When I first saw the source of the Loue River, I immediately thought of these words by the famous German poet Hermann Hesse. You have to see it, to believe it… a gigantic cave opens in a naked limestone cliff and out flows a powerful river, descending over several cascades into a narrow canyon. Seldom has any natural phenomenon impressed me more than that!
Here the water of Loue is cold and fast and for me it was hard to believe that this was the same river I had fished the days before further downstream. As we had driven up the road alongside the Loue towards the source, the river had changed. From Ornans onwards, and especially in Vouillafans where we had made a stop, the river was clearly a trout water! From the bridge in Vuillafans I saw several large trouts and graylings, this was the water I had been hoping for, here I had high hopes to catch the fish I was longing for!
Some of the best parts of the Upper Loue are in private hands, as e.g. the stretch within the village of Vuillafans where I saw the trouts. But there are some nice parts which can be fished and I chose the “Gorges de Nouailles”, the narrow canyon 
just below the source. This canyon is dug up to a thousand feet deep into the limestone plateau, and no easy ground. I hoped, that not many fishermen would take it upon themselves to fish here so that I would find relatively unspoilt spots and by any chance a “tigre du Jura” (“Tiger of the Jura”, also called zebra-trout).
But the water just below the source is cold and has yet little nutrients, and the deep dark canyon gets only little sunlight to add to the productivity of the river. Were there any trout at all? 
I tried to keep my expectations low to not be disappointed in the end. At least I was certain to enjoy a beautiful scenery, and any trout would just be the cherry on top!
When I had started this vacation I had not thought I would end up fishing a mountain stream, and accordingly, I had not brought the proper gear. I felt a little overgunned, but it worked more or less. With weighted nymphs and tuck casts I was able to reach a good depth in the fast and sometimes deep water.
And it did not take long, until the first trout hit! Under these circumstances I missed some takes and lost a couple of fish, but when I landed my first small zebra-trout my hands were shaking and I almost had tears in my eyes! This was it! This is what I came for, this is the fish of legends! And it did not remain the only one! I caught many fish, and although the average size was only about a hand’s length, they were marvelous. Some larger ones measured up to well over 30cm , and I must admit in highest admiration how strong these fish were! Probably used to the fast water, they fought like hell!
Once I had to look up in surprise as I heard people applauding after I had netted another fish. Some hikers on the trail above me had stopped to watch and were now happily waving at me. I felt a bit sheepish about it, but waved back, smiled and made a fist in triumph…
Time went by quickly and I had to force myself to stop and head back to my family, who were already waiting. This trip to the source had been well worth it! The beginning of the river had put a happy ending to my search for the legendary trout of the Jura.
