With its superb climate and diversity of scenery Gran Canaria has long been a popular year-round holiday destination. Well now you can go carp fishing there too… this could be the ideal location to beat those winter blues!

Lake Chira , high in the mountains of Gran Canaria, is a venue which has been well known in carp-circles over the last 15 years. Well now A&J are offering you the opportunity to fish this exciting lake.  They will make all the arrangements - you just fish.  The A&J guide will be with you throughout the whole week so you'll have nothing to worry about.

The fishing at the lake is extremely prolific and Chira has an excellent track record of producing 20 to 30lb fish. Several years ago it’s reputed to have produced fish to 45lb+, but we think that fish of this size are only present in relatively small numbers. The carp are magnificent creatures, large heavy scale patterns including some fully scaled fish. It’s not at all unusual to catch several 20lb+ fish per day.

Within walking distance is the restaurant ‘Presa Canaria’. Here you can sample a traditional buffet style meal most days, typically consisting of oven-cooked chicken, prepared in the owners famous delicious spicy sauce, served with baked potatoes and salad. Wine, beers and spirits are also available.

Nestling in the mountains at 900m the Embalse de Chira comes as somewhat of a culture shock to those of us used to the lush green, tree lined banks of northern European lakes. Here the landscape is stark and rugged, made up of volcanic rocks and stones. The bank sides are steep and in places access is not possible.

Stretching over approximately 150 acres, the lake was created in classic style by damming a valley.  The water level of the lake varies enormously throughout the year, and depends on the rainfall for its water supply. Over recent years the island has seen less than average rain and as a result the water is lower than it usually would be. This in itself does not pose any real problem for the fishing, but reduces the surface area of the water considerably and reveals more of the bank side.

There is a road, along its left hand bank, running up from the village of Cercados de Arana , towards the dam wall end of the lake . Access to the majority of the best fishing spots is possible from this road and is often only a short walk from the car. Other areas necessitate crossing private land. Permission must be obtained before entering these premises. Our representative on the island, Agustin, owns a large amount of the bankside and has the only legal campsite on the lake. You can night fish on Agustin's land when you book through us.  

It is a majestic piece of water and once you've overcome the initial surprise at it's size and rugged aspect , you can sit back behind a set of rods and admire the truly stunning backdrop.

Show me more pictures of the lake.

Show me a map of the lake.

The fishing at the lake is extremely prolific and rumours that fish were no longer present due to the lack of water are totally unfounded. I saw evidence of fish all around the lake, swimming in groups under the surface and crashing out. During the few hours I fished I had three runs, with the best fish well over 30lb.

Further evidence was provided by a small group of English anglers and one Dutch angler who between them landed a brace of twenties and a 30lb 8oz, while I was filming at the lake.

The venue has a very good history of producing 20lb and 30lb fish and this certainly doesn't seem to have been harmed by the lack of rain over the last three years.

In years gone by the water is reputed to have produced fish to 45lb+, but it is thought that fish of this size are only present in relatively small numbers. The carp are magnificent creatures, large heavy scaled patterns including numbers of fully scaled fish. There are as far as I know only mirror carp in the lake. 

We'll arrange your fishing permits for you in advance - all we need is a photocopy of your passport.

Show me more photos of the Chira carp.
Show me a video of the fishing.

I personally don't feel night fishing is necessary - the fish seem to feed extremely well during the day. Due to the limited amount of tackle you can take on the plane, if you want to continue fishing after dusk I'd suggest you use a Goretex type blanket over the bed chair and forget the bivvy all together.

On flights luggage is limited to just 22kgs so it is vital that you take the strict minimum. Rods should be packed in one of the specialist rod holdalls (Kis make an excellent version).  Alternatively a PVC drainpipe with end caps makes a cheaper and equally effective means of transporting your precious carbon fibre. Bait can be obtained locally, but it would be advisable to take a bag of boilies as back up. Agustin is looking to provide maize and boilies, which would be of great help to the visiting carpers.

Show me an article about the tackle I need to take.      

Show me an article on how to fish Chira.