Weekly Round-Up: Iceland Part Two, Reporting From Fish Partner's Highlands Lodge
In which we see friends, catch fish, and shoot a heck of a lot of photos.
Hello from mid-way through this Iceland assignment! It’s a beautiful morning here at the Highlands Lodge as I type this; preparing for a transfer to Reykjavik and then north to the Blanda River and Fish Partner’s newest operation, Long Valley Lodge. Over the years I’ve learned to make the most of computer time while I have it, so I have a cup of coffee and am madly editing, writing, and catching up on email before the next stage of the journey. Magazine articles will be coming, but here’s a brief look at the past few days (and a sneak peek at some images).
It’s Excellent to Be Back in Iceland
Brown trout and Arctic char are the stuff of dreams, and life is good when we get to fish with friends.
I arrived back in the Land of Fire and Ice last Saturday morning. Breezing through immigration and customs, I was met by the wonderful Unnur Guðny, and we stopped at a local grocery store to provision the cabin where I was staying for a few days (if you know me at all, you probably know how much I love grocery stores outside the USA), and then drove out toward Lake Thingvallavatn, the largest natural lake in Iceland.
Of course, the subsequent mission was to go fishing. I’d slept something like an hour in the past 36, but we were here and it was time. Unnar knew exactly what water to put us on and how to make it happen and within an hour I had what I think (I don’t really write these things down) was my personal best brown trout.
After a night of sleep (jet lag woke me up at 0230 right in time to catch a lovely rainstorm in the dusky “nighttime” hours), I met up with Fish Partner team members and friends Eiður Kristjánsson and Sindri Hlíðar Jónsson to explore around Reykjavík Harbour and see if we could find some cod, pollock, haddock, or whiting. Fish Partner is the first and only company in Iceland to offer fly fishing in the harbour and, while we didn’t get into fish in the few hours that morning, it’s an absolutely glorious way to see the city. We did run into our fair share of puffins, which were a fun sight.
The next day Sindri and I headed up to Fish Partner’s Highlands Lodge, where we were able to get a couple days of fishing with friends and guides Jacob and Jerome. I’d been able to fish a few days with all three gentlemen at Fish Partner’s Battle Hill Lodge in September 2023, so it was a treat to get to his the water again for a few fun, chill days fishing. I was able to land my first Arctic Char in Iceland, which was a treat, and each evening we returned to the lodge for comfortable accommodations and finely-crafted gourmet food from chef Fabi and all-around lodge handyman Hernan.
Tuesday Sindri, Jerome, and I fished from the Highlands Lodge again, exploring canyons, waterfalls, and scenery that looked like it came right from the pages of a fantasy novel. We chased brown trout, hiked along gin-clear rivers, and just generally enjoyed a day adventuring in the highlands. It’s hard to beat a day fishing with solid anglers who fish intensely while also just relaxing and enjoying the day… it’s the ultimate combination.
Wednesday I transferred over to Fish Partner’s newest lodge operation, Long Valley Lodge. Located on the Blanda River, this 12-bedroom lodge is a full-service operation, with plenty of access to Atlantic salmon fishing and also shots at brown trout. Here, I fished and shot images with Kristján Páll Rafnsson, who founded Fish Partner back in 2013. Kristján and I fished together in 2023 at Battle Hill and, as always, it’s been wonderful to meet up with him and explore Fish Partner’s newest operation.
Come back next week to see how we did at Long Valley Lodge!
2026 Hosted Trips
Still have a couple spots open on these hosted trip destinations for 2026:
Estancia Laguna Verde (Jurassic Lake), Argentina: January 24-31, 2026
Turneffe Island Resort, Belize: May 23-30, 2026
Bolivia Heli-Fishing (Trophy Golden Dorado): June 28-July 5, 2026
Estancia Laguna Verde 2026
I’ll be returning January 24-31, 2026 with a hosted group. This is a top-notch lodge in a wonderfully unique fishery. Expect some of the world’s best guides, excellent lodging and food, a stellar lodge team, and wonderfully large, healthy rainbow trout in an environment that will make you think you’re fishing on the moon.
This PDF has more details—give it a read, and then get in touch to secure your spot!
January 24 - 31, 2026
Estancia Laguna Verde, Lago Strobel, Argentina
$7,950 (7 nights / 6.5 days fishing)
Classic Flats Fishing at Turneffe Island Resort
Only Two Rods Remaining
Join me at Turneffe Island Resort next May for a week of classic saltwater flats fishing. We’ll chase bonefish, permit, tarpon, and more on the fly rod, and enjoy wonderful accommodations and food while at the resort. An excellent place for anglers new to saltwater, looking up their flats-fishing skills, or with non-angling spouses who want to come along and enjoy island life.
May 23-30, 2026
Turneffe Island Resort, Turneffe Atoll, Belize
$5,890 (7 nights / 6 days fishing, double occupancy)
Bolivia Heli-Fishing For Trophy Golden Dorado
Only ONE SPOT Remaining
I’ve got just one rod left to return to Untamed Angling’s Tsimane Pluma Lodge Heli-Fishing Program June 27-July 4, 2026—an exclusive program in the Bolivian Amazon, designed to target trophy golden dorado. We’ll have the opportunity to fish not only for large dorado but also pacu, yatorana, and even moturo, in incomparable quantity and quality. The rivers and tributaries where we will fish every day are wild, untouched waters seldom seen by human beings.
Read more info HERE about this limited trip—just two spots remaining.
June 27-July 4, 2026
Tsimane Pluma Lodge, Bolivian Amazon
$17,250 ($16,000 plus $1,250 indigenous Indian fees)
Want to learn more about any of these trips?
Send me a DM on social media or shoot over an email.
Recently Published
The Beckbe Journal just published this piece about weird yet utterly memorable moments in the Darien: Darien Dance Parties.
I wrote a forthright piece for The Field Ethos Journal about the good, the bad, and the ugly of fishing in the Darien Gap in Looking For a Few Good Men.
The Big Sky Journal just published a photo essay and article about the romance of Montana summer fishing in their latest issue. Pick it up and give “The Simple Things in Life” a read.
Pick up the winter issue of The Fly Fish Journal for words + images about fly-fishing off Colombia’s Darien Gap.
The Field Ethos Journal recently ran this piece about having a beer on a stormy night in one of Pablo Escobar’s former bars… a life goal I didn’t know I had.
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