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