The giant Atlantic halibut is one of the most mythical species. Little is known about these enormous creatures.


SEA MONSTERS IN SÖRÖYA While pike can be aggressive and violent,


they can also be hesitant and finicky. Pike are always a challenge; some days it seems no lure will get a bite. One day I was fishing a shallow part of a


river and on every cast I felt a funny bump at the end of the line. I cast my bait out and again I felt a bump


at the end of the line. I struck the hook but met no resistance. It was starting to annoy me, so I stood up in the kayak to see what was happening. I cast out again and watched the lure swim below the water. As the lure neared the kayak a huge pike, like a submerged log, was following inches behind it. I changed lures and cast out again with


a big soft plastic. Again, the pike came. As it got closer, I started retrieving the shad as fast as I could. The huge fish disappeared, but just as I went to lift the lure out of the water, I felt a weight at the end of the line. I struck hard and the pike went berserk.


I was still standing up in the kayak with an angry pike on a short line. Somehow I landed it; the fish measured just less than 50 inches. This is why I love fishing for giant pike.


No matter how many of these mighty fish I catch, they always surprise and challenge me. And there is no better place to test pike fishing skills than the clear, cold water of Sweden.


68…KAYAK ANGLER


THE PIKE FISHING is best in Sweden but Norway is the place to go for big saltwater game. Swedes and Norwegians speak almost the same language and understand each other perfectly so whenever I get the urge for barn-door flatfish I steer the car north to the picturesque island of Söröya. Norway has some of the most amazing


saltwater fishing anywhere. The giant Atlantic halibut is one of the most mythical species and old fishermen in forgotten fishing villages tell stories of enormous halibut almost sinking their old wooden boats. Atlantic halibut are still a mystery to anglers


and scientists. What we know about these giant fish is based on old and outdated research. One question that has yet to be answered concerns the migration patterns of these fish. Halibut can be caught in relatively shallow water, less than a hundred feet deep, as well as in extremely deep water over a thousand feet deep. Scientists and anglers think the fish spawn in deeper water in winter, but we have been catching halibut all winter close to shore. This only proves that there is still much to learn about these fish. In the old days, Norwegian fishermen would


hook halibut from old wooden rowing boats and then drag the fish to a buoy with a rope tied to it. The other end of the rope was tied to a team of bulls on the beach. The fisherman would tie the line from the halibut to the rope attached to the bulls and have the animals drag the fish to shore.


Halibut can be found all along the


Norwegian coast, but we catch the biggest halibut on the northern tip of Norway, starting with the island Söröya north to Troms. This is an extreme environment with steep


cliffs dropping straight into the ocean. There is no place like Norway in summer. While plants and trees are in full summer bloom, the mountains are still covered in snow. The lower mountainsides are filled with colorful vegetation and trees grow low and thick to survive the wind. The indigenous Sami people graze their reindeer on the lush lower mountains and it is not unusual to stop the car while a herd is crossing the road. In summer the sun never goes down and it is almost as if nature is trying to make up for the long, dark winters by not resting for a second. The Barents Sea is unpredictable. Even


though the air temperature can be warm, the water rarely rises above 45 degrees. And if you plan on fighting large halibut from the kayak you better be ready to get wet. Not many people target Atlantic halibut


from a kayak because it can be very dangerous. The tide is extremely strong; sometimes it is impossible to paddle against the current. Steep cliffs and sharp rocks make it difficult to land a kayak on most of the shoreline. The weather can change dramatically in a matter of minutes. The day can start sunny


PHOTO: S-O LARSSON


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