River Idsjöströmmen

Idsjöströmmen, the first catch-and-release river of Scandinavia, is a haven for the fly fishing enthusiast. Limited access to the river (six rods per day) ensures fly fishers a quality experience and a retreat from the crowds.

Located 1.5 hours south/east of the city of Östersund, in the county of Jämtland, Idsjöströmmen flows through a forest of fir, pine, and birch trees. This one mile section of the sixty-mile long Gim River is also home to a variety of waterfowl, warblers, swifts, swallows and other bird life. Berries and mushrooms in season can be picked nearby. Two log windeaks along the river provide shelter, a place to gather for lunch and coffee, or to watch the fire. Food and lodging is available in the village of Gimdalen five minutes away.

Abundant hatches of stonefly, mayfly, and caddis make it possible to exercise traditional dry fly and nymph fishing techniques throughout the season (June - September).

The number and size of grayling has increased over the past decade inging the average size up from ten to sixteen inches. The opportunity to catch twenty inch grayling has increased over the years as well. A record own trout of, 31, 11 lbs, was taken in 1992.

Idsjöströmmen's reputation as an excellent fly fishing water and a friendly place to be is what keeps fly fishers returning year after year from Sweden, England, Italy, France, Germany, Holland, Denmark, Finland, Norway, and the United States.

River Idsjöströmmen -
The Grayling is the fly fisherman's dream fish. It lives in wild pristine waters in wild pristine places. It can be very selective. It fights well and has a unique beauty like no other game fish in its category.

I saw my first grayling more than 50 years ago while fishing with my father and grandfather on the Faxälven river near my childhood home in Långsele, Sweden. During the summer we often floated the rapids in my grandfather's flat bottom boat. Two short rods were positioned in the stern and trailed our nylon fishing lines in the water behind us.

At the end of each line were droppers sporting double-hooked flies that had been tied at the kitchen table. The flies had yarn bodies, sometimes with a gold or silver ribbing and each was topped with the speckled feather from a mallard's east. The hackles were course nylon threads that stood out to the sides. The flies were clumsy, but effective and every time we fished the rapids we caught a lot of grayling.

Just over 100 years have now passed since the old tenement soldier's cottage in Björknäs was turned into the home of the log-floating foreman in charge of transporting lumber to the coast. The steamship Alma was the pride and joy of Lake Revsundssjön, and was a frequent visitor to the jetty. The foreman's residence and a private nursing home ought Björknäsgården into the 1990s. A new chapter in its history has begun. The tradition-filled estate has been turned into a hotel, which boasts many interesting items and objects.

Björknäsgården Hotel is located right in the middle of Sweden, just a stone's throw away from European Highway E14, which connects Sundsvall and Östersund. It takes about 5 minutes to get to Bräcke railway station, where express train services run to both towns. The nearest airport is on Fösö Island, which is about one hour away.

Björknäsgården is the former residence of a log-floating foreman, and has an annexe, gardens with paths and a fantastic view over Lake Revsundsjön. Despite continual modernisation, Björknäsgården is still steeped with history, with its wood-carvings, stuccoes and paintings. The grounds also contain traces of the pilgrims and other wayfarers who travelled between the Gulf of Bosnia and Trondheim in Norway, and remnants from the early age of forestry and log-floating. The rushing waters of the River Gimån, just a few hundred meters away, look stunning in all seasons.

* Lunch - 100 SEK, Dinner 195 SEK - 220 SEK at Björknäsgården Hotel.

We can provide a custom package based on your requirements. Please submit a booking inquiry above.

Transportation Östersund Airport - Björknäsgården can be provided also Björknäsgården Gimdalen/Idsjöströmmen (the river).

Björknäsgården and Idsjöströmmen are situated right in the middle of Sweden between the town of Sundsvall by the coast and Östersund.