Mountain-stream bait fishing from a River / Mountain stream
Sweetfish: Feed the bait from upstream and let it travel at current speed without tightening the line. Check opening dates and permits.
Waters: Rivers & lakes
Fish
Sweetfish アユ
Plecoglossus altivelis ・ アユ科
Catch season
- Catchable
- Peak
Months for Sweetfish are a broad Japan-wide guide and shift with region, temperature and conditions; prefer local reports and rules.
About
A large yellow oval patch just behind the pectoral fin is the giveaway. It scrapes algae off river stones, which gives it a distinctive melon-like scent and the nickname "fragrant fish," leaving grazing marks on the rocks. It moves between river and sea and lives only about a year. Anglers exploit its habit of defending a patch of stones with tomozuri, fishing with a live decoy.
Basics
- Scientific name
- Plecoglossus altivelis
- Family
- アユ科
- Japanese name
- アユ
- Kana
- あゆ
- Waters
- Rivers & lakes
- Size
- 22 cm (max 30 cm)
- Time of day
- Dawn, Dusk
- Depth (tana)
- Near the streambed, drifting naturally behind rocks, below drops and beside the main current.
How to catch it
Tomozuri turns the fish's territoriality against it: a live decoy ayu is swum past a feeding rock, and the resident fish that charges it is snagged on trailing hooks. Most rivers open in June, and a day permit from the local fishery co-op is required.
Kit for this fish
Stream bait-fishing starter kit ・ Kit total ¥13,000–35,000
- 4.5 m fixed-line stream rodAn approachable fixed-line length for ordinary open mountain streams. ¥5,000–20,000AdFind on AmazonFind on Rakuten
- Stream bait-fishing rigA complete fixed-line rig with top line, main line, markers, shot and hook. ¥500–1,800AdFind on AmazonFind on Rakuten
- Fishing wormsGeneral river bait; never release unused live bait at the water. ¥400–900AdFind on AmazonFind on Rakuten
- Fishing pliers / hook removerEssential protection from venomous spines and sharp teeth. Most injuries happen when someone unhooks a fish bare-handed. ¥800–4,000AdFind on AmazonFind on Rakuten
- Cap and polarised sunglassesAlso safety equipment, protecting your eyes from a flying rig. Polarised lenses additionally let you read the bottom. ¥2,000–20,000AdFind on AmazonFind on Rakuten
- Life jacket, adult (Japan Craft Inspection approved)The first thing to buy, and worn on piers, rocks and boats alike. Boat fishing requires the government-approved type marked with the cherry-blossom stamp. ¥5,000–20,000AdFind on AmazonFind on Rakuten
Before buying tackle, confirm the river permit, season and allowed bait and hooks.
Product links may be affiliate links. Prices move, so treat the ranges as a guide.
Eating
Food use varies locally. Check harvest rules and water quality, avoid raw consumption and cook thoroughly.
Best eating: March–June
Rules
Inland rules are water-specific. Check the fishery cooperative and prefecture for day or annual permits, closed seasons, minimum sizes, tackle, harvest and release rules.
Closed seasons and size limits — how to find the numbers, which differ by prefecture
Other fish taken the same way
Other fish from the same kind of place
Seasons and rules vary by place and time. Check current local information before fishing.