We spent our next 2 days in Argentina fly fishing the Rio Malalco with SET Fly Fishing, another river in Lanin National Park. This was a very different river than the previous two, as we continued our fish hunting experience. The river flowed through a narrow and steep canyon and walking the trail was more difficult than previous fishing days. Casting was a challenge as well with all the trees and brush close to the water.
Notice how crystal clear the water is in the image below? Dancingtrout is doing her best to place her fly in the shade under overhanging brush. Our day was full of challenges with water like this.
But our guides were able to locate several nice fish along the edges in deep water. The only problem was they weren’t interested in our flies.
Birdy found a spot for me to approach this fish and pointed to a different rising trout to try first.
I slowly worked upstream and tried to coax the fish they spotted along the shore to eat one of my flies.
I cast my arm off attempting to raise the fish or hope it would eat the dropper. It was moving around and Gonzalo was my spotter on the far bank. When I put a cast over the fish, it just wasn’t interested.
Speaking of our guides, here is Birdy showing Gonzalo his knot prowess.
We walked, tried to spot fish, and walked some more. Finally, we ended up where the river narrows and deepens.
This is what we found on the upper end of the pool below the fast-moving water. I love shadows!
Several trout were actively feeding and I cast my dry/dropper into the current. It wasn’t long before I hooked up on my first Rainbow. Yes, it took the perdigon dropper.
And a second…
These fish fought hard in the current.
To say this was a great spot is an understatement. I was able to hook 8 and land 6 strong fighting Rainbows!
On the way back to the truck, it was Dancingtrout’s turn. We stopped and she carefully waded on the slick rocks and cast to the faster moving water.
And hooked a nice Rainbow with her dropper.
We still marvel how beautiful these fish are and how strong of a fight they put up.
It was another hot day and we decided to stop and head to our “glamping” location for a late lunch and shade. Each tent had two comfortable cots with bedding. They even brought an extra sleeping bag for each of us as the temperatures were forecast of below freezing that evening! Dinner and breakfast were in this outdoor kitchen/dining room.
While at camp, I found a Mayfly on a tree.
We shared an asado with a family from Buenos Aires that evening.
Fishing isn’t the only activity where we spent the night. Horseback riding is an option as well.
Our second day on the river found us farther downstream. It wasn’t long before Dancingtrout hooked up on a nice fish, but it popped off after putting up a great fight with several jumps.
We fished good looking water throughout the day, but the fish didn’t want to play.
I did have a small fish or two rise to my beetle.
Another challenging day came to an end as the air temperatures were in the 90s and we decided to head back to Casa de Campo for a cold beer.
There’s always tomorrow!
Enjoy…go fish!
