Change over day

Great to be back up here; thanks to Charlie for running things and reporting last week, you’ve got me now on the blog for a couple of weeks. The weather is better than forecast, no snow and perfect spring weather, touch of chill in the wind, but benign – at the moment!

I do enjoy the reunions at the airport hotel on the way up here. Many friends, re-united for an annual week in wilderness salmon fishing heaven. Lots of banter, stories and tall tales and real anticipation of another great week here. Despite a late night – for some – everyone was up and ready to go. We had a pretty smooth journey up here today, and were through Murmansk airport surprisingly quickly. We were all in camp in time to un-pack and have a well deserved drink before dinner.

The Middle Camp team this week are keen, very keen, we all know that; Big Misha ran a boat down here late this evening to pick up some kit. ‘Crazy fishers’ he said ‘no eat, only fishing’. I’ll get the full report tomorrow but I gather they had quite a haul this evening. (Such a pity this beat was not fished last week).

I flew over to Kitza to drop the team off there. It looked in good order, certainly not ‘high’ by the standards of the two last cold springs, and it looked about perfect for this time of year. Tom said the water temp was 7°C, he had had quite a few fish over the past few days. I’ll keep you posted on results.

A very happy Joan G and Michael Evans (trying not to get his brogues wet!)

Here at Lower Camp the team, hosted by Michael Evans, had a slightly more sybaritic approach to their arrival and enjoyed one of Jenna’s wonderful dinners. After four excellent courses I did remind them that the air temperature was falling fast and if any one did want to fish this evening it had better be soon. Very quickly Daryl E had one and lost two and Joan G got her Varzuga salmon before the air temperature really switched the river off at about 23.00.

I will post a full report on conditions tomorrow – in a nut shell, the water temp is up to 11°C but the weather is definitely cooler now. Water height is still pretty good, about what I would expect for this week.

Christopher Robinson

A change in the weather

It was bound to happen and yesterday was the day when the weather changed. We started in sunshine but it was getting colder all the time and by 7pm last night there was a real chill in the air. I am told that it is snowing in Murmansk and whilst it is not doing that here yet, I would not be surprised if we got some by the end of the day.

We have had the most amazing week and the 5 rods have finished with just over 220 fish taken in stunning sunshine so it was due a change and I will leave it to Christopher to report on how the weather fluctuates this week.

Michael H into a fish in Heli pool, still bathed in sunshine

Departing for Murmansk today

We are flying back to Murmansk this morning for the charter flight back to Helsinki and I will hopefully see all of our outcoming rods before I have to get on the plane. I will be back in the office on Monday and if you have any questions about the fishing or the programme on the Varzuga please do not hesitate to contact me.

Charlie White

A trip to the village

It was a beautiful day on the river yesterday and we ended with 30 fish for the day, with at least as many lost again. Will G lost a very decent fish at Jannaways that took him 150 yards into his backing before throwing the hook and there were reports of fish leaping out of the air from all over the river.

After fishing I took Henry Giles to Varzuga village where we initially looked around the old church, which is 300 years old, before being invited to climb to the top of the bell tower to watch the daily ringing of the bells.

View of the village from the bell tower

The Varzuga church, entirely made of wood and 300 years old

Oleg ringing the bells, ear defenders might be a good idea

The weather has changed slightly and it is cooler today with quite a stiff breeze but it is not affecting anything as a couple of fish have already been caught before breakfast from the Heli pool.

I spoke to Tom at Kitza and Garth at Middle this morning and they both report their rivers to be looking in great shape. I couldn’t get a straight answer as to how many fish they have caught whilst they are meant to be setting up their camps but from the giggles and stilted pauses that came through on the radio it is clear that there are plenty of fish in the home pools....

At Kitza the water temperature is 7 degrees and it is 9 degrees at Middle which is pretty much perfect for this time of the year.

If you are coming out with us this season please remember to put your camp luggage labels on every bit of your luggage, including your rod tubes, as Murmansk can be quite a busy place and it is very helpful for us and our Russian partners to know which bag is meant to be going where when we are loading the helicopters.

Luggage labels for each camp. Please call the office if you need more

I will try and post a last minute update before I leave tomorrow morning and then the blog will be taken over by Christopher Robinson who will be out here for a fortnight after which I come out again. As ever, it will be a wrench to leave, even if it is only for two weeks.

Charlie White

Another glorious day

We woke up to much fresher temperatures and it felt as if the weather was turning but it has now burnt off and it is another superb day, it is around 18 degrees at the moment.

The building work continues and they have now finished the new veranda outside of our dining room.

New veranda at Lower Varzuga

“They” are Russian builders from Karelia, just north of St Petersburg and they are excellent carpenters and builders. With working hours of 8am to 8pm it is astonishing how much they get done.

Keith, our head mechanic , has been helping them but he has been busy preparing new engines to go up to Middle Varzuga with Garth and Donna who left after breakfast with their head guide Misha.

Keith - the man who can fix anything

After an excellent and very hot banya last night, I discovered that we had finished the day with 55 fish to the 5 rods with catches spread very evenly throughout all of the beats. I haven’t been out yet today but the radio in my office has been non-stop with the guides talking to each other comparing numbers and sizes of fish so it sounds as if this morning is being very productive.

Henry Giles with one of his fish from The Beach pool yesterday

I can see Antony B fishing Duck pool from my window and I have so far seen him land 2 fish as I have been typing this so I would imagine that lunch could be quite jolly – I had better go and put my waders on!

Charlie White

Lunchtime update

We have just returned from lunch at Jannaways and it appears as if the whole beat is producing fish. I think we have had around 30 fish for the morning with everyone catching.

Henry Giles had 4 from Moskoi, all of which were around the 12lbs mark and his backing has had quite an outing in the past couple of hours. I spent time this morning with Alan J and Michael H and watched a fish practically spool Michael before being part of a long distance catch and release.

Pasha landing one of Michael H's at Duck pool

Pasha landing one of Alan J's from the top of Larder pool

It has been the most stunning morning and everyone is in shirtsleeves and sunglasses. We are still using sinkers but a few fish have been caught on floating lines with a heavy sink tip and tubes of around 1- 1 ½ inch have been the most successful.

Jesse stealing the glory

Garth and Donna are going up to Middle Varzuga tomorrow with two of their guides, Misha and Vova and they will be able to give me an update on water heights and temperatures from there. I wish we had had clients fishing it this week as I it would have been a bonanza. Given that no one fished it this week (the team let us down at the last minute) it is up for grabs for next year and do contact the office if you might be interested.

Less Jesse, more fish - a better picture??

I will try and post an update this evening when I have caught up with everyone but it might be later than usual as our mechanics, Keith and Dave, have lit the banya (the Russian sauna) and I am keen to go in there. It is not exactly the weather for a sauna but I can never resist it.

Charlie White

More sun, even more fish

At the end of another hot day, the clients have just returned from the river and it is a good job we filled the fridge with cold beers as they are much in demand.

Fighting a fish at Jannaways

The end result

It has clearly been a very productive day across the whole beat with all poools producing fish and for those of you who know it, we caught fish from the Larder, Bear Island, Jannaways and the Beach. Some are still in the shower but quick chats with the guides reveal that we caught around 55-60 fish today to 5 rods. I am told that Brian finally cracked and had a cast for about an hour today, the result being 4 bright fish on the bank.

A happy Feoder - Head guide at Lower

Alan J and Michael H reported some bigger fish amongst their haul and all have said how hard the fish fought which may explain why there were as many fish lost today as there were landed.

Everyone is still using quite fast sinkers (Teeny 300) but have moved towards aluminium tubes as opposed to copper and I don't think it will be long before we start to find fish a bit higher in the water column but naturally if the weather turns a bit colder (no sign of it yet) that may slow the process down.

I spent the day talking with our Russian partner, Sviat Michaelovich, about the new building works that have been going on and below is the first picture of the new lodges he is building for us to use by next year. More on this as we know how it progresses as time can be quite elastic out here!

Charlie White

New building which is beside the heli pad

Quick report before dinner

I have not managed to catch up with all of the clients yet but it looks as though we had around 35-40 fish to the 5 rods today. A great day with superb weather and very pleasant fishing conditions. I have only managed to grab Henry's camera so he is top of the bill this evening.

He is now fishing Heli pool for the last possible moment until he is called in to supper. He has had 12 fish so far today with more lost and we are all now trying to work out which is wider - the river or Henry's smile!



Henry Giles with one of his 12 (and counting) today


Another fish landed and another being released

More tomorrow but am going now as I have seen what Jenna is preparing for supper and I don't want to miss it!

Charlie White

A Trip to open up Kitza Camp

After seeing the clients off to fish (below),

we loaded the heli up in the village.

Had great views of the village and the iconic Varzuga church, to our South we could see the White Sea with a few ice bergs still visible.

The camp is clear of snow and Ura the Head Guide said that the river had broken on 8 May; the river was high but Ura reported it had now started to drop. Paula Erskine, in her third year cooking at Kitza, is joined by Tom Ledger as Manager.

The Kitza (below) seems high in the photos, however the last two years it has been higher at the start, and colder too. It was running clear with little dirt in it. Looks good.


The Varzuga dropped 4 inches last night and this morning was up to 8 degrees. It is still hot here (22 degrees at 2pm) but it doesn’t seem to be affecting the fishing. I only saw Henry Giles very briefly before he went down river for lunch but he had landed 2 fish this morning and had lost 3 more.

Charlie White

A hot day all round

We had the best possible start to the week with Antony B landing his first ever salmon which he promptly followed up with 4 more. With his friend, Will Goodenough, taking 7 for the day on what is his first visit to Russia, it was just as we had hoped the first day would be. Having Brian Fratel as their guide meant that they had a mine of information at their fingertips and they were both determined to make the most of it. I fear the celebrations may be long...

Anthony B and his first salmon

Henry Giles, of Trout and Salmon fame, landed his first Russian salmon and a very decent sea trout before rounding the day off by landing a further one out of the Heli pool just before supper. With Alan J also taking 5 cracking fish it has been a great start to the season.

Henry Giles and his second fish of the day

It is still hot and the breeze today felt almost tropical but in the past hour the wind has changed and it feels colder now. However, it is all relative and the endless thermals that I lovingly packed are still going unused.

Tom Ledger (Kitza camp manager), Paula Erskine (Kitza cook) and I are flying over to Kitza tomorrow to start the setting up of the camp for their first guests who arrive on Saturday. It will be interesting to see how the river looks over there and I will try and take a picture or two for tomorrows update.

Charlie White

Blazing sunshine, a big river and the first fish landed

After a very easy journey through Murmansk, our first clients got to camp by 3pm which must be some kind of record.

We arrived in stunning sunshine to a camp which is looking great after so many improvements over the winter and the spring

Bright sunshine and snow

Flying over the tundra revealed that a week of hot sunshine has melted most of the snow but the lakes remain covered in ice, a reminder that the weather has not been so kindly throughout. The river is certainly high but the feeder streams do not seem to be carrying much sediment and whilst it is the peat stained river we expect it is certainly not dirty.

The clients have just come back having had a quick flick to get their casting arms back into the groove and between the 5 rods fishing they had 4 fish in just over an hour. Brian Fratel appointed himself as a guide for this session but I am not sure how long he will last without having to have a cast.

Typically I arrived at each client just after they had caught a fish but the pictures should give you an idea of the river and the sun. The water temperature is up to 5 degrees and it is currently 20 degrees (at 8pm) so the river may keep rising for a little while.

More tomorrow from what feels more like the Costa Del Sol than the Russian Arctic (that may come back to haunt me!)

Charlie White

Quick Update

Still very warm up here, hardly went below 8°C last night and now, 1 p.m., up to 18°C. River seems to have steadied off but pretty high.

I leave in an hour or so, masses of work going on, seems like something out of Garden Force. But suddenly it seems to be coming together.

Veranda coming on - note chain saw and wretched boogy blaster

Good news for you many Lower Varzuga regulars, new sofas have arrived for the sitting room! The old fire place remains I’m afraid – to be replaced after the season. One veranda will be completed today, the other to follow later.

No fishing to report – Charlie and the team will start in earnest on Sunday and the news will be posted soonest.

Christopher Robinson

Another warm day - river up

Yet another hazy, warm, still day. Almost 15°C at one point. I’m writing this at 23.30 here, it is still 10°C! The new guys on the advance party are giving me grief for telling them to bring gloves, thermals and warm hats. The streams are gushing off the Tundra and snow melting fast. The river continues to rise and has a touch of dirt in it. Up to 2°C this afternoon. I would expect (hope!) it to level off in the next 24 hours and then start a steady fall; we could do without any rain.

Middle Camp in the sun today

The change in a week is noticeable up here. On Monday one Pied Wagtail arrived in camp, yesterday three others arrived. They have restored themselves feasting on the enormous stone fly hatches. We saw our first Arctic Tern yesterday, and of course the Mergansers have arrived in preparation for the prolific smolt run that will start any day now.

The Ravens that nest opposite the Lower Camp arrived this morning and made a tremendous racket. We saw the Fish Eagles yesterday at Middle and a mass of waders and ducks along the banks, all heading North. The whole place is waking up fast.

Meanwhile the rush to get things done continues; the building crew insist on playing Russian disco music at 1,000 decibels, while wielding chain saws and drills – we all have headaches. I was quite envious of Donna, Garth and Dave who went back up to the peace of Middle today to continue preparations there.

Jessie James (Lower Manger) at work - the ear plugs are to drown out the Russian Disco music

Not much to report on the fishing front I’m afraid, we have had our heads down. If I had had a chance it would have been a fast or very fast sinking tip and a biggish fly.

I’m going to Murmansk tomorrow afternoon (Friday), then to UK on Saturday. Charlie White is coming up on Saturday with the first team. Between us we’ll try and keep you updated until he has his feet ‘on the bank’ here. The news can then turn to more ‘fishy stuff’ as we start getting into serious fishing.

Christopher Robinson

Honour restored - partially

Honour was partly restored last night, the sun came out for an hour or so and Jessie popped down to the Heli Pool and landed our first fish. Not huge it must be said, as the Russians constantly reminded us (theirs was indeed a cracking 12lber), but a fish all the same and quite correctly celebrated with Vodka.

The fog has gone and we had a bright, warm day today. About 10°C, possibly more – we were working in shirt sleeves at times. The river rose another few inches over night, and this evening has really come up and is now pretty high. I suspect it will not drop off that fast and with the water temp likely to be in the range 1°C – 4°C next week it will be proper high water spring fishing, and good conditions for us. The fish will be really concentrated and we have had some of our best catches when the river is like this.

If you are coming next week make sure you have a line that can get down. A fast sinking tip or even a Teeny Line (I use a Teeny 300). If you need advice and/or kit quickly, call Brian Fratel at Farlows (020 7484 1000), Brian has fished with us on this week for 14 years and will give you excellent advice and can provide the kit.

Dave (on the left) our mechanic and Garth the Middle Manager (on the right) and I went up to Middle today. Big Misha and Volva were there with a team getting the camp looking ship shape. Luda was in the kitchen keeping us all going. There is quite a lot of ice on some banks, but much is clear and several places looked really inviting – Beach, Snake Pit and parts of Fortress. We took the boat all the way up to Clarkes Corner to have look. Clarkes is clear of ice and looked wonderfully fishable, opposite is quite a wall of ice, the sun was out and the scene was pure magic.

Christopher Robinson

Work continues

It is still foggy, windless and surprisingly warm. The air temp today is around 10°C, which is considered pretty balmy for mid May up here. There is still quite a melt going on and the river has come up some 6” or so in 24 hours, ice is now being moved off the banks and it is definitely not a day for wading – another deterrent is a water temp of 1°C.

The first week is going to see high, cold water – nothing new but a reminder to those coming on Saturday.

A rise like this is welcomed, it helps to clear the banks before we start fishing in earnest in five days time.

Garth and Jesse gave it a go for an hour in the deep pot where we park the boats at the start of the season. They both lost fish and had a sea-trout on medium sink rate tips and 1 ½" brass tubes. The Russians offered us some of their salmon soup and the use of a large Toby – the former we accepted, the latter we regretfully declined.

Today we have not had a chance, but I guess might give it a go after supper if the air temp stays up.




Work here in the Lower Camp continues apace. The main lodge new floor is finished as are the ceilings and walls. New windows are going in today. We now have two bore holes – so no frozen pipes down to the river, and a new electricity supply.

Tomorrow we will take a boat up to Middle Camp. Big Misha is already there with the usual crew and first reports are that the camp is in good order (we might sneak a rod in and see if we can report on Bear Pool).

Christopher Robinson

Advance party arrive on the Varzuga

It is quite a haul from UK, but three of the seven us on the Advance Party have come a lot further. Garth Hovell from Zambia, Dave Deardroff from Denver USA and Jenna Viney from South Africa all flew in to meet up at Heathrow on Saturday morning. We came in via Finland and then overland by car to meet the four wheel drive trucks needed to get us to the village. Finally by boat down to the lower camp arriving in twilight and pouring rain!



We were delighted to find the river running at a normal ‘melt’ height with only small icebergs to trouble us. There is not much snow on the banks but there are the usual icebergs stranded after the initial flood of 4 and 5 May. The water temp is a chilly 1°C, the weather last night and today is damp, foggy and still with the air about 8°C.

We are spending today starting to get kit unpacked and the boats in the water. There is also a huge work force of locals here upgrading the main dining room and sitting room and putting in a new kitchen. More on that tomorrow.

We have given ourselves a long list of jobs to do today before rewarding ourselves with a cast or two this evening; I hope we can report success, the fish are here, the Russians had one for lunch!

Advance Party leaves UK on 8 May

The year has come around again and after several months of sourcing kit and equipment we are nearly ready for the off. The weather up North, after a very cold winter, is warming up; although we get reports from the river it is not until we see the situation for ourselves can we really judge conditions. Our Russian friends say everything is 'normal' - an expression often delivered with a shrug and used to mean pretty much anything!

The advance party will leave UK on 8th May and will travel overland from Finland to Varzuga. Not the easiest way in, but for seven of us with masses of kit a bus overland has proved to be the most practical. All being well we will be in camp by the evening of 9th May.

In the office Lynsey Mair (below) has been putting the final touches to visas and last minute travel arrangements. It is never easy this time of year, Russia has three Bank Holidays in the first ten days of May and getting things done at the Embassy in London takes time.



We are excited about this Blog – hopefully our new communications set up will allow us to post a blog each day from the river. The aim is to keep the many ‘Varzuga Watchers’ updated with the latest news, fishing conditions and photos of the river, people and salmon. More to follow shortly, hopefully on 10 May once we are established in camp and have dug our way through the snow into ‘the office’.

Christopher Robinson