Fishing in Los Alerces National Park

Los Alerces National Park sits in the Andes of northern Patagonia, along Argentina's border with Chile, in Chubut Province. The interior is largely roadless, which keeps pressure low and the water clear.

A chain of interconnected lakes feeds short, cold rivers through ancient alerce forest — the kind of landscape where the fishing and the place are inseparable. The main lakes — Lago Futalaufquen, Lago Rivadavia, and Lago Menéndez — anchor the system.

Futalaufquen and Lago Rivadavia allow up to 2 salmonids per day under current park rules. The rivers connecting them are where the fly fishing concentrates.

The Río Rivadavia is fly-only with mandatory release, and floating it requires prior registration with park rangers. The Río Arrayanes runs under similar rules — fly or spinning with fly, mandatory release, no motors.

Both are short, clear-water stretches between lakes, the kind of water where you can read every seam. Brown trout are the primary target, with rainbow and brook trout also present.

Laguna Larga, right at the edge of the park near Le Fario Lodge, holds browns that average 18–19 inches with trophy fish pushing past 25.

The fish run deep and the wind is a constant factor; sink-tip lines and heavy streamers are the practical choice for most of the season.

The Río Frey is another water in the system, along with smaller arroyos — Arroyo Huemul, Arroyo Calihuel — that feed the lakes. The season runs November 1 to May 1, with some park lakes staying open longer.

Early season favors dry fly fishing; the back half of the season — April especially — is when anglers throw streamers for fall browns. Patagonia's afternoon wind is a real variable, not a footnote.

Fishing here requires either the APN (Administración de Parques Nacionales) permit or the Patagonian Regulation permit issued by Chubut or the other Patagonian provinces, plus the park's own annex for the current season. Felt-soled boots are prohibited.

Lead-weighted lines and anchors are banned on the rivers. At the southern entrance, declaring and disinfecting gear is mandatory — a biosecurity measure worth taking seriously in a system this intact.

Check current rules directly with the park before you go; the specifics matter here more than most places. The park was established in 1937 to protect the alerce forests, and that conservation mandate shapes how the fishing is managed.

The rules are specific and enforced. That's exactly why the water is worth the trip.