Salmon running the River Guden
June marks the beginning of silvery salmon leaving the salty ocean to migrate up the River Guden. These early fish are larger than average but fewer in numbers.
The lowermost part of the River Guden – near the city of Randers – has good numbers of salmon passing this part of the river on their way up. Here they are not fished seriously for as the river is wide and deep, showing very few evident holding spots for migratory fish.
For that reason most salmon are caught further upstream – near the city of Langå – where deep pools and narrow bends in the river offer good holding spots for these early running fish. Later in the season salmon and seatrout start showing up near the city of Bjerringbro where many fish spawn in the tributaries.
The lower part of the River Guden – below the hydroelectric power plant at Lake Tange – thus offers the visiting angler a really good chance of hooking up with salmon. And do bear in mind that in 2001 the River Guden entered the European Top Ten list of salmon rivers – with a rod catch close to 2.000 salmon!
Now the mayflies are hatching
The present month is a hectic one for fish and fishermen in and along the rivers. June is the month where both the largest and the smallest of the mayflies hatch. This goes for the giant mayfly Ephemera danica – named after Denmark – and the tiny little Caënis species.
A characteristic trait of both trout and grayling is that they always seem to regard the first E. danicas with great scepticism. They simply are not used to seeing such big bites floating along on the surface and thus they are reluctant to rise to the first ones they see.
But when they become used to these giants they often take them in preference to anything else. This is the time where you may witness even large fish swim long distances to catch another danica!
And once accepted trout and grayling will be looking for these tidbits even after they have stopped hatching and mating. Fish obviously have a very good memory!
The upper part of the River Guden is a good bet for floating dry flies in June.
Pikeperch Premiere
If you like lakes and lake fishing, June is a perfect month. Especially if you are fishing in lakes with a stock of tasty pikeperch. They have just finished spawning in areas with shallow water and rocky bottom and are now hungry after the strenous sexual act. They are also legal prey again after the closed season in May.
For some time after spawning pikeperch typically hang around close to the spawning grounds. Here they are easy to locate and comparatively easy to catch. Later on they spread out in deeper water where they are much more difficult to locate.
Ry Mølle and Lake Jul are traditionally two of East-Jutland’s absolute hotspots when it comes to pikeperch fishing in June. At Ry Mølle fishing is for those pikeperch that have ascended the river to feed on spawning bleak – called “millinger” by the locals.
On Lake Jul itself fishing takes place on shallows like Torsdagsbanken, Frydengrund, Himmelbjerggrund and Møgelgrund.
Light nights on the beach
June is the month of light nights, and the light nights definitely belong to shoreline fish – be they silvery sea trout or thick-bellied cod. Both species usually stay in deeper water during the hours of daylight. But when the sun sets and beaches are covered in a soft semi-darkness, they move into shallow water for the kill!
On quiet evenings and nights you can both see and hear if fish are present. If so you will hear them splash in the surface layers of the water while they hunt. An experienced angler may even distinguish between sea trout and cod as the latter splash more distinctly.
If you prefer fishing during daylight, you may want to choose some of the garfish that fin around along the beaches. They have completed spawning and are now much easier to lure into striking than before the sexual act. They strike willingly at lures and flies before they leave the shallow water – to spend the rest of summer at greater depths.
With increasing water temperature fish start congregating at locations with strong currents. Kysing Næs, Vosnæs Pynt and all the classic hotspots on Djursland are now well worth a visit.
© 2023 Steen Ulnits
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