List of fishes of Lake Onega
- Sterlet;
- Salmon;
- Trout (three varieties);
- Palia (two varieties);
- Whitefish (nine varieties);
- Vendace (two varieties);
- Pike;
- Grayling;
- Smelt;
- Dace;
- Guster;
- Roach;
- Bream;
- Chekhon;
- Ukleya;
- Catfish;
- Acne;
- Char;
- crucian carp;
- Zander;
- Perch;
- Ruff;
- Ide;
- Onega slingshot;
- Sculpin (two varieties);
- Stickleback (two varieties);
- Burbot (two varieties);
- Lamprey (two varieties).
The most common species are smelt, vendace, whitefish, pike perch, roach, burbot, ruffe, perch, pike, bream, bleak, ide, and dace. Other types of fish are found quite rarely, and some are almost impossible to catch while fishing. Below we will give a description of some behavioral features of the most popular and widespread fish species in Lake Onega.
Lake Onega. Fish
In Lake Onega you can find almost all species of fish that are known for the reservoirs of Karelia. This lake is inhabited by sturgeons (sterlet), salmonids (salmon, trout, brook trout, pike fish, pit fish, vendace, whitefish), choriaceae (grayling), smelt fish (smelt), pike fish (pike), carp fish (roach, dace, silver bream, sabrefish, bream, golden crucian carp), loaches (mustached char, spined loach), catfish (catfish), eels (eels), perch (pike perch, perches, ruffs), gobies (Onega slingshots, lopars, sculpin), sticklebacks (nine-spined sticklebacks, three-spined sticklebacks), cod (lake burbot and lake-river burbot). Of the minigidae, the most common are the river lamprey and the brook lamprey.
In general, Lake Onega is home to 47 varieties and species of fish, which belong to 13 families and 34 species. It is possible to find chub in the lake.
The greatest fishing value in the lake is given to 17 species of fish, namely vendace, whitefish, ruffe, roach, pike, pike perch, pike perch, smelt, salmon, bream and perch, and the least important are crucian carp, ide, dace, bleak and grayling. Other species of fish in Lake Onega are quite rare.
The main commercial fish of this lake is vendace. It is common in almost all places. The vendace feeds only on crustacean plankton. In turn, kilets is a large form of vendace. It is mainly found in the southern part of the lake. Smelt is an object of mass fishing. But at the same time, it will also be used as food for fish such as pike perch, salmon, burbot and palia. If we talk about whitefish, there are 9 different forms of them in Lake Onega. In addition, all whitefish are divided into 2 large groups - lake-river whitefish and lake whitefish. Also in Lake Onega there is also burbot, or rather its two forms - lake-river and lake burbot. Burbot, like vendace, is ubiquitous. Pike perch is one of the most valuable fisheries on the lake, but its catch is quite small. However, the most common and numerous fish in Lake Onega is the ruffe, which is found at a depth of up to 70 meters. Perch can be found mainly in coastal areas, as well as in the shallow waters of an open lake. Bream are found here in the area of river mouths and sources. But pike is not of significant importance in the fishery of the lake. It lives in shallow, vegetated areas. If we talk about salmon, there are several stocks of this fish in Lake Onega. Now the most numerous is the herd of Shuya salmon.
But one of the most valuable fish of the salmon family is the palia, which is common in the area adjacent to the deepest parts of the lake. Ide in this lake is of insignificant commercial importance, but grayling can be found almost everywhere. Golden crucian carp are very rarely found in Lake Onega, unlike bleak and dace.
Whitefish in Lake Onega
As we wrote above, nine species (forms of whitefish) are found in the lake, which can be divided into two large groups: lake and lake-river. All varieties do not differ too much from each other, they are mainly divided by habitat and spawning (Shui whitefish, Yamnaya whitefish, Sung whitefish).
Whitefish are found almost everywhere. The largest form is the pit whitefish, which is worth looking for in deep holes. Often caught in Maloye Onego Bay (a popular fishing spot).
The most common form is the whitefish ludoga, which is found in any part of Lake Onega. This is the one most often caught by fishermen. It stays mostly near the coast. Whitefish in Lake Onega are also of great commercial importance.
The main fish species of Lake Onega and Logmozero.
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In Lake Onega there are 47 species of fish belonging to 13 families and 34 species.[31] And in Logmozero the number of living fish species is much smaller, since the reservoir is shallow and small in area.
Rice. 3 Lake salmon
Salmo salar morpha sebago, a silvery lake-river species with black spots on the back, which came to Onega from the Baltic Sea. The favorite food of salmon in the lake is smelt and vendace. Weight reaches up to 15 kg, usually weighing 3-5 kg. Favorite habitat depths are 40-70 meters, but young salmon weighing 2-4 kg are found near the shore. On Lake Onega, it is precisely because of this that a number of the coast is closed for setting nets in the fishing rules of Karelia. Spawns in late autumn in rivers at a water temperature of 2-6'C on riffles with depths of up to 2 meters. Small red caviar.
Rice. 4 Palia (paliya ludnaya and paliya yamnaya)
Salvelinus alpinus lepechine is a family of salmonids, a genus of loaches. Ludara palia is dark in color on the dorsal fin and body, the belly is lighter, with light spots on the body, reaches up to 8 kg, spawns in the fall. Inhabits the northern part of the lake in Povenetskoye, Tolvuiskoye, Maloye and Bolshoye Onego and the central part of the lake. Palia yamnaya lives at great depths and is smaller in size than ludna.
Rice. 5 Sig
Coregonus - belongs to the salmon family, is divided into several species depending on the gill rakers, size and habitat; on Lake Onega there are nine varieties of whitefish - Chelmuzhsky, Shuisky, Vodlinsky, Sunsky, Ludoga, Yamny and others depending on the spawning location. The size of the pit whitefish reaches 10 kg, lives at great depths, is silver in color with a body shape similar to bream; other types of whitefish usually weigh up to 3 kg, caught with a fishing rod, nets, and in winter when ice fishing with winter lures. Spawns in October - January, habitats depend on water temperature; at 16-18°C this whitefish leaves the fishpond and sinks into the pits.
Rice. 6 Sudak
Sander lucioperca belongs to the perch family, reaches a weight of up to 20 kg, in Lake Onega there are pike perch up to 10 kg, feeds on small fish, in warm water it goes into shallow water, at other times of the year its favorite depths are 15-25 meters with a sandy-silt bottom, spawns in the spring . Pike perch are caught with nets, caught on a fishing rod and when fishing on the track.
Rice. 7 Vendace
Coregonus albula - salmon family, whitefish genus, small fish 13-20 cm long, sometimes up to 35 cm, gray-blue back, silvery sides, white belly, feeds on plankton, lives in schools. The most popular fish among the population of Karelia, it is caught with fixed fishing gear, nets with a mesh of 14-24 mm, both in summer and autumn during the spawning period, the nets are placed in the coastal zone from the bottom or with a depression near the fishponds.
Rice. 8 Pike
Esox is a family and genus of pike, a predator reaching a weight of up to 100 kg, on Lake Onega there are known cases of pike being caught in nets up to 30 kg, the body is elongated, the color is speckled gray-green, but may vary slightly depending on the bottom of the habitat, except for pike fish can feed on small waterfowl and animals reaching 1/3 of its own size. Pike spawn in shallow water in early spring, sometimes under ice.
Rice. 9 Burbot
Lota lota is the only freshwater fish of the cod family, spawns in the winter in December-February under the ice, in the summer it lives in the depths, with rocky, muddy soil, the color depends on the soil of the burbot’s habitat, as the water cools it comes out closer to shallow water, reaches 30 kg weight - but most likely there are larger ones. On Lake Onega it usually lives at depths of 15-30 meters.
Rice. 10 Bream
Abramis brama - family of carp, genus bream, the back is large gray or brown, during the spawning period the male’s head and part of the back are covered with tubercles, bream reaches 25 kg, but on Lake Onega up to 10 kg, bream up to 1 kg in size are usually called bream, spawns in spring in shallow water, stays in flocks, preferring places where the bottom of the lake is covered with vegetation.
Rice. 11 Perch
Perca fluviatilis - family of perch, weight up to 5 kg, across the body of the perch there are several dark stripes, sometimes dark irregular spots, stays in schools near the shore or on rock shallows, spawns in the summer of June - July. Perch is a very popular fish among fishermen due to the active bite when it hits a school of perch.
Rice. 12 Smelt
Osmerus eperlanus is from the smelt family, the body is elongated, covered with large scales. The fish has a persistent smell of fresh cucumbers, spawns in the spring; on Onega there are smelt up to 20 cm in size and up to 40 cm in length. Smelt is a dwarf smelt. Smelt lives in Lake Vodlozero, where it has always been one of the main commercial species. The local population used it to prepare traditional Karelian “sushik”.
Residents of Petrozavodsk and Zaozerki did not consider some of the fish to be fish at all, believing that they were snakes (eels). Fishermen were especially disliked by stickleback, because of its gluttony, fishing in some places of the lake sharply declined, including by the end of the 19th century there were a lot of stickleback in Petrozavodsk Bay. Stickleback was called a “filthy” fish.
Appendix II.
Pike in Lake Onega
Pike in Lake Onega are characterized by all the typical habits of this fish. It is worth looking for in shallow coastal zones, especially in shallow bays and in the bays of Svyatukha, Keften, Velikaya, and Chelmuzhskaya. Excellent places for pike fishing are river mouths, especially worth noting are Vytegra, Megra, Vodla, Andoma.
When fishing, you most often come across specimens weighing up to two kilograms, but there are known cases of catching very large pikes, weighing more than 10-12 kilograms. However, such “giants” are found quite rarely, although every angler has a chance to catch such a specimen.
Winter fishing on Lake Onega and in summer
Lake Onega for fishing is an ideal choice for going fishing in Karelia, or just relaxing on the shore. For our guests we have prepared houses on the shore of the lake, which is the second largest freshwater body of water in Europe.
There are many attractions scattered along the shore and islands of Onega, and winter fishing on Lake Onega, and summer fishing too, is so unpredictable that passionate fishermen from all over Russia flock here.
Fishing in Karelia is an exciting event; you won’t notice how the whole day flies by. By evening, fatigue sets in that I didn’t feel while fishing. In such a situation, it is necessary that the rest conditions allow you to gain strength, dry your clothes if necessary, sort out your equipment, wash and get a good night’s sleep before the next day of fishing.
We ourselves love fishing, and we understand well what is needed for fishermen who love Lake Onega and fishing in Karelia. That is why houses were built on the shores of this tempting lake.
We are changing the idea of fishing when a man is forced to take time off, for example, in the winter to go fishing in Karelia . You can come to us with your wife and children and rent a house at a recreation center for fishing on the shores of Lake Onega. All houses are fully equipped (kitchen, shower and toilet in each house). The provided fishing boat allows the whole family to comfortably spend time on the water. We rent out houses only to couples and families, so that everyone on vacation can feel calm on the territory. We have a complete ban on noisy youth groups, a ban on corporate parties, weddings...
Vendace in Lake Onega
It is the main commercial fish and is found throughout the entire water area of Lake Onega. However, you should not look for it in small bays, as well as in areas where industrial wastewater is discharged (for example, in Kondopoga Bay). The vendace avoids such places. This fish has no other features; fishing is the same as in any other body of water.
Separately, it is worth noting the largest form of Onega vendace - kiltsa. Kilets is found in the southern part of Lake Onega. It is worth catching in the Murom and Sheltozero regions; it is rare in other parts of the reservoir. Prefers areas with a flat and muddy bottom.
Description of the lake
Lake Onega is a freshwater body of glacial origin located in the northwestern part of Russia. Located in the Neva River basin, this lake has a length of 245 km, a maximum width of 83 km and a water surface area of 9,700 km2. With such a large area, the reservoir is quite deep: its average depth is 30 m, and its maximum reaches 127 m.
Due to its origin, the reservoir has a very distinctive coastline character. In the southern part its shores are gentle, with many sandy beaches. The northern end of the lake is characterized by rocky and steep shores, heavily indented by numerous bays, the largest of which are Zaonezhsky, Povenetsky, Maloe Onego.
The main part of the lake is located on the territory of the Republic of Karelia (80% of the area) and only the southern part is located within the Vologda and Leningrad regions.
On the shores of the lake there are 3 large cities - Petrozavodsk, Kondopoga and Medvezhyegorsk.
Interesting facts about Lake Onega:
- Lake Onega is the fourth largest in Russia and the second in Europe. Among the largest lakes in the world, this body of water ranks 19th.
- The reservoir is the fifth deepest among large Russian lakes with an area of more than 1000 km;
- the mineralization of Lake Onega is lower than that of Baikal and other lakes in Eurasia. This fact makes this reservoir the largest in terms of fresh water reserves.
- More than a thousand rivers and streams of different sizes flow into Onega. At the same time, only one river, the Svir, flows out of it.
- after the construction of the Verkhnesvirskaya hydroelectric power station, the lake turned into a pressure reservoir for this hydroelectric power station;
- the lake has 1,650 islands of various sizes with a total area of 245 km2;
- The length of the coastline of Lake Onega is 1280 km.
Onega - the “pearl” of Karelia
On a note! The most valuable in the world are large freshwater lakes, which contain the bulk of fresh water available to the world's population. Among the fresh water bodies of the world, Lake Onega ranks 6th in area, 9th in depth and 12th in volume of fresh water.
Burbot in Lake Onega
There are two common forms of burbot in Lake Onega: lake-river and lake. Found throughout the entire water area, the Onega burbot is characterized by the usual habits of this fish. In summer it stays in deep places and can be found at depths of more than 70 meters. From the beginning of October it comes to shallower places, at which time it can be caught at depths not exceeding 6-7 meters.
The lake-river form of the Onega burbot differs only in its spawning location: it goes to spawn in rivers. Prefers the southern part of the lake.
Onega, weather forecast and fish bite
Weather forecast and fish bite | Calendar, from 09/26/2021 to 09/29/2021 | |||||||||||||
VS | Mon | VT | SR | |||||||||||
Times of Day | Morning | Day | Evening | Night | Morning | Day | Evening | Night | Morning | Day | Evening | Night | ||
Cloudiness, precipitation | Mainly cloudy | Mainly cloudy | Small rain | Mainly cloudy | Mainly cloudy | Small rain | Mainly cloudy | Mainly cloudy | Mainly cloudy | Mainly cloudy | Mainly cloudy | Mainly cloudy | ||
Temperature °C | 6 | 8 | 12 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 11 | 8 | ||
Pressure, mm. | 754 | 757 | 760 | 764 | 767 | 769 | 771 | 774 | 775 | 775 | 775 | 775 | ||
Direction, | East wind | East wind | Wind northeast | North wind | North wind | Wind northeast | Wind northeast | Wind northeast | North wind | North wind | Wind northwest | West wind | ||
wind speed | 3 m/s | 3 m/s | 3 m/s | 3 m/s | 3 m/s | 3 m/s | 3 m/s | 2 m/s | 1 m/s | 1 m/s | 2 m/s | 2 m/s | ||
According to the forecast, the fish will bite on: live bait, spinners, wobblers, and silicone baits Pike | 85% | 60% | 65% | 15% | 85% | 60% | 65% | 15% | 85% | 60% | 80% | 30% | ||
According to the forecast, the fish will bite on: worms, small baitfish, spoons, wobblers, silicone Perch | 70% | 50% | 55% | 0% | 70% | 50% | 55% | 0% | 70% | 50% | 70% | 0% | ||
According to the forecast, they will bite on: maggot, fly, grasshopper, worm Dace | 55% | 50% | 65% | 30% | 55% | 50% | 65% | 30% | 55% | 50% | 80% | 45% | ||
According to the forecast, they will bite on: maggot, worm Ruff | 55% | 45% | 45% | 30% | 55% | 45% | 45% | 30% | 55% | 45% | 60% | 45% | ||
According to the forecast, the fish will bite on: worm, grasshopper, spinner, wobbler, silicone Trout | 60% | 50% | 55% | 25% | 60% | 50% | 55% | 25% | 60% | 50% | 75% | 45% | ||
According to the forecast, the fish will bite on: worm, mayfly, spinner, artificial fly Grayling | 55% | 30% | 45% | 0% | 55% | 30% | 45% | 0% | 55% | 30% | 65% | 0% | ||
Bait: oparysh, peas, wheat, pearl barley, worm Bream | 55% | 25% | 55% | 45% | 55% | 25% | 55% | 45% | 55% | 25% | 75% | 65% | ||
Bait: no Burbot | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | ||
Bait: parish, dough, mastyrka, pearl barley, wheat Roach | 60% | 40% | 45% | 0% | 60% | 40% | 45% | 0% | 60% | 40% | 60% | 0% | ||
Bait: maggot, crayfish, leech, worm, spoon, wobbler Ide | 55% | 25% | 40% | 25% | 55% | 25% | 40% | 25% | 55% | 25% | 60% | 45% |
The bite forecast will help you better choose a fishing day in January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September. October, November, December in the Onega region. You may also be interested in the bite forecast for all fish in the Arkhangelsk region, or fishing in Arkhangelsk.
Pike perch in Lake Onega
Pike perch is an important object not only for recreational fishing, but also for commercial fishing. The main spawning grounds are Chelmuzhskaya Bay and Pyalemskoe Onego. There are no behavioral peculiarities; it is found throughout Lake Onega. Its main food is smelt - it is worth choosing spinners that are similar to this fish. The catches most often include specimens from 500 grams to 2 kilograms; fishermen rarely catch larger specimens. Fishing for pike perch in Lake Onega is preferable in the northern and northeastern parts of the reservoir.
We organize fishing on Lake Onega, trolling on an equipped Finnish boat
15,000 rubles fishing shift 8 hours
10,000 rubles 4x. hour shift.
The optimal number of fishermen is 3 people, maximum 5.
The price of fishing includes: boat rental, provision of gear (spinning rods with wobblers, gliders...), instructions, gasoline, huntsman captain and assistance in dissolving up to 12 spinning rods!
Our guests can expect to catch large Walleye, Pike and good sized Perch! You come across Salmon, you need to let him go!
2018
2019
Some photo reports can be seen on the page of our VKontakte group (you can go to the group through the block at the bottom of the page).
Some photos of trophies are in the album of this site!
We provide rowing boats for independent fishing on Lake Onega (300 rubles/day), we do not provide motors (you can install your own motor up to 5 hp).
Guests of our base can come with their own boat or boat; there is a place to launch the boat.
You can successfully fish even from the shore or our pier!
We also deliver guests to KIZHI, 3000 rubles per person. Delivery details to Kizhi
Bream in Lake Onega
Most often this fish can be found in the lips: Svyatukha, Velikaya, Orov, Chelmuzhskaya, Shalskaya. The largest bream lives in Chelmuzhskaya Bay. Bream weighing from 1 to 2 kilograms are most often caught in catches; larger individuals are less common. The bream in Lake Onega is characterized by all the typical habits that are inherent in this fish.
You can also look for bream in small and shallow lakes that are connected by rivers and channels to Lake Onega - in them it is found everywhere and in large quantities.
Salmon in Lake Onega
Salmon is most often found in the areas of Klimetskogo Island, Ropruchya and Brusno. It goes to spawn in almost all large rivers; in fact, it is divided according to the rivers in which it spawns. The most common is Shuya salmon, which reaches a weight of 10-11 kilograms. It is caught in Petrozavodsk Bay.
Pälem salmon is a smaller form; specimens weighing more than 5 kilograms are rarely found. Suna salmon is quite rare; if it is caught in the area of the mouth of the Suna River, then these are single specimens. To fish for salmon in Lake Onega, you must purchase a license.
Perch in Lake Onega
Found throughout the entire water area, no special features. It is most common in the northeastern part of the lake, where the largest specimens are caught. They are caught using float rods, spinning rods and other gear.
It is recommended to look for perch on underwater elevations, best if they are rocky. In summer you can fish at depths of up to 10 meters; in autumn it goes to deeper places (we’re talking about large specimens).
Trout in Lake Onega
Trout is found almost everywhere (lake form). It is mainly caught using spinning rods. Onega trout is characterized by habits inherent in this fish and any other bodies of water. Fishes weighing more than 4.5 kilograms are rarely caught, although occasionally successful fishermen manage to catch fish weighing more than 8 kg. There are also rainbow trout that were bred artificially, but they were able to escape from the cages and spread throughout the lake.
The best places for trout fishing in Lake Onega: Shalskaya Bay, Brusno Island, river mouths. It is in these locations that this fish is found most often.
Grayling in Lake Onega
Grayling is not found everywhere, but this fish is quite widespread. It is worth looking in Maly Onega, near the Bolshoi Klimetskoy Island, in Pyalemsky Onega and near the Ivanovo Islands. Usually you come across individuals weighing from 400 to 500 grams. Also, do not forget about the small rivers that flow into Lake Onega. This is where the favorite habitats of grayling are.
We talked about the main types of fish in Lake Onega. Unfortunately, it is not possible to tell in detail about each fish, but experienced fishermen will always find their prey in this body of water. If you are very lucky, you can even catch a catfish or an eel, which are very, very rare here.
After reading other articles in the “Lake Onega” section, you can choose a good place for fishing, the main thing is to know what kind of fish you are going for and its habits. In this case, excellent fishing is guaranteed to you. Of course, if you're lucky with the weather.
Fishing for burbot in Lake Onega is one of the most exciting times in winter. When this freshwater brother of cod begins to “stir”, and this is the second half of February-early March, many fishermen give up searching for perch and roach and begin to diligently “knock for burbot”.
On the second largest lake - Ladoga - such fishing is not so popular, the burbot is not so large, but on Onego it is very popular among fishermen, because you can catch monsters weighing 10 or even more kilograms.
In fact, active burbot bites on everything. But this does not stop fishermen from inventing new ways to catch it. Burbot is caught with vertical spoons, with balance beams, with “helicopters”, with turntables, with jigs – in general, with everything that moves, plays or even glows.
And yet, in recent years, fishing with a jig (this is a huge hook with a weight) equipped with a piece of smelt has become the most popular. With this same jig, the fisherman, sometimes until he turns blue in the face, knocks on the bottom in anticipation of a bite from a predator. This is where the term “burbot knocking” comes from. I want to talk about one such March fishing trip, because I myself took part in it.
They knocked That morning began still dark. Andrey didn’t want to wake up at any time. It was three o'clock in the morning. After yesterday's birthday, it was hard for Andrei.
Maybe we can go tomorrow? — he sent a message with trembling fingers to his partner Evgeniy. “If you don’t leave in 15 minutes, I’ll go alone to Suisar,” came the menacing answer. “Okay, I’m coming,” Andrey’s trembling fingers sadly went with their owner to the kitchen to pick up a set of thermoses with tea and broth prepared by his smart wife the day before.
The road to the fishing Mecca - Shcheleyki (there is such a village in the Leningrad region on the bank of Onego near the Karelian border), and the fishermen were going exactly there, was sleepy and long. Let's go. They were silent. They were silent and drove on. The speed was low, the road was winter, the car was with a trailer in which the snowmobile was sleeping. Sleep fell not only on the equipment and Andrey, but also on Evgeny.
- How about we come to Shcheleyki and sleep in the car for a couple of hours? - Andrei suggested. “If you sleep, then somewhere on the highway,” Evgeniy remarked reasonably. “Imagine what the fishermen passing by will think about us.” So they will say: “We came fishing with a snowmobile to sleep. There are people...”
They didn't sleep. But, having arrived at the parking lot, they were in no hurry to get out of the car. The drowsiness did not leave them.
Meanwhile, stern guys were rushing past in vehicles of various calibers. For some reason, the trains attached to motorized dogs made me smile. These little Susanin men are sitting, hugging each other in a sled - well, it’s funny.
Dozens of sleds went into the lake, along with snowmobiles and cars, including cars and low-bellied ones. They all rushed to where the bags of fish were waiting for them - if not on the ice, then under it. Just manage to catch it.
Wherever they look When there was no one left on the shore, our sleepy fishermen finally got out of the car, yawned, pulled out the snowmobile and went to the holes. It was 8 am.
photo by Sergei Shikhutsky
They went to where there was no one. Let's go at random. And all around there is beauty - the lake and the sky are like milk, everything is one. The shores are not visible. Dream! Well, what does the fish have to do with it? Why are these people chasing her like this? These are roughly the thoughts that visited our heroes. We (it’s time to move on to the first-person narrative) quietly and sleepily continued to enjoy the natural grandeur.
But then someone “scratched” Andrey’s spoon. And then for me. I admit, we were waiting for the perch; the depth there was about seven meters. Well, then there was something for which fishermen travel to distant lands. It was like this:
In general, I got a burbot bite. I took a bait with maggots. A cry of delight and a moment of absolute happiness. It was 8:50 am. The steelyard showed 6.2 kg. This is a trophy!
Didn't go into the hole. Then there was a short photo session. And so we catch again. This time we switched to burbot tackle - we launched jigs with smelt. Within an hour, Andrei caught two small burbots, and I caught one.
Then there was a pause, the fish stopped biting. I approached Andrey and said that, to be honest, I don’t need any more fish today, I have enough. He stated that he didn’t need the fish at all – it was so beautiful!
At that very moment someone knocked on Andrei’s hand. This is where the fun began. The uninvited guest was not in the format of the 130th hole (this is the standard diameter of the hole).
- He doesn’t climb! “Andrey was calm and pleased with the beautiful views around, but this one didn’t climb, and this upset Andrey. He decided to take off his jacket and temporarily let him hold the underwater monster, which did not want to crawl into the hole. Good!
We began to think - what to do. To begin with, they broke my gaff. Then they bent Andryukhin. As a result, they somehow screwed up our friend. But what's the point? Even though he was on a leash, he didn’t go into the hole.
We took turns dipping our hands into the cold water, stroking the slippery muzzle, trying to lift it by the gills into the hole, persuading the fish to line up, but to no avail.
It was time to drill out. Since neither Andrey nor I had to drill before, we began to do it the way we know how.
And again, failure - from two holes it turned out to be some kind of eight, and not one big hole. But the second hand began to crawl through. Now the two of us could stroke our sufferer at the same time.
After the third hole it became really sad. The fish don't come and that's it. “Couldn’t you have hooked it less?!” — that’s exactly how I encouraged Andrey. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to,” he answered guiltily. Half an hour has already passed.
And so we decided to make a desperate attempt to decide the outcome of the fight. The two of us grabbed this comrade by the gills and with a sharp movement nevertheless dragged him into the figure-eight hole. And again - a wild cry of victory over the “mammoth”! Dancing around the hole and complete boundless happiness.
This fish was close in length to the first one, but in thickness it was much larger. Not surprisingly, her weight eventually dropped by 11 kg.
At this point the fishing was done. The subsequent hours of riding to the Vologda coast and catching one perch don’t count.
It was a good hunt.