Spate · Granite · Galicia, ES

Mandeo

Mandeo — Río Mandeo, Betanzos

A compact, highly responsive heritage salmon river near Betanzos where salmon are now depleted and out of bounds.

Poor · Brown Trout
Pheasant Tail Nymph · 14–18
Closed season
Out of season. Try elsewhere.
Closed — confidence not applicable today.
What moved it
  • Level1.18 mLast reading 2h ago
  • Water temp6.7°C
  • ClarityClear
Today's fly
Pheasant Tail Nymph
Pheasant Tail Nymph14–18
High-confidence seasonal pick
Conditions on the water
Live gauge
Level
Steady
1.18 m
Last reading 2h ago
Water temp6.7°C
ClarityClear
Weather12°C
WindW 11 km/h
Pressure1013 hPa
Rain · recent21.5 mm
Rain · ahead22.8 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
Cool — slow
7°C est.ideal 10–16°C
0°14°28°
How to fish it · for Brown Trout
When
Trout season 1 May to 31 July. Spring olives and sedges through May; summer evenings into July. The Mandeo responds quickly to rain — fish 6 to 12 hours after a spate.
Where
Compact granite spate river through the Betanzos hinterland. Pool tails, riffle heads, and pocket water through the upper reaches.
Method
Upstream dry to risers; dry-dropper through the riffles. The Mandeo is small intimate water — short casts, careful approach, fish each lie before moving on.
Kit
9 ft #4. Floating line, 9 to 12 ft leader to 4 lb fluoro. Studded boots — granite is slick.
Likely species
Stoneflies
Hatch timeline · todayPeak at 11am

Hatch predictions

Today's headline hatch shown — see all 5 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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Evidence
Survey-backed · regionalHigh confidence

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

Through the year
0–3 scale · November highlighted
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Sea trout runRun
1
2
1
Trout seasonSeason
1
2
1
March BrownHatch
2
3
2
Late March BrownHatch
2
3
2
Large Brook DunHatch
2
3
2
Large StoneflyHatch
2
3
2

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

Ranked for today
Brown Trout fly box
Permits & access
Permit required — see local rules.
  • Galician fishing licence required
  • Additional coto or tramo permit may be needed depending on the beat
  • Check current Xunta rules before travel; salmon heritage does not make salmon a legal target.
What's coming
Plan ahead
5-day outlook
Other water nearby · 5
Río Mendo
13 km
0
Brown trout
Eume
19 km
0
Brown trout · Sea trout
Río Mero
21 km
0
Brown trout · Sea trout
Río Belelle
29 km
0
Brown trout
Río Xubia
31 km
0
Brown trout · Sea trout
Gallery · 2
  1. Mandeo — Río Mandeo, Betanzos
    Río Mandeo, Betanzos
  2. Terrain map of the venue
    Terrain map
About this water

Smaller than the Ulla or Tambre, it still offers concentrated trout-and-sea-trout fishing, especially after rain, with a quick 5-hour response that can create short but worthwhile windows. Sea trout in the lower river and estuary now make more practical sense than any salmon-led framing.

Hatches & food

In Galicia's Atlantic trout rivers, resident browns feed through a spring build-up of olives and other up-wings into a long summer of caddis and small buzzers, with frequent spates and cool water keeping fish active; terrestrials from lush banks and meadows become important once levels settle and the banks green up.

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

WFD classification · ES014MSPFES-014-NR-111-025-02-02

The full read · show the working · for Brown Trout · confidence 75%
How the 0 is built — score × weight = contribution
Temperature45 × 28%12.6
Flow80 × 22%17.6
Clarity95 × 18%17.1
Feeding Time65 × 13%8.5
Pressure80 × 7%5.6
Insect activity57 × 12%6.8
Conditions total= 68
Can you trust it?
Water temperatureair-to-water estimateestimated
Level / flowon-river gaugeobserved
Prey activitysurvey-backed invertebrate datasurvey
What would change the calculation
Warmer water — toward the 10–16 °C ideal band — would lift the temperature score.
The dawn and dusk windows score higher than the midday lull.
Directions
Apple MapsGoogle Maps
Seasons & zones
  • Sea trout 1 May → 31 July
  • Trout 1 May → 31 July

Sea trout: Variable seasonal (2026) — Reo present in the lower Mandeo and estuary. Salmon depleted and prohibited. Sea trout are a residual fishery — occasional, water-dependent, not a promoted primary species.

Salmon: Heritage only (2026) — Salmon fishing banned in Galicia by 2026 Xunta decree. Heritage salmon river — not a salmon fishing destination.

Related guides
Pyrenees PlaybookSpanish riversEuro Nymphingsubsurface methods
Booking & contacts
At a glance

Mandeo is a spate river in Galicia, Spain. Its recorded elevation is about 256 m above sea level and the catchment geology is granite. The river is described as roughly 63 km long. Our data lists brown trout and sea trout here. The trout season is recorded as running from 1 May to 31 July. The sea trout season is recorded as running from 1 May to 31 July. Best window recorded for anglers: May–July for trout and sea trout in the lower system; salmon are out of bounds. Core methods listed: upstream nymph; wet fly; dry fly. Level and flow data for this water is linked from 1 gauge. Its Water Framework Directive ecological status is recorded as good. Nearby waters in our listings include Río Mendo at 13 km, Eume at 19 km and Río Mero at 21 km.