Secure Lodge – Overview & Fishing
The six-person Secure Camp is similar in set-up to the Aqua Negra camp with the main difference being that it is further upriver. Its location requires access from an airstrip in the small indigenous village of Asunta, and then a short boat ride (approximately 15-30 minutes dependent on water levels) upstream to the camp. This camp exists to provide access to the upper Secure system and its various tributaries that team with large golden dorado, pacu and yatorana. A typical week will find guests fishing a broad range of productive waters, ranging from slow meandering flows with deadfall-lined banks to rocky/plunge pool sections as you ascend into the Secure headwaters.
The emerald green water and moss-lined cliffs of the Secure headwaters provide incredible scenery and a great backdrop to witness a dorado feeding frenzy! It is not uncommon to have the water explode as a ravenous pack of dorado corner and destroy a school of their favorite prey, the sabalo. The ferocity and mayhem of these ambushes has frozen many of angler; however, we recommend that you cast because anything thrown into the churning water will be immediately destroyed! It is also a good place to slowly work upstream scanning the water for holding dorado that can be sight fished to with large top water flies or lightly weighted streamers. These fish can be spooky and demand accurate casts but there is no better sight in the world in our opinion than watching a huge dorado sip a well presented topwater or streamer pattern. This section of the river also offers some of the best pacu fishing in Tsimane, and watching their large black shapes appear as they lazily cruise a pool is sure to raise your heartbeat and get your adrenalin pumping.
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Access to the headwaters is more involved and for this reason the Secure Program offers optional camping trips to take full advantage of these rugged and pristine waters. We highly recommend that camping be arranged prior to your departure, and will work with you on arranging, explaining, and preparing you for this amazing experience!
FishFurtherTravel Expert Tip: Always have a small black streamer or ball fly at the ready on a 40-lb wire bit guard tippet when fishing upriver from the lodge or in the tributaries. A 12-16” section with a perfection loop is all you need, which facilitates a quick fly change through a loop to loop connection when a pacu or school of pacu presents themselves. Also, when casting the ball fly you must open up your loop or risk hitting yourself with the fly! This can be a painful experience that is negated with an open loop on a side-arm cast. We have a favorite selection of pacu flies that we will share with you as your prepare for your trip! Like the sections of the Secure at Agua Negra and Pluma, the upper Secure River below the lodge is still a small-size river with a lower gradient that still has plenty of faster runs and pools! The river bottom is sandy, which results in the off-color, tea-stained water. Numerous down trees line the banks and some are also present mid-river. This is more of a blind-casting fishery with the focus on specific areas that are known to hold fish and targeting the numerous downed-trees that are likely holding spots that provide dorado with perfect ambush points.
Dugouts with long-tail motors are used to access the fishing beats where you will exit the boat and fish the productive water. Some float fishing is also employed in select sections; however, most fishing is done on foot with relatively easy wading.A good caster can easily get by with an 8-weight here; however, in our opinion it is still wise to step up to a nine or even 10-weight set-up. This lets the rod do more of the work as you throw larger flies and make long casts with less effort. An intermediate line is still the preferred line of choice in this section of the river! Please contact us because we have specific line recommendations that have served us well on the upper Secure! Large weighted Andino patterns are the norm on the upper Secure. Large top rodent patterns and pole dancers also work well, and it is worth the effort of casting them to witness the vicious surface take of a large dorado!
Fishing Program: Anglers will fish the upper reaches of the Secure system as well as optional tributaries accessing approximately 20-miles of pristine water out of the main camp. Secure anglers will fish two anglers per motorized dugout with an English-speaking professional fishing guide as well as one or two native boatmen. The headwater sections and tributaries are mainly accessed through push pole wooden dugouts and foot travel. This is fairly rugged terrain that is best suited for reasonably fit anglers who are comfortable with covering long distances in rocky terrain that is synonymous with large freestone streams. Anglers who are familiar with mountainous backcountry, trout streams will love and feel right at home in the headwaters of the Secure! After a portion of your trip is spent in this rugged terrain, much easier access and wading awaits you in the main river downstream of the lodge! Overall, the Secure Fishing program and associated beats are well designed to provide both blind casting opportunities on the main river sections and spot and stalk style sight casting conditions that are common in the headwaters and tributaries.
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Accommodations and Meals: The Secure Lodge was carved out of the jungle and built using a combination of site-milled hardwood and material shipped up the river and is best described as simple, yet elegant. The Lodge has a main building where anglers enjoy meals and cocktails, family-style. Double-occupancy, safari-style tents with suitable beds, full linens and private bathrooms and showers provide comfortable accommodations that is a rarity when you consider how remote this camp is in the Tsimane jungle! The Lodge is also equipped with generator power with battery back-up, on demand hot water and wireless internet service. We highly recommend WhatsApp for simple communication with family and friends at home! The food at the Lodge is excellent and consists of a variety of local and gourmet meals prepared with a wonderful flair. Excellent Argentinian wines are expertly paired with the meals, and cold beer and various spirits are also available!
Season: July– October
Capacity: 6 anglers
Day 1 (Wednesday): Depart from Home
Day 2 (Thursday): Arrive Santa Cruz, Bolivia. At the international airport you will be met by a member of the Tsimane team and transferred to a five-star hotel for an overnight stay. We highly recommend dinner at Hanzo, which provides excellent Bolivian gin-based cocktails and Asian fusion cuisine!
Day 3 (Friday): Charter flight to the landing strip in Asunta Village. Upon landing, you will be met by your professional fly fishing and indigenous guides, who will transfer you via boats to the camp. At the camp, you will show to your tents, and given an overview of the weeks fishing. The guides will help you rig your set-ups and are experts at attaching the wire bite guards to your leaders!
Days 4 -9 (Saturday – Thursday): Six full guided days of fishing on the upstream and downstream beats of the Secure and its associated tributaries.
Day 10 (Friday): In the morning, guests will be transferred by boats to the Asunta Village/air strip for the charger flight back to Santa Cruz. A Tsimane representative will meet you at the airport and transfer you back to the hotel for an overnight stay.
Day 11 (Saturday): Transfer to the international airport for your flight home.
Rates and Details:
2022 - 2023 rate 7 nights / 6 fishing days = Give us a call best price guarateed!
What’s Included
•In-country air transfers between the Santa Cruz Airport and the Lodge
•Ground transfers in Santa Cruz
•Lodging in a double occupancy room in Santa Cruz for one night at arrival and one night at departure date in 5-star hotel ( http://www.lostajiboshotel.com/ )
•All meals at the Lodge
•Argentine wines, soft drinks and all alcoholic beverages at the Lodge
•All guided fishing (two anglers per boat)
•Laundry services