Three rivers, private spring creeks and trout lakes spread across a 17,000-hectare working estancia in the foothills of the Andes. More water than you could explore in several weeks — and a different fishing experience almost every day.
Northern Patagonia has no shortage of famous rivers and fishing lodges. Estancia Chochoy Mallín is different.
Here, the fishing takes place across a vast working estancia, with three rivers, private spring creeks, trout lakes and access to additional neighboring waters. One morning can mean casting dry flies on a small spring creek; the next, fishing the riffles and long glides of a freestone river beneath the Andes.
But Chochoy is about more than the fishing. Horses are still part of everyday life. Gauchos work the estancia. Roads disappear into mountain valleys. Lunch might be beside the river, and the day may end around a fire with an Argentine asado and a bottle of wine.
It is the kind of Patagonia that is becoming increasingly difficult to find.
Chochoy Mallín has been part of this landscape for generations. Livestock, horses and gauchos remain part of everyday life, just as they were long before anglers began coming here.
Fishing has simply become another part of the estancia.
Ride across the ranch, watch the gauchos at work, walk into the mountains, have an outdoor asado or sit down for a tasting of wines produced by the family that owns the estancia, served in the original adobe estancia house.
There is no need to manufacture a Patagonian experience here. It was already here.
Chochoy Mallín offers one of the most diverse private trout programs in Northern Patagonia. Three rivers cross the estancia, together with private spring creeks and trout lakes, plus access to additional neighboring waters. The result is not simply a lot of water, but remarkably different kinds of fishing.
Freestone rivers. Small spring creeks. Riffles and long glides. Sight-fishing. Dry flies. Nymphs. Streamers. Stillwaters.
The question each morning isn't whether there is somewhere to fish. It's where you want to explore next.
The largest of the estancia's three rivers, a classic Northern Patagonian freestone flowing through broad mountain valleys. Boulder-strewn runs, riffles and long glides create exceptional dry-fly, nymph and streamer fishing for wild rainbow and brown trout. Rich insect life lets anglers change techniques as the day evolves.
A beautifully varied freestone with riffles, runs, deep bends and cutbanks. Plenty of water to explore, with opportunities to fish dries, nymphs and streamers throughout the season.
A completely different game. Clear, intimate water, subtle currents and trout that reward careful approaches and delicate presentations. When the trout are looking up, this is classic spring-creek dry-fly fishing.
Beyond the main rivers are private spring creeks, trout lakes and additional neighboring waters that expand the fishing possibilities even further. That variety matters — it allows the guides to choose water according to conditions, hatches and what each angler wants from the day, or simply to keep exploring somewhere new.
Some days should be spent entirely on the water. Others don't have to be.
Ride horseback across the estancia or into the mountains. Hike to Escaleras al Cielo. Enjoy a picnic in the field. Spend some time at the spa. Join a cooking class. Taste wines produced by the family that owns Chochoy in the estancia's original adobe house.
And some evenings simply belong outside — around the fire, sharing an Argentine asado after another day on the water.
For couples or groups mixing anglers and non-anglers, Chochoy works because the estancia itself is part of the reason to come.
"Most lodges offer a river. Estancia Chochoy Mallín offers an entire Patagonian experience."
Every morning starts with a choice.
Maybe today is the Trocomán. Tomorrow could mean sight-fishing a spring creek. Another day might take you farther into the estancia, to a stretch you haven't seen yet or a trout lake tucked beneath the mountains.
Then you come home.
A glass of wine. A fire. Maybe an asado outside. Horses coming back across the estancia. The mountains changing color as the light disappears.
And tomorrow, you probably won't fish the same water again.
From the first weeks of the season through autumn, Chochoy offers the opportunity to fish an extraordinary variety of Northern Patagonian waters from a single estancia.
The program is designed around flexibility: different rivers, spring creeks and lakes allow each fishing day to be planned according to conditions, hatches and the kind of fishing guests are looking for.
Estancia Chochoy Mallín lies in a remote corner of Northern Patagonia, surrounded by mountain valleys and facing the Andes near Argentina's border with Chile.
Tell us when you'd like to come, who you're traveling with, and the kind of fishing you're looking for. We'll help you plan your week at Estancia Chochoy Mallín.