Ed Blank's Adventures Main Page

Tackle and Gear for Fly Fishing the Amazon



Recommended Tackle

  (Travel rods in 3-4 piece construction are helpful for carry-on purposes. Extra rod , reel, and fly lines are strongly suggested.):

  • Rods: An 8-10 weight rod will be sufficient for the species that are caught on a fly.
  • Reels: You will want at least two set-ups – one with a floating line, and the other with a sink tip line like a Teeeny 300.  Then I would add a full sinking line as wellBoth will need at least 100 yd. of backing.

  • Leaders: Short leaders of 4-6 feet work well for the majority of fish. Bring both 30 lb. shock tippet and 30 lb. wire leaders. For peacocks bring a large spool of 40 pound mono - you will go through a lot. If you're trying for a IGFA record, you'll have to follow their leader specifications.

Other Gear:

  • Wire in weights 30, 40, 50
  • Nippers, wire cutter, hook hone, forceps and pliers
  • Reel lubricant, line cleaner, rod and reel repair kit
  • Waterproof tape to protect fingers
  • Tape measure

Remember that most of the fish have sharp or rough teeth and will destroy your line, leaders and lures readily. You will want to be prepared with plenty of extras .

Recommended Flies

The Amazon fish will attack your flies and lures voraciously. Many will be lost or destroyed so make sure you bring plenty. We bring far more than we think we’ll use, and we always use everything!

  • Pacu—Flies: poppers sizes 4-8, in chartreuse or orange (imitating the fruit food sources.) They will occasionally take streamers sizes 1/0- 2/0, all with white belly and silver flash in yellow, red, blue or green.
  • Peacock Bass—Flies: poppers sizes 2/0-4/0 in red/white, blue/white and green/white. Streamers fished on sinking lines seem to be most productive (not only in terms of overall numbers of peacocks, but for larger-sized fish as well). Popular streamers include 6-inch (5/0) bi-colored, heavily-dressed bucktails in red/yellow, olive/white, black/white, and orange/black. Big Deceivers, Bunnies, Saltwater Zonkers, Clousser Minnows, and other flashy bait-fish imitations all take fish. All patterns should have generous amounts of matching Flashabou or Crystal Flash. Big saltwater poppers are exciting to fish, but can be extremely exhausting to cast and retrieve for a prolonged period. Gaines saltwater popper in red/yellow and pearl/olive hold up well and are hard to beat in terms of their 'action' in water. 'Sliders' are productive in clear water situations. Popovic's 'Silicone Mullet' in olive and white is hard to beat. Fly SHADE seems more important than COLOR depending upon light conditions. For this reason have an adequate selection of light and dark patterns. We recommend that you bring at least two dozen streamers
  • Matrinxa—Flies: streamers similar to those for Peacocks work well in sizes 2 - 2/0. Also 4“ grasshoppers in bright green with orange or yellow underbody.
  • Piranha—Flies: streamers in sizes 2 – 2/0 in blue or green with heavy silver flash.
  • Payara/Cachorra—Flies: streamers the same as for Peacocks, with wire leader and very sharp hooks.
  • Traira—Flies: streamers in sizes 1/0 – 4/0 with wire leaders in same colors as for Peacocks.
  • Catfish—Bait is by far the best way to catch the catfish. Hooks in sizes 4/0 – 10/0 are required for the different species, with wire leaders and sliding sinkers from 1-3 oz.

Personal Gear - Please note that you are allowed 44 pounds of luggage TOTAL  for the float plane trip.

    • Sunscreens SPF 15, 30, 45, Zinc Oxide Sunblock for lips and nose
    • Hat with brim and neck guard )
    • Long sleeve shirts
    • Long pants for fishing,
    • White socks ( tops of feet can get burned in the boats)
    • Sunglasses (polarized of course)
    • Bathing suits
    • T-shirts
    • Shorts
    • Underwear
    • Sandals
    • Boat and walking shoes
    • Beach towel
    • Rain jacket (an occasional cold squall will roll though!)
    • Bug repellent (not often needed but important if you do)
    • Camera & film
    • Reading & writing materials
    • Snorkel equipment
    • Some cash to tip guides (Brazilian or US )
    • fishing tackle and equipment
    • extra eyeglasses
    • Passport
    • rod repair kit with tip top and ferrule cement

     

     

 Ed Blank's Adventures on the fly
Ed Blank's Adventures Main Page

PO BOX 180446  BOSTON  MA 02118
Phone: 888-857-6700  
Fax: 617-427-7890
ed@flyfishingheaven.com