16-17 October 2023: Report and images by Dizzy
Well, the past two days have been bloody hot, low 40s, extreme humidity, and no breeze in the open riverbed of Agua Negra jungles.
Scotty, the fishing buddy from Alaska, is in a bad way.
He’s a mid-30s bow hunter, stalker, and fisho, a halibut fishing guide, a big fella in good shape. He’s absolutely full-body cramping so bad, just couldn’t control it.
Drinking so much, vomiting so much, his body cramps were agonizing. Drinking electrolytes was doing nothing.
We were on the overnight camping trip about 13 km upriver
We made it there, had some fishing moments but none to hand.
Scotty was a mess, vomiting so much, and drinking so much. By the time we pulled up at camp around 6:30 pm, after the boys poling the dug 9m canoe upstream all day, Scotty would weigh in at 115 kg, all solid, with all our overnight gear, supplies, gear, and the guide and myself.
Mate, they work so bloody hard, poling and dragging the canoe over many shallow riffles. Scotty hit the sack damn early after a cold camp shower.
The camp was very neat and comfy, tents off the ground on wooden platforms, a kitchen sort of set up, eating tarp lean-to, a shower, bloody great. I was up till 10:30 or so with the guide, chilling. Scotty was still in squealing pains from cramps.
Morning breaks about 5:30 with the howling monkeys going off in the distance
I walk around and take some pics, pretty neat. Scooty crawls out about 7:30, saying he’s okay but can’t get his booties and gear on without cramps.
Some more fluids and electrolytes, by 11 am, he’s in a mess, can’t be in the boat due to full cramping abs, arms, legs, laying in the river under shade.
An hour goes past, and the call is made to pull the pin. Joaquin reaches back to base, and the base decides to send in a chopper to extract him.
We clear a landing location of bigger rocks and put some rocks down in lines for indicators, as they do here.
By 12:50, a chopper from Pluma river arrives, pulls him out, and back to Agua Negra. They drop him there, and the chopper flies back to Pluma lodge where it’s based.
Joaquin and I push on upstream in the canoe with the boys poling
We came across many pacu that we cast to but could not get a take.
The same with the few dorado we came across; the yatorana would not play either.
We turned back to the camp and packed our gear back into the canoe for the return trip, stopping at a few holes.
Finally, at a riffle tail, I set the hooks into a sweet Yatorana at about 5:45 pm. The guide said he’s cut in, as there should have been a golden there, but I’m tipping there wasn’t, as it would have attacked the yatorana, as they do.
The natives poling the boat had the bow and arrows out and nailed a sabalo, these mouth & lips like carp, as they are likened feeders and clean rocks.
Rocks are extremely slippery; FELT is a MUST.
Back at the lodge, Scooty is feeling pretty good, so that’s good.
18th October
Another bloody hot day but humidity was so bad, cool change coming apparently down to 38 tomorrow before climbing over next couple of days to forecast 44.
Fishing and water levels both suffering, doggo dorado, very evident dropping in water levels.
We were on the water and boat canoe by 830 by 930 bloody hot, casting from drifting boat with no success.
I had a very large beautiful stripped cat fish follow the fly but didn’t commit.
We pulled up on a smaller trib on the true right a small 20 minute walk in Scotty again in a bad way. Body just over heating he pulled out and sat in a smaller spring creek.
Our guide Santiago set a boaty with Scotty to keep an eye on him, while him and I pushed up stream for a short hour & half but no rewards.
We returned to see Scotty sitting in the deep pool in shade, both Santiago & I jumped in for a cool down also.
I was feeling pretty good. Best I’ve felt for a week, sitting in the river, I ate a quarter of my lunch, but only kidding myself didn’t last that long.
We decided to fish back towards the lodge fishing from boat I landed 1 small Yatorana which was lucky to get into boat as a large dorado had a smash at him as it hit the boat, but released it, fish food again.
We fished up stream but again no fish, when we finished Scotty hit the bank and was vomiting so much and took ages to walk up to the lodge from river.
My gastro still bad and some small dinner didn’t last either. Perhaps my antibiotics aren’t in my stomach long enough to work.
Brandon & Christie had a tough day and dropped a couple of Pacu, no fish to hand.
They were supposed to do the over nighter up to the camp but it’s been rescheduled for tomorrow with better cooler day .
Chat later not so good…
19th October
The expected cool change didn’t come in at 8:00 am; it was bloody hot.
The hottest morning at this time since being here. We pushed off at 8:45 am, headed down the Sécure in the pole canoe.
We got to the confluence of the Agua Negra River that flows in on the true left. An hour into the fishing, Scotty again is fried; he was taken back by one guide.
We pushed on up the river, fishing to no avail. Perhaps the dorado are feeling the heat also.
We spent the day fishing the haunts where they hang under big washouts under upturned trees, some with root balls 6m x 6m – huge trees.
They lay in ambush, waiting, but again couldn’t pull anything out. Even the Yatorana were scarce.
We saw a lot of cayman slides where they go into the waters, and some very large stingray lays hollowed out in the sands.
I hooked a catfish, but it dragged me back under the trees, no joy.
Not 5 minutes later, I got smoked by a very large dorado that was down deep but exploded out of the water after burning my fingers on the line.
I thought he was well and truly hooked, but as it exploded out of the waters within 20 meters from us, some fancy aerial works, and the hook parted company with this cracker.
We continued fishing downstream
We got into some shallower waters with some riffles. The boaties grabbed their bow and arrows, a few misses, then a fish in the boat.
They are showing us how to do it, bloody smart arses, hahaha, good stuff to see. Two arrows in a very quick concession; they don’t muck around.
The fine sands that run through the waters consistently are hard on the gear and lines. You need to be careful not to stand with your rely-sole boots on your lines at the bottom of canoes.
The water sloshes the lines around a bit, so it’s best to be bailing as much water out and keep it drier.
Last day in Agua Negra Lodge tomorrow. Let’s hope one sticks, and we can go out with a bang before heading back to Santa Cruz.
20th Oct, Chimoro River
5:30 AM: The final dawn breaks over Agua Negra, Sécure River.
The sun is piercing through the Amazon smoke, a misty haze from fires. It’ll be another scorcher, that’s a given.
Scotty decided last night and pulled the pin on today’s fishing due to still suffering from heatstroke. He may do an hour or so early.
Joaquin and I will head out to Agua Negra with two boys poling the canoe.
By 8 AM, it’s bloody hot, very high 30s, and the cloud is not moving. At 8:30, we head off down through the jungles on the track, about a half-hour walk to the canoe.
The morning starts off slow; we only found a couple of fish to cast to. We approach a fast riffle, and below the seams, there was some broken ground.
A good dorado is spotted over some logs. In between another set of logs, we creep along the rocky sandy bank.
Within about 60 ft of the big fish, I lay a cast over the logs. It hits the water—a great shot for the big golden—but another gutsy smaller one shoots in and grabs the fly. The larger one attacks it aggressively; he has hold of the other fish.
We clear the log jam, and I gain line back. The guide jumps into the waters, kicking and splashing, while the big dorado feels the commotion. I get the smaller one on the bank; the larger one swims down, and we release the smaller one.
We push up further, casting at some more cruising fish, but still, we’ve spoken.
Heading up to the pacu pool, a deep section of gorge still waters, the boys stealthily pole.
No talking, just hand signals. I start casting, searching. There were no pacu on the surface.
We try some heavy sinking wooden berry fly, lobbing casts and full sink, searching the deeper waters, but no luck.
Again, we push upstream. Joaquin and I leave the boat and quietly walk the banks, casting in likely spots.
Then, four hunting dorado swim towards us. I drop my line and make a medium-length cast. They are alerted but don’t take off. I pick up the line and change direction, launching the fly. Splash! They race to smash the fly. One good strip, bang! Explosion in the shallows. The fish gets aerial; the other three are hit, wired, racing, charging around.
The fight lasts a short time. Fish in hand, a medium-sized golden of about 6.5 kg.
Heading further upstream, we stop for lunch and have a good break in the heat and very high thick humidity.
Cloud mist, sun does not get through, and windless conditions once again. The boys get the bow and arrows out and nail a sabilo again. These guys are good.
After lunch, upstream, the native poler and I fish. I get a take from a golden but miss it.
We travel further; a smaller golden spotted in a riffle. I cast and didn’t miss this one. Fish on again! It fights upstream, then turns and races past me. I manage to keep it on. Then, out of the deep, a huge golden attacks it. I have the smaller dorado on the edge, but that doesn’t stop the huge fella attacking.
Joaquin jumps in, kicks the other up onto the shore. Huge commotion, but the big fella rolls back into water and darts off downstream.
The smaller dorado heavily scared with bites on both sides of the body. We release that.
The weather is changing; we start heading back as the end of the day.
A big unforecasted storm rolls in. The lightning and thunder are coming; the winds start and then build. Rod down; the lightning is full-on.
Then, torrential rains hit us, extreme winds, the trees and limbs crashing down, leaves gusting everywhere.
Man, a welcome change but worrying winds. Even the guide was concerned with winds but managed to see the good side and played AC/DC’s “Thunderstruck” as we traveled downriver. A great closing day for me.
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