I don’t know if they will be the elite or not, but at the end of October I was lucky enough to fish with some of the best rods in the country… And since we were with “the elite” joke all week, I decided to headline the article “fishing with the elite”. The trip started at the end of the summer with a: “Hey Fabra, I’m going to take the last week of October cows to see if there are any donkeys in Extremadura, do you want to come?” and Alex Fabra said: “We will have to go for the three thousand ones”, and that’s when it all started…
Organizing the trip
We didn’t talk about it again for weeks and when the date approached the group grew: Jonathan Villén (el Joma) and Javi Zarza (the boy of the three thousands) joined the expedition, and I was delighted to share a few days with them. We were also lucky enough to share a day with Manute, Castilla, Adri and Mario Asensio. I feel privileged to be able to fish on these scenarios and in such good company.
Things started off as they should have, with beers, rations, fishing stories… and a good morning’s sleep the next day, to start the excursion “rested”, as the canons say.
Day 1, fishing with the elite
The first day we started at Sierra Brava, a reservoir where Zarza and I had had very good days the previous weeks… Morning began and the bites followed one another incessantly, the pity is that most of them were pike and they were very undecided so we could barely hook a couple of them. The day went on and the greens barely made an appearance, and when they did, they either didn’t bite or did so very shyly… Finally, at midday, at a point, Fabra was able to catch a very good fish, which would be the biggest fish of the trip. A pity that it was so thin, because in normal conditions that fish would surely have passed the 3 kg barrier.
We continued fishing and, except for pike and zander, which occasionally gave us a scare, the greens continued to make it difficult for us. A little before lunch, we were able to catch a beautiful bass that had bitten a walker after a long stop. It was time to have lunch with the “cacereños” and spend the afternoon together, more focused on chatting and having a good time than on trying to fish at 100%, as the fish were making it really difficult.
The expedition continues…
On the second day we decided to go to Orellana, where we had few results as the previous day, but learning a lot too. I am starting to fish with swimbaits and being able to fish alongside great experts in the field was very enriching, even if the fish were not with us. We could have caught a +3kg, if lucky even 2, but they didn’t help or they got off the hook. Thursday and Friday we returned to Sierra Brava with slightly better results, although not for shooting rockets either… and on Saturday we were lucky enough to be able to take a day trip by boat with the great Mario Asensio.
Another day of learning in which we could suffer in our flesh a hard day typical of Orellana. We visited several of the best spots in the lake, attacking them with different techniques and presentations but the fish were very reluctant and elusive. We hardly saw any activity and most of the bites were once again of pike and zander.
The truth is that the conditions were hardly any better throughout the week: cold front, very little wind, generally quite clear days… Excellent days in the countryside which, unfortunately, are usually bad for fishing at this time of year.
Last bullets, fishing with the elite
Sunday and the last day of fishing with Fabra and Joma arrived. We returned to Sierra to finish where we started. The tonic continued to be the usual one, few bites, most of them more caused by our presentations than because the fish were eating… At the last minute, when Zarza and Joma were almost at the car, Fabra and me decided to stay in a small creek where we had a good but brief peak of activity. Perhaps the only one of the week in which we could even see several attacks on bleaks. Even so, the fish weren’t very keen on the work and we could only catch a good bass and a few nice pikes.
We probably got the wrong area on some days, as we decided to fish in areas where we knew there were quality fish but which were under great pressure and perhaps we should have tried other areas… We will never know if we are wrong or not, but here is the beauty of fishing. Accumulating experiences, learning, sharing with great fishermen and above all excellent people. I cannot conceive of fishing without that good atmosphere of good vibes and camaraderie that surrounded us the whole trip. Personally, I prefer fishing alone to fishing with a “pro” with whom I have no feeling and can fully enjoy…
And the final stroke
And when Monday arrived, Fabra and Joma loaded the van and set off for their respective homes. Zarza and I, having nothing better to do, went to spend the afternoon in Sierra with our friends from Cáceres. After some good food (we won’t fish but eat…) we decided to divide the group and fish 2 different areas to increase the chances of success.
But when they are not there, they are not there (or we could not find them) and we could only get a black bass to finish the trip. Now it’s time to reflect, to try to learn from the mistakes made and to put into practice everything we’ve learned in order to try to focus better on future outings. We will never stop learning… And when you join fishermen with the experience, the technical skill and the ability to read the water like those I was lucky enough to accompany… You realize that you have much more left than you thought.
I hope we meet again soon in the water friends, it was a real pleasure to share these days with you. Cheers and good fishing!
