The Palena River in Chile is a burly one, slicing through rugged mountain country and massive vertical rock walls. These walled sections can have both calm, pool type water or growling hydraulics with surges and fast-moving water. No matter the water type, trout are sure to be staged on the wall intercepting food, whether it be insects or small baitfish. Here are a few fly fishing tips that I’ve learned make a big difference in Chile’s incredible fisheries around Rio Palena Lodge and the rest of Patagonia.

1. Fish the Walls with a Two-Technique Approach

Brown trout often hold along these Patagonian large rock walls.

My first fly fishing tip is for one person to fish streamers and the other to fish two nymphs under an indicator in a two-angler raft or drift boat. The nymph rig can be very effective in the up-tempo water because it stays deep. I like to rig two weighted nymphs, one at around four feet below the indicator and the second two feet below the first, both on 3X fluorocarbon. The nymphs can be medium-sized, like a #12 tungsten bead-head Prince Nymph and a #14 tungsten bead-head Pheasant Tail Nymph. If the water is quite turbulent, I’ll add a split shot or two to keep the flies deep.

Two weighted nymph rigs.

We all know that a rig like that is not a joy to cast, so less false casting is best. Just lob it near the wall and work it, with mends and playing out line as the boat drifts. In this water, an 18-inch brown will feel like a six pounder! In the less active water, the streamer will fish well, too. Sometimes, it is possible to row back upstream and fish a wall twice to get another shot at hot sections. At Rio Palena Lodge, we provide all the gear and rig a nymph rod and a streamer rod for each angler so we can make the switch faster.

2. Always Have a White Streamer

My second fly fishing tip for any Patagonia fly fishing experience is to always have a white streamer. I fell in love with white streamers back in the late 1970’s when I was guiding in Alaska. Small salmon fry and 3 to 4-inch salmon smolt were a significant part of the big Bristol Bay rainbow’s diet.

Well, fast forward to modern day Chile and the same techniques work there. Patagonia has salmon, some of which were imported and stocked, and others of which came from damaged net pens in commercial saltwater fish farms. Atlantic salmon, chinook salmon and coho/silver salmon now run many rivers and are an occasional bycatch by trout anglers throwing streamers, or an actual target species.

This small chinook salmon hit a white streamer.

The chinook in some rivers look like the Pacific Northwest salmon from a bygone era—40+ pounds and thick. These migratory fish enter freshwater and swim into trout water, just like in Alaska. Farther up the watershed, their red bodies are on spawning gravel, and the cycle continues. That cycle means eggs, fry, smolt and flesh—more protein for bigger and fatter trout. A small, white streamer around 1.5-inches long will work for the younger salmon and a 3.5-inch white, conehead streamer will work for the smolt. With the smolt, I like a little more flash. On a raft or drift boat float trip, the white streamer should definitely be part of your arsenal.

Another place that can be magical is a river’s entrypoint to a lake. Especially in Chile, big brown trout and rainbow trout patrol these areas looking for migrating baby salmon. I was at such a place recently, where the Futaleufú River enters Yelcho Lake. I saw a big swirl on the surface just off the river mouth drop off. I chucked a long cast into the rings, and my white streamer was hammered immediately by a 31-inch, 12-pound rainbow.

3. Casting Fast-Sinking Sink Tip Fly Lines

My third fly fishing tip for fisheries in Chile is to make the most of casting fast-sinking fly lines. If you think casting sink tip fly lines is sometimes problematic, you should’ve seen them at the beginning. I can remember when they first came out, and the tips were level, un-tapered hat slappers. Once, while casting these new inventions, my steelhead fly whizzed by my face, caught my sunglasses’ earpiece, and promptly launched them into the Deschutes River, never to be seen again. The terms “chuck and duck” and “hinge” originated from these fishy but sometimes painful lines.

All rods, reels, lines, and flies are provided by Eleven Angling.

Today, sink tip fly lines have better technology, like sophisticated tapers, seamless triple-density compensation, and a myriad of other somewhat confusing features. These multisyllable, Scrabble-winning words are great catalog copy, but what really matters is how they cast, sink, and keep you in contact with your fly.

A new sink tip line is a hundred times better than the originals, but they still require some specific casting techniques to be safe and effective. Our traditional dry line and dry fly casting stroke is not crucial. Ten o’clock and two o’clock doesn’t quite cut it. Wet tip lines need a hybrid cast—smooth stops, smooth application of power, open loops at times and modified roll casts to set up a pick up and delivery. Now I know this sounds like a lot of thinking and work, but with fast-sinking tips, everything just needs to slow down a bit. Instead of stripping in your fly and pulling the sinking line, leader and fly out of the water for a back cast, try raising the rod tip and doing a direction-changing roll cast, keeping the line on or near the surface (known as a Snake Roll), followed by a lift and pop for the backcast.

Fast-sinking sink-tip fly lines are made for casting big streamers on big rivers and streams.

Sometimes, using a water load on the back cast is easier and safer than repetitive false casting. A double haul can be very helpful when making longer casts, casting in the wind, or casting large flies. Eleven’s Angling Team will show you how it’s done.

Streamer fishing in Chile can be a sink tip scene. While not a caster’s dream, sink tip lines are functional—they get your fly deep and keep it deep. Think about learning the Snake Roll ‘set-up’ cast and smooth, long-stroke delivery ‘lob’ casts. Not pretty, but big browns are!

4. Be Ready for a Hatch

Constantly being ready for a hatch is a fly fishing tip that cannot be skipped — especially when fly fishing in the Patagonia region. A while back, I was rowing the Rio Palena in a light, warm rain quite close to Eleven Experience’s Rio Palena Lodge. We had been streamer fishing for six hours at this point, and our hands and arms were getting tired. Then, in a large eddy on river right, a couple of nice trout started rising and we noticed a sizable Green Drake hatch. Thanks to Rio Palena Lodge providing a variety of gear for moments like these, we put the 7-weight streamer rods away and pulled out a couple of 5-weight rods.

​​You never know when a mayfly, caddis or stonefly hatch will come on.

Well, I’ve been known to take it to the next level. At this point I had three rods rigged up—my trusty streamer rod, a nymph rod, and a dry fly rod. Sometimes, I’ll have a chinook salmon rod in the tube just in case we come across some chromers. But, most frequently, the quick change is used for a hatch and rising fish. Those trout in the eddy were happy. Sip, sip, sip. The angler in the bow made a nice cast downstream and shook slack. Slurp! In a couple minutes I netted a gorgeous 19-inch brown. Fish caught on a streamer may often be bigger, but fish caught on a dry fly are usually day-makers, and often qualify to be in the running for best fish of the trip.

5. Better Fish Photos

The last fly fishing tip I have for anyone looking to experience a fantastic day on the water is to take your photos on shore. On a Rio Palena Lodge float trip, any day could produce a personal best brown trout, and who doesn’t want a photo of that memorable catch? There are three reasons why I really like to row to shore for a photo:

• First (which is obvious): It’s hard on the fish to net it and bring it into the boat for the picture. Chances are, it may wriggle free and thump on the bottom of the boat. Ouch!
• Second: In-the-boat photos are just not very good. Too much boat and oars and gear and jackets. Plus, you are restricted, and the light may be coming in from the wrong direction.
• Third: Your photo will be a lot nicer if you get to shore, hop out and compose a nice shot. That nice, fat brown trout can be in the net, breathing and resting while the boat drops anchor, and you jump out.

Whether you’re on shore or in the boat be sure to quickly check out the light and the desired background and with two hands, gently raise the trout a few inches up from the net bag. Look at the fish, Click! Then look at the camera, Click! That only takes two seconds, and you will have a photo as worthy as that giant brown trout.

​​Stopping the boat and hopping out makes for better photos and is easier on the fish.

Fly fishing in Patagonia is nothing short of an angler’s paradise. Unpressured water, big fish, and the natural beauty of the terrain make for a truly incredible experience. If you’ve got the itch to head down south (which I highly recommend!), these tips might just make the difference in your day.

By: Brian O’Keefe
Angling Product Manager