Winter Season
EXCITING EXPEDITIONS AMONG SNOW AND ICE
What to Expect?
SIGHT FISHING, SNOW MOBILES, WILDERNESS SAUNA AND NORTHERN LIGHTS
The winter season in Kiruna is like an adventure park for grown-ups and children alike. The snow, ice and vast landscapes of wild nature at its best offers a great deal of fantastic adventures.
The winter season is long: it lasts from November until May. The darkest period of the year— the so-called polar night—starts on the winter solstice on the 21st of December and continues until the 4th of January. During this period, the sun does not rise above the horizon. The coldest time of the winter is as expected, startingin January and lasting through February. The days get longer and warmer slowly, from mid- and late March through the end of April. Sometimes you can ice fish in the sunshine, wearing just a T-shirt.
For the ultimate winter adventure, we recommend that guests visit Kiruna for 5-7 days. In that period of time, there’s time to do day trips with snowmobiles and do remote trips overnight during the days with the best weather. Besides wilderness expeditions, there are fantastic sites to visit and activities to do in Kiruna, such as dogsledding and visiting the ice hotel and the world’s largest underground iron ore mine. There’s also a good chance you’ll experience the northern lights during the evenings and nights, when the sky is clear. The lights are truly magical to experience in the wild,where there is no light pollution.
In the vast wilderness of Kiruna, you can experience trips in the wild where you don’t meet another soul for days or weeks, besides your buddies.
Our Recommendations for a Perfect Winter Trip to Kiruna
– Arrange a group of 2-6 people. (We are, of course, flexible with group sizes.)
– We plan together what activities we do in the wilderness
– We take care of everything, including food and drinks. No alcohol is included.
– Plan to visit for 5-7 days, so you’ll have time to get the most out of your trip – we would like to pick the best days in terms of weather for our expeditions.
– Bring personal equipment, including warm clothing and swimming gear for wilderness sauna and ice swimming. Bring a sleeping bag if you’re planning on a wilderness stay. We can provide e.g. fishing equipments, snow shoes, skies. sleeping bags etc, but it must be agreed on beforehand.
– Know that all off-road transports are done with snowmobiles.
– The prime time for a trip is from March to the end of April.
– As an options, we can have a professional photographer join the group and create eternal memories of your fishing experience and snowmobiles can also be rented.
Safety is our first priority; we have e.g. satellite equipment for emergency situations. . Languages provided English, Swedish and Finnish.
ICE FISHING EXPEDITION
We made a video from one of our expeditions from last season. Our group travelled vast areas with snowmobiles, stayed in a heated tent and got to experience good fishing and the magical northern lights.
It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
Target Species and Fishing Method
THE ARCTIC FISH SPECIES THAT LOVE THE COLD
Our group of skilled fishing guides are experts in the Arctic winter sport fish species, which are grayling, Arctic char and brown trout. White fish is also available at the end of the season.
Winter fishing is Kiruna is often planned according to weather, temperature and seasonal variations. We focus normally on one or two fish species per trip and select the fishing areas thereby. The fishing method during the winter is to fish through holes that you carve with an ice drill. The ice is normally 0.7–1.5 metres thick, depending on a lot of factors.
When we’re planning a trip, we take into consideration any seasonal changes within a winter season. For example, towards the end of the season, fishing days are longer and not so cold, but on the other hand, it can be harder to pick to right time when the fish are actively feeding. Therefore, it is essential that we align expectations with trip planning.
We strongly recommend that we do overnight trips to areas that are too remote for a day trip. Normally that also provides you with greater chances to find larger fish because few people travel that far.
Sleep, Eat, Fly & Enjoy
A LODGE STAY, DAILY FISHING TRIPS AND ONE OR TWO NIGHTS IN THE WILD
A fantastic fishing trip shall be perfectly balanced between hard work and enjoyment—after a day of hardcore fishing, the luxury of delicious food and a warm bed can be a heavenly experience. We do daily fishing trips with snowmobiles to different target areas and prefer to visit areas with extraordinary landscapes that take your breath away. We recommend combining the fishing program with other activities, such as dogsledding or a northern light dinner to get the fullest of a visit to Kiruna.
A one- or two-night stay in a heated tent far away from civilization—without a mobile network or other distractions—is truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience. For overnight trips into the wild, it is best to pick days with the best weather forecast, as northern lights are commonly seen when the sky is clear. Freshly cooked coffee over a fire with local ingredients will add a little extra to your experience.
Let Us Customise Your Fishing Experience
– Stay at a lodge with full board or self-catering. You’ll love going to the sauna at the end of every fishing day at the lodge—it’s a true pleasure.
– One or two nights out in the wild in a heated tent during a week’s stay in Kiruna is warmly recommended. Full board is always included in the wild.
– We take care of all the needed transportation related to the fishing trips, depending on target fish species, time of year or local weather variations. Normally we use many different launch sites, depending on the planned route.
