Sport fishing in Argentina

Fishing in Las Grutas

Las Grutas / San Antonio Oeste -Salmon nets at the San Matías Gulf - Puerto Madryn - Valdés Peninsula

Irresistible fishing in a marvelous site. The Las Grutas and San Antonio Oeste seaside resorts are a dream place for diving and, of course, for fishing large specimens of sea salmon, as well as other species of considerable sport value, such as large dusky groupers, red porgies and wreckfish. All of them, highly valued fish searched for during watching.

The San Matías Gulf bathes the shores of these well-known seaside resorts in Rio Negro with its transparent warm waters. Here, the influence of tide is highly noticed and, therefore, the waters grow flooding coasts, lagoons and streams, and then its level goes down leaving them totally dry. This phenomenon is produced several times during the day, therefore, the tides tables for fishing from the coast are essential to be taken into account by local anglers and tourists. Species such as the pejerrey, the sole, the chucho, the ray, the sargo, the sea bass, the elephant fish and the Brazilian flat head, are caught from the coast during the summer months.

Fishing takes place in open waters, where depths range between twenty and thirty meters. It is subtle fishing in which it is not necessary to cast the tackle far from the craft but let it down by the side of the boat. Short rods and mid-sized spinning reels or large front drag reels are used for boat fishing. Small fish and octopus from the area are used as bait.

Las Grutas / San Antonio Oeste

Once they feel hooked, the salmons try to gain depth and get to their caves, caverns and rocks in the bottom to get free from deception. Fishing here turns out to be more attractive as, due to the transparency of its waters, it is possible to make out even the moment in which the fish bite the bait and start their large movements and runs from one side of the craft to the other. This means that the angler must be watchful. The large salmons toss their heads and fight to the last minute in which they are raised into the boat. These specimens weight about 5 kilos, though specimens weighing over 12 kilos have been caught.

High Seas

In the entire area, just like in the two gulfs surrounding the Valdés Peninsula (San José and Nuevo), the best catches are managed from a craft. Therefore, it is essential to hire an outfitter or a fishing excursion to be successful.

The outfitters look for the location of the salmon banks with Global Positioning System and navigation elements that enable them to find the right depths.