Hylian Loach

The Hyrule Loach, also known as the Hylian Loach, is a fish in and. It is a fish similar to a with ornate swirl patterns down the length of its body. Due to its rarity, the Hylian Loach is usually revered as a legendary fish.

Ocarina of Time
In, the Hyrule Loach appears at the Fishing Pond in Lake Hylia. It can be found as both child and adult Link, though the size will vary. As a child, the Loach will weigh between 15 and 18 pounds, and as an adult, its weight varies between 29 and 35 pounds.

Finding the Hyrule Loach
The Hyrule Loach appears regardless of whether Link has obtained the Golden Scale or not. Upon entering, the Loach will always be situated at the Lily Pads to the west of the pond. A second Loach can be found on the east Lily Pads as well, but only as child Link. The Loach appears on the fourth time that Link consecutively enters the pond and pays the fishing fee of 20 Rupees. Link must repeat the process of paying 20 Rupees, quitting, and exiting the pond three times consecutively in order for the Loach to appear in the Lily Pads during the fourth time that he goes back in to the pond. This is also true even when the game is saved and restarted. If the fee was paid twice before saving and restarting the game, then Link only has to pay the 20 Rupees one more time to get the legendary fish to appear on his fourth visit. The Loach will appear on the fourth visit to the pond whether Link has paid the fee or not only if the previous conditions have been met. If Link goes in and out of the pond for the first two times and only pays on the third time, the Loach will not appear on the fourth visit to the Fishing Pond.

Once the Hyrule Loach appears, it will remain there even if Link exits and re-enters the pond, so long as he does not pay a fourth time. After paying, exiting the pond will cause the Loach to disappear and for the count to reset back to zero.

Behavior
Like any other fish in the pond, if Link gets too close to the Hyrule Loach while it is in the Lily Pads, it will swim away to the middle of the pond. While there, the Loach stays at the bottom of the pond and only comes up to the surface for air approximately every 75 seconds, except for the first time. If Link disturbs the Loach when it is in the Lily Pads and scares it to the middle, the Loach will swim up for air for the first time after 4 or 5 minutes of not being disturbed, then reverting back to the usual 75-seconds of going up for air. Every time it is about to start swimming up to the surface, the Loach will turn around and swim the opposite direction that it was facing when it was not moving. When the Hylian Loach reaches the surface, it will make a "thap" sound. This signals the moment that the Loach can be targeted by Navi, who will continue to target it until the Loach reaches the bottom of the pond again. The Loach can also always be targeted when it is in the Lily Pads.

After the Hyrule Loach has gone up for air for the seventh time without being disturbed (approximately 15 minutes), it will eventually swim back to the west Lily Pads. The Loach can once again be targeted as it is swimming back to its original position; however, if Link gets too close to it, the Loach will stop swimming to the Lily Pads and return to the middle of the pond.

Like the rest of the fish, the Hyrule Loach will swim after the smaller fish in the pond during sunset or at dawn while it is in the Lily Pads; however, it does not do this when it is somewhere in the middle of the pond. Once the frenzy is over, the Loach will return to its original position.

Catching the Hyrule Loach
The Hyrule Loach can either be caught with the Sinking Lure or the normal lure. The Loach can only be caught while it is in the Lily Pads or while it is swimming back to them. The Loach always ignores the lure when it is in the middle of the pond and when it is swimming up for air.

The easiest and fastest way to catch the Loach is while it is in the Lily Pads to the west of the pond, which is its starting position. While there, the Loach will always follow the movement of the lure, unlike when it is in middle of the pond. Although the Lily Pads make it hard to see exactly where the Loach is, the legendary fish will make ripples in the water as it chases the lure. However, if the Loach gets scared by Link, it will swim to the middle of the pond. While it is in this location, the Loach will ignore the lure during the seven times that it goes up to the surface. Thus, it is advised that the lure be positioned in a way that the Loach will see it as it turns around to swim back to the Lily Pads. Even if the Loach was not attracted to the lure on its way back, the Loach will return to the Lily Pads to the west, giving another chance to easily catch the legendary fish.

Once Link catches the Hyrule Loach and takes it to the Fishing Pond Man, he will tell Link that the fish population's number has decreased and releases it instead of keeping it in the fish tank. He will also give the hero a reward of 50 Rupees.

Twilight Princess
In, Hylian Loaches can be found at Hena's Fishing Hole in the summer time around the Lily Pads. They can only be reeled in by using the Frog Lure or the Sinking Lure. Young Hylian Loaches can also be caught in various places, including Hena's Fishing Hole, by using the Fishing Rod while Bobber Fishing. Despite Hylian Loaches being more common than they were in Ocarina of Time, they are still legendary, as Hena is remarkably impressed when Link catches one.

A book called The Legend of the Hylian Loach: Twilight Fish can be found in Hena's fishing hut. It gives a description of the behavior and habitat of the Loach, mentioning that they prefer the shallow waters and love frogs. Moreover, the book explains that they are known to be antsy and prefer the summertime over wintertime. According to Hena, the book is about a young Hylian Loach and its quest to save Hyrule.

As it is explained in the book, the Loach can only be found when the season in the Fishing Hole is summer. At this season, Lily Pads will appear towards the north of the pond, which is where the Hylian Loach can be located. Their love for frogs makes them easy to catch with the Frog Lure. However, due to the nature of the Frog Lure and the Sinking Lure, the Loach must nibble on the lure for a bit before Link tries to hook it; otherwise, the fish will escape. Once hooked, reel it towards the boat like any other fish, holding down the analogue stick and B to bring it in close, and releasing just the stick while it jumps. Once it is next to the boat, the last difficulty of landing this fish is the window of opportunity actually preceding the notification slightly (or at least the window being so small; as that to normal human reaction speed, it might as well be): keep holding down and B through the first "(A) Land" prompt, and when it returns to the "V+B Reel In" prompt, it is a brief 3-count, then release both the stick and the B button and press A to land it. Again, human perception/reaction speeds differing, it may take a few tries to pin down the timing, particularly in the heat of the moment. At any rate, moving to hit A slightly before the prompt appears will result in a successful landing!

A picture of the Fishing Pond Man from Ocarina of Time holding a Hylian Loach can also be found inside Hena's hut.

Phantom Hourglass and Spirit Tracks
In, a portrait of the Hyrule Loach can be seen in the middle of the Old Wayfarer's house on Bannan Island. In, the same portrait also appears in a house in the north-eastern corner of Hyrule Castle Town.