TRIPLE PB BREAKER
19th March 2020
Jack Gabriels becomes a triple PB breaker as he banks nine fish up to 51lb 12oz from Lac de Villedon.
Jack Gabriels is having a great start to the year on the angling front. Having already landed good fish to mid-forties in the UK, he headed to the huge Lac de Villdeon in the Limousin region of France to try and continue his good form. His week ended with nine fish, with three PBs amongst them and the best going 51lb 12oz. It’s safe to say his form continued!
We caught up with Jack upon his return:
“I have just got back from my first trip across the channel. The venue I visited was Lac de Villedon, a 120-acre pit in the Limousin region of France.
“The first leg of the trip from north Devon went perfectly, however as we got closer to the lake it was apparent the region had seen some serious rainfall, with the fields either side of the road absolutely teaming with water! When we arrived at the venue the owner greeted us at the cabin and informed us that two days prior to our arrival every swim on the lake was underwater, so we knew from the get go it was going to be a difficult week, with yet more rain forecast over the coming days.
“We eventually got our kit sorted and boated across to our swim to start setting up, but due to the long travel time I decided to leave the rods in for the first night and go at it in the morning with a clear mind and fresh eyes! On the Saturday morning I was up at first light to start leading around to find a nice spot to target over the week. Having found a lovely firm spot at 80 yards, I decided to go fairly heavy from the off and put a spread of around 5kg of 16mm The Krill Shelf Life on the spot before I positioned all three rods over the top! I opted to fish my ever-faithful German rig with three different Krill wafters; a Pink One on the left, match the hatch on the middle and finally on the right a White One.
Opting to fish various coloured Krill Wafters, Jack baited heavily at 80 yards and then moved over to a solid bag approach later in the week.
“The first day passed uneventfully and I went into the night hoping that the alarms would spring into action. It wasn’t until 10am the following morning I finally had my first take, excitement levels were through the roof as the lake holds some seriously big carp. After a short battle my prize was in the net, a plump 22lb mirror which came to the left of the spot on the pink wafter.
“After getting the rod back out, I topped the spot up with a further kilo of bait, hoping that the fish had turned up in front of me in numbers. I was beginning to think I’d made a mistake going in heavy with the bait though, as it wasn’t until 48 hours later that I had my next take. This time the middle rod went into meltdown and I was attached to what felt like a better fish holding bottom out at range, eventually though, a French pb of 37lb+ rolled over the net cord. Again, I got the rod back on the spot and applied another kilo of bait in the hope that I would bag a few more!
“The next two days passed uneventfully, however we started seeing fish out at range in line with the old riverbed that runs through the lake. I decided I couldn’t sit waiting any longer so punched a solid bag at the showing fish full of crumbed Krill but this time I used a smaller hook bait; a 12mm Signature Squid Wafter in pink.
“The rod couldn’t have been in the water more than two hours and it was away. This time it was obvious from the moment I picked up the rod that it was a really good fish, taking line at 100 yards and holding bottom. A powerful fight ensued before my huge prize was in the folds of my net it was another new PB at 51lb!
“I got the rod back out as quick as possible with another bag in the same area the fish were showing. It paid off, as a few hours later just as the sun was setting the rod sprang into life. As the last rays of sun went down it was fitting that yet again it was a personal best mirror of 51lb 12oz! By that point I was already content with my fish for the week but that didn’t stop me getting the rod back out and fishing as soon as I possibly could!
“I ended up finishing the week with nine fish in total including two more notable fish; a 38lb 12oz common and a 42lb 12oz mirror!
Both sticking to my guns and keeping the bait going in on the spot produced steady bites, plus making the decision to cast at showing fish paid off. A real testimony to the quality of the Krill; what a week! Becoming a triple PB breaker was definitely one to remember!”
