Merikarvia River is a true salmon river After years of persistent work by the fishery, salmon and brown trout now breed again in Merikarvia River. Rehabilitation of the rapids, improvement of the water quality, substantial re-stocking and a voluntary net free river estuary have all contributed to Merikarvia River’s miraculous comeback as a salmon river. Salmon and brown trout aren’t anymore occasional visitors to the river and during high seasons both fly fishers and spinners can successfully catch them. Therefore, we can honestly invite you to come and enjoy a true salmon river, Merikarvia River. Enticed by the salmon, hoping for the bite Catching the noble salmon requires a lot of patience, skill and a bit of luck. It is not usually an easy catch, but it can reward the persistent fisherman very generously. Upon return to its natal river, the salmon stops feeding, so the art of enticing it to snap up a fly or a lure is shrouded by a lot of mystery. Why, then, does the salmon occasionally attack the fly or lure so aggressively? Usually, however,the fisher has to use all his or her imagination and patience to fool the salmon. These factors draw each year a large amount of fishers, eager to catch the King of all Fish, towards Merikarvia River. Local tips for salmon fishers Deeper knowledge of salmon fishing on Merikarvia River has only developed during the last few years. Many favorable hideaways for salmons along the river remain yet to be discovered. Knowledge about which flies and lures, fishing tactics and water levels produce the best results is slowing accumulating. In general, salmon start rising into the river in late July. If the flow rate is low, the salmon will remain at the estuary, waiting for water levels to rise. Often, salmon in the river choose to occupy deeper areas with calmer streams, so it is useful to focus fishing efforts on these areas. Closer to spawning time, in September to October, the fish move closer to the rapids, particularly its shoulder areas; the still waters between rapids, and also to areas just below rapids. Spawning takes place in October to November. The best time to catch salmon is in September to October, first in the lower reaches of the river, then, throughout the whole river. The flow rate has a great effect on the behavior of migratory fish. Spawning and migratory behavior is triggered when streaming increases. Quite often, the best chances of a catch take place when water levels decrease after a period of high flow rates. An extended static period may inactivate salmon, especially if the flow rate is very low. Choosing your fly or lure Flies and lures fished near the surface have often proved efficient, and working towards the bottom is necessary only after the water temperature has cooled down considerably, in October to November. Size 8-2/0 flies are the most popular here, as well as about smallish 7-10 cm long wobblers and spoons. Suitable colors include black, brown, red and yellow. Boldly shaped flies are recommended for visibility, due to the dark humus-tinted color of the water. Calm swimming movements are generally fine, but unusual choices in swimming style or color of lures and flies can provide excellent results. During the autumn, the salmon may take the bait from sunrise to after sunset, so there is no need to stop fishing towards early evening. Twilight fishing near the surface with large flies or wobblers can be a memorable experience. In April to May, try enticing dark winter salmon with boldly colored flies and lures. Please remember that the minimum measure for salmon is 60 cm. Sea trout fishing - a rare treat Finland offers very few opportunities for quality sea trout river fishing. sea trout is the migratory version of brown trout. Thanks to the extensiveness of the river’s fishing area, its beauty, the natural propagation of sea trout throughout its rapids and good catches, Merikarvia River is well known nationally. Catch statistics aren’t comparable to those of bygone days, but development has been very encouraging. Merikarvia River is well suited to light sea trout fishing with flies and lures. In contrast to salmon, sea trout may take nutrition also when residing in the river, so imitative flies, including dry flies, in addition to provocative lures, can tempt it. In spring, larger flies and lures can be used; later into the year smaller sizes are generally more effective. Black, yellow, yellow-black and orange, size 10-4 wet flies are all a good choice. As for lures, small spoons and wobblers are the most popular. Twilight fishing of sea trout In April, fishing concentrates on the dark, spawned sea trout that have spent the winter in the river. During this month, silvery sea trout also migrate up the river from the sea. Some of the trout station themselves near the Holmankoski rapids, waiting to feast on a small salmon related species, smelts, which rise en masse from the sea to spawn in the river. During the month of May, the sea trout return to the sea. However, portions of the sea trout rise further up the river to wait for spawning in October. Spring migration can carry on until midsummer. If there is enough water in the river, then sea trout can be caught near the rapids, with larger individuals being found in mild streaming places between rapids. The autumn migration of sea trout starts in late July to the beginning of August and continues into October. Migratory behavior is affected by flow rates just as with the salmon. During periods of low water levels sea trout are best caught in semidarkness or in summertime even in the heart of the night. Sea trout are rather shy and don’t usually show their presence by leaping as salmon do. In the rapids, brown trout might station themselves in a cramped place between rocks or up a minor river channel, while salmon require more swimming space. The local minimum size for sea trout is 40 cm. The exacting grayling Occasionally, larger populations of grayling occur in Merikarvia River and the fishing can be fairly good. Graylings have experienced a lot of fishing techniques during the years they’ve spent in the river, so it isn’t easy to fool them. Graylings take best to small flies with thin leaders that are freely floated. Dry flies are most effective throughout the warm season. The largest graylings are over 50 cm, although catching even a 30-40 cm grayling tells something about your fly-fishing skills. The local minimum size for grayling is 40 cm. Wildly jumping rainbow trout from pockets in the rapids Rainbow trout is definitely the most common catch on Merikarvia River year round. Catch-size rainbow trout is planted in the river’s fishing areas nearly every week, with the exception of midwinter. It is recommended to take rainbow trout for eating and to release grayling and brown trout back into the river. This helps to protect the grayling and brown trout populations. Rainbow trout best thrive in potholes, near strong flowing rapids. You can try fooling them with small bottom-hugging wobblers, spoons, jig worms, and flies. Towards sunset, surface fishing becomes more feasible. Just after planting into the river, rainbow trout may take to many lures, but they soon become wary. Experienced rainbow trout best take to small imitative flies that are free-floated. As water levels drop, rainbow trout move from shallow rapids towards deeper, more gently flowing pockets in the river. The average weight of rainbow trout is between 1-2 kg, but monster-sized specimens can reach up to 7 kg. The minimum size for rainbow trout is 40 cm. River trout from the rapids and under bushes A small portion of the 2-3 year old sea trout (15-25 cm), don’t migrate but instead remain in the river and are known as river brown trout. If food in the river runs out, river trout may be forced to head out to sea. River brown trout occur in most parts of the river, but prefer the rapids areas and those shadowed by shore vegetation, as well as small secondary rivers. River trout are usually between 30-40 cm, rarely larger than 50 cm. These wily local fish are quite difficult to catch when fully grown. A good tactic is to use small lures or imitative flies in conditions of low light levels. The minimum size for river brown trout or sea trout is 50 cm. Large Baltic whitefish in the autumn Baltic whitefish rise into the river in September to October and usually weigh between 1-5 kg. Spawning takes place in November, when often ten or more whitefish can be seen spawning in the same place at a given time. The best chances of seeing this spectacle is at the south fork of the Lankoski rapids, near the parking place by the old mill. Be content to just look on, as spawning takes up all the energy of the whitefish. Before spawning, you can try to catch whitefish throughout the river using small flies.