Reel Life April 2025 - Nelson Marlborough

April women on the fly event

Following on from our December Women on the Fly (WoTF) event which featured a casting workshop and theory session, we recently held a ‘river skills’ day on the Motueka.  On a sunny April morning, 20 ladies who ranged from experienced anglers to outright newbies gathered at McLeans Reserve to run through a range of fly fishing subjects.  The morning session covered the basics such as setting up rods, leader construction, knots and indicators.  After lunch, the group split into two groups with new anglers learning the basics of fly casting under expert guidance from Tony Entwistle, and more experienced anglers hitting the river with Don Clementson to talk about reading the water, how temperature affects trout feeding behaviour, then were let loose to cast at some of the trout that were seen slashing at vine hoppers in the river.

The event concluded with spot prizes and a discussion of ‘where to next?’ with the group, who all concurred that similar events would be great in the future.  It was fantastic to see a high level of enthusiasm from this wonderful bunch of ladies, and we look forward to connecting again soon to continue progressing the WoTF movement.

Thanks to our excellent tutors, Don Clementson and Tony Entwistle from Nelson Trout Fishing Club; Barrie at I Love Fly Fishing for their generous sponsorship of the event; and Gebhard Krewitt for the photos.

Image above: Bridget Steele and Don Clementson in casting mode, with Billy Cox in the background.

Late season fishing 

As winter approaches it has been evident anglers are hitting the water while the conditions are good, making the most of the season before trout depart on their spawning duties. With a bit more flow in the river, now is a great time for spin and soft bait fishing, targeting trout which are usually in top condition.  It’s also a productive time for fly fishing, although this is more suited to clear water conditions and warm days when midday mayfly hatches are common. This is when trout lose some of their fussiness and are generally happy to accept any nymph patterns as long as it’s in the ballpark of what’s floating down the river at the time.  They will also willingly rise to mayfly imitations which occur most days when the conditions are right.  It was interesting to hear from one local angler who kept a fish from the Motueka on the 14 April that was chock full of passionvine hoppers, showing that these continue to be a key food source right through autumn.

The writer enjoyed a recent afternoon foray on the Motueka River, coming across a run of very eager fish who accepted flies on first or second cast, before low sun anglers and shadow ended the day.  The key for fly fishing lowland rivers at this time of year is to choose calm, sunny days and allow time for the water temperature to rise a couple of degrees.  There is little point being on the river before 10am, and it’s really 11am or later that the water warms enough to stir insect life and trout feeding.

April/May still offer great fishing opportunities with settled weather and fat fish – we encourage you to make the most of it!

The writer enjoyed some red-hot fishing on the Moteuka in mid-April, along with Weesang and Matiri Paaka (pictured).

May fishing options

While many trout fisheries close on April 30, we still have a few great river fishing options during May:

• Motueka River – open all year below Woodstock Bridge
• Branch/Leatham – open until May 31
• Pelorus River – open all year up to Rai confluence
• Wairau River – open all year up to Wash Bridge

May is a great month to fish the Branch/Leatham - trout are in top nic though the days are short.