From Loop: "Amid Iceland’s winds and waterfalls, Emilie Björkman chases wild Atlantic salmon – and discovers what’s at stake for one of their last untouched strongholds. Emilie teams up with her friend, guide, and fellow fly fisher Valli Ragnarsson while exploring this fairytale island.
Valli is a fly fisher at heart. He ties around 4,000 flies each year and spends as many days as he can on Iceland’s wild rivers. Valli loves to fish a riffling hitch, and he wants Emilie to catch a fish using that method. Together they fish the Húseyjarkvísl and the Miðfjarðará — both excellent rivers for the riffling hitch.
Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) populations are in decline in many parts of the world, but Iceland is still considered a stronghold for this iconic fish. However, open-pen salmon farming and loss of habitat have begun to threaten wild salmon even in Iceland. Emilie meets up with NASF (North Atlantic Salmon Fund) representative Elvar Örn Fridriksson to talk about the state of salmon in Iceland. She also visits Big Laxá and Aðaldal — “the Queen of Icelandic Rivers” — to meet Andrea, Arndis, Alexandra and Aslaug, four young women who have embarked on careers as fly-fishing guides and to hear their perspective on the future of the wild Atlantic salmon in Iceland.
Wild Fish. Wild Places is a new Loop production blending lifestyle, culture, and poetic storytelling to celebrate the people, waters, and wild fish that inspire us - and the responsibility we share to protect them. Catch a new episode every month."