I was woken up in the cottage by the sounds of loads of singing birds and the sound of the green river rapids. I tackled up and got down to the river and it looked like a million bucks. I had a redbutted atomic stekel on the leader and I chucked it behind a large stone and bam a large fish attacked directly and took 10-15 meter of line with a slow but steady pull. Of course I thought that it was a large trout but then the fished jumped and it was a very nice grayling. The fished jumped some more and got down to bottom to do that grayling pushing in the deep. Soon enough the fish was tired and I hand landed it by the “bloody rock” just down the outlet of the stream. It was magical; my first grayling above the 1kg mark in Laponia and it was so beautiful with is shimmering scales and big dorsal fin. I sat down and took a quick drink out of the river and had a nice little smoke and I felt alive like never before. Then Andreas came down and asked how it was and told him that now the fishing part of the trip was complete and that i didn’t need any more big fish on this trip. We just sat there in the nice weather and felt like a million bucks!! Soon, I saw big shadow rise and take insect in the riffle part of stream upstream of where we were sitting. I put on a streaking caddis stillborn and threw upstream. A large fish rose and I immediately striked without saying God save the queen. Then it was no nice words that came out of my mouth, that I can guarantee you. But Andreas calmed me down with words that there is plenty of big fish here just wait until the evening rise. After this we caught and released loads of medium sized trout and after a while the hunger grew to magnificent proportions and we stopped for dinner knowing we would be back in the late evening. After a nice dinner we were to full of food to fish and the evening and night was spent by the fireplace looking out onto the river with rising big trout on the calm water at the head of the stream. I have never seen so many nice fish feeding at the same place and still neither I nor Andreas didn’t have the urge to go fishing and was really content by just watching these great creatures from a distance. This was a true bliss of the heart and the conversation with Andreas was great and so was the malts. I went to bed that night and I didn’t dream of the dangerous mega trout this night. I just slept in peace.
Text: Per-Anders Nilsson
Photo:Andreas Lestander and Per-Anders Nilsson
what a great article … grayling is a species that i have yet to pursue or catch … look forward to the day that i can try my luck at that …. sounds like sweden is a beautiful place to fly fish … congratulations on a great trip and great fish …. i have a question .. how big to grayling get?
Gotta love Sweden! What a beautiful fish. Thanks for sending us stories from the homeland! (Me anyways)
Hi Jeremy
Its feels great to get so nice remarks
regarding my writing.
Sweden is a great place for fishing especially
freshwater fish like graying, artic char and big ass brown trout. All fish i fish for are wild and has always been like that.
The Grayling can get up to around 3kg but thats a super fish!!!! Most waters here in sweden has 1kg as trophyfish mark.
My biggest one was 24 inches and had a dorsal fin that measured 12inches.
It took 30minutes on my XP 5weight to
get that one up. Its probably going to be one of the 3 biggest graylings caught this year in sweden.
I am actually guiding some of these waters during the summer time if u are intrested.
Best Regards
P-A
Thanks jinxed
I will keep the stories coming and yes
seden is a great fishing country with thousands of lakes and stream with wild fish
in them. But the most northern part is the best if u like grayling, char and trout.
Best Regards
P-A
Yep, you’re must be in bliss with so many Grayling at your feet.
Just by incidence I was fishing a river in Germany this weekend where I had a chanc to catch these fine fish.
I managed two small ones before a sudden steep rise in the waterlevel ended my fishing.
Still I want to get a large Grayling so I will either have to travel to Scandinavia or try Germany again if the river in questions drops to a suitable level.
Hi Marcel
Here in sweden it basicly finished for the
season. If u want to try next year you should order a tripp to late june or early august and have a chance on the superb wild trouts here.
Yours Cincerly
P-A
My family immigrated from Sweden in 1880 to the US. I would love to be able to fish there and visit someday. Thanks again for sharing.
Hello,
Sweden ist just a little to far for me 🙂
One of the guys from my club now lives in Idre so we do have some local knowlegde already.
I will probably head into your directions in two weeks time but will stop at a Danish fjord for some seatrout fishing.
Best regards,
Marcel
Hi Marcel
It nice to see that u have contacts in sweden
but Idre isnt big grayling country. You need to travel further north. But its beutiful nature in Idre. Hope u have good seatrout fishing.
Best Regards
P-A