About us

 

A brief history . . .

When Black River Outfitters was founded in 2004, brothers Juan Pablo and Jose Ignacio (Nacho) Portela had their dreams realized. Now thirty years old, the Portela twins were born in Montevideo, Uruguay but moved to the Rio Negro countryside when they were only four years old. The two grew up hunting and fishing in Young, UY, a small farming village, and came to know the area and their quarry well.

The brothers parted ways to attend university: Pablo moved to Switzerland for three years where he earned a degree in hotel management before traveling the world to gain experience in the hospitality industry at an international level. Brother Nacho chose to stay closer to home where he attended Universidad ORT Uruguay in Montevideo to study business administration. Like Pablo, Nacho also traveled the world after he completed school.

Eventually the two returned home to Uruguay and decided to open an elite level mixed bag hunting and fishing operation in the fields, ponds and rivers which they grew up hunting and fishing and knew so well. With old-fashioned hard work, dedication to service, attention to details, and a keen knowledge of arguably the finest mixed bag wing shooting real estate anywhere in the world, the Portelas developed Black River Outfitters and haven’t looked back since.

For nearly six years now, Nacho and Juan Pablo have owned and operated Black River Outfitters. The brothers started out hosting clients in Estancia La Paz which is located in Paysandu, UY, and they began to develop their reputation for offering an outstanding mixed bag opportunity to international wing-shooters. Soon after they started hunting in Paysandu, they established an equally successful fishing operation on the Uruguay River. They stayed in Estancia La Paz for nearly five years and developed a sterling reputation both for the unrivaled sporting opportunities they offered through Black River Outfitters, and for their hospitality and passion for their work. This success afforded them the opportunity in 2009 to move their operation to Estancia San Cirilo. Private, luxurious, and situated so perfectly that the mixed bag opportunities await right out the front door, San Cirilo was final piece of the puzzle that the Portelas had been waiting for. Their goal is to combine a luxurious sporting getaway with an authentic Uruguayan hunting experience.   A truly high volume mixed bag of doves, ducks, pigeons, and perdiz, Black River Outfitters at Estancia San Cirilo is now among the absolute best hunting and fishing programs in South America.

 

Blackriver Outfitters.