Some weeks you just know are going to be good and therefore when I received my first report of the week, from Charles de Gaulle airport no less, with a picture showing 3 Scotsmen cuddled around a bottle of Champagne it was always going to be interesting, regardless of the river conditions.
As it turned out the river kept rising until Wednesday, (+25 cm on the gauge), followed by dark ‘Tea’ coloured water so conditions were close to perfect. As with salmon fishing rising water is not the most productive and it was not until Wednesday when the conditions were spot on as the river began to drop.During the early part of the week the fish took advantage of the rise in water and a lot of fish moved through the 40 km stretch of river at Buiteras. By Wednesday the fish were all well distributed and this was when the team really started to have a field day.
Our Danish Veteran, Per Frier, on his 4th trip, caught 6 to his own rod and lost an equal number. Lost fish were typical of this week and the overall figures do not represent the quantities of opportunities had and missed. It was also about Wednesday when the Scottish contingent decided that pursuing the 150 bottles of wine in a week record was an unrealistic aim and consequently the long days on the river became a lot shorter. Despite hangovers in abundance, eye problems, sore arms and trucks getting stuck in the mud, the group really fought hard for their fish. Different techniques for playing fish were tried and adjusted. Innes approach of ‘tying’ big Sea-Trout to rocks, after much practice, was abandoned although the pool Molino has been temporarily renamed “Innes’ Rock”.
On Thursday Per Frier had the chance of landing the biggest fish ever caught in our history. He hooked a monster Trout in “Little Corner” and after 20 minutes the fish had only moved 2-3 meters up and down stream. Loro tried throwing rocks and wading close to it to no avail and in the end Per put line, hook and faith to the test as he increased pressure, shifting the fish a couple of meters before the hook was returned to owner. Never in our 4 years on the river have we either heard or seen anything like this, even though we have landed fish up to 27lbs. It is always difficult to guess the size of a lost fish, but just looking at Per’s face afterwards told you this fish was huge. Solace was sought in a glass of wine, (or 3), when he came back from the river.
The leaves are falling and the nights are getting longer and colder now. The river temperature has been between 6 and 10 degrees which meant a change in technique from the smaller flies and light tackle used during warmer climes. We are now into heavier rods and bigger flies in brighter colours, on some days even using a sinking leader on an intermediate line. If there was any doubt that conditions were not so favourable for the next week guide Juan Carlos fished for a while on Saturday catching 5 fish including the biggest of the year at 23lbs!
Gallegos Tips & Techniques
Since the river varies enormously over our beats the techniques required must also be adapted. Sometimes 45 degrees downstream, other times 90 degrees with a couple of mends. Equally so with the choice of flies and the one fly suits all is rarely appropriate. The guides as always are the source of continuity and knowledge and there advice should always be counted on. One thing that is certain is that the fly must have some movement so stripping is always required. Consequently fly lines with long bellies are not a good choice if you want to avoid some Herculean false casting in strong winds.
No. of rods: 4
Avg. weight: 8,09 lbs
Top rod: Per Frier (15)
Biggest fish: 16½ lb Innes Wright
Water temp: 5-10 degrees
Water level: +20-+10
