The landlocked salmon grows fast, at best even twice as fast as brown trout. This is particularly true in lakes with good stocks of vendace. In good conditions, salmon can reach a weight of 4–5 kg over a couple of summers in the lake. Salmon that have been in the lake for three years weigh 5–8 kg. The size of a landlocked salmon that has bitten a lure after four years in the lake is therefore the stuff that fishing legends are made of.

The landlocked salmon is a species seen in open lake areas even more than brown trout. It is advisable to entice salmon above large deeps and on the edges of them. Salmon most commonly bite where there are 20–60 metres of water under the keel. Although it is possible to catch salmon at any hour, early to late morning is the best fishing time. Salmon come to the surface when waters are cold in early summer and late autumn, which are absolutely the best seasons. In summer and early autumn, lures are adjusted to 5–15 metres with divers and downriggers.

Trolling with baitfish rigs has very quickly become very popular in salmon waters. At present, even more than half of active salmonoid trollers have switched to using baitfish rigs. Baitfish rigs also appeal to pike and zander.

A modern baitfish rig consists of one or two size 4–6 treble hooks, a leader equipped with a swivel and a plastic head, which come in different shapes and colours. The baitfish is locked to the plastic head with a small stick and one of the legs of the treble hook is inserted into the side of the bait just above the lateral line, 1–2 cm behind the dorsal fin. The leader running from the hook through the plastic head is tightened so as to make the baitfish arch slightly. This is how you make the baitfish rig swim with good revolving movements.

Baitfish are bright: vendace, bleak, roach or Baltic herring. The best bait is a freshly caught baitfish. Vendace, the most popular food fish for salmonoids, is a good bait. The benefit of cyprinids, on the other hand, is that they are more durable. In most cases, you need to use baitfish acquired in advance, which are then frozen to preserve them. If you are not successful in catching baitfish yourself, vacuum- or plate-frozen bleak are available from fishing tackle shops. The baitfish used for trolling salmonoids are 10–15 cm in size.

You can offer larger baits to pike. A larger baitfish may well also entice large brown trout and landlocked salmon, especially in late autumn. It is advisable to handle baitfish with care, in order to keep their scaly coating as intact as possible.