This past week we welcomed return guests from Iceland, Switzerland, USA, and the UK. The whole crew boasted plenty of experience on the Rio Grande, which helped us succeed day-to-day.
Early in the week rain in the lower stretches and the headwaters gave us our first real bump—by about two to three inches—in a long time. The river thankfully remained clear and the fishing didn’t suffer. In fact we had some fantastic outings! On our best day, we landed 44 fish and 33 of them were caught during the evening session. Wind, on the other hand, was very strong and steady through the whole week, peaking at 50 miles/hr (+75km/H).
Again, a variety of flies were successful without a clear overall winner. But smaller nymphs and Green Machines were the preference of both fish and fishermen. Skagit lines with short, heavy sinking-tips were the best options with 10- to 12-pound leaders.
All in all, it was another good week. Let’s hope the favorable conditions prevail as we continue into mid-February.
Largest fish of the week: 24 pounds
Fish over 20 pounds: 9
Fish over 15 pounds: 27
Alejandro Martello
Villa Maria Lodge Fishing Manager
