The lone norwegian fisherman

I'm an italian fisherman who lives in Norway. Here you can find pictures and advice about lure fishing in freshwater and salwater

[marcorollingstoner]

Acipenser Baerii (Brandt, 1869)

The Siberian Sturgeon is a medium-sized sturgeon that lives in all the major siberian river basins that drain into the Kara, Laptev and East Siberian Seas, from Ob’ river (which contains 80% of the global population) in the west to Kolyma river in the east. There is a landlocked population in Lake Bajkal, that some consider as a subspecie (A. Baerii Baicalensis).

The shape of the snout is slightly different among the various populations, but it’s generally elongated and pointed. Its mouth is not large and doesn’t reach the edges of the head. The back and sides are dark, from brown to grey, while the belly is usually whitish. 

It has 10-12 dorsal scutes, 32-62 lateral scutes per side and 7-16 ventral scutes per side. The scutes are small and have the same color as the skin.

The Siberian Sturgeon is a potamodromous fish, that spends its whole life in freshwater (it rarely goes in the brackish waters of the estuaries) and make just short migrations for spawning from an upstream tributary to a mainstream river or from a lake to its tributaries (like for the Lake Bajkal population). They spawn between the end of May and the end of June.

Seventy-eighty years ago this fish could reach 180-210 kg in weight, especially in the Ob’ river basin, but nowadays it hardly reaches 60-65kg. They can live up to 60 years.

The Siberian Sturgeon feeds on benthic organisms such as crustaceans, molluscs, insect larvae and fish eggs. While looking for food they swallow also a lot of sediment, that can be up to 90% of the stomach content.

The Siberian Sturgeon is listed as ENDANGERED in the IUCN Red List. The stock decline started in the 1930s and is still going on nowadays, with 95-99% of the population lost in these 90 years.This critical decline was caused by overfishing, dam construction (for hydro power) and water pollution. In all populations have been observed abnormalities in the functioning of the reproductive system up to complete sterility, caused by water pollution from mining.

While the wild population is critically declining, the SIberian Sturgeon is increasingly farmed all over the world, for meat, for caviar, for fishing ponds and acquariums. 

[marcorollingstoner]

Cuckoo wrasse with a tiny metal jig, handmade by @loscienziatoapesca #cuckoowrasse #wrasse #metaljig #tightlines #lurefishing #catchandrelease #fiskeavisen #hooked #hookedno #norge #norway #norvegia #fjordfishing #fisketur #fiske #fishingislife #fishingaddict #fishing #fishingtime #fjordkysten #fjords #sognogfjordane #sognefjord https://www.instagram.com/p/BoBr6unHasR/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=iyewjjo4h38q

[marcorollingstoner]

Nice ballan wrasse #catchandrelease #ballanwrasse #wrasse #hrf #hooked #hookedno #fiskeavisen #mittfiske #instafish #fishingislife #fishinglife #fishing #fishingaddict #tightlines #fjordfishing #lovefishing #lurefishing #fisketur #fiske #fisherman #fishingday #fishingdaily #sognogfjordane #norge #norway #norvegia #fjord #fishinginnorway https://www.instagram.com/p/BntoBgMHA5J/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=1bd48d1188t7o

[marcorollingstoner]

Pollock fishing in Norway #pollock #pollack #tightlines #fishingislife #fishinglife #fishingaddict #fishing #fisherman #hooked #hookedno #fiskeavisen #fisketur #fjordfishing #fiske #lurefishing #lure #softbait #picoftheday #photooftheday #dayoff #norvegia #norway #norge https://www.instagram.com/p/BnG77WbnLGJ/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=8kb3gpqe435f

[marcorollingstoner]

Big Pollock #fishingislife #fishing #pollock #pollack #fishingaddict #tightlines #lurefishing #norge #norvegia #norway #florø #shorefishing #picoftheday #photooftheday #dayoff #nature #fjordfishing #mittfiske #fiske #fiskeavisen #hooked #hookedno #fisketur #saltwaterfishing #saltwater #saltlife https://www.instagram.com/p/BnEIzsiH0RB/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=1a7n2pdkapzh0

[marcorollingstoner]

Back in the game #pollock #pollack #lyrfiske #lyr #tightlines #fishingislife #fishinglife #fishingaddict #fishingtime #lurefishing #fisketur #fiske #sognogfjordane #hooked #hookedno #fiskeavisen #fisker #fisherman #norway #norge #norvegia #fjordfishing #fjordkysten #fjord

[marcorollingstoner]

Finally a flatfish! It's a small halibut, I guess...is it? #flatfish #halibut #kveite #fishing #fishingtrip #fishingaddict #lurefishing #metaljig #shorejigging #norge #norway #fjordfishing #fjords #førdefjorden #fisketur #hooked #hookedno #catchandrelease #fiskeavisen #tightlines #fisherman #saltwater #saltlife #naturephotography #nature #fishing🎣

[marcorollingstoner]

"Catch and release" helps to protect fish populations. #catchandrelease #release #naturephotography #nature #naturelovers #instafish #fishinglife #fishing #fishingaddict #hooked #hookedno #fiskeavisen #fjordfishing #lyr #lyrfiske #pollock #pollack #lovefishing #codfishing #lurefishing #fisketur #fiske

[marcorollingstoner]

Huge pollock #pollock #pollack #fisherman #fishingtrip #fishinglife #catchandrelease #hooked #hookedno #fiskeavisen #sognogfjordane #fjordfishing #fjordkysten #norge #norway #tightlines #softbait #lurefishing #fishingaddict #fisketur #fiske #lyr #lyrfiske #nature #dayoff #fishing #codfishing #naturelovers #photooftheday #instafish

[marcorollingstoner]

A really beautiful cod with a tiny soft stickbait! #fishinglife #atlanticcod #fishing #fishingtrip #fishingaddict #instafish #lurefishing #ocean #saltwaterfishing #fjordfishing #norge #norway #sognogfjordane #softbait #spring #nature #fisherman #fisketur #fiskeavisen #hooked #hookedno #fjord #førdefjorden #tightlines #colours #picoftheday #photooftheday #fish #codfishing #dayoff

[marcorollingstoner]

Carolina Rig

 The Carolina Rig follows the same concept of the SplitShot Rig, with a sinker along the line at a certain distance from the hook. The biggest difference is connected to the weight of the sinker, that is heavier, and to the fact that the sinker is not fixed on the line, but it can slide until the swivel and the plastic bead.

This rig has been conceived for bass fishing and it's very simple and old. When we move the sinker alongside the bottom, the softbait will follow the sinker itself in a very sinuous, natural and free-to-move way.

This rig is made of:

_Line: this is not a finesse technique, so the best line for it is a nylon or fluorocarbon one, from 14 to 20lb. For saltwater fishing it's always better to choose a braided line, to have better contact with the sinker.

_Sinker: the Carolina sinker can have two different shapes: egg or bullet. The sinker material can be lead, tungsten (they have a higher specific weight, so they allow us to use smaller sinkers with higher weight) or brass (they generate a stronger sound when they hit the bead) and they are usually from 1/4oz to 1 oz. There is a variant of the Carolina rig, called RockHopper Rig, perfect for fishing in rocky areas, which uses a particular long shaped sinker, with the hole in one side of it and not along the body of the sinker.

_Bead: their function is to attract the fish in a visual way (the colours of the beads are always very bright and shiny) and in a sonorous way (every time the sinker hits the bead produces a ticking sound, very attractive for the nearby predators). The last function of the bead is to save the knot from the sinker, which, without it, would hit and damage the knot itself.

_Swivel: a swivel without snap is enough for the purpose (stop the sinker and don't let the line twist), but it must be small and resistant at the same time.

_Leader: the leader is usually from 40 to 90 cm long, depending on the fishing spot. With a bottom full of obstacles it's better to reduce the lenght of the leader, while with a free from obstacles spot it's good to have a long leader, which will give to the softbait a more natural movement. So if the fishing spot allows that, it's better to use long leaders.

_Hook: it's usual to choose a medium/big offset hook for this rig, that allows us to use the Texas method with the softbait, but the choice depends on the type of softbait we're going to use.

_Softbait: the Carolina Rig isn't a light rig, so we're going to use big softbaits, usually creatures, tubes and straight worms. In order to have a more natural presentation, it's better to use floating or slow sinking softbaits, that can fall and move in a slower and more free way.

[marcorollingstoner]

SplitShot Rig

The SplitShot Rig comes from the bassfishing world and it's one the most simple rigs: it consists in positioning one or two split shot sinkers on the line at a certain distance from the hook.

It's a finesse technique that needs light lines, small hooks and tiny baits. Its peculiarity lies in the presentation, that is very natural and slow moving, similar to a weightless rig.

You can interprete this rig in two different ways:

_As a sub-surface or mid-water technique, with the aim of covering a very big area with a lot of casts and a quite fast retrieve.

_As a bottom-fishing technique, with the aim of making the bait sliding on the bottom or on the weeds, with a very slow retrieve in order to leave it free to move in a very natural way. This interpretation of the rig is widely used not only in the bassfishing field, but also in the Light Rock Fishing field, because the split shot sinker helps us to move the sand or the mud, and make the fish more curious.

The rig is made of:

_Line: it's a finesse technique, so the line, in bassfishing, will be a 6 to 8 lb. fluorocarbon. You can also use without any problem a very thin PE braid with a fluorocarbon leader. If you use this rig for  Light Rock Fishing it's better to use a 3-5 lb. fluorocarbon: I prefer not to use lines under 3lb. because the risk to break the line and leave a hook in the fish mouth is bigger than the real possibility to increase the bites. I've always mentioned fluorocarbon lines or leaders but you can use nylon lines as well.

_Sinker: for this rig we usually use split shot sinkers from 0,5 to 3,5 grams. They are usually very soft, and they will not damage the line too much, but, to be sure, I prefer, if I need a heavier rig, to use only one bigger split shot sinker instead of two or three smaller ones. The specific split shot sinkers are very soft, but a lot of bass fishermen use rubber tubes on the line in order to avoid this problems. With this tip you can also move the weight along the line without damaging it. The sinker is placed at a certain distance from the hook, depending on the fishing spot, but usually from 15 to 50 centimeters.

_Hook: mini offset hooks are the most common choice, but, especially with very tiny softbaits, we can use an average hook with eyelet and nose-hook the bait. The hook choice depends only on the bait's size and shape and on the fish we want to catch.

_Softbait: in this rig we will use tiny baits, not more than 4 inches, mainly with a thin and sinuous body, but, depending on the fishing spot we can use softbaits of any shape. Worms, Paddle tail, Soft Stickbaits and Finesse Worms are the most used, but for bottom fishing we can choose even small craws and creatures.

[marcorollingstoner]

Texas Rig

The Texas Rig is the most famous weedless rig, but it has a lot of variations.

The point of the hook can be left inside the softbait, or just under the skin (skin on top) to have a perfect weedless rig. On the other hand the point can be left outside (exposed) when we are going to cast in an obstacle free spot.

This rig has been conceived for bass fishing, because the black bass has its favourite habitat in spots that are full of weeds, obstacles and branches, but it can be used for almost all the other predators, both in freshwater and saltwater. The Saltwater fishing technique called "Hard Rock Fishing" (HRF) is mainly based on this rig.

The main components of the Texas Rig are:

_Line: a nylon or fluorocarbon line (10-20lb.) is perfect for this rig, but a braided line (PE1.2-PE1.5) with a quite long leader can be used as well. 

_Sinker: the specific Texas Rig sinkers are the classic bullet weights (usually from 3/8oz to 3/4oz.), that can be find in different sizes, shapes (classic, rounded, elongated) and colours (raw, white, black).

_Hook: the classic Texas Rig hook is the offset one. There are offset hooks of any shapes and sizes, but it's better to choose the “stronger” versions of these hooks for saltwater fishing because the average hook shank is really thin, and can be not enough for powerful saltwater fish.

_Softbait: every kind of softbait can be used with a Texas Rig, but the best ones are definitely Worms, Soft Stickbaits, Creatures, Craws and Soft Jerkbaits. It's more difficult to use very thin softbaits which prefer Nose-Hooking Rigs, and too short softbaits, because even the smallest offset hook is quite long.

_Bead: it's useful to put a plastic small bead along the line between sinker and hook. The first function is to protect the knot, because without it the sinker would hit and damage the knot when we move our softbait. The second function is related to the "attractiveness", in fact the sound of the weight hitting the plastic bead, in addition to the color of the bead itself, seems to be very attractive for the fish.

_Stopper: it's a small rubber tube that can be fixed on the line, up the sinker, just to "stop" the sinker itself. It can slide along the line in order to place it wherever we want.

The stopper is very important for the rig because it allows us to differentiate the two main variants of the Texas Rig:

_Pegged Texas Rig: this version of the Texas Rig needs a stopper or something to keep the sinker fixed on the line, in contact with the hook and the softbait. This solution is the best one if you want to cast your bait in very intricate spots. Another version of the Pegged Texas Rig is the Florida Rig (or Screw-In Rig), that consists in using bullet weights equipped with a metal screw, that helps us to fix the bait to the sinker without using any kind of stopper.

_Unpegged Texas Rig: in this version of the Texas Rig the sinker can slide along the line (we can have a stopper but not close to the bait). There are at least two advantages in having the sinker free to move along the line; the first one is connected to the fact that the weight will reach the bottom a lot before the bait, which will follow with a slow, natural descent. The second one is connected to the fish bite with a lighter and unconstrained bait in fact the fish bite will be less suspicious. 

The other possibility is the most simple one:

_Weightless Texas Rig: this rig is substantially a "No-Sinker Rig" and consists in using the Texas method to put the softbait on the hook, but without any weight on the line. This rig is usually used with softbaits which have a high specific weight or with softbaits that can move in a very sinuous way just under the water surface, like the Soft Jerkbaits.

[marcorollingstoner]

JigHead Rig

The most famous and most used rig in the softbait fishing field is the JigHead Rig.

Jig heads are very popular among fishermen, for many reasons:

_They are part of a very simple rig, which doesn't need additional sinkers or knots.

_They are available in every single fishing shop.

_ They are more versatile and adaptable than the other rigs.

_There are a lot of different jig heads, with different head shapes and different hooks. 

Substantially, the differences among jig heads are connected to the head shape, the weight and the hook (size and shape).

Head Shape: the most common head shapes are five.

_Round: the Round Jig Head is the most common one and the easiest to find. It's suitable to most of the applications, but it gives its best with vertical fishing or when we need slow retrieves, because of its low hydrodynamics.

_Bullet (Darter): these jig heads have a very hydrodynamic profile, that leads to a reduced water resistance and is perfect with fast retrieves. They are incredible with soft jerkbaits and shadtail worms.

_Stand Up: these jig heads have a flat base and a facing up hook in order to stay on the bottom in perfect balance. They are mainly used with baits that work very close to the bottom, like craws and creatures, possibly with floating pincers or appendages.

_Football: these jig heads have a shape that resemble a football ball. They are usually quite heavy and have two main features: in mid water game with Soft Swimbaits they will swim in a very linear way, while for bottom fishing they can stand in a perfectly stable way, guaranteeing to our softbait a correct position on the bottom, and this is the reason why this head shape is widely used as bass jigs base.

_Slider: these jig heads don't have normal hooks, but offset hooks. They are substitutes of the normal Texas Rig. They are not so common but they can be used when you want to use a Texas Rig but with a very low weight.

Weight: there are jig heads of any weight, from 0,3g. to beyond 250 g. The choice of the weight must be done following some parameters, like the fishing depth (a very lightweight jig head takes too much time to sink in a very deep spot, and you will have a lot of troubles in having good contact and sensitivity with the jig head itself), the current power (with a strong current a light jig head will have a lot of troubles to sink and to stay active because it will be carried in a very fast way. This is important for the current of rivers but also with the currents that you can find in the sea, caused by the waves), the softbait weight (heavier softbaits need less additional weight), the casting distance and the head material (there are lead jig heads and tungsten jig heads. The lead ones are the most common and the less expensive, but the tungsten ones have a double advantage: a higher specific weight that allows us to have heavier heads for the same volume, and a lower environmental impact, being tungsten less polluting than lead).

Hook size and shape: the hook size must be chosen in relation to the softbait we are going to use and to the fish we are going to catch. On the other hand, the hook shape is connected to the lenght of the shank. The jig heads with short shank hooks are generally the most resistant and tough ones and they are made for seabreams and all the other fish with small mouth and hard palate and they better be paired with short and fat softbaits. The jig heads with long shank hooks are the most common and they are suitable for every kind of fish and almost every kind of softbaits.

In my opinion, the best combination Jig Head-Softbait is the one that allows us to stay in the strike zone while retrieving in the slower way possible.

This thing doesn't mean that you must always choose lightweight jig heads, but the lightest possible in that particular situation. This because a too heavy bait will loose a lot in movement naturelness.

[marcorollingstoner]

Wacky Rig

The particularity and prerogative of the Wacky Rig lies in the position of the hook, that is not in the head of the bait but in the middle of its body. The bait can be left to sink, with a “do-nothing” technique and if it reaches the bottom without bites, it can be retrieved very slowly, with short and fast rod movements.

_Rod, Reel & Line: a proper Wacky Rig rod is a moderate-fast spinning rod, paired with a 2500 size reel. It's important to avoid rods that are too fast, because they don't help us to move the bait in a natural way (it would move too much). With bigger and heavier softbaits, and with weighted versions of this rig, we can also use a baitcasting rod, paired with a pitching reel, making again attention not to choose an extra-fast one. The best line for this rig is a thin fluorocarbon one (4-12lb.).

_Hook & Softbait: wacky hooks have a wide gap and a short shank and can be weedless or not. An optional accessory for the rig is the rubber o-ring, which is inserted on the bait to not damage it and lengthen its "life." The hook should be in fact positioned between the ring and our softbait, so that the bait itself will not be punctured by the hook. You can use the Wacky Rig with almost all kind of softbaits, but the best are definitely long and symmetrical straight worms, with head and butt free to move synergistically, perfectly imitating the motion of an earthworm shaking in the water while it sinks.

_Flick Shake Rig (Weighted Wacky Rig): the hooks for this rig have a small lead weight on the eyelet. With weighted hooks the presentation will be actually less natural, but the rig will sink faster and if we want to reach deeper spots or to fish in river or streams, the Flick shake rig will be the right choice. Anyway, if the bait we want to use is really heavy, we don't need to use weighted hooks.

_Neko Rig: it consists in inserting a sinker, from 1 to 5 grams, in the head of the softbait and this changes completely the balance of the rig itself. The softbait's fall will be much faster compared to the traditional wacky rig, making this phase less effective. When the bait is on the bottom, it will have the head in contact with the bottom itself, and the tail facing up. This effect is way more effective if we use floating or slow sinking softbaits.We're gonna move the bait with frequent and fast movements, in order to make it jumping a little bit, keeping the contact with the bottom. Every single softbait is suitable for this rig, but the best ones in my opinion are soft stickbaits (that imitate perfectly sand eels coming out from their dens) and long bodied craws (the neko rig imitates the usual movement of craws, with small and fast flounces).

_Double O'Ring Wacky: it's the Wacky rig for strong currents and waves. It consists in using a long shanked hook and blocking it under two rubber rings. This is very effective if we want to reduce line twists and line problems in general, that are very common with this rig if we cast inside strong currents and big waves, because with the traditional rig the hook is too free to move.

_Chicken Rig: it's the weedless version of the Neko Rig and consists in Texas rigging the bait in its intermediate part and in putting an insert weight in its head. The strenght of this rig is the possibility to give resistance and toughness to a rig that is usually very delicate and to give it the weedless protection.

[marcorollingstoner]

DropShot Rig

With the DropShot Rig the hook is not at the end of the line, but in an intermediate position, above the sinker. Thanks to this, the bait will be suspended in the “strike zone” for all the time needed and there will be no need to retrieve the line; it's enough to drop the bait vertically, barely move it, and wait for the bite.

_Rod&Reel: the best choice for a light DropShot is an extra fast spinning rod with a very sensitive tip (usually solid) paired with a 2500 size reel. A reel with a large spool can help us to prevent line twists, very annoying and usual with this rig. On the other hand, for a heavy saltwater Dropshot it's wise to choose a baitcasting rod with the same features described above, paired with a low profile pitching reel.

_Line: a 4-10lb fluorocarbon or nylon line is perfect for a Light DropShot, while for a heavier Dropshot it's better to use a PE braided line (to have a better contact with the bait in deeper spots), paired with a fluorocarbon or nylon leader. 

_Hook&Softbait: There are three different possibilities for hooking a bait:

-Nose Hooking: it guarantees a 100% real movement to the bait. There are specific small hooks that can be paired with under 4′‘ Finesse Worms.

-Wacky Style Hooking: it consists in wacky rigging the bait while using a Dropshot rig. This is the best choice when we want to use over 4″ Worms.

-Texas Style Hooking: the use of small offset hooks gives the baits a less natural movement, but it's still the best choice when we need to cast our bait in spots with a lot of weeds and obstacles, especially with craws.

_Sinker: DropShot sinkers have different shapes (ball, tear, cylinder) but all of them have a special metal clip, that helps to block the line without making knots. The weight of the sinker depends on the fishing context (current and depth).

This rig can be performed in three different ways::

_ Down Shot: under this name we have the "lightest" side of the technique, with light sinkers, very small standard hooks (from #2 to #10) and nose hooked baits with the point of the hook not hidden.

_ Drop Shot: it's "Drop Shot" when we use a small offset hook with the point hidden inside the body of the bait; but it's usual to use this term in a generic way including both  Drop Shot and Down Shot. Sometimes we can find the term “Under Shot”, but it’s just a synonym for DropShot.

_ Power Shot: it's the heavier version of the average Drop Shot, with bigger hooks, stronger lines, heavier sinkers and more powerful rods. The heavy cover version of the Power Shot is called Bubba Shot in bassfishing and it consists in using 1/2 - 3/4 oz. sinkers and braided line without leader. The best softbaits for this technique are the big ones, like craws, creatures and paddle tails.

[marcorollingstoner]

New blog on Tumblr

Hei everybody,

I’m Marco, an italian fisherman now living in Norway

I’ve had a fishing blog for 6 years, but now I want to start a new one here on Tumblr.

I will write about lure fishing techniques and fishing trips / adventures

Stay tuned

Marco