Agua Boa Amazon Lodge (Main)

In November, I hosted nine anglers at Agua Boa Amazon Lodge, one of my favorite fishing destinations. From Manaus, Brazil, we took a 90-minute flight on a chartered 12-passenger plane, landing on the lodge's private runway at the edge of the Agua Boa River in the Amazon Jungle.
Guy Schoenborn and I enjoy this trip and take turns hosting at Agua Boa every other year. COVID-19 disrupted our schedule, so it had been a couple of years since I had been to the lodge.
Since my last visit, they've remodeled the six cabins, updated the air conditioning units, and replaced a few outboard engines. And Carlos, the managing partner, has kept the lodge and boats in top condition.
In my group, seven of the nine anglers were repeat guests. They enjoyed the trip so much that they wanted to return. They have already rebooked the trip for the same time next year.
When we got off the plane on Saturday morning, Carlos said that the river had risen about five feet on Wednesday and that the catch rates had slowed down from earlier in the week. Not good to hear, but...
After checking into our rooms and enjoying a late breakfast, we got our rods rigged and boated upstream to fish different areas and lagoons of the Agua Boa River. Everyone returned to the lodge that evening with stories of success and numbers of above-average-size peacocks. Our first day's fishing was very good!
We all had excellent fishing for the next six days, Sunday through Friday. The guides worked hard to find peacocks for us, traveling upstream for up to two hours to find good water conditions and aggressive fish.
Malcom caught an 18-pound peacock—the largest of the week. Anglers landed good numbers of large, 10 to 16-pound peacocks. Several in our group have been to Agua Boa multiple times, and for all of us, this was the best fishing we'd experienced.
The water levels were very high, but the clarity was good, which helped our catch rate. Most of us fished with intermediate sink tips or up to 300-grain 26' sink tip lines. No fly stood out or seemed to out-fish another. Peacock bass are not known to be picky. They are usually very aggressive fish.
Agua Boa's fishing season runs from the end of October through March. Flights from Miami to Manaus have been canceled since the pandemic, creating an issue for travelers. Most members of my group flew to Panama City and then to Manaus using COPA Airlines. It worked out well, and I would recommend that flight at this time. For 2023, there are now some direct flights from Florida to Manaus.
Agua Boa can be a best-of-a-lifetime trip; some of us have been fortunate enough to repeat this spectacular peacock bass fishing trip several times. To receive more information about Agua Boa, please let Guy or me know.