angling
Autumn Fishing By Clive Kenyon
WELL, THAT IS ANOTHER YEAR NEARLY OVER AND BECAUSE OF ‘YOU KNOW WHAT’ MANY OF US WILL BE BEHIND WITH OUR QUOTA OF FISHING
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or many UK anglers November would be associated with species such as grayling and pike. Unfortunately for most of us, grayling aren’t really an option. Pike fishing can be good at this time of year and there are plenty of places where you can fish for pike from small rivers to the massive Lac de Vassiviere. Because lure fishing for predators is so popular in France I seek out the overlooked spots wherever possible and the River Charente from Suris down to Mansle and beyond is as good as anywhere for hunting old Esox. One of the two lakes in the Haute Charente, Lac Lavaud also receives very little angling pressure and providing there is enough water left to fish in after the long, dry spell that is now but a distant memory you could do better there than in the neighbouring Lac Mas Chaban where angling pressure is much greater. As for myself; I’ll be seeking out some seasonal barbel and hoping that the zoo creatures that have plagued me in the last few autumn periods have the courtesy to take the large bait on the heavier rod I have carefully prepared for them.
hundred years before this was implemented in many rivers. In the meantime other factors including industrial pollution and over fishing in rivers and offshore had reduced the numbers to the point where salmon were an endangered species. Well before the law was passed observers in the 17th century had noted that salmon had stopped running up certain rivers that had been canalised and made slower flowing and the lock gates prevented fish from passing through. The most famous area for salmon fishing in France can be found in Navarrenx situated in the ancient kingdom of the Béarn, home of the Three Musketeers, where the monarch Henri II d’Albret compared it to “a flea fought over by two apes”, in reference to the kings of France and Spain, both of whom wished to add independent Béarn to their property portfolio. Displayed on the wall inside the PMU bar in Navarrenx are old black and white newspaper cuttings depicting the good times with anglers displaying multiple catches of fish running to over 30lb. The town still retains its claim to being the premier salmon fishing destination in France and holds an annual competition for salmon anglers.
Salar the Salmon Many of us will be familiar with the magical book written by Henry Williamson that was devoted to the life of the salmon. Efforts are now being made to increase the So it is good news that after many years of numbers of salmon returning by various decline the Atlantic Salmon is now being means. Hatcheries actively championed by provide young fish authorities in France and Fortunately for anglers, the bred from native determined efforts are bears and wolves favour the stocks and progress being put in place to facilitate its return to a higher areas where angling is is being made in the construction of fish healthy population. ladders where the As in the UK, salmon used path of migration is obstructed by weirs or to migrate up French rivers in great barrages. This is replicated in other areas numbers. The cathedral of Oloron Sainteof France including our own region where Marie in the Pyrenees Atlantique (Dept 64) the biggest obstruction to salmon has a tympanum depicting three salmon navigating the River Vienne is the huge fishers as trades dating back to the 15th barrage at Jousseau. The Gartempe century. Fishermen would place nets however is a tributary of the Creuse and is across the rivers to harvest the returning part of the local re-introduction scheme. fish, a practice that continued well into the Initially these schemes got off to a slow 20th century. In 1906 one village records start with just a tiny fraction of the stocked professional fishermen caught over 800 fish returning to breed, but in the last few salmon at an average weight of over 14lbs years the numbers have risen and in some each. In the early 19th century workers in cases have stabilised. French cities including Paris and Bordeaux One of the greatest problems encountered used to have clauses added to their by those championing the salmon’s cause contract of employment forbidding them is in some angler’s failure to grasp the to be served salmon more than three times bigger picture and refrain from killing all a week. By the middle of that century a the salmon that they catch. In a survey decline had been noted and despite a law taken in July this year on the Gave drawn up in 1865 prescribing the building d’Oloron only 14 of 174 salmon caught of fish ladders to aid returning salmon’s were released. Also professional fishermen migration to the spawning redds it was a
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who have licences to fish using nets in estuarine waters are demanding compensation should their catches be restricted. The angling associations involved in the programs are forced to tread a very narrow path given the individual interests of its varied memberships. Another major issue highlighted in a similar scheme operating in Brittany is that Silure or Wels Catfish have been quick to exploit the salmon numbers often stationing themselves near to newly constructed fish ladders enabling them to mop up the conveyor belt of high quality protein rather as bears do in North American rivers. Talking of bears; that is another danger salmon must face in the southern departments where a number of brown bears have been controversially released into the Pyrenean mountains. Many people living in the mountain villages cannot quite comprehend why, in an area where endangered species like marmots, ibex, mouflons and salmon are being offered protection from human interference, the Government thinks it is a good idea to release apex predators such as bears and wolves into the area. Fortunately for anglers, the bears and wolves favour the higher areas where angling is not permitted. Should you fancy fishing for this majestic, if somewhat elusive species in France probably the best place to head for is the beautiful old Béarn region of the Basque country in the Pyrenees-Atlantique. The mountain rivers, called ‘Gaves’ spill from the mountains to the south and cascade down steep, narrow valleys before spreading their width in the lower pastures. There are three or four Gaves that are known for the salmon fishing but it is the Gave d’Oloron which boasts over 1,500 fish a year that return to its tumbling waters that is the most prolific fishery. According to the travel guides more than 160 salmon pools are referenced over the 80km of its course. Like the Scottish beats some have local names such as the priest's hole, the wire hole and the potato field. The season runs from 14th March to 31st July and there are restrictions on methods and catch limits dependent on the season and location. Sea-trout also feature occasionally in the angler’s catches and as you would expect, the rivers are also home to grayling and beautiful brown trout known as ‘Farios’. You won’t need much in the way of tackle; just the Béarn necessities! (Sorry – couldn’t resist that!).
