Date: 4-11 July
Air Temp: 4-11 C
Water Temp: 9-11 C
Water height: -10 to -18cm
Number of rods: 16
Number fish caught: 160
Biggest fish: 30lbs
Rod: Ian Eckersley
No 30+: 1
No 20-29: 22
No 8-19: 75
Grilse: 63
WEATHER: Everything from bright
sunshine and nearly cloudless skies to rain and hail. The only constant was the
NW wind.
COMMENTS: It is generally accepted
that numbers are down on all Kola rivers this year, but with a week of 160 to
16 rods the fishing is still pretty steady. There has been the odd quiet
session for some rods here and there, but then balanced out by a few bumper
outings - such is the nature of fishing. Offered a week of fishing where you
catch 10 fish per rod, with at least one twenty and 60% of fish are salmon over
8lbs - I’d take that any time! The wind blew upstream pretty well all week, and
at times was quite ferocious, but this did not deter the stalwart team of
guests for most of whom this was not their first rodeo. If the water could have
been covered more effectively on some days, perhaps the weeks total may have
been greater? What certainly was a feature of the week was the daily story of
huge fish lost. Early season is traditionally the best time to catch a really
big fish, but the numbers of encounters over this last fortnight suggest there
is a very real chance throughout the seven week season.
Lodge life was a lively affair with several
comics and the Irish love of story telling and the craic. Great company both on
an off the water.
