Na protest proti vstupu ruských okupačních vojsk na území Ukrajiny rušíme všechny zájezdy a výpravy do Ruska.

Našim demokraticky a protiputinovsky smýšlejícím partnerům i zákazníkům se omlouváme, ale za stávající situace je absolutní bojkot turistiky do Ruské Federace jedinou možnou reakcí.

Přehled úlovků jednotlivých účastníků výpravy 23.-30.8.2019
Catch-summary of the trip participants between 23.-30. August 2019
Martin (muškaření/fly only) – 63x duhák (rainbowtrout) max 65 cm, 16x losos kisuč (coho salmon) max 74 cm, 2x losos keta (chum salmon) max 68 cm, 48x siven malma (Dolly Varden char) max. 59 cm, 2x siven východosibiřský (East-Siberian char) max 47 cm, 136x lipan (grayling) max 50 cm
David (muškaření/fly only) – 51x duhák (rainbowtrout) max 62 cm, 8x losos kisuč (coho salmon) max 67 cm, 21x siven malma (Dolly Varden char) max 55 cm, 2x siven východosibiřský (East-Siberian char) max 57 cm, 101x lipan (grayling) max 50 cm
Tomáš (50% flyfishing/50%spinnfishng) – 46x duhák (rainbowtrout) max 61 cm, 7x losos kisuč (coho salmon) max 56 cm, 1x losos keta (chum salmon) 60 cm, 28x siven malma (Dolly Varden char) max 46 cm, 2x siven východosibiřský (East-Siberian char) 45 cm, 55x lipan (grayling) max 46 cm
Bohouš (přívlač/spinnfishing) – 106x duhák (rainbowtrout) mx 63 cm, 47x losos kisuč (coho salmon) max 65 cm, 9x losos keta (chum salmon) max 75 cm, 20x siven malma (Dolly Varden char) max 50 cm, 2x siven východosibiřský (East-Siberian char) 40 cm, 72x lipan (grayling) max 49 cm
Petr (přívlač/spinnfishing) – 37x duhák (rainbowtrout) max 59 cm, 43x losos kisuč (coho salmon) max 65 cm, 1x losos keta (chum salmon) 50 cm, 8x siven malma (Dolly Varden char) max 45 cm, 2x siven východosibiřský (East-Siberian char) 42 cm, 36x lipan (grayling) max 48 cm
Láďa (přívlač/spinnfishing) – 56x duhák (rainbowtrout) max 60 cm, 79x losos kisuč (coho salmon) max 68 cm, 14x losos keta (chum salmon) max 71 cm, 41x siven malma (Dolly Varden char) max 50 cm, 3x siven východosibiřský (East-Siberian char) max 43 cm, 64x lipan (grayling) max 47 cm

Summary in English
To reach Mikizha river about 600 km North from Petropavlovsk, is little more complicated compairing to rivers in Southern Kamchatka: first 6-8 hours by car and than one hour helicopter flight. A few years ago was all the road to Northern Kamchatka unpaved – just stones and plenty of dust. Some rivers were to be crossed only by ferries. Today are bridges all the way up and most of the trip is on well paved roads. And all the road works continue, so it is sure, once there will be nice asphalted road till Kljuchi. A bit longer way to Mikizha river is ballanced by some benefits: there is nice hilly landscape in the North and of course – much lower fishing pressure.
While rafting Mikizha river, there are some sections, that have to be cleaned from fallen trees by ax and motor-saw. Season 2019 was not exception and we had to work with ax and saw almost every day. While compairing photographs from our last trip in August 2017 and according to amount of fallen trees and river-moved timber, it was sure, that since our trip 2017 nobody fished and rafted down this river in last two years. With pleasure we could enjoy Mikizha river as really „our“ river.

In 8 days we flow down about 70 km long river section. In first days is the river about 10 km wide, easily cossable in waders almost everywhere. Final days of the trip is the river larger – in some places up to 30 meters wide and 2-3 meters deep, with some holes up to 5 meters. During the rafting trip there are several places, where riverbed opens and the stream is devided by islands into several river branches. Some are just one or two meters wide, some even tenor more. Some are shallow and water just slowly moves shrough them, others are deep, with fast current or rapids, that flush everything down. In one point are all river branches of Mikizha river similar – all are surrounded by forest, sometimes the river even cuts its way shrough forest. The amount of trees, logs and branches, that lay over the river, damm this river or even fill the riverbed make the river very difficult for rafting (which our guides so far always succeeded), but above all this creates in the river countless shelters for rainbowtrouts, that love rivers like this.
Compairing to other Summers, was Summer 2019 in Kamchatka cold with rainfall a bit over average. At least so talk weather statistics. Already on first day of our trip we enjoyed afternoon temperature reaching +25°C and even in following days the temperature never dropped under +10°C. Night or morning frost was just a unfilled wish. And untill the night temperatures do not drop under 0°C, the flies and mosquitos are in good shape. And so it was this year in August in Northern Kamchatka. Absence of frost and our arrival to the river made all insets really happy. While wading, fishing in the river or rafting it was OK, but when we had to walk on the shore or build the tents, the flies and mosquitoes were waiting for us.
About fish and fishing:
August 2019 in Northern Kamchatka was not exceptional in any point of view. Just the detail, that first run (summer-run) of coho salmon (silvers) was stronger than usually. Se we cought many red- or bronze-coloured cohos from summer-run in all fished river section. The bigger and silver-coloured cohos from second run (Autumn-run) we met in last three days of our trip.
Chum salmon (dog-salmon) we observed and fished just in some spots, like always. Some sections, even 10 km of river were chum-free, and in some pools it was possible to grab 10 fish from place.
Final river section presented us some sockeye, ping and even king salmon, but all of those were tired fish after spooning expecting last moments of their lives.
Grayling-vise, I had the feeling, that those are moreplentifull, than in other seasons, but looking into statistics, it was just feeling. Some days some of us landed up to 30-40 graylings, but some days we were not abble to catch more than 1-5 graylings. In upper river section were graylings bigger, up to 50 cm, in lower section were graylings smaller, mostly around 40 cm.
Significantly less were catches of Dolly Varden Char. Most of dollies we cought on first two days of our trip. And the dollies were smaller, than in other years too. Just rarelly exceeded 50 cm in lenght.
The East-siberian char (kundzha) were just few as always on this river. All were landed in second part of our stay and only small ones under 60 cm in lenght.
Main and most beautifull trophy of Mikizha river are of course rainbow trouts. The total number of landed rainbows by participants of our trip was between 50-100 fish per angler, which is in ballance with previous seasons. The biggest rainbows we landed in first 4-5 days of our trip, each of us landed one or several fish 60 cm or longer. The biggest rainbows were 65 cm long (3 kg). Again was spinnfishing more effective and faster fishing technique for catching rainbows compairing to flyfishing. Anyway we managed to keep flyanglers fishing the rivers first and spinnfisherman followed after them. Because we had 3 flyanglers and 3 spinnfisherman in group, we mostly organized fishing the way, that each group had its own river-section and after the anglers reached the point, where front team started, they moved by raft in front of them. So each group fished always their own river section and than rotated infront of the other group.
This trip was lead by chief-guide Sergey (with his dog Nord) and our chef – lady Katya, two other rafts were rowed by Kolya-Profit and Alex-Chupa.
With bears it like always on Mikizha or similar wilderness-rivers: they were all the time around us, at least every day we have seen plenty of fresh footsteps, sometimes we smell them, sometimes we saw them running away. The bears always kept distance and tried to avoid close meetings. Just on first day we surpriced one young bear fishing in river rapids and two days after while lunch there was a adult male around 300-400 kg walking on river shore to our place and we had to shoot twice into sky, so as to explain him, that this pool is now our pool.
Except bears, there were some moose by the river, but we saw only one and just for second. Some ducks had bad luck and me us: Sergey and Chupa introduced them their guns and the ducks provided us with their fresh meat.
The Shiveluch volcano erruption between 28.-30 August was very interesting bonus to our fishing adventure. More than 50 km distant volcano released huge amount of volcanic ashes up to 10 km height. Hot dust comming into cold part of atmosphere created volcanic thunders, that we considered with airplanes and later with military training. The fact, that we have something to do with volcanic erruption was sure after rain mixed with volcanic ash covered all river valley in the evening of 29th August. Than we contacted our base by satelite-phones and received confirmation, that Shiveluch volcano wake up for some days. Nothing to be interesting for average Kamchatka citizen, but very interesting experience for all of us – Europeans.

Zapsal/noted by Zdenek