The Sørøyfestival - big fish guaranteed!

Each year in July, a deep sea fishing festival is held in the little coastal village of Sørvær, nicknamed "the deep sea angler's mekka". There's so much and big fish out here that the local deep sea fishing club "Sørøy Havfiskeklubb" arranged the "Nordic Deep Sea Angling Championships 2003"!

The club was founded in 1987 and has since then gained a good reputation.

The club has a club house in Sørvær in the borough of Hasvik on Sørøya (West Finnmark).

Many sea anglers consider Sørvær to be a dream destination for any serious fisherman. There's no other place where that many records have been set and nobody has so far managed to beat the two local record cods of 37,5 kg (!) caught by Geir Henriksen. This is a fishing story to remember: his second monster cod was caught on exactly the same spot using the same bait precisely one year after he had caught the first one…and weighed 37,5 kg as well!

Copyright © 2003, Roxrud

The fishing tournament held during "Sørøydagene" is known for its tremendous catches, lots of big fish are being caught each year and the average catch per angler outdoes every other angling festival in whole Norway! In 2002, "Sørøyfestivalen" outdid all the other sea angling festivals in Norway both in terms of average catch per angler and largest fish: the total catch was 10 608 kg, the average catch per angler was an astonishing 125 kg! The biggest fish of all the national competitions was also caught here, a cod of 22,06 kg!

The idyllic coastal village is well-known for its hospitality, and the annual festival is an event many people are looking forward to. In 1989, the "Sørøy Deep Sea Fishing Club" successfully arranged the "Norwegian Boat Angling Championships". The national television NRK came to Sørvær to record footage for 15 minutes-long documentary and a TV 2 film team reported about the "Sørøydagene 2002".

During the festival, many boats from other parts of Sørøya and even the mainland come here to make sure that there are enough places for the participating fishermen. All the boats are fully equipped, with life vests, inflatable rafts, satellite-aided navigation, fish-finders and high rails to secure successful, safe and comfortable fishing! It is a spectacular sight to see the boat convoy heading for the open ocean during the festival.

The big lifeboat is another traditional element of the festival. A garland dropped into the ocean reminds of the commercial fishermen who have lost their lives at sea. After the lifeboat has giving the opening signal, the numerous fishing boats with the anglers on board head for the fishing grounds. The actual fishing lasts for 5 hours.

Copyright © 2003, Roxrud Reklamebyrå

The usual prizes during the festival are cups for the angler who weighed in most kilos in the category "men", "ladies", "team" and "junior". There is also a prize for the lucky angler who catches the biggest fish of the festival!

There are usually around 100 fishermen who participate in the competition.

In 2003, the club arranged the "Nordic Boat Angling Championships" with about 170 participants which, to this date, was the biggest event arranged by the club. The reason for choosing Sørvær as the venue for the championships has already been mentioned: it's here the biggest fish swim in enormous numbers. A good catch is almost guaranteed!

Record fish
Three record fish listed on the official record fish list published by Norwegian Deep Sea Angler's Association were caught on rod and reel in the waters around Sørøya. 

Cod 37,5 kg - Geir Henriksen
Spotted catfish 19,07 kg - Harald Wasmuth
Capelin 0,390 kg - Bjørn Bratteli 

Welcome to Sørøya- the ultimate deep sea angling destination!