Austria is better known for skiing than it is for fly fishing. But this lovely European country offers, without question, the finest trout and grayling fishing in the world. Rivers like the Gmundner Traun, the Salza, the Mur, the Steyr, the Isel or the Drau attract anglers from all over the world. Indeed the Mur at one stage held the world record brown trout, weighing 16kg. The country’s alpine streams provide brown and rainbow trout, brookies and grayling. You can also find the Danube salmon(hucho hucho), which is related to the Siberian taimen (hucho taimen and hucho perri).
After the snow melt many of Austria’s rivers – though not those with pond and release power plants – are as clear as crystal for the rest of the season. These offer truly excellent fly fishing.
One apocryphal saying among anglers goes like this: "If you want to fish for huge trout, go to Montana! If you want to catch them - go to Austria!" This idea has arisen for a number of reasons, not just because the catch is a bit easier in Austria. Another point is that Austria’s rivers are not as crowded as those of the USA and they are usually fast flowing. Which means that trout have to eat more if they want to survive the strong winters. Only a few of Austria’s rivers are more difficult to fish.
More on fly fishing in Austria next time.
