Blue Boogle Bug Bass Poppers For Big Trout With Ben

Whenever Ben Sittig—better known as the Huge Fly Fisherman—rolls into Vista Patagonia Lodge, we know we’re in for an entertaining week. He’s always up for a good time, great food, and incredible fishing. But for his 2026 trip, Ben arrived with a highly questionable goal: he was determined to catch our legendary Patagonian trout on a blue bass popper.

Against our better judgment, Ben took his destiny into his own hands. Here is a recap of how his week-long experiment (and the rest of the incredible fishing) played out!

Days 1 & 2: The Blue Popper Actually Works

Ben’s philosophy for the week was simple: if you’re fishing with a guide, you should generally do what they recommend—unless you have a “stupid” idea you’re absolutely committed to.

“I Boogled Him! I Boogled Him Real Good!”

Day one kicked off with Ben chucking his blue bass popper while the rest of the boat reasonably fished beetles. Almost immediately, the unthinkable happened. Ben managed to coax a massive, beautiful fish out of the wood structure, proving that sometimes, being stubborn pays off. He affectionately named the fish “Toaster Oven.”

By day two, the crew hit the lakes with Christian. While the popper action slowed down a bit, Ben’s boatmate John absolutely cleaned up on the beetle, landing a pristine, butter-yellow brown trout they named “Phil.” Ben eventually managed to seal the deal with another popper fish, proving day one wasn’t a total fluke.

Days 3 & 4: Reality Checks and Walk-Wading

By the middle of the week, the trout were starting to wise up to the blue foam monstrosity.

Day 3: Ben stuck to his guns alongside his teammate Randy, but it was a tough day for the popper. Highlights included Randy crushing it on a dry-dropper rig, and Ben realizing a fish struck twice without getting hooked because his tippet had lassoed his own fly.

Day 4: We switched things up with a walk-wade day on a larger river. Finally conceding to reality, Ben stashed the popper and went “full nerd” with a bobber and a Duracell nymph. The pivot worked flawlessly. He and John caught a ton of beautiful rainbows and browns, and Ben even managed to sneak in a top-tier riverside nap.

Days 5 & 6: Canyon Floats and Diego’s “Robber Fly”

The back half of the trip was classic Chilean fly fishing—navigating the wind, floating gorgeous new river stretches, and hunting for heads in the shadows.

On day five, the streamer bite heated up in the afternoon, pulling some incredibly feisty rainbows and a gorgeous brown out from the sunken timber. But the true magic happened on the final day floating through a canyon.

Trading the big flies for 5x tippet, the crew targeted rising fish holding tight to the shaded canyon walls. Ben got his heart broken a few times by big fish breaking off his light tippet, but redemption came in the form of one of my favorite flies: a trimmed Elk Hair Caddis designed to mimic local robber flies. Tucking that fly into a sliver of shadow against the wall resulted in the catch of the day—a stout, aggressive brown trout that made the whole week complete.

The Vista Patagonia Vibe

Of course, the fishing is only half the experience. As Ben noted in his wrap-up, the days were bookended by exactly what we love to provide: comfortable lodging, card games with great friends, and amazing multi-course dinners.

Ben admitted that fishing a blue bass popper for trout is just silly, but at the end of the day, fly fishing is supposed to be fun. We couldn’t agree more.

We loved having the Huge Fly Fisherman crew back at the lodge, and the dates are already locked in for their return in 2027. If you want to join Ben on his next Patagonian adventure, be sure to check out his website for the details.