Fly Fishing Trip to Upper Austria
In July 2020, our first fly fishing trip to beautiful northern Italy, to Trentino, was planned. But as we all unfortunately know, we had to cancel this trip due to the pandemic.
However, we knew from the start that we would plan a trip every year. So we set out to find a new destination for 2021. We received a tip and researched the waters in Austria. The pictures were amazing, and the guide was a very well-known figure in fly fishing.
It was immediately clear to us: we had to go there!
On July 25, 2021, the day finally arrived. We packed our things and, with negative COVID tests, drove to Laakirchen in Upper Austria. After a six-hour drive, the hotel owner (Sepp) was already waiting for us with cold beer. He knew exactly what we needed after such a trip!
We ended the evening with a relaxing Wiener schnitzel.
The day has finally arrived. After breakfast, our guide, Uwe Rieder, picked us up from the hotel and we discussed the three days of guiding we would be doing together.
For the first two days we fished on the Steyr River. Grayling, rainbow and brown trout were waiting for us.
After the first two casts, the first fish couldn't resist the nymph. When we had it in the net, we were speechless… a grayling just under 50cm long, the first fish after only two minutes.
More beautiful fish followed, which we caught using the nymph.
A large pool followed, and we tried it with the streamer.
Streamer fishing was relatively new to us, but with Uwe by our side we were able to catch brown trout up to 55cm. The bites were incredible!!!
Towards evening, the "evening rise" occurred. Twenty to thirty fish rose simultaneously; we'd never seen anything like it. The river was alive! We rigged up our beloved dry flies and were able to catch more fish until late into the evening.
On the third day (the last guiding day) we drove to the river "Alm".
A crystal-clear river with stronger currents and more challenging conditions awaited us.
We spent the morning practicing casting techniques. No lures, so we could really concentrate on casting ;-)
Rollcast, switchcast, overhead casts and so on… We were not aware that small changes with the hand or shoulder could have such a huge impact on the line and rod.
Now it's time to take what we've learned back to Graubünden and continue practicing!
We spent the last two days alone at the alpine pasture.
The stock and the natural surroundings were once again very impressive.
Fishing with stoneflies was a particular highlight. The trout "destroyed" the stoneflies on the surface.
Sadly, the trip came to an end on July 31st. We set off for Graubünden, and besides tackle and clothing, we now also have a lot of know-how in our suitcases.
With that in mind: Upper Austria, we'll be back!
Tight Lines
Kevin and Nico