12 min. reading time

Summer Fishing at Aquadev and Castle Lake

June 13 had been circled on our calendars for a long time: Summer fishing in Saône-et-Loire. That week we would fish two waters of Angling Escapes. 2 nights at the already familiar Castle Lake, but the first 4 nights at Aquadev. After we both had a negative PCR test, we could travel to Vauban. A small village in an idyllic French landscape.

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The Journey to Aquadev

The distance would be about 800 kilometers. In order to take everything with us easily and for fun, we had rented a van. As a result, we had a pleasant and comfortable trip. Like almost everyone else we stopped in Luxembourg to fill up the tank with fuel, of course we remain Dutch. Around 11 in the morning I called Eric, the owner of Aquadev. He told us that not Vauban should be our destination, but that he had now placed Aquadev on google maps. This suddenly made the water a lot easier to find when driving on google maps. The roads got narrower, the houses slowly turned into farmhouses and the cows became more numerous. France at its best and most beautiful. Harm steered our car onto a country road, officially where only agricultural traffic is allowed. So don’t let this traffic sign stop you. After 80 meters, turn right onto the dirt road. In the distance Eric was already waiting for us. We arrived at Aquadev after 8 hours.

Country road leading to Aquadev

Our first impression and the facilities

After we get acquainted, Eric will show us the lake and its facilities. Since Eric speaks English well this is easy for us to follow and we can ask questions ourselves, very helpful. We are now eager to see the water. I look at my buddy and ask him if he sees anything, but he shakes his head. As we walk a little further towards the edge of the forest, a staircase suddenly appears and when we look down into the depths there lies Aquadev. It is like a quarry hidden in the beautiful nature.

First view of Aquadev from above

Upstairs we first get to see the toilet and shower. Das very simple, they are clean and they do what they are supposed to do. Especially for fishermen this should not be a problem. We now descend to the water, this is a nice descent of about 35 steps. So it is advisable to make sure you have good footwear. In the past it sometimes happened that during a period of drought the water level dropped quite a bit. By connecting a spring to Aquadev, this problem has been tackled and a good water level is guaranteed. It is a water for a maximum of 2 anglers. Per angler you have your own jetty at your disposal. Both jetties meet on a platform. On this platform there is a picnic table, deck chairs and a cabin. Here is everything a fisherman needs. To name a few things, kitchen with gas stove, tables with chairs. cutlery and a space where you can put your stretcher. Because the cabin is well insulated it stays nice and cool in the summer and you can chill here during the day or catch up on sleep after a successful night of fishing with little sleep. In the winter and fall, the wood stove can be turned on (wood is plentiful) and you’ll be snug and warm. The cabin does not have a refrigerator. Because you still like to keep your food good and your drinks cold Eric can bring ice. In your cooler you can keep everything in good condition. We imagine ourselves in a small paradise. The bivy’s can be set up on the platform or on the jetties. We choose to sleep under the stars for three reasons, there are no mosquitoes in this valley, the weather forecast indicates no precipitation for the next few days, and we don’t have to lug the bivy’s from top to bottom.

Getting Started

Both of us fished from our own jetty. Eric already mentioned that the bottom was erratic. So really take the time to map the bottom. Of course this is always important, but my gut said that fishing by luck or intuition will not bring results. We took turns with the canoe, depth gauge and stick, the advantage of this canoe is that you can go through the water very quietly. The disadvantage is the instability, so keep this in mind. There is also a “normal” hard plastic boat at the complex. Later, however, we used our own Command boat we brought with us, simply because our confidence was higher with it. In itself, this is not a must. Although the water is not very big, we come across many interesting spots. We write down all the spots we think will yield fish. In the cabin there are also notebooks with maps of the lake with depths and spots where we caught fish. Be sure to read this, it is a good starting point.

We both fish with 3 rods on our rodpods. This is a must have because you can’t get rid of your supports here on the jetties. The tactic is to start as diverse as possible to spread our chances and see what works. This way we think we will get better results each day. Again we have chosen the Instant Project of Holland Baits, firstly because we are convinced of the quality of this brand. But specifically because this ball contains a lot of sweet corn. In the info we read earlier, there was a lot of fishing with corn. With this ball we don’t have the disadvantages of sweet corn, but the advantages was our thought. Harm’s rigs go right between the reeds and dead wood at a small meter. The other opposite the jetty against the woods where it quickly went from 2.75 meters to 1 meter on an embankment, the last rod in the bowl where the grass carp would hide. My rods I put down where the source of fresh water (oxygen) enters the lake, the other in the riverbed at 2.6 meters and the third rod I put down where the riverbed turns into an embankment, there it is 1.2 meters at that time. The traps are set.

Spend adequate time on soil testing and cuttings selection

Flop or top on the square meter

Unfortunately, after a wonderful night under the stars and ditto breakfast, we still have no fish. Harm did have a bite against the shallow corner with dead wood. Unfortunately the fish was able to swim fast. Because we are fishing fish safe, the fish will easily get loose. But of course it sucks. However, the first take is a fact. But why didn’t the other rods run off, or at least not anymore? We saw plenty of fish and activity during the day on our chosen spots. Superb (ghost) koi, gold carp, mirrors, grassies and full scales. But once you’ve seen them you want to catch them. We decide to rest on the water until 14:00 and then start putting the puzzle back together again. Convinced that we were roughly where we needed to be, we took the boat and depth gauge again. We now tried to get the deeper lines to depth even more precisely, we also attached downforce tungsten contraliners to the underline to keep the leader and the underline well on the bottom and we thought that the poking effect should also increase. While probing my spot near a bush I noticed that it suddenly got deeper the further I rowed against the bush. I also saw a sort of passage; it appeared that the water continued on there as a sort of spur. With the feeding boat I could get perfectly behind the bush, for here they might still be baiting. In the heat of the day the chance of catching them is the smallest. Yet it is also enjoyable on Aquadev. All you hear is the sound of birds and some cows in the background. Birds like Kites, Harriers and Kingfishers are more the rule than the exception. When you also have amphibians and reptiles around you, you know you are really in nature. Lizards danced around us, while frogs sang entire serenades. Yes we can enjoy this. And every day next to my spot in the reeds the grass snake came to see how we were doing. By the way, this water snake is not poisonous or dangerous.

As the sun waned in strength the activity on the water began to increase, this is what you want to see as an angler. The BBQ went back on the our hunger was satisfied. Our hunger for catches, however, was not yet satisfied. The confidence was there, good bait, good rigs and spot on. Once again we were surprised that we indeed had not seen or heard a mosquito. The next three days we caught our fish regularly. Every now and then we lost one. The fish were all in good condition, some still recovering from spawning. We did not catch the really big ones, which is not our ultimate goal. The experience, camaraderie and immersion in nature are the things we find more important. We got to know Aquadev as a unique water, located in a valley where you can really do your thing in peace. It definitely takes thought and tactics to catch your fish. This certainly makes it a challenging water with a very diverse stock of carp.

Finale at the Castle – Castle Lake

After 4 nights at Aquadev, we weren’t done yet; we still had 2 nights at Castle Lake on the menu. Since these destinations are only about 10 km and a 15-minute drive apart, you don’t really lose any travel time. Perfect for finishing on a somewhat larger water. As said, we arrived at Castle Lake around noon after about 15 minutes of driving. Here we come more into the inhabited world, and the castle immediately serves as a landmark for this village. We booked spots 1 & 2. These are the first spots when viewed from the castle; further on you’ll find spots in the forest. We can set up our camp wonderfully under old chestnut trees with the castle of La Clayette in the background, magnificent!

Fantastic view from swim 1

Pitching, feeding, pitching

Since we are already familiar with this water, we know that it is a little easier to force a bite here. However, everything has to be cast here, both the rig and the feed. So we start by feeding half a kilo per rod. This way we try to get the fish on our spots. We do this with the feeding pipe because we are afraid to disturb too much with the spomb rod. In the meantime, we line our rods, cast them in the right spot (try to find the riverbed) and continue building our camp. Before I have had a chance to push all the pegs into the ground, Harm’s first rod leaves. Hoppa, so we can do this 30 acres of water again. In the time that Harm is drifting, I feed again, those fish have to stay here now. After a firm drill the first guest is a fact. What we noticed was that all the carp fought very hard, this indicates that they are in very good condition.

Runwater or not after all?

At Castle Lake, it’s possible for everyone to catch their fish. Yet I wouldn’t call it a pure run water. But if you find the river bed, can cast 80 to 100 meters far, and get your bait well on the spot with a feeding tube or spomb, you’ll certainly be successful there. This water is also excellent for trying out a different rig or bait. You’ll quickly notice what works and what doesn’t. However, you’ll need to use different techniques and bait per rod. Really fun if you’re already a good angler, but want to improve in all kinds of aspects. There’s a large stock of carp, consisting of (ghost) kois, grass carp, beautiful fully scaled, leather, mirror, and big common carp. This means it’s important to keep bait on your spot. The weights also go well above 20 kg. To catch these, you often have to deal with the smaller, but no less beautiful, carp first. Do you do this by adjusting your feeding sessions or, for example, your technique? For instance, fishing outside your feeding spot can lead to surprises. Toilet, shower, fridge, and freezer are available. In short, all ingredients for a fun and successful trip to France are present here.

Also so fond of double runs? Then try your luck here

The cake is on

After 2 days of feeding my arms are starting to get a little stiff, the week is almost over. Once again we both enjoyed all aspects of angling. Back home tomorrow morning, it’s been nice, really nice! We have lost count a bit with double and triple runs. We see this mostly as a luxury problem.