they might feed. Then I’ll try pre-baiting different areas, trying to stay one step ahead of them each day. This approach requires a lot of motivation and energy, but it’s a pure quest, and in my mind it then switches from being merely carp fishing, to an adventure.”

Didn’t you hook up a while back with two previous CARPology regulars, Alex Norgate, and Alex Kobler? We interviewed Alex K only a few months ago. Do you enjoy fishing with others, or do you normally prefer your own company?
“Yes, they are both good friends, and I enjoy Alex Kobler’s company quite frequently. We have the same idea and we regularly fish in similar areas. Whilst we’re on the subject, we’ve just released a video featuring the largest and wildest Alpine lake in France, one where no one has previously undertaken such a project. The content is original, and in it I explain why I’m so obsessed with this kind of water—‘L’immensité oubliée’ (‘The Forgotten Immensity’) on the Hammer Tackle’s YouTube channel.

“In answer to the second question, I fish alone 90 per cent of the time, as I’m obsessive about my discreet approach and fishing my own strategy. This might appear a little selfish, but it brings results. Even chatting quietly with a friend on the bank produces noise, and animals, including fish, of course, will pick up on that. I enjoy success much more frequently when I fish alone. I also love to find carp in the submerged forests. These are hard to penetrate with my 190 boat. Once I’ve located fish, I’ll stalk them quietly and carefully. 

“I have to say, though, after my time on a big lake, when I might’ve spent many nights alone, it’s always good to share a couple of days with a friend, preparing good food, sharing experiences, and chewing the fat, so to speak. I’m quite a sociable person, really, but it’s a bit different with my fishing. I have my group of angling friends and I really rarely fish with other people. Big up, then, Remy D, Alex K, Guido, Franck G, Micka and Mounir!” 

Could you give our readers examples of the kit you take with you, or what you might need when fishing these venues? How heavy-duty does it need to be?
“With pleasure. It can appear strange, because the places I fish are huge and the environments are raw, yet my gear is quite light. As mentioned, being mobile and discreet, and having the ability to react quickly are really important factors in my fishing. I need, then, to pack and unpack quickly, without creating too much disturbance… and when you fish on a rocky slope, where the bedchair balances precariously with two big rocks under each foot, you cannot carry many bags. 

“I’ll vary things a little through the year and as the seasons change, but here’s a general list: 

λ  Three twelve-foot, made-to-measure Poeli’s rods with Daiwa Basia reels. The reels are loaded with braid and finished with 12 to 15 metres of strong fluorocarbon, just before the rig.

λ  A padded unhooking mat, in which I store alarms, a retention sling, a net, a few boilie bags and a camera tripod.

λ  Two large Hammer Tackle waterproof bags. One is for food and clothes—you can imagine I travel as light as I can, hence the earlier mention of underpants and apples! The other is for tackle and kit such as leads, head torches and the like.

λ  Bedchair with a sleeping bag or cover inside.

λ  A large bucket of high-quality tiger nuts. This is probably the most important thing—I’m never without my tigers!

λ  Peak Design rucksack with my camera, lenses and drone.

λ  Aqua Pioneer bivvy.

λ  Echo sounder—essential!

“Then I have three boats: a 320, a 190 inflatable, and a vintage 260 banana boat. I select my boat, or boats, according to the lake or river I’m fishing on. I also have two motors, a Mercury 9.9 cv and an electric one.”

Do you believe there are many massive, uncaught carp still out there in France, or has every bit of blue now been tapped into? 
“There aren’t many unfished waters remaining, because with each passing year, more are explored. For those determined enough to look for them, though, there are a few monsters still swimming quietly in forgotten paradises. Google Maps and your car are your best friends when it comes to finding them!”

You’re brilliant in your own right, but who are your favourite angling photographers? Who inspires you with a camera?
“Thank you. In carp fishing, there aren’t many who inspire me as much as my good friend, Alex Kobler. Most of my inspiration comes from fly fishing photography, and there are talented photographers with accounts on Instagram, like gramme_o and hookeqc.” 

What do you look for in a shot, or piece of carp-fishing film? 
“The atmosphere. It’s all about that, and the beauty of the place, of course—nothing less, nothing more. It’s about wild and natural things without any staging. For me, quality and sharpness are not the main priorities. Sometimes I see pictures that might be of poor quality, but they make me want to be there because the composition is perfect… it’s the light and the framing.”

What are the most important aspects of carp angling for you?
“Trying to reduce the aspect of luck. This includes understanding a place, and understanding the behaviour of the carp that live there: their movements, their social structure and their eating habits. It takes time and it’s hard work, but it’s all about the adventure. It’s about when results start to come regularly, when you can anticipate things, and when you know that something in your approach has proved successful. You can understand, then, that modern carp fishing, shall we say, is not for me.”

Where are you happiest?
“Wherever I can sight-fish in crystal-clear water, where I can row three kilometres without seeing another carp angler, or ideally, where I have no idea of the stock.” 

What ambitions do you still have?
“To go fly fishing all over the world! Fishing alone in Alaska for trout and salmon amongst grizzly bears is one of my favourite fishing memories, so I need to do it again, and I need to explore new countries with my backpack and my fly rod!

“Another ambition is to continue to be happy, and to remain passionate about my work, which I approach a bit like fishing, by building a strategy, applying it and always striving to improve.” 

Finally, do you have a favourite angling memory?
“My best fishing memories are of fly fishing, but your readers don’t want to hear about trout or salmon! [laughing]

“As far as carp fishing’s concerned, it was this spring! The lake is one of the most beautiful in France, and in my mind, it tops the lot. I’d thought about giving it a go for a while. I fished there seven or eight years ago, for a week, and I caught just one carp, a small common. When I left the lake, I had a strange feeling, one I’d never had anywhere else. I understood nothing about the water, and I knew that if I were to return, I’d have no idea about how to approach it. I would be totally lost, and so I continued to explore other big, wild French lakes, trying to improve my skills. The memory of that water never left me, though, and a few years ago, I felt good. I wanted to try some new ideas there, but lack of
time and my focus on another water saw me unable to get there. Finally, this spring, my opportunity came. The lake was full a bit earlier than usual… the planets had aligned! 

“In the middle of thousands of hectares, I spent a good deal of time focusing on location. I chose to spend short sessions there, of between one and three nights. This was to let the spots quieten down, and so as not to stress the groups of fish that I’d found waiting there before they moved on to spawn.

“Stalking, and then standard carp fishing during the night was how I approached the water. Observation by day was key. Almost immediately, I caught good carp, and as the nights passed, I managed to understand a few things. My approach was proving reasonably successful. At the end of the spring, after catching some large, nice-looking wild carp on one of the spots, I decided to go stalking a few kilometres away, on another spot where I’d seen some good fish. With just my 190 boat and only the necessary kit, I headed off.

“Thousands of chub were waiting for me, but before too long, I managed to find a couple of carp. Two were on a clear spot in front of the forest—one was a white koi of six or seven kilos, the other an absolutely huge common around thirty. Without hesitation, I quickly and discreetly dropped a rig, before moving back in my small boat and securing it to a submerged tree. I watched, hands on the rod and eyes focused on the slack line. A couple of minutes later, with the tension becoming almost unbearable, I was in. I brought the huge common to the surface, the rod fully locked up as it tried unsuccessfully to get into the submerged forest.

“Eventually, a wild monster finally graced my net. I knew straight away that it was big. More importantly, though, everything was right: the place, the approach, the moment… and 31 kilos of happiness!”