Stora Vällan

humic brown forest lake · 61°N

Real lakereal shorelinemeasured max depth 8 m10 species on recordsizes from survey fishingreal water chemistrysources & method →

clarity 3.0 mmax depth 8 mpH 7.2oligotrophic · humicstatus moderatepaved road

Fish Stora Vällan Buy forecast

Character of the water

Stora Vällan 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 5 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.

Moderately deep (8 m) — shallow bays, the odd reef and a deeper channel through the middle.

Permits & rules

Fishing permit required — Stora Vällan FVOF. Day permit ~100 kr · annual permit ~500 kr.

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

Species in Stora Vällan

perch predatory fish

typically ~9 cm · can reach 41 cm

The nutrient-rich water keeps perch moving constantly between the feeding grounds.

ål fish

typically ~55 cm · can reach 110 cm

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

bream coarse fish

typically ~31 cm · can reach 46 cm

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

pike predatory fish

typically ~43 cm · can reach 43 cm

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

ruffe perch family

typically ~6 cm · can reach 10 cm

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

karp fish

typically ~45 cm · can reach 95 cm

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

burbot bottom fish

typically ~45 cm · can reach 90 cm

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

roach coarse fish

typically ~12 cm · can reach 31 cm

The nutrient-rich water keeps roach moving constantly between the feeding grounds.

vendace whitefish

typically ~16 cm · can reach 28 cm

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

sutare fish

typically ~35 cm · can reach 60 cm

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

Fishing Stora Vällan

Stora Vällan holds 10 species, with perch, pike and burbot at the top of the chain and ål, bream and ruffe schooling beneath them. The modest depth keeps most of the fishing within reach of the bank.

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 Stora Vällan 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.
Stratified, oxygen-poor lakes push the fish up above the thermocline in summer.

The catch board

6 anglers · 12 catches

1Nils Sandströmburbot38 cm
2Jürgen Åströmpike33 cm
3Stefan Åströmsutare28 cm
4Heike Korhonenvendace13 cm
5Sören Björkvendace13 cm
6Stefan Brandtperch9 cm

Species records here

burbot38 cmNils Sandström

pike33 cmJürgen Åström

sutare28 cmStefan Åström

vendace13 cmHeike Korhonen

perch9 cmStefan Brandt

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