Big Dorado and Pacu on dries in the Bolivian Amazon!
Pluma Lodge Fishing Report
This week at Pluma Lodge we welcomed eight anglers. Tom, who was with us for the second week in a row, led the group that included Steve, Clay, Ethan, Marshall, Travis, Matt, and Tom’s son Michael. Just like the previous week, all these anglers have fished together many times before.
We had five days of beautiful weather, but some rains at the headwaters on the last day made conditions tough.
It was also another good week in terms of quality of fish. These anglers landed seven fish over 20 pounds as well as a few fish in the 15- to 18-pound range. We also got into some good Pacu by sight fishing with streamers.
The upper sections of the system continue to be as good as it gets, with crystal clear and very low water. Travis sight casted to and landed a 20 pounder in the Itirizama River, after a perfectly placed distance cast to a fish he spotted.
Agua Negra Lodge Fishing Report
This past week at Agua Negra, Jim and his hosted group from the Reno Fly Shop joined us. Tony, Howard, Cliff, and Cliff’s wife Gael all had a really good week with us.
The weather was good for almost the whole week with one big rain at the end. We mostly fished tributaries, and we searched for feeding frenzies and sight fishing opportunities. The Agua Negra was really good and gave us many chances to catch big fish. The main river was in very good condition too, and we got into some very big fish there as well.
The biggest fish of the week was caught by Tony, and it was a 24-pound Dorado on the upper Agua Negra.
Secure Lodge Fishing Report
We had an incredible, memorable week of fishing at Secure Lodge. Our six guests (one from England, two from Japan, and three from the U.S.), had phenomenal fishing on the surface, mostly dead drifting. They caught more than 60 Dorado and Yatorana with that technique. Without exception, every angler connected with and landed all sizes of Dorado on dry flies, and the conversations after each day on the river revolved around new questions about strategy, sizes of hooks, patterns, and more.
These anglers were certainly excited to discuss every aspect of what were some amazing days on the water.
Considering the time of the year, the temperatures, and the water conditions, this was also an ideal time to fly fish for pacu. We saw more and larger fish at the surface, making for great sight fishing.
The biggest fish of the week included a 28-pound Dorado, caught on the upper section, and a 15-pound Pacu, hooked in a deep hole with overhanging brush that provided leaves and flowers — a classic black plate spot.
On the last day of fishing, a heavy rain increased water levels, making it off-color, but despite that, the anglers caught a good number of fish.
