About Mikael's fishing

From hobby to passion: a lifetime of fishing adventures

Freedom at sea – just to be. No stress, no phones, no distractions. It is genuine quality of life. Add the excitement when the reel suddenly screams – a fish is on. Now begins the battle between you and the fish, with time, the hook and the line as the deciding factors in whether the fish can be landed. Is it a keeper, or must it be released? If the fish is to be released, it is important that it is not exhausted after the long fight.

When evening falls, you seek a sheltered bay – no one wants to wake up in the middle of the night to the boat hitting rocks. In the morning, you take a refreshing dip in the sea and come to life. You cast off the mooring lines and pull up the anchor, ready for another wonderful day on the lake or the sea.

How I plan a fishing day

New day, new opportunities. Should I try a new plastic, bleak or spoon? I study the chart, wind direction and weather forecast – essential prerequisites for success. The decision is made on a spot that has produced many fish this time of year. I enter a WP and let the autopilot steer the boat there. Meanwhile, eggs and coffee are boiling, time for breakfast.

Out on deck to re-rig with the lures I believe in for this day and location. Strange, most of them are already attached. Well, not that strange – after many years of grinding, you know what the favourites are, some are replaced.

An hour later, I've arrived. Now all 10 lures must go out; I have my system for this. First the planers, 10 m fluorocarbon leader, a 10–15 g lead is placed behind the knot, letting out 30–50 m depending on the lake. If it's flat water I let out 50 m, if there are waves I let out 30 m. Then I release another 50 m so the first planer ends up 50 m out from the boat. This is then repeated on 3–4 rods. Closest to the boat, a bit more lead to get the lure slightly deeper. Finally, I set the downrigger lures, in cold water 6–12 m on Vänern, in summer 15–17 m down. On Vättern the lures go down to a depth of 25–35 m. Same on the Baltic Sea.

Tight lines — Mikael Risberg

Singö, 3 June 2016

In Uppsala we get a flat tire. We have a spare wheel, but no jack. We find some large stones that we drive the broken rim onto. When we are high enough, we place stones under the trailer frame and kick away the stone under the rim. Now we have the rim at the right height. Off with the broken wheel and on with the spare. The journey continues to Singö.

An evening on Lonnen

This is where I keep my boats home by my dock.

My trolling boats through the years

The first trolling boat was a Finnsport 540 HT with a Honda 50 hp. It was replaced by an Olympic 580C with a Suzuki 140 hp. The next boat was a Doninger 710CC with an inboard engine. Now I have my dream boat, a Beneteau Antares 650 HB with Suzuki 140. Additionally, I have a smaller console boat, a Ryds 485 DL with a Suzuki 50 hp.

ABU, Lowrance and Team ABU-Trolling

I sold fishing tackle during the 1980s and 90s, and that was when my interest in ABU's history and their classic fishing reels was truly awakened. Over the years, I built up an extensive collection of ABU reels, which I eventually sold to Lennart Borgström, then owner of ABU. When I later took up trolling, it was Lennart who helped me with the equipment. For a few years, I also competed in trolling under the name Team ABU-Trolling – a time I remember with warmth and pride.

During the 1980s and 90s, I competed frequently in ice fishing and began manufacturing my own glue-hooks and other fishing tackle. I sold my glue-hooks at competitions, which became the start of something larger. In 1985, I registered my company Bergslagens Fiske. My father, who ran a printing house, helped me print my own mail-order catalogue – an important step in reaching more customers. Over the years, several great collaborations grew, including with LEF Sport & Marinprodukter, where I bought Bomber and SwimWizz lures from Leif Engström. LEF was at that time also the Swedish agent for Lowrance – a brand that would revolutionize sportfishing.

Read more about the collecting and research at About Mikael.