The Cat Lake at Bley

 

 

This pretty little lake on the Bley estate was stocked with a massive head of cats ranging from 40lb to 100lb in 2004.
There is one double peg that is designed for two anglers to fish together, and it has been positioned so that most of the lake can be covered from it. Other parts of the lake can be reached for those not wanting to cast live baits long distances, as there is a path that goes around the lake, all be it a bit over grown sometimes. 

The lake has been deepened, and the snags have been removed to give a better chance of getting to grips with the big cats. Livebaits have proven to be the most successful choice for cats so far on the lake and are readily available on site, so bring a float rod. 

Up until 2009 the lake was mainly fished by some of our regular carp anglers, who come to Bley to fish the main lake for carp, but do the odd night on the cat lake as a bonus. 

Many carp anglers have banked cats over 100lb doing just the odd night here and there, but now we are seeing a large increase in the numbers of serious catfish anglers coming to fish the cat lake due to its large head of fish for the size of the small lake. 

 Some C C G members have visited the cat lake at different times in the past, and many large catfish have been caught by them in large numbers. 

It is difficult for us to say what an average catch is for any season, but most weeks have seen on average 30 cats out for the week , with some weeks seeing as many as 50 cats out to pairs of cat anglers fishing together. 

We do insist that all cat anglers use proper cat tackle to fish with, as carp gear is just not up to the job of banking the size of catfish that live in the lake.

 There is a maximum of 2 anglers at any one time on the lake or one angler fishing with a lady partner or small child as a guest at a cost of £50 for either. 

 (Please check the rules before booking) 

Fish stocks

 

The cat lake has been extremely well stocked with as many cats as is possible for them all to live with plenty of oxygen in the water so as to survive comfortably. 

As the lake is feed with running water coming from the river close by, it was possible for us to stock more catfish into the lake than would normally have been the case. 

Although there are a few cats of 25lb to 40lb in the lake, most of the cats are between 50lb to 90lb , with some reaching more than 140lb 

The  Cat Lake vidio was made in 2004 with the kind help of James Peacock: 

Click here for booking information. 

How to find the lake

 

The Cat Lake (at de Moulin de Bley)
Pisiculture, du Moulin de Bley,
12 Chemin du Bley
Auvet, et la Chappelotte, 70100, France 

Sat Nav
Bley 47 ‘ 30 ” 04 , 23 N 5′ 32 “13, 60 E       google map name etang de theuley

Telephone (France): 00 33 6827 64572