Stillwater · Granite · Castilla y León / Salamanca (Arribes del Duero)

Embalse de Saucelle

Embalse de Saucelle — Embalse de Saucelle

The next great step down the Duero from Aldeadávila, still inside the Arribes del Duero gorge on the international border.

Poor · Pike
Large pike streamer / baitfish (2/0–4) · 8–10
Not the day for it
Good wave on — drift country. Not much stacked in your favour today. Worth an hour if you are nearby, not worth the special trip.
5% confidence
low-confidence read — verify locally

Peak season here starts around September — worth planning ahead.

What moved it
  • WindSW 11 km/hLight breeze
Today's fly
LP
Large pike streamer / baitfish (2/0–4)8–10
Strip it for fish chasing fry or in coloured water.
Conditions on the water
Live gauge
Wind
Light breeze
SW 11 km/h
N
SW
from the south-west
Wave20 cm ripple
Water temp—
Air temp36°C
CloudBroken
Pressure1015 hPa
Rain · recent0.0 mm

Some readings unavailable — check directly before fishing.

Reservoir levelas of 10 Aug
┄ 97% 10-yr norm
▬ Steady
96% full
High & steady
▼-1 ptsvs seasonal norm
▼-1 ptsvs last year
▼-1 ptsthis week
Reservoir near full — settled fish across plenty of holding water.
How to fish it · for Pike
When
Pike here are a non-native invasive. High summer fishes poorly, and where catch-and-release is legal warm-water release mortality is high; elsewhere the official advice is to remove any pike caught from the water rather than return it. Defer until water cools below 19°C.
Where
Water at 35.6°C — too warm to target pike today: poor sport, and where catch-and-release is legal (designated pre-2007 waters) warm water makes released fish die. Where it isn't, the official advice is to remove any fish caught from the water rather than return it. Either way, wait for cooler water.
The plan
Plan A

Water at 35.6°C — too warm to target pike today: poor sport, and where catch-and-release is legal (designated pre-2007 waters) warm water makes released fish die. Where it isn't, the official advice is to remove any fish caught from the water rather than return it. Either way, wait for cooler water.

Plan B

Fish early and late, try deeper during the heat of the day with a fast-sinking line.

Watch for

Evening tends to be the best period in summer — stay late if you can for a sedge or spinner fall.

Either bank or boat

Good ripple suits both bank and boat. Bank: work inflows, dam walls, and points. Boat: broadside drift covering wind lanes.

Sub-surface · on the nymphunder the surface

Hatch predictions

See the full sub-surface read with Pro.

Start free trial

14-day free trial. Cancel anytime.

Beyond the hatch · worth watchingambient prey

Hatch predictions

Top prey shown — see all 2 with Pro.

Start free trial

14-day free trial. Cancel anytime.

Through the year
0–3 scale · August highlighted
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Black MidgeHatch
2
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
2
Reservoir BuzzerHatch
2
3
3
3
3
3
2
Lake OliveHatch
2
3
3
3
3
3
2
Silverhorns & LonghornsHatch
1
2
2
2
1

Numbers are intensity 0 (none) to 3 (peak) — a guide, not a guarantee.

Ranked for today
Pike fly box
LP
Large pike streamer / baitfish (2/0–4)Top
8–10 · Streamer
Strip it for fish chasing fry or in coloured water.
WB
Weighted baitfish / Clouser (1/0–6)
8–10 · Streamer
Strip it for fish chasing fry or in coloured water.
BO
Brown/olive woolly bugger (6–10)
8–10 · Streamer
Strip it for fish chasing fry or in coloured water.
Permits & access
Permit required — see local rules.
  • Castilla y León licence (Confederación Hidrográfica del Duero); Spanish/Portuguese border water — fish the Spanish bank under Spanish rules
  • Barbel protected during spawning
  • Zander and wels catfish are invasive with specific handling rules — check current Duero-basin regulations.
What's coming
Plan ahead
5-day outlook
Condition match
69%
Cloud70%
Wind100%
Temp25%

A reasonable day here, though temperature isn't quite in the sweet spot.

Other water nearby · 2
Embalse de Aldeadávila
17 km
Barbel · Carp · Pike
Embalse de Almendra
50 km
Barbel · Carp · Pike
Gallery · 2
  1. Embalse de Saucelle — Embalse de Saucelle
    Embalse de Saucelle
  2. Terrain map of the venue
    Terrain map
About this water

The next great step down the Duero from Aldeadávila, still inside the Arribes del Duero gorge on the international border. Like its upstream neighbour it is a deep hydroelectric canyon reservoir rather than a gentle stillwater — granite walls, cold clear depths, and a fish community led by zander, wels catfish and pike, with barbel on the shallower margins and around the Águeda and other tributary mouths. It is slightly less sheer than Aldeadávila in places, which opens up a little more fishable bank, but the character is the same: a predator water best approached with a boat, big flies, and modest expectations of numbers in exchange for the chance of a serious fish.

  • Reservoir
  • Granite
Why this score
  • Wind conditions (ripple) closely match what this water fishes best in.
  • High temperatures may push fish deeper and reduce surface activity.
  • Reservoir near full — settled fish across plenty of holding water.
Related guides
Big Stillwater Playbookreservoir tacticsReservoir Entomologymatching the hatchThermal Layers & Troutreading depth and temperature
Booking & contacts