Saturday, April 07, 2018: As part of the C.B.F. accompaniment, I accompanied, ontheold RhineinFessenheim, Frank, a German flyfsherman eager to confront with a big river and perfect his technical baggage. The weather was beautiful and rather mild for the season (+ 22 °). The level of the old Rhine was perfect for fly fishing (see photos) But the water lightly tinted with, already, filamentous algae from here and there. A careful observation throughout the day only allowed to see a few rare chironomids and no rising fish of the day. It was obviously a pity, but of little importance, because the program was determined. Reading the posts on a very large river, introduction to the techniques of wet fly fly and the streamer, that Frank did not master yet. Painting the currents with the aid of a sinking lind, we have extensively tested the NTO and TVC-1 inwetfly fishing and then the streamer CBO (Olive-brown sculpin). Attentive and diligent, Frank progressed throughout the day, but no bite came reward his efforts. The midday snack accompanied by an excellent cahors wine added a positive touch to this day rich in experiences.
The reintroduction of salmon into the Rhine and its tributaries has continued since the launch of the 2000 salmon plan. A new management plan for migratory fish in the Rhine-Meuse basin was launched in 2016. Since the end of the years 2000, between 60 and more than 200 salmon have been recorded each year at the Iffezheim Fish pass on the Rhine. See details of the fish counted on the Saumon Rhin association website.
On the Bruche, the salmon go up too.
In November 2004, prior to the construction of the fish pass, nine salmon were counted at the foot of the Avolsheim dam on the Bruche, before being returned to the top of the fall. Unfortunately they were only males. The Avolsheim Dam on the Bruche, formerly considered impassable for salmon, was equipped with a bypass river type pass in 2010. Since then, spawning grounds for salmon and sea trout have been discovered annually upstream of the threshold.
big salmon of the Rhine
This superb salmon measures 96.5 cm for 8,200 kg and was captured in the Iffezheim trap on Sunday, December 17, 2000. He was of course released upstream, after full scientific review!
On December 11, 2005, Jacky VOELKER, manager of the fishing tackle store “Fario” in Dorlisheim, caught (and handed) by fishing the pike with the dead fish, a salmon from 64 cm by Ernolsheim on Bruche. I personally found myself with a 80 cm salmon passing 20 cm from my wading shoes by fishing the graylings on the Bruche at Molsheim in the fall of 2015. The previous year, between Molsheim and Avolsheim, still fishing the grayling at the end of the season, I picked up, fishing with a nymph, a very large fish, total silvery, very fine and lively. I would not swear it was not a salmon.
These experiments suggest that it is also possible for a fly fisherman to catch a salmon in Alsace, even if it stays difficult.
Catching an Atlantic salmon with a fly is also possible in Alsace
To plan a fly fishing day at the old Rhine, it is important to know its level. I created this page in the idea that it can help you to see more clearly.
In the absence of certainty concerning the old Rhine, it will allow you to know in real time (with relative reliability) the level of the old Rhine at the moment when you visit the page. With thanks to the data, in German, of the “Hochwasser-Vorhersage-Zentrale Baden Württemberg “(HVZ).
To fully understand the data that will appear on your screen, here are some preliminary explanations, under which you will find an explanation table!
The German webpage displays the levels of the Rhine in meters, under the tab “Messwerte“, over the last few days. The levels are measured at different rain gauges (“Pegel” in German). The one we are interested in is that of Rheinfelden, located on the Rhine upstream of Basel, conditioning the fishing on the course of the old Rhine, located downstream. They are displayed as a table, by clicking “Wasserstand als Tabelle” in the top menu. This data is also available in graphic form, by clicking on “Wasserstand als Grafik”. A forecast (trend) is also available under the tab “Abfluss“
Attention! These values, if they determine the release of dams, indicate only the level of the Rhine, and not that of the old Rhine.
And, in order for these figures not to remain abstract, I have prepared a small explication table, the data of which are generally reliable.
data in meters
Flyfishing in the old Rhine
2,50 bis 2,65
Water releases are rare and short-lived. Good conditions for flyfishing
2,65 bis 3,00
Very frequent water releases, random levels.
3,00 bis4,00
Large releases of water. Fly fishing is not possible!
4,00 und mehr
Opening valves in large, it's the flood! (record 6.67 m the 2/05/1999)
Click here to access the German site with the above indications.
In summary, as soon as the level of the Rhine is around 3 m, be very careful, especially if the trend is on the rise. Warning: The Kembs dam is always open around 3.10 m (= + or-1400 m3/s).
In any case, be vigilant, as the water rises very quickly. I advise you to take landmarks on the bank and keep an eye on them.
Fishing on graylings in autumn is one of my flyfishing greatest pleasure. Thymallus thymallus is the Latin name for the grayling, the only representative of the family of thymallids, close to salmonids. It is characterized by a large dorsal fin. It’s been a fish for a long time that fascinates me. I love particulary fishing him in fall, so much so that I dedicated a book to him a few years ago.
A book by Claude Behr
I published this book in 2009. It is dedicated to the quest of a fisherman fishing with the fly the Bruche through the seasons. Here you will read some anecdotes and various reflections on fly fishing, art and nature. You will discover a few fishing spots in Alsace, but also in France and abroad.
In 10 years much water has flowed under the bridges but the situation of the graylings has seriously deteriorated throughout Europe. Predation of cormorants, environmental degradation, global warming, considerable reduction of insects which constitute its staple food, the species is even now threatened in Europe. In 2019 its population has dropped considerably and it is essential that the fly fishermen gently release in the water the thymallids that they are still lucky to catch with their flies.
If you are interested in buying the book, you can get it from Decitre or Amazon, where you can also obtain the digital version.
In 2019, some rare specimens were still available in the Bas-Rhin at the shop of my friend Jacky (Fario in Dorlisheim), in the Haut-Rhin at Passion Pêche (in Neuf-Brisach) and by the shop PLCin Colmar. On the other hand, since 2018, is no longer available in my online shop.
What the critic said
“Autumn graylings” is the title of the book by Claude Behr. Very well written and filled with references, this little book is tasted as an aperitif, by the fire. Article published in the magazin Flyfishing of January-February 2010
“The tribulations of an Alsatian fisherman”. For twenty-seven years, Claude Behr has been unfurling his passion for fly fishing along the Bruche, an Alsatian river that he knows as his pocket. Mixing humour, knowledge of the fish and their milieu, and reflections on a life of fisherman, this book actuated, month after month, the passion of a man for an obscure object of desire: flyfishing. The author also delivers a declaration of love to Nature, a theatre of all his fishing memories. Thus, he evokes his river with tenderness: “The valley of the Bruche is still beautiful in this month which is said to be pretty [may]. The Greens dominate the landscapes, flood the meadows that are constelled with yellow gold buds and dandelion flowers. Claude Behr loves his river and also makes us want to get lost with him. Article published in the magazinPleasure of fishing N ° 82 of January-February-March 2010
The old Rhine is a majestic river. Bordering between France and Germany, it is not always easy to access it. So you need a map of the access to the old Rhine.
Here You will find the location and access to go for the interesting fishing places of the old Rhine on google map.
The level of the old Rhine is changing, and it is advisable to venture carefully into the river if we do wading. You can find information on the levels by clicking here.
