Hey Roy you haven't been able to drive into the monitoring site for a very long time, well before i started fishing there 15 or so years ago. The best access now to that area is through Kereru lodge and you have to be staying there to use it, which is why we book a couple of weekends there a year to do that. 

Rangers is still an easy walk. There's a track all the way with a few easy crossings

taurangatroutmaster wrote: Rangers is still an easy walk. There's a track all the way with a few easy crossings

Hi, If I might a a few cents in - the river has changed a lot over the last 30 years. The old pools are still there I guess but do not really look like what they did in the pre 90’s and before a flood cut off the crescent.
The better waters unfortunately start from above the old crescent now (which you can just make out the old entrance if you look hard). It’s a 10-15 min walk from the car park to here. The cliff pool is about a brisk 30 min walk from crescent. Then Approx 30 min brisk walk to rangers.   The water in between crescent and cliff has been magic in the past years. There are a few that now walk to rangers before sunlight and nymph/wet line every pool coming downstream say 5 mins each pool. The results can be outstanding.

Tramped up to the Ranger's Pool from the car park in my new Simms, flash Harry G4Z waders on Thursday before dawn. I won't be doing that again any time soon. The river was fairly clear and lower than ideal. Fishing was lousy and only hooked two by 11.00 a.m. One was a beautiful fat hen just over 5lb and the other was a strong fish which broke me off; that hasn't happened for many years so some excitement for the long walk.

Fishb8 - yes limit went up to 6 in 2017 - personally not over fond of eating trout myself but have many friends that do and want them for smoking so happy to oblige.I find Lake fish far better for eating and quality not as good longer they spend in river.There are plenty of fish in the Taupo system - arguably too many so nothing wrong with knocking a few on the head. We observed a few dead fresh run fish floating on side of river - perhaps victim of bad releases - who knows - you do see some anglers posing too long for photos etc.

Best years were 1997=98 could be a year out as memory tends to fade    This followed the 1995 Ruapehu eruption.    8 pounders were caught then.      This year I would say there are some genuine 5 pounders around with the occasional bigger fish but as always lost ones go above that.     Looking at some big Rotoiti fish gives me a good comparison of what Taupo is producing at the moment.     Trout size only goes up if there is enough food in the lake for the number of fish    At Taupo most of the time the balance is not right and the  trout are starving and maidens are either too small or can not recover condition after spawning.     This is one fishery that really benefits from merciless harvest.   Rainbow 

"Used to be the old Wire pool'??
What's it like now?It used to be an upper pool by the measuring station. A set of rapids and another pool to the Windmill pool.
http://rainfallmap.waikatoregion.govt.nz/cgi-bin/hydwebserver.cgi/points/details?point=1&catchment=17
That must still be there as reading are still current.
The upper section was good most of the time and the lower was great following a fresh.
It was great being able to drive to the wire pool when I had a key to the gate at Kiko Rd. There must still be a track for the service vehicle to drive to the measuring station but it's private now.
Big floods in 1998 cut off the track from Crescent to the Cliff but just as it was happening, I drove my RAV4 as far as I could then had the Cliff to the Rangers all to myself. Never saw another soul all day until I got to the Crescent and the car park was full of 'proper' 4x4 vehicles that never chanced the drive. My last drive up that side.

Quite often have to cover alot of water to find the fish in the TT. Quite often if lots of people are around they are hard under the overhanging blackberry. If your indicator isnt drifting perfectly within a cm or 2 of the blackberry u won't catch them