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Fishing Reports
Chilean Fly fishing
September 14, 2004
Posted by Alex Prior
Coyhaique, 23456 Chile
Email: info@flyfishingcoyhaique.com
Current Report
Chile Fly Fishing Report
Period: April/May
Area: Coyhaique
By Alex Prior Southern
Exposure
Im a full season guide and
outfitter in Southern Chile
and this has been my first
experience fishing during
April and May in these
magical waters.
Im sure most of you are
thinking
Why the first? Well,
because the fishing season
has been extended from the
first Sunday of April to the
first Sunday of May, so now
we can legally fish during
this period, and it was
wonderful.
The Fall is already here.
Days are shorter and mornings
cooler. Lenga trees are
turning red while the
mountain peaks turn white.
Its the most beautiful time
of the year and the rivers
are very small.
Rio Simpson
During the first 2 weeks of
April I dedicated my time to
fishing our home river Rio
Simpson, with my very good
friend Rhonda. We found, (to
our surprise) that the mayfly
hatches were even better than
during February and March.
There were consistently very
long hatches (from 10 AM to 6
PM), with large numbers of
flies drifting down the
current like tiny sail boats,
and fish rising all over.
Due to the incredible amount
of flies (there were at least
3 different sizes of mayflies
like Blue Wing Olives and
March Browns,) it was not
easy to make these fish take
our imitations. Finally we
found that some emerger
patterns worked better than
the usual dries and after
that, we had a great time
catching rainbows and browns
ranging from 15 to 22 inches.
I personally put down a bow
that I believed was at least
a 24, but thats fishing
the elusive big one usually
gives us a lesson. Dont
they?
Misterious Lakes
The third week I went with my
best friend Fidel (aka The
Lawyer) to fish some lakes
in an area north of
Coyhaique, the whereabouts
Id rather keep as a secret.
We took our camping gear,
float tubes and my boat, and
we spent four days fishing a
different lake everyday.
The fishing was outstanding
on all 4 of them, and the
average fish caught was
around 6 pounds. We started
fishing sinking lines and
streamers, but as soon as we
found that these fish where
not so deep, we switched to
floating lines and Chernobyle
Ants and that was something
worth seeing. Even though
you are waiting for it to
happen, when a fish like that
suddenly breaks the still
waters surface to take your
fly, , your heart just about
jumps out your chest from the
big commotion it makes.
Off course I didnt catch the
biggest one, The Lawyer
did. We were fishing, for the
first time, the smallest
lake, more like a pond I
should say. We had already
fished the other 3 before
with great success. We
decided to use the float
tubes instead of the boat and
I went ahead of him. I
thought he made the wrong
decision by following me but
he spotted a gap in the reeds
that I had ignored. It was so
shallow walking through the
reeds, that he had to hold
the float tube up until he
reached a little interior
pond. It was around 60 by 20
feet, and pretty deep.
It took him just one cast to
connect with the monster, and
about 30 minutes lo land it.
It was so big that he was
afraid of releasing it. I
saw it from 50 yards away and
I can say that it was as long
as the float tubes width,
somewhere between 15 and 20
pounds. I caught some 8 to
10 pounders and I also had a
fantastic time, but The
Lawyer took the first prize
away from me in this fishing
tale.
Bahia and Rio Ibanez
The first week of May, Tolin
(one of the best guides in
the area), The Lawyer and
I, headed south toward the
Lago General Carrera which is
the second biggest lake in
South America. More
specifically we went to Bahia
Ibanez, where the big browns
from all around the lake
gather before starting the
short journey up the Ibanez
River to reproduce.
We fished the lake first, not
so far from the river mouth
and it was fun. We landed
some nice fish in the 5 to 8
pound range, but we were
looking for more, so on the
next day we decided to give
the river a try.
The Rio Ibanez was affected
by a volcanic eruption that
happened in 1991 and even
though time has passed, it
still brings a fair amount of
ash with its flow. But its
getting in shape and this was
the first time we were able
to catch fish in it since
1991 and in fact some of them
were pretty nice and up to
24. This is really
encouraging, so we are now
looking forward for an even
better fishing experience in
the Rio Ibanez.
As you can see, I had a great
time fly fishing during last
fall and now I feel ready to
share this experience with
you. Contact us and make your
bookings now.
Alex Prior
Southern Exposure
P.O.Box 573
Coyhaique - Chile
Phone 56 67 234737
Fax 56 67 232500
http://www.flyfishingcoyhaique
.com/
info@flyfishingcoyhaique.com
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