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The Great Alpine Lakes
Lake Bourget, in Savoie, is one of the top destinations for lure fishing for game fish. Its drop-offs, ledges, and vegetated shorelines are home to pike, perch, and walleye, among other species. Anglers in boats can explore the shallows with soft plastics, while the vegetation-lined edges are better suited for jerkbaits, spinnerbaits, or surface lures.
Lake Annecy offers a more challenging setting, but certain shallow areas allow anglers to target perch and pike using spoons or small soft plastic lures. However, local regulations should be checked before each fishing trip, particularly regarding authorized areas, boats, and closed seasons.
In the Southeast, Lake Sainte-Croix, on the border between the Var and the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence departments, is renowned for zander fishing from a boat. Submerged cliffs, plateaus, and inflows are prime spots to target with a shad rigged on a jighead, either on a straight line or vertically. Pike and perch can also be found along the edges, especially in the spring and fall.
Reservoir Lakes with Predatory Fish
Reservoir lakes are excellent spots for lure fishing. Lake Serre-Ponçon, in the Hautes-Alpes, offers a wide variety of fishing spots: shallow coves, beaches, submerged trees, and structure breaks. Perch and zander are often targeted with soft plastics, while pike may strike jerkbaits or surface lures in areas with plenty of cover.
Lake Pareloup, in Aveyron, is also a well-known destination for its predatory fish. The plateaus, rocky outcrops, and weed beds allow for a variety of fishing approaches. A Texas rig minimizes snags in dense areas, while a finesse soft plastic lure can make all the difference when the fish are wary.
In the Nièvre department, the lakes of Settons, Pannecière, and Chaumeçon offer complementary fishing conditions for targeting pike, perch, and zander. Lake Settons, in particular, enforces a catch window for pike ranging from 60 to 80 cm: fish outside this range must be released.
The Best Lakes for Black Bass
For black bass, the lakes and ponds of southwestern France remain reliable spots. Lake Carcans, in Gironde, features wooded shores, weed beds, and shallow areas that are particularly good for summer fishing. Surface lures, stickbaits, frogs, or small soft plastics rigged weightless allow you to fish in cluttered spots.
The bodies of water in the Gironde also offer many fishing opportunities from the shore. In 2026, several lakes and ponds will have specific regulations allowing lure fishing year-round, with catch-and-release requirements depending on the species and the time of year. It is essential to check the site?s regulations before you start fishing.
How do you choose a job?
A good fishing spot is more than just the name of a lake. The best areas are usually inflows, points, drop-offs, weed beds, submerged trees, and areas where the depth changes rapidly. At dawn, shorelines and shallows are often the best places to start. In the middle of the day, fish may move to drop-offs, shaded areas, or deeper water.
The choice of lure then depends on the depth and the fish's activity:
- surface lures along calm edges and in weed beds;
- jerkbaits or spinnerbaits around obstacles;
- shad and soft lures for snags and deep spots;
- small soft plastic lure for perch and hard-to-catch fish;
- a blade or lipless crankbait to quickly cover the shallows.
Regulations to be reviewed
In France, opening dates, legal size limits, catch limits, protected areas, and boating regulations may vary by department and body of water. For the 2026 season, the national opening date for second-category predator fishing is set for April 25, but local variations may apply. Compliance with prefectural decrees, no-kill zones, and spawning grounds is essential to preserve fish populations.
From Alpine lakes to the large reservoirs of the Southwest, France offers a remarkable variety of spots for lure fishing. Success depends less on a spot?s reputation than on the ability to read the terrain, identify where fish are holding, and adapt your technique to the conditions of the day.
