Tsimane Secure River Lodge Hosted Trip Report – October 3rd – 9th

WCA Guide Vance Freed: ‘The idea to host a golden dorado trip to Bolivia took shape during a discussion one evening while hosting a WCA trip to Playa Blanca in Mexico. This was a particularly well traveled group of anglers, so once the topic of “bucket list” trips began to be passed around the group, we were all surprised no one there had ever made the  pilgrimage to the Bolivian jungle to sight fish for golden dorado. The singular opportunity to fish the clear waters of the Secure River and its tributaries had haunted us all from the photos adorning the covers of fishing magazines for decades. The matter was settled then. I declared that I would organize the trip and another round of beers descended to our table. There was revelry that night…

Well it took nearly 3 years to happen, but happen it did. The angst ridden wait only served to ramp up our collective desire. Covid had pushed the trip back from 2020, but we retained the week of Oct 3rd -9th. This is considered late in the season there. A time of year which can either offer low, clear water “technical” fishing,  or rain. As it turned out, we had both.

The Secure lodge is one of three lodges operated by Untamed Angling. The accommodations provided are remarkable, given its location, and the meals were enjoyable and more than adequate. They somehow even have a perplexingly robust wifi signal, which I hate to admit, is helpful. Of all the lodges, Secure sits highest in the drainage at just over 1000 ft above sea level and this, I’m told, is what provides the unique clear water conditions that are unique to the pursuit of golden dorado anywhere in South America. The vast majority of the Dorado in the Secure drainage are migratory. They move upriver from the turbid waters of distant estuaries in order to remain in close proximity to their main food source, the bait fish known as sabalo.

Our group was divided each day in order to lessen the pressure on the various beats, and as a means of exposing each angler to different opportunities. The guides are a devoted and hard working collection of Argentines with a palpable appreciation for dorado as well as the unique setting they work in.

One of the senior guides, Santiago, took me aside on the first night and summed up his thoughts on dorado and how to catch them. “They are like brown trout”, he explained. “Where they live when they’re not eating, where they position themselves when they are looking for food. Even what they’ll eat, like a brown.” I found this to be very accurate.

Most of us fished a 7 or 8 wt rod with a shortish, weight forward taper. This is to help turn over large,  often wind resistant patterns ( Game changers, mouse patterns). We found dorado fishing to be a real casting game. If you have eyes on a fish in clear water in one of the smaller creeks, your cast needs to be accurate and often has to happen with very little room behind you for a back cast. If you’re fishing the main river, it is primarily a wading game which requires one to throw long casts at structure on or near the opposing bank. Low as the water was during our time there, the need to cast 70 to 80 feet with some degree of accuracy, was common. Dorado, like browns, will sit in numbers under structure like downed trees, root balls and rocks. Ideally, your cast lands on or very near the structure and incites a reactionary bite. Several of the fish I caught  came out of water that required some questionable wading on my part, in order to access a part of the pool or structure that wasn’t otherwise reachable. I believe the lodge customizes the trip in order to suit the needs or abilities of the anglers. Our week was a physical one that required some anglers walking up to 6 miles a day. All walking is done in the dry river bottom and as long as you have the recommended constitution and footwear (felt soled wading boots), it was enjoyable.

As I mentioned, we did have two days of rain, which immediately turned the river a very disconcerting color brown, with less than a foot of visibility. We were all very pleased to learn that dorado are used to finding food under these conditions, and the fish in the lower river became far more active.The rain kept the water temps at a pleasing 92 degrees Fahrenheit ( I took a reading) and I was able to hook and land a 15 lb dorado on a hopper. That’s right, a hopper.

Our group landed 22 dorado and 5 pacu during our week. We witnessed some remarkable encounters with nature that defy description and only take place in foreign, far away lands like the Bolivian jungle. This was the most remarkable fishery we had ever seen and made immediate plans to go back in October 2023. 2022 was sold out already.

This was the best and most engaging trip I have ever taken. I can’t wait to go back…”