Coarse Fishing Holidays in Spain
- The guide and the service
- The areas and the species
- The accommodation
- The travelling
- The region
- The prices
- The enquiry form
- The photo gallery
- The links
This session produced this 47 pounder, 1 of 41 lbs, 6 over 30 lbs and 35 over 20 lbs.
Hello. My name is Malcolm and I would like to quickly tell you about some of the great, all year round fishing you can do on a coarse fishing holiday in Spain. Over the 17 years I have lived here, I have discovered many great areas and swims to fish. They offer a choice of target fish and styles of fishing including match style, pole fishing, bagging up, stalking or settling down to wait for the big fish. My favourite species is Carp but I also have very good knowledge of where to find and catch all the other species mentioned later on the site including Catfish, Pike and Zander. The reservoirs, lakes and river stretches are not known and seldom fished by other anglers and I have excellent knowledge of the River Ebro as well. I know the features in many of the swims (drop-offs, bars, snags, holes and so on) and these will be explained when I guide you to your target fish area.
I would also like to tell you about 2 small cottages that I have just purchased for anglers or families to rent on a self- catering basis. One has 2 bedrooms and sleeps 4 and the other is a studio and sleeps 2 on bunkbeds (see The prices section for rental costs) . The cottages are situated in the heart of beautiful countryside 5 minutes from a village and 15 from a large, interesting town. The grounds of the cottages are truly fabulous and lead on to swims on one of the reservoirs in area 1 (See The areas and the species section). Some 20 minutes from the vast and varied fishing in this area are the rivers Segre and Ebro where I can guide you to all the swims and more that you read about in the papers and see on TV. So you too can GO TOTAL FISHING SAFARI like John Wilson, Matt Hayes, Des Taylor and others.
A Spanish rod licence is essential so I will obtain it for you before you arrive. I will arrange your accommodation (book early), pre-bait several swims and supply you with some of my special ground bait. I can also give fishing lessons to novices and I have an amount of carp tackle for hire.
I strongly advise that you upgrade your tackle particularly your line and terminal gear. I never use less than 10 kilo line and 60 gram to 150 gram breakaway leads with size 2 or 4 hooks. This is for the Carp that are now being caught with fish up to 27 Kilos (60 lbs.) and much stronger tackle for the Catfish with weights up to 90 Kilos (200 lbs.).
Read on to find out the details of the areas, accommodation and prices and then use the enquiry form to let me know what I can do for you. As a rough guide, a week's fishing including accommodation will cost between €285 (about £200 ) and 350 Euros (£250) per angler. This includes the Spanish rod licence, pre-baiting, guiding and a good supply of my special giant maize ground bait which also works well as hook bait. Food and drink are very good value here with a good 3- course meal costing about 10 Euros (£ 7).
I look forward to hearing from, and fishing with, you.
Regards, Malcolm.
To the Menu | On to The areas and the species.
The fishing season lasts all year, except for Trout which is from February to November, and the winter Carp fishing is Europe's best kept angling secret.
Sunrise over a reservoir - Area One
From my extensive research I have chosen to concentrate on two areas, each with its own characteristics. The situations vary from a reservoir and river with some impressive, steep-sided rock outcrops to high, rolling plains which are shared by fruit growers, olive oil producers and wine makers. All this agriculture needs water and there is plenty of it about.
This area is on the plains of Spain which, despite the song, has lower average rainfall than the surrounding parts. It is a vast area with a network of reservoirs, rivers and canals. As I mentioned in the introduction, it is only 20 minutes from the famous swims on the rivers Segre and Ebro.
There is an enormous and varied choice of fishing for Carp, River Carp, Catfish, Barbel, Pike, Zander, Black Bass, Trout and more in reservoirs large and small and also the rivers with their slow deep glides, fast stretches and weirpools.
This area is still on the plain but is nearer the Pyrenees mountain range which provides an impressive backdrop to the north. There is a reservoir and good river fishing both above and below it.
The reservoir features Carp, Pike, Zander, Roach, Barbel and Chub and there are also some Black Bass and Trout. All these species are also in the river.
Carp of over 24 Kilos (52 lbs) and Catfish of just under 90 kilos (200 lbs) are coming from the nearby rivers the Segre and the Ebro. There have been a lot of big fish from the local reservoirs and river stretches. Also one of the reservoirs which has some purpose built stages for the match and pole fishermen has been producing some big bags.
I was there with Des Taylor the week he caught his 190 lb Catfish and also when the boys from The Angling Times caught their 42 Carp, equalling 900 lbs, during the winter.
To the Menu | On to The accommodation.
Backwater of a reservoir
This part of Catalunya is sometimes referred to as the bread-basket of Spain
and as such does not need to depend on tourists for income and is not, therefore, in the mass-tourism sector. This is one of its plus points but it does mean that accommodation is somewhat limited, though certainly not in quality. For this reason, all bookings, especially for the camp-site bungalows, must be made well in advance.
Bivvying
is possible in some places (No tents or bivvies with ground sheets). I can only discuss this option over the phone. See the enquiry form for the number.
Here, the land has been given over to agriculture and is a place where people live and work. Therefore there are few places to stay, only two hotels and my new properties, of course.
Both cottages are basic but have all you need and are set in a beautiful and tranquil location. One sleeps 4 (in 2 bedrooms), the other is a Studio and sleeps 2 in bunk beds. The gardens offer the non-angler private areas for sun-bathing, shaded areas for dining and great views as well.
There are two modern hotels with en-suite bathrooms and other mod-cons some 10 minutes from the water. They also have large bars serving snacks and restaurants.
Despite the shortage of rooms locally, there is a large city about 11 kilometres away which, naturally, has a larger range of hotels for which I can make reservations if you let me know what you require.
This area is more limited in places to stay but is close to a very interesting ancient and modern town. There is a campsite with some bungalows and a hostel.
View of lake from campsite
This is situated by the side of the reservoir and like most sites in this area it offers excellent value for money. The on-site restaurant serves good and economic food (for example, 7 euros 50 for three courses including wine).
Also on-site are 4 bungalows which are fully-fitted with two double bedrooms, bathroom kitchen and sun-terrace.
A very pleasant hostel is some ten to fifteen minutes drive from the water. It has a good bar and an excellent restaurant with special recipes handed down by the owner's Godmother. As with most things around here it is very reasonably priced.
To the Menu | On to The Travelling.
I am not a Travel Agent and so I cannot make travel arrangements for you. However I can offer you some suggestions which you can consider before deciding how you are going to get here.
It is very important, and should go without saying, that you must ensure that your party is covered by adequate holiday insurance both while travelling and during your stay. Get a E111 form from your Post Office.
There is much to be said for having your own independent transport as rural public transport is not much better here than it is in the UK.
The bring your car over by the ferry
method is the traditional way to visit places not served by the package companies. Most people cross by the Straights of Dover but there are two alternatives you can consider, cross the Channel to Normandy or the Bay of Biscay to North-West Spain. Both reduce the amount of driving but it is still a two-day journey each way. Additionally, the scandalous pricing policies of the ferry companies makes this an expensive option these days.
The advent of low-cost airlines has made the fly-drive option much more affordable. This part of the world is well served by the operators with EasyJet flying to Barcelona from several british airports and RyanAir flying to Girona.
Recently, RyanAir began a service to the previously Charter-only airport at Reus which is very convenient for Area One.
Car rentals are quite reasonbly priced, especially weekly rates, but be aware that EasyCar cannot be collected from or returned to the airport itself, you have to travel into Barcelona. All the airports are between one-and-a-half and two hours away from the fishing.
There are links to websites of various travel service providers in the menu. They are there for your convenience but should not be regarded as either the only ones or as recommendations.
To the Menu | On to The region.
When not fishing you can sight-see the Romanic architecture, go white-water rafting*, skiing*, hiking*, mountain biking, horse riding and, of course, shopping.
* These activities depend on the season, obviously.
This area of north-eastern Spain is called Catalunya (Catalonia in English, Cataluña in Spanish). It is bounded by the Pyrenees mountains in the north, the Mediterranean Sea in the east and the River Ebro in the south and west. The local population is very proud of its heritage and particularly of its language, Catalan. You can gain Brownie points if you know a few words. If you refer to the above river as the Ebre and greet locals with a cheery Olà, bon dia
(literally Hello, good day
) you will be off to a good start.
The region is famous for Salvador Dali (centenary last year) and Pablo Casals (for you arty types), the Costa Brava and, of course, FC Barcelona.
The ancient and modern town in area two has one of the nicest old quarters I have ever seen in all my travelling in Spain. There is a very attractive old centre square with shaded coffee shops and bar terraces. There are several restaurants and many historic buildings. The shopping is good too. Well worth a visit.
If some of your party are not such keen anglers as you or you just would like a day off, I will do my best to suggest some of the many other family activities available in this beautiful part of the world although the climate here is so good you'll probably want to just lie back and soak it in.
Both areas have fabulous birdlife, especially Area One where you can see Ospreys, Eagles, Storks, Peregrine Falcons, Kestrels, Herons, Vultures, Bitterns etc. It is well noted by ornithologists.
To the Menu | On to The prices - guiding service.
All prices are quoted in Euros (with a rough Sterling equivalent which is not binding).
My fee is 175 Euros (120 GBP) per person which includes everything mentioned in the service section.
When you book a hotel or bungalow I will require a 50% deposit on the price of the accommodation when the availability is confirmed. The booking will only be confirmed on receipt of the deposit.
I will not require a deposit for my services but in order for me to be able to arrange your fishing licences and accommodation in good time for your arrival, I ask you to send complete payment at least six weeks before your holiday starts. In addition, I need a photocopy of the back page from the passports of each angler to acquire your licences. So please include these with your payment.
A package containing 2 rods (Carp), 2 buzzers, bank sticks or pod, landing net, unhooking mat, bait throwing tube, scales and armchair is available for hire at 70 Euros per week (50 GBP) or 110 Euros (78 GBP) for 2 weeks plus a returnable deposit of 150 Euros (100 GBP). All you need to bring is your reels, line, terminal tackle and your own special bits and pieces. I also have some Cat rods and reels available (not top of the range but have landed Cats to 150 lbs).
The hotels do not charge different seasonal rates.
The hotel does not charge different seasonal rates.
The rates vary according to how many are in the party.
To the Menu | On to The Enquiry form.
Now that you have read all about the service, the areas and the accommodation (you have, haven't you?), please mark your choices in the form below and send it. I can then suggest the best possible holiday.
You can also contact me by telephone, +376 835321, of by Fax on +376 839684.
Malcolm.
I can be very flexible with my guiding service but the accommodation has to be booked early. Remember, bivvying is possible in some areas. You must telephone me for more on this.
When you have made your selections, press the Send Button.
All information given will be treated as strictly confidential.
To the Menu | On to The Links - Page 1.
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