Lac Du Der Chantecoq ( France
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Lac Du Der Chantecoq ( France
)
Lac Du Der Chantecoq ,
is situated in central
Champange-Ardenne region, a few miles South West
of a town
called St. Dizier and approximately 120 miles East of
The lake itself is reputed to be the largest man made lake in
off towards the lake, that actually lead straight
into the water. These are the roads that were used by the inhabitants of the
flooded villages to gain access to their properties, when the lake is down, some
of the remains from the former buildings can be seen at various points along the
lakes edge. One of the most famous remains and also one of the most well known
swims on the lake is the Church Point. The church building its self was actually
moved brick by brick and rebuilt on its present site just before the flooding of
the villages took place.
The lake is well known for being a very prolific
Carp fishery, containing Carp to over 60lbs, the official lake record is 27.3kg
( 60lb 2oz ) held by French angler Nicolas Ladriere, but I am aware of larger
fish coming out and purposely not reported by anglers. Carp over 30lbs are
present in extremely large numbers and I would say that in my opinion Chanty has
most probably the largest population of forties in any French lake. As well
as the large head of Carp the lake offers
a wide variety of other species
including, Bream, Roach, Tench, Perch, Pike, Rudd and the French anglers
favorite - Zander. The Zander in Chanty grow to quite a large size, I have
personally witnessed then up to eleven kilos just to give you some idea.
How
to get there , my preferred Route to the
lake is, ferry from
Vitry-le Francois. After Vitry-le Francois, take
the N4 which will take you to St Dizier If
you are familiar with the area, you can use the back roads to the lake and there
are plenty of signs for Lac Du Der almost every where. But if it is your first
time at the lake and you wish to play it safe, then keep on the N4 to St Dizier
and then take the D384 which will also take you to the water
How
should I Tackle it
,
please forget any pre-conceived notions or ideas about fishing the lake English
style, as the lake is a massive sheet of water of approximately 12,000 acres in
size, when it is at its fullest. The fishing conditions on the lake change
constantly according to the water level and weather. When the lake is at its
fullest in the spring, swims are few , but when the lake is down in September,
October and November you will have more swims to chose from.
Permits to fish the lake, have
changed significantly in 2000 and I am giving you the most up-to-date version
that I am aware of.
Day only season tickets will cost you 400 FF( around £40.00 ) and
must be purchased by any angler wanting to fish on the lake, even if they have
already obtained the separate night fishing ticket. As far as I am aware, this
particular ticket can still be purchased from local tackle shops around the lake
such as the one I always have used in the past, it is a
small Tackle shop in Eclaron called Peche 2000, which is run by a Madam
Badot.
To fish for Carp at night an angler must posses an APPMA ( Association
de Peche pour la Protection du Milleu Aaquatique ) at 400 FF( around £40.00 )
and also a night fishing authorisation which will cost you a further 1200 FF (
around £120.00 ), to obtain a night fishing authorisation ( which must be
obtained in advance ) you need to contact the UFAPPMA by either phoning them on
0033 326 72 63 43 or writing to them at UFAPPMA at Maison des Pechers ( Station
nautique 51290 Giffaumont-Champaubert )
When you obtain your night fishing authorization
from UFAPPMA, you will also receive a full set of rules to follow, these will
dictate all the rules and regulations you must compile with to legally night
fish on the lake.
You will also be given a map of the lake when you
purchase your licenses, this will show you all the swims you can fish day or
Night. To tackle these swims you will need to step up the specification of your
tackle. So my advice to you would be to use strong line and hooks, also big
capacity reels that will hold enough good quality 15lb line to achieve the
distances you may require, as on De Dur the contours and depths of the lake tend
to drop away quite steadily from the water’s edge. You can also fish closer in
should you find the correct sort of features to hold feeding fish. You will need
a good quality ( hard or netted ) hook bait to compensate for the very large
cray fish that inhabit the lake. I would also take some heavily weighted
indicators .in case you have to fish at distance, as you will find that with a
large amount of line out at extreme range, it pays to increase the weight of
your indicators. A good Quality Boat and Life Jacket are a must, because of the
safety aspect, these are probably two of the most important items of equipment
to get correct, your boat must be strong and very buoyant. Cheap plastic
blow-ups are most definitely to be avoided. It is also now compulsory to wear a
life jacket, when in a boat on the water at Chanty, and the Guard
de Pêche will stop you using your boat if you are not wearing one.
I also always take an Electric Outboard with me as I consider this to be
an extremely vital piece of equipment and I never fish without one on the big
lakes, as I find them an absolute must, as it allows me complete control over
the boat, against drift when I am baiting up or dropping end rigs in.
The lake is suitable for the more experienced
angler ( in my opinion ) and not for the less experienced .
With this new booking in advance system, you
should be guaranteed your peg to fish from if you are night fishing, if
you are looking for your first forty, then Chantecoq is one lake you
should consider trying.
Ron
Woodward