So you have decided to go to Russia… Now which river should you choose?

First of all take comfort in the fact that whichever water you choose, Russia’s Kola Peninsula offers the best Atlantic Salmon fishing in the world. The rivers are all good.. Just different. All of our destinations in Russia base out of Murmansk, You can travel on your own via Moscow or St Petersburg onward to Murmansk and make a real exploration of it. Or you can fly to Helsinki Finland where Lax-a has arranged a jet charter directly to Murmansk. From Murmansk you fly by helicopter to your river of choice. For those who have never been and want the experience of catching the most fish possible with a good mix of sizes then you have to consider the Ponoi your first choice. This is the river with the highest fish caught per rod per week in the world. And the best camp on all of Ponoi is the renowned Brevyeni Camp. This is sure to sell quickly as it is the only Ponoi River Camp that Lax-a will book in 2010. And June 26 – July 3, 2010 is also the ONLY week the entire summer we will make this offer ….

For those who are looking for larger salmon and a chance for some really big fish then the Varzina Camp is a better choice.The Varzina is a flight of one hour and 15 minutes by helicopter from Murmansk, It is 28 km long and there is a nice tributary called Penka which also has some wonderful holding spots. Here you will not catch nearly as many as on the Ponoi but the fish are considerably bigger overall. The camp is comfortable and inviting with daily helicopter fly-outs to the best pools on the Varzina. Varzina springers are a run for anyone’s money. They are big, thick and tough to handle. A real challenge for any angler. The guides are excellent and the cabins are cozy and comfortable. Each cabin has a fireplace and some have a private sauna. The prime time for real trophy fish is the first three weeks in June. Lax-a has two prime weeks to offer but both are nearly sold out. We have only 2 rods available during the weeks 12 – 19th June and 19 – 26th June on the Varzina river.
And for those fisherman who are physically able to meet the challenge of tough river conditions and lots of challenging hiking and hard work, the Yokanga is just the ticket. The Yokanga is one of the legendary rivers on the Russian Kola Peninsula for hugh trophy salmon. Until now, this lower section of the river has not been accessible to foreign anglers. Our base camp on the Yokanga will be a newly upgraded tented camp. The beat all in all is 10km long with the base camp placed in the middle of the beat. There will be one guide for every 2 rods and 10 rods fishing the beats. There are three motor boats to cross the river at the top of the beat and on the bottom beat , as well as one motorboat at home pool. Guides are very hard working and are like mountain goats. All transportation during the week is by walking, rafting or by boats with outboard motor to cross the river.