The 4 seasons for fishing (Continued)
Winter (December, January, February)
In winter, the mature trout migrates into streams to spawn, but you might still be lucky to come across shiny juvenile trout in the fjord. These could be ”skips” or “grønlændere” referred to on page 8. “Grønlændere” are small, juvenile fish that have only lived a couple of years and are often smaller than the average trout. ”Skips” are trout that have chosen not to spawn in a given year. Maybe a kind of reserve if something should go wrong with the spawning fish in the cold water in the springs. Trout may not hibernate like bears, but it sure can seem that way if you’ve ever gone fishing in cold waters. Trout are cold blooded and slow down everything they do in winter months. Fishing in the winter months should be concentrated to the innermost part of the fjord. You have to calmly survey the water, methodically cover the area, and put the fly right in front of their nose. You may find that a trout will hit your fly on the first cast, but there will be others where it will take more than 6 or 7 casts to get any reaction. Tease the fish repeatedly and they might snap back out of annoyance over time. As water temperature decreases in winter, trout draw into areas where the water salinity is lower i.e. underwater springs and areas where streams flow into the fjord. These spots are well represented in Mariager Fjord. Refer to the map of the 28 fishing spots around the fjorde on pages 16-25.
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