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A short hop from Rio Gallegos to Rio Grande that took less than hour brought me into one of the most revered river systems in the world and probably the most revered system from a sea-trout perspective. I was greeted by the lodge owners at the airport and also got to catch-up with some of the guides from the other lodges, including Pelle from Kau-Tapen (and the Ponoi) and Fernando from Kau-Tapen (and Tsimane, Bolivia).
Airport transfers are usually a huge social affair and it is amazing how many familiar faces you see, even from the client perspective. I bumped into a client that I last saw in the Seychelles literally a year before, which was great. These meetings and greetings really make the excitement of the week intensify, especially if the river had been fishing well, which, thankfully, it had! I heard reports of the monstrous fish Alejandro at Villa Maria (and Tsimane, Bolivia) caught that very day, a fish of 33.5lbs! If that doesn’t get you excited then nothing will.
After everyone got through baggage control safely we were escorted to the jeeps and so the journey begins. A quick stop was called for at the fantastic fly-shop in Rio Grande, where all manner of temptations await. Fly boxes replenished the journey began in earnest.
It’s about an hour and a half to the Argentine border. From there you have the Argentine passport control and then the Chilean passport control. The Argentina passport control proved to be interesting as one of the guards was obviously having a bad day and decided to delay us at the border for over an hour for no apparent reason. Great! However, after that it was very plain sailing and we were at the lodge in another 20 minutes or so.
I have fished extensively on the Chilean side, but this was the first time for me staying at TDF-Lodge, which is run by the past manager at Cameron and Mark Kniprath, and experienced lodge manager and owner from Alaska who decided to make the island home for him and his family. The lodge is perched on a hill overlooking the rio Rasmussen, a tributary of the Rio Grande, and lago Carabinero with the beautiful mountain range in the distance, which is quite a spectacular view to wake up to every morning.
Single rooms are given as standard for Frontiers’ clients at no extra charge, and the rooms are very comfortable and perfectly habitable. A log burner is in your reception room, where waders are hung etc. before entering another room where the bedrooms are located. Everything is built out of timber, which blends in well with the surrounding environment, which is never a bad thing.
What I love about the Chilean side is the options available to you. It really is a case of location, location, location. From the lodge you can head South to the rio Azopardo, which is a river system that I find hugely exciting, holding at least 5 different species. You can head just out from the lodge for huge brown-trout in lago Carabinero, slightly further out to lagos deseado and despeciado, slightly more inland to lago blanco and lago curo, or further north to the Rio Grande.
Indeed, you can then travel further East and you will come across the rio Condor, which I have yet to fish but will do over the course of the next week or so without doubt. As you can see, more than enough options, but more importantly enough contingencies when one fishery is out of order. For example, if the rio Grande is in spate then no problem, you can go to the rio Azopardo which is always clear as it runs out of a lake system, rather than being ‘rain-fed’. Indeed, at times it can be difficult to decide where to fish first! And it is almost impossible to fish all the waters over the course of the week. The added beauty is that there are no competing lodges covering all these waters, which means you largely have the run of the place.
The arrival afternoon is now a fishing afternoon at TDF-Lodge, which is great to work off a long trip, get rid of some casting cobwebs and get an inkling of what to expect over the course of the adventure ahead.
There wasn’t a breath of wind, no clouds, bright sun and 25 degree sunshine! Hardly what one has come to expect on TDF! Also, not the best for the fishing either really. However, the Rio Grande itself was running at a perfect level following some water that arrived a week or so before.
The evening session was unproductive, but immensely pleasurable. The sunset over the mountain range was spectacular, and I found myself just gazing at the sky rather than fishing, which is a rarity for me I can assure you!
Day 3-5
Rio Grande, Catalina, Rasmussen, Azopardo, Blanco, Condor through to Lago Curo, Carabinero, Deseado, Despreseado, Fagnano, Blanco. What am I jabbering on about? Well, these are the options available for you to fish from TDF-Lodge during your stay, certainly more than you could ever fish over a week’s stay. However, having contingencies is the key with any great product, and
TDF-Lodge has these in bucket loads.
If the Rio Grande is down to its bones and fishing tough then you just go and fish another system, or you go and fish one of the lakes then return to the river in the evening in time for the evening session. Perfect.
Fortunately this week the river has been fishing well, and the level is as perfect as you are likely to find it. Combine that with the full moon a few days ago and you have the perfect blueprint for a run of fish, which certainly came to fruition with every member of the party striking into a few fish. Several fish in the 6-8kg mark (13-17lbs) have been landed including some reaching that magical 20lbs mark. A mixture of vry fresh fish have been landed along with the usual earlier run fish, which you either love or hate. The Americans tend to love them, as they closely resemble brown-trout, reverting to their original colourations, whereas the Brits tend to prefer the bright silver specimens. Each to their own I guess.
The river level has been perfect. However, the conditions have been far from perfect. Bright sunny days with little or no wind, hardly what one has come to expect when visiting Tierra Del Fuego! However, the fish were still active in these conditions, with some members of the party scoring well right on the midday sun.
Some of us decided to mix things up a little whereas some decided to stick it out on the Grande, each to their own and that’s the beauty here at TDF-Lodge, you can do exactly that. Lago Curo was explored, which is a new one for me. We scored well with some decent brown-trout, most of which seemed to be in the 20-25 inch range, along with some rainbow-trout, but these were not as attractive as the browns.
Rio Blanco was explored on a couple of occasions. This is a beautiful, crystal clear river, and a sizeable river at that. It is one of the most significant tributaries for the Grande, and is certainly bigger than the likes of the Menendez, if that helps portray the size. It flows out of Lago Blanco, which is a colossal lake located in the heart of Tierra Del Fuego. The lake itself has massive flats areas, where you can literally target brown and rainbow trout as if they were bonefish! Very peculiar, but fantastic fun. One thing to note, which really surprised me, is the presence of the king salmon! I have heard of a couple of fish being taken over the years from the Argentine lodges, but nothing to really note. It would seem that the Rio Blanco is where they have decided to call home! We walked along a short length one day and soon enough I spotted one colossal fish. Upon closer inspection I then saw another 6 fish resting up in a deep channel. A couple of these leviathans were certainly 40lbs+, and would be quite something on a fly rod. With 2 Alaskan guides and the lodge manager, Mark Kniprath, being a long serving Alaskan guide I am sure they could be targeted in earnest. What these fish mean for the future of the Rio Grande I am not sure, as their numbers will increase dramatically. The problem being that they will spawn much earlier than the sea-trout, which is fine, but then the young will also develop earlier than the sea-trout, which may make the sea-trout their future fodder!
For the time being, however, the Rio Grande seems to be in perfect shape. Indeed, I have never seen so many small brown-trout, which lunge at your offering at every opportunity. The river is alive with them, along with fish of differing generations, which is great to see. As always, some fantastic brown-trout have also been landed in the river, many providing fantastic sport and many
getting anglers’ hopes up that they have hooked a sizeable sea-trout.
It has been uncharacteristically warm for this time of year, but finally this broke by the afternoon of the 5th day when the area unleashed a modicum of its wrath just to show us what it can do, especially to those that had perhaps been lured into the thinking that the sun always shines in TDF. However, on a cloudless day you really do want this wind and the fishing can be tough without it, so bring on the winds!! I’m sure that I will get off by the guides for writing that, as I have been told off for taunting the weather and summoning its wrath! A bit like bringing a banana onto a saltwater fishing boat, by all accounts...
Day 6
The final day of the trip at TDF-Lodge proved to be rather uneventful as we all set off to the river. The pressure was plummeting as we could see a huge cold front slowly building mass upriver, which eventually arrived and delivered its fury later in the day, just in time to show everyone how you really can get four seasons in a day here in TDF.
A couple of fish were landed, but most of the takers were coming short, which is the usual form when conditions such as these prevail, sadly. However, spirits weren’t dampened and all bar none had an enjoyable week, having some memorable experienced and vistas to return to the UK with.
The lodge had prepared a special show for our final evening, along with a banquet of TDF-Lodge raised lamb, which was exquisite. Indeed, the food throughout the week has been fantastic, including the TDF-Lodge raised beef that we had at a lunchtime barbecue and as fillet steaks one evening. A slideshow of the week was compiled by the lodge guides and played to us after supper, which was a great finale to what has been a truly fantastic experience, with some of the images, be they of the scenery, wildlife, or the fish (and a sleeping Welshman! I’ll get you back Phillips!) optimising this. On viewing the images it actually surprised me what had been caught throughout the week on the Rio Grande, especially when it is taken into consideration that time wasn’t spent solely on the river.
And so the trip draws to a close for another year, sadly. It has been great fun and these experiences never fail to amaze and captivate me, as hopefully these little reports have helped portray. I am staying on for another two days to hopefully explore the Azopardo river, which I look forward to reporting on further.
Airport transfers are usually a huge social affair and it is amazing how many familiar faces you see, even from the client perspective. I bumped into a client that I last saw in the Seychelles literally a year before, which was great. These meetings and greetings really make the excitement of the week intensify, especially if the river had been fishing well, which, thankfully, it had! I heard reports of the monstrous fish Alejandro at Villa Maria (and Tsimane, Bolivia) caught that very day, a fish of 33.5lbs! If that doesn’t get you excited then nothing will.
After everyone got through baggage control safely we were escorted to the jeeps and so the journey begins. A quick stop was called for at the fantastic fly-shop in Rio Grande, where all manner of temptations await. Fly boxes replenished the journey began in earnest.
It’s about an hour and a half to the Argentine border. From there you have the Argentine passport control and then the Chilean passport control. The Argentina passport control proved to be interesting as one of the guards was obviously having a bad day and decided to delay us at the border for over an hour for no apparent reason. Great! However, after that it was very plain sailing and we were at the lodge in another 20 minutes or so.
I have fished extensively on the Chilean side, but this was the first time for me staying at TDF-Lodge, which is run by the past manager at Cameron and Mark Kniprath, and experienced lodge manager and owner from Alaska who decided to make the island home for him and his family. The lodge is perched on a hill overlooking the rio Rasmussen, a tributary of the Rio Grande, and lago Carabinero with the beautiful mountain range in the distance, which is quite a spectacular view to wake up to every morning.
Single rooms are given as standard for Frontiers’ clients at no extra charge, and the rooms are very comfortable and perfectly habitable. A log burner is in your reception room, where waders are hung etc. before entering another room where the bedrooms are located. Everything is built out of timber, which blends in well with the surrounding environment, which is never a bad thing.
What I love about the Chilean side is the options available to you. It really is a case of location, location, location. From the lodge you can head South to the rio Azopardo, which is a river system that I find hugely exciting, holding at least 5 different species. You can head just out from the lodge for huge brown-trout in lago Carabinero, slightly further out to lagos deseado and despeciado, slightly more inland to lago blanco and lago curo, or further north to the Rio Grande.
Indeed, you can then travel further East and you will come across the rio Condor, which I have yet to fish but will do over the course of the next week or so without doubt. As you can see, more than enough options, but more importantly enough contingencies when one fishery is out of order. For example, if the rio Grande is in spate then no problem, you can go to the rio Azopardo which is always clear as it runs out of a lake system, rather than being ‘rain-fed’. Indeed, at times it can be difficult to decide where to fish first! And it is almost impossible to fish all the waters over the course of the week. The added beauty is that there are no competing lodges covering all these waters, which means you largely have the run of the place.
The arrival afternoon is now a fishing afternoon at TDF-Lodge, which is great to work off a long trip, get rid of some casting cobwebs and get an inkling of what to expect over the course of the adventure ahead.
There wasn’t a breath of wind, no clouds, bright sun and 25 degree sunshine! Hardly what one has come to expect on TDF! Also, not the best for the fishing either really. However, the Rio Grande itself was running at a perfect level following some water that arrived a week or so before.
The evening session was unproductive, but immensely pleasurable. The sunset over the mountain range was spectacular, and I found myself just gazing at the sky rather than fishing, which is a rarity for me I can assure you!
Day 3-5
Rio Grande, Catalina, Rasmussen, Azopardo, Blanco, Condor through to Lago Curo, Carabinero, Deseado, Despreseado, Fagnano, Blanco. What am I jabbering on about? Well, these are the options available for you to fish from TDF-Lodge during your stay, certainly more than you could ever fish over a week’s stay. However, having contingencies is the key with any great product, and
TDF-Lodge has these in bucket loads.
If the Rio Grande is down to its bones and fishing tough then you just go and fish another system, or you go and fish one of the lakes then return to the river in the evening in time for the evening session. Perfect.
Fortunately this week the river has been fishing well, and the level is as perfect as you are likely to find it. Combine that with the full moon a few days ago and you have the perfect blueprint for a run of fish, which certainly came to fruition with every member of the party striking into a few fish. Several fish in the 6-8kg mark (13-17lbs) have been landed including some reaching that magical 20lbs mark. A mixture of vry fresh fish have been landed along with the usual earlier run fish, which you either love or hate. The Americans tend to love them, as they closely resemble brown-trout, reverting to their original colourations, whereas the Brits tend to prefer the bright silver specimens. Each to their own I guess.
The river level has been perfect. However, the conditions have been far from perfect. Bright sunny days with little or no wind, hardly what one has come to expect when visiting Tierra Del Fuego! However, the fish were still active in these conditions, with some members of the party scoring well right on the midday sun.
Some of us decided to mix things up a little whereas some decided to stick it out on the Grande, each to their own and that’s the beauty here at TDF-Lodge, you can do exactly that. Lago Curo was explored, which is a new one for me. We scored well with some decent brown-trout, most of which seemed to be in the 20-25 inch range, along with some rainbow-trout, but these were not as attractive as the browns.
Rio Blanco was explored on a couple of occasions. This is a beautiful, crystal clear river, and a sizeable river at that. It is one of the most significant tributaries for the Grande, and is certainly bigger than the likes of the Menendez, if that helps portray the size. It flows out of Lago Blanco, which is a colossal lake located in the heart of Tierra Del Fuego. The lake itself has massive flats areas, where you can literally target brown and rainbow trout as if they were bonefish! Very peculiar, but fantastic fun. One thing to note, which really surprised me, is the presence of the king salmon! I have heard of a couple of fish being taken over the years from the Argentine lodges, but nothing to really note. It would seem that the Rio Blanco is where they have decided to call home! We walked along a short length one day and soon enough I spotted one colossal fish. Upon closer inspection I then saw another 6 fish resting up in a deep channel. A couple of these leviathans were certainly 40lbs+, and would be quite something on a fly rod. With 2 Alaskan guides and the lodge manager, Mark Kniprath, being a long serving Alaskan guide I am sure they could be targeted in earnest. What these fish mean for the future of the Rio Grande I am not sure, as their numbers will increase dramatically. The problem being that they will spawn much earlier than the sea-trout, which is fine, but then the young will also develop earlier than the sea-trout, which may make the sea-trout their future fodder!
For the time being, however, the Rio Grande seems to be in perfect shape. Indeed, I have never seen so many small brown-trout, which lunge at your offering at every opportunity. The river is alive with them, along with fish of differing generations, which is great to see. As always, some fantastic brown-trout have also been landed in the river, many providing fantastic sport and many
getting anglers’ hopes up that they have hooked a sizeable sea-trout.
It has been uncharacteristically warm for this time of year, but finally this broke by the afternoon of the 5th day when the area unleashed a modicum of its wrath just to show us what it can do, especially to those that had perhaps been lured into the thinking that the sun always shines in TDF. However, on a cloudless day you really do want this wind and the fishing can be tough without it, so bring on the winds!! I’m sure that I will get off by the guides for writing that, as I have been told off for taunting the weather and summoning its wrath! A bit like bringing a banana onto a saltwater fishing boat, by all accounts...
Day 6
The final day of the trip at TDF-Lodge proved to be rather uneventful as we all set off to the river. The pressure was plummeting as we could see a huge cold front slowly building mass upriver, which eventually arrived and delivered its fury later in the day, just in time to show everyone how you really can get four seasons in a day here in TDF.
A couple of fish were landed, but most of the takers were coming short, which is the usual form when conditions such as these prevail, sadly. However, spirits weren’t dampened and all bar none had an enjoyable week, having some memorable experienced and vistas to return to the UK with.
The lodge had prepared a special show for our final evening, along with a banquet of TDF-Lodge raised lamb, which was exquisite. Indeed, the food throughout the week has been fantastic, including the TDF-Lodge raised beef that we had at a lunchtime barbecue and as fillet steaks one evening. A slideshow of the week was compiled by the lodge guides and played to us after supper, which was a great finale to what has been a truly fantastic experience, with some of the images, be they of the scenery, wildlife, or the fish (and a sleeping Welshman! I’ll get you back Phillips!) optimising this. On viewing the images it actually surprised me what had been caught throughout the week on the Rio Grande, especially when it is taken into consideration that time wasn’t spent solely on the river.
And so the trip draws to a close for another year, sadly. It has been great fun and these experiences never fail to amaze and captivate me, as hopefully these little reports have helped portray. I am staying on for another two days to hopefully explore the Azopardo river, which I look forward to reporting on further.