Fly Fishing for Danube Salmon (Hucho hucho)
As soon as the cold season starts, articles about fly fishing for Danube Salmon pop-up regularly in fly fishing magazines and on the internet. As a result many average fly fishermen and sometimes even beginners surrender to the temptation and want to try to catch a hucho, the largest non-migrating salmonid species in the world by using fly fishing tackle. As in many waters a guide is needed for getting permission to fish for Danube Salmon, they assume that it cannot be that difficult with his help. Well, that's a big mistake!
The Huchen aka Danube Salmon (Hucho hucho) is the largest European freshwater salmonid. He can get about 1.50 m in length and a weight of 40 kg. In ancient times significantly larger fish had been reported. Historically huchos inhabited mainly the right-sided tributaries of the river Danube but the species was also stocked successfully in Spain and Marokko. Due to its size and the tasty meat, the Danube Salmon was caught with different and in some regions quite brutal methods. Especially during the spawning time they were blinded on their spawning redds and stabbed with pitchforks and other stabbing tools. This has changed with the decline of the species and today huchos enjoy a usually 2-3 months spawning season and recovering time during which fishing for them is forbidden. This helps the fish to gain weight safely after the exhausting spawning activities.
Meanwhile, the attitude of anglers towards these beautiful giants has changed, too. Today most huchos are released after being caught and only very few are killed. A quick picture after the catch serves as an identification tool as the spots on a hucho are unique like fingerprints. So multiple catches of the same fish within the years can be documented and the growth rate and eventually a change of the location in a river are shared among the hucho anglers. It also serves as a proof that careful treatment and a correct release does not harm the fish.
The Time is the Key!
Huchos are very special in regard to their feeding times. If a hucho is not in the right mood a grayling in its preferred size can swim right in front of his mouth and he will show no interest at all. Because of their moody behavior, it is pure luck if you catch a hucho on a streamer during a hucho guiding. It is usually a waste of money and time except if you can come on call. Even if you plan to fly fish for huchos for a whole week you cannot be sure to experience an activity period of this species throughout your stay.
A few years ago right after Christmas, I fished three of the best Austrian hucho waters with high stocks of good fish for 9 days in a row. During this time none of the numerous fishermen at these public beats had even got one single take! Only on my departure day, a single specimen hucho was caught on a spinning lure. Nine days without a take! This is hucho fishing! A few weeks before, in one of these rivers, there were about 30 huchos - some of them specimen - caught within a period of one week. Regular catches of huchos are usually only made by real hucho specialists and locals who live by the river and know "their" huchos well. They usually only fish when the fish are moving.
The Water Level
Hucho fishing is very much dependent on the weather and the water level. Whereas locals will usually only fish whenever the level is pleasant and the huchos are moving, a fly fishing tourist that has to ask his employer for a few days off or even has to plan his trip well in advance must take the water as it is upon his arrival. The more distance you have to travel the less spontaneous you trips will be. That is a problem in regard of catching this irregularly feeding species.
Medium Water Levels
Medium water levels are usually not good as the huchos prey which mainly consists of fish can easily spread all over the river. Huchos are usually not so active during this time. They don't show up at the feeding spots but stay in their "garages" as I use to call their hideouts.
Catching huchos right at their lies is usually not possible with fly gear as only spinning lures can be presented on spot in deep or fast-flowing parts of a river. When they are resting at their lies they are usually not active but might "attack" a lure that passes their head in a very close distance. It is more a defending movement than a real attack. This means they don't hit it hard and the lure only touches the hard front part of their mouths. Whereas a few of such "takes" can be stricken with a spinning rod and braided non-stretch lines this is hardly possible with proper fly tackle.
Rising and sinking water levels:
If the water level rises prey fish move towards the banks where the current is slower. As long as the water is not too clouded they will feed there and are easy prey for the hucho who can easily detect them with its large eyes. At peak levels or when the water is dirty huchos and their prey are not feeding. Especially in wintertime when depression brings rain that turns into snowfall later the coloured river clears up and the huchos get active again during a short period. This is perfect hucho weather! They stop feeding when their prey starts spreading in the river again. Whereas rising water Levels combined with rising water temperatures increase the huchos activity, rising water levels in combination with dropping temperatures (snowmelt) immediately stop any hucho activity.
Low Water
Under low water conditions the huchos can hunt successfully without loosing much energy as the current is slow and the prey fish concentrate at certain spots again. For the fly fisher low water conditions make it easier to spot the huchos and to reach their feeding spots without getting too much pressure on the line. The fly can be fished slower but the big eyes of the huchos catch every single movement of the fly fisherman. This means fishing public water under crystal clear low water conditions is very difficult in regard of the presentation. This is in my opinion the main reason why night fishing under low water conditions was so popular in the past. It still is, but nowadays only very few rivers can be fished at night. So you should at least try the hours with less light. Dawn is usually better than dusk as the temperatures are higher. The cold mornings after a freezing night are usually not the best choice.
In smaller rivers upstream streamer fishing or nymph fishing can help to master such situations, too. In any case be sure to not get in the field of vision of a hucho. He will not necessarily disappear but he will probably not take anymore.
An experienced hucho angler scans the water for active fish where shallow parts meet the edges of deep runs. Drop-offs, inlets but even better outlets of pools are also targeted. These are the spots where huchos hunt preferably. A huchos lie and his feeding spot are hardly ever identical. Depending on the size of the fish and the hucho density there can be several hundred meters or even more in between the two.
Due to high fishing pressure, some hucho waters are despite their hucho density extremely difficult to fish under low water conditions. Among them is the Sava Bohinjka in Slovenia. One needs to be very experienced to be successful there with the fly. At Bohinjka, a significant number of fish are caught on spinning gear as it is much easier to approach a hucho with spinning tackle. Most of the fish are caught during dust and dawn when the fishermen are less visible to the large predators. In some hucho waters, it is allowed to fish at night or at least up to midnight and in a few on the southern Balkans also in summer. In the Alps, the hucho season usually starts in Nov/Dec and ends between the end of January and the end of February dependent on the river. There are some exceptions from that rule though.
If the water level and sight depth stay the same for a longer period, the influence of the moon becomes more important. Around the new moon but also near the full moon the chances to hook a hucho are usually better but the real game-changer in regard to hookups is the weather (air pressure).
Hucho Fishing is Hard Work!
If you look at pictures of huchen fishermen standing comfortably in the river letting their streamers drift around, it seems that fishing for huchen is a very simple matter. Yes, you don't have to keep extending the line in the air and keeping it under tension by double hauling, especially when fishing with a two-handed rod, but even two-handed fishing is not as easy as it looks. In general, one thing can be said about fly fishing for the king of the Alpine waters: fishing for huchen with a fly is difficult, very difficult, except in open, unvegetated stretches of water, from gravel banks and waters where smaller flies can be used. Moving on and in the water, often even in ice and snow, is a challenge for the body and mind. Little mistakes, carelessness or recklessness can have serious consequences, especially if you are fishing alone. Fly fishing with high line classes is extremely demanding. In order to cast large huchen flies correctly, by only using the weight of the line, you have to be really well prepared. A little fitness training beforehand doesn't do any harm, because otherwise you can easily over-strain your wrists and elbows, and then your casts will get sloppy. If the huchen fly and the rod get in each other's way, no rod will survive the impact.
Casting Hucho Streamers
The most important of all casts for a hucho fisher is the roll cast be it to fish spots without much backspace or to roll the streamer out of the water to finally present it with an overhead cast. Depending on the weight and size of the streamer, switch casts can be used, too. If streamers between 5-10 g of weight or long T-tips in combination with large articulated streamers are used, an interrupt of the energy transfer will make it impossible to cast with a short stroke of the lower hand. You will recognise this immediately. Such line/streamer combinations can only be cast with a roll cast, a hybrid roll cast (which means that you roll cast and shoot a few meters of line), or an overhead cast. If you allow your streamer to sink before you start your roll cast you will not get the line out of the water anymore. You have to keep your streamer in the surf, a term I created to describe the way a streamer has to be moved before starting your forward cast.
The Limits of Fly Fishing
In fast and deep stretches of hucho rivers fly fishing is not possible. You would need to fish very heavy streamers that cannot be cast by using the fly line as a casting weight anymore. I totally agree with Austrian fly fishing legend Sepp Prager, who loved to spin fish for hucho from time to time. If it is not possible anymore to fish a streamer by using the weight of the fly line, spin fishing remains the only fair and meaningful angling method. Spin fishing for hucho is of course easier than fly fishing as you can cast from spots a fly fisher cannot cast at all and you can even cast upstream to an active fish. So you do not need to get so close to the fish. as a fly fisher Besides that, you can skip the time for learning how to fly cast. Despite that, spin fishing for huchos is not so easy as otherwise, every spin fisher would catch a hucho. This is not the case.
Alibi Fly Fishers
The reason why even less skilled fly casters can be found on the net posing with huchos and a fly rod has its origin - at least this was what was plausibly confirmed to me from many fly fishers - in hucho guidings.
A guide usually recognizes quite fast if the client is skilled enough to get a large hucho streamer somewhere near a hucho without spooking it. If this is not the case he should be given a smaller fly first and if this does not work he should be told to improve the casting first before trying it with a fly rod. As an alternative, they should be given a spinning rod if the regulations allow it. Instead of doing this, some guides prefer to switch to a plan B. A heavy streamer of 20-40 g of weight is cast with a fly rod by replacing the fly line with a running line only. Some anglers who call themselves fly fishers even use monofilament or polyfilament only. The line is pulled from the reel first, to cast their heavy streamers like a spin fisherman to the wanted spot.
For casting streamers of 20 g and more with a fly rod, fly lines are not needed at all, as such heavy flies cannot be cast with the weight of the fly line anymore. The fly line cannot fulfill its function. This does not change with the alibi-shooting heads that are meanwhile promoted. These short heads have the shape of a long-drawn-out weight and support the casting of the weight of the streamer. These short shooting heads work only with overhead casts and unweighted flies (Check by making a roll cast to see if the line is able to lift the fly out of the water!) but as soon as you put a heavy streamer on, it is the streamer that is pulling the line behind. As soon as this happens, you should not call it fly fishing anymore! You can recognize alibi-fly fishers the way they cast. They just pull the line back in and lift it directly from the water to the backcast which is done in a sideways manner to finally shoot it the same way as a spinning lure. Some use a sideways pendulum cast and often move the rod slightly off-shoulder after the front stop to not hit the rod with the heavy streamer.
If the streamer flies in front after the line is stretched and pulls the running line or monofilament behind for most of the casting distance, you use the fly rod as a spinning rod. If this is the case you are definitely not fly fishing anymore.
Quo Vadis? What's next?
Shall I cut my shooting head to 2m, ... perhaps only 1m? Or should I forget about the fly line at all and cast a heavy-weight streamer with a fly rod and thin monofilament or poly filament only, like some "fly" fishers already do? A fly line cannot pull such heavy streamers through the air anyway, so the fly rod only works as an alibi device. Where shall this lead to? This is not fly fishing any more but spinning with a fly rod, nothing else!
Instructor colleague and hucho guide Markus Kaaser from Carynthia (AT), who fly fishes for hucho absolutely correctly and successfully, raises his eyebrows and labels the heavy-weight streamer casting not as fly fishing but as "adventurous methods". For me fishing this way with a fly rod is just absolute nonsense! Sadly enough, many of the published so-called "fly caught huchos" were caught this way.
Especially at the Una in Bosnia (which is because of its depth in regard of hucho fishing rather a spin fishing than a fly fishing water) and some other rivers on the Balkans but also at some stretches of the Mur in Austria, these doubtful techniques are still in use. Fishing this way is not forbidden if the fishing rules allow spin fishing too, but talking of a fly caught hucho and posing with a hucho and a fly rod in a picture to pretend one was fly fishing, but instead was using such cheaty methods is not worthy of a true fly fisher.
At the Sava Bohinjka in Slovenia, the heavy-weight streamers that were widely used in previous years have more or less totally disappeared in 2018. Many anglers fish even unweighted flies now. The guides did a great job to bring fly fishers back on track to true fly fishing. Besides that, more or less all huchos are released now. Thumbs up for Slovenia!
True Fly Fishing for Huchos
Is it possible to catch a hucho on a fly correctly? Yes, of course, but the combination of streamer weight and the correct fly line is essential. Your line must be heavy enough to pull your hucho streamer through the air. The shape and length of the fly line (head) is very important. If the correct line is used, the loop of the fly line is always traveling through the air ahead of the streamer, and even when casting very large streamers the fly line and leader stretch in the very last part of the cast. If you want to know if your fly line works, just make a roll cast.
If the fly line is able to present your hucho streamer (which btw also applies to nymphs) via a roll cast your tackle fits and you are fly fishing for huchos.
Guided or Do-it-Yourself Fishing?
Guided Hucho Fishing
For many fly fishermen, fishing with a guide is the only way to land a huchen, as they neither have the time nor the stamina and certainly not the practical knowledge of how to outwit a huchen. Theory is one thing, practice is another! However, it should also be acknowledged that only a huchen caught without a guide is really a 100% self-caught huchen, and a guided huchen catch is not the same as that of a fly fisherman out on his own. A certain part of a guided huchen always belongs to the guide. This goes so far that the guide makes the cast for an inexperienced caster and then hands the rod to the customer, to the point where a guide even hooks the fish and then hands the rod to the customer and finally nets the fish, which in itself is a crucial part, as many inexperienced fly fishers loose their fish in the final phase. This is how it works in practice, and depending on the experience with the type of fish you are after, the guide's share is larger or smaller. A hucho guide just recently told me that his part of a customer's 1.20 m huchen was exceeding 80%. "That was actually my fish, I booked it as my catch!", he said. In some waters, e.g. all waters in Slovenia, it is compulsory to be accompanied by a guide or at least a fellow angler in order to fish for huchen. Including the license, a guide costs easily EUR 200 to EUR 300 per day plus tips. In some waters, the huchen guides are even significantly more expensive and three days of huchen fishing can cost EUR 1500 or more.
If you really want to spend that much, make sure in advance that they are really doing real fly fishing and not just token fly fishing. In addition to the high costs, you don't want to cheat yourself, because most insiders know how the guides in certain areas work anyway. And as already mentioned, you can't expect a guide to guarantee the catch of a huchen, no matter how good he is. However, there are also waters that you can fish with a colleague or even alone.
Unaccompanied Hucho Fishing
Ever since I caught my first huchen almost 30 years ago, I have been addicted to the fish. There is something special about standing by the river in the snow and cold, carefully fishing for successful spots and then hopefully feeling the first fish at some point. I almost always fish alone, except in Slovenia, where I fish with fellow anglers because the law requires it.
If you fish for huchen alone, however, we only recommend doing this where it is safe to do so. In waters where you have to climb along rocky edges to get to a good spot or where help is not readily available due to the remoteness, fishing for huchen without a companion is simply too dangerous. Fishing with a companion in winter makes sense not only in terms of safety. If a good huchen grabs hold of it in an unfavourable spot in the river, you have no chance of landing it without a guide or fishing companion. If you are out alone with a fly rod, you can only get close to it if you can pull it into calm, shallower water. Without such places, you have no chance without a guide or companion, as you cannot pull a big fish against the current and net it at the same time. But you must admit that you owe these fish to your companion in large part.
Netting or Hand Landing?
At the end of every huchen fight the fish needs to be landed. Should it be netted or landed by hand? For me there is only one really gentle way, namely landing huchos with a landing net! I would like to briefly explain to you why this is the case for me today.
I know that some colleagues are out and about without a landing net, and it is quite clear to me that they are able to land their catch by hand and are also interested in not damaging a huchen and therefore land it carefully. Some years ago I landed Huchen this way, too. However, the landing net, provided it is a rubber coated C&R net with a small mesh size, has one important advantage: It shortens the fight time. A huchen can undoubtedly be landed in a shorter time with a landing net, as grabbing the huchen with the hand requires the fish to be kept completely still, at least for a short time. However, if the fish has not yet been fully fought, it will be held firmly by the base of the tail while it may still try to free itself. Inexperienced fishermen often do not know when a huchen is ready for a hand landing. It either takes too long or not long enough. The base of the tail is very susceptible to fungal infections. This is often the first place where fungus appears. It will undoubtedly become infected if you hold a huchen tightly and the huchen tries to escape, especially if you wear gloves.
For this reason, gloves are prohibited when landing fish by hand at Sava Radovljica in Slovenia. It is likely that hardly any fisherman takes off his gloves during the fight before landing the fish as many posted pictures confirm. So don't use them at all if you consider landing a fish by hand! I net all my huchen myself and never wear gloves when fishing for huchen. Huchen fishing in winter is not for the faint-hearted anyway.
There are also fly fishermen who land a huchen by sliding the pointer and middle finger along the gill cover to the front, just like it is often performed with pike. Although some hucho fishers are undoubtedly able to do this, imitation is not recommended as it can lead to serious injuries to both the angler and the fish. The fish must remain in the water at all times, because lifting the fish by the head can always lead to injuries to the internal organs. This landing method is only suitable if a colleague is available to photograph the fish in the water. The argument that the fight takes longer applies in particular to this method of hand landing. A fish needs to be totally exhausted to land him this way.
Hucho Fly Fishing Equipment
Single or Double Hand Rod?
I use the following tackle combinations for fly fishing for huchos. Of course, rods of other manufacturers can be used, too.
I just love CTS for their incomparably perfect rods. With CTS you have the possibility to get a rod according to your preferences. With other manufacturers, you get certain rod models. With CTS you simply choose a base model and you can tell CTS to make it ie one line class higher in the bottom part and two classes higher in the tip. They will build up that rod for you!
- Single hand: CTS Affinity X, 9ft. # 12
- Double hand: CTS SK 11-12ft. 9ft. # 10-12 for underhand casters
- Double hand: CTS DQ 11-12ft. 9ft. #10-12 for casters with the dominant upper hand
I use my own hucho rod series from CTS. The CTS GF Hucho Hunter 600, the CTS GF Hucho Hunter 725 and the GF Hucho Hunter 925. They are all 11.6 ft double-handers > more info
Hucho rods with tip action can only play their advantage in overhead casts with enough backspace. For all waterborne casts, it takes rods that load deep into the bottom part of the rod, ie mid-flex rods or even better underhand rods. If I had to choose between a single hand and a two-handed rod, I would choose an 11-11.5ft. two-handed rod due to greater flexibility and improved guidance. With rods exceeding 12 ft. you might experience problems with landing your catch and you can not fish that effectively along your bank.
However, fly fishers who have difficulties with casting two-handed rods, will unnecessarily generate noise that can make huchos switch into denial mode especially in waters experiencing a high fishing pressure. Besides, that other fly fishers will be very annoyed if you destroy their fishing time.
In this case, the one-handed rod is the better choice as it is in narrower waters. I have never made friends with switch rods.
Fly Lines
Small Rivers
in which the roll cast is of great importance and where smaller and lighter streamers can be used as the fish face heavier fishing pressure (e.g. river Pielach/ AT)
- floating line: RIO InTouch OutBound Short Flt (single hand rod)
- clear intermediate shooting head RIO Outbound Short SH/I coldwater plus DirectCore Running Line (single hand rod)
- Double hander with RIO Skagit iFlight / RIO Skagit Max Game Changer and RIO DirectCore Running Line (only for high water levels)
Large Rivers
Double Hand Rod:
- RIO Skagit Max Game Changer or RIO Skagit iFlight + T14-20 (2.5 - 4 m depending on the situation) for large streamers
- RIO DirectCore Running Line
Single Hand Rod:
- heavy WF line RIO InTouch Big Nasty for fishing mouse patterns or poppers
- intermediate SH RIO Outbound Short SH/I coldwater plus DirectCore Running Line
- RIO InTouch Deep 3 for deeper parts
The Mucho Hucho Super-Sinker Shooting Head
My CTS Hucho Hunter 725 rod works great with the 750gr Mucho Hucho sinker that I developed together with RIO and that is sold by Rudi Heger. The line is designed for higher water levels, deep and fast runs, and stronger currents so that the streamer can be fished closer to the bottom. The line is tapered, and you can use it to present larger streamers with roll-casts combined with shooting a few meters at medium distances, even where no backspace is available at all. Overhead casts work fine with this line anyway. The SH is designed for double handers up to 12.5 ft. in length. So for using it on my 11.6 ft. Hucho Hunter rod I adjust it by cutting off a bit from the back end. Another Mucho Hucho SH for medium and low water is already in the pipeline. Because of Covid 19, it takes some more time ...
Here you can find important information and instructions and a cutting table for adjusting the Mucho Hucho Super-Sinker:
Mucho Hucho LoWater Production Delay
The requests for the Mucho Hucho LoWater shooting head have increased enormously recently, as most rivers have low water.
Unfortunately, RIO has decided to stop poducing private label lines in favour of their own line series. This is a pity as hucho fishing is a niche and producing 10000 lines and more for hucho fishing is an Illusion.
Mouse Fishing
Lines with a short taper are suitable for fishing with a mouse, as fishing with little back space is important when fishing for huchen. With a heavy, short shooting head, you can also cast Underhand with a larger mouse. The floating Skagit shooting heads from RIO, the RIO Skagit Max Power (6 m), the Skagit Max Short (6.1 m), and the Skagit Max Launch (7 m, for slightly longer double handers) are suitable for fishing with huchen double hand rods. Of course, only a monofilament, tapered (knotted) leader is used and not a heavy tip typical of Skagit. Fishing with heavy, floating Skagit shooting heads and mouse patterns takes time getting used to. Although the lines fly wonderfully and have the appropriate punch, they seem a bit cumbersome, as a short, FL shooting head suitable for a heavy huchen rod is a real cable, which, despite its thickness, should be presented carefully so as not to scare away the huchen.
The Running Line
For the full line fisherman, the question of the importance of the running line does not arise, but for shooting head fishermen it is essential, as it is part of their fly line, albeit not directly, but usually connected loop-to-loop. As far as the performance of the shooting head is concerned, the matter is basically clear: the heavier the shooting head, the thicker the running line should be so that there is enough resistance for the shooting head to roll. The friction itself is not that important, as it usually only accounts only for 2-3% of the resistance. In principle, you can cast further with an uncoated monofilament shooting line (round, oval or flat), as the resistance of the line is lower when shooting through the guides. It also cuts through the water better as it is thinner and the SH therefore goes deeper more easily. However, it is not that simple, otherwise I would reach for such a mono shooting line without thinking twice. But I don't like the thin stuff between my fingers when fishing, I want a certain feeling for the line, which I constantly have in my fingers when fishing. I also don't want a shooting head that somehow slaps on the water, following the motto: Mainly far, everything else is unimportant! Wrong! You will spook fish!
For me, two things are crucial:
- I want to make a controlled cast cleanly and calmly with the option of intervening during the cast while my running line slides over my middle finger. This does not work well with a thin mono shooting line.
- I want to have a good feeling when fishing. In this respect, oval, smooth shooting lines or Ken Sawada's Flat Beam are a no-go for me, as in my opinion the feeling that is necessary for controlling the drifting streamer is hardly there with these types of lines.
The Perfect Running Line
For me, the perfect running line would be a coated non-stretch running line with a diameter of 0.048 ''. It should be inconspicuous in colour, at least up to 15 m behind the shooting head. The core should have a breaking strength of at least 25-30 kg and should be made of braid. The coating must have good shooting characteristics and needs to be very durable. It should not separate from the core even after 10,000 casts and should not crack. It must not be too soft so that it does not tangle when shooting.
I once got two perfect prototypes from RIO, but they did not go into production because they were too thick for salmon and steelhead fishermen and therefore did not allow high production numbers. It's a shame, but there are not enough huchen fly fishermen to release large series. The colour was not ideal (metered SL in some very striking colours) but it was very robust. I still fish with one of them. Also the RIO Grip Shooter in 50 lbs. is OK, although I think the colour should be even less aggressive, especially for low water. In between, I fished with a Monic GSP 65 lbs in green, which is very strong, but kept getting tangled when shooting despite the shooting basket. The old Monic would have been much better, assured my colleague, who has been fishing with it for a long time. But after the company changed the coating, the line obviously got worse. I replaced it very quickly. I have been fishing with the RIO Powerflex Ultra 50 lbs for two seasons. It is 1.15 mm thick, is in aqua and does its job, although I would still prefer a coated running line in 0.048'' and a slightly higher breaking strength if it were available and the colour matched. However, I can recommend the RIO Powerflex Ultra.
The Leader
Whether a huge hucho can be stopped in an emergency situation or not is dependent on the leader as this is the weakest part of the system. This means that it should be strong enough. However, this is put into perspective by the load-bearing capacity, because it must break before the fly line and the backing. This means that if a leader can carry 15 kg, the fly line must have a higher load-bearing capacity and the backing must also be stronger or at least as strong as the fly line. I fish with fluorocarbon-coated leaders of 0.45 mm thickness with a load-bearing capacity of 20 kg. My fly line and my running line each carry 25 kg and my gel spun backing 33 kg. If the fly line only carries 15 kg, the leader must also break first and thus be weaker, because snags do happen when fishing for huchen, and then you don't want to lose the fly line because the leader was too strong. When they are in hunting mode, huchen are not afraid of leaders. Fluorocarbon can be advantageous if there is high fishing pressure, low water and fish that are reluctant to bite.
The leader is connected to the fly line with a bimini twist knot with a double, twisted loop (Thanks Christian!), so that the hard blows of the huchen in the final phase of the fight can be buffered in an emergency. When fishing with sinking lines the leader does not need to be tapered. Usually a 1-1.5 m long piece of the chosen leader thickness is sufficient. Only in low water it sometimes can be of help to extend this a little. When fishing a mouse pattern, the usual parameters for the 3 or 4 monofilament pieces of different thicknesses are known.
Hucho Streamers
Various imitations of their prey fish from 15 cm to 25 cm in length from unweighted to max 9-10 g in weight are useful. It is important that the streamer has enough volume in the water. If light synthetic hair or bucktail flies are used, you can also cast tandem flies of up to 40cm with a two-hand rod and Skagit lines. Tube flies are standard for larger flies, as for hucho fishing a very sharp hook is an absolute must and when using tubes they can be swapped quickly. If you fish with ordinary streamers and single hooks, you have to check and eventually sharpen your hook after every single contact with the bottom. A whetstone is a standard tool of every huchen fisherman.
Less skilled fly casters should use smaller and lighter flies not exceeding 15 cm since large-sized flies are difficult to cast and therefore more stressful for the joints. Big eyes are very important if you tie the flies yourself, especially if you want to fish them at high water levels.
For many years I have been proclaiming fishing for salmonids with mouse patterns. Brown and rainbow trout but even grayling love mice. So do huchos. Mouse fishing is now becoming more and more popular, especially on trickier waters, and even huchos exceeding 20 kg have been caught with it. For taimen fishing, imitations of mice, rats, and even squirrels (on the spinning rod) have a long tradition. For fly fishing for huchos, my Minky Mouse has to be built a bit bigger. The hooks must be very strong but not necessarily very big. The mouse can be fished on the surface or even intermediate as especially rats are good divers, too.
Other Important Tools
The Landing Net
The landing net makes it possible to turn a fish that has not yet been "tipped over" in the final phase of the fight and let it swim head first into the net. The fine-mesh net does not injure it, even if it is still thrashing around in the net. It goes without saying that large-mesh nets can cut into the tail fins in the net. For this reason, in my opinion, they should be banned in general anyway. They have no place in C&R waters.
- A huchen landing net for fly fishermen must have five important properties:
- It must be large enough that the huchen can be easily transported into the net. This means that the opening (handle length) should be at least 45 x 55 cm.
- The net must be at least 60 cm deep, but preferably 90 cm. Rubbrcoated nets are better (injury + smell = 0) but a little heavier.
- The wading net should not hinder walking. Transport length should ideally be 80-100 cm, with 100 cm being more suitable for people around 1.90m tall.
- It shouldn't be too heavy, as you'll always have to carry it around on your back. Unfortunately, weight information is often missing for landing nets.
Whether it should be telescopic depends on whether its size might make it a hindrance or too heavy and if the situation ion the water requires a longer handle. In any case, it shouldn't extend too far down the back so that it doesn't interfere with walking. Landing nets that reach almost to the back of the knee are out of place.
The attachment to the back should also take a deep net into account. For this reason, I don't use a magnet, but a special release mechanism, which I wisely bought in a double pack many years ago on the Bighorn in Montana(Brodin Net Holder). It holds better than a magnet, and you can use it to secure a deep net so that it doesn't get caught easily when walking on narrow paths. Unfortunately, I've never seen this type of landing net attachment in this country. However, it has clear advantages for my wading net.
None of the landing nets that are available for sale are 100% ideal for me. As a wading net, they are a bit too big, too heavy, or the handle is too short. I use a Daiwa Prorex wading net as a base. It can be telescoped by 20 cm and has a transport length of 82 cm. The landing net could be even bigger in terms of the opening, but it is certainly sufficient for a large huchen. However, the net in the original version from the shop is not deep enough (only 40 cm). That's why I combined it with another landing net. For this I bought a Fladen landing net and dismantled it. My combination landing net now has a depth of 90 cm. The landing net is robust, telescopic, has a transport length of 82 cm and weighs only 590 g including the rubber-coated net. For me this is an absolutely ideal wading landing net, which unfortunately is not available to buy.
Alternatives:
- Fladen Fishing Maxximus landing net (SWE), foldable, telescopic, version L, 92 cm transport length, net depth 75 cm, rubberized net, weight 955 g, (approx. EUR 65.-)
- McLean 140 landing net (NZL), telescopic, net depth 92 cm, transport length 104 cm, with scales, net not rubberized, weight ? (approx. EUR 195.-)
- McLean 420 landing net (NZL), telescopic, net depth 92 cm, transport length 100 cm, with scales, net not rubberized, weight ? (approx. EUR 135.-)
- Ole Joergensen wading net (DEN), not telescopic, net depth 100 cm, transport length 88 cm, knotless net, not rubberized, 350 g (approx. ?) currently not available
- Guideline Experience wading net (SWE), not telescopic, net depth 100 cm, transport length 88 cm, knotless net, not rubberized, 490 g (approx. EUR 75.-), currently not available
The Stripping Basket
In addition to the equipment already mentioned, there is a very important tool that I always carry with me when fishing for huchen. It's the stripping basket. When I started using it for huchen my friends smiled at me compassionately. ... Meanwhile they all use it and it got a standard equipment for hucho pros. At first hey did not realize my stripping basket was different. Only the stripping basket that was developed by my friend Reinis Rutkis from Latvia really works well. You can mount it wherever you want (even down near the knees) and it is flexible. I love it! Quite apart from the fact that the hands stay much warmer because there is less water contact, casts are longer and much more accurate when using a stripping basket. Taking up different-sized loops and storing them in the hand correctly is a thing of the past when using this tool. The same applies to problems caused by different water resistance in different flow conditions, which influence the cast because the loops are exposed to them when firing. When fishing for huchen, it is usually the first cast that counts. It decides whether the Huchen will attack your fly or not. A false cast is enough to frighten an experienced huchen in a heavily fished river.
Long Pliers
It is very rare that a streamer gets stuck deep in the mouth of a huchen, as in the drift the line is under tension and the fish cannot easily suck a streamer in by quickly opening its mouth. In a dead drift it would theoretically be possible, but it has never happened to me. Of all my huchen, I have only had one fish whose hook I could not easily remove from the corner or the front of the mouth. In heavily fished waters, huchen tend to be cautious when grabbing the fly, but within a crazy feeding period, it can be completely different. The fish in question took the fly in slackish water just off the bank and practically ran onto the streamer at high speed. If the hook gets stuck deep in the mouth, you are lost without long pliers. The standard pliers are usually too short for a large huchen. The teeth of a large huchen are strong and bent slightly backwards. If you had to reach into its mouth and the huchen shakes its head ... I don't even want to imagine what a hand would look like then.
Since it would probably not be possible to remove the hook straight away, the procedure would also be life-threatening for the fish. I was glad I had the long pliers, even though I have only needed them once. In my opinion, however, a pair of longer, strong pliers should be part of the standard equipment of a Huchen fisherman, in addition to the standard pliers.
Clothing
Waterproof and reliable clothing is very important if it comes to fishing under severe weather conditions. My Field & Fish clothing (here Respirant 5C Expert waders and Expert Pro Sonic jacket) is probably by far the best you can get in regard to the money-value ratio. Check the Field & Fish website!
Rivers With Significant Hucho Populations
Over 60% of the waters with hucho populations are in the Balkans. Especially the Drina river system with its numerous tributaries in Serbia and Montenegro was considered the paradise for Huchen par excellence, which even let the Mongolian Taimen rivers pale. Only a poisoning of the Drina put an end to this. The populations there are unfortunately only a shadow of the past. Nevertheless, the huchos are still living there in many waters and remain the undisputed kings of the rivers.
Other waters where you can fish for huchos:
Mur (AT), Gail (AT), Drava (AT), Inn (AT), Danube (AT), Pielach (AT), Melk (AT), Sulm (AT), Gmundner Traun (AT), Lech (DE), Isaar (DE), Iller (DE), Regen (DE), Mitternach Ohe (DE), Wertach (DE), Sava Bohinjka (SLO), Sava Dolinka (SLO), Sava (SLO), Ljublanica (SLO), Sora (SLO), Kupa / Kolpa (SLO / CRO), Savinja (SLO), Drina (SER / MO), Lim (MNE), Tara (MNE), Vrbas (BIH), Sana (BIH), Una (BIH, only spin fishing, fly fishing in June), Krka (CRO), Mresnitsa (CRO), Dobra (CRO), div other lesser-known rivers in the Balkans, Boprad (POL / SK), Dunajec (POL / SK), San (POL), Don, Vah (SK), Tisa (UA ), Rio Tormes (ESP)
Information about the rivers can be found on the internet. Usually, a special license is required if you intend to fish for Huchen.
Recommended Hucho Lodges
River Kupa Lodge in Gorski Kotar(CRO)