Fly fishing & photography magazine
www.flymage.net
Nยบ 6 April 2011
April is the beginning of trout season in this part of the world and the end in the Southern Cone. Brown trout, wild rainbows and sea trout are the stars of this new issue of Flymage magazine. Check inside for the nearperfect fly imitations by a fly tyer from Leon, a look at the rivers and lakes of Chilean Patagonia, a trip to Navarra to find an indispensable fly pattern, plus our final destination, Tierra del Fuego.
José H. Weigand, angler, photographer and TV fishing editor at Caza y Pesca channel on Digital+. Contributor to some international magazines, blogs and forums.
Antonio Goñi, fishing video producer, photographer and angler. Currently producing fly tying series “Thread corner” at Caza y Pesca channel on Digital+.
Revista de pesca a mosca y fotografía
www.flymage.net
Nº 6 Abril 2011
When we saw Javier Fernandez’s photos, we had no doubt about choosing one for the cover of this issue, dedicated primarily to trout. A rainbow leaping out of the water to catch dragonflies in flight: time to fish or to take pictures?! Contributors: José Manuel Ruíz “Cholo”, Javier Fernández, Xanti Serrano, Leonardo Ramírez, Aurelio Aransai, John Langridge, José Luis García, Juan Urán.
CONTENTS He is one of the most prestigious realistic fly tyers there is. His patterns as never seen before.
4
The essential Chilean Patagonia as seen through the lens of the Spanish photographer Javier Fernández.
30
Tying a dry fly that works in so many situations, the “Ipurdi”
58 Tierra del Fuego, land of sea trout. Chilean guide Leonardo Ramírez tells us about this mythical area for large migratory trout fishing.
72
Cholo´s flies
Union of realism and effectiveness
José Manuel Ruíz, “Cholo”, has become, after more than ten years, one of the Spain’s most realistic fly tyers, well known worldwide His idea was to take to the vise what he saw on the banks of Órbigo river with new techniques that have left their mark. His flies, as well as being realistic, catch fish.
Living in a small village of Leon, on the river Órbigo banks, Cholo could not avoid using one of the best and more accessible materials, feathers from the cockrel of León. This photo shows the layout of the wings in the traditional manner of Leon wet flies.
Combining two materials as different as the cockrel from Leon and painted foam, Cholo creates some really attractive flies such as this one, called “Fan”, a modern Leon wet fly. The bright and mottled Leon cockrel fibers give a “live” effect to this pattern that along with the foam divided body, ostrich herl and eyes, add incredible realism.
Fan
Ecdyonurus
Extended foam body mayflies are a fundamental part of his collection “Virtual flies� created twelve years ago.
Foam is treated and dyed to imitate the colors of some essential flies such as Ecdyonurus, the May Fly or different types of olives.
Ephemera danica
Chironomid hook # 18
Ă“rbigo river trout
Large dry flies like stoneflies or ecdyonurus. Extended foam bodies allow greater buoyancy, while the wings at an angle provide visibility in the waters where the trout moved up quickly for them.
Stonefly
Ecdyonurus
European Hornet (Vespa cabro)
Damsel fly (Agrion splendens)
Ammophila sabulosa
Digger wasp (Sceliphron destillatorium)
Different types of wasps. Details of some of them, like the digger wasp, really close to perfection.
Common wasps in a hive
Terrestrial imitations such as grasshoppers, ants or beetles, are a good option for trout, catfish, carp and black bass.
Red winged ant Blue fly
Flying ants and houseflies that must be carried in the fly box. Sometimes they are the best choice for trout and difficult sea trout.
“Queen� ant
Black chironomid
Shape and color. These four fly patterns stand out because of their silhouettes in the water. In the case of house flies, peacock herl brightness adds realism, the same happens with the position of the wings in flying ants.
Crane fly (Tipula maxima)
Praying mantis (Mantis religiosa)
While there are some patterns that seem more for collectors than to use, as is the case of the mantis, the crane fly is a fly that works not only for trout but with other fish, especially barbel. During the massive crane fly hatches in spring, these imitations are perfect to fool them, float well and are durable.
Marbled White (Melamargia galathea)
Red Admiral (Vanessa atalanta)
Some years ago Cholo patented the artisanal process of these coated foam flies. With his wife, Maribel, he has taken over the whole process of tying flies and supplies, among others, the Spanish and Japanese National teams. In a continuous creative process with new designs in mind, Cholo is one of the best realistic fly tyers worldwide. Recently the American magazines Fly Rod & Reel and Fly Tyer have published two articles about his work.
www.moscasorbigo.com
CHILEAN PATAGONIA Fishing with the camera Photos and text: Javier Fernรกndez del Rivero
I
t´s the eternal dilemma of fisherman who likes photography. In the case of Javier Fernandez, he left his rod to shoot with his camera and get great pictures like this, in which a trout jumps to catch a dragonfly.
One of the many rivers found along the Eleventh Region of Chile.
A great guide: Taylor Earman, who we met while working in Salmo Patagonia Lodge (Aysen), fishing.
In the pictures below on the outskirts of Cerro Castillo, with my good friend Luis Antunez taking pictures with his old Rolleiflex.
From left to right: Waterfall near Cochrane. The famous Torres del Paine. Simpson Valley waterfall. Old pier of Puerto Natales.
Sunset at Estancia El Zorro. The angler and guide deciding the best area of the river.
Essential Patagonian in black and white
Central Lake (Aysen), if I remember correctly. There are so many lakes in the region that is difficult to remember them all, especially when each fishing guide and villager baptizes them at will.
Anyone who has been fishing in Coyhaique, will stand at this spectacular viewpoint near Villa Cerro Castillo, from where you can see the Iba単ez river. On the other side of these mountains are some of my favorite lakes, paradises where you can sight fish on the surface catching 8 or 9 trout in excess of 4 pounds.
Iba単ez River waterfalls, muddy, so it is said, because of the ashes of the Hudson volcano last eruption in 1991. To the right the Perito Moreno glacier and Torres del Paine.
In action. Below, waterfalls and trout. In the central picture, a dragonfly wver a trout in a lake full of flies.
This photo was taken in the waters of Estancia El Zorro (Aysen), next to the lodge in a narrow river, but deep enough to hold big trout.
Luis and I spent many hours teasing trout to make them jump in front of our cameras, as always, from hundreds of pictures only a few are good.
Javier, camera in hand, in Ethiopia and with a fly caught trout at dusk in the Chilean Patagonia.
Javier Fernández del Rivero
I
“ started fly fishing 18 years ago, aged 11 when I inherited my father´s fly tackle. In the last 6 or 7 years the rod has shared fishing days with the camera. Unfortunately the best time to fish coincides with the most favorable time to take pictures, so you’re always left wanting something, in my case I usually take the rod and it is the camera that goes into the backpack. I have spent several months fishing and taking pictures in Aysen and a all sorts of things have happened to me. One day, at dusk, I fished about an hour in a trout feeding frenzy with my friend Luis Antunez. It’s hard to believe, I caught a hundred trout, every cast was a fish, and while releasing the fish, the wind blew the fly off two or three meters and trout were jumping trying to catch the fly. A huge trout over 10 kilos that a resident friend showed me. It took my fly three times, a woolly bugger. ... I do not know if it is more unusual for such a trout to take a fly three times, or myself failing three takes in a row. The excuse, if there can be any, is that I am dry fly fisherman. “
Visit Javier´s website: www.javierf.com
“Ipurdi”
The luck of the ugly... By: Xanti Serrano
It is one of those flies that must be in our fly box. Why? The answer is simple, it catches fish, and a lot of them. In fact its maker is pursued by competition anglers to make them a few “Ipurdis�, a real catcher. Xanti himself won the sea trout contest of Asturias in 2004 using only this fly designed by him. Take note, it is easy to tie.
1
On a barbless curved hook the shank is covered with thread until the end of the curve on the base of the vise jaws.
2
Wrap the seal dubbing more or less to the position marked in the picture.
3
Wrap the natural hare´s dubbing. Already you can see the color contrast and the hairy body.
4
Place the brown hackle, advance it with the thread to fix the post.
5
Fixing the post. The synthetic material can be any Antron type, in yellow or chartreuse green color.
6
Make several hackle turns to give buoyancy to the fly. Hare dubbing is added to finish the fly.
7
The Ipurdi” finished.
Tying Materials Hook: Thread: Tag: Body: Post: Hackle:
2499SP-BL #14 Brown Rust seal fur Natural hare´s ear Antron or similar, green Brown
Xanti Serrano “I have been using this fly for many years. In my experience, it’s good on all type of rivers. It has caught many different species, brown trout, sea trout, rainbow, char and grayling. It’s my favorite for sea trout fishing, in small sizes it is perfect for slow waters. The tag masks the hook, so we take it almost to the end of the curve. This pattern is tied on a curved hook, but I tie it also with a straight shank in other versions. It works very well supporting a nymph or fishing with a tandem. I make some variations of the pattern, instead of a parachute, I use a classical hackle, CDC, instead of hare, squirrel. A very effective alternative is the nymph version with or without bead head. Xanti, as well as a great competition fly fisherman is very keen on photography. Few photographers make the best of a compact camera like he does. As proof, just look at these photos of natural flies shot during his hours in the river.
Ephemera danica (Xanti Serrano)
Cinnamon caddis (Xanti Serrano)
Ephemerella ignita (Xanti Serrano)
ArtĂculos de pesca a mosca/Fly fishing products www.urruzuno.com
Fishing in Victoria Falls Aurelio Aransai, restless traveler, mountaineer and amateur photographer, has sent us these stunning pictures of Victoria Falls, located on the border between Zambia and Zimbabwe. Each day, local fishermen are risking their lives to bring home dinner, while we, lovers of a more comfortably method, ask ourselves in our fishing days: What fly to use?
They are here!
TIERRA DEL FUEGO
Texts: Leonardo Ramírez , Rafael Gonzalez. Photos: Leonardo Ramírez , Rafael Gonzalez Francisco Jorquera
SEA TROUT LAND
The island of Tierra del Fuego is considered the world’s best area for sea trout fishing, migratory brown trout (Salmo trutta trutta). Each year hundreds of anglers from around the world, monopolize the existing lodges on both sides of the border in Chile and Argentina.
River “Untitled “, some places are not even registered, this is a drain of a “beaver dam” and allow the entry of migratory trout in tidal floods.
Patricio de la Jara with an 11Kg. sea trout sight fishing in a small river in Chile.
Probably this sea trout has spawn for third or fourth time. Catch and release fishing lets you fish these large specimens and preserve trout populations.
CristiĂĄn RodrĂguez Oro fishing the river Condor mouth with a nice bass.
Sea bass that inhabit river mouths adopt different habits that those found in the beach, and apart from food waste thrown to the sea, take also insects that live in rivers. Several river fish juveniles are a tempting snack for bass.
Beaver wooded area south of Tierra del Fuego where sea trout can not reach but charr (salvelinus fontinalis) can be found.
English angler, Rio Grande. The arrival of anglers from around the world is very important to the area.
Francisco Jorquera, one of the best known fly fishing instructors in Chile , with a 8.5 Kg. sea trout in the Condor river.
Rafael Gonzalez, owner of Magallanes Fly Fishing Company, operating throughout the island of Tierra del Fuego, with a huge sea trout of around 9 Kg. Rafael is one of the best sea trout specialists with two decades of experience behind him.
Leonardo RamĂrez With 15 years of intensive fly fishing life, Leonardo worked as guide and currently does for pleasure. His favorite species are, without doubt, brown and sea trout. A great expert in many Chilean rivers and collaborator of Magallanes Fly Fishing, Leonardo runs one of the leading fly fishing websites in Chile.
www.pescador.cl
www.pescamosca.com
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