Balsjön

humic brown forest lake · 63°N

Real lakereal shorelinemeasured max depth 7 m8 species on recordsources & method →

clarity 1.5 mmax depth 7 mpH 5.9mesotrophic · humicstatus unsatisfactorypaved road

Character of the water

Balsjön lies in central Sweden — a humic brown forest lake. The tea-stained, humic water hides the bottom within an arm's length.

The surroundings

The lake sits close to town with a road right up to it — easy to reach, but hard-fished and exposed to nutrient runoff from the buildings and fields all around.

Moderately deep (7 m) — shallow bays, the odd reef and a deeper channel through the middle.

Permits & rules

Fishing permit required — Balsjön FVOF. Day permit ~60 kr · annual permit ~300 kr.

Pike: keep at most one over 75 cm per day.
Trout & Arctic char: protected during the autumn spawn · catch-and-release on certain stretches.
Handheld tackle only. Respect the protected zones at the inlets and outlets.

Species in Balsjön

perch predatory fish

typically ~22 cm · can reach 45 cm

Perch grazes the rich water in schools — where there's one, there are more.

bream coarse fish

typically ~38 cm · can reach 65 cm

Down on the bottom bream sifts the soft ground — patience beats speed here.

pike predatory fish

typically ~62 cm · can reach 120 cm

In the murky light, pike shadows the baitfish and hits in short rushes.

burbot bottom fish

typically ~45 cm · can reach 90 cm

Burbot works the bottom in the dark — smell and feel come before everything else.

roach coarse fish

typically ~18 cm · can reach 32 cm

Roach grazes the rich water in schools — where there's one, there are more.

trout salmonids

typically ~35 cm · can reach 70 cm

In the murky light, trout shadows the baitfish and hits in short rushes.

Arctic char salmonids

typically ~35 cm · can reach 70 cm

In the murky light, Arctic char shadows the baitfish and hits in short rushes.

whitefish whitefish

typically ~30 cm · can reach 55 cm

Whitefish follows the schools through open water — here today, gone tomorrow.

Fishing Balsjön

perch, pike and burbot sit at the top of the food chain in Balsjön, carried by bream, roach and whitefish. The brown, humic water keeps visibility short — the fishing is more about vibration than sight.

The fishing here follows the water's own rhythm: dawn and dusk have their windows, fronts close and open them, and the season moves the fish. No two sessions at Balsjön are alike.

General rules of thumb for this kind of water

Brown, humic water dampens the light — fishing can be good even in the middle of the day.

The catch board

6 anglers · 12 catches

1Mikko Sandströmburbot38 cm
2Per Nyströmbream31 cm
3Heike Holmwhitefish26 cm
4Jukka Sandströmperch18 cm
5Stefan Falkroach17 cm
6Kjell Olofssonroach16 cm

Species records here

burbot38 cmMikko Sandström

bream31 cmPer Nyström

whitefish26 cmHeike Holm

perch18 cmJukka Sandström

roach17 cmStefan Falk

The same water, for real

This water's real catch reports — and the logbook for your own.Fångstrapport.sein Swedish

The real bite table for this water — for your next real session.Huggtabell.sein Swedish