Patagonia Flies ~ An Argentina Fly Fishing Resource

Basic equipment for fly fishing the Rio Grande from my humble point of view. If fishing single handed fly rods (only recommended for very low wind to calm days) a #8  9’ to 10 ft would do the job. Casting distances are not big, but the fish are! I recommend single handed for easy days because when I fish with single handed rods on windy days, the good cast + accuracy ratio falls dramatically behind the easy casting of double handed rods. For double handed friends,  a rod between 12 ft #8 to 14ft #9-10 is enough for most of the situations. I found rods from 15ft and above, uncomfortable to hold in windy conditions and an overkill from the power point of view. Best is if you have a light double handed like 11’6” to 12’6”  #7-8 rigged with a floating or with light sink tip for nymphing or skating a nice green machine and a 13 to 14 ft  #9-10 for heavier stuff, windier situations or for delivering a heafty leech at dusk for the most thrilling fishing in Rio Grande. Lines? Lots of options, but the Rio Windcutter with its VersiTip version is a real workhorse. For high water conditions, a shooting system seems more suitable. Be ready to use 550 grains (or more!) sinking heads if waters turns murky after a heavy rain. Reels? Nothing special, just one big enough to hold the bulk of a double handed line. Tippet choice is very important for some. I think a clear winner among most of the  guides is Maxima Ultragreen. Extremely good for that kind of fishing. Carry from 8 to 15 pounds. Best those 220yards spools…Flies? Aside from the classical rio grande nymphs and rubber legs patterns, there are 2 flies I would add. First a big and nice streamer for fishing the magic hour. Leeches and Sunray Shadow-style tubes and among my best. Very difficult that I don’t start or end with one of those. Atlantic Salmon patterns like the classic Blue Charm to the more modern and exotic patterns like the icelandic Snaelda works well according the water conditions. If you have them, give them a try in the proper places. If you want to have fun, try to skate a fly on the surface! Warning! Not every pool is suitable for that, but your guide will let you know. Smaller Green Machine (#10 or so) or a riffle hitch tube (1 inch or so) gave me very happy memories. Bigger flies skated may move more fish to the surface but the fish seems to just follow or hit the fly. If you have been in that situation, try a smaller fly the next time. Clothing? The usual for cold weather. Heres a beautiful photo of the author Alejandro Martello with a monster sea run brown, he was a guide in Tierra del Fuego on the Rio Grande for many years and also Iceland.