How trout got to Argentine Patagonia, which ones you will catch, how they are fished and the rules you fish under.
Argentine Patagonia is known for wild trout in clear rivers and lakes along the eastern side of the Andes. This guide covers how the trout got here, which ones you will catch, how they are fished and the rules you fish under. It is written from our lodge on the Carrileufú River near Cholila, where we fish for trout every week of the season.
Planning a trout fishing trip to Patagonia?
Tell us the month you have in mind and how many anglers, and we will send the open weeks and a sample itinerary.
Are trout native to Patagonia?
No. There were no trout in Patagonia until the early 1900s. The first shipment of salmonid eggs reached Lake Nahuel Huapi from the United States on March 4, 1904, under an Argentine government program. It carried about 102,000 brook trout eggs, 53,000 lake trout eggs, 50,000 landlocked salmon eggs and a million whitefish eggs. The whitefish never took.
Rainbow trout were introduced in the same early years, between 1904 and 1910. Brown trout arrived later, brought in from Chile around 1930. Over the following decades the rivers draining the Andes filled with wild, self-sustaining trout. In our valley nothing is stocked, and the trout you catch are wild fish.
Patagonia has native fish too, such as the Patagonian perch, and inside national parks every native fish caught must be released.
The trout you will catch
Brown trout are the fish most people picture when they think of Patagonia. They hold close to the banks and on structure such as sunken logs and weed beds, and in lake-fed systems some of them live in the lakes and run up into the rivers in autumn.
Rainbow trout are the most numerous fish in our system, and they rise to dry flies through the summer in the big eddies and seams where they hold.
Brook trout live where the water runs coldest: spring creeks, tributary mouths and lake outlets.
Landlocked salmon, part of that first egg shipment in 1904, live in the lakes and the water that connects them, in much lower numbers than the trout.
In the waters around Cholila, our head guide Diego puts the average brown or rainbow at 16 to 17 inches (41 to 43 cm), with occasional fish above 22 inches (56 cm), mostly browns. Those numbers describe our water only. Our post on the trout of the Carrileufú River has the full local picture, fish by fish.
How trout are fished in Patagonia
Most guided trout fishing here mixes floating and wading. Some days you drift a river in a boat, covering the banks and structure; others you get out and wade a run properly.
The water is clear enough that much of the fishing is sight fishing, so approach and presentation matter more than distance. Over a season the fishing moves from nymphs, to dry flies and hoppers along the banks in summer, to streamers for bigger fish in autumn. Our Patagonia fly fishing gear list covers what to bring.
Lake-fed rivers, like the ones we fish, run steadier in flow and temperature because the lakes buffer them, which keeps the fishing steady across the season.
Rules: permits, season and catch-and-release
Every angler needs a fishing permit, guided or not. Neuquén, Río Negro, Chubut and the national parks share one regulation and one permit, and visitors can buy short-term or full-season permits. Under it, the general season opens on November 1 and runs to around the start of May on most rivers and streams, and fish caught in rivers and streams are released unless a water is listed as an exception. Some lakes and stretches have their own dates and rules. Santa Cruz and Tierra del Fuego issue their own permits.
On our home water, the Carrileufú is fly-only, catch-and-release water, and from March 1 every brook trout caught in the rivers and streams here must be released. Our guide to the Argentina fishing license explains how permits work for visitors.
Where to fish for trout in Argentine Patagonia
Trout water runs along the eastern side of the Andes from northern Neuquén down to Tierra del Fuego, and each region fishes differently: lake-fed rivers in the forest, rivers out on the steppe, big lakes and spring creeks. Our guide to the rivers of Argentine Patagonia goes region by region from north to south.
Our own water is in Chubut, at the north entrance of Los Alerces National Park: the Carrileufú, which runs past the lodge, the Río Rivadavia, the Río Arrayanes and the lakes that connect them.
Fishing for trout with us
A week at La Pilarica is 6 nights and 5 days on the water, from November to April, with one guide for every two anglers and never more than ten rods at the lodge. Over the week we fish the Carrileufú, the Río Rivadavia, the Río Arrayanes and the lakes around them, with a day on a spring creek or on Laguna Larga if you are after a big brown. Your room, every meal, Argentine wine, guided fishing and transfers from Esquel are included, and so are the fishing license and national park entry fees.
If you are weighing a lodge week against fishing on your own, our post on fly fishing Patagonia without a guide compares the two.
Are trout native to Patagonia?+
No. The first salmonid eggs arrived from the United States in 1904, rainbow trout were introduced between 1904 and 1910, and brown trout came from Chile around 1930. Today's trout are wild and self-sustaining.
How big are the trout in Patagonia?+
It depends on the river. Around Cholila, the average brown or rainbow is 16 to 17 inches (41 to 43 cm), with occasional fish above 22 inches (56 cm), mostly browns.
When is trout season in Patagonia?+
In Neuquén, Río Negro, Chubut and the national parks, the general season opens on November 1 and runs to around the start of May on most rivers and streams. Some waters have their own dates. Our weeks run from November to April.
Do I need a fishing license to fish for trout in Argentina?+
Yes. Every angler needs a permit, guided or not. If you fish with us, the license and national park entry fees are included in the week.
Is trout fishing in Patagonia catch-and-release?+
In Neuquén, Río Negro, Chubut and the national parks, fish caught in rivers and streams must be released unless a specific water is listed as an exception, so check the rules for each river and lake. Our home river, the Carrileufú, is fly-only, catch-and-release water.
Fish for wild trout with us
Tell us when you would like to come and how many anglers. We reply within one business day with the open weeks, pricing and a sample itinerary.