Gacka brown trout

It is well known that brown trout in river Gacka grow up to five times faster than in other rivers. Quantity of brown trout increases each year and this year in average you can catch more brown than rainbow trout. Credit for the preservation of native Gacka river brown trout goes to "Croatian Centre for Indigenous Species of Fish and Crawfish in Karstic Waters - Otocac" and Gacka d.o.o.. This year more than 2000 fish, mostly native brown trout average size of 45 cm, were introduced in Catch & Release area which has been extended to the fifth bridge. Larger, old, nature brown trout you can catch specially in this downstream area which is not much visited by anglers like area in Licko Lesce around bridge and hotel. In our last fishing trip my friend Sasa and I had dozen of trout, mostly brown some of you can see on this photos, but the most beautiful brown trout larger than 60 cm caught by Sasa I didn't have opportunity to photograph. Sasa showed me a photo of fish taken by his mobile phone. This was pure, old and native brown trout, really beautiful and trophy fish what you can not see every day. That day we were fishing mainly near the bottom of the river with black streamers and heavy nymphs, and that conditions are created for using of sinking fly lines or sinking poly-leaders.

Heavy vibrations

It is already well known that Duo Lures Vibration models respond very well in river rapids and fast water. New, improved Vibration G-Fix models are even better in these conditions. Drastic increasing in weight and new shape in head area allow lure to easily sink through the river current, reaching the places were the fish are located, near the bottom. Both lures (Vibration and G-Fix) are very effective at our European rivers, and catch well many types of fish like asp, barbel, chub and catfish. They are recommended for fast researching of the river rapids. For me, there are no better lures for such conditions when you want to cast far away, be fast in searching, go deep and to have nice lure vibration in fast water. And just one hint for the end. Nearly all fish we caught were hooked in the lower/belly treble hook, so check the sharpness and condition of the same.

Rafting at river Sava in Zagreb

Carp fishing competition - lake Oresje

Lake Oresje placed between Zagreb and  Samobor, are one of the best lakes for carp fishing in Croatia. From 11th to the 13th of April, 5th traditional carp fishing competition "Pavao Karabelj" with complete number of  17 teams will be held at the lake. Lake has a good population of carp, some are very big, so outside of this weekend you can plan your own carp fishing campaign here. Except carp, lake has plenty of pike, so take you lure box and spin rod if you are coming here. Daily license you can buy in the fishing house at the lake.
http://www.srd-oresje.com/ 

Perch fishing in Croatia - lake Stikada

Lake Stikada near Gracac town is home of the biggest perch in Croatia. Lake Stikada is managed by Nature Park "Velebit" and fishing association SRU "Pastrva". Daily license you can by directly from the ranger on the lake, but if you will stay there for a few days, it is more profitable to buy season ticket in SRU "Pastrva". Lake is placed in the Lika region, close to the seacoast. If you are on vacation, traveling in this direction and you want to catch some big perch or lake trout, this should be your stop on the way to the sea. For perch fishing we recommend usage of 5 - 8 g jig head hooks, and some silicone "fish like" lures like Sakura Slit Shad or Awaruna http://pontoon-21.com/5_products/Awaruna.html in  3" size.

More info you can read at: http://www.pastrva-gracac.com.hr/index.php

English version of Fishing at the Adriatic magazine

Are you interested in fishing at the Adriatic along the Croatian coast, one of the worlds cleanest seas with a lot of islands and many tourist attractions? Big game, natural baits or spin fishing techniques, species like tuna, seabass or gilthead sea bream? Squid fishing maybe? If you have plans for holidays in Croatia and you want to experience sea fishing adventures, this is the right magazine for you. After 10 years on Croatian from now you can read the English version for only 2,62 euros. Preview and buying links are here.

https://gum.co/mTqe

https://ribolovnajadranu.hr/ribolov-na-jadranu-012014-english-edition/

Landscapes

Gacka is Gacka

Gacka river is special by their beauty, the beauty of the surrounding nature and of course the trout that are living inside. Peerless it is the most famous Croatian river, which has always been visited by the fly fishermen from all over the world. These days the weather is sunny and perfect for fishing. Water level of the river is declining after a very high, that has delayed the real start of the trout season at 1st of March. So, I took a day off and went there with my friend Sasa. This was a day from the dream! Not many fly fishermen were fishing there, so we had a huge part of the river only for us. We caught a multitude of trout completely enjoying in fly fishing. Among many other fish Sasa caught two bigger rainbow in range 55 - 60 cm, and I had two nice brown trout. The most of fish were not picky as they can be during the summer time, so we were using various nymph imitations. It looks like this will be another great year and that no one will regret it if come to one of Europe's most beautiful trout rivers.

... and here is a small hedonistic pendant in the form of video made by Sasa.

 

From California

Fin Chasers Magazine

Fin Chasers Magazine celebrates its 1-year anniversary by releasing another stunning edition of the free online magazine – a whopping 212 pages of fly fishing journalism and photography:

www.fin-chasers.com

Golden and bigger

New fly fishing season is open at the most of the rivers in the region. Rivers are very cold and not provide much food on the surface now, so hungry trout rarely misses an opportunity for meaty bite near the bottom. Although mostly hidden in the branches, taking the open part of the river means that they are looking for some food. In this period on some rivers you may not see many trout, but if you see it there is a big chance to caught it, since they are not selective now. Of course, you must be calm on your position sometimes waiting for fish to come near you, and often using Indian stalking methods not to scare it. If you are doing it this way and if you are patient, sooner or later you will see hungry rainbow trout and this one can be yours. If you cast some meaty, bigger fly that is very visible like imitations of cased caddisfly or stonefly tied at golden jig head hooks, you have good chance to catch the big one. For the begging of the season here are 2 simple patterns that can be tied on hooks numbers 6, 8 and 10. Tight lines!

How to tie cased caddisfly in less than one minute

Caddisfly larvae are well known as a underwater architects and they build shelter cases around their bodies. They use silk to hold together building materials like sand, small peaces of rock or aquatic plants. Fishing with imitations of cased caddisflies near the bottom of the river is the most productive in the begging of the season (and later of course), so we recommend this pattern for big trout in this period. Can be tied on regular hooks (sizes 4 - 12), or on jig heads. This pattern is the most simple case caddisfly jig to be tied in less than one minute. All you need is fly tying thread, jig hook, a piece of yellow sponge, and some dubbing material. Simple follow the pictures.