A Pictorial Journey - Green Lagunas Of Patagonia

The windswept beauty of Patagonia has a special lure of its own. Throw in the opportunity to catch a monster, wild rainbow trout, and you have the makings of an exceptional fly fishing venue. So says JONATHAN BOULTON

- Jonathan Boulton

The diversity of trout fishing in Patagonia is staggering. From the famed adult dragon- and damselfly hatches of the middle Patagonian Lake District, the gnarly browns of the lower Limay River below Bariloche, the silver sea-run browns of the Rio Grande and Rio Gallegos, to Lago Strobel (or Jurassic Lake as it’s been nicknamed) where the world’s largest rainbow trout patrol the margins.

My good friend owns the largest estancia on Jurassic Lake and also leases the neighbouring estancia, together boasting a mind-boggling 35km-plus of shore frontage, as well as 14km of the main feeder river, the Barrancoso. Another extremely appealing aspect of his magnificent property is the small Moro Creek, which feeds a number of linked lagunas (15 to be exact) that sequentially fill with snow melt via the creek. We fish the Moro in any number of ways, pitching weighted rubber-legged Buggers up against the little undercut banks and into the eddies, or, my favourite, swinging a large hopper or small mouse downstream to witness epic bow waves as a 4lb trout skates across a pool narrow enough to jump across.

UNIQUENESS OF THE LAGUNAS