This has been one hot summer in Scandinavia this year – and it ain’t over yet. We have the complete package: Extremely high temperature (for the cold north at least), burning sun, forest fires and rivers and ponds slowly drying out.
In some areas fishing for cold water species as salmon, trout and grayling has stopped completely – simply because catch and release can’t be carried out properly if the water is so hot, that fish are struggling to survive.
Some species aren’t troubled much by the heat, and seems to thrive in this hot summer. Perch, ide, carp, catfish and a bunch of other fish can provide good fly fishing sport right now. Still they should be handled with care – since the oxygen level is low in very hot water.
Going all in
If you want to look for opportunities instead of limitations in these condition – my advice is to grab your best swim shorts, speedos or swimsuits and get all in. This is a great opportunity to see your quarry, the baitfish, shrimps, insect larvae and the natural environment they live in – without freezing your butt off.
Bring some snorkelling equipment, an underwater camera (or just a cheap all-weather camera), a small aquarium net if you like. Or just go down there with your eyes open.
Every time I do – I feel breathtaken by the beauty of even the most ordinary biotopes. There’s just something cool about the water world, and you get a chance to see the bugs you are trying to imitate swimming, crawling and living their lives. You get a bunch of inspiration for making new flies, experiment with new materials, colours and fly design.
Here are a bunch of my images and a short video on underwater environments and the critters that live down there. Hope they inspire you to take a nosedive into your local ponds and streams.
Have a nice weekend :0)
Michael