Hucho and Marble Trout, Slovenia

As you head south into central and southern Slovenia the mountains gradually fade into rolling hills and pastures. This heavily forested landscape is divided by numerous rivers, from the largest river in the country, the Sava, to the countless smaller chalk streams and spring creeks like the Unica and Krka. In these rivers you will find the Hucho (relative of the Mongolian Taimen), European Grayling, native Brown Trout, Rainbow Trout, Northern Pike and Carp. With so many high caliber species, beautiful scenery, fantastic food and a strong and unique culture, its easy to see why fly fishing Slovenia is a must!

Marble Trout (salmo trutta marmoratus) is considered one of the largest stream-dwelling trout in the world. The largest specimen ever recorded weighed 25 kg (roughly 55 pounds) and was 121 cm long (almost 4 feet long). This beautiful relative of the Brown Trout is only found in streams draining into the Adriatic Sea. With a temultuous past including near extinction in the Soca Valley after WWI, we are proud to report that it is now very common to see Marble Trout on the Soca River.

It is highly likely that you have heard of the GIANT Mongolian Taimen (Hucho Taimen), but you may not recognize this close relative, the Danubian Salmon (Hucho Hucho). This giant predator lives in many of the larger rivers and feeds primarily on smaller fish species. An increadible sport fish which can reach sizes up to 4 feet long or larger!

The Soca River is the primary river we guide in Slovenia. Most fishermen are spellbound when they see the color of this amazing freestone river. The river is full of European Grayling, Marble Trout and trophy Rainbow Trout that grow to 30 inches in length. The extremely clear waters of the Soca translate into difficult fishing for all species. The majority of the time anglers work hard for each and every fish - but there are also times when the fishing is very easy. Last fall we encountered a tremendous Mayfly hatch that accounted for some of the most amazing dry fly fishing any of us had ever seen. We could tell you about the action, but you have to see it to believe it.

Another river we fish is the Unica. Fishing the Unica can be VERY challenging and is therefore not recommended for all anglers. Some sections of the river are designated "dry fly only" and can pose some of the most difficult, but rewarding fly fishing we have found anywhere. In May there is a Mayfly (Danica) hatch on the river that rivals any in the world. Large yellow/white Mayflies (size 8 or larger) hatch in such large numbers, they are sometimes collected and shoveled into pens to feed chickens and pigs! If you hit this hatch right expect to witness some of the best dry fly fishing in Slovenia. While the majority of the fish are not huge there is something special about catching Brown Trout in their native waters. While fishing the Unica can be very rewarding, we would like to stress that this is a difficult river and we only recommend it to the highly accomplished angler!

We are teamed up with Beattie Outdoor Productions, who works with Miha Ivanc (sport fishing manager for the Fisheries Research Institute of Slovenia) to create a US based guide opperation traveling to Slovenia. We will be offering our service in the spring (May) and fall (October) of 2008. Our mission as a guide service is simple: to create customized fishing expeditions for small groups of anglers, designed to showcase the best fly fishing, scenery and food/wine in the country. This is as personalized as it gets!

Our Slovenia fly fishing trips are competely different from the lodge based trips many anglers are accustomed to. All packages are priced with and without meals included because we've found that some anglers woud rather eat on their own budget, plain and simple. Also, prices reflect the extremely high license prices on Slovenian rivers (often times around 100 euros a day or higher). We also have a wide variety of lodging options - from the best Slovenia has to offer...to more modest "trout bum" type lodging options. We're willing to work out a travel package that suits your needs!

We have created basic fishing packages based on a week long fishing excursion. While we feel these packages offer the best of Slovenian fishing and travel, we are happy to create customized fishing vacations!


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