Lago Llanquihue is one of South America's most iconic fishing destinations, sitting in the heart of Chile's Los Lagos Region — a landscape of volcanic peaks, dense temperate rainforest, and glacier-fed waters that has drawn anglers from around the world for well over a century. As Chile's second-largest lake, Llanquihue offers a remarkable combination of scenic grandeur and productive salmonid fishing, with its deep, clear waters holding healthy populations of rainbow trout, brown trout, and coho salmon. The lake's rich fishing heritage traces directly back to the 1890s, when German settlers in the region imported and stocked brown trout from Hamburg for recreational purposes — making Llanquihue arguably the birthplace of Patagonian trout fishing as we know it. The port city of Puerto Montt, located nearby, served as the distribution hub from which brown trout ova were sent throughout Patagonia, including to Tierra del Fuego. Today, the lake is organized from the town of Puerto Varas, a charming lakeside city that serves as the primary base for anglers exploring these waters.