Hälsetjärnen

Character of the water

Hälsetjärnen lies in central Sweden — a humic brown tarn. 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 (6 m) — shallow bays, the odd reef and a deeper channel through the middle.

Permits & rules

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

• Zander: minimum size 45 cm · protected during the spawn (Apr–May).
• Pike: keep at most one over 75 cm per day.
• Handheld tackle only. Respect the protected zones at the inlets and outlets.

Fishing Hälsetjärnen

Hälsetjärnen holds 6 species, with perch, pike and zander at the top of the chain and roach, bream and ruffe schooling beneath them. The modest depth keeps most of the fishing within reach of the bank.

Every session at Hälsetjärnen is fished in whatever conditions hold right then — the same pressure, wind and light as over the real water. What bites today isn't what bit the day before, and those who return learn the water for real.

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.
• Nutrient-rich lakes hold plenty of baitfish but often murky water.