Night carp · 87

Night Carp Fishing in Haute-Vienne

Venues sourced from the prefectural decree in force.

venues
23
rivers and canals
12
public lakes
5
private waters
6

The essentials in 20 seconds

Night carp fishing is legal in Haute-Vienne on designated stretches defined by prefectural decree. Vegetable baits and boilies only, catch-and-release is mandatory. Geocarp lists 23 verified night venues in this department, with maps, access details and angler reports — in English.

Positions shown to within 1 km. The precise swim map is for members.See the map

Featured — largest lake

Lac de barrage de Vassivière

Beaumont-du-Lac / Peyrat-le-Château · 928 ha

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Verified venues

Venues sourced from the current prefectural decree; private estates follow their operator's rules.

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Night fishing rules — Haute-Vienne

Always check the departmental fishing federation's official list before your session.

Official list — Haute-Vienne fishing federation

Frequently asked questions

Is night carp fishing legal in Haute-Vienne, France?

Yes, on designated stretches defined by prefectural decree. Geocarp lists these venues with maps, access details and angler reports.

Do I need a French fishing licence?

Yes. A valid French fishing licence (carte de pêche) is mandatory and can be bought online at cartedepeche.fr. Some venues require an additional night carp option from the local angling club (AAPPMA).

What baits are allowed at night in France?

Vegetable baits and boilies only. Any carp caught at night must be released immediately — keeping or transporting carp at night is prohibited by French law (decree 2004-599).

Is the Haute-Vienne (87) a good destination for a night carp fishing trip from the UK?

It is one of the best options in central France if you want reservoir fishing in genuine upland scenery. The prefectural order in force allows night carp fishing with no seasonal closure on designated sectors, including parts of Lake Vassivière (Pierrefite, Coteau de Nergout, Auphelle), the Sainte-Hélène reservoir at Bujaleuf with four beats, the Larron and Fleix dams, the Artige stretch and the Saint-Marc and Chauvan reservoirs on the Taurion. River anglers get around a dozen marked stretches on the Vienne between Saint-Junien and Saint-Léonard-de-Noblat, plus three on the Gartempe. Limoges is the natural base and has an airport. Rules: plant baits only, every species returned, no fishing at or within 50 m below dams, locks and sluices, and two of the four Bujaleuf beats close from the first Sunday in July to the last Sunday in August.

The Haute-Vienne is the reason a lot of travelling carpers end up in the Limousin: this is the department of Lake Vassivière, a granite reservoir on the Millevaches plateau, and the prefectural order in force opens designated sectors of it — Pierrefite, the Nergout slope and Auphelle — to night carp fishing with no seasonal closure. Around it sit the other Maulde reservoirs: Sainte-Hélène at Bujaleuf with four separate beats, the Larron and Fleix dams and the 2,900 m Artige stretch. On the rivers, the Vienne carries the most water and the most swims, from Saint-Junien in the west through Aixe-sur-Vienne and Verneuil to Saint-Léonard-de-Noblat, while the Gartempe adds Rancon, Peyrat-de-Bellac and Saint-Ouen, and the Taurion the Saint-Marc and Chauvan reservoirs. It is upland country — wooded, thinly populated, cool at night even in summer — with Limoges as the obvious base and airport. Rules are simple but enforced: plant baits only, every fish of every species returned, nothing fished at dams, locks, sluices or within 50 m below them, and signposted limits you need to respect.