70 lbs Halibut In The Fjords Of Norway
Young fisherman
I think I got my first rod when I was about 2 or 3 years old.
I can still remember it clearly in my head. It was bright yellow, a bit over 1 meter (3+ feet) long and had a terrible reel.
But as a little boy, I walked down to the docks with my dad, casted the line and cought my own fish.
When I was 5 or 6 years old, I got my first ever knife. That knife was used to clean so many fish. So so many ..
Every day, after school, I would go down to the docks at my childhood house, and fish for hours. Poor dad had to stick around to clean most of it, because that was the booring part of course, and me as a kid with way to much energy could never finish that job!
Fish were caught, hooks were lost, lines broke off and I fell into the sea. That was my first ever hobby. A hobby that I still stick to to this day.
My First Boat
My mom and dad bought me my first ever boat when I was about 10 years old.
It was a bright yellow plastic boat with a bright red deck. probably about 12 feet and had a 5 horsepower engine.
It opened a whole bunch of new opportunities for me. I couldn drive the boat out of sight from the kitchen window in the begining, but as I got more experienced they would send a watch with me and set a time for when I were supposed to be back in sight.
The fish got bigger, the rods got beefier and I got better at navigating.
The Fish Got Real Big
A few years ago, I started to learn more about halibut fishing. Fishing is often done with a halibut line.
It's basically a long rope with hooks tied on to it. Attach all that to a buoy, and wait over night to haul it all in.
Here's a quick illustration.
The setups length could vary a lot. I have 900 meters set up with 85 hooks, which I bait with either harring, coalfish, cod or other fish I have an excess of.
The rush you get when you pull all this by hand, look down and look strait into the eyes to a monster of a fish. Uuunbeliveable!
In time, the fish will hopefully get bigger, and I will get more experienced, but for now I just want to fish and have time to watch the sunset every time I'm out at the water.
What Has Happened
I don't know how it is other places, but at least in Norway, I rarely see kids out on the water anymore. I don't see many fathers following their kinds down to the docks, casting a line in and laugh while doing it.
I will try my best if I ever get kids to do just that. Follow my kids down to the water, cast the line for them, clean the fish for them, and still give the credit to them by letting them haul in the fish if their able to.
The best memories I have from my young age is when we were driving home after a day in the fjord, and right before we were about to pull up to the dock, we got to se the sun set in the distance with a amazing light show.
Thank you for reading!
Nice catch! Where did you get it:)?
200 meters from my backyard in the middle of Norway in a region called Trønderlag :)
Trondheimsfjorden med andre ord:)
Lengre nord enn som så ;) Akkurat over grensa til Nord-trøndelag
OK
Oistein, this is an excellent blog post. My favorite fish is halibut, so you caught my attention right away. When I was quite young I used to fish with my grandfather. He taught me the way your father taught you. I have fond memories as well. Also, your photography is beautiful. I truly look forward to following your journey here.
Something as simple as fishing is something that no kid can't not love!
More pictures and stories coming soon! Thank you for reading, Kate !
beautiful pictures and amazing memories thanks for sharing
My father was a fisherman in Nova Scotia, Canada. He often caught halibut and some were very large. I remember him unloading them from his boat and how big they were. Then, later in my life, I worked in a halibut hatchery where halibut were raised until they were able to travel and they were then sent to Norway to be raised out in aquaculture farms. Now, my husband is working for a fish buyer who often deals in 'but (as he calls them) and he brings home the cheeks when he can. They are delicious if you cut them into small pieces otherwise, they are a bit too stringy in texture for my taste. Great catch! You look like an interesting guy and I'm looking forward to following your adventures. Blessings <3
Halibut often get a bit stringy if they are very large! The best ones are often between 5-15 kg :)
It's interesting to learn how many people have some connection to Norway in one way or another! Thank you for sharing that story :)
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