THE KLEINE DRAU
The Kleine Drau in the Puster Valley is not affected by glacial water and so can be fished all year round. The average width of the river is 15 metres and the current is fast, interrupted here and there by large rocks, deep pools and eddies. This is the home of the brown trout and the rainbow trout, with grayling and charr on the lookout for food drifting by. Big trout are fairly common here and 50-cm long grayling have been caught in the Kleine Drau, but the trout are more plentiful in fitting with the character of the water. The river is excellent for fishing between April and mid-October; in late autumn, when the water level is at its lowest and the visibility is good, fishing with small flies can be a tricky but very entertaining experience.
THE GROSSE DRAU
The Grosse Drau is an impressive, relatively fast-flowing river with 40-metre-wide banks full of alders and brambles. In places the flow is interrupted by rocks and breakwaters, ideal living conditions for fish of the salmon family. Grayling up to 50 cm long are not rare here even though catching them does demand a lot from the fly fisher. Danube salmon are caught all through the season, which speaks for their numbers. From the end of May until the end of August the river swells with the melting snow and ice brought down from the Tauern mountains by the Isel. In spring, however, and from September onwards, the colour of the water is a beautiful clear green. Long gravel banks emerge and in the middle of the river rocks and stones which you would never know were there in summer brace themselves against the current.
THE MÖLL
The river Möll in the nearby Möll Valley is a particularly beautiful river. As it has been regulated very carefully and only in parts, it has retained most if its original appearance. The clear water bubbles over smooth boulders, trickles over pebbles, flows around large rocks or dashes against rocky banks. On its journey the Möll creates deep pools and these are excellent grounds for large trout and grayling. The main fish are brown trout and grayling, both coming from the fishery's own stocks, and the fish can reach a remarkable size. The energy industry uses the Möll to create power and this has had both positive and negative effects on the fishing. The Möll is dammed in its upper reaches near Heiligenblut, the water being pumped to the power station at Kaprun. For that reason the Möll is virtually free of glacial water. Below the turbine affluent (section Möll Obervellach) there is a risk of the river carrying too much water.
THE VILLGRATENBACH
The Villgratenbach is the most powerful of the tributaries of the Kleine Drau and is a typical mountain stream. Having meandered gently through the moor the water drops down in stages to the valley. Here you can find rainbow trout, brown trout and charr, the brown trout reaching a considerable size in the crystal clear water. The whole valley with its rugged scenery and impressive farmhouses provides an extremely picturesque background for fishing..
