Fishing News index> January 2008

Southland Fish and Game Fishing News Jan 08

Most of our rivers are pretty low as we are into one of the driest summers we have had for a while. Fortunately there has been a few millimetres of rain about once a week in the headwaters of most rivers but even so flows are generally at or below mean annual low flows.

Trout fishing during the day time in these conditions can be a bit hard, although skilled anglers will still catch fish. The larger rivers such as the Mataura are producing excellent hatches of mayflies but these are fairly sporadic. They are fast and furious while they last but when they stop you may as well pack up and rest under a tree.

As usual with prolific hatches on the Mataura you have to have a good imitation of what  the trout are feeding on and your casting must be accurate, getting the fly exactly into the feeding circle of the trout.

There are a lot of smelt in the estuaries of the main rivers although the Waiau may have peaked now. However the Oreti is full of these important fish and trout are feeding well on them. Again with such as abundance of natural food available you have to be precise in your selection of bait and how it is fished. Late evening or very early morning is likely to be the best time for a successful trip.

Salmon are turning up in the estuaries as well so don’t be surprised if you hook into a fish of 5-6 kg that will test your trout tackle to its limits.

The end of January usually signals the start of autumn in Southland so expect a few cooler nights but the fine weather is expected to continue for several months yet. It looks like it will be an excellent summer of trout.

Maurice Rodway
Manager.

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