Where to go for a Patagonia Fly Fishing Trip: Chile or Argentina?

Choosing between Chile and Argentina for a fly fishing trip should be fun. Montana Angler can help.

Posted by PStraub

Where to go for a Patagonia Fly Fishing Trip: Chile or Argentina?

When planning a fly fishing trip to Patagonia, visions of grand vistas, uncrowded rivers, and trophy-sized trout flood the brain. Patagonia covers a large swath of Argentina and Chile. With hundreds of places to fish, dozens of world-class lodges, and an ever-increasing ease of logistics, Argentina and Chile fly fishing trips are some of the best in the world.

When deciding where to choose to go fly fishing in Patagonia the choice can seem daunting, but at Montana Angler we’ve explored the Patagonia regions of Chile and Argentina extensively. Fortunately, whether it is your first time planning a trip Patagonia, your fifteenth, or you are considering a hosted trip, if you choose one of the lodges we work with you will likely have a great experience and want to return. So, how do you choose the best place to go fly fishing in Patagonia when an online search brings up so many lodges and regions all claiming to offer the best and the biggest fish?

Here’s some help to discover the places to fish in Chile and Argentina that match the type of successful trip you want to have.

Patagonia fly fishing trips fish some of the most beautiful places to fish for trout in the world.

Argentina

From massive sea run brown trout in Tierra del Fuego to the endless views and oasis-like waters in the Rio Pico and Esquel regions to the spring creeks and estancias around San Martin and even further north, there are many destinations in Argentina. The fishing action in Argentina is often described as Montana in 1950s and 1960s. Argentina resembles Florida in its northern provinces and Alaska in the far south. Argentine Patagonia is famous for classic wild trout rivers and lakes and dramatic scenery. In the far south the world's largest sea run brown can be found in the Rio Grande river system. To the north the impressive golden dorado inhabit ecyosystems that resemble the Florida Everglades.

The regions for fly fishing are rural and a lot of fishing occurs on massive estancias on unpressured private waters. Throw in the opportunity to fly fish for golden dorado in the northern regions or urban dorado in Buenos Aires, and a fly fishing trip to Argentina should be on any angler's radar.

Matching the hatch in Argentina can happen a little more frequently than in neighboring Chile.

Many of Argentina’s fly fishing waters offer up legitimate opportunities for traditional dry fly and hatch-matching situations. The amount of available aquatic insects for trout in Argentina is often more than in Chile’s rivers and streams. Argentina has more reliable hatches than Chile, but not as much overall diversity of fishing than Chile. The landscape is considerably more arid than Chile as the Patagonia region of Argentina lies on the eastern side of the Andes and receives minimal moisture from the Pacific Ocean compared to Chile.

Similar to Chile, the lodges and estancias in Argentina offer amenities ranging from comfortable to luxurious and food and local wine to match any palate. Many lodges are on massive estancias with friendly hosts and local culture—it is common to see gauchos tending herds on a regular basis. The fishing programs at these lodges have been honed for decades to ensure the perfect blend of quality, quantity, and with professional and friendly fly fishing guides.

Chile

Chile stretches from the Atacama desert in the north to the majestic peaks and glaciers in south. Beginning around Puerto Montt the places to go fly fishing in Chile are truly countless. Large rivers like the Baker River, small creeks, glacial-fed lakes, spring-fed lakes, and ocean fjords and their tributaries are all places in Chile that can hold a variety of species available to anglers. It is this variety of fly fishing that make Chile a must-fish destination for a fly fishing trip to Patagonia.

The waters of Chile are home to sea-run brown trout, Pacific and Atlantic salmon, steelhead, and wild brown, rainbow, and brook trout. With so many species available to anglers Chile has something for all abilities and fly fishing situations. Additionally, populations of steelhead and salmon (King and Atlantic) are increasing in certain regions of Chile, making for even more angling variety. On certain rivers in Chile it is possible to catch a brown, rainbow, brook, steelhead, or salmon all in one day of angling. Few places on the planet offer that.

The Cantaria beetle is a popular food choice for trout in Chile. Large dry flies work well for this.

Compared to Argentina, the amount of prolific hatches in Chile is small. However, that means trout in Chile often feed on large attractor flies, big nymphs, and other “big stuff” like mice, beetles, and massive streamers. Smaller-water sight-fishing opportunities exist as well as stalking big fish in lakes and lake inlets and outlets such as those found at Lago Elizalde.

Chilean Patagonia consists of rugged, steep mountains that often feel like they rise directly to the sky from the valley floor. Because the valleys are steep and mountains numerous, many of the rivers and lakes are remote and logistically hard to access. But with Chile’s investment in infrastructure many of the fishing lodges in Chile now have access to previously untouched waters.

The lodges in Chile range from comfortable fishing-centric fish camps to luxury with all amenities. The food is always plentiful and prepared by experienced and professionally trained chefs. Chilean hospitality is known as some of the friendliest in the world so no details go unnoticed when ensuring the food and accommodations match the exceptional fishing opportunities.

Fly fishing in Patagonia in Chile or Argentina can often lead to some big fish.

What Did You Decide? Chile or Argentina?

Fly fishing in Argentina and Chile sound very similar, but just different enough, right? If you are looking for quality fishing on uncrowded rivers and lakes paired with delicious food and world-class fishing-centric lodges then either choice has something for you and is a great choice. If you are still stumped, then give us call or drop us a line and we can further dissect the options with you.

Travel logistics to either country are easy compared to some other global cold-water destinations such as Mongolia. Nearly all flights leave from the United States late at night, so enjoy dinner on the plane, watch a movie, sleep, and wake up in South America. Anglers traveling to Chile land in Santiago and can often catch the domestic connection that same day. When traveling to Argentina most anglers overnight in culturally vibrant Buenos Aires and take in a tango show or add a day of fly fishing for dorado on the Rio Parana.

With a long fishing season in Patagonia—late October through April—a fly fishing trip to Argentina or Chile can check a lot of boxes. With our extensive experience in the region, we can help suggest one of the premier destination fishing lodges or create a custom-itinerary to fit your goals. We can help with everything from choosing the best week of the season, matching your desires and skills to the best location, to fly selection, to helping with travel.

Read some recent trip reports from Chile and Argentina below.