Freestone · Limestone · Tyrol / Vorarlberg, AT

Lech

Lech near Forchach
Tomorrow · About as good as it gets
Stonefly Nymph
Forecast · Tomorrow
About as good as it gets
On the feed top to bottom — start on the rises with a dry, drop a nymph if they stay down.
90% projected
Today's fly
Stonefly Nymph
Stonefly Nymph
Conditions on the water · Tomorrow
Live gauge
Level
Falling
2.20 m
Dropping after lift
Water temp8.6°C
ClaritySlightly coloured
Weather12°C
WindN 8 km/h
Pressure1031 hPa
Rain · recent0.0 mm
Rain · ahead0.0 mm

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

Water temperature for Grayling
Ideal
9°C est.ideal 4–14°C
0°14°28°
How to fish it · for Grayling
When
Midday window — grayling feed best from late morning into early afternoon.
Where
Work runs and glides — grayling shoal in the bottom third of the water column.
Method
Tight-line nymph the bottom third with weighted patterns.
Kit
10 ft #3 rod, floating line, long leader to 4 lb fluoro for nymphs.
Why this works
Excellent — water temperature is right today, though insect activity could be better. Grayling feeds actively in cold water — peak winter sport.
Likely species
Mayflies
Stoneflies
Caddisflies
Damselflies & dragonflies
Gammarids
Hatch timeline · tomorrowPeak at 11h

12h(now) — Autumn Needle Fly

Stage: Creeping nymphsApproach: Heavy nymphActivity: 95%
Also:Autumn Olive61%Black Midge44%
Peak emergence windowWeather boost6 food groups active

Peak activity at 11h — Autumn Needle Fly (Autumn Needle Fly, Peak emergence window)

Sub-surface · on the nymphunder the surface

Hatch predictions

Top nymph shown — see all 2 guilds as a supporter.

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Beyond the hatch · worth watchingambient prey(1)

Hatch predictions

Supporters see what else is on the menu.

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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 · October highlighted
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Trout seasonSeason
1
2
2
2
1
Grayling seasonSeason
2
2
1
1
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
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
Fly box · Grayling
Small Perdigón
Small Perdigón
Hook 14–18 · Fly
in season · matches water height
Permits & access
Permit required — see local rules.
  • Tyrolean Lechtal river
  • Fischerkarte + permit required; check local beat access and protected sections.
What's coming
Plan ahead
5-day outlook
Other water nearby · 5
Zürsersee
35 km
Char · Lake trout
Eibsee
37 km
Brown trout · Lake trout · Char
Spullersee
40 km
Rainbow trout · Brown trout · Lake trout
Formarinsee
45 km
Rainbow trout · Brown trout
Loisach — Hotel Bavaria Garmisch fly water
46 km
Brown trout · Rainbow trout · Grayling
Gallery · 2
  1. Lech near Forchach
  2. Terrain map of the venue
    Terrain map
Water quality (WFD)
  • Ecology: Good
  • Chemical: Failing to achieve good
What this classification means

WFD re-coded 2026-09-14 after the pin audit: matched by point query against EEA WISE WFD2022_SurfaceWaterBody (the river water body whose line lies 3 m from the venue pin). Status: WISE 2022 (3rd RBMP) ecological class 2 = Good, chemical 'failing to achieve good' (Austria-wide in the 2022 cycle). Prior id ATOK301630005 (High) described a different reach.

WFD classification · ATOK302370011

The full read · show the working · for Grayling · confidence 90%
How the 100 is built — score × weight = contribution
Temperature100 × 28%28.0
Flow80 × 22%17.6
Clarity85 × 18%15.3
Feeding Time90 × 13%11.7
Pressure80 × 7%5.6
Insect activity64 × 12%7.7
Conditions total= 86
Can you trust it?
Water temperatureair-to-water estimateestimated
Level / flowon-river gaugeobserved
Prey activitysurvey-backed invertebrate datasurvey
Directions
Apple MapsGoogle Maps
Seasons & zones
  • Trout 1 May → 30 September
  • Grayling 16 May → 31 March

    Austrian grayling (Äsche) rules are state and fishery specific. Common pattern: closed 1 January – 31 May (spawning protection); open from June. Individual fishery seasons often end October/November. Always check the local Fischereikarte and specific water permit. Salzburg-area waters commonly show 1 June or 16 May opener.

    Season dates are set at state or regional level — confirm the local rules.

    Prime sport 1 August → 31 October

  • Hucho October → February
Related guides
Hucho / Danube Salmonspecialist apex-predator guideGrayling Playbookgrayling tacticsAlpine Streamsmountain entomology
Booking & contacts