All fishermen with a valid fishing license have equal rights to access and fish the stretches of water that is managed and sold by Lakselv Landowners association. This goes for locals-, other Norwegian- and foreign fishermen.  

Camping
Camping is only allowed a minimum of 50 meters from the river bank. Show respect for buildings and public traffic when you camp. Caravans and mobile homes are prohibited on the riverbank.

Garbage management
Everyone is responsible for taking their rubbish home. The environment along the river is a shared responsibility and everyone undertakes to clean up after themselves.

Open fire
Show respect for nature along the river and be careful when it comes to burning fires. We encourage fishermen to use existing campfire sites. Avoid creating new campfire sites where old ones already exist nearby. 

Gyrodactylus salaris
Gyrodactylus salaris is the biggest threat to all salmon rivers and many rivers are destroyed forever due to this parasite. Be aware of your own responsibility and disinfect your fishing gear properly. Fishing without proof of completed disinfection is strictly prohibited.
Disinfection stations can be found at;
Circle K Lakselv and Skoganvarre Tourist Center

Spawning fish
Do you want to fish for salmon in the future as well? Then you have a responsibility to ensure that there are spawning fish in the river after the end of the season.
In order to have the opportunity to fish for salmon also in the future, we are dependent on having spawning fish in the river. In Lakselva, there is a requirement to have a minimum of 3,500 kilos of spawning mature female salmon in the river after the end of the season. The landowners' association conducts an annual spawning fish count after the end of the season, which gives us the answer to whether we have reached this goal or not. If this goal is not achieved, we will be subject to stricter regulations and less fishing opportunities in the coming seasons.

Large female salmon account for approximately 95% of Lakselva's annual production of eggs / smolts. A large spawning female can provide an annual supplement to the river of 400 smolts. By releasing large female salmon, you are doing yourself, other fishermen and the river a great service. It is your duty to follow the quotas stated in the fishing regulations.

This is a shared responsibility. A person's behavior can be devastating to anyone.
 

Release
In order to ensure the greatest possible survival for released fish, it is important that the fisherman behaves according to these simple rules:

- Play the fish hard and quick
- Keep the fish in the water at all times and avoid lifting it unnecessarily out of the water
- Act quickly and efficiently
- Use hook release pliers
- Carefully release the fish. The fish should be held gently against the current, not pumped back and forth.
- More information about catch and release can be found in the folder Release of fish which you can find at www.lakseelver.no. Here you will also find the length / weight table - Salmon from Lakselva is a short type.

Catch report
Every fisherman is obliged by law to report all his catch, and this MUST be done continuously. You must also report if you do not get any fish. Discarded fish must also be reported.

This is very important for the management, and elementary to be able to carry out a successful mid-season evaluation.

Fishermen who do not report may lose the opportunity to buy a fishing license in Lakselva in the future. Catch reporting is done on the internet, via this link: www.elveguiden.no

Disinfection

Places where you get disinfected fishing equipment:
Circle K Lakselv
Skoganvarre Villmark

Fishing periods

Atlantic salmon:  1 June - 31 August

Anadromous brown trout: 1 June -  15 September

Anadromous arctic char: 1  July – 31 July

Mid season evaluation

25 July

Fishing regulations for Lakselva

Definitions

• The regulations apply for the entire anadromous stretch of the Lakselva River, including subsidiary streams and lakes as far as anadromous species occur.
• By anadromous species is meant Atlantic salmon, anadromous brown trout and anadromous arctic char.
• By salmon is meant all salmon which cannot be identified as escaped farmed salmon or pacific salmon (rainbow trout, pink salmon and others) by external characteristics.
• By kelts is meant salmon, sea trout and sea char which have spawned the previous fall and spent the winter in the river.

1. Demand for a license
Everybody fishing the open stretches of Lakselv landowners’ association are demanded to show a valid fishing license for the period they are fishing. The fishing license is personal and cannot be used by or transferred to others. Valid identification (e.g., passport or drivers license) must be shown when buying a license, brought along during fishing and shown to river supervision or other control authority together with fishing license, national license and a proof of disinfection.

The fishing license is not valid unless you can show valid identification, a national license and a proof of disinfection along with the fishing license. National license and disinfection also apply for fishing private beats of the river.

2. Requirement for disinfection of fishing equipment
Your fishing license is not valid unless you have a proof of disinfection of the following:

• Fishing equipment, waders and other apparel which has been used outside the borders of Finnmark.
• All boats being used on the Lakselva must go through a separate disinfection. All boats, canoes and the likes of theses must show a valid proof of disinfection to the river supervision.

Disinfection of equipment applies to the entire river stretch, and according to the rules above.

3. Bag Limit
Bag limit is personal and cannot be transferred to others.

At private properties (Lakselv Landowners` Association):

- Four salmon can be kept during the season, where one can exceed 65 cm, but not exceeding 110 cm.
 

Released fish does not count as part of the bag limit.

4. Fishing period
The fishing period for the watercourse with the limitations given with regard to protection zones and equipment use is the following:

Fishing period – Atlantic salmon  1^st of June 00.00 CET to 31^st of August 23.59 CET.

Fishing period – anadromous brown trout 1^st of June 00.00 CET to 15^th of September 23.59 CET.

Fishing period – anadromous arctic char 1^st of July 00.00 CET to 31^st of July 23.59 CET

In the period 1st of September – 14^th of September all salmon must be released.

5. Protection zones in the watercourse

• From Skoganvarre bridge and upstream (including tributaries Sangojohka and Luostejohka): Preserved for salmon fishing in the month of August.
• Zone 4 (Goutko): Salmon larger than 80 centimeters preserved in the month of August.
• Voullajohka: Preserved for salmon fishing in the month of August.

When fishing for other species than salmon in protection zones, the same equipment restrictions as for “Dry fly licenses” applies (paragraph 7).

The sea trout zone is restricted to the sea zone, zone 1, zone 2 and zone 3.

6. The owner of the license is obligated to deliver catch reports consecutively (regardless of outcome).
All license holders are obligated to report their catches continuously.

7. Use of equipment
For equipment, it’s only permitted to use one of the following: fly, spoon, spinner and wobbler.

• You are only allowed to use one treble hook or three single hooks on the lure.
• It is forbidden to use worm, sinker, net or paravane
• In the month of August: Maximum lure size is 18 grams

In zone 5, with exception of protection zones, flies, spoons, spinners and wobblers are allowed throughout the entire season (1 June – 31 August).

For dry-fly and seatrout licenses, the following equipment limitations applies:

• One can only fish with a single fly
• The leader may have a maximum diameter of 0,25 mm
• It is not allowed to use a tube fly
• The maximum hook size is 10
• It is not allowed to use weighted flies
• One can only fish with a floating line. Sink tips are not allowed.

8. Minimum size, kelts and release
It is only permitted to kill salmon measuring minimum 35 centimeters and sea trout measuring minimum least 30 centimeters. Smaller fish and kelts are to be treated gently and immediately released back into the water course. The fish’s length is measured from the cleft in the tail fin to its snout. Released fish must also be reported.

Fish which is wounded to the degree where release is not considered ethical correct (but which according to the rules should be released), must be reported to the supervision immediately (see our folder for contact information) or call (+47) 941 78 428.

Kelts is not to be reported.

9. Infractions
Breaking the public rules are regarded a felony. Breaking the fishing rules may lead to a fee, exclusion from the river and reporting to the police. When charged with a fee, one cannot start fishing again until the fee is paid. Repeating violations of the fishing regulations may lead to a longer period of exclusion.

The fees are as follows (NOK):

• A lack of disinfection: 3000,-
• Breaking quotas/minimum size: 3000,-
• Fishing without a valid license: 5000,-
• Breaching equipment rules: 2000,-

LGF refer to FeFo for bag limits and fishing regulations for properties disposed by FeFo at the moment. 

The mid-season evaluation will take place around 25 July, and all fishermen are obliged to have reported all catches by this date