Yellow Dog’s Jungle Programs provide adventure in South America and Africa
If you’re searching for a totally wild, remote, and off-the-grid fishing experience, Yellow Dog Flyfishing Adventures’ offers a fantastic line-up of the planet’s most unique freshwater fishing destinations. From the heart of the world’s largest jungle in the Amazon to the ancient rift valleys of Tanzania, our in-depth experience with truly adventurous destinations means you get the adventure and the excitement without the uncertainty and anxiety that is often-times associated with this kind of travel. The vetted destinations in our ever-expanding jungle program provide the world’s most exotic freshwater fishing adventures – from tigerfish in Africa to peacock bass in Brazil to golden dorado in Bolivia. These exciting options and unique jungle programs perfectly cater to anglers desiring a new angling high.
We do recognize the fact that a fishing adventure to a jungle destination may not be for everyone. It is an angling journey to a very remote destination, and some of these options may be a bit too far outside of one’s “comfort zone.” That said, Yellow Dog’s experience in world-wide angling travel and our expansive knowledge of every destination we book and offer ensures top-rate guides, seamless logistics, and destinations that deliver.
When choosing to make a trip to one of our jungle destinations, you not only leave the familiar aspects of trout fishing or even saltwater flats fishing behind, but you also step out of your normal comfort zone into a world that is completely unfamiliar; a world that is home to amazing, exotic and often-times shocking fish species set amongst sights and sounds rarely seen in the developed world.
Jungle Species
The jungle environment epitomizes life in its rawest and most primal form — with an abundance of water and an incredible variety of aquatic species. With years of exploring and chasing gamefish throughout the world, we’ve created opportunities for anglers to pursue the most exciting species in some of the wildest places on earth.
Arapaima
Found in Guyana and Brazil, this prehistoric and massive fish is the largest scaled freshwater fish in the world. Heavily armored with massive scales and a huge, tarpon-like head and mouth, arapaima typically ambushes their prey in a ferocious way. These fish routinely reach more than six feet in length and occasionally over eight feet.
Golden Dorado
Powerful, beautiful, and indigenous to the regions they call home, this voracious predator is often found in secluded and pristine jungle waters. Many Dorado rivers in Bolivia look very much like small, clear-water trout streams. Imagine fishing these intimate waters for giant, golden predators that rank among the most violent and exciting sportfish in the world. Dorado are also found in larger and muddier rivers in northern Argentina. The great thing about this gamefish is the way that these predators will attack a well-presented baitfish fly.
Peacock Bass
The peacock bass is an incredibly strong, acrobatic, and aggressive fish that has captured the imagination of fly anglers for decades. Most takes are topwater and often so ferocious that the entire fish comes out of the water as it takes the fly. Most fish go aerial in a tarpon-like display of leaping and tailwalking and repeat this until you finally bring the fish to hand after a thrilling battle.
Pacu
Often dubbed the permit of the jungle, these fish can offer great sight-fishing opportunities when a break from the aggressive Dorado is needed! Pacu are strong fighters and pull hard – similar in many ways to saltwater flats permit. They can be selective feeders, demanding accurate casts. In certain jungle rivers, pacu are omnivores and often feed on fruit that has fallen into the water. If an angler is looking for any sort of “matching-the-hatch” type of fishing in a jungle environment, targeting pacu as an add-on to a Dorado trip may fit the bill.
Tigerfish
Appropriately named because of their aggressive takes and vicious, protruding fangs, these fish are found in the wilds of the African jungle. The tigerfish is a silver-colored, toothy, predatory species that will eat anything in their path – from baitfish to birds to mammals equal to their size. Many fish can be caught while wading clear rivers (where there are no crocs!) or caught from a boat on the larger rivers and lakes (where there are crocs). Not afraid to hit surface flies, these violent, acrobatic leapers are as wild and “jungle” as it gets.
Other jungle species
Jungle rivers are home to an abundance of fish. Various types of piranhas, payara, aruana and more, round out the list of available species. One of the greatest things about fishing in remote and exotic jungle waters is that you literally never know what will hit your fly!
Destinations
Argentina
In the far northern regions of Argentina lie a network of easily accessible rivers that are home to strong numbers of Golden Dorado. Here, anglers can explore productive waters that are within easy reach of Buenos Aires or even the trout fishing in Patagonia (which can make for a fantastic combo trip!) These dorado destinations are easy to arrange and cater to anglers of all skill levels.
Bolivia
From our personal experience, a trip to the jungles of Bolivia is one of the most incredible, unique, one-of-a-kind fishing trips in existence. The remote nature of the fishing in this area, the exotic wildlife, and the overwhelming beauty of the region all combine to create incredible angling and travel experience that is without a doubt one of the most interesting and unique in the world of destination fly fishing. On top of all this, the fishing for huge, vicious Golden Dorado is the best in the world.
+ Listen to this WAYPOINTS Podcast: MARCELO PEREZ - Bolivian Golden Dorado and a Life of Adventure
Brazil
The Amazon Rainforest is the largest rainforest in the world, and the Amazon Basin is the world’s largest freshwater river system – home to a culture of people as unique as the jungles they inhabit. This is the land of the peacock bass: an incredibly strong, acrobatic, and aggressive gamefish that has captured the imagination of fly anglers for decades. It is a lush, jungle landscape of endless angling possibilities and an experience not to be missed.
Guyana
The small South American country of Guyana is situated east of Venezuela, west of Suriname, and north of Brazil. Thick, tropical rainforest covers more than 80% of this country, which collectively is home to more than 15% of the planet’s freshwater. The jungles of Guyana are also home to one of the largest, most exotic, and most unique gamefish found anywhere in the world of sportfishing – the prehistoric and massive arapaima.
Tanzania
Fly fishing “in the heart of darkness” sums up the experience with this tigerfishing option. Set deep in a corner of the Tanzanian wilderness, this area is home to monster 20-pound-plus tigers. A trip to this part of Tanzania is without a doubt a journey to the wildest edge of fly fishing, and Yellow Dog is proud to work with a small group of excellent and experienced guides whom we guarantee are the very best in the entire region.
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