Fishing rules on Ladoga
There are no specific rules for fishing on Lake Ladoga. There are only restricted areas where you either cannot fish at all, or you can only fish at certain times. Otherwise, the fishing rules are the same for the entire Leningrad region.
The list of rules includes mainly prohibitions. However, quite logical. You must not litter on the shore or damage coastal vegetation. You cannot fish from unregistered vessels, except for very small ones:
- rowing boats with a carrying capacity of up to 100 kg;
- kayaks – up to 150 kg;
- inflatable boats – up to 225 kg.
Staying near bodies of water with prohibited fishing gear is also prohibited. In general, fishing can only be done using gear with one hook. In some cases, there can be up to 10 pieces of such “single” gear. But nets, nets and electric fishing rods, that is, gear for mass fishing, are prohibited. Also, fishing in some places on Lake Ladoga may be prohibited year-round or in certain months.
Attention! When fishing, you must have identification documents with you.
The size of the fish, which must be at least a certain weight, and the size of the catch are also limited. The latter is sometimes counted in kilograms, but in some cases the number of specimens caught is also taken into account.
Attention! Catching any type of red fish is prohibited year-round.
Lake Ladoga: description
Lake Ladoga is the largest among the lakes of the Leningrad region and Western Europe in general. It is fed by various rivers, but only one flows out - the Neva. The deepest place of Lake Ladoga is 233 meters, mostly from 15 to 50 meters in the south and up to 220 meters in the north. The bottom topography is very heterogeneous, and the number of fish species is very large. There are about 500 islands on Lake Ladoga, fishing on which is very productive. The bottom topography is heterogeneous, in the north there are a significant number of sharp changes, and the southern bottom is more even. The depth of the reservoir varies: in the north – 60-220 m, in the south – 15-70 m.
What kind of fish is found in Lake Ladoga: list with photos and names
Due to the relative abundance of Ladoga’s inhabitants, there is no particular point in listing all the fish. Moreover, confusion often arises among the photos and names of fish living in Lake Ladoga. Sometimes this is confusion due to local names, sometimes it is malicious misleading of people. And in some cases, ichthyologists themselves still have not come to an agreement on how to classify a fish: as a species or as a subspecies.
In Lake Ladoga you can catch:
- perch;
- bream;
- roach;
- smelt;
- pike;
- burbot;
- silver bream;
- whitefish;
- trout;
- lake salmon;
- other fish, including sturgeon.
Perch
Predatory fish. One of the most numerous species of fish in Lake Ladoga. It is found everywhere. The greatest number is where there is most prey, that is, in the southern part of the lake. But you can meet perch anywhere in Ladoga. Even in deep places.
Attention! In Lake Ladoga there is no such fish as the greenling.
Terpug is a sea fish. Lives in the Far East, Okhotsk and Barents Seas. Belongs to the family of scorpiomorphs, subfamily of greenlings. But since the greenling is very similar in appearance to freshwater perch, the latter can be sold under the guise of a greenling.
Bream
Prefers to stay on the southern side of Lake Ladoga. In the absence of humans, bream can grow up to 10 kg. But because of fishing enthusiasts, specimens weighing 2-3 kg are usually caught on a hook. Found in the bays of Lake Ladoga and Volkhov Bay.
Roach
A relatively small “herbivorous” fish that serves as a food source for larger predatory species. Distinguished by orange fins and eyes. Roaches eat the remains of plants, small insects and their larvae that live and winter in the coastal zone.
In summer, on Lake Ladoga, fishing for roach from the shore is organized in shallow places overgrown with plants. In winter, this fish prefers to stay in depth, staying closer to the middle of the lake.
Smelt
Industrial fishing object and marine life. But in Ladoga there is a lake subspecies of European smelt, which is called smelt. This is a small fish with an elongated body. The size of the smelt is no more than 10 cm, and the weight is no more than 8 cm. You can catch smelt with a fishing rod only for fun. But many do not deny themselves this pleasure.
Pike
It can grow up to 1.5 kg and weigh up to 35 kg. But due to the many fishermen, the pike caught usually have a length of up to 1 m and a weight of up to 8 kg. The fish has a torpedo-shaped body. Predator.
Prefers to stay in the coastal zone. Hunts from an ambush, which it arranges in thickets of aquatic plants.
Burbot
Predatory fish of the cod family. The burbot's body is covered with a thick layer of mucus. Leads a nocturnal lifestyle. Feeds in shallow water. Hunts small fish and frogs.
The peculiarity of fishing for burbot is that this fish bites best in inclement windy weather. Moreover, the colder the air, the better the burbot bites. The fishing season for it falls in the fall.
Gustera
To determine who took the bait, you will have to count the fish's pharyngeal teeth. Externally, the silver bream is very similar to bream. But the bream has 5 teeth on each side, the silver bream has 7, and they are located in two rows.
It can grow up to 35 cm and weigh up to 1.5 kg. But you shouldn’t delude yourself. Usually you come across specimens weighing only 100-200 g.
Whitefish
Whitefish is found everywhere in Lake Ladoga. There are 7 forms of this species. Some of them live only in lakes, others live in lakes and rivers. In Ladoga, the Yam whitefish is especially distinguished, which lives at great depths and is found in the northern part of the lake.
vendace
Belongs to the whitefish family. It grows up to 13-20 cm. It feeds on small crustaceans, therefore it is one of the lowest links in the food pyramid.
The body is strongly flattened laterally, making the fish look like a herring. The vendace lives in the depths. Doesn't like warm water. Prefers sandy or clay bottom.
Trout
She's a brown trout. Belongs to the salmon family, genus loaches. Fishing for lake trout, like other rare red fish that live in Lake Ladoga today, is prohibited almost everywhere.
Salmon
He's a salmon. The population of Ladoga salmon has decreased significantly recently. Catching this fish is prohibited year-round in any area of the lake.
Where to fish on Ladoga
The main thing in life that fish love is food. There is more food for “herbivorous” fish in the shallower southern part of the lake. Many fish feeding on vegetation and small plankton attract predators. Therefore, it is more profitable to catch fish in the southern part of Lake Ladoga, although many species are distributed throughout the entire reservoir. The only question is quantity.
But for amateur fishing, the number of fish is irrelevant. This data is important for those who fish commercially. You can catch whitefish, pike, and sometimes “visiting” catfish in any part of the lake. The place where you really can't catch fish is the middle of the lake. But all recreational fishing takes place no further than a few kilometers from the shore. Even in winter.
Holidays with fishing on Ladoga: the best places for fishing on the cardinal points
In order for an active holiday on Lake Ladoga to be a success, and for fishermen to return home with full cages and not with disappointment, you just need to know what kind of fish is found in which part of the lake.
- North. The northern part of Lake Ladoga is loved by elite and rare fish species. Here you can catch sturgeon, palia, and sterlet.
- South. In the south, bream, pike perch, pike, perch, and salmon are found on dense shallow ground. It cannot be said that you will not find, for example, sterlet in the southern skerries. We are talking specifically about a happy “cool” hunt, and not a single bite.
- Northwest. Large grayling and burbot prefer the northwestern regions of the reservoir.
Knowing the preferences of fish of different breeds and understanding their migration system, we can say with a high degree of probability that a fishing tour to Ladoga will end in success.
How to fish on Lake Ladoga
Theoretically, you can fish from the shore. But if you want to catch something larger than a roach, it’s better to take a boat. You can fish not only with fishing rods and spinning rods, but also with reels. It is convenient to make a path on a rowing boat, luring out large predatory fish. In winter there is no other option but the holes.
River fish, including catfish, sometimes enter the lake. The way of hunting this fish is different from others. Catfish are usually caught from the shore, but the gear is left overnight. Fishing for catfish in Staraya Ladoga may be more successful, since the city is located on the Volkhov River.
The golden mean will be fishing in Novaya Ladoga. This is a fishing village located at the mouth of the Volkhov. If you wish, you can go out into the lake, but there is also a chance to catch pure river fish.
But if Novaya Ladoga can be classified as a fishing spot on the lake, then Staraya Ladoga is not one of them. But the Staraya Ladoga and Novoladoga canals have the most direct connection to the lake.
Fishing on Ladoga in summer
There are several most popular fishing spots on the lake:
- Novoladozhsky Canal;
- Staraya Ladoga Canal;
- Zagubskaya Bay;
- skerries.
In the Novoladozhsky Canal, which is functioning today and is full of water, you can catch up to 10 species of fish. The most common ones found there are:
- perch;
- pike;
- zander;
- white bream;
- roach.
The most common trophy is perch. There are good access roads to this canal.
If you don’t want to jostle among the crowd of fishermen, you can visit the Staraya Ladoga Canal. The access roads to this fishing spot are inconvenient. The canal itself has become shallow and overgrown, making fishing from the shore almost impossible. Optimal use of the boat. In this channel you can catch:
- ide;
- crucian carp;
- roach;
- ruff;
- pike perch;
- pike.
A spinning rod or a float rod is usually used in the canal.
The warmest place on Lake Ladoga is Zagubskaya Bay. The water here warms up to 20-25 °C in summer. The best way to catch pike here is on the girders. But perch, bream and roach are also common trophies.
Skerries or small rocky islands on the lake are attractive with many coves and shallow pools. The islands are accessible for land transport only in winter. In summer you will have to use a boat or speedboat. Roaches, breams and perches live near the islands. Pike ambush them in the reed thickets. At depth, burbot, pike perch and vendace are caught. You can occasionally catch red fish, but this is not recommended.
After studying the map of the depths of Lake Ladoga, you can choose a place for fishing where there is the highest probability of catching the desired type of fish. Only the place for fishing for perch on Ladoga does not matter, since this species lives everywhere and is found even where there is almost no other fish.
You can appreciate the delights of fishing in summer on Ladoga in the video:
Winter fishing on Ladoga
Winter fishing is more dangerous than summer fishing due to the characteristics of the lake: the middle almost never freezes. In addition, strong winds blow through the Ladoga water area in winter, capable of tearing solder away from the shore.
But near the shore, the water freezes to a great depth: up to 60 cm. A strip of strong ice 10-15 km wide forms from the shore. Further, the ice becomes thinner and completely disappears towards the middle of the lake. To catch common winter trophies: perch and roach, there is no need to go far from the shore. These fish winter at a depth of 3-6 m. You can also catch pike in the reed thickets. But amateur fishermen usually boast about winter perch fishing in videos from Ladoga:
100% proven fishing spots: holidays on Ladoga
Here are a few places:
- Near the village of Koshkino. Here fishermen catch large pike and perch using spinning rods. Here, at the mouth of the Chernaya River, burbot and roach are also found. The first one is “taken” to the bottom, and the roach goes to the float rod.
- Near the village of Krinitsy. At the confluence of the Volkhovets River into Lake Ladoga, bream and roach are “waiting” for fishermen. They are caught with a fishing rod. But spinning anglers come here for pike and perch. Trolling and twitching have proven themselves to be excellent.
- Crossing the Ladoga Canal and the Nazia River. In this place, there are predatory fish.
- Near the village of Lednevo. Winter fishing is good here. The desired local trophies are caught both with a jig and a balance beam. Mostly people come here for large bream and pike.
- Village of Kobon . Throughout the year, fishermen come to the village located on the river of the same name. There are a lot of perch, pike perch, and pike here. The fish takes well on a wobbler.
In a word, if you want to get a thrill from fishing, have a quality rest on Ladoga, come home with a catch and in a great mood, use the information from our article.
Properly organized rest is very important for every person. Sharm Travel knows how to make your weekend unforgettable! Do you want to enjoy the nature of Karelia, see how beautiful Ladoga is, and gain new impressions? Then call us!
Recreation centers for fishing on Lake Ladoga
There are 46 fishing bases on the shores of Lake Ladoga. Most of them are located on the more “fishy” southern coast. But there are also plenty of them in the north of Ladoga. There are those that offer individual cottages. There is also a regular hotel type. Since fishing on the lake can be done all year round, with the exception of the time when ice freezes and melts, the bases operate all year round. Some of them do not stop working in the off-season, offering other services.
True, lovers of Russian winter fishing on Ladoga usually come for one day or set up tents right on the ice.
Fishing bases
There are many fishing bases on Lake Ladoga; the owners offer lovers of fishing and active recreation various conditions for living and fishing.
It is worth booking available rooms in advance and agreeing on your arrival with the administration of the base.
Let's take a closer look at what the most popular fishing bases offer.
13th Cordon
On the shore of Lake Ladoga in Karelia there is a cozy tourist center “13th Cordon”. Guests are accommodated in luxury and economy class cottages. All houses are decorated in a hunting style and were designed based on the film “Peculiarities of National Fishing”.
The base receives visitors in summer and winter.
After a successful fishing trip, guests are invited to take a steam bath in a Russian bathhouse.
For vacationers:
- playground;
- sand beach;
- lessons on smoking fish;
For fishing at the base you are allowed to rent a boat and all the necessary equipment.
You can catch:
- Grayling.
- Burbot.
- Pike.
- Bream.
- Pike perch.
You can come to the “13th Cordon” for fishing with friends, family, colleagues, and business partners.
Stormy Ladoga
The base is located 80 kilometers from the city of St. Petersburg on the shores of the picturesque Taipolovsky Bay. You can stay in comfortable cottages. There is a cafe on the territory of the tourist base; the menu is made up exclusively of natural products that come from our own farm.
In Taipolovsky Bay you can catch:
- whitefish;
- perch;
- pike;
- grayling;
- trout;
- pike perch.
When going fishing, you can rent a boat and all the necessary equipment.
If a family vacation is planned, then there is a lot of entertainment, for example, bicycle rental, various excursions, a bathhouse, and sports games.
Svirskaya
The base is located in the village of Sviritsa in the Leningrad region on the banks of the Svir River. The main activity of the camp site is fishing. The Svir River is a favorite place for many fishermen; various species of fish are found here, and fishing is almost always doomed to success.
You can catch in the river:
- Smelt.
- Rudd.
- Roach.
- Pike perch.
Fishermen are offered everything they need for fishing:
- boat;
- boat;
- tackle.
For an additional fee, you can rent a boat and use the services of a guide who will show you the most catchy places.
Olonka
The guest complex is located in the village of Ilyinsky in the Republic of Karelia. Vacationers are accommodated in cottages with all amenities, consisting of three rooms, a separate kitchen and a spacious hall. Each cottage is designed for 6-8 people. It is worth noting that only environmentally friendly materials were used in the construction of the houses.
An excellent catch, the beauty of nature, the hospitality of the owners and comfortable living conditions will provide visitors with a pleasant and unforgettable stay.
Rich ichthyofauna, beautiful nature, rocky islands, bays, all this diversity makes Lake Ladoga an ideal place for fishing.
