Mellansjön

Character of the water

Mellansjön lies in central Sweden — a acidified brown forest lake. The tea-stained, humic water hides the bottom within an arm's length. Acidification has thinned life down to the hardiest few.

The surroundings

The lake lies half-remote, a fair way from the nearest road, tucked into woodland.

Large and deep (27 m): a central basin ringed by drop-offs and shallow bays around the edges — varied bottom with many spots to read.

Permits & rules

Fishing permit required — Mellansjön 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.

Fishing Mellansjön

The species list of Mellansjön runs to 8. The predators — perch, pike and grayling — hunt where the baitfish gather, and on a water this size you soon learn where it holds its fish.

Whoever fishes Mellansjön regularly builds something of their own: a log of what took, where and when. That's how the water gives up its patterns — cast by cast, never all at once.

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.
• In deep, oxygenated lakes the predators seek cool depth in summer, shallower in spring and autumn.
• Acidified water yields few, hardy species.