Hofsa: Generous rewards!
A beautiful Hofsa grilse.
Hofsa is a rather late river by Icelandic standards but it is ticking away nicely and giving great joy to its clients according to this report from Jim Utaski, a Hofsa veteran of 22 years. A prime time on the river is still to come so it looks like an excellent season!
This is Jim Utaski‘s report, his group was fishing the river 23.-31.July: „Below average water temperatures (41F to 46F) and cool air temperatures throughout the week combined with strong northeast winds off the sea made a challenging week for fly fishing. But, not without its generous rewards in both the number of fish caught, and a very high percentage of MSW Salmon often still carrying the sure sign of just entering the river: Sea Lice. The total for 7 days, including the neighboring River Sunnudalsa, was 164.
The uppermost pools on Hofsa.
Certain techniques, such as the “Riffle Hitch” simply were not as effective, while a small size 12 Black or Red Francis Fly (not a tube) worked well on both a floating line and sink tip line. The fish were not in their usual lies at the head of the pool. The higher, colder water pushed the fish toward the tail of the known pools and new pools less visited. Further, the Beats closer to the Ocean, 7, 6 and 5, fished much more successfully in the Beat Rotation than the farther upstream Beats 3, 2 and 1, probably due to the even colder water temperatures.
Every one of the 13 anglers sharing rods caught one or more MSW fish of 80cm (±12 lbs). The five largest MSW were 90cm to 99cm in length, with results in several Salmon near or slightly above the 20 lb mark. As is common with the largest fish, many were also lost to acrobatics, a line wrapped around rocks, and simply hook pull outs near the net if excess line pressure was applied.
Take Aways for Another Year
A full assortment of lines, flies, tubes and techniques will be required to successfully enjoy the Hofsá River where the large Salmon are there, but may require varying your approach to assure success. A wonderful and continuous challenge!"
