Stillwater · Gneiss · Salzburg / Krimml (Wildgerlostal), AT

Finkausee

Finkausee terrain map

Finkausee is a small mountain lake at the head of the Wildgerlos valley, partly fed by glacier water and ringed by the kind of scenery that makes it hard to keep your eyes on the fly.

Fair · Trout
Hare's Ear Nymph · 12-16
Fairlive now
Buzzer expected on Finkausee
Glassy and bright — hard work without a breeze. Hard work without breeze. Look for the dimples.
59% confidence
What moved it
  • WindSE 3 km/hCalm
Today's fly
Hare's Ear Nymph
Hare's Ear Nymph12-16
Upstream
Conditions on the water
Estimate
Wind
Calm
SE 3 km/h
N
SE
from the south-east
WaveFlat calm
Water temp9.5°C
Air temp10°C
CloudBroken
Pressure1028 hPa
Rain · recent0.0 mm

No gauge on this water — readings are regional estimates from weather, not a live gauge.

How to fish it · for Trout
When
The buzzer is on. Fry may also come into play as the day warms. Calm evenings on lakes can be magical — watch for rises and fish individual fish with dries.
Where
With limited drift, anchor or fish static from sheltered positions. Work a bushy searching pattern on the bob and drop a contrasting nymph on the point. In the calm, a single dry fly or a slowly-fished nymph tends to out-fish an active retrieve.
The plan
Plan A

With limited drift, anchor or fish static from sheltered positions. Work a bushy searching pattern on the bob and drop a contrasting nymph on the point. In the calm, a single dry fly or a slowly-fished nymph tends to out-fish an active retrieve.

Plan B

If the main plan is not working, switch to a smaller, more imitative pattern fished slower and deeper. A change of drift angle can also make a difference.

Watch for

Keep an eye on changing conditions — wind shifts and cloud breaks can trigger short feeding spells.

Either bank or boat

Calm evenings can fish well from bank or boat — target rising fish wherever you find them.

Beyond the hatch · worth watchingambient prey(1)

Hatch predictions

Top prey shown — see all 3 as a supporter.

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Through the year
0–3 scale · September highlighted
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Trout seasonSeason
1
2
2
2
1
Grayling seasonSeason
1
2
2
1
Black MidgeHatch
2
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
2
Lake OliveHatch
2
3
3
3
3
3
2
Daphnia SwarmHatch
2
3
3
3
2
Silverhorns & LonghornsHatch
1
2
2
2
1

Numbers are intensity 0 (none) to 3 (peak) — a guide, not a guarantee.

Ranked for today
Trout fly box

A classic alpine trout and grayling box. Nymphs, dry flies and streamers all belong, with the season often starting later in alpine regions.

SS
Small Streamer
6-10 · Pattern
Swing
Permits & access
Permit required — see local rules.
  • Fly only; barbless flies; one fish per day may be kept (Bräurup 2026 price list)
  • A size slot of 28–32 cm or 43 cm and over is reported by a secondary source only — check the ticket
  • Bank or belly boat; one rod; keepnets prohibited
  • 2026 season 1 May – 30 September
  • Tickets from Hotel Bräurup, Mittersill, or hejfish; the Salzburg state levy applies.
What's coming
Plan ahead
5-day outlook
Condition match
65%
Cloud70%
Wind65%
Temp60%

A reasonable day here, though temperature isn't quite in the sweet spot.

Fishing better nearby · 5
Steinberger Ache
41 km
75
Brown trout
Krimmler Ache
7.0 km
64
Brown trout · Brook trout · Grayling
Achensee
40 km
Brown trout · Lake trout · Char
Aurino
45 km
Brown trout · Marble trout · Grayling
Rienza
48 km
Brown trout · Marble trout · Grayling
About this water

Finkausee is a small mountain lake at the head of the Wildgerlos valley, partly fed by glacier water and ringed by the kind of scenery that makes it hard to keep your eyes on the fly. It is fly only and barbless, and gentle about it: one fish a day may be kept, the rest go back, and you can fish from the bank or from a belly boat. The water stays cold well into summer, so the fish follow the warmth — the shallow margins and the sunny shore early and late in the season, deeper water in the heat of the day. Tickets come from the same Mittersill hotel that sells the Krimmler Ache, which makes the two a natural pairing for a few days in the area.

  • Lake
  • Gneiss
Water quality (WFD)
  • Ecology: Unknown
  • Chemical: Unknown
What this classification means

No matching EEA WISE 2022 water body (checked 2026-09-14): the only lake polygon within 2 km is a different 1.75 km² reservoir; Finkausee is about 10 ha.

Why this score
  • Buzzer is in its seasonal window, boosting the chance of targeted feeding.
Directions
Apple MapsGoogle Maps
Seasons & zones
  • Trout 1 May → 30 September
  • Grayling 1 June → 30 September

    Grayling reported by a secondary source only. Display opener held at 1 June for the Salzburg statutory spring closure; check the permit.

    Season dates are set at state or regional level — confirm the local rules.

  • Char 1 May → 30 September

    Within the lake season (Bräurup price list).

Related guides
Thermal Layers & Troutreading depth and temperatureGrayling Playbookgrayling tacticsAlpine Streamsmountain entomology
Booking & contacts