Venezuela & Colombia Rivers Fishing Guide

The blackwater rivers of eastern Colombia that drain into the Orinoco are known for speckled (temensis) peacock bass and payara, fished mainly in the dry months from December to March. The legal picture is changing: a 2022 court ruling ended recreational sport fishing, and a 2025 law created a new 'tourism fishing' category whose rules AUNAP is still putting in place. Venezuela's side of the Orinoco holds the same fish, but the U.S. State Department rates Venezuela Level 3, Reconsider Travel (June 27, 2026).

📍 Colombia's Orinoco tributaries in Vichada and Guainía: the Bita (enters the Orinoco near Puerto Carreño), the Tomo (much of it inside El Tuparro National Park), the Vichada, and the Orinoco's Maipures rapids. Lodges are reached from Bogotá by flights to Puerto Carreño or Puerto Inírida, then by boat. Venezuela's Orinoco tributaries are on the other bank and are covered here only as background.

Map: spots, ramps and marinas

★ Fishing hot spot · ● Boat ramp · ● Marina · ▭ Protected area (solid red = no fishing, dashed = fishing with rules)

Open the full Venezuela & Colombia Rivers map →

Quick facts

Colombia's Constitutional Court (ruling C-148 of 2022) struck down recreational sport fishing; AUNAP said sport fishing permits could run no later than July 22, 2023.
Law 2501 of July 28, 2025 created a new legal category, 'pesca de turismo' (tourism fishing); AUNAP and the Ministry of Agriculture were given one year to write the rules and issue permits.
The Bita River is about 710 km long, and its whole basin (about 824,500 hectares) was named a Ramsar wetland of international importance in 2018.
The Tomo River is about 902 km long and runs through El Tuparro National Park and Biosphere Reserve; big peacock bass are abundant there in the dry 'summer'.
AUNAP's Orinoquía closed season runs each year from the Monday after Holy Week to May 31 for food and ornamental fish (in 2026: April 6 to May 31).

What you can catch

Speckled peacock bass (pavón, Cichla temensis)
Main target; found in Orinoco tributaries of Colombia and Venezuela. Max published size about 99 cm and 12.2 kg (FishBase).
Butterfly peacock bass
Smaller peacock bass caught alongside temensis on the Vichada and nearby rivers.
Cichla intermedia (a peacock bass)
Recreational fishing for it is banned in the Bita River basin (AUNAP Resolution 2877 of 2022).
Payara (vampire fish)
Fished in the Orinoco at the Maipures rapids; fish over 20 lb are reported by lodges.
Sardinata
Hard-fighting extra catch reported by Vichada lodges.
Catfish (redtail and shovelnose)
Targeted by some lodges; the valentón catfish is off limits for recreational fishing in the Bita basin.
Pacu / cachama
Occasional catch.
Piranha
Common bycatch.

Month by month

January	Dry season; prime peacock bass and payara time (lodges fish Dec-Mar).
February	Dry season, low water; fish packed into lagoons and deep pools.
March	Last month of the main lodge season.
April	Rains start. AUNAP closed season for food and ornamental fish begins the Monday after Holy Week.
May	Closed season for food and ornamental fish until May 31. High water.
June	Rainy season, high water; lodges closed.
July	Rainy season, high water.
August	Rainy season, high water.
September	Rainy season, high water.
October	Rainy season; waters start to drop late.
November	Waters dropping; some lodges open late November.
December	Season opens (mid-December for most lodges) as rivers fall.

Tips

Before you book, ask the lodge to show it holds a current AUNAP permit under the new tourism fishing rules (Law 2501 of 2025); the rules are new, so check current rules.
Do not fish for Cichla intermedia, blue arawana or valentón catfish in the Bita River basin; recreational fishing for them is banned there.
Read the U.S. State Department advisories: Colombia is Level 3 (Reconsider Travel) and the Colombia-Venezuela border region is Level 4 (Do Not Travel). Puerto Carreño and the Orinoco sit on that border.
Do not cross into Venezuela from the Colombian side; the Colombia-Venezuela border region is rated Level 4 (Do Not Travel), and Venezuela as a whole is Level 3 (Reconsider Travel). Check the State Department advisory before any trip.
Flights to Puerto Inírida have tight bag limits (lodges quote 15-20 kg), and most lodges charge a separate native community fee.

Rules and license

AUNAP (Autoridad Nacional de Acuicultura y Pesca, Colombia); Parques Nacionales Naturales (El Tuparro) · Official rules page ↗

Constitutional Court ruling C-148 of 2022 ended recreational (sport) fishing in Colombia; AUNAP capped sport fishing permits at July 22, 2023.
Law 2501 of 2025 created 'pesca de turismo'; operators need an AUNAP permit, and AUNAP sets gear, quantities, sizes, seasons and zones. Check current rules.
Orinoquía closed season (Resolution 2663 of 2022): no catching, transporting or selling food or ornamental fish from the Monday after Holy Week to May 31.
Bita basin (Resolution 2877 of 2022): no recreational fishing for blue arawana, Cichla intermedia or valentón catfish.
Bita basin: gillnets and chinchorros banned; cast nets only for bait; coolers on boats capped at 70 kg total.
Explosives, poisons (including barbasco) and blocking channels to trap fish are banned.
Commercial fishing is banned inside El Tuparro National Park; only authorized indigenous communities fish there for food.
Bag limits and size limits for tourism fishing: not yet confirmed; check current rules.

Rules change. Always check the official page before you fish.

Boat ramps and marinas

The map above shows 0 boat ramps and 0 marinas from OpenStreetMap. Tap any dot for directions.

Sources

Checked October 2026. BigJoe does not invent facts: every number on this page comes from the sources listed above.