The only way is up
It's been an exciting week for fly anglers targetting trout and grayling in the eastern part of southern Norway. More and more watersheds are entering what many think of as the peak of the season.
– Grayling have been rising to dries for a long time in Glomma. Larger trout have been more reluctant to climb the water column, but now more and more of our larger spotted inhabitants are showing themselves with rises, bulges or simply by being easier to spot, says river keeper Eirik Sætren of Kvennan Fly Fishing.
His words resonate with what is being seen in other rivers as well. As the water temperature rises more and more trout are bothering to look up, while grayling as usual seems to rise at lower temperatures, higher water levels even when hatches are relatively sparse.
– That's one of the best things about Glomma and its tributaries. You can aim for grayling when conditions are sub-optimal for trout on dries, or you can target large trout specifically while mostly grayling are rising. The large trout are generally easier to catch while the rivers are on the high side, he explains.
The drakes are coming
In some rivers the first sightings of large bugs like the green drake, Ephemera danica has been reported, and trout and grayling will naturally rise to such a huge meal. The slightly smaller cousin Ephemera vulgata has been tempting both still water trout and those who seek to catch them on fly gear for a few weeks already and spinner falls are possibly tapering out around Oslo, moving higher up and further north at a steady pace.
– While danica is being sighted in lower reaches of Rena and Trysil rivers, their much smaller cousin Baetis rhodani was still hatching in smaller rivers at higher elevations with alpine watersheds, where water temperatures were low last week, the river keeper tells us.
Run to the hills
If you want to plan a trip for the coming weeks and you want to get a feel for early-mid season river fishing, head for rivers like Grimsa, Atna and Folla. They still have a bit to go until the snow and cold water is out of the watershed, but with the coming temperatures this will happen fast.
The Bardu river in Troms in northern Norway is an extremely difficult river to predict due to the whims of the energy company running the power station at Altevatn, but it seems like it might be off to an early start based on the amount of snow in the surrounding mountains. Give it a week or two and might just be eminently fishable. Or not. It's treasure trove of a river when it's in the right mood.
One last tip?
– Get out as much and as often as you can. The weeks we have ahead of us are probably the best time for those of us who like rising trout and grayling in pristine rivers surrounded by beautiful Norwegian countryside, says Eirik before he heads out to check on the rivers again.
