Angling permit sales on hold at eight sites due to warm water

Starting Monday, July 21, Metsähallitus will suspend fishing permit sales for the following sites: Langinkoski, Latokartanonkoski, Karvionkoski, Keihärinkoski, Kolima–Keitele rapids route, Konnuskoski, Kotala Rapids and Irninjoki. Water temperatures at these locations have risen to critical levels for salmonids. Customers are advised to cancel any permits purchased in advance.

Permit sales will initially be suspended for one week. The situation will be reassessed on Monday, July 28. If the heatwave subsides and water temperatures drop sufficiently, sales may resume as early as Tuesday, July 29.

Updates on the resumption of permit sales will be posted on Eräluvat.fi. If the suspension needs to be extended, this news article will be updated.

At some sites, water temperatures have exceeded or are approaching 21°C, which is stressful for salmonids. Continued hot weather will raise temperatures even further. Many of Metsähallitus’ river and rapid sites are equipped with temperature sensors, allowing anglers to monitor conditions via the SensorMonitor service (map.sensormonitor.fi).

The affected sites are migratory fish waters where trout, among others, are fished. Trout and other salmonids tolerate heat poorly and also recover poorly from catch-and-release. During hot weather, it is advisable to avoid fishing in areas where fish may need to be released.

Read more about how water temperature affects fish and fishing: Metsähallitus’ guidelines for responsible fishing.

Purchased permits can be cancelled free of charge

Although permit sales are on hold, Metsähallitus will not automatically cancel already purchased permits. Metsähallitus cannot unilaterally cancel paid permits without the holder’s consent.

Anglers have the following options:

A paid permit can be fully cancelled and refunded. The cancellation must be made before the permit becomes valid by contacting Metsähallitus’ customer service: +358 20 69 2424 (weekdays 9 am–3 pm, €0,00/min + local/mobile rate) or eraluvat@metsa.fi. For group permits, only the person who ordered the permits can request cancellation, and all permits will be cancelled at once.
The permit holder may choose to fish with the paid permit, although this is not recommended.

Further information

Veijo Honkanen, Senior Specialist (rapids), +358 40 571 4397, veijo.honkanen@metsa.fi

Eero Hartikainen, Senior Specialist (Irninjoki), +358 40 821 9679, eero.hartikainen@metsa.fi