Fishing in Una National Park.

Is it possible to fish in Una National Park?

Yes, one of the activities offered in Una National Park is fishing.

True, the administration provides for a number of restrictions, fishing is far from possible throughout the entire territory and, of course, it will cost more than in many other places in Bosnia and Herzegovina. But, despite this, there are enough people who want to try to catch fish in the Una National Park, especially among foreign tourists who love fly fishing.

What kind of fish is found in Una?

In the upper reaches of the Una, which covers the national park (or, for short, NP), there are 15 species of fish from 4 orders and 6 families.

Of the rare fish here, there is an ordinary sculpin (lat. Cottus gobio) and a schneider (lat. Alburnoides bipunctatus). They are protected species. In addition to them, Danube salmon (lat. Hucho Hucho), Mediterranean barbel (lat. Barbus meridionalis) and cactus roach (lat. Rutilus virgo) are in the same category.

The most common and allowed for catching Una fish are European grayling (lat.Thymalsus thymallus) and brown trout (lat.Salmo trutta).

There are two types of fishing available in Una National Park - captive and catch-and-release.

Fly-fishing zones in NP Una.

There are 3 areas in the park where you can fish using the fly fishing technique (in Bosnian - "mušičarenje") with artificial bait. They are identified by a number and the name of the location.

It:

- District No. 1 Martin Brod, 7.5 kilometers long.

Open for fishing daily from May 1 to October 1.

This zone includes a special 900-meter part of "Unac", located on the river of the same name. It is allowed to fish in it daily from March 1 to December 15.

The district originates at Unac, 100 meters from the bridge at the Rmanj monastery (upstream). Then it goes along the river to the place Sastavci, where the Unac flows into the Una, and continues downstream to the point "Kamen"  near the place Palučci.

- District 1B Kulen Vakuf, 1.5 km long.

Starts at a rapid, 150 meters upstream from the large bridge at Kulen Vakuf. The area covers Kulen Vakuf itself and ends downstream, at the bridge leading across the Una River to the villages of Klisa and Ostroviсa.

Open daily from 1 March to 15 December.

- District No. 3 Bjelila - Loskun, stretching for 4 km.

Passes from the location "Bjelila" down the river Una to the point "Djevojački kamen", located 800 meters below the former suspension bridge in Loskun.

Available for fishermen daily from May 1st to October 1st.

Price

A fishing permit will cost KM 40 for a day, KM 100 for 3 days, and KM 140 for 5 days, in all areas except for the "Unac" special zone. There, the order of prices is somewhat higher: a daily license will cost 50 KM, a 3-day license will cost 120 KM, and for a 5-day one you will have to pay 170 KM.

Let me remind you that to find out the approximate prices in euros, you need to divide the amount by two.

Huge discounts are provided for members of the BiH Sports Fishermen's Association, however, tourists have no chance to join this organization, so we will not consider this category of tickets in detail.

In all fly-fishing areas, it is prohibited to remove fish from their habitat.

Una zones with trapping permission

NP Una also has 4 zones in which it is allowed to fish with artificial bait or a water ball (water-filled float) with a maximum of 3 artificial baits - dry flies.

- District No. 1A Gečet.

It spans 3 kilometers of the river from the point "Kamen" near the settlement of Palučci to a rapid located 150 meters downriver from the large bridge at Kulen Vakuf.

- District No. 2 Ćelije - Klisa.

Includes the water area from the location "Oćukine kuće" to the former suspension bridge near the railway station Štrbački buk.

The total length is 14.5 km.

- District No. 4 Dvoslap.

Extends from the point "Djevojački kamen" (the end of the 3rd district) to Dvoslap.

It has a total length of 5.5 km.

- District No. 5 Ocigrije.

It includes the water area of the Una River upstream from Martin Brod, more precisely - from the wooden bridge in the town of Zamršten to the intersection with the settlement of Očigrije (landmark - an underpass under the railway).

The length of the district is 1.7 km.

Price

In any of these four areas, you can only purchase a license for a day for 40 KM and for 3 days for 100 KM. Permits for 5 days in these areas are not provided, at least due to the fact that fishing will be no more than 3 days in a row. Fishing here is allowed only on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

Rules of Una National Park

Catch limits

In the areas "Gečet", "Ćelije - Klisa", "Dvoslap", "Očigrije" there is a restriction - you can catch a maximum of two fish in one day - trout or grayling, ranging in size from 30 to 40 cm. You can take them with you, pay extra do not need anything. However, at the exit it is prescribed to present the fish to the park ranger for control and measurement.

Caught fish of other species, as well as fish with a size larger or smaller than the indicated one, the fisherman is obliged to release back into the river.

Time limit

Going fishing, you should take into account not only the day of the week, but also the month. The season for catching brown trout is from March 01 to September 30, grayling - from May 1 to September 30.

Even if you spend the night in the park, according to the rules, you cannot start fishing before 7 am. 

The end time of fishing depends on the month: 

from 1.03 to 1.05 visitors must finish fishing at 18:00, 

from 1.05 to 15.08 at 22:00, 

from 15.08 to 1.10 at 19:00.

Other rules

On the territory of NP Una it is strictly prohibited:

✖ be in the water with a backpack or other type of bag - the fisherman is obliged to leave them on the shore;

✖ to fish from a boat or standing on a bridge;

✖ use live bait and bread.

A park officer has the right to inspect your equipment, backpack, bag, car, etc., in order to make sure that you are not carrying prohibited items or hiding caught fish.

Maps

At the end of the post - two maps of the national park with marked areas for fishing.

However, the maps are old, so the 5th district "Očigrije" is not marked on them and the current first district with a special section on the Unac River is not properly marked. However, they help guide you.