SPECIES TO FISH FOR

Our fishing waters include foothill dams, springfed rivers, snowfed rivers and some icy trout waters. All waters have their own fish life. Some can be caught on rod and line, some cannot. We're into specimen size fish and have been developing and researching fisheries to that effect. Here's a brief overview of what we can help you catch. ......................................................................................................................................................

Mahseer: Golden or yellowfin and redfin mahseer (Barbus tor putitora and Barbus tor tor ) Both species inhabit our waters. While the Golden or putitora mahseer can be found in snowfed and springfed rivers, it is rare to encounter the Redfin or Tor tor outside springfed waters. Depending upon the location and season, mahseer will keep all anglers happy whether they spinfish, flyfish or baitfish. The smaller ones are the most obliging and hit-happy but once you get through the brats, you can have a go at the big ones that lurk nearby. Specimen mahseer fishing is a matter of timing and planning. Spinning is the traditional way of mahseer fishing and gives good results but the best way of getting into numbers and sizes are to prebait a location and fish it intensively. Best fish caught by team was an 88lbs golden mahseer from the Kali in 2002. Tor putitora, 40lbs, Ramganga river. Angler- Revati Barbus tor tor- redfin mahseer, 17lbs. Angler- Suprio Mukherjee Goonch: Bagarius bagarius Also known by several uncomplimentary names including giant devil catfish and freshwater shark. One of the true megafishes left in the world, goonch can grow to 300lbs given the right circumstances and protection. If you're looking for the heaviest catchable (?) fish, this one is as big as they go. Meet the Goonch, some specimens tip the scales at upto 200kilos. Catching one is reasonably tough, landing them is another story. One of our clients caught the world record of 161lbs from our favourite river, but there are bigger fish to catch. For the sporting angler who likes landing big weights, the goonch can be intensely gratifying or downright frustrating, especially if the cause of loss is weak tackle. Goonch can be extremely local and sometimes very specific in habitat. A short-cut to finding such places is to spend time doing it. The other way is to go with a reliable guide. We've done the first, the second is always available. How big do they get? We've handled a 150kg specimen from the Ramganga. We can take you to places you can actually see them in that weight category (fishing not allowed here). The world record goonch was 73kgs and came out in the buffer zone fishing area. Ignorant anglers tend to kill goonch believing they'll cause less tackle loss and provide space for mahseer. We believe every fish in a river has a place of its own and helps maintain a natural balance. By the standards of removal prevalent these days, a good goonch is anything over 20kgs but there are locations which have been throwing up good 50+kg fish. We believe the new record goonch will come out of the Sarju and Kali rivers at the right time. Best fish we've guided to was Jakub Vagner's 75kg goonch in 2009. Bagarius bagarius, approx. 300lbs, Ramganga river World's first Goonch on TV. 66lbs, angler- Jeremy Wade in Jungle Hooks Brown trout: Salmo trutta farioIn Garhwal, trout were introduced in the early 1920's, at the behest of the Maharaja of Tehri who established one of the first hatcheries in this part of India. The fish were forgotten after Independence from the British in 1947. The hatchery expired in 1990 due to a severe earthquake, was rebuilt but not functional till this year. The browns have managed to make these waters their home. Trout in Uttaranchal are an as yet undiscovered quantity by most anglers, let alone the rest of the world. The fishing is good enough to justify long transit times to locations but once there, it is quite something to connect with trout under snowclad Himalayan peaks. Summers see some amazing hatches of flies and certain streams have much undergrowth leading to a great variety in insects. The local baitfish also curry favour with trout- one specimen of about 2lbs regurgitated a 6" torrent catfish. Another one threw up a 4" snow trout. Our best session on our favourite trout river gave us 98 browns in 2 days between two anglers. The other stream gave us 48 trout in three days of fishing, best fish 5lbs. Most fish were taken on flies, where flies didn't work, the shikari slung spinners to score. 21" Brown Trout. Angler- Aaron Alter. He's 6'5", so the fish always look smaller! 17" Brown trout. Angler- Grant Lee There are other fish to be caught, too- our flatland reservoirs have the native carps like rohu catla, mrigal and lowland catfish like mulley (Wallago attu), Singhara or shovelhead (Aorichthys seenghala). Just let us know what you'd like to catch or where in our part of the hills you'd like to fish and we'll find the time for you. ><"";> Full Article:  Otterreserves