Norway - advice needed

**Bluefin** · 25-11-2005, 09:58

Lads if any of you have experience of travelling to fish in Norway could you share some of your recommendations. I definetly want to go in 2006 but would like to make the right decisions about where and when and with whom. Is the shore angling any good? Would I be better organising the trip myself or should I go with the package deals offered in the likes of sea angler. Thanks for any help, pm me if you wish.

Bluefin

**dabcatcher** · 25-11-2005, 10:12

be careful .. a group of freinds from the local tackle shop went across to fish a comp for a few days, last year. they fished in hired small boats they caught lots of fish the problem was the biggest fish that won the match was a cod of only 1.1/2lb.

i dont know when tthey ent or where but they were very disapointed.
i,m led to believe you need to go a long way north.

for serious fishing you,d better get good advice from the right people.

**Pelagic** · 25-11-2005, 11:08

For seriously big cod fishing you need to go North, up around Tromso.

There's good general fishing in the middle of the country around Trondheim, which can be very good for big coalies.

To go to these areas you'd really need to fly so you've got severe restrictions on the weight of tackle you could take.

If you want to take a mountain of kit you'll need to go by ferry to Bergen or Kristiansand down South. Don't expect loads of big fish in this area.

Shore fishing seems to be better down South than up North - I think it's because hardly anyone shore fishes up the top.
I wouldn't bother with shore fishing - get a self drive boat and use it as a mobile pier.

If you want a cheap trip, book it yourself but take the risk of it going wrong.
If you want a good trip, contact Anglers World Holidays 01246 221717.

If you decide to go, PM me if you want any further advice.

Pelagic.
Recently relocated from Norway to Oman. (much warmer) .

**havengel** · 25-11-2005, 13:16

Shore angling may be very good, but you got to know the spots. It's like Pelagic say, shore angling like you know it is rare up north, not because there is no fish, but from boat you'll get in touch with the big ones . The safest is to follow Pelagic's advice and head north. Best fishing is late winter/spring and late summer/early autumn. Book well in advance, the Germans and Swedes have probably booked most for next year already.

Röst is a legendary place with cod up to 50 lb, coalfish to 40, and maybe a bonus halibut. Most places up north with free passage to the open sea will produce large fish. Other good places are Titran and Hitra in Tröndelag.

**robertlangford** · 25-11-2005, 15:55

Hi Bluefin.
Tell me what you want to catch and when and I'll see if I can help you.
Norway has a huge coast and healthy fish stocks so you’re heading in the right direction.
Take a look at a chart. You'll see that the southern tip is surrounded by the Norwegian Trench. This means that there is very deep water right up to the coast. This used to be a wonderful place to fish but since the Europeans cleaned out the sandeels it's been very poor. From Arendal right round to Haugesund there are lots of nice places to stay and great scenery. A ferry goes from Newcastle so it’s easy to reach and there's plenty to do for the whole family and dad can go fishing. There are some wrecks on the other side of the trench but they are a long way from a safe harbour but, from what I've heard from commercial fishermen; still full of fish but nobody’s doing them at the moment.
There are a few fjords between Haugesund and Bergen that do have some good fishing but you need a good guide or will have to pay a few visits to figure out the best spots. You can expect cod, ling, coalfish and pollack. But don’t expect anything big. Although, there are a few spots that give up a few bigish ling every winter; but only worth going for if you really know what you’re doing.
Now look at the chart again; here the shelf starts widening this is where the good fishing starts. The coast just keeps on getting better until you reach the North Cape. Here the problem is not catching fish but stopping the smaller fish occupying your hook. Don’t take this lightly it is a real problem. You can catch 100 ‘s of kilos of mid sized fish on a good day but big fish are hard to target. You need local knowledge and special techniques. It’s not for beginners.
The best fishing is to be had where you can get at it. That means you need a good self drive boat and somebody who will show you the marks. A good self drive is an open boat with an inboard diesel, full electronics and safety gear. There are not many of them.
I am running a guiding service near Kristiansund. Here the target species’ will be coalfish, cod and ling over 10 kg. On a good week every angler will see 18 kg coalfish and cod but I expect anglers to catch 10 kg fish even when it’s off.
I guided there with Dave Lewis a couple of weeks ago. Take a look at the January Sea Angler.
Obviously I would love to put you on some fish but I’ll answer any questions you have otherwise.
I suggest a minimum of two sets of tackle:
30-50 lb boat gear with 40 lb braid and medium spinning gear with 300m 20 lb braid and a fixed spool or multiplier. Fish Pirks and bait much as you would at home over wrecks. The light gear is used for vertical jigging with 40 -100g pirks.
Alternatively you could join a competition like the Light Tackle Cup on Hitra in April; It’s all inclusive and you’ll be shown the ropes from start to finish.
The shore fishing in Norway is great, but it depends what you want. I love fishing of the rocks from Islands on a summers day. Lots of Pollack and cod to 4 kg or so. If you want to use a beach caster then you need bait. There are a few places where you can dig lug and the fish won’t let you down. However Norway has a huge coast and only 4.3 million inhabitants so there are rarely footpaths as at home. A road or path generally only goes to the coast when there is a house or boat jetty there.

Hope this helps.

RobL

**littleliam@tiscali.co.uk** · 29-11-2005, 21:17

HI I have been to norway about 5 years agow left newcasle to bergen then to just past trondhelm to bakkan wahi 5 in citrien blingow sorry about spelling book direced through www.dintur.no did not have eny trouble 1 day on ferry day and half on road but stayed on campsite one night loved the travel great experins great fishing but take all you need with you eny moor inf just ask been thiking of going back lets know how you get on

**keving** · 01-12-2005, 13:16

Hi,

I have lived and worked in Bergen for nearly 10 years now. I have a 27ft fishing boat and have had my share of decent sea-fishing in this area.

I See that Bergen comes in for some "flack" regarding the quality of its fishing (not in this post but otherwise) compared to the North of Norway.

Just to put a couple of things into "perspective".

Norwegian records according to Norwegian sea fishing organisation at date christmass 2004 (slightly outdated but not so important).

Ling 36kg+ Bømlafjorden (= just south of Bergen)
Tusk 15.7kg Nedstrandsfjorden (= just south of Bergen)
Halibut 161kg Bømlafjorden (This record has now been broken)
Hake 7.1kg Fedje (just outside Bergen) Has now been broken with a fish even closer to Bergen
Pollack 11kg (approx) Øygarden - islands just outside bergen
Escaped Rinabow trout (c. 13kg) Matre just north of Bergen

The point is clear, there is a lot of decent fishing to be done in ths area, and whilst the cod and coalfish fishing cannot compete with the far north (or the sheer quantity of fish possibly), the areas around Bergen have a LOT to offer the sea angler who does not ONLY think COD. Anyway, 30lb cod are not uncommon in Bergen, and we are not talking about the kind of fishing seen in the Thames estruary to put it like that! We dont blank EVER! My PB cod is 34.5lbs and I dont even fish for them.

Bergen is much quicker and cheaper to travel to than the NOrth of Norway, and with cheap flights from Stanstead and Gatwick, its actually possible to fish for a weekend instead of wiping off a weeks holiday that could have been spent with the wife (well ok, backfire on that point maybe

). If you want to use a weeks holiday, Bergen is WAAAY more family friendly than other coastal areas of Norway, unless your family want to be stuck in the middle of no-where (with exception of certain smaller cities in the NOrth of course).

However, for those with no consideration of time or money, then the FAR FAR north of Norway (1 word = Sorøya) (apart from coalfish which is good in mid-Norway = Røst just south of the Islands of Lofoten) is where you should go - IF you want cod and good chances of halibut also.

Ling fishing in areas around Bergen is "fantastic" in December through March with peak Jan-Feb. And this, combined with surrounding areas produce as many large ling as most other places in Norway. I would also like to point out that through my work, I have been on a few scientific cruises along the entire Norwegian coastline, and have had the odd opportunity to put out a line. Nevertheless, my best ever sea trips have all still been taken in Bergen. Why? Well, simply becasue of local knowledge. Even in the NOrth of Norway you have to find the fish - What you see in the magazines is the best of the trips, not the average trip or the bad trip.

I guide anglers here in Bergen on a weekend basis as a hobby in my boat. I have a HIGHLY competative package of boat, bait, gear, accomodation at a price that is unmatchable - and aimed at the weekend angler for small groups 2-4. Hmm, now I am running the risk of plugging myself which is not what I want to do. I just want to put the records right with respect to the Norwegian coastline.

There are a lot of tour operators in Norway (hundreds offering fishing + accomodation packages). Usually these offer fishermens cabins and free use of a 14-20ft boat with small engine. Based upon 4-10 people sharing for a week or so. The only problem with "MANY" of these places is still finding the fish! There are VERY few charter boats in Norway, simply becasue most people own their own boats, and as such there is no "internal" demand for this as in UK.

There are now a few international operators focussing their attentions on Norway, because the NOrwegians have been slow to react to what appears to be a demand in the tourist market and others are expoiting that (and rightly so). These packages (at least the ones I have seen) are not cheap, simply becasue they are in effect "middle men". My best example of the "middle man" effect is actually related to salmon fishing in the river Figgjo in the south of Norway where my father in law happens to be a landowner. A day ticket in the very best sone of the river is approximately 120 pounds at the most expensive time. There was once an advert in Salmon and Trout with an English "operator" who was offering "test fishing" in the "unexploited" river Figgjo at 1500 pounds per rod for 3 days fishing! Yes, he was making some serious money if he filled up those 4 places he was offering. The sheer nerve of some people huh?

Anyway, totally diverged now and its NOT a knock against large international tour operators exploiting Norway. On the contrary, the Norwegians seem to be flustering around not knowing how to exploit this market properly, although some have clearly understood and operate good sea fishing camps.

If anyone wants any more info, either on Bergen, Norway in general, or what I can offer, then its just to mail me. Otherwise take a look at the door in southend angling centre if your in the area...

Kevin

kevin.glover@imr.no

**robertlangford** · 01-12-2005, 15:20

Hi Kevin, I agree with you on a lot of points. With a good guide I'm sure there is a lot of good sport to be had around Bergen. However you don't have to go up to Northern Norway to experience exceptional sport on a self drive basis. The Coast from Molde all the way up to Hitra and beyond has excellent sport with coalfish and cod throughout the year. And anglers can often get away without a guide as the grounds aren't difficult to find. However the boat and equipment are the limitations. You need a safe, sea worthy, well equipped, boat, and enough experience to handle it safely on the open sea. That's the big advantage with a guide. He'll take care that his anglers are using the right methods, at the right place, at the right time and safely.
The Norwegians havn't been slow to develop the fishing at all (after all angling tourism has had huge turnovers in the last few years) its just that they have, in many cases, employed unemployed people from the rest of Europe to act as guides. These chaps are often there because they're cheap, not because they're good.
If you are offering people the chance of being shown the fishing available on a well equipped sea worthy boat then I'm sure people will have a great time around Bergen.
Regarding the magazine reports that is only true some of the time. The fishing I had with Dave Lewis was not exceptional for the area that we were fishing however Dave was still flabbergasted.

Tour operators are not that bad. They organise, accommodation, and travel. Take your advertising and development costs into account and the fact that a tour operator has an office with staff and pays taxes. They work hard for their cut.
On the other side I had a couple of tours set up last year where people booked but cancelled at the last minute on three occasions. I didn't ask for a deposit as the bank transfer costs from the UK where so high. As a result people dropped out at the last minute and my partner was left carrying the costs of the house and the boat.
Now the people who book are insured and have the best of advice and they transfer their deposits within the UK.
If you live across from the beach you can try it any old time but if its a week of your hard earned holiday you want to get it right so the added cost of a tour operator is worth it for both sides.
Although as with all things there are exceptions.

Robert

**marlin man** · 01-12-2005, 18:48

i have fished norway on 2 trips both with dave lewis on sorte trips for anglers world in my opinion these are the best trips now to go on ,with the time and effort that has been put in to find the best accommadation,boats and travel arrangements nothing is left to chance.Nobody can garantee huge cod but if thats what you want then i would not hesitate in booking with an organized group trip