Stillwater · Limestone · Vorarlberg / Lech Zürs, AT

Formarinsee

Formarinsee Panorama

Formarinsee sits at the foot of the Rote Wand in the Lechquellengebirge, and it is the kind of view that makes people forget they came to fish.

Closed season · Rainbow
Hare's Ear Nymph · 12–16
Closed season
Season reopens 21 June. Try elsewhere.
Closed — confidence not applicable today.
What moved it
  • WindE 5 km/hCalm · Gusts to 17 km/h
Today's fly
Hare's Ear Nymph
Hare's Ear Nymph12–16
Upstream
Conditions on the water
Estimate
Wind
Calm · Gusts to 17 km/h
E 5 km/h
N
E
from the east
WaveRipple
Water temp5.4°C
Air temp-5°C
CloudBroken
Pressure1025 hPa
Rain · recent0.0 mm

No gauge on this water — readings are regional estimates from weather, not a live gauge.

How to fish it · for Rainbow
When
No strong hatch signals at the moment — general searching tactics should work best. The ripple is helpful — fish should move onto the feed and a slow-drifted team or single wet will cover water well.
Where
Set up a broadside drift and cover the water systematically. Work a bushy searching pattern on the bob and drop a contrasting nymph on the point.
The plan
Plan A

Set up a broadside drift and cover the water systematically. Work a bushy searching pattern on the bob and drop a contrasting nymph on the point.

Plan B

If the main plan is not working, switch to a smaller, more imitative pattern fished slower and deeper. A change of drift angle can also make a difference.

Watch for

Keep an eye on changing conditions — wind shifts and cloud breaks can trigger short feeding spells.

Boat — drift

A gentle ripple is ideal for drifting — broadside drift covering the wind lanes should be productive.

Sub-surface · on the nymphunder the surface

Hatch predictions

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Beyond the hatch · worth watchingambient prey(1)

Hatch predictions

Top prey shown — see all 3 as a supporter.

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Through the year
0–3 scale · October highlighted
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Trout seasonSeason
1
2
2
2
1
Black MidgeHatch
2
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
2
Lake OliveHatch
2
3
3
3
3
3
2
Daphnia SwarmHatch
2
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
Rainbow fly box

A classic alpine trout and grayling box. Nymphs, dry flies and streamers all belong, with the season often starting later in alpine regions.

SS
Small Streamer
6–10 · Pattern
Swing
Permits & access
Permit required — see local rules.
  • Barbless hooks only; barbed spinners prohibited, barbless spinners allowed — not a fly-only water
  • Five fish per day
  • 2026 season 21 June – 4 October (Fischereiverein Klostertal)
  • Tickets from Lech Zürs Tourismus, Älpele Klösterle, Hotel Gotthard, the OMV station in Klösterle, or hejfish
  • Toll road; in high season private cars are banned roughly 08:00–16:30 (use the bus) and the road is closed to private vehicles on Wednesdays.
What's coming
Plan ahead
5-day outlook
Condition match
79%
Cloud70%
Wind100%
Temp60%

A good match for Formarinsee — most conditions are close to what it fishes best in.

Other water nearby · 3
Spullersee
7.0 km
Rainbow trout · Brown trout · Lake trout
Zürsersee
11 km
Char · Lake trout
Lech
45 km
Brown trout · Grayling · Hucho
Gallery · 2
  1. Formarinsee Panorama
  2. Terrain map of the venue
    Terrain map
About this water

Try not to. It is a small, clear mountain lake at nearly 1,800 metres with rainbow and brown trout cruising the margins, fished from the shore, and the season is a short high-summer affair from late June into early October. It is not a fly-only water — barbless spinners are allowed too — but the fly has the better of it on a calm evening. Getting there takes a little planning: private cars are kept off the road for most of the day in high season, so you'll come up on the bus like everyone else.

  • Lake
  • Limestone
Water quality (WFD)
  • Ecology: Unknown
  • Chemical: Unknown
What this classification means

No EEA WISE 2022 water body within 2 km (checked 2026-09-14) — lakes this small are generally not reported under the WFD.

Why this score
  • Wind conditions (ripple) closely match what this water fishes best in.
Directions
Apple MapsGoogle Maps
Seasons & zones
  • Trout 21 June → 4 October
  • Grayling not applicable → not applicable

    All grayling must be returned — retention is prohibited here.

Related guides
Thermal Layers & Troutreading depth and temperatureAlpine Streamsmountain entomologyEuro Nymphingsubsurface methods
Booking & contacts
At a glance

Formarinsee is a lake in Vorarlberg / Lech Zürs, Austria. The catchment geology is recorded as limestone, and the water sits at about 1,793 m above sea level. Species listed for this water: rainbow trout and brown trout. The trout season is recorded as running from 21 June to 4 October. The grayling season is recorded as running from not applicable to not applicable. Best window recorded for anglers: July – September. Core methods listed: fly from shore; spinning (barbless). Nearby waters in our listings include Spullersee at 7.0 km, Zürsersee at 11 km and Lech at 45 km.