Fishing records in Latvia

Fishing is one of my biggest hobbies and I try to get near freshwaters as often as I can. Latvia is full of amazing lakes and rivers that are scattered with anglers trying to get that big catch. I noticed that there is no information in English about fishing records in Latvia, so I made a small list. This list doesn’t feature all records, just those that seemed interesting to me.

Pike – 19.56KG

This is one of the longest standing records in Latvia. The fish was caught in 1989 by V. Petjukevičs. I couldn’t find a picture of the record online, but I remember seeing it in an old fishing book. If I ever find that book, I will add the photo here.

This record is also special because rarely anyone gets near the old one. 10-15KG pikes are counted as really big ones here.

Catfish – 84.70KG

The Catfish record was broken by M. Velde in year 2010 in one of the two Catfish occupied rivers in Latvia – Daugava. Green soft plastic bait was used as the lure. Let the picture speak for itself.

Zander – 11.80KG

The record size Zander (they are also called pike-perch) was also caught in river Daugava. The previous record was beaten by just 50 grams.

Ide – 5.50KG

This is probably a lesser known fish, but the biggest Ide caught in Latvia is also the world record of all Ides. It was caught in lake Lubāns in 1989. The lake is currently listed a nature reserve and is also the biggest lake in Latvia.

Tench – 3.20KG

First record in this list that was set by a woman. The record was set in 2009 and is also the only record from a pond. Is that even fair?

Summary

Daugava river is a sweet spot for anglers and it currently holds 4 fishing records. I am lucky enough to be living near several lakes and river Gauja, also one of the longest rivers in Latvia. I prefer going after pikes when I am in an active mood, but when my goal is to relax and enjoy the nature I choose a small lake in nearby forest that is full of Tenches and some smaller fishes. Picture of the lake below.