Lake Þingvallavatn 14th of July 2024

I think I will stop fishing now

---

Yes, that´s how I feel right now. It´s just time to stop. The story behind this annoyance starts with me buying a new fly-fishing rod. I broke the tip on my Sage rod last summer and after a whole year of waiting for Sage to provide a new top, I gave up on waiting and bought myself a good quality Orvis rod in Vesturröst a fishing gear shop in Reykjavík. The day after I purchased the rod I got a call from Veiðihornið, another fishing gear shop in Reykjavík and they offered me a new Sage rod at an excellent discount. That left me with two excellent fly-fishing rods for line eight. On the first fishing trip with the new rod, I discovered that my waders were leaking. Being wet fishing is pretty uncomfortable so I decided to buy new waders and finance the purchase by selling the Sage rod.

We are immersed in building a summerhouse in Borgarfjörður so it wasn´t until last Sunday that I took my first trip to Lake Þingvallavatn. New rod and new waders. It doesn´t get better. Well, the weather wasn´t great. Rain and southerly wind. Still, I felt great while fishing because I didn´t get wet in the new waders and it was pure joy to cast with the new rod despite the wind. I started trying the two spots that I know sometimes give fish south of Arnarfell. No luck there so I decided to walk along the east bank towards the farm Miðfell. Then planned to fish along the bank to where I started.

These were the conditions. Low visibility, wind, and rain. Arnarfell can be seen in the mist in the distance.

I have noticed that my balance is somewhat less than it used to be. That is why I am extra careful, especially in Lake Þingvallavatn because the bottom can be precarious. It is rocky and sometimes deepens quickly and then you are prone to lose your balance. Because of this, I have recently started to use the wading stick I won in a lottery at a meeting at Reykjavík´s Angling Association thirty years ago. So I start fishing, moving from one spot to the next heading north towards Arnarfell. One time I almost fell while wading ashore. I think to myself that these are precisely the situations that make Lake Þingvallavatn dangerous. Suddenly, it´s as if someone pushes me and I tumble backward like some soccer player and into the lake. The water gushes in through the neckline of the jacket and down into the waders. Quckly I stood up and thought it was not enough to get new waders. I still come home soaking wet. Then comes the shock. The tip of my new rod had broken off when I fell. Now the service in Vesturröst and Orvis will be tested.