Golden Mahseer
of the Himalayas

A sportsman who is looking for some exotic fishing or fly-fishing travel is always pleasantly surprised to hear of fishing and fly-fishing possibilities for a different game fish species, especially when it is to be found in the magnificence of the Himalayas.

The sought after sport fish in these rivers is called the Himalayan Mahseer, something not a lot of us are familiar with. It is a species indigenous to the Indian sub continent and to your pleasant surprise it does take very well to artificial baits and can grow to weights in access of 70 lbs. Furthermore, the Mahseer is a species that have always been regarded as one of the hardest fighting freshwater species of fish.

The Himalayan Mahseer, “barbus tor putitora”, swims in almost all glacial and spring fed river systems that drain the Himalayas. The fish is found up to an altitude of three thousand feet. These fish follow an
upstream migration pattern a few times a year, though primarily in the months of July and August. This migration is an important element of the fishery and makes the fishing interesting and productive once the fish are on the move.

These fish are best taken on lures, flies and live bait, during day and night. When fishing for the Mahseer, there is no set timing of exactly what time of the day to fish in, it is just a matter of the
time of the year and locations. There is a vast selection of lures and flies that one can use for them, again depending on a vast variety of situations you may be fishing in, like clear spring fed rivers. I find that the Mahseer are always the most tricky as they are fairly spooky in the clear water and they have to be assaulted with caution and timing.

The rapids can be another productive situation for the Himalayan Mahseer, as they are likely to take even in the fast water, at times. Most anglers like to fish in pools and at the mouth of the rapids - hence, the statistics of catches are highest there. Lakes are more predictable, due to the stable water temperature.

When fishing for the Mahseer one should not have fixed times or places but be open to all possibilities as the fish take at anytime and anywhere.

The fishing method is quite like fishing for Steelhead or the Salmon, where one is fishing the swing or the drift. The Himalayan Mahseer is a spooky fish, and expecting to catch twenty fish a day is asking for disappointment. These Himalayan Rivers are a big fish fishery; which offer a shot at the trophy Mahseer, but fewer numbers. The fish here average 5 to 14 lbs – depending on the river you are fishing. Often one can see a monstrous 50+ lbs Mahseer in the crystal clear waters of a spring fed river, as the Mahseer swim and feed in the shallow swift water at the mouth of the rapid.

Their sleek, torpedo like bodies are powered by a very large fin surface, which makes the Mahseer very good at holding in the currents. These are beautiful fish with golden and silver, large prismatic scales and a lateral line that runs along the entire length of the body.

The first rush of this fish is quite an attraction for someone who has experienced it, and most fish often tail and run down river upon taking artificial bait.

My name is Misty Dhillon and I have been guiding anglers since 1998, in pursuit of these beautiful fish. Having fished several Himalayan rivers, time and time again, I have felt that there is always something more and new that these rivers can offer - be it be culture, beautiful landscape, the native tribes that inhabit the remote hill sides or then another pristine Mahseer swim.

Tight Lines,

Misty Dhillon

misty.dhillon@gmail.com
mahseer.info@lycos.com