Hello Everyone!
After my last trip to Liez I wanted to return for one more week before the night fishing closes on November the 9th, so I decided to fish the French Moselle for a few nights before I hit Liez again, as it is in on my route.
I arrived on Monday the 20th, to find someone already set up in the swim I hoped for….would this be a good omen? I set up further upstream by the. The following day I had to go and buy a ‘Bow’ saw so I could clear the front of the swim, as a dead tree had recently fallen down, blocking access for a boat and the rods. An hour later and I was ready to fish!
I had two fish on my first nights fishing. 10kg & a 15.5kg Common. A nice start, considering the average size is between 8-12kg.
The following night I had three more commons..all during the early hours of the morning and all around 10kg. I noticed these fish were all excreting the liver boilies I had introduced. I was feeding 2-3 kilos a day spread over a wide area, with a catapult or throwing stick.
The next night I had three more fish and my first mirror of the trip. A nice 12kg linear and two commons of 10 and 11kg.
All the fish, apart from one, had come on the left hand side fishing slightly upstream! So surprisingly, the next evening, I had two fish on the right hand rod. I must add here that I forgot two bite alarms, they were back in Traben-Trarbach!!, so I had contrapted a bite alarm system using a coin on the spool, which would fall into an old oil drum I found. I am a light sleeper, and I heard the clonk as the coins hit the drum, then the spool spinning…The first fish was a ‘cute’ common of 13kg with a slightly deformed tail, and the next fish was a 7kg ghost koi, wow!
The next night produced nothing, it was colder and I suspected the night might be blank. The next evening was perfect conditions and five more fish came to my rods all on the left hand rod. Three average commons and two lovely mirrors. A 17.5kg and an 18.7kg. Fantastic!
The next night I had four more. All commons. 12, 15, 15.1 and 18.3kg. I was finding some bigger fish…and the liver boilies kept going in, and coming out of every fish I caught.
The next night was cold…no fish were caught, but the following evening was perfect, overcast, milder and light rain. A 16.6kg common came first, followed by a 13kg common. Then a 10kg mirror appeared. Was this to be my last fish? No!! My final fish of the trip was my biggest and first 20kg river carp!!!!!!!! A stunning orange 20.1 kg carp topped a 23 fish haul. I had 23 runs, and miraculously landed all the fish, the fox hooks proving their reliability. The line or lead occasionally got snagged but the boat soon sorted that out.
What a trip, and what fish…I now have new passion…river carping!
Feeding time...but for whom!!
Sunset River Style.
A long missile common!
_1)
My second carp.15.5kg. Awesome fish, awesome fight!
16.6kg on the last night. Best scrap out of 23 carp!
My first big mirror 17.5kg..
Another river forty under my belt!
I love this fish. 18.7kg and a river lump.
Ghost ship
My breakfast one morning!
Look at the mouth!!
My last fish and 20.1kg!!!
A great looking common
I forgot my alarms, and had to improvise!
Tying up stringers for the night...
Two 20mm baits to fend off nuisance species.
_1)
A river ghost Koi
The deformed tail common.
Tight lines
Jake Langley-Hobbs
Tags: boilies, bow saw, carp, common, imperial fishing, Liez, moselle, river
January 10, 2009 at 2:41 pm |
hi jake, i have been following your blog with great interest. myself along with my young family spent 4 weeks in the summer in our motorhome touring along the ardennes, river muese vally and followed it down past lac madine to a town called st mihial with great success. the fishing in the river meuse is very good and im starting to find out more about the river. i have had a chat with mike willmot, he was also my inspiration for travelling to that part of france, and he has been fishing it up near the belgium border. there are some nice photos on his website.
this summer we will be fishing a lot more of the night fishing zones along the river for a few weeks then we are going down near to toul to spend a couple of weeks on the mosselle at a campsite at villey le sec, right on the river.. we have found out some info on the night zones in this area, and it looks very promising. my main problem is i have to park the camper next to my swimm so i can look after the family but we have found some fantastic spots. every couple of days we pull into a family campsite for a bit of fun by the pool and sort out the gear but most of these sites are on the river or a lake.
anyway, look after yourself and the dogs look well. we will be down in the summer and let us know if you need anything bought out. if i am near i will drop it off for you. all the best, glen edwards.
August 20, 2010 at 12:26 pm |
Message for Glen Edwards
Glen would be great to discuss the Meuse. If you are willing drop a reply on this thread and we can swap contact details
January 30, 2009 at 11:47 am |
Jake,
fantastic pics. After spending some considerable time on the Saone and Lot I wanted to try the Moselle this year. I was hoping you woudl be willing to swap / share some information on the Moselle.
Kind regards
Tim
January 30, 2009 at 12:05 pm |
I think a swap sounds good!! I will email you personally.
Jake
May 11, 2009 at 10:10 am |
Hi Jake,
I am going to the Moselle on Friday for a week, I have fished the river before downstream of Liverdum with some success, I was wondering where about you fished?
Regards, Richard
May 11, 2009 at 7:00 pm |
I fished around the Metz area Rich…plenty to look at round there and lots of fish too
Good Luck!
June 11, 2009 at 2:59 pm |
Hi Jake,
This is the same mirror you caught that week!
http://www.nashtackle.co.uk/gallery.php?consultantid=285
Kind regards,
Stef
(Netherlands)
June 11, 2009 at 3:13 pm |
Incredible!! I have to say it was one of my most enjoyable weeks fishing, it certainly beat’s Salagou at the moment!!!
Thanks for that Stef, very much appreciated.
July 27, 2009 at 4:45 pm |
Hello Jake
I am fishing the River Moselle now for like 4 years now and im realy impressed of the Fish you caught i could read you are fishing around Metz i am doing too. My Personal Best was a 52lb Mirror maybe you could get in touch with me to share some Informations.
I think the part you fish has a lot of good Commons the maximum at our Part was a 34lb Common we only have Big Mirrors.So it would be cool we could talk via email.
Would be Nice
Tight Lines Sascha
August 4, 2009 at 9:27 am |
Hi Sascha.
I only fished the only once, but I would love to return, and one day I will for sure. I think I obviously hit it at the right time to be honest. 23 runs and 23 fish in a week is not a bad result, especially considering several were 15kg+ plus but I was there a week before it may have been a different story. Every dog has his day!
Sorry for the late reply, I have been very busy of late. Would be great to talk Moselle at some point mate so keep in touch.
Jake
October 1, 2009 at 10:48 am |
Would be Nice let me know when youre Back there !!!
October 1, 2009 at 12:42 pm |
I may be back for a week at the beginning of November…it is a big possibility.
Jake
October 5, 2009 at 6:43 pm |
Just came back from Moselle around Arry
3 Days and 8 Fisch up to 36 German Pounds
Maybe you could write me an e mail when youre exactly there.
October 5, 2009 at 10:58 pm |
No worries. I will send you a personal email Sascha.
Till then cheers mate.
October 19, 2009 at 10:31 pm |
Hi Jake
I am looking at fishing the Moselle / Rhine and stumbeled onto your catch report. Any pointers regarding swim choice for mid November would be greatly appreciated. I understand the nightzones will be closed by then on the Mossele FR and was considering wondering into Germany where I beieve you can fish legal nights all year round as long as you do not have a groundsheet!
Good luck
Chris
October 22, 2009 at 7:10 am |
Apparently the Moselle on the French German border is definately worth a look. Unfortunately I have only fished inside Germany and inside France and not inbetween. I think it is a case of buying the maps and driving close to the river to see which stretches are fishable and which are not. Some zones are now no longer available to night fish and these do seem to change from time to time. The licenses also need looking into as the Moselle covers a very big area and the liceneses are regional. One license will not cover you for the whole Moselle. It is true you can night fish without a groundsheet and this seems to be okay, however my groundshgeet was never noticed. I would advise using a pram style bivvy that can be quickly folded down and put back up when needed.
Cheers Jake
November 11, 2009 at 3:12 pm |
Hi Jake, I`m very interested in your catches from the Moselle. We`re in the ealy stages of purchasing a large lake in the area you indicated, between Pagny sur Moselle and Arry that includes approx a kilometre of the river. Hopefuly I`ll find some time to fish the river myself and any information you would be willing to share would be very much appreciated, ie local tackle shops bait supplies etc etc. We`re hoping to be resident there by early 2010 so our paths will probably cross. Having spent time in the area you`ll probably know the lake I`m refering to once we`re settled feel free to pop in and see us. Regard Mick and Kay Wallage
November 11, 2009 at 4:26 pm |
Wow…that sounds amazing and when you are set up I would love to come and visit. Here is my email address thebigcarphunter@hotmail.co.uk
Keep in touch by all means
Jake and the dogs
January 23, 2010 at 2:02 pm |
Hay jake, first of all i am a very fanatic reader of you posts!!
Every day i ckeck de updates on your site.
Congratulations with the perfect sesions on Cassien and the other waters.
Question for you can you please help me out with the spot you were fishing in at the Moselle??
Been there 5 times on different spots and didnt catch any bigger then 16 pounds………..
Hope you will help me!!!
Greetz wally from Holland
January 23, 2010 at 10:50 pm |
The Moselle is a beautiful river but I think I had a very special session to be honest! I returned this year and it was very different. Two Czech guys were fishing in my spot and although they caught a few carp they caught only small ones which disappointed them. I think rivers can be very unpredictable and if you are lucky and time it right you may have big fish in front of you or average sized fish. The location of my spot is not important as I think it has been fished alot in the last year or so. You would be advisable trying a new spot and I am sure you will do better if you do! I wish I had tried another spot if I am honest as I left rather disappointed after a poor result! I know a few people who fish the Moselle and there are many spots to try, the port, the points, the warm water inlet…etc..
Good luck and thanks for reading my blog.
Jake and the dogs
February 4, 2010 at 3:12 pm |
hi jake
some fantastic results there!!
i am driving over to fish the river Meuse in May, probably going to target the area around Revin / Fumay as i believe they have some nice legal night sections.
i have never fished the rivers for carp and was wondering if you have any experience of fishing that area of the river and if you have any tips you could pass on.
many thanks and keep hauling!!
pete
February 13, 2010 at 6:20 am |
I would love to say that I have fished on the Meuse but I haven’t. The Moselle was amazing the first time but not so the second time. Rivers can be very hit and miss and it is down to timing and luck to be honest. I want to fish the whole French river system in the future with a passion, but it will take so much dedication and persistance and I need to focus on what lies ahead for the time being.
All I can say about fishing rivers is go prepared for every eventuality. Heavy leads, big baits, strong hooklinks, big hooks are a must. The flow might be horrendous, there may be big boats, tonnes of debris, loads of nuisance species etc…You may want to throw in the towel after the first twelve hours but stick with it. The results are there and you just have to be there when it happens. Some rivers are quite gentle and some are very aggressive. The Meuse is fairly kind as a rule…above all enjoy it and don’t expect an amazing hit. That way you will never leave disappointed.
I am off to one of the most fierce rivers in the world next week…I will let you know how I get on!
Cheers
Jake and the dogs
June 15, 2010 at 9:29 pm |
hi jake
Im off to france at the end of july. and am booked in to fish a gravel pit for a week. i have noticed its next to the river moselle and am planning on doing a week on the river aswell. having fished the soane and meuse before and only catching fish to the mid twentys, im hoping to better it. my 1st weeks fishing is near the city of metz so any info on the moselle would be welcome. i.e licence’s spots to fish and to avoid. would i need to bait heavily, do i need a boat . ? any help will be appreciated thank you in advance.
June 18, 2010 at 8:24 am |
There is a Mondial Peche tackle shop situated off one of the junctions of the motorway in a busy shopping/industrial park. The guy in there is quite helpful. A boat is essential as you will need it to free your lines each time they get snagged once a boat passes through etc… otherwise you will be pulling for a break each time, and you will end up losing a shed load of tackle!! That is just the start of it!!! The spots for fishing are generally clearly marked…look out for signs. Bait heavily as required…I would advise fishing upstream and into the margins – 25yards out. Avoid the boat channel and opposite sides. The tow can be strong, take heavy leads, a good reliable lead clip, strong hooks, shockleader etc….
Good Luck.
April 1, 2011 at 12:40 am |
Alright Jake, hoping you could help!! Me and a friend are going over in may to fish the river Moselle and was wondering if you could give us some tips on where to go. Do you know if we can buy the carte de Peche in the uk before we go so we know where we can night fish. It’s our first time going so as much help as possible would be appreciated. Thanks
April 8, 2011 at 4:21 pm |
You buy your Carte de Peche in France!! There is a Mondial Peche shop in Metz. The guy in the shop will probably have some info if you can speak French – it does help a little if you know some basic lingo.
At that time of year I would maybe head for Le Max – an area that was written about years ago, but should be a good starting place. Fishing upstream usually gets the most action and having a small inflatable is advisable. The boats are enormous so beware of them. Buy a map, and drive around – that is all I can say really. Good Luck
April 14, 2011 at 8:30 pm
Thanks chap, I got a little sport yak boat any ways. So there defiantly no way of getting the permit before we go? Thanks ageing for your help.
April 15, 2011 at 2:09 am
It is my birthday so I am going to humour you… my mate bought a carte de peche for the Moselle in B&Q a couple of years ago, but I can’t confirm whether they still sell them.
With regards to where you fish… it is your adventure John. Would you feel like you had a result if I told you exactly where I fished. It’s all part of fishing – follow your hunches, if you see somewhere you like, or it feels right, then fish there. I am sure you will have a great trip.
Kind regards
Jake Langley-Hobbs
April 14, 2011 at 8:39 pm
Is there any reasion u recommend that far down? Thanks
January 27, 2012 at 7:25 am |
fishing…
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