Joining Steve and Fiona for their second week with us were Dean Meakin’s group of 6 lads from Essex and Marco Taal and Patrick Derks all the way from Holland.
First to catch was Chris Fordham when he had a 27lb mirror early on the Saturday evening, but not to be outdone Steve ‘Splodge’ Lodge had a 28lber 40 minutes later. Chris had a total of 7 fish during the week including a new PB common at 46.04 with the others being commons at 36lb, 27lb and 24.06 and 4 mirrors weighing in at 36.04, 27.08, 26.04 and 24lb. Well done Chris, a great result on your first trip here!
Steve struggled to catch until later in the week when a move paid off handsomely with him catching 4 more fish including 2 mirrors at 36 and 28lb and a pair of commons at 32 and 23lb.
Steve Jefferies and his partner Fiona Byers on their second week with us only managed 3 fish between them but they included a new PB for Steve, a mirror at 49lbs and another at 36lbs and Fiona also had a forty weighing in at 40.15. Well done to both of you and I must thank Fiona for her help during the week when Wendy had to return back to the UK, and we are looking forward to your return visit to us in 2015.
Now we move on to the 2 Dutch lads Marco and Patrick – Marco was the star at fishing having 6 fish including a big common weighing 58lb! A new PB, and I am sorry to say I never saw the fish but the lads that did were blown away by its condition so we are very pleased. He also had another common at 32lb, and his 4 mirrors weighed 48lb, 45lb, 32lb and 29lb. Patrick only managed 1 fish but this was also a new PB when he tempted an immaculate mirror weighing 40lb. I have met a few characters in our first year here but these 2 lads were fantastic company throughout the week and we look forward to your return next year, when I will have some Heineken for you and “bacon and eggs”!!!
Dean Meakin (Essex) had 2 fish, a new PB common weighing 48lb and a 21lb common and Gary White (Essex) had 3 fish, mirrors at 45 and 24lb and a common at 41lb. Robin Stichbury (Essex) struggled for a bite but persevered and managed to have 2 forties, both mirrors at 44lb and 40.04.
Total fish for the week was 35 with an average weight just over 33lbs.
Following the successful charity week we were joined by Moulinots regulars Joe and Mick Coen (Essex) and new clients Steve Jefferies and his partner Fiona Byers all the way from Dumfries in Scotland, who were joining us for a 2 week holiday. We also had Kent lads Ollie Chapman and Gavin Connellan on their first trip, and also new were Gary Radcliffe (Wales) and Gary Marchant (Suffolk).
First to get into the fish was Gary Radcliffe who smashed his PB early on Saturday afternoon when he had a 49lb mirror, although sadly he has no record of his capture as he couldn’t find his camera and tried to record via his camcorder but this didn’t record! We see this all the time and tell anglers to get themselves completely sorted before even casting into the lake so that every thing is to hand..let this be a lesson!! Gary didn’t manage to catch another fish until later in the week when he had another mirror weighing 24lb.
Gary Marchant faired a lot better catching 9 fish at the following weights, 2 x commons 40.02 and 32.04 and 7 mirrors at 32.12, 32.04,30.08, 30.04, 29.00, 25.08 and 25.06 – a good result for a first visit.
Olly Chapman on his first visit to us managed a commendable 5 fish haul including 4 mirrors at 48.14, 34.06, 29.08, 29.04 and a common weighing in at 28.00.
Olly’s mate Gavin only managed to have 2 fish topped by a lovely 38lb common, the other was a 24.08 mirror.
Our next Moulinots newbies
were Steve Jefferies and his partner Fiona all the way from Dumfries in Scotland who were going to spend 2 weeks with us. This was a little worrying for Wendy and myself as we had been recommended to them by a local tackle shop to us back in the UK, and we worried that 2 weeks in one place would be too much for them, and would they get bored of the place? But these concerns were quickly overcome when they saw the lake and surroundings, and then they started to see the quality of the fish – the first to do so was Steve when he had a 30.08 common quickly followed by a 33lb mirror, and he also had another mirror at 25.04. Fiona started with a 23.08 mirror she then topped off her first week with us with a 46.15 mirror – not PB for Fiona but a very welcome capture!
Highlight of the week was when one of the longest returning customers to us Joe Coen broke his PB when he landed the Dip Back common at its best post spawning weight at an incredible 57.03 lb! Joes other fish were mirrors weighing 33.05 and 22lb.
Mick, Joes brother managed to have 5 fish – all mirrors weighing 40.08, 35.08, 29lb and 2 at 27.08, a good haul after a slow start for Mick. In total 32 fish were caught with a average weight of over 32lb so very pleasing.
We first talked about organising a charity week late last year and decided that all profits made would be donated to the Meningitis Trust in memory Tom Allen, a young lad that we knew who tragically lost his life to this disease at the age of only 24.
We decided that we would allow 6 teams of 2 anglers to fish, this was advertised on our Facebook page and website and we were pleasantly surprised by the responses we got and places sold out within days. We wanted the week to be a very relaxed format but with all lake rules to be abided to for obvious reasons.
The 6 teams were as follows – Team Towie– Rob Johnson and Brad (Hank) Gray, Team Optimum -Simon Bullen and Charlie Bastock, Team Blank -Paul White and Gareth Cook, Team Muddy Waters – Mark Walters and Matthew Walters, Team Delkim – Mark Lewis and John Bellini and Team Hound – Paul Sheppard and Liam Sheppard.
The draw was done for the swims so that all team members were either fishing in the same swim if it was a double or so that each team member was in an adjacent swim to his partner for the start of the week.
First off the mark was Mark from Team Delkim who had a 33lb mirror and a lovely 54 lb common in the early hours of Sunday morning. Mark ended up with another 10 fish in the week including another big common weighing 50.08, he also had 2 forties, 5 thirties and 2 twenties, while his partner for the week John only managed 2 fish in their twenties. Well done Mark.
Next off the mark on Sunday morning was the youngest angler fishing this week 13 year old Charlie Bastock who was fishing alongside his uncle Simon in the Dead Tree swim. Charlie got off the mark with a mirror weighing 39.08, and he managed to tempt 3 more fish in the week including a 24 common and a 25.02 mirror, but the highlight of the week was his amazing 53.08 common! The way Charlie played and handled the fish on the bank was a delight to see but sorry about the soaking Charlie, but that is what you get for smashing your PB! Photos of Charlie’s capture can be seen on our facebook page and gallery page on our website, and he also managed to get himself a prize from one of the leading carp magazines after sending them his photo and report of his capture.
His Uncle Simon managed 3 fish, a 35.10 common and 2 mirrors at 30.08 and 27.06. Not one of Si’s best weeks with us but I know he got more pleasure helping and watching Charlie catch.
Paul White from Team Blank did the total opposite to blanking managing 9 fish including the biggest fish caught in the week, a 55.02 mirror and he also had 5 more mirrors at 40lb, 36 lb and 3 weighing 25lb. Pauls partner Gareth also managed a new PB when he caught a 42.02 mirror and he also had 2 more mirrors at 34lb and 31lb and one common weighing 28lb. Well done lads.
Mark and Matthew from Team Muddy Waters managed 7 fish between them including 4 For Mark, mirrors at 46 and 31lb, a linear at 29lb and a common weighing 33.02. His son Matthew had a new PB mirror at 35lb and a new PB common at 32.08 and he also managed a 27.10 Mirror.
Paul and Liam from Team Hound had 2 fish apiece inc a new PB for Liam, a 37.09 mirror and he also had a 26.09 common. His dad Paul also had a new PB when he caught a lovely 42.12 mirror. Paul also had another mirror at 35.06.
Now for Team Towie, who I must say didn’t catch their normal amount of fish but were the most entertaining team of the week, especially Hank who won the swimming gala and kept every body ‘entertained’ when he transformed his swim into a version of the Sugarhut!! When they did fish, Hank and Rob managed to have 7 fish between them, 4 for Rob, mirrors at 33, 27 and 24lb and a common at 27lb and Hank had 3 fish in between his partying! These were a 36lb mirror and commons at 28 and 24lb.
All in all, the week went very well we managed to raise just under £2500 for the charity. Next years event is already being planned and we are hoping to be able to offer prizes for the teams for all their efforts. We would also like to thank everybody that participated and helped in any way with this years event. Terry and Wendy.
With the temperatures still in the mid thirties we welcomed a mixed group who had met at Moulinots over the years and decided to take the lake exclusively.
First we had father and son Kelvin and Jamie Britton from Reading. On his last trip here Kelvin managed to catch no less than 5 fifties! This time with the way the weather was he didn’t expect to do so well however he still managed a very respectable 7 fish including mirrors at 45.11, 32.04, 26.12, 26,24 and 22lb and also a common at 21lb.
Jamie also did very well when he beat his PB common with a stunner at 41lb and he also had 3 more fish which were all mirrors weighing in at 36lb, 27lb and 25.14. A great result considering that only 14 fish were caught all week.
Adrian Moulder’s group of 5 anglers only managed 2 fish between them and these went to Adrian himself who had a perfect looking 33.08 common on Friday morning (pictures and video on our Facebook page) and Moulinots newboy Paddy McKinstry, who had the only other fish in the group, a new PB for him at 25.08.
I myself managed to have a 47lb mirror, special thanks to John for getting up in the early hours to do the photos when everyone else seemed to go deaf!!! (only joking lads) as I apparently suffered the same deafness on Friday morning, sorry Ash..
Steve Price and his son Stu from Yorkshire didn’t manage a fish this time after having well over 20 between them last year but a major factor in this was the abnormally high air & water temperatures.
Although the weather made the fishing very hard I must say the barbecue that we had on the Wednesday (due to Steve having to go home on the Friday for his birthday) was thoroughly enjoyed by all, and I would put this mainly down to the home made fruit vodka which kindly supplied by Steve and his missus, already looking forward to trying some more flavours next year Mrs P!!
Total fish for week 14
3x 40’s
3x 30’s
The next group of anglers to join us were Wayne (Frank) Richardson’s group from Lincolnshire (with one from Essex).
These lads have fished a lot in France and Spain and they were not under any illusions in respect of their chances for the week ahead due to the still very high temperatures we have been having.
The first to catch on the Sunday was Mark ‘Masher’ Marsland who had a pretty 25.14 mirror. Later that evening we had a very strong storm that took out 4 trees including one of the big poplars near the 2nd point that ended up in the stock pond and blocked the track around the lake. Dave ‘Donk’ Fletcher had a very luck escape when a bow of a tree landed on the top of his brand new bivvy bending one of the poles thankfully everyone came through the storm unscathed. Wendy was frantically texting Frank from the house to check everyone was OK as we had visions of bivvy’s ending up in the lake!
Anyway back to the fishing, Frank managed 2 fish which were 32.12 and 31.04, Michael (Dors) Doran had 1 fish weighing 24.04, and Jules Gordon managed to beat his PB when he landed the Cut Tail common weighing 54.04. I think they heard the whoops and screams of delight in St Menehould! Jules also had a mirror at 32lb. Masher moved to a swim opposite his original and tempted more carp which included a new PB mirror at 45.04 and 2 more weighing 26.04 and 37.01 Well done Masher – good move mate!
This week will also be remembered for the ‘bike wars’ between Masher, Jules & Frank, who throughout the week were stealing and
hiding the bikes at all hours of the day and night..we will try and get a bike for all of you guys next time!!!
All in all a hard week again due to the weather but a good week socially, and well done all for keeping your spirits up.
This week we were joined by Moulinots regular Brad (Hank) Gray, his dad and his mates all from Essex.
We also welcomed Herman from my local tackle shop Fish Online in Kent, it was Herman’s first visit to us since we took over at Moulinots.
And last but not least was Lee Norton and Christian Reynolds from Shropshire, who were coming to us for a week first before moving on to another fishery for a second week – lucky Lee & Christian!
It was yet another hard week with the temperatures up in the mid thirties most of the week and the fish seemingly sulking somewhere shady and cool.
Brads dad Dave had the first fish of the week which was a lovely 29.14 mirror, and Brad only had 1 fish, not his normal result but still welcome!
Herman had 4 fish in the first 48 hours but didn’t manage anything else all week accept about 8 grass carp. Christian and Lee on the first week of a 2 week fishing holiday left it late to catch, with Christian having a 36lb mirror and Lee having a 43.02 mirror both at the eleventh hour on the last morning! Hope you lads had a good week at the next venue you visited.
Even though the fishing was slow, socially the week was great with the exception of having to see Mark riding one of the mountain bikes round whilst wearing his mankini! A very haunting experience for all that saw it!!!!
These lads have also rebooked for next year so looking forward to the social already.
Two of the next groups to arrive had very long journies to get to us. Firstly we welcomed Darren Noddings’s group from Middlesbrough and then Scott Roper and Matt Torrence from Manchester, who were accompanied by their other halves, Rachel and Emma. We also we had Jay Mitchell and Jay Ward from Notts and Essex.
The weather was very hot again all week so not great for the lads fishing but the girls on their first french trip didn’t seem to mind as they managed to get a lot of time to work on their tans.
Top rod for the week went to Darren who worked his swim tirelessly, he managed to catch 8 fish with the largest being a 41lb mirror and he also had 3 thirties, a good result when you consider the amount of fish out and the weather. Next I must mention Paul Richardson who though in a wheelchair would put more able bodied anglers to shame! He managed 4 fish with the biggest being a 42.08 mirror. Paul Harlow had 5 fish which included 2 forties at 43.11 and 42.10, and Mikey only had 2 fish in the twenties a shame as he worked hard on his fishing all week as well.
Highlight of the week went to Scott, when he beat his previous PB with a 37.13 mirror only to smash that the next day when he landed a lovely 49lb common, well done mate! There was much excitement from the girls, who by this point were really getting into the fishing! Matt only managed to have 1 fish, a mid twenty mirror but I’m sure you will fair better when you return later this year lads as hopefully the weather will be kinder for you.
Sadly Jay and Jay didn’t manage to catch but are also returning to us next year so Moulinots is still weaving its magic!!
This was always going to be a hard week as we only had 3 anglers on the lake..these were all mates from Kent and Sussex.
The weather continued to be very hot and the fish were not really up for a feed.
Jerry Morgan had 3 fish with the biggest being a 28.08, Trevor Bailey had the biggest fish of the week a 40.02 common and Chris Clear who only turned up on the Tuesday managed a fish on his first night, a 27.14 mirror. I again was allowed by the boss to fish a couple of nights (to try and move the fish around of course!), and I managed 5 fish and although nothing big they were very welcome. The sizes were as follows 32.01, 27.02, 24.10, 22.10 and 22.09.
A very hard and slow week but all the guys fell in love with the venue and have rebooked for later next year, so looking forward to seeing you then.
With the weather now turning very hot we were joined by Tony Parsons and his group from Swindon, and Marc Coombes and his dad Pip and Colin Barker from Kent.
Pip wasted no time in catching when he landed a lovely 36.14 mirror on the Saturday afternoon sadly he only managed 1 more fish in the early hours of the last day this being a new PB common at 26.12.
Colin managed to tempt only 1 carp at 23.12 and Marc had to wait till the early hours of the last day to catch when he had a PB mirror weighing 36 lb. The biggest fish of the week went to Tony Parsons, a lovely 55lb mirror. Shane Farmer had 2 fish both mirrors weighing 30.10 and 30 lb.
Top rod of the week went to Neil Brewer who fished the shallower end of the lake which turned out to be a good move as he had a 50 lb PB common and a PB mirror at 47.05. Neil also managed to land a 34.10 and 30.05 mirror and another common at 27.01. A special thanks to Neil as he allowed Marc to fish the shallows which resulted in Marc’s fish, a very unselfish move Neil, this proved to be the start of some very difficult and slow weeks ahead as the weather never relented good for your suntans but no good for the fishing!
This week turned out to be one of those special weeks that you encounter when running a fishery in France. We welcomed Lee Wilmshurst (Bedfordshire) the record holder here at Moulinots for the most fish in a week (31) and his 2 mates, Lee Simmons (Herts) and Chris Cook (Herts) Also joining us was Joe Charmers’s group from Leicester and Coventry, Glyn Wardle and probably the most excited person I have seen turn up here so far – Ray Bates!!
Ray was first to catch when he had a new PB at 24lb..To say he was pleased is an understatement, and its lovely to see someone come over to France and not expect to ‘smash’a venue as a lot of anglers do. Ray ended up with a credible total of 7 fish for the week including a new PB at 47.04 and other fish weighing 37lb, 34lb (PB common), 30.12, 29.08, 29lb. Ray managed to beat his previous PB 4 times during the week – a massive well done to you Ray.
Glyn also managed to tempt 7 fish including commons at 41.08, 36.12 and 26lb and he also had 4 mirrors weighing in at 31 lb ,29lb and 2 at 26lb.
Group organiser Joe tried 3 different swims throughout the week and ended up in the lodge swim where he caught 4 fish weighing 35lb 2x 31lb, and a 27lber.
Then we come to the star of the week Lee Simmons who had a session of a lifetime! Lee managed to catch 2 new PB’S, a stunning 57.12 mirror and a common weighing in at 55.14, but what he backed these fish up with was also unbelievable, he had 3 more commons weighing 49.04, 47.10 and 23.10 and 3 more mirrors at, 43lb, 30lb and 25.14 giving him an average weight for the week of over 41lb! Great fishing and really well deserved Lee.
Lee Wilmshurst didn’t have the result that he managed the previous year but still caught 4 fish, all only in the twenties and all mirrors weighing, 28.04, 27.12, 26.10 and 25.14. Lee is back with us later in the year and I’m sure he will fair a lot better.
Chris started the week well when on the Sunday he had a PB mirror at 32.08 and a smaller one weighing 23lb, but sadly though he didn’t manage any other fish but was a great photographer for Lee.
I managed to fish 3 nights as Wendy (the Boss) was back in the UK for a few days..;-) I fished down the shallower end and managed 7 fish at 40.08, 37.12, 37.02, 35.10, 33.11, 33.10 and 30.09 so a very pleasing little session for me as I managed to relieve Mr Wilmshurst of £5 for a little wager on the Friday night!
Total fish for the week 40
Average weight 33.07
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