The Bacon and Egg Smile

I took up my habitual position this morning on the Lodge veranda with a cup of strong coffee, to ‘sniff the air’ as my father would have said, and to assess the weather and fishing conditions for the day. The smell of bacon and eggs wafted out of the kitchen. Around the corner, on the path to Generator Pool, appeared Paul R and Gordon B both with smiles so wide you could see them at 100 yards.

Terry Mallin, our Camp Manager releasing a salmon for James D from Bear Pool

Paul had taken his first salmon on a Green Machine, a really small Green Machine on a size 12 hook and tied by himself. Gordon had continued his success with a Bomber and had landed two. Coming into breakfast with a fish or two under the belt sets you up well for the day and their smiles and the skip in their step said it all.

Simon R with a deep fish of 15/16lbs from Blue Rock on a Sunray

Sunday was our first still, warm day for several weeks, all day the odd dark cloud hung over us in windless conditions threatening rain which came only briefly in the evening. Although the fishing was good it was a touch patchy and the team had to work hard for their 66 salmon. Finn S led the way with an excellent score of 18, seven of which he caught from Generator in the evening when the air felt a bit more fresh and clean.

Gordon B and David B spent most of the day trying out Bombers, rising numerous fish and landing 12 between them. Simon R landed nine from the Yovas section including ‘salmon of the day’ on a Sunray from the tail of Blue Rock which we estimated at 15lbs – 16lbs.

Sonya's Birthday Wish

In the evening we celebrated young Sonya’s eighth birthday with candles and her presents and card sent out from England. Sonya has spent the last four seasons here at Middle Camp with her grandmother Luda who cooks for the Russian team. Sonya’s self-appointed camp task is doing the flowers for the dining table; she spends hours collecting wild flowers and making her arrangements. A really charming touch to our life in this beautiful, remote, wilderness camp.

Today has dawned fresher, a good breeze from the North (downstream to help the casting), our water level is steady and the water temperature 11⁰C, just about perfect conditions.

Christopher Robinson

The Varzuga Mobile Bar Service

Friday was equally as cold and windy as Thursday, by no means easy conditions for our fishers but it did not stop them trying out new techniques. Ollie L was determined to catch a salmon on a skated Sunray Shadow so I took him up to the steamy water of Madonna’s were we put a couple of half hitches around the head of a medium sized Sunray to make it skate on the surface and soon had a wonderfully aggressive take from a fresh 6lber.



Donna and her Mobile Bar Service delivering to Ollie who is playing his 12th salmon of the day

To learn more about the method we dropped down to the glassy glide of Peartiha where you need to cast square, develop a nice belly in the line and create a fast swing for the Sunray across the tail of the pool. Two more explosive surfaces takes later and Ollie was a new convert to the Sunray Club.



A mixed brace for the kitchen

Ollie and Freddie voted to stay out late to make the most of the fishing. At 7:30 p.m. Donna, not content with just the Varzuga Dial a Pizza Service, decided to deliver drinks to the river and was duly dropped off at Party Pool with suitable refreshments for our hard working fishers.

We put 50 salmon in the book for the day to give the team a total 0f 404 for the week – pretty darn good we all agreed at dinner, and together with lots of banter, jokes and fun it was a truly memorable week.

Up river at Pana it was really chilly, never above 6⁰C, and windy too. They added 24 more salmon to end up with an excellent score of 330. Kitza too had a storming week and our Spanish friends recorded 406 for the week with 3 of over 20lbs.

 

Mid-Summer's Night on Varzuga

I was back in camp by 5 p.m. and the new team were soon on the river. By dinner many were off the mark, notably Henry G who is on his fourth visit to the river and finally managed to land a salmon on the evening of arrival. A few went out before breakfast and we were 25 in the book before commencing operations properly at 9 this morning.

Could be a good weeks salmon fishing me’ thinks.

Christopher Robinson

Big Windy

The wind from the North really kicked off yesterday, and it was cold and grey. At breakfast Misha just said "big windy" and Donna knew it would be a tougher day on the river so she set about a really warming lunch.

We lunched up at Snake Pit again and by boat Donna delivered hot pizza, masses of soup and stuffed baked potatoes to warm up the fishers. Despite the wind we did well and the team of nine rods landed 74 salmon with James D, Freddie P and James F all into double figures again.



Terry delivering Donna's Dial a Varzuga Pizza service

Hugh S and James G fished the very exposed Party Pool in the morning where the wind gave the normally smooth glide quite a wave. Hugh landed a really good fish of about 16lbs, his largest so far. In the afternoon they fished Simmons which they declared ‘stuffed with fish’ and in a very productive two hours landed 15 salmon.

Ivan with Hugh's biggest salmon - 16lbs

Despite the wind experimentation continued and Freddie P had two good fish on a tiny skater. I always encourage trying flies or methods here on the Varzuga that at home you may not have the confidence to fish. Many rods leave here delighted to have set a personal best record for a day’s salmon fishing but with a tinge of regret that they had just thought about ‘how many’ rather than trying out different methods and flies.

Terry, Mark de G and Ivan

Pana, being well up river from here and higher in the watershed, had a really cold day with the same strong North wind. Rollo reported a slower day and they finished with 34 salmon in the book – even so not exactly a salmon fishing disaster! They picked up quite a few fresh grilse, probably the big run that we had come through here at Middle earlier in the week. Kitza remains its consistent self and our Spanish team had another excellent day with 65 salmon.

James G, Hugh S and James D relaxing and warming up with a fire, backgammon and Bloody Marys

The week has flown by and this morning breakfast was over quickly and the rods have set off to make the most of this remarkable year on Varzuga. Tomorrow I go to Murmansk to meet our new guests so I will not update you until Sunday morning – it looks at the moment like we will end up with around 1,200 salmon to 26 rods this week. The three groups in Middle, Kitza and Pana have fished pretty hard in some really varied and cold conditions; I expect quite a lot of snoring on our charter jet home.

Oh! – Emma – have those scissors ready – I’m afraid Freddie really is coming home in his waders.

Christopher Robinson

The River Settles Down

Tuesday was always going to be a tricky day, a rising river, cold and windy and just not ‘fishy’; yesterday was much more settled and the guides felt confident we would do much better than the 49 salmon landed the previous day.

Jana and our three camp dogs who keep the bears off our island camp

And so it proved. The team recorded 79 salmon, with all the beats fishing well. Of note were 10 salmon of over 10lbs, the biggest of 14lbs landed by James G who had an excellent day up at Scott’s and Pasha’s. Ollie L and Freddie P also had a cracking time with 28 between them and Mark de G had his best ever day with 13. A very good result and, with a banya to warm us up on return, we had a very content and happy team here last night.

Peter D and Sasha with a chunky salmon from Party Pool yesterday

Most evenings we take the big boat down to Party Pool after dinner for an hour or so experimentation. It is an easy option and great fun; we take two guests who can fish in their shoes, no waders needed, just a warm top in this weather. We drop the boat down the pool on the anchor rope slowly, the purpose being to try different flies, something unusual normally and then we see what happens.

Mark de G with one of his 13 for the day

Last night Ollie L fished a Green Machine right on the surface and James F a traditional #8 Cascade. It was really cold, 3⁰C, and we felt we would struggle with the Green Machine. We rose a few to it, and James F had a few plucks to his Cascade, but it was not until right at the tail of the pool both of them hooked and landed fish within a few minutes of each other. It just proved that even if the air temperature is significantly colder than the water temperature salmon can be caught right on the surface, albeit not in the same numbers as in better conditions.

Ivan, James F, Freddie P, Hugh S and James G - salmon BBQ up at Yovas

Kitza had another good day with 65 salmon landed including a further 20lber from Beaver Pit. Pana too did well with 54 George S leading the way with 14 caught between the Tail of Lagoon down to Lunch Pool.

It is cool and grey again today, with a very strong downstream wind which might make things difficult up in the Yovas canyon where the wind can swirl about and make casting frustrating. I’ll let you know how we get on tomorrow.

Christopher Robinson

Skaters

It was uncomfortably cool and wet yesterday and the river rose a couple of inches. Unsettled fishing conditions. Father and son, Peter and James D, remained out all day but the rest returned for lunch by the sitting room fire. The morning was tougher fishing while the air temperature remained depressed at around 4⁰C. The rain and drizzle eased in the afternoon, it was never warm, but certainly better than the morning, and the fishing picked up.

Hugh playing his first salmon on a skater

Fresh grilse were splashing through and I took Hugh S off in the afternoon to try and get him his first salmon on a skated fly. It is, by far, my favourite method to fish for salmon. It is ‘visual’ fishing, you can see the fly skating steadily across the pool, the take can be aggressive or sometimes like a lethargic trout taking a mayfly. It is also a winning way to learn fly control, and that was part of my aim with Hugh. Because the fly wakes across the surface you soon learn the effect that a downstream or upstream mend has on the speed your fly fishes at, and you can experiment lifting or lowering the rod to increase or decrease the speed.

 

Fresh grilse

Hugh soon had two fresh grilse on the bank, both classic surface takes on a glassy ‘tail out’ above Madonna’s. His smile said it all and we headed home to warm up in the banya. Our nine rods at Middle landed 49 salmon yesterday plus a pike. At dinner we thought we ought to make it 50 so Freddie and James came with me in the boat to try Party. The odds were stacked against us, it was raining and the air temperature 3⁰C – they rose a couple of uncommitted salmon but it was pretty dead really – as I was lifting the anchor for home Freddie hooked and landed a perch on a half inch skated tube. Not a salmon I know, but one of those minor fishing triumphs that we felt meant that we had not blanked on our mission.

The Perch

Pana too had a slower day, the water rose and it remained quite cold up there. They finished with a round number of 50 fish, 11 coming from the float trip. Kitza has again benefited from the lake system above, their water height has been stable now for three days and the water temperature also stable at a perfect 12⁰C. The Spanish team of nine had another cracking day landing 81 salmon, 10 of which were caught from well below camp in Long Pool as they continue to pour in from the sea.

We look forward to welcoming our new guests on Saturday – the weather looks, at the moment, a bit more settled next week. I suspect it will be the usual mixture of floating or intermediate tips and a range of flies from skaters, conventional double hooked flies of #6 - #10, or small’ish heavy tubes if you want to fish down and slow. Please remember that the weather conditions vary from really cold and damp to shirt sleeves in 24 hours – best to come prepared!

Christopher Robinson
 

Rain

It started raining last night about midnight and this morning it continues wet and cold. The air temperature is 4⁰C and in the steady drizzle it feels cooler than that. Our guests lingered over breakfast, no one was in a rush to get out on the river and we decided that lunch would be in camp today. The fire in the sitting room will remain lit all day and Misha is firing up the banya to revive the team this evening and to act as a drying room for 9 sets of damp clothes and kit.

Casting practice with Terry last night

Quite a contrast to yesterday when we had a glorious Kola afternoon; a blue sky and high, puffy white clouds contrasting with the vivid green of the silver birch trees and the bright yellow buttercups along the river bank.

Up river at Pana they had another excellent day recording 64 salmon including two of 20lbs, one to Charlie McV from the tail of Lagoon and the other for Willie G from Ponzoi. Boating down river to Ponzoi has become a little more tricky now and they are walking the boat through the rapids below Lunch Pool.

Fishing Green Bank up at Yovas, under a Kola sky

Tom and Ura at Kitza are also just beginning to adjust the boating regime. They are getting through to Third Island and walking up from there. The nine rods had 63 salmon yesterday with the third 20lber of the day falling to Emillio R G from Third Island. Fresh fish are continuing to run in and they picked five silver bars out of Sasha’s in the afternoon session.

Middle Camp had 65 fish for the day. Top of the leader board was James D with 14, closely followed by Freddie P with 13. I joined Ollie, Freddie and James F up at Scott’s after lunch and then guided Freddie down the wonderful streamy water of Yovas, through Tiffinie’s and Slabs. We have so much water to fish up there that some pools do not get fished at all in a week, and there is a real sense of anticipation as you swing a fly down a pool that may not have been covered for days.

Tiffinie's

We fished late and on the way back I stopped off at the tail of Robinson’s Folly (so named because some years ago I discovered the pool by running my jet boat, full tilt, onto the gravel bar from which we now fish it). A new gravel bar has appeared just above Upper Fortress, as the water drops so the whole river is forced through this classic glide and into the V of the tail. Freddie tried a Green Machine fished right on the surface; smack in the middle of the V he was rewarded with a wonderfully aggressive ‘head and shoulders’ take from a strong fish which we netted and estimated at 10lbs. A memorable end to an excellent day.

 

Success with the Green Machine

This rain will raise our water level over the next 48 hours, good news for those coming next week although I suspect that a rising river may depress our catches for a day or two. But hey ho – it will still be amazing fishing by any other standards.

Christopher Robinson

Of Mice and Men

We have had a mouse invasion here at Middle Camp. Donna hates mice and has a real phobia about them, consequently some meals have been delayed while we shoo’d one of the little fellows out of the kitchen and declared it safe for her to venture back in.

I ordered mouse traps from Murmansk last week; Sasha kindly offered to send three cats on the helicopter on Saturday which she thought was a thoroughly practical, Russian solution to the issue. Last night one of the mice ate a huge hole in the landing net on my veranda and by some unfortunate quirk of fate managed to get its head stuck in the mesh thus strangling itself. One down.



One down

Of men – Freddie P is, without doubt, our most enthusiastic guest of the season. If he could have changed into his waders at Murmansk airport he would have done so. He was in them before the helicopter left, and has not removed them since. Such is his infectious, boyish enthusiasm Donna has shelved the ‘No Waders in the Dining Room’ policy. Mrs P (Emma) is well advised to acquire a pair of those heavy duty scissors you see the nurses in A&E using to cut patients out of their clothes – we are pretty sure Freddie will arrive back in UK in his waders and will need cutting out of them.

Ollie L with another fresh salmon from Birthday Pool

On to the fishing – Kitza had a great day and our Spanish friends landed 90 salmon in their first 24 hours on the river. Francisco had the largest fish so far from Kitza this year, a silver 21lber from Beaver Pit. Tom reported the water level still slowly dropping, the boating is fine at the moment but in a day or so they may leave a boat upstream of Third Island and walk up to it past the shallows below.

Bear Pool yesterday

The Pana team did not quite equal the amazing numbers of last week but had a great day of 84 salmon to eight rods with Alexander M-B landing a 20lber from Inspectors. Here at Middle Hugh S waded boldly, got wet and made the most of the fishing up in the wonderful Yovas canyon recording his best day’s salmon fishing ever with 12 landed and quite a few lost. All were very happy to see 66 salmon in the book yesterday plus 19 landed on Saturday evening.

Hugh S drying out after his 12 fish day

The weather looks on the cool side for this week, possibly with some rain. Good fishing conditions. The water temperature is back to 10⁰C and although the river continues its slow drop to summer height we are getting the boats to all the beats and should be able to do so for the remainder of this week.

More tomorrow.

Christopher Robinson

Jack Frost Makes a Return

Friday saw the helicopter buzzing about the camps re-supplying us for the coming week whilst our guests made the most of their last day on the river. The Pana team of eight landed a further 133 salmon for the day to take them comfortably over 800 for the week. I am sure that Anthony T who, after fishing with us every year since 1991 has now handed the reigns over to Charlie T, will be chuffed that Charlie and the team made the very best of what has to be one of our finest weeks on Pana.

Sonya and Danya moving supplies from the helicopter

Kitza too had a remarkable week, Richard G and the team of seven caught over 390 salmon for their week – they may have made the 400 mark, but with poor radio reception this morning I cannot be exact on the score.

Our team at Middle also made the most of it with 813 in the book to 12 rods. I mentioned last week just how perfect the conditions were – we landed at least 2,050 fresh, silver salmon to 27 rods. I’m sure you can do the maths; it is ‘quite a few’ per rod.

James D with one of his five salmon from Gennerator last evening

I arrived back in Middle Camp with our new team of nine rods at 5 p.m. Donna’s tea and home made cakes were ignored as our enthusiastic guests tackled up and decided to ‘have a quick cast’ in Generator before dinner. Terry and I dragged them out eventually and we had 19 salmon in the book before canapés. Up at Pana Rollo reported the same problem – they had a very late dinner, but had 25 salmon on the bank.



The view from Middle Camp last night

Last night the air temperature plummeted, James F went out to Bear Pool after dinner but was soon back in by the fire reporting the air temperature to be -2⁰C. Donna, Julia and Luda started early in the kitchen as usual this morning, I joined them at 7 a.m. to find our water system frozen up, the normally warm kitchen was freezing cold and the girls were well wrapped up as they prepared breakfast. I went to look at our water height marker and the margins of the river had a rim of frost. The water temperature was back down to 9⁰C, no bad thing really as the last conditions we need this week are a repeat of the 2013 heat wave.

Donna, Luda and Julia well wrapped up in the kitchen this morning

I look forward to updating you tomorrow on the first full day of fishing this week. I do not expect we shall repeat the extraordinary bonanza of last week, but I suspect it will be pretty good.

Christopher Robinson

Managing Great Expectations

Gradually the sky clouded over yesterday and the afternoon session proved far more productive than it had the two previous days under the bright sun. We lunched again at Snake Pit, Olivier D skipped out of his boat whooping with joy, he had had a remarkable morning wading the mid river bar in Snake Pit and Bomber Ally landing 14 salmon including a wonderfully deep cock fish of 13lbs.

The fly of the week - a Percy Special tied by Ian S

Across the whole river it was another remarkable day; at Middle Camp we landed 154 salmon. Pana had 126 with Michael C landing an 18lber in the Camp Pool. Over at Kitza Arthur J also had an 18lber, from Beaver Pit and the team there put a further 58 in the book.

We have a nice cloudy morning today, the team at Middle Camp set off early to make the most of their last 24 hours here in salmon heaven. I suspect some might get onto the departing helicopter tomorrow in their waders. The forecast indicates rain this evening, but I suspect not a great deal, and into next week it looks like it should remain reasonably cool.

Olivier with his 13lber from Snake Pit

We have been recording some extraordinary numbers of salmon in the past few weeks and inevitably the expectations of each new group are high – very high. We chatted again last night over drinks on the veranda about the consistency of some fishers’ scores and why that should be. How experience counts, how some fishers have a six sense, and above all how some fish unnervingly well in all conditions. Hugo M and Ian S stand out for me this week, each fishes a different style, Hugo with a single handed and Ian with a 15’ double handed. Ian wades boldly, but Hugo is an extraordinary wader – he took on Eagle Rock this week, in quite high water, and lived to tell the tale. But what sets them apart is not just that they cast long, but each cast lands straight and the fly fishes immediately. Combined with an innate sixth sense as to where in the pool to concentrate their efforts they top the leader board almost every day.

Rob McK - a study in concentration

What has been also notable this week is the lack of competition and indeed the congratulations for those who have done well. Everyone has had a less productive session or two and rather than blame the beat or the guide there has been a shrug of the shoulders and the odd mutter about ‘not having fished well’. The Varzuga is unique in that takes the luck out of fishing, it is not the salmon lottery that it can be elsewhere; it really is not a numbers game - you have to consider Varzuga a salmon river where you can, if you want to, improve your skills and be rewarded as you do so.

Middle Camp

Next week we have 26 fishers in three camps, Pana, Kitza and Middle – all have fished the river before and we look forward to seeing them in Murmansk tomorrow. We should be onto true summer fishing conditions, floating lines and small flies, and a chance to try fishing Bombers and skated flies. However many salmon we land next week I know it will be great fun and highly rewarding fishing as we approach mid-summers night on the edge of the Arctic Circle.

I go to Murmansk tomorrow to meet the new arrivals, so I will update you on Sunday morning.

Christopher Robinson

Sun and Salmon

Another really bright day yesterday, we had some puffy clouds in the afternoon for a few hours to give us the odd bit of duller light, but overall our guests fished under a harsh, glaring sun. Not ideal for fishing, but after Monday morning’s return to almost winter conditions no-one was too fussed.

Today has dawned very bright too – not a cloud to be seen – sunscreen was slapped on after breakfast and, the team undaunted by the conditions were in the boats and out of camp before nine (great to have such a keen group here).

Doug U in action below Clarke's

To date the myriad of small streams and springs that feed the Varzuga from the tundra bogs and taiga forests in this huge watershed have kept the river water temperature pretty stable. Slowly they are reducing their flow and their influence as summer approaches. Yesterday we started to notice the change, the water level dropped 3" and under the sun the water temperature rose during the day from 11⁰C to 16⁰C by close of play. Changing conditions; and that probably accounted for our slightly reduced catch.

Arriving at Snake Pit for lunch

All things are relative on Varzuga and the team were delighted with their score of 104 salmon here at Middle Camp. After a tough day for some reason on Tuesday Rodolphe C landed 16, doing notably well in Birthday which continues to fish well, better than Party Pool at the moment. Gregoire de S had an excellent morning but then lost five in the afternoon – not content with a blank session he asked for a late dinner and fished around the Island, landing three grilse to earn Donna’s delicious Tai Prawn Curry.

Olivier and Donna at lunch

Pana continues to excel and the eight rods landed 141 salmon for the day, the largest, at 15lbs, taken by Charlie T on the float trip. Kitza too is proving remarkably consistent even under these bright skys and they put a further 68 in the book yesterday, their largest also weighed 15lbs and fell to Arthur Jardine.

Sun and salmon

On any other river we would be praying for some cloud cover, however we have a huge head of salmon here and although the fishing might be tougher than it was at the beginning of the week it is still more than excellent. Raphael C put it well at dinner last night, "What a privilege to be able to enjoy both sun and salmon".

Christopher Robinson

Master Class

Yesterday I mentioned just how wonderful were the fishing conditions on Sunday and Monday. Tuesday proved trickier. We had bright, bright sun all day and in the afternoon, with the sun heading around to the North West and lowering a bit, it was straight into the eyes of the salmon.

That said, at Middle we landed 145 salmon for the day, Hugo M was top of the board with 35 fish, and the team were rightly pleased with a well-earned result. Jean V, here on his first ever fishing trip, kindly poured me one of his famous gin and tonics and we sat on the veranda in the evening sun discussing the day. An inquisitive learner Jean wanted to understand just what made the difference and why the scores between the rods varied so widely. Even with only three days fishing under his belt he had quickly understood that all the beats are loaded with salmon at the moment and that it was the way people fished that made the difference.



Terry annd Raphael C in Madonna's

The Varzuga really is the place to learn fishing, Terry is a wonderful instructor and I guess I can add some help as well after one or two years up here. And there is also a vast pool of experience amongst the team to glean nuggets of advice from. It is really rewarding for Terry and I to have fishers like Jean who do not blame the guide, their kit, the weather or the beat rotation but who simply want to improve their fishing skills.

Even the best ask for advice, I guess that is why they are the best. Hugo M is by nature a single handed rod fisherman, he his always top rod and is vastly experienced. Yesterday he took out his new, light #7 double handed rod and fished well enough but was frustrated with his casting. He asked Terry to watch him after lunch and quickly Terry had pointed out a minor fault in technique that Hugo soon corrected.


Anticipation

Pana had another excellent day, inevitably less productive under the sun, however 122 salmon was not in any way a disappointment. They are still fishing right down to Ponzoi and should be able to do so for quite a few days yet.

Over at Kitza Richard G and his team had another excellent day landing 60 salmon with Charles W accounting for 15 of them. Benefiting from the lakes upstream the water temperature at Kitza remains stable at 12⁰C; the height has dropped some 6" this week and last night the guides marked the route through the shallows at Tricalore. We should be able to get the jet boats to all beats on all three camps into the beginning of next week at least; a day or two of rain would be handy and would probably see the current water height maintained until late June.

Dominique M with a 10lber from Robinson's Folly

It is another bright day today, a little more hazy than yesterday – but with few mosquitoes, the wild flowers coming out and the river full of salmon no one is complaining.

Christopher Robinson

Recognizing Good Fortune

Sometimes, but only sometimes, does a dedicated salmon fisher find him or herself presented with totally perfect conditions. When it happens some recognize it, others do not. We are lucky this week to have 27 fishers with years of experience, many of those years here on Varzuga, who recognize the current conditions are as good as they possibly could be.

 

Dominique M with one from Pasha's Rest

The water height is about one foot above summer level and dropping slowly. Summer level is a somewhat subjective judgement so I can best describe the current water height for you as being over the grass edges by a foot or so. The water temperature is ideal and steady too, between 11⁰C and 15⁰C, this morning we have started with 11⁰C. The winds have been light and the weather kind to us albeit on the cool side.

Combined with the perfect river height, and the stable temperatures and weather conditions, we have had a really strong run of spring salmon this year, and now the grilse have arrived in big numbers too. It just does not get any better than this and the three groups, realizing that Nature has gifted them a unique chance, are making the most of it.

Gregoire de S in action with the single handed rod in Simmons

Currently an intermediate tip is the best bet, it is still a tad too high to do well throughout the river with a floater.  Flies in the size 6 to 8 range are doing well, or a 1” tube. Colours tend to be combinations of red, orange and black. Personally I do not think the colour is that important, fishing the fly well is the key to success.

If you are coming out on 14 June I would recommend you bring a floating line with a selection of tips, most likely you will use a floating or intermediate tip. Bring good selection of flies; no doubt conditions will have changed by then, most likely it will be warmer and we can try more fishing right on the surface.

The colours of choice

The teams fished hard yesterday, and with remarkable results. Kitza landed 80 salmon; Sasha’s Pool fished really well in the afternoon as another big run of fresh salmon came steaming through from The White Sea.

Here at Middle Camp we had 168 salmon and grilse, all the beats are in perfect order at this height and the only real problem is knowing where to start!



Ian S with another from Pasha's Rest



Pana had a bonanza with 184 landed by Charlie T and the team of 8. Paddy V led the score board with 30. We are now just over 800 salmon to 27 rods in two days. For me the statistics matter much less than watching everyone making the most of our very good fortune to be on the remarkable Varzuga this week. 

Christopher Robinson

Summer postponed

Yesterday I thought that today’s blog would be about summer salmon fishing - surface flies and all that. This morning it is 3⁰C, windy and grey; we lit the fire early and pre-breakfast coffee and the usual discussion on daily tactics took place close to the warmth, not as yesterday on the sunny veranda.

 

Tactics by the fire

Although the summer fishing blog has been shelved for a few days the water temperature yesterday was 15⁰C and a few rods tried fishing flies right on the surface with encouraging results. Overnight the water temperature has dropped back to 12⁰C and with the cold air and a chilly feel to the day almost everyone has opted for intermediate tips and a fly that will get down a bit.

We had an excellent day at Middle, Jean V is our new rod this week and Terry soon had him casting well, he lost three salmon almost at the net before landing his first. A cause for celebration last night, not that we needed any excuse as we landed 143 fish for the day which in itself was reason enough to raise a glass or two.

Jean V and Terry with Jean's first salmon

Hugo M and Gregoire de S are dedicated fishers of a single handed rod and yet again showed us that you need not be intimidated by a large river. They landed 32 between them, all on single handed rods. Top scorers for the day were Doug U and Ian S who had 49 between them by dinner, with Clarkes Corner yielding the lions share. Getting to the 50 milestone became important so after dinner we took the boat down to Party Pool where I have to admit we struggled a bit to get that last salmon as the air temperature at that point had started to drop like a stone. Doug finally picked one up right on the tail of the pool and we motored home a happy and content team.

The 50th fish for Ian and Doug

Over at Kitza Richard G and his group of seven had a cracking day with exactly 70 salmon on the bank, Ian B had his best day ever with 19. Tom reported the water temperature at 11⁰C and intermediate tips are the setup of choice at the moment on Kitza.

Pana exceeded all expectations; Charlie T and the team of eight had a bonanza landing 141. The salmon are now spread right through this long section of river and on the float trip David C and Paddy V caught 26. The salmon are continuing to pour through here at Middle Camp and prospects for Pana, some 60 miles above us, continue to look encouraging.

Christopher Robinson

Half Way

Last week the whole river really settled into wonderful fishing conditions. The water height was perfect, the water temperature varied between 10⁰C and 15⁰C, and the run of fresh salmon steadily built up. It was perhaps a touch bright - and Murmansk airport yesterday was full of well-tanned fishermen’s faces with ‘panda eyes’ – but it was a joy to enjoy both the good weather and phenomenal fishing.

I need only say that we landed just shy of 2,100 fresh, silver salmon to 39 rods in six days. With our fishing curtailed to six weeks by the late snow melt we are now half way through our season and with over 5,100 salmon landed so far and the run still coming in we seem set for a very good result.
 

Bill Drury with a real cracker on Friday

All camps fished exceptionally well last week; the fish arrived into Pana in force on 1 June and the eight rods there had 332 for the week. The run got stronger as the week progressed and their last day accounted for 87 fish. I dropped the incoming party off there yesterday afternoon and the anticipation of the fishing was self-evident as they landed and walked (very fast!) to look at Camp Pool and rig up their kit.

Over at Kitza, between several legendry Kitza ‘birthday parties’, they landed 407 with one extraordinary day of 92 salmon. Julian P reported the water level getting better by the day and possibly the best yet to come; we had to drag the team onto the departing helicopter.

Lower Camp yesterday

Middle Camp, of course, did well and at dinner on Friday night they were at 993 salmon landed. John C, who likes neat statistics, took upon himself the arduous job of rounding up the number and by 1 a.m. had landed seven to make it exactly 1,000 to 12 rods.

So often fishing courses or casting instruction take place on rivers at a time of year, or on beats, where there is precious little chance of actually catching any salmon and putting the theory into practice. For the third year Eoin Fairgrieve joined Bill Drury at the Lower Camp on a week designed to provide the finest instruction on the finest salmon river. Besides learning a great deal and taking their casting skills to a new level the 11 rods landed 319 salmon - that really is putting it into practice!
 

Lower Camp guests and staff on Friday evening

The new teams arrived in really warm weather yesterday, 22⁰C here at Middle Camp, luckily today has started much cooler and overcast, good fishing conditions, and it looks as if we should maintain this weather pattern for a few days. With the Lower camp now closed we have 27 fishermen in three camps, Kitza, Pana and Middle; of those 27 only three have not fished here before, and with the river in perfect order we ought to be set for another excellent week.

Christopher Robinson