So far this season we’ve been pretty lucky with the weather and water conditions but for this week summer really kicked in. Not that anyone in the group seemed to mind swapping the harsh winter conditions in Europe for some warm and sunny days in Southern Patagonia.
Two anglers wading in the river
Along with the warmer temperatures, we also saw the river drop a bit making the conditions a little more challenging. Add a couple days with unusual upstream winds and anyone that has visited Las Buitreras knows that this is the time you need to bring your A game. Luckily the group seemed unfaced by the seemingly tough conditions and had a great time figuring out how to fish the pools properly and use the wind to their favor. Before long all guests had fish in the books and were fishing the river really well.
On day three Li hit the jackpot when fishing Upper Limits during magic hour. He was covering the water with a leech when a massive 19 lbs male chromer charged the fly. Everyone who’s fished the pool Limits is aware of just how hard it can be to land a big fish in there. These fish know how to use the weeds on both sides of the channel but Li and guide Franco stayed cool and were eventually able to net a perfectly shaped sea-run brown trout.
On day four Toni followed Li’s example and landed another 19 lbs fish. This one in the pool Old Bridge. This pool always holds a lot of fish but can be tricky to fish. Therefore it was extra rewarding to not only hook a fish there, but to hook and land one of the big guys sitting in the pool. It fell for a small prince nymph version tied by Toni himself. This fish was a new and very well deserved personal best for Toni. Sporting his beloved orange jacket, Toni always keeps the spirits high no matter the conditions and if anyone deserved a stunner like this it was Toni.
Around mid-week the water dropped to 15 cm below zero, requiring even longer leaders and smaller nymphs. Although blue skies, sun, and low wind makes for pleasant days it does not make the fishing any easier. Marco however didn’t seem to be aware of the supposedly tough conditions and kept getting into fish.
Amanda, who after only two seasons at Buitreras has turned into an excellent caster, was fortunate enough to have a new pool named after her. Deep in thought on whether to fish hookless or just tie a few extra wind knots to her leader so that she wouldn’t outfish husband Marco, found a deep hole while crossing the river. After a quick swim with Marco trying to save the rods (priorities) she came back up laughing, drenched in water. Karma made sure that Marco had her fly hooked into his finger when trying to save the rods first and not his wife. Luckily it was not deep and the hook came out without any serious riverbank surgery taking place. The deep hole that everyone passes when wading across the river to reach Kitchen is now officially named Amanda’s pool.
Nothing beats a Sea trout!
Thank you all for this amazing week and for coming back year after year. Although conditions were not always on our side we managed to get good results each day with a lot of fun in between. As we are writing this the river is on its way up again and we are ready for another week at Estancia Las Buitreras.
Tight lines,
Peter
