We are happy to see each other again and to share this day, even if the Covid does not allow us the hugs and meals as we would like... The dam lake being relatively low, it allows all the team to evolve on the bank and to fish comfortably.
Day 1
We start at the legal fishing time (half an hour before sunrise.) It's Louis who quickly opens the ball with a modest trout of less than 30cm with the Delalande Skeleton coloris Mojito. A lure that the Delalande team has already tried and which will certainly be the lure of the day for the Delalande team. The wind has not yet risen but the cold is present: 1°C on the thermometer...
On my side, I start with a metallic lure, the Illex Native Spoon 7g which had allowed me to catch a fish very quickly the previous year but on a conch where a pile of wood and bark had formed, I switch to a soft pink lure (Magic Slim Shad 4'' Magic Candy) to succeed in penetrating this floating pile. I got it right because on the first cast I caught a superb massive brown of 50cm. It was also an opportunity to test the versatility of my new Stream Master S2102 ML Trout Opportunist which impressed me throughout the weekend.
At the same time a little further, it is Stella who signs a first 43cm always in the Skeleton.
It starts well and we continue our prospection of a rocky bank. From experience, we know that at the opening it is necessary to fish virgin spots to bring in fish. So we alternate, each one opening regularly a spot. At this game, it is Cyril who takes his first trout (about 43/44cm) on the lake with a Nories wavering of 3,8g.
Shortly after, Stella and Ghjuvà caught a beautiful 49cm fish at the Skeleton.
While everyone fishes with shad, I alternate between swimming fish (Illex Tricoroll Ryushin 70 SHW of which I proposed you the presentation available HERE ) and undulating. It is finally on a 7g Illex Native Spoon that I catch my second trout. A superb fish of 52cm which will have gratified me of a rather air fight.
On the way back, Kevin finally brings in a 46cm trout. We are delighted. Everyone caught at least one fish! I break on a fish hit near the bottom before taking a break.
We take the time for a coffee break to warm up and face the rest of the morning, which looks very windy. My son Marc, who joined us with Agathe and Milo, goes fishing with confidence. His application and his abnegation pay off since he catches his first fario of the lake. A fish of 46 cm on a Gunki Gamera 83HW. When we think that he is only 6 years old, I let you imagine the joy and the pride of the father! What a moment!
Before the picnic, I miss a fish at the new animated Illex Stream Ripper quickly near the surface.
In the afternoon, we went back to fight but the wind, still as strong as ever, forced us to retreat to sheltered areas. In clear, cold and transparent waters, it is the undulators that come out on top for Kevin and Stella.
The time passes quickly and the curfew obliges us to return to the lodge after this unforgettable day.
Day 2
The next day, Sunday March 14, we are much less numerous around the lake. And for good reason, it is almost a storm. The weather forecast announces gusts at 120km/h... We fished with Yannick, a beginner, a relatively sheltered bank, hoping to see at least one trout.
Yannick soon caught a fish on the Tricoroll Ryushin 70 SHW colored Tennessee. It is his first fish on the lake and his first trout! A fish which is 45cm long. Swimming fish often give good results when the surface is agitated, but after this fish, no more touch.
In very difficult conditions, I rely on my Native Spoon 7g ayu, brought back very slowly close to the bottom, in linear interspersed with twitch. With wear and tear, I managed to lure a fine but combative fish of 45cm. Objective reached.
After a long break, due to the wind, we had a picnic with our family at the lake. The cold and the snow are falling more and more on the lake but paradoxically, the wind is falling and the conditions seem to me more pleasant than in the morning. We decide to go back to the banks with Yannick who is quickly broken by a big fish. This motivates us and with a lot of insistence, we catch 3 fish (from 35 to 48cm). Under the snow and for Yannick who is a beginner, it is a great first day !
With this good result, we leave to finish the opening weekend on a spot that had worked well the day before. There are waves and even some surf, but the wind having calmed down, it is fishable! At the first cast I add one more fish to my counter, but it is especially my son Marc who takes a fish of 41cm at the NP. INCREDIBLE. We sign a memorable father/son double. What a moment once again!
The trouts seem active and we quickly take back the fishing before leaving. Maximum success since two additional fish will be caught with the Native Spoon 7g which is decidedly particularly effective in difficult conditions!
It's time to leave us. The lake offered us again about twenty fish with an average of about 45cm! We will especially remember the first fishes on this dam lake of Marc, Cyril and Yannick and the fact that almost everyone succeeded in catching a fish. Those who didn't succeed had less opportunity to insist, but it will come!
We hope your opening went at least as well as ours in the dam lake.
Technical point
From a technical point of view, we know by habit that on this spot it is necessary to fish new zones to find active fish and not solicited since the closing. The shads, which allow to fish hollow, give very good results.
Also, it is on the last meters of recoveries that most of the touches occurred. Early in the morning, the fish evolve in a band located between 8 and 15 m of the edge. The flashy colors, very present in the water and inciting, have our favor to trigger aggressive trout.
In the cold waters of the early season, wobbling spoons are a real lifesaver during the day, when the various spots have already been fished. Slowly brought back to the bottom, they are a real treat for the listless trout.
Finally, the swimmer fish card did not work well for us but other fishermen on the lake had good results with these hard lures, especially in the first hours of fishing. And then, on our side, the beginners like Marc or Yannick, took out their pins of the game in the PN on agitated zones.
