Coming first in the draw for swims on a holiday fishing session can bring a lot of pressure, but Shane Hull made the most of his luck on a recent trip to Gigantica by catching one of the lake's biggest residents.
First out the hat, the 35-year-old chose to settle in to 'Scottie's Corner' for his week-long session on the famed French holiday venue and would be rewarded for this choice in spectacular fashion.
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"I noticed the water in the area was a lot more coloured, so when it was time to pick my spot, there was only one choice," Shane told us.
"I've been to France over twenty times and never come first in the draw."
Being a corner swim, Shane opted to keep things quiet, fishing at 15-18 wraps range over a bed of 15 & 18mm Mainline Cell boilies drip fed with a throwing stick.
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"Fishing was very hard around the lake all week for everyone, with the temperatures going up to 35 degrees," he said.
"My first take came on the Sunday just before sunset, and was an awesome 46lb 6oz mirror known as 'Didgets'.
"From then until Thursday I had 11 runs, landing five fish, including two thirties."
Deciding to move his rods into deeper water after a heavy storm, Shane then caught the attentions of one of Gigantica's A-Team.
"My left rod started beeping, so I walked to it and noticed the tip very slightly twitching," he said.
"I lifted into it and once the fish realised it was hooked, it ripped line off the reel and ploughed straight into the weed.
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"I managed to get it out and luckily my lead had ejected, so the fish came to the surface.
"I could see it was an absolute hippo, so my legs went to jelly as I slipped the net under it, she was so big she came back out of it and took off again!
"Eventually I got the fish in the net and couldn't believe what I had caught."
The huge 75lb 10oz mirror was a fish known as 'Fudgies', and is named after Dave Fuidge, who caught it at 61lb 10oz in May 2009. The fish is the third biggest resident in the 35-acre Gigantica Main Lake, with only 'Chunky' and the 'Immaculate Common' weighing heavier.
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"It is a new personal best for me and the highlight of an amazing fishing holiday," Shane said.
Shane fooled the impressive fish on a 15mm Mainline Cell pop-up presented on a Spinner rigwith a size 4 Korda Krank hook. In total he used around 25kg of boilies throughout the entire session - those big French carp certainly like their bait!
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