Skip to content
MID-SEASON SALE UP TO 70% OFF. SHOP NOW

Locations

La Saâne: Unveiling the Hidden Charms of a French River

by ChenWanxiang 08 Jul 2025

Serenity and Trout Between the Cows (and Yeah, They’ll Watch You Fish)

Man, the Saâne—what a little gem. Not one of those rivers that screams "fly fishing paradise," you know? More like... a quiet secret where the trout hide and the cows judge your casting. I mean, unless you’re Pascal. That guy could probably land a fish with a shoelace and a paperclip.

Let me tell you, summer evenings here? Magic. The water’s low and clear, sunlight flickering through the willows, and the only sounds are the occasional plop of a rising trout and those damn cows chewing like they’re reviewing your technique. Which, by the way—super chill cows. Pascal’s been fishing here for decades, and they’ve never given him grief. Just don’t go waving your rod around like a maniac, and you’ll be fine.

Spots Worth Your Time

We stuck to two beats: one just north of Longueil (look for the Camping de la Vallée—you can’t miss it) and another down near Saâne-Saint-Just. Both are marked on the map, but honestly? Half the fun’s just wandering till you find a stretch that feels right. Fly fishing only, though, and strictly catch-and-release. These trout are wild, skittish little things—one clumsy step and poof, they’re gone.

Licenses: A Mild Rant

Ah, French bureaucracy. Love it. The holiday license system’s gotten better, thank god—about €34 for a week, and you can grab it online at cartedepeche.fr. But here’s the kicker: when you’re buying it, you gotta pick an association. For the Saâne, that’s Dieppe (76200). Why? No idea. Just roll with it. And double-check the rules, ‘cause of course there’s fine print.

Wading: Slow and Sneaky Wins the Race

You can fish from the bank, but if the water’s low enough, wading’s the way to go. Just—for the love of Pascal—move like you’re trying to steal a napkin from a sleeping bear. These trout? Spook if you blink too loud. I learned that the hard way my first time, splashing around like a kid in a paddling pool. Zero fish. Many cow stares.

The Trout (and the Dream of Something Bigger)

Mostly brown trout here, but every now and then? Someone hooks a sea trout. Or, if the fishing gods are feeling generous, a salmon. The Saâne dumps into the sea at Quiberville, so anything’s possible. But don’t get greedy. Spot the risers first, then stalk ‘em like you’re in a spy movie.

Flies: Keep It Simple

Mayflies in May/June—obvious, right? But if you see fish sipping and no bugs? Sedges and caddis imitations. No risers? Go nymphs. Hare’s Ear, Pheasant Tail... or Pascal’s secret weapon, the Red Tag. Guy swears by it, and after watching him out-fish me three-to-one, I’m not arguing.

So yeah. The Saâne’s not fancy, but it’s real. And if you listen close, you might just hear the cows laughing at your backcast.

Prev Post
Next Post

Thanks for subscribing!

This email has been registered!

Shop the look

Choose Options

Edit Option
Back In Stock Notification
Compare
Product SKU Description Collection Availability Product Type Other Details
Terms & Conditions
What is Lorem Ipsum? Lorem Ipsum is simply dummy text of the printing and typesetting industry. Lorem Ipsum has been the industry's standard dummy text ever since the 1500s, when an unknown printer took a galley of type and scrambled it to make a type specimen book. It has survived not only five centuries, but also the leap into electronic typesetting, remaining essentially unchanged. It was popularised in the 1960s with the release of Letraset sheets containing Lorem Ipsum passages, and more recently with desktop publishing software like Aldus PageMaker including versions of Lorem Ipsum. Why do we use it? It is a long established fact that a reader will be distracted by the readable content of a page when looking at its layout. The point of using Lorem Ipsum is that it has a more-or-less normal distribution of letters, as opposed to using 'Content here, content here', making it look like readable English. Many desktop publishing packages and web page editors now use Lorem Ipsum as their default model text, and a search for 'lorem ipsum' will uncover many web sites still in their infancy. Various versions have evolved over the years, sometimes by accident, sometimes on purpose (injected humour and the like).

Choose Options

this is just a warning
Login
Shopping Cart
0 items