Fieldsports Journal Magazine FS Fly Fishing Special Édition spéciale

When asked what they so love about their favourite pastime, fly fishers will invariably cite the beautiful places to which the sport leads them. It has often been said that trout choose to live only in picturesque places – that also seems to be true of salmon, steelhead, bonefish, tarpon, mahseer and all of the myriad species we travel the length and breadth of the planet to pursue.

This Fieldsports guide takes us to 22 such places – destinations that fly fishers from all walks of life either dream of fishing one day, or hope to return to. Yes, each one boasts world-class fishing and a real chance of landing that fish of a lifetime, but, and perhaps more significantly, they are also environments where Mother Nature is at her breathtaking best. Whether it’s the East African plains of remotest Tanzania, the endless Arctic tundra of Alaska or Russia or the tropical paradises of the Seychelles, Christmas Island or the Bahamas, anglers will find themselves surrounded by a spectacular array of life.

You will notice that there is a slight bias in favour of salmonids – Atlantic salmon and brown trout in particular. For this we are unapologetic – these are the species for which the gentle art of fly fishing was first conceived and they are the species that, here in the UK at least, take centre stage. Besides, how could one possibly pick one Atlantic salmon destination from a list that includes Iceland, Norway, the Kola Peninsula, Canada’s Gaspé Peninsula and Scotland’s very own River Tweed? And in the same breath, this guide is by no means comprehensive – invariably there will be dozens of places which have not been included.

Regardless, if it is the sight of a 100lb giant trevally chasing down your frantically stripped streamer or the delicate head-and-tail rise of a pernickety South Island brownie that gets your pulse racing and turns your legs to jelly, then this guide will have something for you.