achalabrookies

achalabrookies

I am convinced that the salmonids (all of them) are the fish for fly fishing par excellence. They seem to be specially designed to enjoy them in many ways, the environments they inhabit are regularly beautiful, the way you must study to deceive them is very rich and interesting and above all, once you captured them their colors and moles captivate you most of the times.
This remarkable rainbow of the Yuspe River is an example of what I say, is not it?

achalabrookies

Whatever the series of flies that I am tying at a certain moment in my life as a fly tyer (small streamers, classic wets, small dry flies Devaux style, etc, etc…) ,I always take a break and go back to my first love!

In this case:

Hook: Mustad 3906B (16)
Thread: Uni 8/0 white
Tail: Pheasant tail fibers
Abdomen: Same tying thread
Rib: Fine silver wire
Thorax: Hare`s hair dubbing
Wingcase: Pheasant tail fibers

Good! finally I present the first brookies of the season. Bureaucratic problems in the administration of national parks delayed the opening approximately one month and then we had very bad weather with severe storms and constant meteorological alerts. Lately it is difficult to find a “window” of good weather to enjoy fly fishing. I know other colleagues whom I respect a lot who risk more, but it’s not my case.
I visited the small “Achala” as I almost always do at the beginning of the season and I noticed it with much better flow than other seasons. I used small and tempting nymphs with enough success to return home happy.
Thanks to Raquel, my wife, for the photo at the end of the row.

In a bad weather season, I sit on my fly tying bench to tie small streamers with my mind focused on how I will present them to the trout.
This is a classic Black Ghost in TMC 300 # 12, I’m developing some more. I’ll show you soon!

My Medalist 1492 is ready to sound with the first brookies of the season!

This is a “historical” photograph. Corresponds to a series that illustrated the final written work of the “Proyecto Fontinalis de Achala”, a development of coordinated actions in order to know more about the Fontinalis in Pampa de Achala and in which I had the honor of participating. Basically, we tried to obtain general environmental records and study of scales in specimens of these brookies captured for that purpose throughout a year with monthly departures to different streams of the Achala region. The conclusions of this work were requested opportunely by authorities of the Quebrada del Condorito National Park who in turn informed us of their own aquatic resource management projects of their jurisdiction. The Achala Fontinalis Project was the first known serious attempt to obtain accurate information on a salmonid population introduced, established and acclimated in the province of Córdoba (Argentina).
While I share this with you, I’m still waiting for the season to officially open in “El Condorito”.

Note: This photo is my own and was used in other publications without mentioning it.

A few years ago, my dear friend Carlos Tam gave me a Pflueger Medalist 1492 AK fly reel. “It is for you, he said, looks very nice on bamboo cane fly rods, you must to make some few adjustments and repair but it will look very good”. Now Carlos is no longer physically with us, but his memory is permanent every time I visit the rivers we share while fishing. These past days, I decided to recover this reel and return it to a decent life. I entrusted a turner known for his good work to make a new outer ring in better aluminum. The one that came from the factory is of poor quality (remember that this model was particularly made in Hong Kong) and had some small marks of friction and shock. Also I am trying to improve the click and pawl system with which it is originally provided. I hope to honor with many hours of good fishing of brook trout to this modest classic, imagining, in passing, Carlos’s accomplice smile!

Finally the opening day of the season arrived, with my son Franco and our friend Gerardo we decided to choose the Yuspe river and its beautiful rainbow trout as a target. Great fishing day full of new and enriching experiences. It is good to know that although this river is quite close to the city of Villa Carlos Paz, one of the most touristic in the mountains of Córdoba, it can still provide good fishing. I show you some photos here:

I received an invitation by mail from “Federico Prato Fly Shop” to attend the “Sage Tour 2018”, a presentation of last generation products that included mainly new models of rods, reels and lines for fly fishing.
Although today I am far from the use of this type of equipment (I am addicted to bamboo and fiberglass fly rods), I thought it would be very interesting to try the “latest fashion cry” and attended the event with a couple of friends this past Saturday.
It was very nice to meet again with friends that I had not seen for a long time, and especially with Federico who gave us a great service and generously provided us with a lot of information about the new world of fly casting.
Federico is the son of Gustavo Prato, an extraordinary bamboo fly rods builder with whom I shared a certain friendship and many unforgettable “philosophical” conversations about the wonderful world of “arundinaria amabilis tonkin cane” and also the art of fly fishing in general.
In this blog there is a post that I have dedicated to him a while back.
Thanks Federico for allowing us to test these modern and very effective equipment!
Here some photos of the event.