Equipment
What you need to succeed with your fishing in Ammarnäs
Fly Fishing
If you come to Ammarnäs for the first time or feel that fishing has not been as good as you had hoped, we recommend that you and your party book a Spot On guide with us at Guidecenter. We then drive around among the waters you are interested in in our nearby area for a couple of hours. We show you where and how to fish to succeed while we go through the flies that work best when you visit us. A short introduction of this kind can save you days on your vacation since you do not need to spend time looking for the best stretches along our waters.
Grayling
Grayling anglers mostly choose rods in line class #4 or #5 and this works excellently with us too. If you know you will fish for really big grayling it is wise to go up to line class #6 to be able to drill the fish quickly. In grayling fishing it is always the fish size that determines the line class of the rod.
A typical grayling rod is between 8'-9' for dry fly fishing and up to 11'6" if you will fish a lot of nymphs as it becomes easier to control the fly's movement in the water.
Standard lines are perfect for grayling fishing as these are good to mend in the water which is a prerequisite for the fly not to start dragging too fast. Short shooting heads are difficult to fish dry flies with in flowing water.
The fly selection for grayling fishing with us is the same as in the rest of northern Sweden. Special Pupa, Klinkhammer, Red tag, Floating caddis pupa, Båth's Spider flies and emergers of all kinds are the patterns that have worked best in recent years.
If it is tough conditions with high water or cold weather you may sometimes be forced down under the surface even in grayling fishing. Woolly Worm, Mickey Finn, rabbit streamer with gold head and similar flies can be the salvation for fishing when the weather forces are not with us in our unregulated waters.
Guidecenter always has a good range of flies and other consumables if you need to supplement on site in Ammarnäs.
Mikael Båth, 2014 (A French guest drilling grayling in Tjulån, line class #5)
Johan Borgström, 2013 (Peter Schmitt with a trout in Ältsån)
Trout and Char
If you will fish for trout in Vindelån or char and trout in some mountain lake, a rod in line class #5 is usually enough. However, it can be smart to use a rod in line class #6 which handles wind and large caddis imitations much better than line class five.
When it comes to rod length it is purely a matter of taste and anything from 7'-10' can be considered normal. If you will fish a lot with nymphs, a longer rod is preferable. If you will fish with dry flies in tight waters you might want to use a slightly shorter rod. The most important thing is that you have a rod you feel comfortable with.
The line selection is just as large and everything from short shooting heads and switch casting to longbelly works equally well in most waters you encounter in the Ammarnäs area.
The length and thickness of the leader in the wear part is determined by taste and the size of the fly. If we are talking about dry flies, the rule of thumb is the old honorable one that hook size divided by three gives a suitably thick leader tip to carry out the fly. A fly in size 12 is best fished with a leader that is 4X (0.18mm) unless it is really shy fish you are after then perhaps a 5X (0.15mm) may be used. In nymph fishing, fluorocarbon is always preferable. If you lack any dimension in equipment you can always supplement at Guidecenter.
The fly selection must be adapted to the conditions that prevail when you are with us. Dry flies such as Special pupa and Klinkhammer are used successfully by trout anglers. LL Caddis and other large caddis work well for trout fishing if there are hatches. Floating pupae and emergers are a must for trout fishing. The trout angler must not forget their Woolly Worm and other streamers at home.
For char fishing, slightly the same rules apply as for trout but you have to be a little more careful in your fishing because the char is a bit shyer. Midges, pupae and emergers are not wrong and in running water the same flies as for grayling can be used with good results.
Ammarnäs Trout
When fishing for large fish like Ammarnäs trout it is important to have equipment that can land the fish quite quickly since it will be released again and then must be in as good condition as possible. In addition, you usually fish with quite large flies which also requires slightly more powerful equipment.
Those who fish with single-handed rods should choose line class #8, 9-10', with a fairly short shooting head so that it is comfortable to send larger flies over the river's water. If you choose to fish with a light two-handed equipment, line class #6-7, 11'6"-13'6", is suitable to be able to handle fish and flies well.
When it comes to line selection, the most common is to fish with a floating line that has an intermediate tip (F/I). At low water it is excellent to fish with a pure floating line (F) and at high water you can put on a sinking tip (F/S3) to get down a bit in the faster current.
Those who fish with tubes that have been fitted with muddler heads often use a tip that sinks slightly faster to get the lighter flies down. The choice is then F/I at low water, F/S3 at normal water and F/S5 at really high water.
Since the Ammarnäs trout is strong and it is easy to get snagged on stones, we recommend a leader that is not thinner than 0.35mm at the tip. A good guideline is to fish with a leader that is 1.5 times the rod length when two-handed fishing and slightly shorter if you have a single-handed rod.
When it comes to flies, most people fish with tube flies or small fish imitations. Some choose to fish with classic trout patterns such as Montana nymph and they also get fish. If you want to try dry fly fishing for large trout, Matuka Sculpin, Bomber and various mouse imitations work but you have to choose the right place and time to succeed with dry fly fishing.
Don't forget that we at Guidecenter are in Ammarnäs to help you to better fishing. If you want to talk about something, have a cup of coffee or buy a leader, you are always welcome to visit us.
Mikael Båth, 2014 (Mattias Oskarsson with Ammarnäs trout, Sjöforsen)