Iceland - One Of The Very Best Rivers

Hofsa is one of Iceland's most famed rivers - sister to the storied Sela in the north-east of the country. I'd heard a lot about it, not least from Orri Vigfusson, founder of the North Atlantic Salmon Fund and chairman of the syndicate that controls the fishing on Hofsa. Our good friend and guide Oskar Pal Sveinsson has also raved about it - he says it's his favourite river, and that must be praise indeed from someone who knows the Icelandic rivers so well. Understandably I was keen to see why he liked it so much, so I took the opportunity for a visit after our Asum fishing.

Ultimate Icelandic experience: salmon on the hitch, beneath a  waterfall

I soon realised. I can't think of another river I've fished which has such consistently wonderful water for fly fishing. Every one of the seven beats has pool after pool of delicious-looking water: runs, glides, necks and tails. And it is all crystal clear. This is undoubtedly the river for those salmon fishermen who love to swing flies! There's not so much of the upstream fishing, stripping or dead drifting of some other Icelandic rivers. And it's big enough to warrant a light double hander. I fished an 11ft switch rod, but a 12-13ft double hander would have been perfect. With maybe a 10ft 7-weight single handed as en extra tool for fishing the riffle hitch. I defy any salmon fishermen not to fall in love with Hofsa's pools

The dramatic canyon of beat 1: one of the truly great salmon beats 

Beat 1 is the top end of the river, where a waterfall halt's the salmon's progress. This is one of the truly great salmon beats, with stunning pools below the falls. It's about an hour-long hike up to the top of the canyon, but it's worth it for the scenery and the sense of anticipation. We could see big fish hanging in the gin-clear currents from the rocky path high above - marking their spots with reference to boulders so we could find them later. It was in Foss 2, the second pool below the waterfall that I got my first fish - a 12lb cock. We spotted it in the tail and it exploded onto a small riffle hitch tube skated across the surface, pushing it's entire body out of the water. I won't forget that one for a while.

Guide Valdi searches for salmon in the clear currents

 Beat 1 is not typical of the river. The rest is set in a wide valley, framed by snow capped mountains. The wading is largely easy and there is rarely much need to wade deeply. The riffle hitch works well as do typical small Icelandic flies (Black Sheep, Black and Blue etc), the inevitable Frances and Sunray Shadows. The Icelandic guides insist on showing salmon an array of flies, so we changed repeatedly, covering all the options. We found more fish on Beat 5 in a couple of pools just below the road bridge, with two taking a hitch and another two a Black Sheep - but for every one I landed, I lost another!

Hofsa lodge in its breathtaking setting

The other beat that has a unique character is beat 7, near the fjord, where the valley opens out. This is the place for the fresh fish literally straight off the tide, with the showpiece pool of Odin's Bank - a lovely long and deep holding pool below a large, steep, dominating, rocky cliff. Hofsa's lodge is large with plenty of en-suite rooms, a great wader drying room, a large sitting and dining room with panoramic views over the mountains and river, a separate sitting area and a large outdoor patio. The chef is, er, a character, and well known in Icelandic culinary circles for his prowess in the kitchen.

A dining room with a view

 Of course, as with all trips, it's the people that make it. I was lucky enough to enjoy the services of Valdi, a great guide and a super fly tyer. We had a lot of laughs over our few days, and I stole a lot of his flies. Through him, I learnt a lot about the river and picked up a few more tricks along the way. Yet again, the old adage that the best guides make for the best trips proved true. Thanks, mate. And I agree: This is a river that lovers of salmon fly fishing should fish at least once.

Valdi and a reluctant pose for the camera!

- Bob