No
discussion about Patagonia fly
fishing would be complete
without flies. Our Futaleufu
hatches are not the epic blizzards of Salmon
and stone flies found on Western rivers or
the Green Drake hatches of the classic Eastern
rivers. Most of the fly fishing surface activity
that you will see on Patagonia rivers in Chile
and Argentina is limited to sporadic caddis
and stonefly hatches.
Surface
activity on Patagonia lakes is limited to
damsel and dragonflies - but when it's on,
it's great. Pods of large trout can often
be seen cruising shallow weed beds looking
for hovering dragonflies.
In
general though, much of our fly fishing in Patagonia on
the Futaleufu river is done subsurface with
big, weighed streamers and nymphs. With that
said, here's our must have list for Chile fly fishing,
in order of our guide's preference. Note that
some shots are stock Orvis
photos and some are from our bench - which
explains why some look better than others.
Patagonia Fly Fishing: Fly Patterns
Little
Rainbow Trout – sizes
4 & 6:
We tie our fly fishing streamers hook up,
and heavily weight them. This allows us to
fish deep and saves our hook points. Bring
lots and lots of subsurface fly patterns – because if you are not hanging up on the bottom,
you are not fishing deep enough.
Wooly
Headed Sculpin – sizes
4, 6 & 8: We like
the Wooly headed variety because it’s
pretty. Black, olive and molted varieties
are good picks for Patagonia fly fishing waters.
Traditional
Muddler – sizes
6 & 8: We like
the traditional Muddler pattern for fly fishing in Chile because it does lots of things well.
Clousers
and Deceivers – sizes
4 – 10: Bring ‘em if you got’em. Any color combos
that aren’t the color of bubblegum work
for best for fly fishing Chile's Futaleufu river.
Wooly
Buggers – sizes
6, 8 & 10: Like
the Muddler, the Wooly Bugger is a Jack of
all Trades for Chile and Argentina fly fishing, but Master of None
(JOATMAN). Bring black, medium brown and olive.
Make sure that they have some weight. For Fly fishing in Argentina these can be lighter.
Assortment
of Wulffs – sizes
8 & 10: Big hairy
flies do wonders when fly fishing Patagonia's out- pocket
water on sunny days. Bring an assortment of
patterns.
Adams'
– sizes 10 –
14: Because no fly
fishing tackle box is complete without them.
We like the parachute variety for visibility.
Big,
Ugly foam Ants & Beetles – Sizes
big and BIGGER:
We have a great terrestrial fly fishing
season down here in Patagonia. A big, ugly
foam Beetle plopped against a deep bank wakes
our trout up.
Hoppers
– see Big, Ugly
Ants & Beetles.
Damsley
Fly and Dragonfly Patterns:
We are still searching for the perfect fly
pattern that is easy to throw and won’t
twist a leader. See what your local fly fishing
shop recommends and bring extra for us. Blues
and greens work well in Chile.
All of these photos were supplied courtesy
of Orvis Fly Fishing and
can be purchased at www.orvis.com.
Other Fly Fishing in Chile options include: Fly Fishing in Chile at the Isla Monita Lodge, Chile Fly Fishing from the CondorNest Ranch, Patagonia Fly Fishing Lodge - Multisport Vacation, Argentina Fly Fishing in Los Alerces, Chile Fly Fishing Lodge Instruction. All of our programs adhere to our Catch & Release Guidelines for Fly Fishing in Chile.
Downloadable
pdf Brochure Chile
Fly Fishing
