Patagonian BaseCamp

Patagonian BaseCamp, owned and operated by Marcel Sijnesael since 2001, welcomes adventurous anglers to one of the most remote and beautiful corners of northern Chilean Patagonia. Its trout program is built around an exceptional network of rivers, streams, and lakes surrounded by lush forests and towering Andean peaks. Each day, guests explore different fisheries based on conditions and preference, rarely seeing another angler.

Patagonian BaseCamp guests can choose between 7-, 10-, or 11-night programs and whether they wish to include the lodge’s remote outpost camps. The main lodge sits on the banks of the Río Palena and accommodates up to twelve guests in private rooms. Between the camps and the rotating programs, the nightly occupancy in the lodge is usually around 8 guests.

The combination of varied water, seasoned guides, remote outpost camps, and dramatic scenery makes Patagonian BaseCamp one of Chile’s most distinctive fly fishing destinations.

Patagonian BaseCamp is a remote lodge on the Río Palena, surrounded by lush forests, steep river valleys, and dramatic Andean peaks. The main lodge and two standalone deluxe cabins host up to 12 anglers in single rooms, each with private bathrooms. A hot tub and sauna offer relaxation after long fishing days.

Guests also have the unique option to split their stay between the lodge and up to three remote satellite camps: Temple Camp, IslaLeón, and Escondido. These comfortable outposts provide 1–2 nights under the stars and access to rivers that are difficult or impossible to fish otherwise. Each camp features spacious dome tents on raised platforms, comfortable beds with nice linens, heaters, flush toilets, and showers. Since guests rotate through the camps, the main lodge is rarely at full capacity. These camps open up rivers that are simply out of reach from the main lodge — and some are exclusively available on the longer 10 and 11-night programs.

Meals at Patagonian BaseCamp are rooted in Chilean tradition with a Peruvian flair. Expect dishes built around fresh seafood, lamb, pork, steak, and chicken, along with vibrant vegetables and complete breakfasts. Yogurt parfaits and eggs to order are the standard breakfast menu. While every meal in the lodge is memorable, dinners cooked over an open fire at the camps are often the highlight of the trip.

Between the 7-, 10-, and 11-night programs and their camps, the fishing program at Patagonian BaseCamp is more extensive than most Patagonia fishing lodges. Using rafts, catarafts, drift boats, and jet boats, anglers fish a wide variety of rivers and lakes throughout their stay without ever repeating a body of water.

Depending on guest preferences and recommendations from the head guide, anglers may float the Palena, Rosselot, Figueroa, Claro, or Río Pico Rivers. When fishing the lakes, it’s common to spend part of the day fishing the mouths or tails of rivers connecting a lake. Walk-and-wade options are mostly limited to smaller tributaries and one full-day walk-and-wade river we are especially fond of.

Each fishery has a robust population of wild brown and rainbow trout, but it’s well understood to veterans of Patagonian BaseCamp that this is a big brown trout area. Guests can expect to hook double-digit numbers of fish on an average day, though a handful of lakes and rivers reward the persistent angler with few but milestone trout. Twenty-inch fish are caught every day, and trout in the 22 to 23-inch class are landed weekly. Fish significantly larger are caught each month of the season.

Frequent tactics include single large foam dry flies and banging the banks with large streamers. Floating anglers target structure like boulders and logs, while lake fishing focuses on drop-offs and sight-casting to rainbows either cruising or holding under scum lines. Regardless of location, these fish are in excellent shape and act unpressured.

The guide staff includes both Chileans and Americans — many of whom guide internationally — and are highly professional and focused on delivering an outstanding experience.

The lodge offers 7 night, 10 night and 11 night programs, each with 6 rods max and optional overnights at their outpost river camps. Only the 10 and 11 night programs include fishing TempleCamp.

PATAGONIAN BASECAMP LODGE
7 Nights / 6 Days Fishing

Saturday:   Arrive Santiago (SCL). Fly 2 hours to Puerto Montt, taxi transfer 30 minutes to your preferred hotel in Puerto Varas.

Sunday:    Taxi transfer 25 mins to the La Paloma airstrip for your 40 min charter flight to Chaitén. The lodge staff will meet you and transfer you 2 hours to Patagonian BaseCamp. Settle in, assemble gear, cocktails and dinner.

Mon-Sat:   6 full days guided fishing with optional overnight at IslaLeon Camp on the Rio Palena.

Sunday:    After breakfast, transfer back to the airstrip and charter back to Puerto Montt to connect with your flight to Santiago and home.

Rate: $8,995/angler
Included: Lodging in single occupancy unless otherwise requested, guided fishing with license, laundry, meals, open bar, all charter flights, transfers between airstrip and the lodge. Optional overnights in camps.
Not included: Commercial flights, Puerto Varas/Puerto Montt hotels, meals and transfers, travel insurance, services in Santiago, gratuities and gear.

10 NIGHT PROGRAM
(10 Nights / 9 Days Fishing)
This is the same as the 7 night program but runs Tuesday to Friday and includes  an optional 1 or 2 nights at Temple Camp on the Figueroa River and/or a night at IslaLeon Camp on the Rio Palena.
Rate: $13,995/angler

11 NIGHT PROGRAM
(11 Nights / 10 Days Fishing)
This is the same as the 7 night program but runs Friday to Tuesday and includes an optional 1 or 2 nights at Temple Camp on the Figueroa River and/or 1-2 nights at IslaLeon Camp on the Rio Palena.
Rate: $14,995/angler

With over 26 years organizing trips in Chile and Argentina, we make travel planning efficient and worry free.  On your overnight in Puerto Varas, we’ll make sure you know the hotels to avoid and what to specifically request. Our specialized travel agent will also ensures your international flights connect smoothly with the exact domestic flights you need for your lodge dates.

• After an easy overnight flight, anglers land at the Santiago International Airport (SCL) and connect with their flight to Puerto Montt or Puerto Varas (PMC). You’ll get a taxi to your preferred hotel.  The next morning you will taxi 20 mins to the the La Paloma airport to meet a lodge representative for your charter to either Chaiten or La Junta. A lodge representative will pick you up at either Chaiten or La Junta and transfer you 1.5hrs or 30 mins to the lodge.
• After check out, you’ll be transfer back to the airstrips in Chaiten or La Junta for your charter back to Puerto Montt. Connect with your flight to Santiago and home.