Trophy browns in Spain

[hollisd]

Brand spanking new to the forum fresh off fishing the Gallatin twice a day in Montana for 10 days. My brother has a place in Big Sky and my river time was so enlightening that I came back with a Simms trucker hat emblazoned with Montana's state flag!

Since returning to Barcelona, I've been scouring the net for info on a 9' 5 wt G Loomis NRX LP (where did that $450 sale go btw) plus the best reel pairing (click or drag) for balance and swing weight. But my first post is about fly fishing in Spain: I hear there are trophy browns in the Segre and Ter rivers near the Pyrenees and Girona respectively. I'm planning to fish my local waters, the Tordera and Major streams in Montseny, although I wish I had a 3 wt rod.

Anyone know much about fly fishing in Spain? I've also heard good things about the Noguera Pallaresa and Llobregat rivers.

Regarding licenses I'm unclear as far as a 5-year recreational fishing license by region costs around €80 but you also need a permit for controlled areas. Supposedly you need a day license for the exact spot of river you plan to fish on a given day which sounds like a pita especially if you have to bid for one far in advance. I'm not sure how well angling licenses are enforced and/or what role catch and release plays as far as leeway but the Spanish are sticklers for rules when they obey them so I'm keen to learn more.

 

[dennyk]

Hi hollisd, Welcome to the forum! I can't comment on anything in that neck of the woods but am sure some here can give you some insight. Hope you enjoy things here at NAFFF!

:welcome:

Denny

 

[hollisd]

Hi hollisd, Welcome to the forum! I can't comment on anything in that neck of the woods but am sure some here can give you some insight. Hope you enjoy things here at NAFFF!

Thanks Denny! Tar Heel hoops fan here sorry about Chris Weber's TO circa '93 but that was my first NCAAT ;-) and if any college bball coach was a fly fisher Dean Smith certainly met the credentials.

 

[gfiad]

Brand spanking new to the forum fresh off fishing the Gallatin twice a day in Montana for 10 days. My brother has a place in Big Sky and my river time was so enlightening that I came back with a Simms trucker hat emblazoned with Montana's state flag!

Since returning to Barcelona, I've been scouring the net for info on a 9' 5 wt G Loomis NRX LP (where did that $450 sale go btw) plus the best reel pairing (click or drag) for balance and swing weight. But my first post is about fly fishing in Spain: I hear there are trophy browns in the Segre and Ter rivers near the Pyrenees and Girona respectively. I'm planning to fish my local waters, the Tordera and Major streams in Montseny, although I wish I had a 3 wt rod.

Anyone know much about fly fishing in Spain? I've also heard good things about the Noguera Pallaresa and Llobregat rivers.

Regarding licenses I'm unclear as far as a 5-year recreational fishing license by region costs around €80 but you also need a permit for controlled areas. Supposedly you need a day license for the exact spot of river you plan to fish on a given day which sounds like a pita especially if you have to bid for one far in advance. I'm not sure how well angling licenses are enforced and/or what role catch and release plays as far as leeway but the Spanish are sticklers for rules when they obey them so I'm keen to learn more.

Welcome to the forum. Very interested in hearing about your experiences in the Spanish Pyrenees and the surrounding areas.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[spm]

Welcome to the forum, hollisd. I look forward to reading about your fishing experiences.

steve

 

[dillon]

Welcome to the forum. A 3wt seems light for trophy sized browns. I don't go less than a 4 for large trout. Not enough mass in a 3wt. For good line control, imo. However if fishing very small streams a 3 would be okay. I would swing streamers with a Spey rod for them if they are sea runs in a fairly large river. Good luck

 

[hollisd]

Welcome to the forum. A 3wt seems light for trophy sized browns. I don't go less than a 4 for large trout. Not enough mass in a 3wt. For good line control, imo. However if fishing very small streams a 3 would be okay. I would swing streamers with a Spey rod for them if they are sea runs in a fairly large river. Good luck

The 3 wt is for a local mountain stream full of wild browns. I've never fished anything other than a 9' 5 wt so figured I would skip 4 wt if I ever added a lighter rig although the right 4 could be a best of both worlds I'm sure.

 

[hollisd]

This part of the Ter was teeming with trophy browns: weed beds provide refuge and tippet mayhem plus lots of boulders and deep pools. I saw 6-7 leviathans feeding towards the right under trees (not pictured) throughout this straight. Downstream just out of frame are ripply rapids with productive fishing but large browns prefer this habitat. Upstream was another fast water section with 50-60 cm browns feeding in quiet water like this at the head of rapids. These large brown trout aren't aggressive but rather carefully study the slow current providing a conveyor belt of food. These alpha fish cruise low to use less energy but hit the surface especially in the evening.

 

[boisker]

I don’t know a great deal regards Spain and flyfishing other than it is heavily policed with really severe fines- 5,000 or 10,0000 € from memory and the rights to confiscate all your fishing tackle.

I’d get in touch with a local guide and ask for some info.... if you are living over there I am sure they would assist without having to book a days guiding.

 

[hollisd]

I don’t know a great deal regards Spain and flyfishing other than it is heavily policed with really severe fines- 5,000 or 10,0000 € from memory and the rights to confiscate all your fishing tackle.

You're required to have a recreational fishing license from the region you're fishing so for example I have a 4-year Catalan license for catch & release for trout that cost €81. Then if you're fishing a controlled part of a river you're supposed to have a day license for that area which is about €5; there are non-controlled areas that are open to fishing all year. I just went for my first time and didn't buy the day license because it wasn't crystal clear exactly where I was fishing. So I figured I would play dumb because it genuinely was a little confusing to a first timer but I didn't have any issues for both days and this was a heavily fished area known for outstanding trout.

 

[boisker]

Like anything... you take a punt and see what happens
I’d only heard of the risk as someone I know had all his gear confiscated, but ‘they’ opted not to apply a financial penalty as he was on holiday from the UK for 10 days... he still wasn’t overly happy as he lost £400 rod and reel

 

[hollisd]

@boisker was your mate fishing drunk in Lloret de Mar? No chance anything remotely like this happening to a fly angler in Spain.

 

[Ard]

Hi Hollisd,

I'm late here but wanted to say what a beautiful picture you posted and welcome to the forum

Ard

 

[boisker]

@boisker was your mate fishing drunk in Lloret de Mar? No chance anything remotely like this happening to a fly angler in Spain.

next time I see him I’ll ask where he was... definitely not drunk... he’s not the type. It would have been high (ish) up in the mountains...

interesting you say it would never happen, following being told about the confiscation I spent some time looking into requirements / licences and although I found it tricky to find decent info i did find a site that covered the rivers/lakes in the Spanish Pyrenees which also referred to fines and confiscation if caught without the right licences. Perhaps it relates purely to these sort of protected areas as it appeared to be a very short season.

Like I posted originally I make no claim as to how likely this would be, but the legislation is certainly there for significant fines and confiscation in some areas of Spain... no idea how widespread though.

It did convince me to ensure I picked up the right licence if I ever went to Spain

 

[kevind62]

You might want to hit up jpbfly. He fishes several areas on that side of the big pond. He may be able to provide some better insight.

 

[kevind62]

Places to go fly fishing for wild trout in the Pyrenees, Spain - Fishing in Spain, France and Portugal

 

[hollisd]

Thanks Kevin. I've emailed the guide in the link above, Carles. He lives just a few kilometers away from Barcelona in Sabadell.

I'm not sure if @jpbfly is him or someone else but if he reads this give me a shout definitely

hollisduncan AT gmail

 

[mcnerney]

Hollisd

JP (aka jpbfly) lives in southern France, but he has fished in Spain a few times. Send him a pm, he hasn't been on the forum very much lately, he is recovering from an operation.

Also try contacting Ben who lives in Spain, here is a trip report he posted while back.
https://www.theflyfishingforum.com/...pain-footsepts-hemingway.html?highlight=spain

Welcome to the forum!

 

[Curmudgeon]

Hollisd,

I fished northern Spain (mostly Aragon) several years back. There's some fantastic fly fishing in the area. Getting the general licenses isn't too difficult, but getting the day ticket to fish specific beats can be hard if you don't know where to go (they are often sold in a village bar...) And I think you do want to be careful about having every license required. A friend of mine was very recently fishing on a river and was approached by a game official who asked to see his license. My friend pulled out his (I think) Catalunya license and the official told him the river was the border with (I think) Aragon, so he had to have an Aragon license. My friend told me that he seemed deeply disappointed when he pulled out an Aragon license.

When I was there, I fished with a local guide, Ivan Tarin, who runs an operation called Salvelinus. I would highly recommend talking to him and booking a few days of fishing in areas that interest you. I think it would save you a lot of time and effort.

Anyway, congrats on being in a fantastic area for fishing. I intend to get back there to fish again within the next year or two.

 

[hollisd]

Hollisd,

I fished northern Spain (mostly Aragon) several years back. There's some fantastic fly fishing in the area. Getting the general licenses isn't too difficult, but getting the day ticket to fish specific beats can be hard if you don't know where to go (they are often sold in a village bar...) And I think you do want to be careful about having every license required. A friend of mine was very recently fishing on a river and was approached by a game official who asked to see his license. My friend pulled out his (I think) Catalunya license and the official told him the river was the border with (I think) Aragon, so he had to have an Aragon license. My friend told me that he seemed deeply disappointed when he pulled out an Aragon license.

When I was there, I fished with a local guide, Ivan Tarin, who runs an operation called Salvelinus. I would highly recommend talking to him and booking a few days of fishing in areas that interest you. I think it would save you a lot of time and effort.

Anyway, congrats on being in a fantastic area for fishing. I intend to get back there to fish again within the next year or two.

Curmudgeon where are you in Africa?

I spent 10 weeks in Mauritania in the Peace Corps after college and still have a piece of my heart there.

Re: licenses the day licenses are tricky especially when you want to explore. I might try my luck playing dumb but wouldn't recommend that to non-residents but the whole river system seems over-regulated because the majority are not law-abiding catch & release types and they want to err on healthy rivers. But I'm learning as I go and struggle to research in Spanish but it's not too difficult.

When I ride my bike I've got to figure out how to purchase a license for each region. I hope that will be easy and not too expensive as I may only be in a region for a couple of days. I may try to write a federation and see if they can be lenient and give me some type of special written exemption or something for I want to be loose and not feel constrained to anything beforehand.

I've heard of Salvelinus I may ask Ivan for some river recommendations for my trip. Cheers and all best on that beautiful continent. How's the fly fishing in Africa btw?!