Dalarna is the venue each year for our annual trip after post spawn Pike. It is rather special, marking the begining of the summer season for each of us, as well as placing us in a breathtaking location that is brimming with Pike. They grow big here on the Dalalven system and the lake record at the site we fish each May is a staggering 17kg! We arrived on the first day of May and got out on the lake immediately. The forecast for the coming three days was nixed, with the prospect of cold northerly winds the following evening, so we felt it important to make the most of the early part of the trip, fearing dropping water tempertures might put the fish off the feed.
That evening the fishing was good, with a moderate breeze cutting the water surface and a fair degree of cloud cover. At the first stop, Phil had a small fish straight away, on just his third cast. We then headed into a large spawning bay and began to work our lures through the shallow margins. It was rather quiet for a couple of hours, we moved constantly and methodically hammered the reed lines. After a while we opted to try a slightly deeper area where the reeds pushed out into the lake and after a few casts I had a sudden heavy take. It quickly became apparent it was decent double figure fish. t was duly netted and weighed, pulling the scales around to a very respectabl 6.73kg. This fish took a Firetiger Pigshad jnr., a favourite lure of mine. After a few photographs, she was slipped safely back into the water and swam off strongly. A great stat! We continued to fish for another hour, but things wre inexplicably quiet. Eventually we headed back to the cabin for food and a social. We discussed the next days fishing and decided to head for the spawning bays again, felling there could be some big fish resting in the area...
Day two proved more difficult due to deteriorating weather, particularily a stronger wind from the northwest. Despite this, Phil and I enjoyed some wonderful fishing, taking several Pike during the morning session. The fish were striking lures aggressively and we had a fantastic bite period before the weather deteriorated badly and we decided to get off the water due to increasing wind. These lakes are not to be taken lightly, and the weather can turn nasty very quickly. We had five fish in total up to around 7lb., nothing huge, but extremely enjoyable nonetheless. In addition to the fish landed, we had several strikes on the lures, as well as some followers. We were loathe to return to the cabin, though the weather gave us little choice....
Things deteriorated in the afternoon, as the wind continued to pick up strength. The evening was to prove a write off as the wind blasted down from the north and the thermometer plummeted. We were fearful that this might affect the fishing the next day, with Pike generally not like falling water tempertures at any time of the year. We stayed warm in the cabin, lit the fire and had a social that evening as the snow began to fall! This was to be a pattern of the coming days, with unseasonal, winter conditions and a strong wind hampering the fishing. On such a large body of water, strong wind required us to seek sheltered areas, mainly because of the wind chill factor.
Day three was tough, very tough. It was freezing cold and we struggled to catch. Nevertheless, we stuck it out and managed a couple of decent fish all the same. Under the circumstances, given the amount of work we had to put in, these were hard earned fish in very cold conditions. During the day we fished in a blizzard, whilst at another point we fished in warm sunshine as it snowed down vertically! As always, wildlife was everywhere, we enjoyed good views of a female Moose and a Beaver, whilst Bittern's boomed in the reededs and Marsh Harriers floated past us. The weather made it hard for us, but it was quite and experience on the lake that day. The fish we caught were generally small, though again there were a coupe around the 5/7lb. mark.
Our final day was more promising weather wise, we awoke to sunshine and warmer conditions and promptly got out on the water. It was apparent the fish were rather reticent to bite and we had a number of half hearted strikes. Nevertheless, we had a great morning, topped by a good double that slammed into my lure in open water and gave a good scrap before we landed it. As the morning wore on, the weather improved and conditions became pleasant, very welcome after such a period of cold. Eventually, we did manage several fish, including the heaviest fish of the trip on a glorious final session in the evening. This fish fell to Nick Shaw and would prove the heaviest of the trip. Again, it came in the spawning bays. Despite the tough fishing over most of the trips duration it was thoroughly enjoyable fishing, with a few decent fish in the boat. What a wonderful place to wet a line. Many thanks to Phil O Keeffe, Andy Shaw and Nick Shaw for a fantastic weekend....
My largest fish, a cracking spawned out fish of 6.73kg. Both this and Nick's fish would of been pushing 20 pounds pre spawn.
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