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The following points have been made as a primer. I have learnt many lessons the hard way in flyfishing. Hopefully, you can learn from my experience. Ideally, scout out the river a few days prior to opening and camp out on opening night well away from the nearest access point. If you are really prepared you will have acquainted yourself with the pools where the fish are holding so that you can approach them without spooking them the following morning. Many of our more popular Canterbury rivers, such as the Hope, see anglers camping out well upstream in the hope of nailing a trophy (please excuse the pun). Did I mention that opening falls on a Monday this year? Check that the fly line is not too coiled up. If it is, give it a good stretch in the backyard. I always like to have a tapered leader attached to my fly line before heading out early in the season. It is amazing how hard it is to tie one on when you are watching 10-pounder slurping mayflies in the tail of a pool. I always like to carry a few tapered leaders. 3. Have a wide range of flies in your flybox, especially a wide range of weights. Getting your nymph into the strike zone is critical. I always like to have a few soft hackle nymphs in my fly box. They are lightly weighted. Soft hackles are normally fished underneath a dry fly indicator on a short trace usually less than 40 centimetres long. Have you ever seen fish dimpling the surface and been convinced that they are taking dries, yet they refuse everything that you cast at them? Well, try a small soft hackle nymph. I usually use #16 soft hackle flies. Sometimes a little glitter mixed in the dubbing can work wonders. 4. Avoid walking downstream at the start of day’s angling. Brown trout have a remarkable sense of smell. They will spook in many of our rivers when they smell you as you cross the river while walking downstream. The fish can then become very hard to catch so make sure that you walk upstream and spot fish as you go. Fish the tails of pools. Many trout are in energy conservation mode still. Use heavy nymphs with a small, unweighted dropper to maximise results. 6. Remove all shiny objects on your tackle vest. 7. Pre-treat your dry flies and indicators the night before.
Do not rely on the indicator, either, to signal a strike. Quite often, even on opening day I am afraid to say, trout will follow the nymph downstream before taking it. In such situations the indicator will not move as both the trout and fly are moving downstream! Carefully watch the fish and strike if you see the white of the trout’s mouth, the fish suddenly turn or the leader draw under slightly. You may not get it right, but is worth taking the chance and striking on the slightest intuition. More often than not, striking when you are uncertain whether the fish has taken the fly or not will pay dividends. There is nothing worse than hesitating on the strike and watching the fish take your fly in, spit it out and spook! If you are fishing in areas where there are not too many snags, try a small emerger (“soft-hackle”) fly under the mayfly pattern. 10. Have a range of tippet sizes 11. Make the first cast count. I believe that if you are going to catch a trout your best chance is on the first cast. Make the first cast count. If you stuff up the first cast then your chances of catching our headwater browns diminishes rapidly. If the trout is lying close to the side of the river (as they often do) then remember to cast slightly towards the main current side of the trout rather than between the trout and the river’s edge. Quite often if the fly lands in the slower water on the river edge the fly will drag and spook the trout. Also, quite often the trout will take the fly in the slow edge water, but because of the slow flow the indicator will not register the take. 12. Use Tungsten beads to get your flies into the strike zone. 13. If a trout refuses your offering but continues to feed, the chances are your fly is dragging. Trout will generally (99%) of the time only take a nymph when it is moving at exactly the same speed as the river current. Look at your indicator. Is it moving at the same speed as the river? If not, then your fly is dragging. You will need to practice your line mending skills. 14. Use flashback nymphs in fast, turbulent waters. 15. Don’t be put off by the wind. Don’t be put off by bad weather when you leave home. The weather is usually quite a challenge in October. But the rewards make it worthwhile. If the northwester is blowing, then take a fast action 6 or 7 weight rod with a weight-forward line and tapered leader. Powerful rods are good to have on hand. Also, in many (but not all) of our river valleys, the nor’wester will gust downstream. But occasionally there will be a momentary break in the wind. During such times you have a few seconds to cast upstream to that trophy trout you have spotted. Remember that the wind is not continuous. If you have a fish lined up, be patient and wait for a slight break in the wind.
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