Stjordal

The area

Stjordal has developed into the main town in the County of Nord-Trøndelag (North-Trøndelag) one of the two counties making up the Central Norway region, Sør-Trøndelag (South-Trøndelag) being the other, and are the two most important agricultural counties in the country.  Trondheim City, some 30 kilometres west of Stjørdal is the heart of the area and Norway's third largest city.  Stjørdal is very well  placed in the region and has become a major communication hub for air traffic, railroad and roads. It is the main link with Sweden to the east and Northern Norway to the north.  There are daily international direct flights to Copenhagen, Amsterdam and London.

The Central Region is famous for its wide, open spaces towards the Swedish border to the east and the Dovre plateau to the south, with stretches of expansive mountain plains and majestic mountains. The northern county is related to the eastern part of the Trondheim fjord, dividing the two counties, reaching 130 kilometres inland.

The river

Stjørdal River, with its tributaries Forra and Sona, is regarded among the best fly-fishing rivers in Norway.  It offers a total of 50 kilometres of high quality fishing and bears many similarities with the River Tweed in Scotland.  Fishing for salmon has long traditions in the Stjørdal area as anglers from England in the mid 19th century introduced the methods and techniques still used today.

The river is a part of the huge Trondheim-fjord basin and is among the approx. 30 rivers that will benefit hugely from the buy-out for bag-net-fishing in the Trondheim fjord and nearby coastal areas. Indications from the 2005 season show higher average weight, a marked turnaround of river-caught salmon compared with net-caught on a ration of 2:1 in 2005 compared with 1:2 in 2004.

The Stjørdal River is well known for its big salmon and every year as a good number of 15-20 kilos salmon are caught.  Early June is the right time for challenging the 40-pounders on the lower parts of the river – coming in fresh from the sea. There are normally good runs of medium size as well as grilse too.   Over the last decade, good river management has provided a very good return of salmon and the river consistently features among the 10 - 12 best rivers in Norway.

The river starts from the mountainous area bordering Sweden.  The salmon run around 50 kilometres in length (30 miles).  The river reaches the Trondheim fiord close to the Trondheim Airport at Værnes.   Anyone arriving by aeroplane, going to fish any part of the medium to lower stretches of the river, can normally view the river when landing.  Any angler leaving a European airport in the morning has the opportunity of catching the first salmon by the afternoon come evening.

Attractions

“Going to Hell” or being expedited at “Hell Gods Expedition”.  Hell is a small village on the vicinity of Stjørdal with a population of around 350. It has become a touris attraction because of its name: people like to take the local train to the Hell station to get photographed in front of the Hell station sign. The old warehouse in the station area  is a signed  "Gods - expedition", an old spelling of the Norwegian word for cargo or goods handling office ("godsekspedisjon" would be the current spelling). The station itself is a railway junction between two lines, the Meråker line, leading to Sweden and the Nordland line, leading to northern Norway and the town of Bodø.

The name Hell stems from the Old Norse word hellir, which means "overhang", "cliff cave". The Norwegian word 'hell' can also mean "good luck".  The Norwegian word for hell is "helvete", and there are several places in Norway with that name as well. "Helvete" is considered one of the strongest curses in Norwegian.  Temperatures in Hell can reach 20˚ Celsius below freezing during winter time, which fits well the common English adage "It will be a cold day in Hell before..."

Hegra is a small place in the middle of  the Stjørdal valley.  It has about 2500 inhabitants. Here you can find old rock carvings (Lerfald), and the Hegra Fortress, which held out against the invading German army from April 10th till May 5th 1940 and did not surrender until all other Norwegian units in southern Norway had capitulated. During the fighting in April/May 1940, a Norwegian unit of 250 men and 1 woman – commanded by Major Reidar Holermann, manged to keep the superior German forces at bay for 25 days.

Einang Farm - Accommodation

The Einang Farm is situated close to the main road some 20 kilometres from the Stjørdal River’s mouth near the Trondheim Airport.  The name Einang, originally from the Norse word “Hegangher”, meaning “narrow passage between water and overhanging cliff”.  This is close to the farm where the main road passes on a narrow ledge between the river and the cliff.  The farms history can be traced back to the Viking times.

It is a working farm predominantly given to poultry, cereals and forestry. During the last decade salmon fishing and hunting for moose and deer have become gradually more important to the farm’s income.

The farm buildings’ layout is very much as most farms in Central Norway with the long and narrow main house (“lån”) and the barn and garden area creating an open and welcoming yard. The house is modernised to reflect growing family and social needs.   Although it is traditional for fishing guests to stay in the main house, at Einang they have modernised an old “corn-drying-barn” (“Buret”) and made it into a 5-bedroom fishing lodge a stone throw from the main house.  “Buret” is self-contained with kitchen, dining area and a lounge in the Norwegian open space way.  The lodge provides two toilets and one shower room in addition to drying facilities for clothing and fishing equipment and a ready freezer for any catches.  Breakfast and lunch will be served in “Buret” and the dinner meals will be arranged in the main house.

The fishing
Einang is one part of a three-beat arrangement on the Stjørdal River - Hembre Farm and Ostkil Farm being the two others.  The five Einang guests will have their accommodation at Einang but a rota system is in place with regards to fishing the different beats.  This allows the anglers the opportunity to try out different stretches of the river and the added benefit of having a total of more than 6 kilometres of good fly-fishing river at hand.  The total annual catches of these three beats is in the region of 300 salmon and the average weight is around 4,5 kilos.

The Einang beat, with a good combination of some deep and long holding pools; some stretches of good currents with large underwater stones/rocks and some particularly good pool tail ends, is a pleasure to fish and is particularly interesting where the Forra tributary joins the main river with a an additional exciting holding pool.

The longest continuing part of the Einang beat is well over one kilometre and includes the Kleiva currents, the Kleiva pool, the Long pool, the Grünvald pool, the Larder pool and the Mo pool.  One of the nicest places to fish is the Home pool, only a short walking distance from the lodge.  Home pool totals 450 metres with three or four particular places where you can constantly expect "the pull".

Due to the emphasis on arranging the fishing on a rotating basis, all anglers will have equal chance to try all fly-fishing locations and stretches and pools.  Normally, two anglers will be placed together on the same pool.  Wading is easy on normal water level with combination of gravel and stones. With higher water levels, the wading will become more challenging.  The main wading rule as in most Norwegian rivers apply, only knee-deep wading!

The season

The season in Norway runs from June 1st till AugustThe salmon  31st, although with some variations due to regional and local conditions.  The main salmon runs are normally from mid-summer (June 20th till July 20th) although most of the big salmon arrive in late May or early June.  Good grilse runs take place in July.  On the Einang beat and the other beats included in the Stjørdal River package, the best fishing for big salmon normally starts at the beginning of June but good size salmon is also caught at the end of August.  Mid-size salmon normally arrives at the end of June and the grilse runs take place in July.

Travel

There are direct flights from the UK to Trondheim Airport from Stansted with a flying time of around 2 hours.  From other UK airports the flights will normally go via Oslo, Copenhagen or Amsterdam airports to Trondheim Airport.  The driving time from the airport to the Einang Farm is 20 minutes.  The local transport is based on hire car, as this will also simplify the transport to the different pools.

Hembre Farm Accommodation

Hembre Farm and Guesthouse, previously an active farm, has long traditions in providing for foreign anglers.    English anglers pioneered the fishing on the Hembre beat during the 1890s and others soon followed.   The Hembre fishing lodge has 10 self-contained studio flats with plenty of space for one or two people (when sharing), toilet, shower and electric heating.   Each flat has a fully equipped kitchenette.  There is a laundry room, drying facilities and a freezer ready for any catches.

Hembre Farm and Guesthouse is situated some 15 kilometres from the Stjørdal River’s mouth, near the Trondheim Airport.  The main farm building and the fishing lodge, together with the “old storehouse” (“Stabbur”) that has been modernised and developed into a restaurant “with a difference”, create a very nice setting framed by large old trees, bushes and scrubs.  The river is just a stone throw away and all fishing stretches are within walking distance from the lodge.

All the meals are cooked, arranged and served in the “Stabbur” restaurant and the rooms in the “Stabbur” are decorated with many antiques, tools and gadgets from the early fishing days and when Hembre Farm was a working farm. These arrangements create an unbeatable atmosphere and offers a perfect place for any fishing party to relax and enjoy each others company after a fishing day.  During the fishing months the “Stabbur” has a  “Pub Night" every Wednesday evening where the guests at Hembre Farm can meet some of the locals to exchange fishing lore over a drink or two, and to enjoy some home made snacks.

The fishing

Hembre Farm is one part of a three-beat arrangement on the Stjørdal River –Einang Farm and Ostkil Farm being the two others.  The six to eight Hembre guests will have their accommodation at Hembre but a rota system is in place with regards to fishing the different beats.  This allows the anglers the opportunity to try out different stretches of the river and the added benefit of having a total of more than 6 kilometres of good fly-fishing river at hand.  The total annual catches of these three beats is in the region of 300 salmon and the average weight is around 4,5 kilos.

The Hembre beat, just a couple of kilometres above the high tide mark, has some very nice long stretches combined with good holding pools.  Particularly the Home pool, below the Hembre Bridge,  includes a number of very god fly fishing stretches.  During the latter part of the season there are good chances for sea-trout as well.  The longest continuing part of the Hembre beat is well over one kilometre above the Hembre bridge and one of the nicest places to fish.  An added benefit is that all the Hembre pools are within walking distance from the lodge.

Due to the emphasis on arranging the fishing on a rotating basis, all anglers will have equal chance to try all fly-fishing locations and stretches and pools.  Normally, two anglers will be placed together on the same pool.  Wading is easy on normal water level with combination of gravel and stones. With higher water levels, the wading will become more challenging.  The main wading rule as in most Norwegian rivers apply, only knee-deep wading!

The season

The salmon season in Norway runs from June 1st till August 31st, although with some variations due to regional and local conditions.  The main salmon runs are normally from mid-summer (June 20th till July 20th) although most of the big salmon arrive in late May or early June.  Good grilse runs take place in July.  On the Hembre beat and the other beats included in the Stjørdal River package, the best fishing for big salmon normally starts at the beginning of June but good size salmon is also caught at the end of August.  Mid-size salmon normally arrives at the end of June and the grilse runs take place in July.

Travel

There are direct flights from the UK to Trondheim Airport from Stansted with a flying time of around 2 hours.  From other UK airports the flights will normally go via Oslo, Copenhagen or Amsterdam airports to Trondheim Airport.  The driving time from the airport to the Hembre Farm is 15 minutes.  The local transport is based on hire car, as this will also simplify the transport to the different pools.

Ostkil Farm Accommodation

The Ostkil Farm is situated on the hillside just above the main road some 25 kilometres from the Trondheim Airport.  It is not any longer a working farm, although the fields and the forest are being managed by another local farmer.  During the last decade, salmon fishing has gradually become more important to the owners income.

The farm buildings’ layout is like most farms in Central Norway with the long and narrow main house (“lån”) and the barn and the “Madstu” (older time farm’s combined laundry, bathhouse, larder) creating a very attractive farm-yard and outside living area.  The “Madstu” has been modernised and used as the farm’s fishing lodge, containing eight bedrooms, kitchen, big dining room with an open fireplace.  On the first floor landing, outside the bedroom section, a good size sitting area - very suitable for social get together and sharing fishing tales.  Toilets, shower rooms and a sauna are in a separate building a few metres away.  Additional rooms are accommodated for fish cleaning and freezing of catches.

Breakfast, lunch and dinner will be arranged and served in the “Madstu” – all prepared by the owners family.

The fishing

Ostkil is one part of a three-beat arrangement on the Stjørdal River – Einang Farm and Hembre Farm being the two others.  The six Ostkil guests will have their accommodation at Ostkil but a rota system is in place with regards to fishing the different beats.  This allows the anglers the opportunity to try out different stretches of the river and the added benefit of having a total of more than 6 kilometres of good fly-fishing river at hand.  The total annual catches of these three beats is in the region of 300 salmon and the average weight is around 4,5 kilos.

The Ostkil beat is the uppermost of the three beats on offer, and have three main stretches of water.

Sonoset pool - a total length of 500 metres including where the Sona tributary joins the main river.  This is regarded as a ‘dream pool’ with good numbers of big salmon resting.  The current from the Sona River creates an additional effect with good numbers of fish.  The tail end of the pool is particularly a very good fly-fishing stretch.

Holmene pool – another stretch of around 500 metres.  The upper part of this pool is quite wide and slow moving but due to a number of troths and good size rocks in the middle of the river the pool is exciting to fish.  The lower part of this pool is quite fast-flowing and regarded as less attractive.

Ostkilskogen pool is a one kilometres stretch – quite slow-moving when water level is low but even then some marvellous fly-fishing water at the top end of the pool.  In June or with high water spinning is probably better than fly fishing although the middle and lower part of the pool fishes very well with fly.  The pool can be fished from both banks, dependent on casting preference or conditions.

Due to the emphasis on arranging the fishing on a rotating basis, all anglers will have equal chance to try all fly-fishing locations and stretches and pools.  Normally, two anglers will be placed together on the same pool.  Wading is easy on normal water level with combination of gravel and stones. With higher water levels, the wading will become more challenging.  The main wading rule as in most Norwegian rivers apply, only knee-deep wading!

The season

The salmon season in Norway runs from June 1st till August 31st, although with some variations due to regional and local conditions.  The main salmon runs are normally from mid-summer (June 20th till July 20th) although most of the big salmon arrive in late May or early June.  Good grilse runs take place in July.  On the Ostkil beat and the other beats included in the Stjørdal River package, the best fishing for big salmon normally starts at the beginning of June but good size salmon is also caught at the end of August.  Mid-size salmon normally arrives at the end of June and the grilse runs take place in July.

Travel

There are direct flights from the UK to Trondheim Airport from Stansted with a flying time of around 2 hours.  From other UK airports the flights will normally go via Oslo, Copenhagen or Amsterdam airports to Trondheim Airport.  The driving time from the airport to the Ostkil Farm is 30 minutes.  The local transport is based on hire car, as this will also simplify the transport to the different pools.