Lilla Aspan

humic brown forest lake · 61°N

Real lakereal shorelinemeasured max depth 13 m8 species on recordreal water chemistrysources & method →

clarity 3.2 mmax depth 13 mpH 7.6mesotrophic · humicstatus moderatepaved road

Character of the water

Lilla Aspan lies in central Sweden — a humic brown forest lake. The tea-stained, humic water hides the bottom within an arm's length. In summer a thermocline settles around 6 m and splits the lake into two worlds.

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.

A small but surprisingly deep pocket (13 m) with steep drops straight down from shore — the bottom falls away fast.

Permits & rules

Fishing permit required — Lilla Aspan FVOF. Day permit ~140 kr · annual permit ~700 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 Lilla Aspan

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.

regnbåge fish

typically ~35 cm · can reach 70 cm

Regnbåge hunts by feel more than sight in the stained water — short, hard strikes close to the bait.

Arctic char salmonids

typically ~35 cm · can reach 70 cm

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

Fishing Lilla Aspan

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

Every session at Lilla Aspan 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.
Stratified, oxygen-poor lakes push the fish up above the thermocline in summer.

The catch board

6 anglers · 12 catches

1Gustav Karlssonburbot38 cm
2Per Krügerbream31 cm
3Anders Nilssontrout29 cm
4Eva Falktrout28 cm
5Björn Strandperch19 cm
6Johan Björkroach18 cm

Species records here

burbot38 cmGustav Karlsson

bream31 cmPer Krüger

trout29 cmAnders Nilsson

perch19 cmBjörn Strand

roach18 cmJohan Björk

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