Orange County , Minneapolis, Keflavik, Akureyri, Thistilfjordur.!

26. August 2006. It was time again! As I now live in Orange County CA, USA then I have to do some flying to get to this river (around 10000miles...). This would be my 7th consecutive year in Svalbardsa.

I arrived in Reykjavik on a Friday morning and spent the day in Ossur and meeting with friends and family. Joe had arrived earlier that week to do some work with Ossur (he has to do something to be able to expense the trip...).

After some partying at Friday night and very little sleep after wards (not to mention the hangover...) then we meet with John and Mike outside of Hotel Odinsve in Reykjavik. We headed to the airport as we where flying business class with Icelandair to Akureyri, the plan was to rent cars there and drive to Svalbardsa.

Me, John and Mike at Akureyri airport.


After loading up of some necessities at Akureyri (like, hotdogs, prins polo, beer, vine and Opal we started driving to Thistilfjordur where the river Svalbardsa runs. They go kind of easy on your check-ins in the domestic flights in Iceland...


26. Agust 2006. The first shift. We decided that Mike would come with me to section no. 2 and John would go with Joe on Section no. 1. Me and Mike started in pool named Forseti (president) and is one of my favorite pool in the river. After guiding Mike for about 20 minutes he hooked and landed his first Atlantic salmon. It was fresh run 5pound female that took Snaelda tube fly.




At the end of the first day it was time to have dinner witch was prepared by Sigga. There was a rumor that Sigga had bought 20 liters of cream to use in the food for us (we where only there for 4 days!) but we where not disappointed by the cuisine she put out for us as every night there was a three course meal with desert to die for...(we did not loose any weight...).

The group in Svalbardsa 2006, Jon, (John Welaj (Vail, CO), Ragnar, my self, Joe Davant (Charlotte, NC) and Michael Curtin (Bosie, Idaho).


27th of August. Me and Mike had section no. 1 and went fishing in Svalbardsselshylur (tough one...). Me and Joe have not been successful in this pool untli last year we learned how to fish it. It is enourmus pool so you have to know excactly how and where to fish it to hook a salmon. I tell Mike everything I know about this pool and send him wading out into it. After few minutes he has hooked and landed one. We wait few minutes before I go in and in my secound cast I got a hit. I turned out to be (according to measurement) 7,4 kg female, brand new in the river.


Joe did not to well last year (Palmi 16, Joe 2!) and the reason for this was simple! He killed the first two salmon he caught on the trip and I told him; You just don't do that! I tell Joe that you always have to release the first salmon you catch in every river you fish, every year and the salmon you release will tell the others in the river that you mean them no harm, they will then form a line to take your fly (this is just something I made up but Joe doesn’t know that...). Today Joe firmly believes in this theory and this year he made sure he did release the first salmon he caught and treated him with great respect as you can see. It sure paid off for him as he caught 16 salmon this year but I 14!


Joe and John went down to section No. 3 to try to find some trout. John in Gardhusahylur where he caught one 4pound brown trout.


27th of August. Me and Mike had section no.1 in the afternoon. We started in Laxahylur but had no luck there so we hiked up to Storifoss (pool no. 1). I hooked one salmon in pool named Den Tredje on the way up there and SDR it (short distance release).

I am starting to know this river fairly well so I knew there would be salmon lying just 4-5 feet into the river from the black stone that is to left of Mike (I told him not to go closer to the river for the photo...). I get down on my knees and crawl a little bit further than Mike is standing and cast out a Collie dog micro hitch with hook no. 16. The first cast did not go where I wanted to so I cast again and it was perfect, right on the mirror you see opposite the black stone. The hitch moves perfectly over the mirror but as soon as it hits the fast water then he nailed it!


I don't really know what I was thinking but I had put the hitch on my 6 weight rod and now I was in trouble as I could feel right away that this was a good size salmon. He moves slowly and calmly into the deeper water and just sits there, I start pulling on him harder and then he dives way into the pool and the line just flies out of my real. Then, all of a sudden he decided to go up for air…! He comes flying about 5 feet out of the water but my line was still pointing down into the pool. It was one of the craziest jumps I have ever seen in my life!




After fighting this salmon for about 1hr and 35min he had sat down in the middle of the river bellow Storifoss and I had asked Mike (my assistant...) to try to push him away from some big stones that were very close to him. As Mike gets close to the salmon he moves up and then he takes a U-turn and goes down the river at incredible speed. Now it was time to live or let die! Since you can walk on water when you have a salmon on your line I went flying down the river bank after the salmon at speeds I did not know I could move at. He goes through very fast water and ends up in the pool bellow Storifoss. After about 10-15min fight there with Mike holding me out of the water we finally landed him. This salmon that had taken me 1 hour and 45 minutes (at least) to land turned out to be beautiful 7,7kg female that was for sure released back into the river. The time was 8:45 and it was getting dark, we still had to walk for 45 minutes to get to the car, but we still had time for a beer in Laxahylur on the way down.


28th of August. 5kg female with micro tag. Took Snaelda tube fly in Litlifoss.


Joe hooked this beautiful female in Litlifoss on the 28th of August. Released.


28th of August. Me and John had section 2 in the morning. It had rained through the whole night so the river was becoming brownish. We fished for awhile in Nedri Eyrarhylur and John had several hits on the micro hitch but no take. John had not taken a salmon yet so I decided to take him to Forseti as I hardly ever left Forseti without a salmon. We fished Forseti for about half an hour but nothing!. We walked to Litlifoss and fished there for another half an hour but nothing!!.

We walk back to the car and I was becoming desperate to get John his first Atlantic salmon but it was time for lunch brake as the time was 1:00pm. As we drove down from Litlifoss we pass Forseti again and I tell John to take the rod with the Nazi and cast, so and so. After about 5 minutes and my self guiding from the car he hooks his first salmon and lands it few minutes later! It was 1:20pm and time for lunch.


29th of August. Me and John had section 1 and started in Laxahylur. The river was quite high in the morning but not to brownish. After about 20 min then I hook and landed this 5.0kg female on a micro hitch, that I released.


We then crossed the river as I John to hitch the tale of Laxahylur. I show John where the take is going to be and he immediately raises a fish. We got him to come after the hitch few times and then we tried other flies but without luck. I told John then I was going to start walking up to Storifoss and he should continue to get him to take for another 30min and then start walking up to Storifoss. John finally hooked him but lost him after about 20min battle.


29th of August. 6kg female from Skriduhylur. Taken on Snaelda. Released.




One tradition I and Joe have created in Svalbardsa. Hot dogs in Storifoss, cooked on primus. This year me and John had hot dogs in Skriduhylur.


29th of August. After me and John had hot dogs in Skriduhylur we all met up with Joe and Mike. John and Mike wanted to go above Storifoss and check out some trout but me and Joe started fishing our self downwards. Later that day then John and Mike came down to Laxahylur where Joe was fishing but I had moved down to section 2. I don't think they caught any fish, as I think they where just drinking...


Typical Icelandic beer cooler...


29th of August. 3kg female from Forseti. Taken on Snaelda. Released.


After 4 days of unbelievable fishing in Svalbardsa it was time for John and Mike to head back to the US. We had caught 23 salmon; Joe 7, Mike 4, John 2 and my self 9. I and Joe how ever would continue over to Sela for another 4 days