Colombia Peacock Fishing Report

[Trent Jones]

I just got back from a 10 day trip to Colombia where I split my time between Bogota and the Rio Bita, a minor tributary to the Rio Orinoco which lies on the Colombia/Venezuela border in the heart of Los Llanos. Bogota was great. Great museums, colonial architecture, descent food, good beer, very friendly people and just a very unique Latin culture.  
 
The Rio Bita...was unbelievable. It lies in the very center of Los Llanos, a tropical grassland that sits just above the equator and is dominated by a wet and dry season. During the Rainy season rivers swell and burst banks while the grasslands and woods are temporarily turned into a giant wetlands. During the dry season (now) the river levels subside and become prime to target the game fish that inhabit the region. The Watershed hosts the three major Peacock species; Speckled, Butterfly, and Royal. In addition to the Peacocks the rivers hold Arowana, Piranha, Payara and numerous other exotic fish species. I came for the Peacocks which are know locally as Pavon. And the Rio Bita did not disappoint. After three days of casting 9 and 10 weights at these brute fish I was totally beat. Not just from 100 degree temperatures and casting heavy fly tackle but because these fish hit and fight so hard it is truly unbelievable.
 
I took down several dozen monster flies in the most obnoxious colors you could think of, Orange, Yellow, Red, Pink, and Blue. I had Tommy Mattioli tie me up some patterns that were just amazing. If you buy shad flies from any of the local Orvis stores, Tommy is the one who tied them. I also spent every night the week before I left at the vise. On my third cast of the trip I retrieved a fly to the boat that Tommy had tied and teased it along to see how it looked in the water. As I commented out loud to my Spanish speaking guide how good it looked, a 5 pound Peacock came out of no where and crushed it. It set the tone for the next three days of fishing. Savage strikes, insanely hard pulling fish, and fast an furious action.
 
I fished leaders terminating in 40lbs flouro pretty much the entire time and it still didn't keep piranha from biting through the tippet and destroying flies. A few peacocks landed would often necessitate the repairing of tippet sections and the sharpening of hooks. The wildlife was equally impressive, I saw freshwater Dolphin and Stingrays, Parrots, Eagles, Cayman, Monkeys, and more tropical birds species than I could count.
 
The owner of the plantation I was staying on was the only person I spoke English with for almost 5 days. My guide "Jason", a local 20 year old spoke no English. I speak almost no Spanish. And yet we found ourselves laughing together at hung up flies and celebrating the larger fish we caught. At lunch I would pull out my camera and show him the Stripers of the Potomac and Brook Trout from SNP or Brown Trout. His face would light up with the wonderment of an "exotic" fish from a far away place that was so beautiful, much as my face must have looked with each fish from the Rio Bita. 
 
I am not going to pretend that Colombia is without its problems and that Guerilla activity and security risks aren't a very real part of traveling to this part of the world. But things seem to be calmer than at any point in the last several decades and we can only hope they continue to improve. As the sun set the last night before I headed back to Bogota, I snapped a picture of the river and was thankful that I was able to be there and to fish such an amazing part of the world.

-Trent

[TurbineBlade]

WOW -- 2 large aquarium species, and some real bruisers at that.  That piranha looks like S. rhombeus, or what the aquarium hobbyists call "black" piranha.  They're less social than P. nattereri and typically grow somewhat larger.  They're also a little more interesting when kept in big tanks IMO.  

Peacocks are a massive, powerful, beautiful cichlid.  

This is my favorite report I've ever read on here Trent -- I would rather have a shot at those two fish than any other tropical "destination" fishing out there.  If you could go after a few managuense (jaguar cichlid) closer to central America and post that, you'll have nothing left to do with life ;).  

Gene 

[Nick F - Gaucho Fly]

What a trip! Looks amazing

[Scott Stankus]

Great report, Trent! Looks like it was an amazing trip! How many different species did you end up landing?

How did you find out about guiding service? And would you recommend them?

Thanks!

--Scott

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"There are 10 types of people in this world, those who know binary, and those who don't"

[namfos]

Nice reporting, Trent. The peacocks are real beauties.

Mark

[Marek Rich]

Badass, Trent! Gonna make catching shad seem pretty boring…

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[Rob Snowhite]

Sent from my iPhone

To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/tidal-potomac-fly-rodders/1F473AAA311416458EC4E7B1C5B3E5F792825E4B%40SPI-EX1.scheerpartners.com.

[Jeremy Maggio]

Wow, great report Trent. Sounds like one hell of a trip! Those fish are beautiful and I bet the fights were awesome and brutal at the same time.

- Jeremy 

[Melser Bonilla]

Amazing report Trent! Is there info as to a guide? I'm in Colombia once a yr (wifys fam lives there) and definitely thought about going after some colorful bass! Hope you had a chance to visit Monserate.

[Trent Jones]

Massive, Powerful, and Beautiful is a perfect description. I cannot overstate those three qualities in these fish enough. I found out about the fishing in Colombia from one of my casting students, Miguel. I ended up teaching him how to double haul with a 9 weight and he ended telling me about Colombian fishing and planting the seeds for this trip.

 

I fished out of Nimajay Lodge, a fishing camp run by Ricardo Madrinan, a short drive from Puerto Carreno. The lodging may be rustic by some standards but I would certainly recommend them. They are right on the river, have good food, an amazing Spanish speaking staff, and although I only interacted with one guide, Jason, he was great.

 

5 Species of fish on this trip if you count the three types of Peacocks. I missed a few Arowana on topwater and probably another Piranha species from bite offs.

 

If you go, say hello for me, and pleeeease bring us pictures! I cannot stop staring at these fish!

 

-Trent

[Jim White]

Spectacular fish Trent! That looks like some serious big gear fishing!

- Jim 

[Melser Bonilla]

Thanks Trent, I will definitely write them down and will do some fishing down there.

[arthur noglak]

Unreal man! That was an awsome report. I didn't realize that peacock bass got that big. It must of been cool communicating with someone that didn't speak your language. Posts will anticlimactic for awhile.

Art

[Ernie]

I have no words......will you ever go back to Miami for Butterfly Peacocks?

Ernie

[Trent Jones]

Ernie,

I am sure I will be after Peacocks in FL again. Although, Dalton and I seem to have been using Mark more for Snook fishing than Peacocks the last couple years.

It is worth noting that for anyone who does not want to get a Passport stamped to catch Peacocks, Captain Mark Hall out of Miami can get you on these critters as well as a lot of other fish in the Miami area.

-Trent

On Friday, February 26, 2016 at 10:49:59 PM UTC-5, Ernie wrote:

[Ashley Frohwein]

I plan to go chase peacocks in Florida in a few months. To be more precise, my mom has a lake in her backyard that is full of them. Do you guys have any fly suggestions? I've heard anything with a lot of flash is good. I was thinking of using clousers mostly. Thoughts?

[Dalton Terrell]

Check out some of the pictures of Trent's flies, those orange, red, or yellow clousers have worked well for me in Miami, not necessarily flashy but bright colors. In lower light I've also had them take poppers or gurglers but this has been much less productive.

Dalton

[Greg Feder]

And check out Trent's post on Orvis News -- he's gone viral:  http://www.orvis.com/news/fly-fishing/photos-the-peacocks-and-more-of-colombia/

Cheers,

-- Greg

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From: Dalton Terrell <daltonb...@gmail.com>

To: Tidal Potomac Fly Rodders <tidal-potoma...@googlegroups.com>

Sent: Tuesday, March 1, 2016 7:58 AM
Subject: {Tidal Potomac Fly Rodders} Re: Colombia Peacock Fishing Report

Check out some of the pictures of Trent's flies, those orange, red, or yellow clousers have worked well for me in Miami, not necessarily flashy but bright colors. In lower light I've also had them take poppers or gurglers but this has been much less productive.

Dalton

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[Ashley Frohwein]

Many thanks, guys!

On Tuesday, March 1, 2016 at 9:36:15 AM UTC-5, Greg Feder wrote:

And check out Trent's post on Orvis News -- he's gone viral:  http://www.orvis.com/news/fly-fishing/photos-the-peacocks-and-more-of-colombia/

Cheers,

-- Greg

---

From: Dalton Terrell <daltonb...@gmail.com>
To: Tidal Potomac Fly Rodders <tidal-potoma...@googlegroups.com>
Sent: Tuesday, March 1, 2016 7:58 AM
Subject: {Tidal Potomac Fly Rodders} Re: Colombia Peacock Fishing Report

Check out some of the pictures of Trent's flies, those orange, red, or yellow clousers have worked well for me in Miami, not necessarily flashy but bright colors. In lower light I've also had them take poppers or gurglers but this has been much less productive.

Dalton

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