Malleo River

Being as technical as perfect, this river offers a thousand and one nuances for fly fishing in North Patagonia Argentina.

Malleo River - Fiy fishing wading trips

One of the most world-renowned North Patagonia Argentina trout waters around San Martin and Junin de los andes area for fly fishing. Much of its reputation is based on its excellent features and general conditions for dry fly fishing, on many occasions our fly fishing guides would put you in front of many sight fly fishing situtions
The Malleo River originates as an effluent of the Tromen Lake, based on the north face of the Lanin Volcano, inside Lanin National Park; it runs through approximately 60 km and flows into the Alumine River.

This mid-sized mountain river has canyons, valleys and banks upholstered by willows, which means there are many different water structures. Deep pools, extensive runs and oxygenated riffles offer shelter to a large and healthy population of Brown Trout and Rainbow Trout. Frequent and predictable hatches of mayflies, caddis and stoneflies make of it, without a doubt, a perfect spot for fly fishing in North Patagonia, around San Martin de los Andes and Junin de los Andes area. 
The river is divided into two sections, where we used to provide our world class fly fishing guide service: the upper and lower sections. In both cases, the fishing is carried out wading.

Upper Malleo

Gradually, more and more Araucaria trees on the sides of the road welcome us to the Upper Malleo Rive area. This part of the river goes mostly through Estancia San Huberto; it has a limited number of public accesses, and there is more control over resources under a strict catch & release policy. 
The Upper Malleo River has rapid water flow due to a steep gradient. Large irregular rocks lining the bottom make wading a bit difficult, and thick riverside vegetation, composed mainly of willows, imposes demands on anglers with each cast. Here fishing may not be simple, but it is certainly worth the challenge; this stretch holds Malleo’s greatest treasures.

Lower Malleo

The lower section of the Malleo River goes through the Painefilu Mapuche Reservation. Here, river flows are softer, the riverside vegetation is not so dense and there is a background of more regular stones, which make casting and wading much simpler. The landscape that serves as a backdrop to this stretch of the river is more arid than in the upper section, populated by large and bizarre rock formations. Access to the various sections of the river is easy as a gravel road skirts it to its mouth in the Alumine River.