First Day Fishing in Swedish Lapland 🎣🇸🇪

After an 11-hour drive covering almost 950 km, we finally arrived in northern Sweden. Our destination was Sorsele Camping, where we had reserved a cabin for the next five nights.

The cabin was perfect for the three of us — me, my son, and a good friend. It had a bedroom with four beds, a small kitchen with a dining table, and a bathroom. Everything we needed for a few days of fishing and adventure in Swedish Lapland.

That first evening was all about settling in, unpacking, having some food, and getting our fishing gear ready. We knew the real adventure would start the next morning.

6 AM — Time to Fish

I woke up around 6 AM on our first fishing day, and the first thing that surprised me was the light. It was already bright outside — almost like the middle of the day!

We prepared breakfast: eggs and ham. We packed some sandwiches for lunch, grabbed our fishing gear, and finally headed out.

Our fishing spot was one we had found on Google Maps, about 25 minutes from the camping ground. We had no idea exactly what we were going to find.

And that's part of the adventure.

When we arrived, we were amazed by how wild and untouched everything looked. At the same time, we were impressed by how well-prepared the Swedish fishing spots were.

There was usually a shelter, a place to make a fire, chopped firewood, and a trail leading through the forest toward the river.

We followed the trail for about ten minutes.

It felt like walking on a trail to heaven.

And then, suddenly, the river appeared right in front of us.

My First Cast in Swedish Lapland

After driving all those kilometres and dreaming about fishing in Swedish Lapland, I couldn't wait to make my first cast. And, of course, I was already imagining myself landing my first big Swedish fish.

Well... things didn't exactly go according to plan.

The river was completely different from anything I had fished before. In some ways, it reminded me of rivers I had fished in Canada, but this one was bigger, with much stronger current.

The water was crystal clear, and the bottom was covered with large, slippery rocks. Just getting a few metres into the river was already a challenge.

My first five minutes of fishing produced absolutely nothing.

I started fishing the classic way, working the rapids, but I quickly realized that my setup was too light for that powerful current.

Time for a change of strategy.

I switched to heavier flies and started searching for slower-moving pocket water — places where the fish could hold without fighting the full force of the current.

And suddenly...

Fish on!

My first Swedish fish was a small grayling, probably around 25 cm.

It was beautiful, but honestly, a little disappointing. I had been dreaming about those famous 40+ cm Swedish grayling!

After that first grayling, I started getting takes on almost every cast.

The great thing about catching so many of these smaller fish was that it helped me figure out which flies were working best. I could experiment, adjust my presentation, and slowly start to understand what the fish were looking for. That little discovery would soon prove to be the key to getting and finding the bigger graylings.

Using the Hanák 460 BL hook proved once again to be a great choice for both species, handling both grayling and trout perfectly.

Grayling and trout were everywhere, but most of them were small, around 20–25 cm.

Finding the big Fish

Then I reached the end of the rapids, where the river opened into a deep, large pool.

And that's where everything changed.

I made a cast and suddenly...

I was hit by a train!

Finally, a big grayling — well over 40 cm.

That fish completely changed my perspective.

After almost three hours of fishing, I had finally figured out where the bigger fish were holding and, more importantly, how to approach them.

It became clear that catching big wild grayling wasn't simply about finding the right river. It was about understanding the water, reading the current, choosing the right flies, and paying attention to the places where those bigger fish could comfortably hold.

The Big Graylings

Once I had figured it out, the fishing became incredible.

By the end of the day, I had landed at least another eight big grayling, most of them between 45 and 48 cm.

Now I was smiling.

The fish I had been dreaming about were actually there — wild, powerful graylings in the middle of Swedish Lapland.

And the best part?

We were only on day one.

My son and my fishing buddy also managed to get into some really nice fish, so all three of us finished the day tired, happy, and already talking about what we would find the next day.

Back to Camp

Eventually, it was time to leave the river.

We followed the trail back through the forest, carrying our gear and replaying the day's best moments in our heads.

Back at the cabin, we had a well-deserved dinner and started preparing our equipment for the next adventure.

We were exhausted, but nobody wanted to go to sleep.

We were already dreaming about the next river, the next pool, and hopefully the next big grayling.

Swedish Lapland had welcomed us in style.

And this was only the beginning. 🎣🇸🇪