Mika Lappalainen | Friday, 8 October 2021
Last weekend we had exploring day. Original plan was to go to fish familiar waters but our trainee from Belgium wanted to go hiking in Oulanka national park and I had something to pick up from that direction so we combined everything. I had planned couple of year to check upper part of Oulanka river. Now I had just perfectly some time to do it and it was kind of on the way.
We checked two strecht from area both of them were quite easy to reach by car and just short hike. It looked so good. Some small strecht and then some calm water between etc. Water was quite down so it was easy to cross river. We fished mostly on slow and calm waters, that where graylings should be allready, getting ready to spent winter. There was nothing, no bite nothing on first strecht.
We changed to area little bit and it was looking even better for autumn fishing. We gambled and fished with dries. Sun was shining but it was late afternoon and sun was allready behind trees, river was mostly on shadow. I started to wonder if this would be first time for years that I won’t catch anyting from river.
I think about it and I couldn’t remember when it has been last time that I haven’t caught anything from river, on lake I have had zero trips but from river. Well that would be risk when exploring new waters too late in autumn. We had great day on outdoors and had nice picnic between areas. It was time make last casts on the neck and go back home. Then I had it, strike and fish on. I landed one of the smallest graylings in my life. So it was not zero trip after all. We have to return to river next summer, I do have good expectation about water. I know there is big graylings and it not fished so hard, only issue could be some cabins along the river and how much those people fish and how.
There is always risk when you go to fish new waters, but it is always also fun. It is not always just catching fish is about nature also.
Have a nice weekend and go fishing
Mika from Finland