Fisihing on Lake Saimaa, June 2016 - 2018

 

June 2018

During midsummer week we have a fisherman group from Romania visiting our cottage on Lake Saimaa. This group has a great mentality for fishing. They use a selective fishing method, meaning they release the fish that are either small or big. For example in pike fishing they only aim for ones that are from 1 to 3 kilos in size and they only keep the amount of fish they need for cooking a dinner. I am very pleased to have this responsibly thinking group visiting us.

Instructions for handling and releasing fish

 If possible, release the fish by using pliers while the fish is still outside the boat, near the surface of the water.

If you are planning to take a picture or measurements of the fish, lift it into a container filled with fresh water. Remove the hook using pliers while the fish is in the container of water. 

Wet your hands or use wet gloves when touching the fish. Never hang the fish from its tail or head, as this can cause internal injuries or stretch the spine. Hold the fish horizontally and take the photograph quickly to minimise the time the fish is out of the water.

If you wish to weigh a fish that will be released, use a weighing bag. You can also weigh a fish while it is in a net made of rubber-coated knotless netting.

Release the fish back into the water gently. An exhausted fish may need to be resuscitated before release. Resuscitate the fish by holding it against the stream or by moving it back and forth in the water to make water flow through the gills. When the fish is ready to swim on its own, you may release it.

 

Free tip for you! 

 

Quite often the last week of June is great for having a holiday in terms of weather, but also for catching zander and perch by spinning. Big pikes have moved to deep pools or banks near deep pools due to warming water temperatures. They also visit shallow waters to hunt small fish at night time when the air is colder. During this period you can do fishing 24/7 thanks to the midnight sun. This period is also the starting point for summer time zander fishing by trolling and spinning. Spawning season is over and zander is eating well. Tradiotionally night time zander trolling season starts here in Finland during the mid-summer week or the week after it. At day time it is a good idea to use softbait spinning or spinning with spoons for all predator species near bottom in water areas that are 4 to 8 meters deep. Evening time they rise to mid-water or closer to the water surface, or move to shallow water areas and are easier to catch by trolling with wobblers.

 

Fisrst Week of June 2016

 The first week of June was exceptionally hot and summery this year, and it brought us a group of five fishermen from Latvia.

 They had fantastic weather conditions to fish for pikes and perches by spinning and trolling on Lake Saimaa, as well as to go fly-fishing for brown trout on the rapids in Heinävesi.

Pikes were particularly eager to bite in the evening time, making it easy for our guests to cook delicious pike dishes at our cottage.

 All aboard. Riga-Tallinn-Helsinki, plus 5 hours drive to The Fishing Cottage Jokiniemi. Everything is clear - thanks Jari for detailed instructions. Our group had an opportunity to fish local Lake Saimaa and also went for fly-fishing trout in near-by area streams. Each evening we had a gourmet fishing meals accompanied with a splash of wine (vodka, whisky, etc.). Accommodation environment positively surprised us- there was much MORE than we expected from "country cabin". Using 2 boats was smart idea- we split into 2 groups and had twice more opportunities to learn waters. It paid back. Each day there were 10-12 good size pikes cached and same amount released. Two nice pikes were lost because one broke our landing net and another broke brided cord ( we estimated size of pikes in 8-10kg each). During evening gatherings Jari was giving us valuable advice, in exchange - we share own observations and established plan for next day challenge. Even weather conditions were difficult (too hot) we managed get fish each day, enjoy calm nature and comfort of accommodation.
 
Ervīns, on a behalf of Northproject team (Latvia)

In February 2017 this group made a new reservation for our fishing cottage for the summer 2017.





Second Week of June:

The first week of June was very cold and rainy this year. It brought us another group of fishermen from Latvia.


Third week of June:

In June 2016 we welcomed a family of four from St. Petersburg. The father, mother and their 2 daughters used our boats to catch pikes and perches in near by waters of our fishing cottage on Lake Saimaa.

Family did mainly trolling for pikes and bubble and hook angling for perches, breams and roaches. Biggest perch was caught by daughter of the family and it weighted over 500 grams.

Springtime Fishing on Lake Saimaa, May 2014 - 2019: Spinning for Pike, Perch and Zander

In the year 2019 Lake Saimaa was free from ice on April 27th. Our cottage was booked full early in advance for the month of May. The weather was first hot and sunny but then turned cold and rainy, but all in all, May was a great month for the pike fishermen who came to visit our cottage again. Water temperature in the beginning of May was appr. 3 degrees of celsius and in the end of May 15 degrees of celsius.

 

During early years of our sport fishing company the best months (May, September & October) for catching big pikes in shallow water or close by bay areas were not so  popular among our visitors. Weather conditions both in early May late October can be unpredictable. If we reach warm air from south to west as well as high pressure, we reach very good fishing. North wind and low pressure do make it very challenging during cold water periods of less than 8 degrees of celsius. In the other hand reward can be fabulous. Biggest pikes caught inside distance of 3 km from our cottage have weighted  10 to 13 kg. It is very important to release these giants back to water unharmed and select smaller, less than 1 meter long species for cooking.

Weather in May 2019.

Tip from our fishing guide and company owner Mr. Jari Kayhko: 

Water areas near our fishing cottage are free from ice usually around the 1st of May. The waters right in front of our cottage are only max. 2,5 metres deep. This means that the waters warm up quite fast in spring, which attracts small fish to do their eating and spawning there in May, which in its turn attracts bigger carnivorous fish to turn up and eat the small fish. The most effective methods for catching fish in the beginning of May are trolling, spinning, worm angling and fresh bait angling (by using a dead bait fish).

Fishing Holidays on Lake Saimaa – May 2019

Our first fisherman group of five persons arrived at our cottage on May Day for a 10-day fishing holiday. The beginning of their holiday was very warm, but a couple days after their arrival we got suddenly hit with 20 cm of snow! Luckily the snow melted in two days and the group was able to enjoy the rest of their fishing holiday in warm weather.

In the Beginning of May 2019 we had unexpected snowstorm, which gave us appr. 15 cm of snow on the ground. Snow melted in time of 24 hours and spring came back.

Our Russian visitors did very well in fishing for pike, perch, ide and rudd. Their biggest pike weighed over 9 kg.

Our second group, a family from St. Petersburg arrived at our cottage during the 3 rd week of May. Pike fishing was the best for their family as well, but they did also catch good size ides, rudds and perches.

Their biggest pike weighed over 4 kg.

Our third group of six guys from Latvia arrived at our cottage for the 4 th week of May. 

  They caught very good size pikes, perches and ides during their visit: their biggest pike weighed over 8 kg.

 Our Latvian visitors took also longer distance trips that included a picnic by campfire.

Ide over 1 kg.

 

Wish I was fishing.....What a weather to do pike fishing on Lake Saimaa!

 

Our fourth group of six fisherman from Romania arrived our at our cottage for the 5 th week of May. They did fishing both in shallow and deep water by spinning, trolling and coarse fishing. 

Beautiful perch caught by Gheorghe.

They caught nice perches, pikes, breams and ides during their visit. To be honest their group was able to catch biggest ides of the season so far. 

 

Ide 3 kg caught by Andrei in May 2019.

Weather conditions were varyuing from warm and sunny to hard rain during their holiday week.

Some one do need a hot sauna.

 

  Important part of their holiday experience was cooking the fish they caught. 

 As usual, our visitors mostly just kept the fish they were going to use for dinner during their fishing holiday, took some fish with them to their home countries, and released the rest back to water. Common sense and respect for nature are priceless in fishing. 

Here you can find 10 super simple & heathy pike recipes 

  Boating and Fishing on Lake Saimaa – May 2019 

 

Combined boat & fishing trip 23rd of May 2018

 

In the end of May 2019 we had combined boat & fishing trip including a picnic by campfire with group of 4 persons from Macao. We started our event by boat sightseeing of 20 km`s on Lake Saimaa to reach our camp. Weather was sunny and warm, after relatively cold beginning of May we were lucky to reach heat of +20 degrees for our event. 

Carmen cooking tasty dishes for her husband and friends.

 

When landed we started preparing fire for cooking and making coffee & tea. Some members of our group did spinning and coarse fishing from shore line, some helped me in cooking vendeaces and pancakes. Pure and quiet nature was unforgetable experinece for our visitors when wandering around our camp site.

Before sunset we did couple of hours spinning andt rolling for pike and perch from my guidance boat. Trolling was completely unfamiliar fishing method for our visitors and they were exited to learn basics for it. After relaxing and warm day I returned 2 happy couples in to their cottage for sauna, dinner and some more exiting fishing days in Finland.

  Pike Fishing on Lake Saimaa - May 2016

This year our area of Lake Saimaa freed itself from ice on the last weekend of April. After that a wave of very warm and sunny weather reached our country, having a very positive effect on the bite of the fish. At the time of writing this, we have two Fnnish families staying in our cottage for a one week long fishing holiday. They sent me a report of the fishing results of their first two days:

Pike fishing on Lake Saimaa, May 2016

"We started our fishing already on the evening of our arrival and were able to catch two pikes of 1 to 2 kg from the cottage pond by spinning. There is a lot of smaller fish in this shallow and warm water area for worm angling also. Next morning we drove to a shallow bay area near the cottage and did spinning for pikes. Our result was three pikes and the biggest of them was 3 kg - that's prettty good fishing considering the lake just got free of ice. This evening we are going to do more fishing to catch perches and zanders from deeper water areas. We will send pictures of our catches later..... Jari, thank you for the fishing tips you gave us!"

The Weather in May 2016

The first week of May was extra ordinary hot and sunny, perfect for fishing and recreation. Daily max. temperatures were between 18 and 23 degrees Celsius.

Fishing Guide Jari Kayhko - Softbait spinning trip for Zander -  End of May 2016.
Last two weeks of May were the best for catching zanders during spring season.The best season for catching zander is from mid-July to mid-September.

The second week of May started rainy, but ended sunny and warm, between 16 and 21 degrees. During this week we had a Finnish group at our cottage. They caught pikes, perches and breams by spinning, trolling as well as bubble and hook angling.

Fishing & Cooking, perfect way to have a fishing holiday on Lake Saimaa

During the third week of May we welcomed a Russian fisherman group from Moscow. The temperatures were pretty similar with the previous week, and the week started dry and sunny but ended with rain. Our visitors caught pikes, perches, roaches, rudds, breams and zanders by spinning, trolling and angling. Their most unusual catch was a carp caught from Lake Saimaa. Their daily number of pike`s caught were varying from 10 to 20 pcs.Unfortunately we do not have any pictures of their holiday available.

Evening time fishing on Lake Saimaa - May 2016

The fourth week of May started rainy and cold, but on Friday the weather changed to sunny for our Latvian fisherman group of four. This sunny, beautiful and exceptionally hot weather lasted until the beginning of June. The max. temperatures reached 27 degrees. Unforunately we do not have any pictures of their adventures available neither.

Zander spinning on Lake Saimaa, 29 May 2016

During the last weekend of May we had a Russian fisherman group from St. Petersburg fishing with us for two days. We went fishing from morning to evening in sunny and warm weather. Mornings and afternoons were best for catching pikes and perhes, evening time for catching zanders.

Perch spinning on Lake Saimaa, 28 May 2016

Our capacity of accommodation for May 2016 was sold out appr. 2 months before May day. We had 5 great groups of fishermen from Finland, Russia and Latvia visiting our cottage. All our groups were very successful in fishing during May 2016, which makes´s me very happy and proud of them. Many thanks for all of you. 

                                                                                Jari

Fishing Multible Species on Lake Saimaa - May 2015

In the beginning of May 2015 we started our open water season by soft bait spinning for pikes and perches. Because at that time the water is still cold (less than 6 degrees Celsius), fishing can be challenging. The fish are interested in baits that imitate natural bait fish such as vendace (European cisco), perch, bream or roach. Shock colours will also work well in the beginning of the season.

Softbait Spinning for pike`s on Lake Saimaa, 1st May 2015. Pike + 3 kg`s.

Our rental cottage is located by a shallow pond (max 2,5 meters deep), which is connected with a narrow 50-meter waterway to Lake Saimaa. This area of shallow water gets warmer earlier than the deeper areas of Lake Saimaa. Thanks to this we can catch roach-related fishes, perches and pikes from the shoreline of our cottage already from the very beginning of May. The best season for springtime angling for pike  is from beginning of May to mid-June.

Sunny weather and high pressure have a positive effect on fishing. In the end of May, early mornings and late evenings are very good times for catching fish. Nights are still chilly, which makes fishes more active evening time.

Rudd caught from Cottage Jokiniemi in the end of May 2015. We were also able to catch Ides up to 2 kg`s.

Jari and ide +55 cm caught by coarse fishing in 8th May 2015

You can also meet ou funny duck friends betting bread.

We also use natural baits for bubble and hook angling. First we catch small fish for bait and then we use them for angling of pikes and big perches. Naturally we kill the bait fish before using them as bait. This way we can catch pikes up to 5 kg and perches up to 500 grams near our cottage.

Perch caught by softbait spinning from deep water area of Lake Saimaa in May 2015

Cottage Jokiniemi is a very good place for fishing and it is easy to catch fish for dinner daily. This is why we release the fish we are not going to use for food. In our cottage we have all you need for smoking, frying and cooking delicious fish dinners. If you want, we can also teach you how to bone the fish you catch.

Zander +50 cm caught by softbait spinning in the end of May 2015.

Coarse Fishing on Lake Saimaa - May 2014

In 2014, the month of May was extremely hot in Finland. In the end of the month the water surface temperature was already over 20 degrees of Celsius, which is good for coarse fishing for roach-related fishes. So, in the end of May we did coarse fishing for roach, bream and rudd. The catch was good especially in the evenings, right before dusk. We released the fish we were not going to eat, but still kept plenty of rudd and bream, which we smoked and in addition to this we cooked up a tasty fish soup.

The Saimaa Ringed Seal

The only existing population of these seals is found in Lake Saimaa, Finland (hence the name). They have lived in complete isolation from other ringed seal species for around 9,500 years and have diverged into a morphologically and ecologically different subspecies of ringed seal. The population is descended from ringed seals that were separated from the rest when the land rose after the last ice age. This seal, along with the Ladoga seal and the Baikal seal, is one of the few living freshwater seals.

 

 

Welcome to our Cosy Fishing Cottage Jokiniemi on Lake Saimaa!

The Fishing Cottage of Old School Trolling is best suited and especially equipped for sports fishermen groups of max 6 people, families or couples. The pond and river waters right next to the cottage are good for independent angling and spinning and the actual Lake Saimaa areas near the cottage are great for spinning and trolling.

 Our peaceful cottage is located close to all services fishermen need. Guests can use small motorboats of our cottage and fishing equipment that can be found in our fishing storage for free. For the use of cottage renters we have 4,2 meter boats that are equipped with 4 hp outboard engines, sonars, GPS plotters, oars, anchor and rope, life vests, landing net, 6 sets of rods and reels for trolling and 6 sets of reels and rods for spinning.In the storage you can also find a freezer and equipment for handling fish. In the storage you can also find angling rods, worms, mash, hooks etc you need for angling in Cottage Jokiniemi.

 We don’t allow our customers to use fishing nets or traps. Cottage Jokiniemi is for angling, spinning and trolling only.


Contact:

jari@oldschooltrolling.fi

Read more about us:

www.oldschooltrolling.fi 

 

 

Winter Fishing Season 2016 & Fishing Cottage on Lake Saimaa

Winter fishing Holidays on Lake Saimaa, Finland

January 2016

We began our winter fishing season of 2016 with ice fishing of rainbow trout with a Russian group. We started to set up rods for active and tip-up fishing in the morning even before sunrise at a truly wintery temperature of -15 degrees Celsius. The rainbow trout kept biting evenly throughout the day, with the afternoon hours being the most active time. Naturally the day's schedule included a relaxing coffee and lunch break by a lovely open fire. Our biggest catch was a rainbow trout of 2,4 kilos. In the end of our fishing day, temperature was -22 degrees of Celsius. Hot sauna finalized this cold fishing day.

The end of January is burbot-catching time in the area of our fishing cottage. In the beginning of burbot season the fish can be found from waters deeper than 10 metres. When the spawning season starts, the burbots come to the shallow water areas, to depths less than 1,5 metres. We catch burbot by using large spoons or ice-fishing jigs with fresh bait.

The first part of January is also good for catching pikes by active ice-fishing and “ismete” fishing methods. In “ismete” ice-fishing we use fresh baits for catching pikes. By Finnish fishing law active ice-fishing is free of any charges and licenses (with the only exception being special license areas for rainbow trout fishing, for which you must buy a license). For using the “ismete” method you need to purchase a license by paying the fisheries management fee of the Finnish state for one rod and lure. By regulations you must also stay near your “ismete” gear on ice while it is in water, not leaving it alone and not letting it out of your sight while fishing. Combining “ismete” and active ice-fishing methods is a very interesting way to winter-time fishing for pike.

March 2016 

 Around mid-March the fish start moving back to shallow water. I did some test fishing on March 18th near our Fishing Cottage and the results were pretty good. Although the best possible bite hadn't yet started, I was able to catch fish all day long in a sunny, warm weather. Our springtime ice fishing season will only get better and and better in the next 2 to 3 weeks from now.

active ice fishing on Lake Saimaa

 On March 21st, we had a nice ice fishing day for rainbow trout at Enonkoski with a Russian father and son.

On the day before there had been a big ice fishing competition for rainbow trout, namely the Finnish Championships with over 560 competitors. Fishing had not been good: only 56 competitors managed to catch any fish, and the winner got three fish in total.

Rainbow trout ice fishing on Lake Saimaa

This was not very promising for us, but we had good feeling about fishing. And our instincts proved right: we caught our first 2-kilo trout as we were only starting to set our tip-up gears down to water. Our young client Dima lifted the fish from the ice hole and our guide Jari helped him land it. A great start for our relaxed, sunny fishing day!

Our next fish was caught also with tip-up gear before midday. Sharp-eyed Dima noticed the flag, which indicates bite, and soon the fish was landed.

We took a break to have a nice picnic by campfire in the middle of day. When we resumed fishing, we had our last trout action at about 3 o'clock in the afternoon. This time the trout bit into one of Jari's special ice fishing jigs, but the fish was too strong and broke free after a 10-minute battle.

The day was quite difficult for active ice fishing, but still we were able to create action and contacts with the fish. The final result of our sunny day on ice: two trouts and three happy fishermen!

Easter 2016 on Lake Saimaa

During Easter holidays 2016 we did ice fishing for perch and roach. In the beginning we still had 5 to10 cm of snow on ice and a lot of small perches and roaches up to 100 grams to catch near our Fishing Cottage. Then the weather changed for warmer, melting the snow, and a couple of days later we got clear ice.

Our Fishing Guide Jari Kayhko did ice fishing in a radius of 3 km from our cottage by foot as well as in a radius of 30 km by car. He went through traditional angling places, known mainly to local ice fishing enthusiats. His catches were good every day in the morning and evening time. The caught perches were between 50 and 600 grams in size. As the weather was warm and sunny, making it easy to walk on ice, the conditions were perfect for having an enjoyable Easter time ice fishing holiday.

Easter time ice fishing holidays on Lake Saimaa, Finland

If you are planning dates for a icefishing holiday for the year 2017, I would like to recommend dates from 27 March to 9 April 2017.

At this time of the year snow has melted from the surface of the ice, it is easy to walk on ice and the fish are biting very well. Spring time sun is warm and sunny days are excellent for icefishing.

Near our cottage there are very good places for icefishing, which you can reach by foot. There are also excellent icefishing places in a radius of 30 km from our cottage, which you can easily reach by car and which I can recommend to you. I have created maps / introductions of icefishing targets and spots for the use of renters of my cottage. This way you can try catching very big perches as well as pikes by icefishing by yourself.

With best regards, Jari

Christmas 2016 on Lake Saimaa

 

Have a memorable Christmas vacation in our cosy fishing cottage on Lake Saimaa.

 In Finland, Santa might also be known as Joulupukki! (This really means 'Christmas Goat' as it was traditional in Finland that there was a Yule Goat who was scary and asked people for presents - and certainly didn't give any out! Over time the goat became the gift giver and then Santa took over the gift giving duties but the name of the Christmas Goat was still retained in Finland!) Joulupukki rides with reindeer leaves gifts under the Christmas tree but if you have been naughty you could end up with a bag of coal!

Christmas Eve is very special and the most important day over Christmas. It's traditional to eat rice porridge and plum fruit juice for breakfast. Then the Christmas tree is decorated. Most of finnish people like a relaxing sauna on Christmas Eve.  The main Christmas meal is eaten in the early evening. Lutefish (salt fish) is the traditional starter, but is not so common nowadays. The main meal is a leg of pork served with mashed potato traditionally baked slowly in birch-bark boxes in the oven with similarly cooked mashed swede. Casseroles containing different vegetables including, rutabaga, carrot and potato are also common. Cured salmon is very popular and some people also have turkey. Desert is baked rice pudding/porridge eaten with spiced plum jam. One almond is hidden in the pudding. Whoever find the almond will be lucky for the next year.

I did ice-fishing with my family and with my sister's Brazilian friend Luiza, at our fishing cottage Jokiniemi at 23 December 2016. All the fisherwomen caught plenty of fish, but Luiza and the smallest girl caught the most..... So we had many happy fishing ladies here today. We did finalize our fishing day with a picnic by campfire.

December 2016

On the last day of the year 2016 I did some “ismete” ice-fishing for pikes. First I caught some roaches and perches to be used as bait. After that I hooked an “ismete” rig for catching pikes. An “ismete” rig is formed of a metal leader and two pieces of single or triple hooks. I adjusted the hooks into the mouths and sides of the dead bait fish, and set a small line weight of 20 grams on to the line, to a distance of 40 cm from the bait fish. By using removable line weights I can freely adjust the free length between the weight and the bait fish. Then I dropped my bait fish and line weight combo through the hole to the bottom and attached the line to a bite indicator. Now I was able to hear and see when the fish were moving or eating my bait fish. It is important to adjust the break of the “ismete” gear to be loose, otherwise the fish can feel friction, become suspicious and spit the bait fish out of their mouth before hooking. The basic idea in “ismete” fishing is to allow pike to swallow the bait and then strike back to get it hooked, so you need to wait for a while before you make the strike. Quite often pikes turn the bait around in their mouth first, so if you strike back for hooking too early, you will loose the fish.

I started my fishing day after midday and continued it until dark. Smaller fish were biting well after midday, but I needed to wait until dark to get my first fish. It is normal that times of dusk in the early morning and late evening are the best for “ismete” fishing. If you start fishing early in the morning, it is a good idea to set your gears down before sunrise. We have several “ismete” sets available for the use of our cottage guests, if you are interested in trying ice-fishing. You can get good advice and tips for fishing spots from our cottage owner and fishing guide Mr Jari Kayhko.

In “ismete” fishing we can select the fish we want to keep for cooking and release the rest, as we do in open water fishing also. We lift the fish from the hole by line or by inserting our fingers under the gill cover (lip lock move). We do not use a landing hook in case we want to release our catch. When the fish is landed, we put it into a water-filled vessel (a plastic sledge or box) and use pliers to remove the hooks. If we want to release the fish, we measure and weigh it before putting it back to the lake (there are specific weighting bags for this in shops).

Active ice-fishing (regular ice-fishing in which you use ice-fishing jigs and short rods which you hold in your hand) is free of any fees and licences in most of parts of Finland. There are some specific fishing areas in which you need a licence for using active ice-fishing gear also.

For “ismete” ice-fishing you need to purchase a licence by paying the fisheries management fee of the Finnish state. According to the law the rod must be at least 1 meter long (typical “ismete” rod is 1.2 meter long). In the law there are no specifications for the reel, so we are basically using bait caster reels instead of pulling the fish up by grabbing the line with our hands. With this licence you can use one “ismete” set per fisherman.

You must notice that for using tip-up ice-fishing gear you need two licences. 1) the fisheries management fee of the Finnish state and 2) the bait fish licence of the local water area owner (“iskukoukkulupa”). Every single unit of tip-up gear needs to have their own licence. It is often quite difficult to find sellers for these local water area licenses, so I prefer “ismete” fishing more.

Regards, Jari

Read more about winter fishing and accommodation on Lake Saimaa - Click Here!