Reel Life October 2026 - Otago

Ready for a Spring Fishing Adventure? 

The 2026-2027 freshwater fishing season has started to the sound of trout stripping line off reels around Otago’s open waters.

Image above: Jason Kelly releases a brown trout caught in a Central Otago river this month. Photo: Jakub Kanok

Our licence holders have been sending in some great photos from their fishing trips, like the one above.

Labour Weekend is just days away. We hope you get to revisit a favourite spot, try somewhere new or introduce the kids to fishing these holidays.

We’ve had some typically wet days so far this spring — and some glorious weather.  Fishing can be good  as rivers begin to fall and clear, so keep an eye on flows and make the most of the conditions.

High-country fishing starts on November 1. Remember to check the official 2026–27 Otago Sport Fishing Regulations before heading out. AI tools and other unofficial sources can give incorrect advice about season dates.

Otago Weekly Fishing Report

Otago Reel Life is mostly a selection of highlights from the Otago Weekly Fishing Report, which offers regular updates on fishing prospects, water levels and conditions across the region.

It's a useful way to plan your next trip and find out what's happening on local rivers, lakes and reservoirs.

• Read the latest fishing report
• Subscribe to the weekly email

Soft Bait Fishing Clinics 

Practical tips and techniques for anglers of all experience levels.

Want to catch more trout, salmon and perch? Soft baits are an effective spin-fishing method worth adding to your tackle box.

Join us for a free clinic with Lance Gill, from Okuma NZ, at Lake Waihola and Butchers Dam. Each session runs from 6.30pm-8.30pm and includes a one-hour talk and demonstration, followed by a chance to try your luck catching a trout or perch. Learn about lure types, rig setups, braid-to-mono knots, casting techniques and retrieves that trigger strikes. 

• LAKE WAIHOLA: Wednesday, November 11
• BUTCHERS DAM: Thursday, November 12

  Click here for more details and register now.

 

Here’s a taste of what you may have missed in recent Otago Weekly Fishing Reports …

Chasing the rainbows 

An Otago Fish & Game ranger was in the Maniototo recently and arrived just in time to help fly angler Barry Sloper net a 5.5-pound jack rainbow trout in one of our put-and-take stocked reservoirs.

Barry Sloper (left) hooked this 5.5-pound jack rainbow, cheered on by Mike Weddell, in a Maniototo stocked reservoir. Photo: Steve Dixon

Barry hooked the fish on a bead-head nymph below a dry fly indicator. Angler Mike Weddell has also been having success on the Maniototo reservoirs with Damselfly Nymph and Water Boatman patterns.

These rainbows don’t appear there by magic. They are the result of a 21-year hatchery partnership between Otago Fish & Game and OceanaGold’s Macraes operation.

Each spring, Otago Fish & Game liberates around 6000 yearling rainbows from Macraes into put-and-take fisheries across the region. The young fish will grow to a catchable size for future seasons.

Otago Fish & Game officer Steve Dixon releases yearlings into Rutherfords Dam yesterday. Photo: Rachel Easson

We’ve completed liberations at the Maniototo put-and-take fisheries — Blakelys, Coalpit, Mathias, Hamitons, Rutherfords dams and McAtamneys Head Pond. Most of these fisheries are on private land and we are grateful to local farmers for generously allowing anglers access to these waters.

Over the next couple of weeks yearlings will be liberated in Central Otago at Pinders Pond, Butchers and Conroys dams, and Lakes Johnson, Moke and Dispute.

All of our hatchery fish are rainbow trout. We only stock small lakes, ponds or reservoirs where there are little to no self-sustaining trout populations. Wild trout in our rivers and major lakes and dams are self-sustaining.

Big Brown Trout from Lower Clutha/Mata-Au

Hadlee Edmunds caught this brown trout while soft-bait fishing in the lower Clutha/Mata-Au. Photo: Supplied

Soft baits have been producing some good trout in the lower Clutha/Mata-Au for Hadlee Edmunds of Dunedin Hunting & Fishing.

Fishing the river's backwaters recently, Hadlee caught two brown trout, including one estimated at 8lb — although his net scales read closer to 9lb. He reckons it was probably the biggest trout he has caught from the Clutha.

He also caught a brown trout estimated at 3–4lb near the river mouth after spotting it chasing smelt. It took a soft bait almost immediately. Hadlee was using a baitfish-style paddletail soft bait. He also caught a rainbow trout of about 1lb and had follows from several others.

We’ve heard the lower Taieri River is producing the odd catch of sea trout chasing baitfish.

Bibbed Lures Finding Fish Around Weed Beds

Trout are being caught on bibbed lures around the weed beds and in deeper water at Lake Dunstan.

Tim Johnson from Central Otago Hunting & Fishing recently fished from the shore, working bibbed lures along the top of the weed beds. When a lure caught the weed, he paused the retrieve and let it float back up, often prompting a strike.

He caught several trout, including a couple around 4lb.

You don’t necessarily need to cast a long way out or use heavy lures. Trout will hit close to the bank, so working the weed edges can be productive without fishing the deepest parts of the lake.

There have also been reports of schools of trout in the lower reaches of the lake. One boat angler reported seeing large numbers of fish at depths of around 15 to 20 metres while trolling.

Lake Hāwea and Wānaka Producing Trout

The head of Lake Hāwea near the Hunter River mouth has been fishing well, says Nathan Dell at Southern Wild in Wānaka, who has heard good reports from the area.

A young angler also caught a “nice, fat” rainbow trout near the Timaru Creek delta, while a charter operator has been catching rainbow trout while trolling Lake Wānaka.

Tassie-style lures have been working well for the Wānaka trolling.

Regulation Update

A reminder that some Otago freshwater fishing regulations have changed for the 2026-2027 season. Among the changes are:

• scented soft baits allowed to be used when actively fished.
• reduced landlocked salmon bag limits in parts of the upper Clutha/Mata-Au catchment.
• increased fishing opportunities in Dunedin (Water of Leith and Lindsay Creek) and the Catlins (Tahakopa River and Tautuku Estuary).

For a full summary of the 2026-2027 Otago regulation changes, click here.

For the full 2026-2027 Otago sports fishing regulations, click here. 

Finding Fish After Rain

Spring weather has a habit of pushing up flows and discolouring rivers. Check river conditions before you head out. Click here to save the ORC Environmental Data Portal in your favourites on your phone.

Here are a few suggestions if the rivers are high:

• Fish often shelter in clearer tributaries off larger rivers.
• Target structure such as rocks, logs and undercut banks.
• Fish eddies and margins, where fish can find shelter and food.
• Get your lures down with heavier lures, jig heads or split shot.
• Choose dark or flashy lures that stand out in discoloured water.
• Incoming tides can bring clearer water into estuaries.
• Consider fishing stillwaters such as dams, reservoirs and lakes.

Take a Kid Fishing

Adeline Van Der Geest (age 5) reels in a rainbow trout at Southern Reservoir while dad Luke nets her catch at Take A Kid Fishing at the weekend. Photo: Bruce Quirey

More than 335 children, along with mums, dads and grandparents, attended our Take A Kid Fishing events at Southern Reservoir, Dunedin, in the spring school holidays.

Fishing was particularly good on both Saturdays, with high catch rates. Many other fish were caught and released. Sundays were a little quieter because of the weather. Thanks to our volunteers, our Macraes hatchery partner OceanaGold, Dunedin City Council, Green Island Lions Club, and The Shot coffee cart.

Don’t forget your licence

Buy early to get best value for the 2026-2027 season. Get your licence online or visit a local agent.

Click here for a list of Otago agents where you can buy a licence.

 

Want more information? Check out these links or contact our helpful Otago team. 

• Fishing Knowledge Hub 
• Where to Fish Otago
• Otago Fish & Game Facebook page 
• Otago Fish & Game webpage 
• 5 Hazlett Road, Mosgiel 9092
• Tel: (03) 477 9076 

 

Tight lines, 

The team at Otago Fish & Game Council