Salmon Fishing: GFF Fishing Area and Pools

The GFF (Gaula Fly Fishing Friends) salmon fishing beats are widely acknowledged as among the best fly pools on the river and it is arguable that they represent the cream of Gaula fly water.

The pools are spread from the Malum Winsnes fishing area down to a short drive from the town of Storen. All of the pools produce salmon every season though they tend to fish at different water levels and some are more prolific than others. Most of the pools are on the left hand bank looking downstream with a few of the pools on the right bank.

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Stadion (left bank)

Stadion is several hundred meters long and among the best pools on Gaula. Easy to fish, the productive middle section is around thirty meters wide at high water. It has several prime holding lies and it fishes at all water levels from low to high. It has a pacy head (where many fish are caught) followed by a short medium width run that is perfect for intercepting running fish and also has holding lies. The upper pool at stadion is more difficult to fly fish but it does hold a lot of fish and it produces salmon every year.
The lower pool is under-fished but productive with several lies toward the lower section.

Engan (right bank)

Another very long pool, especially good at high water near the head where the fish tend to lie against a large rock. Around forty to fifty meters wide at high water, Engan favours long casters due to its width.
The lower part of this several hundred meters long stretch of water is broken and pacy, making it good for medium to low water.

Langora (right bank)

This is the only pool on the rotation that offers occasional trouble with far bank fishermen which is a pity because it is a very productive pool indeed. Several hundred meters long, the best part is right at the head which is narrow and very fast opening into a widening neck. Lower down, Langora becomes more sluggish and wide but this section, though tough to fish, is productive for both salmon and sea trout, especially at the tail of the pool. The head of Langora is very good for single hand fishing because it is quite narrow.

Rottum (right bank)

A less popular pool because it has boulder strewn banks and difficult water. It is, however, one of those pools with very fast flowing turbulent water and as such is a decent pool in low water. If fished more, Rottum would produce many more fish.

Pools three and four (right bank)

These pools are joined together and classed as one pool for the purposes of fishing. Comprising the lower part of pool 5 (Saeter) on its far bank and the head of the next pool down, the pair gives anglers a tail and a head to fish. To get to the pools you have to take a row boat from pool five making them less popular but they are productive and should never be underestimated, especially in low water.

Saeter (left bank)

One of the best pools on the rotation, Saeter is a long, even paced glide in stunning surroundings. It has a fast head with broken water that runs alongside some rock faces before emptying into a deep sluggish pool. This is a great holding area. Lower down, in the middle area of the pool, some large rocks are found in mid-river and these too always hold fish. The lower part of the pool is another good place, comprising a shallowing even paced glide. A must fish pool with a reputation for producing big salmon.

Bridge (right bank)

Bridge, as its name suggests, is a long pool with a road bridge going over it. The most productive fishing is in the first fifty meters below the turbulent head and down to the bridge itself where a mid-water rock is an obvious lie. Below the bridge the water is deep and slow for some several hundred meters but at the tail it shallows and picks up again. An unpredictable pool that has produced some big fish in low and high water but one that tends to fish best at higher levels.

Kjellflue (left bank)

Another great pool, Kjellflue is very long and wide with the possibility of hooking a fish anywhere from the top the head to the tip of the tail. The head is fast, broken water, with the fish being channelled under the angler’s own bank, making long casting unnecessary. In the middle of the glide, the fish have a crossing point, moving from the far to the near bank. This place, located opposite some flat rock faces is another hotspot. The tail of the pool, famous for the big rock on the far side is a real holding spot – there are always fish here and it is one of the most productive pools on the fishery.

Oksoy (left bank)

Oksoy is a really beautiful pool, located on an island. It has a huge fishing shelter offering a panoramic view of this super pool. Oksoy is one of the best pools in low water because it is pacy throughout its several hundred meters length. The head is broken and turbulent, a good holding place comprising as neck below that gradually widens and also holds fish. The middle and lower parts of the pool are wide and difficult to fish at high water but nonetheless offer chances with running fish. A joy to fly fish, especially in medium to low water.

Lillestrom (fishing off both banks)

Lillestrom used to be part of the public fishing zone but has been moved onto the GFF rotation for 2008. A long pool, Lillestrom has the lot – a far bank island, a very fast, narrow head and a long, streamy lower part interspersed with boulders that tend to provide short-term lies for running fish. Fishing is on both banks, with both sides being productive. Lillestrom does not hold as many fish as some of the other pools but it has a reputation for big fish and it is a great pool to fish when the salmon are running.

Kroken (left bank)

The jewel in the crown of the Gaula, Kroken is always number seven on the rotation because it has been so lucky for so many. A classic pool that fishes at all water heights, it produces lots of fish and big fish. The water comes down through a fast cascade into a widening pool at a right angle. The pool is several hundred meters long, widening as it goes, with a good even-paced current and plenty of boulders to provide lies. A joy to fish, Kroken gives the fly a classic swing and allows it to almost fish itself. One of the salmon pools everyone should fish before they die!