Madeira Island fly fishing
- This topic has 21 replies, 10 voices, and was last updated Aug 17, 2015 at 11:56 am by
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Hi all!
My name is Joao Mota and live in Madeira Island, on the other side of the Atlantic from you guys. We don´t have big rivers over here, but plenty small mountain streams almost all have trouts above the 200mts from the sea. Some of them are fishable, and some inaccessible. The trouts were introduced in the 50’s by the government mostly rainbows, but for some time brown trout too. Today the browns are almost all gone and the rainbows continue to be dropped every year in some protected streams.
Fortunately nature has found a way for them to reproduce and it is common to see rainbow fry with one or two centimeters in some pools.
I left you some pictures of Madeira Island geography, streams and trouts.
In some places we must take a path called levedas or veredas, usually courses of water man made to take the water from the streams to other parts for irrigation.
Some of our Madeira trouts…
Our streams
Normaly I use a 7’6” #3 Redington Tempt with a Redington Drift 2/3 reel.
Long thread folks…sorry,
jmota
That is SO awesome. Wow. Thanks a ton Joao for posting this. Do you know what strains of rainbow trout were stocked? Those are quite colorful; obviously they had to come from the western U.S. Were there native species of fish on Madeira? I had the idea that it was a much smaller place than what those pictures make it appear to be.
If someone wanted to come there how would they go? Through Lisbon? I assume there is air service? What about the logistics of fishing on the Island? Do you need an island-wide license or do you rent beats European-style? That fishery looks closest to what I saw in the Appalachians of Vermont.
Zach
No Zach, and I dont know if its even documented…
The only fresh water fish besides trouts are eels, I think they are native. Plenty of saltwater game!Madeira island is about 740.7 km²(aprox. 286 sq mi), 57kmx22km. And the highest peak is 1862meters. And lots of valleys almost all with all year water.
Yes, I think that from the US you must came through Lisbon, or some other european city.
For fishing in the island we have what you need if fly fishing in the streams, there is a guide service for fly fishing in the island that have all the gear needed, and that take care of the licences required. If you came for the saltwater game, its the same but with much more offer.
That is awesome, Joao! Thanks for posting that – it’s always really cool to see the fishing, landscape, and scenery of a destination that is as isolated as Madeira. Looks like a beautiful place.
Tim
Thanks for the post and great photos Joao !
Your water and trout are lovely.www.dsaphoto.com
A picture is thousand words that takes less than a second while a thousand words is a picture that takes a month.
Joao from what I read on the history of Madeira, it looks like those canals date all the way back to the 15th century in some cases. Do the fish actually swim into them in any area?
Zach
Ha! I didn’t even notice that. He’s obviously getting it done though! Joao that might be a little hard on your fly line man. 🙂
Zach
ehehehe
Thats an optical illusion, the line is over the hook keeper and not through…dont even use it to put hooks…
But nice eye Mike!
Mike, have you already been in Madeira?
Hi folks!
Went for a quick trip on a nearby stream to find if trouts are living there…here’s what if found.
And a few more…all with a tweaked PT nymph with UV dubbing…in bad shape after some strikes…
Got to go to some ohter streams to find new fishing ground…eheheheh
Nice Joao! Some of those are pretty fair-sized.
Love the color of the water too. Now I want to come to Madeira.
Zach
Sorry for the long stay away, but i had a stupid bike fall and had my left shoulder injured with a AV joint separation type V…well, been submited to a surgery and now gonna have a nice time just thinking on flies and trouts…
Keep with the tight lines mates, gonna be an avid reader now…
Cheers
Hey Joao –
Sorry to hear that man! Feel free to chime in anywhere here, and if you get back on the water, get us some more pictures! Your island is beautiful.
Zach
Hi all!
Almost 100% from that nasty fall last year…as promised here are some pics from our Madeira island rainbows…
Hope you like!
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