Historic Lodge & Productive Rights For Salmon Fishing On The Tengs River

The Lodge “Elverhøi” in Egersund has a long, fascinating and well-documented history. It owns extensive and valuable fishing rights in one of Norway’s best salmon rivers. Built as a salmon lodge, salmon fishing has been in the heart of all its owners and the essence of the property is the extensive and valuable fishing rights, which will be transferred to its new owners. The buildings on the property are charming and full of character and have been regularly maintained by the current owner. 

Salmon fishing is a recurring theme throughout the lodge, both in the décor and the practical amenities that have been installed in and around the buildings. The main house was built in 1888 and the annexe, formerly called “Pellystallen”, was built at the same time. The separate sauna was built in 1955. The property reflects its history and the intention has been to preserve its unique character through the various upgrades that have been made over the years.

The main house at “Elverhøi” comprises two storeys as well as some basement space and a low attic accessed by a fixed staircase. The ground floor of the building features two living rooms, a well-equipped kitchen and a bedroom, in addition to a hall and separate WC. Access to an extensive covered, south-facing veranda. The first floor features a hallway, five good sized bedrooms, all with double/full size beds, two bathrooms; one with shower, the other with bathtub/shower. The attic and basement contain storage rooms. The basement space has been fitted out for cleaning fish and storing equipment.

The annexe (“Pellystallen”) is situated by the entrance to the property and comprises an openplan kitchen/lounge and a bedroom. Outdoor toilet.

The Sauna Separate building with anteroom, shower room and spacious sauna.

A large number of majestic oak trees lend their distinctive character to the property. The grounds extend to almost 2 acres (7,964 sq m). The grounds offer a driveway up to the buildings, with parking space near the entrance. The garden is informally laid out with lawns and flowering shrubs, as well as uncultivated deciduous woods. There are some beautiful Rhododendron that bloom as if on cue at the beginning of the fishing season.

The fishing rights lie in the Tengselven river and the Fotlandsvannet lake, which form the lower reaches of the Bjerkreim watercourse in the municipality of Egersund. The Bjerkreim watercourse is considered one of Norway’s better salmon rivers, and currently produces fine catches. Since 2007, the watercourse has been given special protection as a national salmon river, and receives liming grants from the government. In return, the general public must be allowed to fish the river. As a result, fishing licences are sold to the public every Wednesday and Thursday during the fishing season.

The Tengs og Fotlandsvannet Fiskeeierlag also belongs to the organisation Norske Lakseelver, which works actively for the protection of wild salmon in Norway. Fishing in the Tengselven river takes place on both banks, from the sea up to the Fotlandsvannet lake, a stretch of 1,200m on the river’s western bank and 1,500m of it’s eastern bank. There are many fine pools on both banks, the most famous of which is the spectacular Spinnerihølen, named after the old spinning mill that once overlooked the pool. Other well-known pools are Bolten, Underforsberget, Raudeknatten, Lurehølen, Vannmåleren, Fiolinsteinen, Littlehølen, Fosshølen, Hølen under brua, Osen, Jernhølen, Svarthølen, Point Barrow, Kilingstone (closest to the house), Livingstone, Grøsfjeldbryggen, Soge, Trekanten, Thorleifshålå, Fossberget, Svarthølen and Steinhølen. In addition, there are long stretches of good fishing in the lower reaches, both above and below the bridge where the main road crosses the river.

The volume of salmon fished from the Tengselven and the Fotlandsvannet lake in the past three years (2014-2016) has totalled 3,419 kg, 3,622 kg and 2,624 kg respectively. In 2016, fish counters were installed in both salmon leaps at the Fotlandsfossen waterfall, where approximately 10,000 fish made their way up into the Fotlandsvannet lake and on into the Bjerkreim watercourse. The fishing rights cover a total of 1,136 roddays: 890 in the Tengselven river and 246 in the Fotlandsvannet lake. The watercourse is divided into various co-owned fishing rights associations, which cover the company’s rights in the Tengselven river and the Fotlandsvannet lake. For further details, see the attached fishing rights report.

“Elverhøi” has a well-documented and fascinating history from the time the property was purchased by Leonard Pelly (one of the so-called “salmon lords”) in 1887. Leonard Pelly (1856–1913) started coming to fish in the Tengselven river in the mid-1880s. He always arrived for the season in his steam yacht, and brought his own housemaids with him from England. In 1887, he bought Elverhøi, which became his base. Pelly was interested primarily in the fishing rights, and undertook several other property transactions in the neighbourhood with the aim of securing the best fishing rights in the watercourse. While Pelly was at Elverhøi he kept a relatively large household and hosted many house parties, with guests coming not only from England, but also from the local Egersund area.

Tengselven is being made available as a private sale.  If you would like more details please get in touch and we will put you in touch with the Norwegian representatives for the owner.