Southland >Fishing

If you catch a tagged fish, please contact the regional Fish & Game office

The Southland Plains are bisected by four major rivers, the Aparima, Waiau, Oreti and Mataura. However, these represent just the starting point in a huge variety of opportunities throughout the province. When you consider the dozens of smaller rivers and streams, as well as the lakes, it’s not too surprising that Southland has the highest participation in angling per capita of any region in New Zealand.

Brown trout are the mainstay of Southland’s angling, and our rivers are justifiably famous for their quality. Perhaps you want to be able to spot very large brown trout, swaying in a crystal clear river, and carefully cast a nymph to tempt him to make a mistake? Or perhaps you’d prefer to take up the challenge with the super abundant, super fussy and super frustrating browns of the mad Mataura rise? Whatever your angling passion it can be found somewhere in Southland.

Rainbow trout are more common in our lakes, and their tributaries and provide yet more diversity to our angling scene. Watching a large green snout close over a cicada pattern and feeling the anticipation as you wait to set the hook should certainly spin your angling wheels?

While our fly fishing tends to get the headlines, the spin fishing opportunities are equally abundant. Spin fishing remains the most popular method in Southland, and with the success rate than better anglers enjoy that’s no surprise. A revolution in the quality and affordability of modern gear has also dramatically changed the sport from the days of a ‘solid glass’ rod and an ‘egg beater’ reel that truly did feel about that smooth!

As with every region in the country, more competent anglers will catch more fish. For those starting into this great sport, there is a wealth of introductory literature available for both fly and spin fishing, and these days also DVDs!

For access information for Southland’s rivers click on the ‘access’ page and scroll down to the links to the various PDF files of our access brochures. Alternately, call in to a sports store in Southland, or visit us at Fish & Game.

Tight lines!