Fishing in Lake Kussharo

Eastern Hokkaido's Lake Kussharo.

In the fall, many anglers come here.

They have their sights set on these fiery-red freshwater fish.

Yes!

This vast lake sets the stage for a battle between man and fish.

On this episode, we'll go fishing on Lake Kussharo!

Wild Hokkaido!

Lake Kussharo is famed for being Japan's largest caldera lake,

with a circumference of 57 kilometers.

There is not only salmon, but a variety of fish here,

making it a popular lake with anglers.

Late October.

Here at the lake is Hokkaido resident Hugo Tremoliere, from France.

Wow. Lake Kussharo.

It's a long time I wanted to come here.

It's huge. It's the biggest caldera lake of Japan.

Normally, Hugo is a skilled mountain stream and river fishing angler.

This is his first time fishing on Lake Kussharo.

First, he visits a local tackle store for some information.

- Hello.
- Welcome.

This is the owner, Sato, Takeshi.

I don't know where to start.

As well as running the store,

he's also a fishing guide and Lake Kussharo specialist.

He shows the fish that can be caught in season now.

Landlocked Sockeye Salmon.

White-Spotted Char, Rainbow Trout.

Hugo's attention is drawn to the vividly-colored body

of the Landlocked Sockeye Salmon.

The Landlocked Sockeye Salmon has a length of about 30 centimeters.

In fall, its body changes color to attract a mate,

in preparation for spawning.

In particular, the males' entire body turns a bright shade of red.

There are more Landlocked Sockeye Salmon in the lake than any other fish.

It's the most beautiful, so many anglers come to Lake Kussharo to catch them.

In Kussharo, there's another popular variety of fish,

the White-Spotted Char.

Takeshi shows us a char he once caught.

It was 86 centimeters!

It's massive, yeah? That would be the dream.

There are certainly some giant fish to be found in Lake Kussharo.

Expectations are high.

Lake Kussharo has a number of fishing points.

Takeshi takes Hugo to a favorite spot of his

where Landlocked Sockeye Salmon can be caught.

The water is so clear.

- Very clear.
- Clear.

So where...

sockeye salmon, where do they hang around?

What are they looking for?

Sockeye Salmon usually come to the shallows to breed.

Then, just as Hugo is looking at the surface of the lake…

Oh, there's one here! Just here!

- There's one.
- Just in front of us.

- It's a male Sockeye Salmon.
- Incredible!

That is so good!

The two of them are at an inlet on the lake's eastern side.

Landlocked Sockeye Salmon choose to spawn in shallow areas

in clean lakeside waters,

so this spacious location provides the ideal environment.

The outlines of countless fish are seen from the sky.

These are Sockeye Salmon.

It's also easy to spot them from the surface of the lake.

Hugo has never fished for Sockeye Salmon before.

To begin, he will try and hook one

with one of Takeshi's recommended red feather lures.

Sometimes they're in the mood and other times they're not.

They might react, chase the lure and bite it.

Like this?

Just in front of them –

- Here they come.
- There are 5 or 6 just here.

The red lure attracts a number of salmon.

But they don't appear to be interested in biting.

In fact, Landlocked Sockeye Salmon

hardly eat at all during the spawning period.

However, they are aggressive during this time,

aiming to take advantage of this,

our anglers hope it will afford them a catch.

Hugo tries different lures.

You should use this type.

This time, he's switched to a weighted small lure.

The extra weight makes it easier to target the exact spot to sink the lure.

This time, if you drop it in front of its eyes, it should go to bite the lure.

If the fish haven't eaten anything they'll try to snap at it.

He aims for the tip of the salmon's snout.

They're coming!

It got it!

I can't hook it.

He's timed it well, but then…

It's a Dace!

A Japanese Dace. They want to eat salmon eggs.

Japanese Dace.

He's unexpectedly caught a Japanese Dace instead.

There are also large numbers of Japanese Dace living in Lake Kussharo.

They've come to the inlet in search of Sockeye Salmon eggs.

Well, bye-bye.

Fishing on Lake Kussharo is free,

but all fish caught must be released into the lake again.

What lure will work best to attract Sockeye Salmon?

The next lure he'll try…

is this one. It's bright pink.

Let's see if a color change will make a difference.

He tugs the line as he watches the fishes' movements.

30 minutes have passed since Hugo started fishing.

A Sockeye Salmon! It's a female.

- Nice!
- Wow, super beautiful.

That's a female, yeah?

He's hooked a female Sockeye Salmon.

A strip of red is visible along her body.

She has a different look of beauty from the male fish.

OK, bye-bye.

In order to hook a prized male Sockeye Salmon,

they search for a place that may attract even more fish.

The lure is changed again.

This time, Hugo decides to throw caution to the wind

and chooses the biggest lure yet.

The salmon seem interested in the new lure.

But once again, they're not biting.

Usually, Hugo assesses the flow of the river

or the topography as he fishes.

But the vast, still waters of the lake are more difficult to read.

It's a battle of perseverance between man and fish.

He hunkers down, and waits.

It's been 30 minutes.

Then finally there is a tug at the lure.

Got it! A male!

It's a bright and lively fish.

Proper, like sight fishing.

They've finally caught a male Sockeye Salmon!

In the net! Yes!

- A male.
- Oh man, I' happy.

- It's a beauty.
- How beautiful is that!

It has a uniquely-shaped arched back.

Its body glistens even more brilliantly in the sunlight.

This color and this shape it's pretty crazy.

The orange tail is super beautiful, yeah.

- So cool.
- Thank you.

You did it.

Finally.

They're very happy to have finally encountered

a beautiful Landlocked Sockeye Salmon.

I mean it's incredible because it's sight fishing, you know?

Like you see those fish and then

you cast the fly there expecting they're going catch it.

It's the first time in my life I see like big schools of fish like that.

Then, yeah, you just wait, you can see everything. It's incredible.

The next morning.

On this day, they've decided to go for an even bigger challenge,

the huge White-Spotted Char that Takeshi caught.

He guides Hugo to an inlet

further north of the spot they fished for Sockeye Salmon yesterday.

Here, where the river flows into the lake,

the char swim upstream to spawn when fall arrives.

The anglers will attempt to catch them here

at the spot they gather before swimming upstream.

The lure resembles an insect.

The White-Spotted Char will still eat insects even during spawning season.

Morning in particular is the perfect time to catch a fish

when they're at their hungriest.

Takeshi observes quietly from the bank.

The water looks still,

then suddenly…

That's a White-Spotted Char! It's a big one!

There's definitely some big fish in these waters.

But,

despite waiting patiently until noon,

there are no more signs of White-Spotted Char.

Sorry, I tried

everything I could.

I tried everything I could but it wasn't enough, eh?

Maybe we have to come back.

Also usually I am more used to fish on the rivers,

and it's all different techniques.

There's pros and cons to each. I enjoyed it on the lake anyway.

Thank you for having me it was a,

I had an amazing experience and I'll definitely come back.

- Thank you.
- Let's meet again on Kussharo!

Lake Kussharo in the fall is a treasure trove of fish

abound to attract any keen angler.