Text and photos: Michael Plakolb
We didn’t think twice when “ABENTEUER FISCHWASSER” offered us a fishing vacation in September 2022 at the Bierhotel Loncium and to test the fly fishing opportunities around Kötschach-Mauthen. With me were my wife Renate and my two sons Patrick and Gregor. The two are known as “The Fisher Boys” on YouTube and Instagram. As passionate beer drinkers, anglers anyway, this combination seemed to guarantee a great fishing vacation. This should also be more than true!
The Bierhotel Loncium is the starting point and retreat from wild and romantic fishing adventures in the Carinthian Lesach Valley and offers the highest beer delights. Numerous delicious craft beers are produced and served from the in-house brewery.
To start things off, supervising fisherman Karl Zankl gave us information on our three target waters, the Gail, Grünsee and Zollersee lakes. He is the first point of contact and source of information for fishing vacationers in the beer hotel Loncium. The hotel chefs Barbara and Alois, on the other hand, are the gastronomy as well as beer brewing professionals.
The Gail – scenic very charming
Our first test with the fly rod was on the Gail River. It is the largest right tributary of the Drava River and flows through the Tyrolean Gail Valley and then the Lesach Valley. Of historically documented 26 fish species, 17 species currently still occur in the river.
According to Karl, however, the chances of success for a good fish woad be clouded. Unfortunately, the European calamity “otter” has not stopped at this former anglers’ top waters.
Karl Zankl, who runs his own fish farm, has now started with numerous helpers to successively revive the Gail with fish. There are currently already several generations of it in the flow. Old stock fish are of course still there, rain and brown trout up to 1 kg, grayling up to 40 cm and capital huchen up to 30 kg can provide a surprise at any time.
Fishing water for guests free of charge!
The house district of the beer hotel, which has been in the family for generations, is the so-called “Planner” district. It extends for about 2 km and is a very scenic route. It is located about 20 minutes drive from the hotel. Fly fishing with a barbless dry fly or nymph is allowed in this area. Guests of the hotel fish here free of charge. 2 rainbow trout with a minimum size of 28 cm may be taken. Grayling and brown trout are spared, and the removal of huchen is also prohibited.
The finer the more successful
The reduction of fish has made them even more cautious. Accordingly, thin, slightly longer leaders, i.e. maximum “14s”, are to be used. Dry flies promise good success, especially at midday when the sun shines on the Gail, as well as all nymphs. Preferred for dry fishing is a 9-foot Class 6 rod or an 11-foot Class 7 switch, each with a matching WF line.
Patrick and Gregor tried their luck, I myself preferred the “catch” with the photo camera. Within 6 hours, they fly-scanned the entire stretch between the bridges. The sky was heavily covered with clouds that day and so nymphs were chosen as bait. There are many promising places like pools as well as undercut branches and stones in this part of the stretch. Gregor finally managed to catch a rainbow trout …
