Margot Update

Hi there
As some of you are off to Margot soon, thought you might like to see the post I've made on my Blog following my visit to the venue this week.

http://www.anglinglines.com/blog/etang-de-margot-update-march-2008/

Cheers
Gareth

Margot Madness!!!!
We were the first group on Margot this year, and were really looking forward to going!

Found things a bit tough as the fish were fairly tightly packed into two separate areas of the lake as it was still very cold for the time of year.
I did catch fish in the end after some 3 days blanking myself, I had 6 fish to 33lb5oz after a move was needed. Richie had 4 fish,mirrors of 19&26lb,one 31lb2oz grassy and the suprise fish of the trip was a 6lb8oz eel. Dave had the best bag, 12 fish with 4 of them being 38,39,41.9 and a new PB of 42.8lb,well done Dave.
There were 3 of us from Ireland on the cabin side of the lake and 3 lads from the uk on the far side.
If I had a choice again I would book the lake exclusive due to events which happened during our weeks fishing!

Top marks to angling lines on the arrangements etc leading up to the trip but while there it was not a great experience, and very poorly managed.

Sharing the lake/cabin wasnt a pleasent experience due to the others on the lake, this is what we had to put up with:

The mess!
1. Everytime the kitchen was used be it to make meals or prepare baits/rigs/particles it was left in an unusable state for the rest of us to use,i.e we would have to clean up before we could do anything(dishes/floor etc)

Fish welfare!
2.While the cabin was being used by the other group of 3, numerous times rods were being left out unattended on the far side of the lake and a few times when a rod got a run the party concerned would jump in the van and speed to hit the run:evil: not good, and not an acceptable way for a comercial water.

Nicking food!
3. Even though we designated seperate fridges to each group we still found that our food supplies were being dipped into and when asked about this they said they knew nothing!

Noise!
4.As for being Quiet and enjoyable,there was plenty of noise and vehicle lights throughout the evenings as they drove back and forth from swims to cabin.

Pissed up!
5. One guy got so drunk one day that later that evening when he fell asleep in his bivvy he left a candle burning and it melted through his table and his bivvy almost went up in flames. A few things were burnt,a camera,clothing and other bits but that would have been something to have on your holiday if things had have turned out any worse for him.He was very lucky that Dave from our party heard the banging as his camera batteries exploding and went to wake him up.

6 Rods - Yes six!!!
6. As i said earlier I needed to move swims after a few days and since i was moving close to one of the other guys,i asked him where he was dropping baits. As it turns out he was using 6 rods and 2 of them were right in front of my new swim on his opposite bank ie my side of the lake.He told me I couldnt fish from one side of my chosen swim that it was the lake rules so i quoted the 4 rod rule and he got the hump and then there was no reasoning with him. I returned to my swim and made the most of things.

More mess!
7. On the final morning as we were packing to leave they made breakfast as usual and left the place in the usual state. The cleaner came to tidy up and was met with this mess. As the other guys had left it was presumed that the mess was ours and since the lady didnt speak any english I found it very discomforting to try and explain the hows and whys of what had happened.

I just think that some one from the fishery should have been around to check in a few times during the week any maybe things would have been abit different. Lesson learned book it exclusive, and make sure it is managed properly!
Dissapointing for the money we paid, and I think it would take alot for us to return, shame, it was always a great place, and I know it has a good Irish following!

sounds a bit of a head wrecker Rory, moving swim is annoying enough as it is, without having to move back because of some greedy nit

with my trip to england the other week, we got lucky, there was only 3 other fellas on the lake, and they couldnt have been any nicer, letting us use their bait boat(my mate used it a few times, not me!!!) and they where a wealt of info

would you go back to the same lake again next year?

Hi Rory,
I'm extremely sorry that you had a bad trip due to the inconsiderate nature of the other anglers on the lake. I'm sure you'll appreciate there is no way of us vetting people and lack of civility can spoil things for everyone whatever pastime we take part in...

Following the trip I had a phone call from a very angry owner Mr Bigot, complaining about the mess these guys left. The cleaning lady almost resigned... the upshot of this is that they will now be taking a 50 Euros deposit from all anglers to avoid the mess issue happening again.

The owners unfortunately speak very little English and are not anglers... It is very hard for them to understand the ins and outs of angling on the venue. Bad and selfish fishing practice is very hard to police.

Booking exclusively is naturally one solution, but its sad that a certain type of angler feels because he is in a foreign country he doesn't heve to respect any thing or anyone... this is a shame as it's a great venue with some fabulous carp... the week following your stay the big common came out at 66lb.

Regards
Gareth

That is down to poor management of the venue, you should never have to accept that type of behaviour on a pay lake.
It was a great place when Simon had it, a real shame to let it go to this.
All it takes is a bailiff, or owner to walk the lake each day, it's that simple!

I would agree with Damo and beleive in way of an appology a generous offer should be made to those affected by this shoddy management. GG.

Gareth I do understand that anglers cant be checked before hand but we all got the list of rules and they are easy enough to follow or to carry out inspections on. As Damo said all it would have took was someone to drop into the venue a few times throughout the week to have a look around.
As for you/Angling lines looking into what happened I was the one who got in touch with you and I was not contacted for any information about it. I feel that if I didnt say anything that someone else may just find themselves in the same awkward positions that we were put in through no fault of out own.

We were on there in 2006 and Michel Bigot or else his son was around everyday at about 3pm to see if everything was ok and to make sure the place was being kept well. There's no real secret involved, just leave the place as you'd wish to find it. And that's not at the end of the week either, do it everytime you visit the kitchen or use the facilities.


I'm just glad we usually book exclusive nowadays. It can save so much hassle and with some of the stories you read about how horrible foreign trips can go I'm more than willing to put in the extra 100/150 euro to ensure our group has the lake to itself. 99% of people going over to France nowadays are well behaved but it's the 1% that can ruin a dream trip. Book exclusive and avoid the risk.

Gareth,
In my opinion it is really bad business to come back with an excuse and a mere apolagy as u have. `

"I'm extremely sorry that you had a bad trip due to the inconsiderate nature of the other anglers on the lake. I'm sure you'll appreciate there is no way of us vetting people and lack of civility can spoil things for everyone whatever pastime we take part in..."


The lads paid their hard earned dollars for a trip organised by anglinglines.
If you were away in spain on a family holiday and your apartment or hotel was not up to scratch you would EXPECT to be compensated.

In my own opinion this is the only option you have. A lot of the lads book every year without fail with your company,as i have done for the past three years. But if you are going to treat your clients in this manner WITH JUST AN APOLAGY, well to be honest there are other companies out there that will be only too delighted to take our money..


Regards,
Denis

P.S. you should not have to book lakes exclusively to enjoy ur holiday paul if the lakes were ran correctly

"P.S. you should not have to book lakes exclusively to enjoy ur holiday paul if the lakes were ran correctly."

I couldn't agree with you more Denis, if they were run correctly. Angling lines are an agency through which you book a lake or places on that lake. They don't own any lakes or run any lakes. It's the owners/caretakers of the lake who are responsible. Should Angling Lines/Gareth be presumed guilty by association? I don't think so. As I said in the above post, Mr. Bigot the owner of Margot was down to us everyday at about 3 o clock. I remember him asking me if the particles I was using were prepared properly. I felt he was looking after the lake and fish as well as us, the paying anglers.

I fished Island lake through Angling lines on two occasions last year, both times Mick Hall the bailiff was around on a daily basis asking us if everything was ok and if we needed any help or advice. I fished Croix Blanche when Gareth himself was running the lake and he was around regularly asking if everything was alright and if we needed anything. St. Cassien was the same, Martin Russell was in regular contact with us to see if he could do anything. All were great hosts and were only too glad to help out. That's the difference which makes you rebook.

The major problem and source of hassle is the anglers on the bank. Once the booking has been confirmed through the agent I believe any strife you have while there is to be dealt with the owner or the bailiff. The majority of your money is going to the owner, not Angling Lines who will be getting an agents fee from the owner for filling those spots on the lake. On every trip I've been on we've been given a number by Bridget or David to contact the owner if there is any problem while there. I'd be very surprised if Rory and the lads were not given any information or contact details of the owner. These occurances need to be reported at the time. Too often people sit back and think that they'll just have to deal with it. You've paid your money as well as the next guy and deserve your unspoiled fishing too. If nothing is reported to the owner or bailiff then there's no problem as far as they are aware.

Paul.
I agree with u to an extent and as u know i have been to the said fishery twice. On both occassions myself and Darran were visited twice by the younger brother and he only was out for a stroll.
Angling lines should really have a list of clients and any incidents that happened on a fishery while they were there. Granted this cannot be done for first time holiday makers. But those who abuse the facilities and other anglers at a fishery should be banned from using anglinglines again.

On my trips to France i have never had any real problems with the fisheries or the people there. In my opinion Angling Lines are a great company and have done there best for us on every occassion, as i have written in many articles in a national angling magazine.

The point still stands though if u book a holiday u expect a certain standard and if this is not met u are entitled to compensation.
Surely u can see my point Paul and i am sure Gareth does.

To be honest i would be very suprised and dissapointed if the lads were not sorted out in some way for the other party ruining their holiday and the lack of managment on the lake that week.

Regards,
Denis.

As I said earlier Paul there were rules to abide by posted out with the final package/payment. On the rules/details it said there would be a number on site to contact the lake owner regarding bait ordered etc and when we arrived there was a cleaner who spoke no english and no phone numbers to call?? The owners son did call down later that morning to see we were on the lake. I gave him my bait order and he came back the next day and that was it,we didnt see him again. I`m all up for being left alone to fish away but sometimes checks need to be made. A mistake that I`m sure wont be made again if the powers that be take note of my comments.

I have to agree with a list of bad clients Denis, for definite. If a person booking a spot on a lake can't behave themselves and ruins the trip for another person booking through that agent then they should not be given the chance to do so again.

I still believe though that the blame lies with Michel Bigot and whoever else is supposed to be looking after the anglers while they are there for the week. Using 6 rods is a blatant rule-breaker and the angler should be banned from bookings for a period. Money talks though so I cannot see this being put into action. If said angler were to do that at his local water or syndicate you may be sure that a ban would be coming his way.

Rory, regarding checks being made sometimes, they should be made at all times by the lake owner. It is his lake that the booking angler is fishing so I feel the buck stops with him. If incorrect angling is going on at his water then I believe the blame lies at his door.

If a holiday goes bad it's normally the holiday company is to be approached. I wouldn't be going to my local travel agent, it's the holiday company I'd be approaching for a remuneration of my money. I feel it's the same with this situation. If the Margot management could be spoken to about the incidents by Gareth or Briget and some sort or compensation organised then that would be great but I still reckon that Angling lines are innocent in the whole melee.

Yet more evidence that handing over cash to fish these comercial type french venue's can be utter madness. If the place you book is'nt fishing well or another party is ruining your trip, theres very little you can do but grin and bare it. I've only been over the once, will prob be over again in late summer to fish one of the public waters, if that doesnt work out, either find another public lake or river. The fish in these waters can be as big if not bigger than in the comercials. Maybe im just a tight git.

Paul. If i booked a non-fishing holiday through a company and it all went wrong through no fault of my own.
The company u booked the trip with are at fault, as u paid the company ur money, not the holiday complex etc ..
Regards,
Denis..

p.m sent

I find this really hard to do, but belive it or not, I agree with Denis, the booking agent is responsable, they should ensure the lake owners take care and due diligance on the waters, if they are the sellers, they take the ownership for the booking and product/package they have sold.

I know what you're saying but I still think that it's the water owners fault if something is going on that shouldn't be, it's just my opinion. I've been reading the Angling Lines F.A.Q.s and Q9 relates to complaints. It might be worth investigating as they mention that the lake owner might not be paid for your trip if his side of the contract is not fulfilled. I would assume that the running of the lake in a proper manner would be one of his conditions of contract. Might be worth following up.

Damo ,
Theres a first time for everthing mate... ........ ..............

So whats the story, has anything been sorted for the lads???????????

DENIS wrote:

Gareth,
In my opinion it is really bad business to come back with an excuse and a mere apolagy as u have. `

Hi there
First off I'm sorry you feel it's bad business to simply apologise because you didn't enjoy your stay sharing the venue with these individuals. But I am genuinely concerned that this doesn't happen again. This strikes me as a normal reaction.
I have met several of you and/or we have had dealings on the net. so my main concern is to see this never happens again and we can do all in our power to try to make things up.
As Paul points out we do not own any of the venues. We market and book for the owners in question.

I have though taken the affair up with Laurent Bigot, who admits that due to his heavy work load while you were there he was not able to visit the lake as much as he usually does, for this he apologies too.
He had to help clean up the mess left, so he has agreed he'll have to try to make time to get down more regularly to avoid such situations in the future.
He will now be adding his mobile number on the cabin wall so he can be contacted easily in case of a problem. Also my number is on the info given out by AL so in the event of issue like this I can be contacted and get in touch with the owner to sort it out. If we are not made aware of it in time we can't sort things out.

Finally I'm trying to see what can be sorted by for the guys who went out there. I will keep the board posted.

Best Regards
Gareth

Hi Guys,
I've just had a long conversation with the owner of Margot,
Michel Bigot, who is as disappointed and concerned as I am about the behaviour
of the group of individuals in question and the effect it had on spoiling your
holiday at Margot.
He has agreed that efforts must be made by his staff to
get down the lake more regularly in future. Your problems coincided with
the start of the trout season in France and he and his guys were working flat
out - this is not meant to be an excuse, simply a fact. In future he will be
posting his mobile number on the wall so that anglers can call him with any
such issues. Furthermore, as I said in my last post, you can contact
us during your stay if things get out of hand like this and we can
get the owner to intervene.
To go some way to make up for the inconvenience
suffered Michel has offered the group a 15% reduction for a return visit to the
venue. This is good for any one of the party individually or for or a lake
exclusive booking. Contact the Angling Lines office if you want to
take advantage of this.
I hope this goes someway to compensating... Margot is
a great venue & it’s such a shame that a mindless few can spoil it for others.
Rest assured we always want you to have a good fishing holiday and we’ll do
everything in our power to facilitate this.

Best Regards

Gareth
Angling Lines.

heading over in march have it booked exclusively so should b no grief as the lads had anyone any tips or wat kind of baits do i need to bring first time headn to france any info b great

Nice one m8.......Heading to France in April myself living for it..........Happy Days........... ....How much was it ???/

What month are you going to be there ??
I think Paul C has an article on the place by paisley I'll see if I can track it down for you.
The only bit of advise is bring some winter clothing just in case you draw Winter Piont

march 28 for a wk 7 of us going costing bout 360 a piece for the lake cant wait go meself:D mad to go where u headin dub?