Freestone · Limestone · Alps / Haute-Savoie, FR

Giffre

A wide, stony braided river channel with turquoise water flowing past forested slopes and snow-covered Alpine peaks near Samoëns, France.

Major Haute-Savoie mountain river system.

Poor · Brown Trout
Hare's Ear Nymph · 14-16
New ruleReported 20 Aug 2026

Severe drought restrictions (crise) in force

VigiEau lists this venue's surface-water zone (Dranses, dépt 74) at crise, under an official préfectoral drought arrêté. Fishing is not itself banned by it, but water levels are low — go gently on stressed fish.

Arrêté préfectoral n°37745 ↗

Temporary notices from official orders and recent fishery reports — they clear automatically once out of date. Always confirm locally before travelling.

Closed season
Out of season. Try elsewhere.
Closed — confidence not applicable today.
What moved it
  • Level0.10 mLast reading 14h ago
  • Water temp15.7°C
  • ClarityClear
Today's fly
Hare's Ear Nymph
Hare's Ear Nymph14-16
Upstream
Conditions on the water
Live gauge
Level
Steady
0.10 m
Last reading 14h ago
Water temp15.7°C
ClarityClear
Weather16°C
WindSE 3 km/h
Pressure1021 hPa
Rain · recent0.0 mm
Rain · ahead11.7 mm

The nearest gauge doesn't record temperatures, so we've estimated it — defer to the river keeper's advice.

Water temperature for Brown Trout
Ideal
16°C est.ideal 10–16°C
0°14°28°
How to fish it · for Brown Trout
When
Through the open trout season — late spring through autumn. The Giffre is glacial-influenced from Sixt-Fer-à-Cheval; fishes after snowmelt drops.
Where
Pool tails and pocket water through the Haute-Savoie valley. Alpine freestone — fast pockets, undercut banks.
Method
Upstream dry to risers; dry-dropper through the riffles. The water reads clear — long leader, fine tippet. Move slowly, cast accurately.
Kit
9 ft #4 — French freestone default. Floating line, 12 ft leader to 4 to 5 lb fluoro. Studded boots.
Likely species
Caddisflies
Gammarids
Hatch timeline · todayPeak at 2pm

Hatch predictions

Today's headline hatch shown — see all 12 active hatches hour by hour as a supporter.

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Sub-surface · on the nymphunder the surface

Hatch predictions

Top nymph shown — see all 3 guilds as a supporter.

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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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Evidence
Survey-backed · regionalHigh confidence

Backed by regional invertebrate surveys; no sampling on this exact reach yet.

Through the year
0–3 scale · September highlighted
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Trout seasonSeason
1
2
2
2
2
2
1
Grayling seasonSeason
1
2
2
2
1
Alpine RhithrogenaHatch
2
3
3
2
Sculpin / Baitfish (Rivers)Hatch
2
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
2
March BrownHatch
2
3
2
Late March BrownHatch
2
3
2

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

Ranked for today
Brown Trout fly box

French nymph-first water. Fast current, technical presentation, weighted nymphs and emergers, with dry flies when fish rise.

Permits & access
Permit required — see local rules.
  • Alpine AAPPMA permits
  • Catch-and-release encouraged.
What's coming
Plan ahead
5-day outlook
Other water nearby · 5
Nom
24 km
0
Brown trout
Fillière
30 km
0
Brown trout
Arve
10 km
Brown trout
Borne
16 km
Brown trout · Grayling
Pisciculture des Meuniers
19 km
Rainbow trout · Brown trout · Char
Gallery · 2
  1. A wide, stony braided river channel with turquoise water flowing past forested slopes and snow-covered Alpine peaks near Samoëns, France.
    Le Giffre @ Samoëns
  2. Terrain map of the venue
    Terrain map
About this water

Major Haute-Savoie mountain river system. Lower Giffre at Marignier has productive fishing water accessible by wading. Alpine freestone, snowmelt character. Spring through early summer best when water clears. Technical casting in places. Upper reaches more remote and technical. Check AAPPMA for access details and restrictions.

Hatches & food

In true Alpine headwaters, trout feeding is squeezed into a short high-summer slot, with mountain olives and other mayflies following snowmelt, daytime stoneflies over rough, bouldery water, evening caddis on the warmest settled nights, and small buzzers keeping fish interested before, between and after the main up-wing and caddis hatches.

  • Limestone
Water quality (WFD)
  • Ecology: Good
  • Chemical: Unknown

WFD classification · FRDR564A

The full read · show the working · for Brown Trout · confidence 75%
How the 0 is built — score × weight = contribution
Temperature100 × 28%28.0
Flow80 × 22%17.6
Clarity95 × 18%17.1
Feeding Time40 × 13%5.2
Pressure80 × 7%5.6
Insect activity60 × 12%7.2
Conditions total= 81
Can you trust it?
Water temperatureair-to-water estimateestimated
Level / flowon-river gaugeobserved
Prey activitysurvey-backed invertebrate datasurvey
What would change the calculation
The dawn and dusk windows score higher than the midday lull.
Directions
Apple MapsGoogle Maps
Seasons & zones
  • Trout 2nd Saturday of March → 3rd Sunday of September
  • Grayling 3rd Saturday of May → 3rd Sunday of September

    France national rule: grayling opens 3rd Saturday of May in all waters. In 1st category (salmonid) rivers, grayling closes with the trout season on the 3rd Sunday of September. Departmental regulations may impose additional restrictions. Always check the relevant département's 2026 arrêté préfectoral.

Related guides
Grayling Playbookgrayling tacticsPyrenees PlaybookFrench riversEuro Nymphingsubsurface methods
Booking & contacts