Patagonia, Argentina
The seven lakes of Ruta 40
Nov - Apr
Patagonia, Argentina
Is this experience right for me?
Fishing challenge
Physical effort
Non-angler friendly
Technique
Fly Fishing
Fish
Brown and rainbow trout
Environment
Freestone creeks and lakes
Ruta 40 runs more than five thousand kilometers down the length of Argentina, from the high plateau of the north to the southern tip of the continent, always within sight of the Andes, and it is one of the great roads of the world. In 1952 two young Argentines rode through this part of Patagonia on a battered Norton motorcycle, stopping in San Martín de los Andes and Bariloche before crossing into Chile, a journey one of them, Ernesto Guevara, would later tell in The Motorcycle Diaries. This itinerary follows the most beautiful stretch of that road, the Ruta de los Siete Lagos, and the three extraordinary fisheries along it: a great glacial lake fished by boat, a legendary river where giant trout are hunted from a wooden rowboat, and a network of clear volcanic creeks fished on foot, one sighted trout at a time. Three waters, three ways of fishing, and a road that has been drawing travelers north for as long as there has been a road to follow.
PART ONE: 3 NIGHTS · 2 FISHING DAYS
Nahuel Huapi
THE GREAT LAKE · SAN CARLOS DE BARILOCHE
Nahuel Huapi is less a lake than a landscape of its own: long arms of deep blue water reaching into the Andes between steep forested walls, with snow peaks above and a coastline that feels closer to the fjords of Norway than to anything else in South America. The journey begins here, with two days on the water by boat, moving between river mouths, rocky points and waterfalls that pour straight into the lake, and fishing for brown and rainbow trout that grow large on its rich waters.
It is a spectacular and unhurried way to settle into Patagonia after a long flight, and the fishing can be done with the fly or with spinning gear, which makes it accessible to anglers of every level and to partners who want to try. Lunch is a barbecue on the shore, with bife de chorizo and local beer on a beach you will most likely have to yourselves.
Accommodation is in a hotel on the shores of the lake, chosen for its views across the water to the mountains, the kind of place where breakfast is taken slowly and the view from the window is the reason the trip exists.
Base camp
San Carlos de Bariloche
Bariloche is the gateway to northern Patagonia, a lakeside town of timber and stone with excellent restaurants and a long chocolate tradition. It sits on the southern shore of Nahuel Huapi, with the lake, the mountains and the start of the Ruta de los Siete Lagos all on its doorstep.
PART TWO: 1 NIGHT · 1 FISHING DAY
The Limay
THE LEGENDARY RIVER · VILLA LA ANGOSTURA
Where Nahuel Huapi drains into the Limay, the river becomes one of the most singular fisheries in the world. Only rowboats are allowed, with no engines, and only fly fishing, and every season large trout leave the lake and run into the river, fish that rival the sea-run trout of Tierra del Fuego in size and strength.
The day starts at dawn with a long drift downstream from the lake in a wooden boat, casting streamers toward the banks as the current carries you, and passing through the Amphitheater, a sweeping bend of the river that is among the most striking places in Patagonia. It is a technique of its own, with strikes that tend to come the moment the fly lands or at the very end of the swing, and fights made harder by the weight of the fish and the pace of the water. Nothing about it is guaranteed, and that is exactly why a fish here is remembered for the rest of a fishing life.
In the evening the road leads along the northern shore of the lake to Villa La Angostura for the night, ready for the drive north.
Base camp
Villa La Angostura
Villa La Angostura is a small village of wooden houses and forest paths on the northern shore of Nahuel Huapi, quieter and more intimate than Bariloche. It is also where the Ruta de los Siete Lagos begins, which makes it the perfect place to spend the night before the road.
PART THREE: 3 NIGHTS · 2 FISHING DAYS
Volcanic Creeks
LANÍN VOLCANO · SAN MARTÍN & JUNÍN DE LOS ANDES
The final leg brings a completely different kind of fishing. Around Junín de los Andes, the town Argentina officially calls its national trout capital, the Chimehuín, the Malleo and the Aluminé run beneath the snow cone of Lanín volcano, rivers that in the middle of the last century drew some of the first American anglers to Patagonia and helped build its reputation.
After days from the boat, this is walk and wade fishing on clear rivers and spring creeks that are small enough to read at a glance and yet hold brown trout of a size most anglers would only expect from big water. Much of it is sight fishing with a light rod and a fine tippet: spotting the fish, studying how it feeds and making one good presentation, which is as demanding as it sounds, with wind and clear water on the side of the trout. For anglers who prefer to cover more water, the larger rivers can also be floated by raft, and from December to February the creeks are warm enough to fish in wading boots and shorts.
Base camp
San Martín de los Andes
San Martín de los Andes sits on the shore of Lago Lácar at the northern end of the Ruta de los Siete Lagos, a lively mountain town of timber houses and good restaurants that makes a comfortable base for the final days. The rivers lie about forty minutes away around Junín de los Andes, the historic heart of fly fishing in the region.
Make it your own
The Tour is designed as a complete journey, but every itinerary can be extended, upgraded, or personalised. The extensions below can be added before, during, or after the core tour.
OPTIONAL PRE-TRIP EXTENSION
Buenos Aires: Golden Dorado
Most international flights to Patagonia pass through Buenos Aires, and one extra night is enough for a full day on the Paraná Delta, less than an hour from the city, hunting golden dorado among the channels and islands of one of the largest river deltas in the world. Aggressive, acrobatic and entirely different from anything in Patagonia, it is a fitting way to begin the trip before the flight south.
1 night · 1 fishing day · Price on request
OPTIONAL INSERT
More time on the water
Anglers who fall for one of the three fisheries can add days where they want them: a second drift on the Limay, more days sight fishing the volcanic creeks, or a float day on the larger rivers around Junín.
Price on request
Includes
✅ 7 nights accommodation
✅ 5 guided fishing days
✅ Premium equipment throughout: rod, reel, lines, flies
✅ Boats and rafts on fishing days
✅ Fishing licenses for all fishing days
✅ Lunch and drinks on the water, every fishing day
✅ Daily breakfast at all accommodations
Not included: flights, [airport transfers and car hire], dinner, travel insurance, anything not listed above.
FAQ
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Price on request
Fly fish Nahuel Huapi, the Limay and the volcanic creeks of San Martín de los Andes on one journey along Ruta 40 and the Route of the Seven Lakes.
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