Greenland is mainly covered with ice and most of the people think about low percentage of civilization. This is exactly what you will find on place but there is also one important part why fly fishers from all over the world dream about fishing there - the arctic char. Today there are small villages which have a decent basic infrastructure and the living standard is increasing step by step. However, as soon as you travel a couple of miles out of town you will find what Greenland is famous for: fjords, tundra, rivers and mountains. No cellphone, no internet - back to basics!

With us on our hosted trip, in cooperation with Angel-Baer in Frankfurt, was Toni, Andreas and René from Germany. Together with Peter and Roine from Sweden, Paul from the US as well as Daniel and Sylvain from Canada we spend the last week of the season 2017 on the lodge. From Germany you take a short flight to Copenhagen and a connecting flight to Kangerlussuaq International Airport. Last step is a 40 minute flight to Maniitsoq, a small town that mainly lives from local fishery and tourism, followed by a two hour boat ride to the lodge. A journey worth every kilometer and as we know those remote places often produce the best fishing – Kangia is one of them. On our boat ride to the lodge we had the chance to fish two places and experience the huge amount of cod in the ocean – every second cast someone yelled “fish on” given the fact that this wasn´t prime time as the cod slowly move into deeper water.

After the first beer, a briefing by our Guides Tomas and Lawson and a good night sleep on the lodge we finally went fishing on the next day. It takes a 45 minute walk from the lodge to the prime pools of the river passing small creeks with the cleanest and best water to fill up your drinking bottle for the day. During the early season also the lower part of the river with the river mouth around the lodge is a good place to fish depending on the tide. Following the trail you arrive at the base camp with a small tent where you can store all your tackle and waders throughout the week. From the camp to a waterfall way upstream there are tons of different spots to fish by foot with every imaginable structure – cut banks, small channels, slow and deep stretches as well as pocket water – you name it.

You will fish heavy flies such as small to medium size streamers so a short belly line is recommended. Switch and trout spey rods are also a great tool for these arctic char, together with a short skagit head and some interchangeable sink tips you will have a lot of fun swinging flies which is often the best method to catch these guys. Leader material in 15-20 lb and a good reel with a smooth drag is needed, we cannot stress enough how strong these char are. Even in the last week of the season we did catch chrome fish to those beautifully colored red and orange ones – the details and composition of colors are simply amazing and look like apiece of art. Our week was something to remember, all of us caught more than enough fish with a few very nice ones in the 3 kilo area being landed. It is a journey back in time – fly fishing “like you have seen it years before” is what you experience at Kangia River on a daily basis.

Greenland stands for wilderness and adventures like no other places on earth and this is exactly what you will find on place – let´s hope that we can maintain these wild places for a long time. Everyone should experience this and it is not only because of the fishing, which is amazing. No, there are other things that make those trips priceless – the beautiful landscape, the people you meet and the memories that stay for a lifetime! 

Tight Lines,
Felix