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ANGLING HOLIDAY
First brought to the country from England, the Trout has
made India a welcome home, made even more welcome by the
anglers.
Angling became favorite pursuit of the British during
ninetieth century and it was mainly for this reason that
exotic species viz. brown and rainbow trout were
introduced in Indian rivers and streams. The introduced
species of trout not only soon established in Indian
waters but also bred and propagated fast in view of rich
oxygenated waters and ideal ecological condition of these
rivers.
Trout in India is supposed to be
‘tough’ but they do take a fly although the best game
happens on spinners. A great place is as important as the
fishing itself, as is keeping it good for fishing. To this
end, our camps and retreats are set at some of the most
picturesque places along the rivers we fish. There's
nothing quite like waking up to a Himalayan sunrise and
heading straight for a session on the water before you're
fully awake!
Himachal Government has specifically declared Tirthan
river as an angling reserve and taken a historic decision
not to allow any hydro power project on this river as well
as it’s tributaries in order to maintain it’s aquatic
biodiversity.
Brown Trout
Brown trout are indigenous to mountains waters of Central
and Western Europe. They vary in colour form. The two
differentiating features of brown trout are (I) red orange
spots on the body (II) edge of the adipose fins is tipped
with red. Trout belong to family Salmonidae which form
part of lthe order Isospondyli, meaning equal ‘vertebrae’.
All fish belonging to this group have the air bladder
connected to the gullet by a pneumatic duct and the pelvic
fins are abdominal in position. It was introduced in 1899.
Later the stock was sent to Himachal Pradesh and Uttar
Pradesh.
Rainbow Trout
The Brown Trout is a native of European waters and were
introduced to Himalayan streams first in Kashmir in the
1860’s and later from there to the Beas in the 1920’s. The
species thrives best in the temperature ranging between 3
to 15 degrees C. Their body is comparatively short and
deep; more elongated in males than females. Colour varies
depending on size, age and character of water; silvery on
side with irregular located dark spot and sides showing a
red band and blotches; belly merely plain.
The Rainbow that do not breed in the river and are
escapees from the local fisheries, being used to fishery
feeding, are easily caught and rarely grow beyond a pound
in the river.
A typical brown trout has a brown or yellow-brown body,
with black spots on the back, sides, dorsal fin and tail,
especially the upper portion. There are also some red or
bright orange spots scattered down the sides of most brown
trout, sometimes with light blue halos. The tail is
square-ended on most mature fish.
Fishing is banned in trout waters of Himachal Pradesh from
Nov 1- Feb 28 each year to facilitate the fishes to spawn
and propagate.
SOJHA (SERAJ VALLEY, HIMACHAL PRADESH)
BEST TIME TO VISIT: APRIL-
SEPTEMBER
Tirthan is the ideal river for fly anglers; This trip
takes from landscape of plains to the Grandeur or
Himalayas. The trip offers you a unique opportunity to
Fish in different sections of Tirthan river. Tirthan
Valley is located within the Great Himalayan National
Park, the `pucca' road winds its way lazily along the
river through forests and past fields and tiny hamlets,
numerous paths lead off the road to the snow fed river
itself as it gushes its way over the rocks to drop into
pools and spread itself out over flats where every stone
is visible through its crystal clear waters, home to the
wilder brown trout and its cousin, the rainbow trout. An angler's paradise.
The stay would be in our retreat in Sojha where our chef
would happily prepare the fish for you while you share
your great stories of the day around the bonfire.
Day 1: Delhi - Sojha
Fly into Bhuntar. Drive for 2 hrs to Sojha. Check into
Banjara retreat. Acclimatization walk to Sojha village in
the afternoon. Evening around a bonfire.
Day 2-3-4: Sojha - Tirthan - Sojha
Full day fishing in Tirthan River. Carry packed lunch for
the day.
| River: |
Tirthan |
| River head: |
25 kms from Banjara Retreat |
| Fishes found: |
Rainbow, brown Trout |
| Fishing technique: |
Fly fishing |
Day 5: Sojha - Delhi
Drive to Bhuntar airport to fly back to Delhi.
SANGLA (BASPA VALLEY, KINNAUR, HIMACHAL PRADESH)
Sangla valley has many unexplored beats, which offer great
angling opportunities for fly anglers. It was here in 1926
India's first Trout breeding farm was established. The
river Baspa is stocked by a large trout hatchery that has
recently (2006) been renovated. River Baspa offers a great
opportunity for Brown Trout fly-fishing. Smaller trout are
rarely caught and the excitement of landing something big
is always there. Single-handed fly rods, length 8-9',
class 5-7 will suit best for this fishing. This trip
provides ideal opportunity for fly-fishing one can ask
for. It is an experience which involves great fishing in
places where very few anglers have cast for brown trout
with local fishing guides.
Day 1: Delhi -Chandigarh (240 kms) – Thanedar (195 kms/6.5 hrs)
Reach Chandigarh by Shatabdi express at 1045 hrs. Met by
our representative, drive to Thanedar. Check into Banjara
retreat. Evening at leisure.
Day 2: Thanedar - Sangla (156 kms/ 5-6 hrs)
After breakfast, drive to Sangla. Arrive in Sangla early
evening. Overnight stay in Banjara camp, Sangla.
Day: 3-4-5 Sangla - Full day fishing
| River: |
Baspa |
| Stretch: |
Number of stretches |
| Fishes found: |
Rainbow and brown Trout |
| Fishing technique: |
Fly Fishing/ Spin Fishing |
Day 6: Sangla - Thanedar
Drive back to Thanedar. The adventurous ones may hike down
to St. Mary’s church in the afternoon on arrival. Night
stay in Banjara Orchard retreat.
Day 7: Thanedar - Kalka - Delhi
After breakfast, drive back to Kalka to board evening
Shatabdi express train back to Delhi.
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