Our best tips on late summer rivers
August is nearly here and it is a beautiful time for fly fishing. Here's a list of rivers you should check as the evenings get darker.
River flows in most of southern Norway has been good this summer, and reports of fish and fly fishing enthusiasts living a good and healthy life are coming in from all around Fishspot-country. Mayfly hatches are still good some places, although caddis are more and more becoming the main dish. Trout, grayling and char are still feeding voraciously and some large pre-spawning trout are hungry and on the move.
If you are considering a trip know that fishing pressure has dropped considerably since midsummer so this is the time to experience some of the best rivers and stretches for trout and grayling in relative solitude.
Try some of these rivers in August:
Borgund river in Laerdal
To get from Hemsedal to Laerdal is easy. Just head west. You will find excellent fishing on the other side of the mountain range aas well, when you enter Vestland county.
Borgund river is gin-clear, holds impressive trout and runs through a wonderful pastoral landscape covered in irridescent green. Maybe not the best river for beginners.
Holselva in Ål, Hallingdalen
Holselva is right there next to Renaelva when it comes to your chances of hooking into major-league trout on the fly. It runs into Strandafjorden in Ål in Hallingdalen. It is a regulated river, where the large lake run trout of Strandafjorden come to feed and spawn – right along RV7 between Hol and Ål.
Classic waters of Engerdal
If you really want to experience what made the area famous among English anglers, you should stay at Smithsetra and live like an English nobleman on a fishing trip in Norway in the nineteenth century. The seter has eight beds and is suitable for a group of friends.
Smithsetra at Galten Gård has a unique history and offers exciting and varied fishing in the vicinity, near the outlet of Galtsjøen, a well-known fishing spot called Galthodet. Isterfossbua at Isterfossen is a simpler but not necessarily less well-located alternative.
With a fishing permit from Engerdal Mountain Board, you can fish in most places nearby, except for Isteren and a few other lakes and tarns. The fishing opportunities in this area are formidable, and there are several affordable rental cabins near the fishing spots.
Kvennan Fly Fishing in Glomma
The fly-fishing zone at Kvennan boasts many different insect species. You can experience good hatches of as well as caddisflies and terrestrial bugs such as ants and beetles.
The river has an excellent population of grayling and a sparse population of large trout, making it an ideal place to refine your nymphing technique!
Lågen Fishing River in Gudbrandsdalen valley
Gudbrandsdalslågen (Lågen) is a huge watercourse, even after Norwegian standards. You will find everything from huge migratory trout the size of multi year salmon to selective trout and grayling sipping size #22 emergers in clear waters.
The river and its tributaries are recognized as some of the best fisheries in Norway for inland species.
The River Vangrøfta
This small pure trout river that runs through Dalsbygda only sells ten licences per day and is almost impossible to get access to in the 3-4 weeks considered prime-time.
What people seem to to forget is that trout eat a lot in august too. With this years good water levels it's really a no-brainer to recommend a trip to this beatiful little stream.
