Norway Fjords Heat Up: Coalfish Evenings and Deep Cod on the Rise

This is Artificial Lure with your Norway fjord fishing report. Let’s start on the west coast, from the outer islands into the big fjords around Bergen, Hardanger, and Sogne. A light low‑pressure system has left us with broken cloud, scattered showers, and gentle to moderate southwesterly winds along much of the coast. Air temps are sitting in the low teens Celsius near the water, cooler up the fjords. Barometric pressure is slowly rising, which usually perks up the bite after a sluggish spell. Along the west coast fjords, sunrise was just after 4 in the morning with sunset close to 11 at night, giving almost continuous usable light. Civil twilight stretches that even more, so the real “dark” period is very short. That classic evening push from about 20:00 to 23:00 has been the prime window, with a smaller flurry just after first light. Tides in many of the major fjords today are running a modest range, with a high around mid‑morning and another late evening, and lows roughly early afternoon and just after midnight. The best action has lined up with the top half of the flood and first part of the ebb, especially where side fjords pinch down or current sweeps past points and underwater humps. Catch reports from local skippers and pier anglers the last couple of days paint a pretty good picture: - Plenty of **coalfish/saithe** smashing baitfish tight to the surface in the evenings, especially around current edges and marker buoys. - Solid numbers of **cod** in 30–80 meters over broken bottom, though size is mixed, with the better fish out on the deeper ledges. - Scattered **pollock** tight to rock walls and kelp beds. - **Mackerel** schools finally building in several outer fjords, with fast action once you find them. - A few nice **ling** and **tusk** for those dropping baits down the steeper drops. Artificial lures have outfished bait during the brighter periods. Slim metal jigs in the 40–80 gram range, silver, blue, or green, worked with fast lifts through midwater, are deadly on coalfish and mackerel. For cod and pollock, soft shads in natural sand‑eel or small baitfish colors, rigged on 40–100 gram jig heads, bounced near bottom on drift, have been producing steady fish. Closer to the walls, 12–15 cm paddle tails in darker backs, like black or dark olive, are good for the better pollock. When the water goes glassy or the fish get fussy, bait takes over. Strips of fresh mackerel or herring on simple paternoster rigs are the go‑to. Use smaller hooks and lighter lines in the inner fjords where the water is clearer. For ling and tusk on deeper marks, bigger fillet strips or whole small coalfish baits on strong rigs have been doing the damage. A couple of local hotspots to consider: - **Outer Osterfjorden and Herdlefjorden, just north of Bergen** – good tidal flow around points and narrows, with mixed cod, coalfish, and mackerel. Work the channel edges and underwater saddles on the flooding tide. - **Sørfjorden arm of Hardangerfjord** – sheer rock walls dropping into deep water, ideal for pollock and better cod. Focus on points where small side fjords enter and any visible current seams; use shads and metal jigs close to structure. Fish activity has been most consistent when a bit of breeze roughens the surface. Flat, bright midday conditions have pushed the better fish deeper, so slow your presentation and get your lure or bait down tight to the bottom in 60–120 meters where you can. That’s your fjord report from Artificial Lure. Thanks for tuning in, and don’t forget to subscribe so you don’t miss the next trip. This has been a quiet please production, for more check out quiet please dot ai. Great deals on fishing gear https://amzn.to/44gt1Pn