Peter’s come back to Sweden – October 2024

peter

december 20, 2024

Day 1 – Sunday’s Welcome in Sweden

Peter was waiting outside the cottage at 12:00 o’clock. He had slept well after yesterday’s journey and was in good spirits after a hearty breakfast, just a little hungry for the new fishing adventure

. My Zandarella boat was ready for a day on the lake – a bigger boat this time because of our evening plans for fly fishing from the casting deck.

The first two hours, under a sunny, windless lake, were spent sightseeing and visiting Ivögården Mat & Vingård – a lovely place I’m considering for a future partnership. It’s the perfect fishing lodge with excellent cuisine

. Enjoying an outdoor coffee in that stunning natural setting was a fantastic way to start our fishing day.

Unfortunately, at that moment, my Nikon D7000 decided to end our three-year cooperation. Only half of the manual mode worked somewhat for the rest of the evening – a real shame!

Fishing started slowly, and before our classic barbecue

, we hadn’t been able to motivate any fish to strike. But the tasty hot dogs, with a faint taste of nectar from the “shampoo flask,” put us in a great mood for the evening hours.

Pikes began striking almost immediately after we jumped back into the boat. Two 80+ cm fish, along with two others that got away, in just one hour promised a good start to the night.

When darkness fell, the “vampires” came to life. We were lucky to bring three solid fish into the boat, weighing between 3.5 and 4.5 kg, while losing two others.

Fish after fish, I could see Peter’s happiness at being back in Sweden – a truly rewarding feeling for me as a guide

The last fishing hour proved to be the most exciting. We decided to use the fly fishing rod for our next target. It took over 20 minutes of precise casting and adjustments before we got the strike we were waiting for. Presenting the fly to a pike cruising just a few meters below the surface in hunting mode was no easy task – but it was worth it!

Peter landed a new personal best on the fly rod – fish 106cm long

We even had a chance at one more pike of a similar size, but after two missed strikes, we decided to call it a day. It was just a few minutes past 11:00 pm when we landed back in the harbor, feeling pretty satisfied with the day’s results.

However, the adventure wasn’t quite over. As I walked to my car, ready to tow my boat, I discovered that two of my car tires were completely flat. Oh, the joys of having loyal “fans”

. Thanks to my helpful friend Daniel, I was back on the road just two hours later, ready to take Peter and myself home.

(Ps. I had to replace all four tires before the next morning’s trip – it was a short night

). Just life – the fishing guide life

…

Day 2 – Another Lake, Some Beautifully Colored Pikes

Weather changes quickly in autumn. During the night, colder winds came from the southeast, and the temperature dropped a few degrees. It was already noticeable in the morning. According to the local weather forecast, the wind was expected to pick up drastically during the day. To ensure better conditions, we decided to switch lakes and fish in a more protected area surrounded by hills and trees.

The pikes weren’t cooperative at the very beginning, but during a coffee break, a conversation sparked some ideas for technique adjustments to trigger more aggressive reactions from the fish.

It worked! The first 90+ cm pike found its way into our boat

In the next 2.5 hours, we were fortunate to catch two more crocodiles and lost two others.

Lunch this time was a bit different (let’s face it, you can’t have hot dogs every day). Instead, we enjoyed a delicious Hungarian meal, leczo (Lecsó)

Breaking the pike-strike code for the lake brought us success in the morning, but the second part of the day turned out to be more challenging. After lunch, the pikes became pickier, and even the adjusted techniques brought in only two smaller ones. Peter missed some strikes, and most of the fish we encountered were of average size – no big ones in sight.

I decided it was time to hunt for the “big calibers” and directed the boat toward a reef area with slightly stronger winds. About half an hour later, we found what we were looking for: a trophy pike and a potential new PB for Peter. The first bait presentation from a distance resulted in a slightly lethargic reaction. After changing baits and trying again, the response was even less promising.

We moved closer and attempted vertical techniques, but I was 90% certain the fish was already “burnt.” The first bait presentation caused the fish to rise about a meter at an anemic speed, only to turn and sink back down. On the next presentation with a new bait, the massive fish didn’t even glance at it. That was all we could get from this trophy pike – she wasn’t interested or was simply too smart for us

Zooming in on the screen, we admired her beautiful 120+ cm silhouette as she swam away slowly and proudly

In the last hour of fishing, we encountered only slow reactions and gentle bites despite trying multiple presentations. Just as we were about to head back to the harbor with five pikes in total for the day, another nice echo appeared on the screen. This one seemed hungry – it struck immediately on the first bait presentation

. A beautiful 80+ cm pike was a great way to end Peter’s second day of fishing

Day 3 of 5 – back to the main lake

The wind settled down a bit, giving us the opportunity to return to the main lake. The target for the day: pike and zander. The weather forecast wasn’t very optimistic about the rain expected in the evening, but we decided to try our luck and get prepared for some night fishing as well.

The day couldn’t have started better. After just 15 minutes of fishing, we located a nice echo on the screen. A correct bait presentation resulted in a rapid bite, and Peter was immediately busy with the vertical rod. The fish wasn’t particularly strong for its size, and we quickly understood why when we got her into the net. The condition of this pike madame could have been much better. Sure, the size of 109 cm is impressive, but her slim body clearly needs a lot more food to survive the coming winter. Thankfully, she showed good signs of recovery after release, which gave us hope that she’ll start hunting again soon

Before lunchtime, our landing net secured another 97 cm crocodile.

Lunch turned out to be Peter’s favorite meal from all of our fishing trips so far. There’s nothing like enjoying warm, hearty food surrounded by the cold autumn scenery.

Just a few minutes after getting back into the boat, the rain began to fall. According to the forecast, it shouldn’t have lasted more than half an hour, followed by a two-hour break from the wet madness. Unfortunately, reality was slightly different.

Our spirits got a small boost when a nice zander decided to pose for a portrait with Peter, but the rain persisted for another 1.5 hours. After switching spots, we had an exciting encounter with a pike that struck at the bait twice but, in the end, didn’t commit.

When the rain finally stopped for about 45 minutes, we managed to bring another 90 cm pike into the boat. That turned out to be the last catch of the day. Predators activity dropped significantly after the next batch of dark rainy clouds rolled in over the lake.

We pushed through for about another hour in the late evening, hoping for more bites, but when darkness fell, we decided to call it a day and headed back to the harbor.

Day 4 of 5 – double trouble

The weather forecast looked pretty bad for this day as well, but we were hoping the fishing gods would protect us from ending up with completely soaked underwear

Our trip started off slow in terms of fish activity: no bites, just a few lazy fish showing on the screen, and a coffee break without any action

. It took almost three hours without any motivated fish until we found one under the surface. Peter chose the green bait and cast toward the fish position. A few reels… and bumm! Fish on!

A few moments later, I was bent over the net, unhooking the tackle, when Peter informed me he could see another fish swimming just a few meters under the boat. Quick decision comes directly – we needed to drop the vertical bait right away. As soon as we did, the fish turned up and smashed the bait immediately! Bullseye

! With another fish in the net we landed the next one

For the first time in my career, my guest caught two nice pikes in such quick succession and in this way

. The fish didn’t cooperate much during the photo session, but I did my best to capture a great memory for Peter

One smaller pike visited our boat before we took a well-deserved break on land

. Today’s lunch was cowboy soup – Peter’s favorite meal from last year

. (Huge thanks to my charming wife, Beata, for lifting the fishing morale on rainy days with her culinary skills

The second part of the day began with a long and slim 80+ cm pike, caught just minutes before the rain struck again. We wrestled with our rain-resistant clothes for about an hour but never thought about giving up

. Fortunately, the heavy clouds eventually gave way to a short break in the rain, and we got about 45 minutes with just a light mist falling.

This was our last hour before evening darkness. A cup of hot coffee gave us a much-needed energy boost and kept us focused on finding the “big lady.” Just minutes later, we located her – proudly swimming in the lake, clearly in hunting mode for autumn prey.

Peter presented the vertical bait perfectly on his third attempt. Our “crocodile” didn’t hesitate for a second. A sharp strike, and the fight began. The pike mother took the line a few times, but each run was shorter and weaker than the last. After about five minutes, we could finally admire this bright colored – massive madame in the landing net

It was a short but chunky pike – 106 cm long and weighing 8.6 kg. A new personal best for my guest in terms of weight, yuppi!

Fifteen minutes later, the dark clouds returned, and fishing became unpleasant again. We tried for another half hour, but both wind and rain intensified, making it difficult to continue.

We wrapped up the fourth day, quite wet but happy, enriched with another memorable fishing adventure

Day 5 of 5 – GRANDE FINALE

The Weather Forecast – How Much Do Our Fishing Plans Depend on It?

Due to the announced wind change, we decided to spend the day on a different part of the lake. It rained throughout the entire Thursday morning, making our meeting time of 11:30 am seem a little too optimistic. Thanks to the wet madness pouring from the sky, we ended up spending a precious half hour talking in the car, grounded near the harbor.

When we finally started the engine at around 12:30 pm, the weather shaman promised only light rain later in the day and clear skies by evening

Our last fishing day started off quite slow. The predators seemed as disappointed by the weather as we were. By lunchtime, we had only caught a 70 cm pike and lost another of a similar size.

Lunch was a classic – hot dogs cooked on the portable gas barbecue. Sausages always taste amazing on fishing trips

At around 5:30 pm, we set off across the lake again. The first holes of blue sky appeared, giving me a good feeling about the evening’s partially nighttime fishing session.

Initially, one nice pike and a pretty big zander totally ignored our baits. About 30 minutes later another pike, around 90 cm, decided to test our fake fish, and the mood immediately lifted

As dusk settled in, we found a nice zander. The fish responded well to the casting rod bait, and a few moments later, my guest proudly posed with a 3.5 kg zander for my reserve Nikon camera.

About 200 meters later, we located a promising pike echo swimming pelagically in a deeper section of the lake. Peter grabbed the vertical rod. The bait presentation was perfect; the fish rose perfectly, but her strike… failed. Believe it or not, this pike missed disgracefully two more times with different bait presentations

Nothing to be upset about – we just laughed it off and moved on to find another target. As I always say: “The fish had its chance; we had ours. That’s it. Move on!”

About half an hour later, it was completely dark, and the wind had settled down almost entirely. This marked the start of “lake vampire” hunting

The clouds cleared, revealing the first stars. To the north, we noticed a faint greenish-yellow glow on the horizon. Initially, we thought it was a village lights reflecting off the clouds.

Focused on the zander, we trailed a medium-sized fish just 4 meters below the surface. Peter tried reaching it with the casting rod. The fish was active, but Peter’s casts kept landing just slightly off target, even with the help of my engine adjustments.

At that moment, two things happened simultaneously: the mysterious glow in the north started shifting into vivid green hues, rising higher into the sky, and a large zander appeared on the screen -just 2 meters below the surface, hovering above the medium-sized one we’d been tracking

Quick decision: go for the big one. Peter’s casting rod get equipped with a lightweight bait. On the third attempt, he placed the lure perfectly. We watched on the screen as the fish rose slowly, calculating its attack strategy, and then struck brutally

Peter struck back, and the fight began. The zander stayed mostly near the surface, shaking the bait off several times, but after a thrilling battle, we finally landed it in the rubber net.

We were ecstatic

. As we looked up to thank the fishing gods, we were greeted by an incredible sight. The northern lights had taken over the sky in a spectacular display. Green, orange, and red hues glowed and shifted above us

Peter proudly held his 90 cm zander under the vibrant aurora – a picture-perfect moment. It was his first time seeing the northern lights, even after several dedicated northern journeys!

We felt like the luckiest anglers alive, enjoying this magical spectacle from a boat in the middle of the lake, with no one else around

About an hour later, we began heading back to the harbor. The aurora was still glowing intensely above us. On the way, we caught one more zander – a bit smaller – this time using the vertical rod. The northern lights illuminated the experience like never before

Just ten minutes after, I spotted the largest zander I’ve ever seen in my life. Hi was swimming purposefully about 9 meters below the surface. Peter tried presenting the vertical bait a few times, but the “monster” didn’t even glance at it. It continued cruising along, possibly on its way to an important meeting to admire the aurora with its fishy friends

We left our guaranteed personal best in peace and headed back to the harbor.

After safely placing the boat on the trailer, I pointed my (unfortunately, not wide-angled