Lilla Åstjärnen

Character of the water

Lilla Åstjärnen lies in central Sweden — a acidified forest lake. Acidification has thinned life down to the hardiest few.

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 — Lilla Åstjärnen FVOF. Day permit ~60 kr · annual permit ~300 kr.

• Pike: keep at most one over 75 cm per day.
• Handheld tackle only. Respect the protected zones at the inlets and outlets.

Fishing Lilla Åstjärnen

The species list of Lilla Åstjärnen runs to 2. The predators — perch and pike — hunt where the baitfish gather, and on a water this size you soon learn where it holds its fish.

Every session at Lilla Åstjärnen 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

• Acidified water yields few, hardy species.