The Finnish Line

Stalking Gator Pike And Trophy Trout In The Baltic Sea

The Baltic Sea shimmered brightly as we cruised between the islands due east of Helsinki, Finland in the Eagle deep-V 21-foot outboard. The 90 horsepower Mercury Verado sped past quirky looking ancient wooden fishing boats that have plied these waters for generations. From one of the cockpits, a grizzled blond nordic captain, clearly from a long line of Viking ancestors, waved and gave off a self-assured smirk, signaling it was going to be a very fishy morning.

The scene was surreal as we maneuvered between dozens of the 10,000 plus islands on the north shore of the Baltic. The islands, which the Finns call “Gray-Night,” varied in size from large tabletops to massive imposing granite slabs. Huge granite boulders were strewn everywhere on the island banks ranging in color from rosy pastels to burnt umber, to pitch black. The boulders were stacked like monstrous building blocks resembling a giant’s playground.

Vesa, our skipper from the Fishing Lords outfitter, took the boat off plane around a point of land marked by a metal navigation sign emblazoned with a large red “T.” “What does that stand for?” I asked. Vesa laughed and remarked jokingly, “T is for Taimen, which is Finnish for trout.” This was a primo spot known for large sea trout, which only occur in the Baltic Sea from Denmark in the west to Estonia and Russia in the east.

I peered into the dark brown water, which was clear to eight feet as we slowly and quietly motored along the shore of Sausage Bay. Stained by the tannic acid of the conifers on its banks, the water was bursting with life, primarily Baltic herring. Vesa carefully monitored the water temperature, as the herring were most comfortable in the range of 42 to 53 degrees Fahrenheit. As the herring go, so go the sea trout. The water temperature read 44 degrees and we were in the midst of a herring convention. I licked my lips in anticipation.

Vesa yelled for me to cast my silver spoon close to the boulder-strewn shore at 11 o’clock. He had seen a swirl and a tail. I sailed my spoon the 75 or so feet to the edge, and within a crank and a half, I pulled tight to a silvery whirling dervish. I’m a fan of Barnum & Bailey, but I have never seen such a feverish flying act in their circus. The silver projectile flew out of the water over a dozen times before we were able to subdue it. Once aboard, I could see that the six-pound trout was close in appearance to a Lake Michigan steelhead, with the addition of some lovely X-shaped black markings all along its sides. After a few photos, we returned her to the sienna drink no worse for wear.

Throughout the rest of the morning, we caught a slew of sea trout on our island-hopping journey. It was a lot like sight fishing for bonefish in Belize, only with 40-degree cooler water. Once we dialed in the right water temperatures, we kept our eyes peeled for the slightest swirl, splash, or slap. The gear was optimal for casting three to five-inch herring colored spoons and included medium weight Shakespeare seven-foot Ugly Sticks and 2500 series Shimano spinning reels loaded with eight or 10 lb. test monofilament.

The trick is to hurl the spoon to the edge of the sea and start your retrieve just as it hits the water. If you are a second or so too late, the spoon will become mired in some pretty nasty stuff including last years rotted weeds and some small cast-off crustacean shells. On the retrieve, steady cranking with a pause every three or so seconds is the general rule, with the trout hitting on the pause. After about 20 minutes, I mastered the technique and the trout started to slam my spoon all morning. Although we did not yield catches larger than eight to 10 pounds, they pulled drag like fiends.

Hunting for Gator Pike

uch like back home in my Wisconsin state waters, giant pike are the king of the food chain in the brackish Baltic Sea. They migrate in the springtime, shortly after ice-out, to the north shore of the Baltic to their traditional spawning flats. Their favorite spots are shallow weedy bays with muck bottoms where the water warms up more quickly than the main channels. Once they have completed their egg laying duties, the enormous females grow hungry and mean. Our best chance of catching a trophy was in the afternoon when the water warmed.

Vesa noted that the big girls were much like crocodiles that will eat anything and everything. He often catches pike-perch, which are genetically very similar to American walleye on a light line only to have a pike snatch the fish (or half of it) at boatside and retreat with a resounding splash and massive swirl. That’s my kind of fish!

The winds had been northerly for the week prior to my arrival and it had lowered the water by about two feet in some of the prime spawning grounds east of Helsinki. But we were able to find some excellent habitat both close to the Finnish mainland and also on a few of the sea islands eight or so miles offshore. The gear we were using was much heavier than the sea trout rigs and included eight-foot medium/heavy Shakespeare graphite rods with Abu Garcia Ambassadeur 6500s loaded with 50 lb. Spiderwire and wire leaders. Vesa preferred large green spoons, while I stuck to a red and white six-inch Bomber Long A.

We had great luck in a secluded bay loaded with weeds and illuminated by the mid-day sun. The bay was packed with small herring that were extremely skittish, a great sign of things to come. With its captivating purple mountains as a backdrop on the shore, we pulled in pike after pike. While not herring-like in appearance, the huge pike really didn’t like the bait and attacked it viciously. At the out-island spot, we caught some 10-plus pound pike in a shallow rocky bay. Our quarry tried to snap our lines on submerged rocks and a fallen fir tree. Only one got away with a spoon and the rest were hauled boatside. These pot-bellied giants had really been putting on the feedbag and were gorgeous with their horizontal dark stripes down their bright green bodies. What a blast!

Baltic Sea Slam

asked Elias, my skipper for the day, to help me complete a Baltic Sea Slam to include sea trout, pike, and whitefish (a smallish salmonid that makes great table fare) on the last of my three days of fishing. Elias was game and established sea trout as our first target. We investigated a series of small islands close to the mainland where Elias had been successful the day before. He expertly used the wind and his steering prowess to glide us past the south shore of a small island. Three casts later I hooked a beauty of a sea trout that weighed in at eight-pounds. Its milk chocolate mottled hue was in stark contrast to many of the other silver trout we had been catching.

For part two of the slam, we sped over to Kaunissaari Island, a public park owned by the city of Helsinki, in search of whitefish and a picnic lunch. After mooring the outboard, we set up two lightweight rods on the pier rigged with 4 lb. test line, tethered to 3 oz. sinkers and small gold hooks tipped with thin red worms. Within five minutes of casting, we had three silvery shimmering whitefish on the boards of the pier. Elias, who has dual credentials as a guide and a chef, took the fish to the shelter house where he expertly prepared them over an open fire. Our picnic consisted of a heavenly mix of seared whitefish, broiled sausages, alder smoked salmon, creamy pasta salad and homemade traditional Finnish white rice bread. It was just the kind of feast you need to get you ready for tackling some hungry pike.

Elias did not let me down. We returned to a traditional spawning area where we came up empty two days earlier. The wind had changed to the west and was pushing baitfish into the sheltered bay. About halfway into the bay, I nailed a 40-inch pike on my trusty crankbait. As she pulled vigorously to the east, I looked over and noticed that the reel clicker on the rig that was cradled in a portside rod holder started to make noise. The line from this reel was attached to a large dead herring that was dragging along the bottom. I told Elias to grab it before it got away. By the tug, Elias could tell that it was as big as the one on the end of my line. Bam! We were into a double just like that.

After about 10 minutes of non-stop action, we were able to get both pike boat-side and put them into the same net. We had 80 inches and 40 pounds of upset pike all in the same package. Imagine that. The amazing thing was that Elias’ fish wasn’t even hooked. She just decided to hang onto to the large herring. This was the best free lunch this pike had seen in a while and she wasn’t about to let it go, even when we slid her into the big hoop net. Now that’s the proper way to finish up a Baltic Slam!

David Barton resides in Southern Wisconsin on a winding river where he enjoys frequent fishing excursions with his wife, daughter and loyal beagle. Barton’s career allows him to travel to all points of the globe. His baggage includes gear suitable for just about any aquatic species he might encounter.

Where To Toss The Bags

Helsinki is a major metropolitan center of over a million people nestled on the north shore of the Gulf of Finland in the eastern Baltic Sea. Nicknamed the Princess of the Baltic, Helsinki is both a cultural center and a working port. To reach Helsinki from the United States, Finnair offers direct flights from JFK and Boston Logan. There are numerous connecting flights via Lufthansa, British Airways and United through Frankfurt and London. Once in Helsinki, the Helsinki Card, which is available at many local retail outlets, provides unlimited rides on local city buses, trains, trams and ferries. It’s a great deal for the money.

Helsinki has a variety of first-rate hotels in the central city. We selected the Radisson SAS Seaside Hotel after reading many Internet reviews and were very pleased with our choice. It is located in the near west side of Helsinki in the harbor area, situated mere steps from the Baltic Sea. I particularly liked this feature as the guides came to pick me up by water every morning just outside the hotel lobby.

Radisson SAS Seaside Hotel - Helsinki
011+358 (0)20 123 4707
www.radissonsas.com

There are numerous fishing guide services in the Helsinki area, but I selected the Fishing Lords after a thorough web search and discussions with previous clients. Tuomas Ollikainen and Mika Viitanen have been running the operation since 2000 and are the market leaders in the area. They employ nine people full-time and 30 contract guides who are extremely knowledgeable in the area and the habits of the gamefish that inhabit the Baltic Sea. It’s a first class operation that includes eight hours of fishing a day with a seasoned guide and a delicious shore lunch with local delicacies. The equipment is new and the outboard boats are in excellent working order. If you choose, you can also rent a lovely modern cabin from Fishing Lords along the banks of the Baltic.

Fishing Lords
011+358 (0)41 530 7727
www.fishinglords.fi

Bring Your Camera

Helsinki is a vibrant city with a funky mix of 250-year-old structures and eclectic and angular modernistic buildings built according to the Finnish Design School. We arrived on the Finnish national holiday of Vappu on May 1st when about half a million people descend on downtown Helsinki to party hardy. The streets are packed full of students, laborers, businessmen and others. The whole city shows up. It was a lot of fun to see the balloon vendors carrying their thousands of helium orbs bringing joy to the assembled children. There were magicians, jugglers, troubadours and rock-n-roll bands. One thing’s for sure, Helsinki knows how to throw a shindig.

I heartily recommend two local Helsinki eateries. The Salve Café is basically a friendly neighborhood tavern, which served up the best fried pike-perch/walleye I’ve ever eaten. The other spot, Meri Makasiini at the harbor edge, specializes in traditional Finnish dishes.

If you get a chance, take a ferryboat ride to Suomenlinna, the 18th Century Swedish sea fortress that protects the entrance to the harbor of Helsinki. It has been completely restored and is worth an afternoon stroll to see the fort that protected Helsinki for over 200 years. The ice cream cones offered there are not bad either. Another jaunt by ferry is a trip to the Helsinki Zoo, which is on an island on the eastern side of the city.

Other Notes of Interest

About Finland

• Capital: Helsinki
• Area: 130,558 sq mi
• Location: Scandinavia, a member of the European Union
• Population: 5.3 million (est. fishing population 1.5 million)
• Religion: Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland (84%)
• Language: Finnish (similar to Hungarian); most residents speak English fluently as well as Swedish
• Government: Parliamentary Republic
• Currency: Euro (.64078 Euros = $1 US)