Winsnes Fly Fishing lodge, Gaula River, Norway

29/11/2025

Hi all - here’s my latest blog for our website describing the the latest version of the fishery and how the rotation fishing will work along with beat descriptions in the “fishery” pages of the site💪🎣

2.5km Both Banks – 6 Rod Limit With the 2025 season behind us and new rules for the river, it’s a time of change on Gaula and it’s appropriate that we have taken this opportunity to freshen-up our fishery. After more than a decade of wonderful memories, we no longer have control of the river [...

28/11/2025

RELEASING A SALMON
With catch and release now being a critical part of the management plan for the river in the foreseeable future, it’s important that we do it right.
👉Here’s a short film of me releasing a salmon.
Note that the fish is facing head upstream in a moderate pace current.
👉Just prior to the release, the fish makes and attempt to wriggle free but I sense that it is not quite ready and retain it just a while longer.
👉Support the fish until it can hold itself upright and steady in the current. Salmon will swim away strongly as long as you allow them time them until they are fully recovered...💪🎣

28/11/2025

Here’s a slightly better view of Havahølen which will be beat 6 on our rotation.
👉You can see the familiar rock at the bottom of Kjellfloa and below it the strong rapids which eventually open out into the “hover pool” which has a couple of major features.
The first is a very large rock which lies at the bottom of the channel. The second is the tail of the pool which is a beautiful glide, not clearly visible here, sadly.
🤔Unlike our other pools which have several hundred meters of continuous fishing, this pool is more of an ambush position, requiring a different and patient approach.
The number of fish that it produces in a typical season makes it a valuable addition to the fishery.
🫠The small house nearest to the river is available for guests and is a perfect rustic retreat for a pair of angling friends.
We have self catering options for those who prefer it, especially in August.

27/11/2025

Our Beats from Above!
😶‍🌫️A brief tour of our water for the coming 2026 season. Note that I have not yet had the opportunity to film our new beat at Håvahølen but I have marked its position at the bottom of beat 5, Kjellfloa.
👀You can see the small house that some of our guests will stay in underneath the marker that says “Beat 6.” It’s a small, rustic cabin with superb riverside ambience!💪🎣
Bookings available for individuals and groups with special rates in August...💪🎣

26/11/2025

BOOK NOW FOR 2026!
🎣We are now taking bookings for 2026 season.
Our rod limit is 6 anglers sharing approx 2.5km (Both Sides).
Weeks 26, 27, 28 are sold out in advance but we have rods in June, July and August...
👉Demand is high this year especially with the news of the new water that we have acquired
👀Please take a look at our website, www.gaulasalmon.com
and note that we have some changes to our fishery boundary and 👉I will be updating the site to show the new fishery and especially the new pool we have taken on...
✅Bookings can be made either via the website or drop us a note at [email protected]
Any details about preferred dates and your party size would be appreciated💪🎣

25/11/2025

BACK TO THE FUTURE - THE NEXT CHAPTER 💥💥💥

👉Our fishery is changing in 2026! Thanks to everyone for being so patient over the past few weeks but I think that this news will prove worth it!
We are handing over the management of the upper part of the fishery (Which stretches from the bottle pool up up to the junction with the Fora river) and we have extended the lower boundary to include a wonderful new beat!
👉The new beat is Håvåhølen, aka “the hover pool.” Historically (going back to the 1800’s) this pool was part of our property but it was sold off and we lost our access to it. In a nutshell, it’s a fantastic piece of water that we have long cast envious glances toward!
👉This is a top, top pool and will make up for the loss of the top end of the fishery which will now be sold by another operator on behalf of the landowners. I think that we can all agree that we have loved our time fishing on FHO water. I will cherish memories of the fabulous “Bottle Pool”and some shining times we enjoyed there and would like to wish the new management the best of luck and hope that they enjoy the water as much as our guests have.
👉Moving forward, I am delighted to be working with the landowners who control this fabulous slice of Gaula. After years of turmoil, the river management is in good hands and we are ready for a new era. I know that our new partners love the river and between us we now control a beautiful oasis that extends from Kroken to just above Kotsoy. Here, the river is at the peak,of its beauty and road noise is not an issue.
We have both sides of the river and accommodation on the far side (near to the big rock), giving us six beats, all double bank with a limit of initially 6 rods.

👌IN SUMMARY
6 BEATS AND SIX RODS ON ONE OF THE MOST BEAUTIFUL AND HISTORICALLY PRODUCTIVE STRETCHES OF THE RIVER.
FISHERY BEGINS ON KROKEN AND STRETCHES TO APPROX 500 METERS BELOW KJELLFLOA
BOTH SIDES UNDER OUR CONTROL.
ACCOM THIS SIDE AND FAR SIDE OF THE RIVER

Will publish more about the new beat etc., and I’ll update the website to show the new boundaries ASAP but for now….

LFG 💪🎣

24/10/2025

We are serving home-grown potatoes this winter. Many a good tune playec on an old fiddle they say - I’m talking about the tractor, not me and Jakob 🤣
You can probably recognise where we are!

22/10/2025

Lots going on right now and some announcements to come but in the meantime you might like to listen to my podcast appearance on “The Last Salmon” with host Jim Murray and fellow lodge owner and force of nature, Ann-Brit Bogen.
There’s nothing held back and I’m told that our discussion on the huge problems that have affected Norway’s salmon rivers in the past decade is must-listen stuff.
It’s certainly honest, pithy and with plenty of humour.
Jim’s doing a great job with this podcast. Please give this ep a listen and subscribe because it’s right across anything that’s happening in salmon fishing and salmon river conservation.

Podcast Episode · The Last Salmon · 19/09/2025 · 1h 11m

08/08/2025

A small male fish around 3.5 kilos from the head of Kroken. Same fly as yesterday. Allfather🙏

07/08/2025

Hi all. More salmon fishing capers, this time with a happier ending.
There’s a picture of the fish I caught earlier in the comments…
Featured in the film are my son Josh (the cameraman 😁),my youngest, Amber and the net is handled by Anne Marit.
Toward the end of the fight, the fish wrapped itself in the line but I used a ‘sliding /no body’ mini-tube which flew up the one during the fight and kept the hook firmly lodged in the fish’s jaw during the anxious moments.
I measured the fish against a mark on my rod and it came up at 94 cm. A fine female salmon, it was a solid twenty-pounder…
(Pic in comments)

02/08/2025

RODS IN AUGUST
Hi folks!
We have rods available in August!
At least one rod available in every week, including self-catering options and full board.
It’s a good time to fish for the big male salmon and to try switch rods/ single hand.
We class this as “off-peak” and prices are reduced accordingly.
Contact us if you are interested👍

27/07/2025

Gaula open today from 16.00!
Sokna to remain closed until further notice, Bua and Fora open same time/date as Gaula👍