Vatnsa extended by 4 to 6 kilometers!
The beautiful litle Vatnsa. Photo by Terje Broman Larson.
The owner of Vatnsa, Rudy Lamprecht, and his trusted right hand in Iceland Asgeir Asmundsson, have started the unusual proceedings of lengthening the river from its mere roughly three kilometers upto a more robust seven to nine kilometers. In the future when all is done and dusted, the river will have rods added and the annual average catch will be several hundred salmon higher.
Asgeir Asmundsson told us: „We started to plan this several years ago and actually got the wheels rolling a year ago. The extra lenght will be at the current bottom end of the river. After its current three kilometer flow it enters the glacial river Kerlingadalsa. The Kerlingardalsa is shifting all the time, sometimes every day thus the extra 4 to 6 kilometers are at the moment rather lifeless gravel- and sandbars.
Last seasons biggest Vatsa salmon, 103 centimeters, a twenty pound plus hen fish. Photo from Eythor Sigurgeirsson.
We will make adjustments at the junction which will allow Vatnsa to roam on freely for the extra 4 to 6 kilometers, hugging the western side of the steep valley while the Kerlingardalsa will have a more central flow down the valley. We are planing a fine variety of new pools, some done by nature herself while we will have a hand in others as well as putting in the neccesary rocks and gravel for spawning and juvenile rearing. In a few years we will have a fully fledged extension to this brilliant river.“
To add to this, Asgeir told us that potential salmon and sea trout rearing areas in small streams entering the headwater lake will be improved and the same goes for Skakka, the sizeable tributary to the Vatnsa close to the lodge. „We have already enhanched the rivers salmon runs to the point that we have seen record catches every year the last three years. The top season having been last year when a stunning nine hundred plus salmon were caught on two rods during the short season in late summer and autumn. So it is important that we also improve the rivers capacity to welcome all these new spawners,“ Asgeir said.
