First of all the headline contains a lot of sarcasm… We had a nice but fishing wise quiet week on the Gaula ending to midsummers. The bites were few and far between. It was one of those weeks that if I had to market Atlantic salmon fishing to someone it would be a pretty tough job. It was certainly not a trip for a beginner.
All and all the season on the Gaula has been a disaster and the low water levels contributed to the fact that our fishing area on the lower Gaula did not stop the few fish running. So there was a lot empty casts made between bites and. Even the weather which is normally very nice on the Gaula was not cooperating. It was cold and very windy most of the trip. The positive side to the low water levels was that we got most of our action with floating lines and light tips.
The highlights of the trip where, my friends beautiful hen salmon of about 11kg that was safely released and salmon sashimi that we made from a smaller fish. We also had a great crew and a lot of laughs on our week there. I do have to say though that all the other things could not save the trip as it’s all about the fish. The slow fishing and very low returns to the whole river did not leave a positive feel. I am very concerned about the state of that river and hope all the best for it. I just love to fish on that river and it would brake my heart if it’s downward spiral does not come to a stop.
Thanks to everyone and hopefully I’ll be back again on the golden river soon. Additional photo credits to Ilkka Neva and Joonas Saarikko.
Gaula catch statistics and water level at Gaulfossen.
[fbls]