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About Us 

 

There are now many French Carp Venues so why should you choose this one ? There are some excellent and some very poor carp fisheries in France, we have fished a fair few of them ourselves, and we regularly hear reports from customers who have fished other lakes in France.   

Unfortunately there are plenty of unscrupulous lake owners in France with little or no knowledge of fisheries management - please be careful ! 

 

Les Croix is professionally managed of course, but it has also been designed around what we,as carp anglers on holiday would like to find at a venue -

 

more than just a lake and a grubby bathroom !

 

Firstly it's important to state that we are registered as a business in France and that the lake conforms to French Law, legal night fishing - no licence required.

 

 

Think about what you really want from your holiday. We're all different and what is perfect for one angler is not so for another.

   

In the carp magazines and on the internet you will see many claims of "best carp lake in France", "best fishing in France" etc.   

What we offer is a fishery which is correctly stocked and managed to provide great fishing with big carp in immaculate condition along with high quality lakeside accommodation and top level on site services and 100% honest and up to date information.The lake, accommodation and facilities are booked exclusively for  the duration of your holiday, no other anglers, so no arguments or conflicts.

 

Rather than trying to maximise income by filling the lake with anglers, we focus on the well being of the carp, we restrict the maximum number of anglers,

and we encourage bookings from couples and families, so during many weeks there is only one angler on the lake, and there are long periods when no night fishing takes place. Many French Carp Lakes are very pressured - if like us, you want to avoid circuit waters and pressured fish,

Les Croix should be high on your list ! 

 

Cost

 

We believe in quality at affordable prices, offering you an excellent angling environment together with superb lakeside accommodation and

top class facilities - this reflects our wish to offer quality fishing and good value together.

 

We don't advertise in the UK carp fishing press because this involves high costs and inevitably the customer ends up paying for this.

 

Travel Options

 

We offer you a choice of driving or flying to France when you come to Les Croix, along with quality tackle hire at competitive prices. We can provide supermarket runs or home cooked meals, should you wish to travel by air. Click here to find out more.

 

Lake Size / Angling Pressure

 

 If you want to catch carp in France and enjoy a nice relaxed week's fishing, smaller waters offer a better chance, especially so if like at Les Croix, you have the lake to yourselves -  you will never be too far from the fish, and you will have a very good chance of an excellent week's fishing ! Les Croix is a true 3.6 acres.

 

Management

 

Les Croix is one of few carp lakes in France managed by a UK qualified fisheries professional with many years of fisheries management experience in the National Rivers Authority and Environment Agency. The venue is correctly stocked and managed, you will be fishing more than just another French Carp Lake.

 

The Carp

 

The carp at Les Croix are exceptional fish and have been hand picked for their form and strength, there are some very pretty specimens and some very

big fish amongst them, we have mirrors and commons to over 50lbs but there are many other carp just as interesting to catch as the biggest fish.

 

The lake is spring fed with superb high quality water and thus has an abundance of natural food for the carp icluding a lot of bloodworm, caddis larvae, 

snails and small crayfish, and they also receive extra nourishment  from the protein in the pellets and boilies that we feed at various times in the year.

 

Although we all love to see a huge carp in the net from time to time, we don't see the weight of the fish as the only important factor in carp fishing.

The angling environment, the condition of the fish and their fighting qualities are priority.Our carp are superb specimens, with a good number of

scaley fish, and they fight to the last moment !

 

Obviously you want to be in with a chance of some big fish, and we have a lot of thirties and high twenties to back up our biggest carp The total number of

carp is around 150 giving a total biomass of around 2 tonnes, which provides for excellent sport, and with some stunning specimens in the lake, there is

a very good chance of something to remember during your trip. Many of our customers have beaten their PB's several times in a week here at Les Croix !  

 

Location

 

Buying a lake in northern France was never an option for us ...if you have not travelled south of the Seine Valley, Normandy, Brittany or the

Champagne Region of France, then you have not seen the best of what France has to offer.... Les Croix is situated in the beautiful Charente-Limousine

area of South West France where the departments of Charente, Haute-Vienne and Vienne meet.

 

This is a region of rolling countryside, hills, woodland, lakes and rivers that puts Northern France in the shade - the Charente is officially the

second sunniest Region of France after the Med, so it is a very desirable location. If all you want is to fish 24/7 then maybe you

don't mind where your venue is, but if you are interested in seeing some of France during your stay, we are sure you won't be disappointed

with the surrounding area. Click here for more information.

 

 

These are all factors which can help to make your holiday special or forgettable ! At Les Croix you will be welcomed and looked after !

 

We do everything possible to make your holiday one to remember...

A brief guide to the history and management of Les Croix

 

Les Croix is owned and managed by Jon and Sophie Perkins who moved to France permanently in 2006 after many years planning. We are passionate about what we do, and a lot of thought, planning and energy has gone into the making of Les Croix - our aim is clear...superb value carp fishing holidays in France with fantastic fishing, excellent facilities and quality services - a holiday to remember. A look at our customer feedback  page will give you a good idea of how our customers have felt about Les Croix.

Jon is an ex Fisheries Officer of the N.R.A./Environment Agency in England with 10 years real experience in the field of freshwater fisheries management, has an Honours Degree in ecology and holds both the certificate and diploma of the Institute of Fisheries Management - the Diploma qualification is held by less than 100 people in the UK.

Many carp lakes in France are owned or run by carp anglers who think they know about fisheries management, Les Croix is different......because of our expertise you will be fishing a water where things are done correctly.

Apart from the work background, Jon has also been an angler since the age of 8, and having fished for specimen pike, barbel and tench, and has been a regular carp angler since 1984.

Sophie is an ex Office Manager with many administrative skills (thank God I don't have to do the accounts !) and has also been known to wet a line from time to time ! She is also a great cook (as many of our customers will testify !) having also worked in the catering trade, so you are guaranteed to eat well at Les Croix !

History 

 

        

                                                                              

 The site was purchased  in November 2006. During the winter of 2006/7 the lake was drained and all the fish, including the original carp stock, were removed, the lake was left empty for three months and was refilled during January 2007.

 

Our policy has always been to buy young fish and grow them on in the lake - we do not pay ridiculous prices for huge carp which often die soon after stocking, this involves a massive cost which inevitably is passed on to customers.

 

The carefully selected first stock were introduced in spring 2007. More carp were added in December 2007, March 2008 and November 2008 bringing the total population and biomass of the carp to the correct level.

 

The first stock fish were brought in from an area of central France renowned for immensely strong fish, and they were never been fished for prior to their stocking at Les Croix. The second stocking were smaller rapidly growing fish from a more local source, and the third small batch of fish included some commons, one of which is now 50lbs+ and some mirrors to 35lb+. November 2008 saw the introduction of two more commons to 27-00, two mirrors to 32-08 and a perfect zip linear of 15-08. In November 2009 we managed to find locally 4 lovely commons 15-18lbs to increase the low number of commons present.

 

We will be adding a few selected exceptional fish each year to complement the existing stock.

 

Every winter we try to make further improvements to the gite and site to help make your holiday even better.

 

Over the winter we have done more work on the swims making them flatter and bigger, and we have installed a new wall to wall shower in the bathroom.

    

email info.lescroix@orange.fr

 

www.bateaux-amorceur.com 

 

www.viper-france.com

 www.exclusive-carp-fishing-france.com

 

www.carp-fishing-holidays-france.com