Amazing Argentina - H&B Hosted Trip 2012

Expectations were high for our annual Argentine sea trout extravaganza this year - but even we never expected the size of fish our team landed. Here are the first pictures of some of the most incredible sea trout you'll ever see.

Paul Lalwan's 26.5lb monster sea trout. Look at that smile!

Paul Lalwan gets star billing with not one but two sea trout topping 26lbs. Yes, that's correct, two over 26lbs in  a 24-hour period. I still don't think he knows what hit him! It was an amazing achievement for Paul who had never picked up a double-handed rod before last October. He worked really hard with almost weekly Spey casting lessons with Bob and plenty of practice over the winter - and boy, did it all pay off. There's proof that it really is worth putting in the practice with an H&B instructor before the big trip.

Richard was back yet again for more big sea trout

The Rio Grande in Tierra Del Fuego was very low having had no rain for weeks, but our team were in the right place at Villa Maria on the lower part of the river, as hundreds of fish were held up in the pools down at the bottom end of the river. The big leeches were left for last light and our rods did well with small rubberleg nymphs on floating and intermediate lines with light tips. Even so, the pools were easily spooked and we had to cast and wade with care.

David's first H&B trip to Argentina

We were delighted to be joined by some old friends. Richard Williams was back for his fourth H&B Argentine sea trout adventure - and kicked us off in style with a 19lb fish within just a few casts of the warm-up session. David Ecclestone was after the Rio Grande sea trout for the first time after H&B trips to British Columbia, the Bahamas and Cuba - and he got some crackers.

Heart-stopping battles in low water conditions 

With the staggering average size of the fish we landed this year - following on from the exploratory trip Bob and I did last year when we hooked some colossal fish - we are now convinced that the biggest sea trout enter the river later in the year and tend to remain lower down the river. That makes our Villa Maria weeks in March prime time for the biggest fish, in our opinion. Given the low water, we didn't catch quite the numbers of fish we might have expected - five rods landed 51 sea trout and lost a bunch more. But among them were no less than seven fish over 20lb, and the average size was incredible at almost 13lb. Paul Lalwan alone landed 8 fish with an average size of 18lb. That is mind-blowing sea trout fishing. 

Keith with a beautifully spotted, fresh sea trout

The rest of the team was made up of Keith and Rock, a great pair of anglers who fish regularly together and were making the trip of a lifetime. It certainly lived up to its billing and Rock was particularly successful with a couple of twenties and an ability to keep hooking fish throughout the week.

Many of the fish came at last light

Fishing through last light into the Patagonian darkness was especially exciting and produced many of the fish for the team. This was the time to switch to the big leeches and hope for that big thump somewhere out in the blackness, feel the rod hoop over and wonder just what was on the other end. If you've never done it, I can assure you it is one of the most exciting moments in all of fly fishing.

Just another 26lb sea trout for Paul!

Of course, Paul had to crown the week with his second 26lb fish on the last day. It's no wonder he and the great guide Pablo were both in tears! As ever at Villa Maria, the guides were superb, with their intimate knowledge of the river and the care they show in returning every fish. The food and hospitality were as lavish as we have come to expect and the Patagonian scenery never fails to take your breath away. It's no wonder we'll be back next year.

In fact, given the demand for this fabulous trip, we are planning to host two weeks on the Rio Grande next year. Some of this year's team have already booked their places and the rods are going quickly so get in touch with Jim or Bob as soon as you can if you are interested in joining us next year to swing flies over the biggest sea trout on the planet. Details on our hosted trips page and check out our trip reports for more more details of the Villa Maria experience.

 - Jim

AAPGAI Spring Meeting

What a great spring meeting for the Association of Advanced Professional Game Angling Instructors at the Trout Hotel and the Cumbrian Derwent in Cockermouth. I think the performance of the candidates taking the AAPGAI assessments (and we all know how tough they are) shone as brightly as the sun did all weekend.

Neil Barcock demonstrates salmon techniques on the Derwent

There was an unprecedented pass rate of 83 per cent - 10 out of the 12 assessments were successful. That shows just how much preparation candidates are now putting in for the AAPGAI instructor qualifications - and it is paying off.
I was delighted to be part of the team assessing candidates in all three disciplines - trout, salmon and fly dressing. It was great to see Frank Moors complete his Advanced Fly Dressing qualification - and in doing so become the first full member of AAPGAI to enter through the fly dressing route. A big moment for AAPGAI and I'm sure more fly dressers will follow him.

Gary Champion's demonstrations always silence the crowd

Jim and I assessed together along with Illtyd Griffiths on Saturday and we were particularly pleased to be able to pass Nick Taylor in his provisional salmon assessment - the first rung on the instructor ladder. Nick's come a long way since Jim and I first met him down on the Rio Grande in Argentina last year and we're delighted he's now joined us in AAPGAI.
Tiggy Pettifer passed her Advanced Salmon assessment in style while Alexandr Chernysh flew in from Russia to become AAPGAI's second Russian member.
The weekend was completed with a day of excellent demonstrations from top instructors and a chance for one-to-one casting with AAPGAI members.
For more details of AAPGAI qualifications or qualified instructors, visit the AAPGAI website and for a full account of the AAPGAI assessments and open day visit the AAPGAI blog.

- Bob

On the Eden

Just squeezed in a great morning on the lower Eden in Cumbria, trying for a spring salmon with our good friend and fellow AAPGAI instructor Glyn Freeman. Glyn had kindly invited me up to fish one of his beats ahead of the AAPGAI assessment meeting in nearby Cockermouth this weekend.

Bob concentrating hard on a cracking lower Eden pool

We had a stunning spring day and the Eden, though a little low, was looking beautiful. This is one of my absolute favourite English rivers and made me look forward very much to our special one-day trout course on the Eden with Glyn in May.
I had a strong pull on a Spring Boyo fly - the Illtyd Griffiths pattern that Glyn has popularised through his success with it on this river - but after a brief roll on the surface, the fish was gone. Almost my first spring salmon of the year!
We fished through until the effects of the high tide pushed back the current and then, right on cue, a strong hatch of brook duns emerged, enticing some trout to feed on the surface. After a quick coffee, we switched to the trout rod and managed a few cracking wild trout on dry flies - a taste of what is to come on our course in May.
Glyn is also a brilliant H&B trip host, so the flying visit gave me the chance to talk through plans for some international trips we have in mind. Keep an eye on our hosted trips page for news of what Glyn is up to. And if you get the chance of a day on the Eden this year, I can strongly recommend it. And no one knows the river better than Glyn. Contact him at Cumbria Fly Fishing.
Now on to the serious business of assessing aspiring instructors and the AAPGAI meeting...

- Bob

The Salmon Rod Test

Check out Jim's exhaustive test of the best 14-foot salmon rods on the market now in the April edition of Trout & Salmon magazine.
Jim and fellow AAPGAI Master instructor Gary Champion put no less than fourteen 14-footers through their paces with a whole range of different lines - and they came up with some surprises.
The second generation MacKenzie DTX was as good as expected (the original is one of our favourites), bit in the lower price brackets the Guideline Exceed, Grey's XF2 S and the Enigma EMG3 all won the approval of the testers.
But what was most surprising was the improvements that Hardy has made to its salmon rods (we detect the influence of Ian Gordon, Hardy's consultant, master speycaster and AAPGAI instructor). Jim said the Hardy Marksman 2 was so easy to use it "felt like a 10ft trout rod" while the Hardy Zenith (albeit at £949!) had astonishing power.
Fourteen footers are increasingly popular as they are more user-friendly than the traditional 15-footers and we find we are advising our clients to kit themselves out with 14's much more often now.
Check out the review if you're in the market for a new salmon rod - you won;t find a more thorough test of the leading contenders anywhere.
- Bob

Iceland Salmon Fishing Special Offers

We're very excited about Iceland this year, after last year produced such great runs of salmon. And even more exciting is the fact that we have secured exclusive slots on some of Iceland's best rivers at excellent special offer prices.

A fresh fish for Bob from the legendary Sela

Starting from less than £500 a day we have available slots on the famed Hofsa and Big Laxa rivers as well as the small, exclusive private lodge on the crystal-clear Flojtaa river, among others. These slots usually are not easily available, but we have a variety of three-, four- and six-day slots from the end of June right through to September.

The offers are available for single rods or small groups fishing together. It is also possible to share a rod with a friend.

Prices vary according to river and time of year, but these are the best Iceland deals we have ever found. The slots are sure to go fast, so get in touch quickly if you want to experience some of the best light-tackle salmon fishing on the planet.

Email  Bob Sherwood or give us a call on 07831 688849 to discuss the special offers for Iceland this summer.

And you could soon be fishing in scenery like this:

The breathtaking Big Laxa