Blizzard does not deter contenders for the title of Salmon King

The weather forecasters were right, and the spinning and fly-fishing competition for sea trout and salmon “Salaca Salmon Cup 2025”, organised by the association “Fishing Club “Salackrasti””, started on 5 April in a proper blizzard of wet snow.

The competition was opened by Atis Apelis, head of the fishing club “Salackrasti”, who reminded the participants how it would run. According to the rules, anglers catch, measure, photograph and release the fish, filming the moment of release.

The start of the “Salmon Cup 2025” was given by Dagnis Straubergs, head of Limbaži Municipality, who also offered the anglers words of encouragement. “It won’t be that easy today; nature has made sure of some special weather conditions. I wish you to enjoy this day, being out in nature by the river, and try to land a good catch,” he said.

This year the competition was international again – among the 20 teams (40 participants in total) there were anglers from Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. The competition is becoming more and more popular – this year 96 participants registered, of whom 20 teams were approved according to the selection rules.

Atis Apelis, head of the fishing club, explains: “The club has been organising the “Salmon Cup” competition for four years now. When drawing up the rules, we took into account the anglers’ own suggestions and decided that the competition must follow the main principle of catch and release – catch, photograph, release. For the fourth year now, anglers do not bring the fish to Vecsalaca, the start and finish point. To do everything according to the rules, participants need a charged mobile phone with an internet connection, a camera and the apps Mana Cope, NoteCam and WhatsApp installed, so that they can take and send photos and a video of the fish being released; the catch must be registered in Mana Cope. Participants are free to choose where to fish on the section of the Salaca River within the Salacgrīva administrative area. Fishing and catch registration take place from eight in the morning until four in the afternoon. The closing of the competition and the awards ceremony took place at five in the afternoon at the base at Niedru iela 9, Vecsalaca.”

According to the rules, salmon and sea trout are counted – salmon longer than 60 cm and sea trout longer than 50 cm. The results are based on points awarded for each centimetre of fish length (one centimetre = one point). The organiser awards participants in the following categories: longest salmon, “Salmon King 2025” (individual); longest sea trout (individual); highest score for salmon and sea trout (team); total number of fish (team); first fish caught and registered (individual). For the second year in a row, the fishing club “Salackrasti” presented the “Biggest Fibber” award. It goes to the angler whose story about the day’s fishing is the most unbelievable and exaggerated.

At five in the afternoon in Vecsalaca, the results of the “Salmon Cup 2025” were announced, the winners were awarded and the Salmon King was honoured.

The chief judge of the competition, Ilona Apele, announced the results: a total of 15 salmon and 15 sea trout were registered, with a total fish length of 27 metres 64 cm, of which 14.07 metres were salmon and 13.53 metres sea trout.

The team “SALACKRASTI” achieved the best result with 3 salmon and 3 sea trout, scoring 495 points in 4 categories: first fish caught and registered; highest score for salmon and sea trout; total number of fish; and longest sea trout.

The team “SALACKRSTI” gave up two of these categories, giving the next team a great opportunity.

The award for the first fish caught and registered went to Pauls Vinklers from the team “SALACKRSTI” (a 102 cm salmon at 8:26).

Highest score for salmon and sea trout – team “Sagadījās” (Eduards Balodis and Armands Romanovs), 289 points

Total number of fish – team “Sagadījās” (Eduards Balodis and Armands Romanovs) with 4 fish

Longest sea trout – 82 cm, team “SALACKRSTI”, Juris Burdikovs

This year the title of “Salmon King 2025” went to Armands Vebruālis from the team “Esma Angling Team”, who caught a 108 cm salmon.

Four teams received consolation prizes, as they did not catch a single fish that day.

Thank you to the sponsors and everyone who helped organise the Salaca Salmon Cup 2025!

The competition was organised by the Fishing Club “Salackrasti” and co-financed by the European Union through the Life is Salaca project.

Ilga Tiesnese