Varzina River Trout Camp, Kola Peninsula, Russia

Although the Varzina River system has won its fame for the fabulous salmon fishing it offers, in recent years it has shown itself to also be a world class destination for large brown trout. The combination of optimal enviromental conditions and the lack of human intervention, has made it an exceptional brown trout destination. Lake Enozero acts as a winter haven for very large migratory brown trout that will come out of the lake during the summer and distribute themselves throughout the river. 

The Varzina trout Camp is located on the banks of the upper Varzina River, one of the rare places in the world where the original population of native brown trout has suffered virtually no influence by human intervention. These are trout that have hardly seen an artificial fly. The fishing is spectacular both because of the size and the number of fish. The average size of the trout is around 5 lbs. The largest trout caught so far was about 33 inches long but we are sure that there larger fish to be had! Unlike some big fish destinations, the fishing is also relatively abundant. Days of 15 to 20 large trout are nothing exceptional. 

Because of the size and power of the Varzina’s fish and the rocky bottom of the river, heavy rods, quality reels with good drags and strong leaders are the order of the day. There are also arctic char present in the river all summer long. Lighter rods and small flies can be fun if you decide to center on these char which average 16 to 20 inches. Additionally, as the Varzina is a first rate salmon river, fishermen at the trout camp also have the chance to hook very large salmon. The program at this camp includes daily helicopter outings to the pools farthest from the lodge.