The Archipelago
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Few fishing sites in Finland or indeed anywhere in the world can offer as versatile possibilities for sportfishing as the Finnish Southwest Archipelago.
First of all there is a large variety of species fit for fishing: pike, sea trout, salmon, rainbow trout, perch, zander (pikeperch), Baltic herring, burbot, flounder, the roach family and also, every now and then, cod.
Seconly you can fish in the Archipelago the year round. Every season has its typical species; in the winter you ice-fish perch, zander, burbot and trout. During the spring you hunt for sea trouts and giant pikes that come in to spawn. You can also jig Baltic herring with many-hooked lines. In the summertime one angles perch, zander, pike, ide and flounder. In the autumn the time is again ripe for perch and sea trout in addition to pike. The cool water of the autumn also provides Baltic herring for the Finnish Christmas delicacies.
Thirdly one can hunt for and catch at least personal record fish. The basic size of perch is clearly larger than in the inland waters. Most anglers consider perch up to a hundred grams as fry and release them back into the sea. When a perch reaches the quarter kilogramme limit one starts to check one´s scaling and gutting gear. In certain areas, mainly in the inner and middle Archipelago, pike hunters have excellent possibilitie of joining the Ten Kilogramme Club. In the outer Archipelago giant pike has, unfortunately, been missing for some years now and there hasn´t been any cod either.
In the northern part of the Turku Archipelago, Taivassalo, Kustavi and Iniö have suitable waters for multipurpose sportfishing. In the inner straits and bays there is a lot of zander and pike, trout swim in the open sea areas and the giant perch feed around the ranges. In the areas of these three municipalities you find the whole diversity of the archipelagian nature. Scenery changes when you move from east to west, from the groves of the inner archipelago to the barren mosaic of the outer Archipelago embroidered by rocky islets. The principal traffic route, main road no. 192, parts from highway no. 8 (Turku - Pori - Vaasa) in Raisio and turns southwest.
The three southernmost municipalities of the Archipelago, Nauvo, Korppoo and Houtskari are situated in an area where a fisherman can really go exploring. If Jack Frost makes a sturdy ice cover, the ice fisher might have transportation problems as to the shoal perch he will catch. In the springtime one hunts for either sea trout or the giant pike. In the summer you can relax and angle for perch or you can try to find the mysterious ide. When you manage to catch flounder they turn to delicacies in the smoke oven. The autumn brings another season of pike, giant perch and trout. You can also angle Baltic herring with many-hooked lines for the whole of the summer. Of the species common in the Archipelago only zander is a seldom seen visitor in this area, because it likes to dwell in the more turbid water of the inner bays, straits and open sea areas near the mainland.
The Eastern Archipelago, which consists of Dragsfjärd, Kemiö, Särkisalo and Västanfjärd offers fishermen excellent possibilitie of a big catch. The giant pike of the Särkisalo-Kemiö area are regularly trophy class in the yearly Giant Fish Contests.
Zander like to swim in the turbid bay and strait water near the mainland. One of the best places to catch zander round the year are the waters near the Strömma Canal.
The giant perch dwell in the larger inner open seas like Gullkrona. Perch is available for the skillful fisherman all year round in the whole area. For those craving for the sea trout the Eastern Archipelago is a real Hot Spot. When you are there at the right time in the right place, there is sure to be a red meat delicacy frizzling in your frying pan.