Father and son, Jeff and Jon, aka, 'Team Holdaway', visited us for a week on 4th July 2009. Jeff had mentioned in one of his emails that Jon, aged 21, was the real angler and that he was primarily transport.

Well, it didn't take Jon long to suss out the lake and its occupants, his meticulous approach to angling paid dividends and by the end of the week the pair had banked 28 Carp, a nice mixture of Royales and Originals, and 5 Catfish for a total weight of 755lb,

.Jon's main aim was to beat his own French Carp PB of 36lb and his Dad's of 38lb, and hopefully catch his first 40. Well, we are pleased to report that he well exceeded all his targets with a fabulous 48lb 4oz Mirror taken just after lunch on the Wednesday, what a result!

Other highlights included a personal best Catfish of 51lb to Jon , another Cat of 41lb and a 34lb 8oz Mirror to Jeff.

During the week Jeff told me that Jon is known back home as the ‘Fish Magnet’ such is his angling ability and watercraft. He certainly earned his nickname on our lake, coming within ounces of our Carp and Catfish records. ( The chilled Champagne remains in the fridge for the time being)

All fish were tempted with either boilies or maize as hookbait, over particles and pellets. Jon wisely ordered a large quantity of prepared hempseed from us to kick of his week. Our French hemp is much oilier and more pungent than the type available in the UK, and has incredible fish attracting qualities. He also included a few prepared Tigernuts in his bait repertoire.

Hook-baits were presented on semi-fixed rigs in carefully chosen areas on the far margin. Many of the fish came on one day mid-week when the weather became cooler.

Jon has vowed to return for the Champagne on a future trip

The guys very kindly penned the following in the comments book..................

‘Thanks for an awesome week, challenging but catchable fish, lovely food’.

Tony the terrapin is still in residence and can be seen basking on top of the water in the hottest part of the lake on sunny days. We believe he could be a European Pond Terrapin. We just hope our biggest Catfish doesn’t fancy a tasty morsel with an outer crunch!

angling holidays at sweet chestnut lake carp fishing lake in france