Reel Life March 2025 - Nelson Marlborough

Motueka River fly fishing workshop a success

We recently ran a successful Motueka Fly Fishing workshop with around 35 people attending the event at McLeans Reserve. The session was hosted by guru Mot anglers Weesang Paaka and Don Clementson, with Fish & Game’s Jacob Lucas also speaking. The day was aimed at intermediate-skilled anglers who perhaps have found the Motueka fish challenging, as many people do, despite the river’s good population of fish. The trio spoke about tactics to improve the success rate on this river, which is one of the best and most consistent fisheries in the region. A BBQ and question session were held after the 3-hour event.

Image above: Don Clementson from the Nelson Trout Fishing Club in action at the Motueka fly fishing workshop.

Here is a quick summary of the main points:

• Small nymphs/dries are (generally) the go-to for this river – you only need a handful of patterns but a range in weights (size #16’s are about right), though you can still catch fish on larger flies such as cicadas.
• You want to be fishing when you know water temperature will rise by at least 2 degrees (e.g. cold days and snowmelt often mean inactive fish).
• The Mot is best fished when it is under 25 cumecs.  To check, visit the TDC flow gauge for Woodstock
• Sun is your friend.  If you can, choose a sunny day – you’ll see the fish easier, and they are more active.
• Mot fish love ripples, willow bays, edges and rock structure.
• Even if your spotting ability isn’t the best, you can still do well blind fishing in good ripples.
• Explore the river.  Every run has a great mix of habitat; check out a few different beats to find the best places to fish (willow edges, ripples etc).
• Don’t spend time in low percentage water; find the good areas and fish them well.

You can read a copy of the Motueka Access pamphlet here.

In the future, we’d like to set up a mentor programme where new anglers can be paired with experienced anglers. In the meantime, the Nelson Trout Fishing Club is the best way to access top fishing mentors, and the Club hold several Motueka mentor days each season. You can join this fantastic club through their website: Nelson Trout Fishing Club.

Don Clementson (one of our great speakers from the weekend) is also offering Motueka River fishing tuition.  You can reach Don here: [email protected]. Note: anglers will need reasonable casting ability and mobility, and there is some cost recovery also.

March is one of the best months for fishing the Motueka as water temperature returns to an ideal temperature and insects are abundant, so we hope you get out and make the most of it!

Weesang Paaka discussing fishing tactics with the group

Tasman soft plastic clinics

Following on from four successful soft bait clinics in Marlborough before Christmas, this time it was Nelson/Tasman’s turn.  Josh Ponder delivered a couple of great sessions at Waimea park and the Motueka River (McLeans Reserve). Around 15 people attended the evening session at Waimea park, with a few trout getting caught that evening, and 30 anglers joined the Motueka River event at McLeans Reserve. It was great to see many people taking plenty of notes throughout these informative sessions, which run through the gear and how to fish soft plastics in a river environment.

Here are 7 top tips from Josh:

1. Ditch the swivel; it kills the soft bait action and looks unnatural.
2. Use light gear, look for rods in the 7-9ft range, with a fast action and a casting weight of around 2-15g and reels from 1000-3000. 
3. Use a good braid (6-10lb) to maximise sensitivity and casting distance and a 6-10lb fluorocarbon leader a rod length long. 
4. Minimize braid tangles by always winding the braid under tension. When the wind catches your braid while casting, lower your braid to the water and wind in the slack under tension.
5. Use the right jig head weight for the conditions. Go as light as you can in any given situation. A 1/8th is a good place to start. 
6. Make sure the soft bait is rigged correctly, sitting as straight as possible on the jig head, with the hookup and no kinks or twists in the soft bait.
7. Let your soft bait SINK and SLOW down the retrieve. Make sure to throw in plenty of small twitches and pauses to add life to the soft bait.

Josh Ponder speaking to a captivated crowd at the Motueka River soft bait clinic.

Drift dives completed

We’ve had a busy few months of drift dives, and the year's drift dives are all but completed. Recently, we dived the Rai/Pelorus, Waimea and Buller. Though we had good counts in most rivers over the dive season, all four rivers mentioned here had reasonably disappointing trout numbers.  The Buller was dived at three sites, including a new site above Rait Road Bridge.  Unfortunately, this site had very high didymo coverage and did not support many fish. The Kawatiri site also held few fish, though one pool seemed to tick the habitat box and had a decent number of fish, with the rest of the run holding very low numbers. Disappointingly, the Buller River outlet site at Lake Rotoiti, also held low numbers. Before didymo, this site had some of the highest trout biomass in the country, and we believe the low trout numbers in the Buller River are affecting trout numbers in the lake also.

Job vacancy: Fish & Game officer - Cromwell

Are you passionate and knowledgeable about freshwater angling, gamebird hunting, and conservation?

Do you have strong outdoor skills, fitness, and practical experience? Can you confidently engage with a diverse range of people? And do you want to live in the adventure playground of Central Otago? If so, we’re looking for a Fish & Game Officer based in Cromwell.

This opportunity comes as Cromwell-based Field Officer Ben Sowry moves on to an exciting new role as Compliance Officer for Eastern Fish & Game. Over the past four years, Ben has made a very positive contribution to our region using his extensive knowledge of freshwater fishing, gamebird hunting and conservation. One of his lasting legacies is the restoration work at the Bendigo Wildlife Management Reserve, where he dedicated numerous hours to controlling willows and planting native species to enhance waterfowl habitat.

As a Fish & Game Officer, you’ll be involved in a diverse range of field and office-based activities. Key responsibilities include species and habitat management and restoration, recreational enhancement, access facilitation, regulatory compliance, education, and stakeholder engagement.

For more information or to apply, click here.

Could this be you? Otago officer Ben Sowry undertaking angler surveys on one of Otago’s lakes. Photo: Richard Cosgrove