This time last year we were in a spot of bother in the Southern lakes with the 'Mother of all floods'. To date, this November we have had 3mm of rain! Nature certainly rules the roost. The weather has been magnificent; the noticeable thing apart from the lack of moisture has been the absence of any wind. This is unusual for us, as we should be getting hammered by NW gales. I'm not complaining and I live in hope that the trend continues. At the moment we are just coming out of a 5 day SW front that has dropped the average day time temperatures by 10 degree C. I had an interesting experience of fishing in snow showers last weekend and there was a nice mayfly hatch coming off. I couldn't help but wonder what those trout were thinking as the mayfly and snowflakes danced on the surface.
That SW front has cooled a lot of things not least of which are the Manuka Beetles. True to form they began to appear around the 12th November so the trout should have seen a few before the SW came. Now that the front is past we can expect the beetles to really come on. It will take a day or two for the trout to focus on them but come Christmas time every trout in the lakes and rivers will be well in tune to them. Any beetle pattern will work, try Cockys, Peveril, Loves Lure and Green Humpy's. I find that on the river 14's are great in the quieter water and 10-12 in the heavy water. For the lakes, which can be amazing fishing with beetles around Christmas and New Year, you will need a 16 in calm conditions and 14 to 12 in rippled wind. If the wind really starts to howl then get the wind behind you and try a 8-10 in the waves.
Personally I have a strong preference for the lakes and like to have plenty of sun and a fair breeze with it. Those perfect summer days in the Lakes when the temperature is 25-30C and the lake flat calm are the times to let the water skiers have some fun and the anglers to fish the rivers or picnic somewhere. Beetles apart, there will be a host of other terrestrial insects about. The honeybee is also a favorite of trout and with a profusion of wild flowers and Manuka flowers, the bees are very busy. Sadly a lot never manage the return trip to home and fall into the lake and are eagerly taken by trout. My favorite pattern here is an Irresistible Adams in 14, this fly is a chunky deer hair body with an Adams hackle and wings.
An important thing when fishing for lake edge trout with the dry is to remain totally focused on your fly, especially with a chop on the water, you will struggle to see your fish and they have an amazing ability to appear out of nowhere and gently 'sup' your fly. Gentle is the key, if you can't see your fly you will not see the nose as a brownie takes it, and if you don't see it the fish will have that fly sucked in and spat out before you realise it. The other point here is the gentleness of the 'take'. It all appears to happen in slow motion. The trout appears, you watch your fly being taken, you thank the fish and then firmly set the hook. It takes steady nerves to get this hook setting timed correctly, to fast and you will take the fly away from the fish. Often the fish will circle once looking for the missing fly, so if you are quick and accurate you can put the fly back and have it taken properly. To slow and the fish will spit the fly out. So be watchful and keep your line as straight as possible.
Lakes Hawea and Wanaka are excellent dry fly fisheries, due partly to the flora around the former and the weed beds full of food in the later. Also important fisheries are Poolburn, Manorburn and Lake Onslow. All are great dry fly fisheries when the weather conditions allow. On the river scene it will be a similar approach fly wise to the lakes. To date the rivers have been in great order, a 'tad' full but very very clear. I've spend time on most and been very impressed with the water but a 'tad' bemused by the lack of trout. I hope all this will change as the summer progresses and temperatures warm up a little. At the moment and as always a fishery is only as good as the last time you fished it. On that note I will not be in a hurry to fish the East Matukituki for a while. My fly fishing buddy, Ian and I walked from the confluence to above the Glacier Burn a distance of 4 km and didn't see a fish. Interesting that with all the noise about fishing pressure etc in backcountry fisheries, we don't know why a gin clear backcountry river with adequate aquatic insects will not hold fish! The West Matukituki is not looking much better but I know from experience that there will be better opportunities on the few fish it holds later in summer. The Makarora, Young and Wilkin are all in great order. The Makarora seems a little shy to show her fish at present and the bottom section of the Young up to the forks seems similar. Again these rivers have big reputations but not big numbers of fish. The more rivers you fish you will find there is more scenery than the fish. The Wilkin is coming back to pre-flood form and is looking great. Again, not a lot of fish but the few there are seem to be in good nick. I haven't ventured into the Hunter as yet but have heard from Fish & Game, who are again surveying angler numbers, that the river is in good condition and fish numbers are on a par with other years. The Dingle is always the Dingle and if you can get yourself in there, the fishing will be fun. Timaru Creek will be all but empty of fish by the end of December. Up to then it will still be holding spawned rainbows that are interesting but not that exciting. Fish & Game together with the Clutha Fisheries Trust are also doing angler surveys in the Nevis this season. So keep an eye out for Aaron Horrell if you venture up into the Nevis, you'll learn more from Aaron than he will from you so take the time and have a look at this survey. Aaron also has a number of Rainbows tagged in Lake Dunstan at the moment and if you are lucky enough to catch one, record the tag number, location and if possible release the fish. The Clutha River in and around Dean's bank will be hitting its best for evening and night fishing over December and January. To get the best out of this fishery it is vital to know the piece of water you are going to fish. So get to the river an hour before dark and sit and watch the flows. Take this time to tie up a couple of spare traces and check the torch batteries. Its often midnight to 2 or 3 am that the fishing is best, and as we have no time restriction here you can fish throughout the night if you wish. The best set up is a size 12-10 Goddard caddis with a 10-12 wet fly on the tail 45-60 cm down. Cast slightly upstream and let the current swing your line into the bank. All in all the best of the fishing should be ahead for the holiday angler, be tolerant of the picnic families, dogs and water sport users and enjoy the summer. Gerald

 

From Gerald & Sue Telford Fishing and Hunting Services

Report type: Freshwater

Report date: 27 November 00

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