Any one fish NZ south island for trout ?

[Bullie]

I need advice on fishing for broiwns in NZ.
Tackle and tecniques

[dlampert]

I need advice on fishing for broiwns in NZ.
Tackle and tecniques

Dustin,

I would take a 9'-10' fast action 5 or 6wt. I took three rods along, TFO TiCRX 9' 5wt, TFO Pro 10' 6wt and a Sage 99 5wt - I fished the Sage the whole time with the exception of 1 day when I fished the TICRX. Techniques are the same as for other trout, the fish just happen to be bigger. Dry flies, nymphs, streamers, mice. What time of year you going and for how long? Buy a strong insecticide for the sand flies - 100% Deet if possible as the lower concentrations like Tabard etc don't work. Try and spot fish but make sure you fish likely water as well. If you can afford it, get a good guide for a day or so.

[Kevin James]

A lot of what Darryl said is right.

The fish are not particularly fussy - a good presentation and dragless drift is what is needed.
If you get a refusal, tie on a smaller fly.
(There are a lot of very smart fish and they have ESP powers when it comes to been fished to - go slowly, keep low)

Dry and dropper is a good combo as is a truck and trailer nymph set up.

Long leaders - 14ft minimum also helps a lot.
Fish your feet and keep your eyes open.
You'll be amazed at where the browns lie and the shallow water they are in.

What area are you fishing and when?
Just remember most of the waters close 30th April.

I have a lot of photo's in my album on here somewhere.
They might be able to help.

[Korrie]

How long will you be there?
that influences a lot of the decisions on where you will fish,
7 days, 14 days or longer?
Will you have a car?
If you are there for short time, where will you be based?
A #5 is all you need, with a back up #5.
What accomodation are you planning to use, camping, chalets, guest houses, in some towns, you can get lovely furbished homes to rent from the estate agents for 1 or 2 nights.
Dont overlook the still waters, I had a day, where all the rivers in a 2 hour drive, any which way, was like hot chocolate.
someone, in a local shop, mentioned a superb still water 20 minutes away. I had fantastic still water fishing for the day, and the next day, the rivers where clean enough to fish it.
Although the speed limit is 100km/h for most parts, a lot of the time, you will be lucky if you average 60km/h, whilst driving (winding roads, rain and other traffic) Keep that in mind when planning your trips

[KevinE]

Rod 9ft 5 or 6wt. It needs to be strong enough to cast a couple of weighted nymphs into a headwind, but delicate enough to make a careful presentation. A shorter 4wt is also handy in case you spend any time on smaller streams. A WF floating line that loads your rod easily is all that you need in lines. This may mean overlining your rod if necessary. No need to be too fussy with reels, just a smooth drag with low startup inertia. You need to be comfortable casting long leaders. 15 to 18 foot (and sometimes even longer). Practise fishing with long leaders before you leave. If you want to catch decent fish you must be prepared to walk. Comfortable boots are a must. Wear them in before you arrive, blisters suck.

The most important part of your preparation in my opinion is to work on your casting. Consider this scenario: You can cleary see a fish at the bottom of an 8ft deep run. This fish is feeding actively, but the water is crystal clear and although swift, the surface is relatively unbroken to hide poor presentations. And there is a moderate breeze coming straight downstream. You won't be able to get closer than 10metres to the fish because of the deep clear water. Even at 10m you will need to keep low. You will need to lead the fish by at least 5m to give the heavy nymph time to get down to the fish's level. But you will most likely need an indicator to confirm the strike. And your leader will need to be 5 to 6m long to ensure that you don't line the fish. So in summary you will need to cast a couple of weighted nymphs and an indicator more than 15m into a headwind using a 5m+ leader. You will probably need a reach cast to make sure you don't line the fish, even with the long leader. You get the picture. You will find easier fish, but just an illustration of how important casting is.

Presentation is more important than pattern. Most fish will take a pheasant tail type nymph if presented properly. Hares ears, PT's and half backs (traditional and modern variants) will all work. Tungsten beads are a must. Most fish will take size 16 nymphs. But make sure your hooks are strong and have a wide gape. Specialist wide-gape hooks stick well. Another trick is to tie your nymphs on short shank hooks. Eg. tie your #16 nymphs on a #14 short shank hook. You will then have a #16 nymph with a wide gape but thicker wire than a regular #16. Royal wulffs, cicada type patterns and humpies all work well in summer. Emergers and parachutes work well for rising fish.

Try to sight fish as much as possible because you will be infinitely more successful if you can see a fish before casting. But blind prospecting likely runs is worthwhile in streams that are known to have a good head of fish.

A bit of rushed reply. Just ask if you have any specific questions.

Cheers
Kevin

[JadeDsantos]

Rod 9ft 5 or 6wt. It needs to be strong enough to cast a couple of weighted nymphs into a headwind, but delicate enough to make a careful presentation. A shorter 4wt is also handy in case you spend any time on smaller streams. A WF floating line that loads your rod easily is all that you need in lines. This may mean overlining your rod if necessary. No need to be too fussy with reels, just a smooth drag with low startup inertia. You need to be comfortable casting long leaders. 15 to 18 foot (and sometimes even longer). Practise fishing with long leaders before you leave. If you want to catch decent fish you must be prepared to walk. Comfortable boots are a must. Wear them in before you arrive, blisters suck.

The most important part of your preparation in my opinion is to work on your casting. Consider this scenario: You can cleary see a fish at the bottom of an 8ft deep run. This fish is feeding actively, but the water is crystal clear and although swift, the surface is relatively unbroken to hide poor presentations. And there is a moderate breeze coming straight downstream. You won't be able to get closer than 10metres to the fish because of the deep clear water. Even at 10m you will need to keep low. You will need to lead the fish by at least 5m to give the heavy nymph time to get down to the fish's level. But you will most likely need an indicator to confirm the strike. And your leader will need to be 5 to 6m long to ensure that you don't line the fish. So in summary you will need to cast a couple of weighted nymphs and an indicator more than 15m into a headwind using a 5m+ leader. You will probably need a reach cast to make sure you don't line the fish, even with the long leader. You get the picture. You will find easier fish, but just an illustration of how important casting is.

Presentation is more important than pattern. Most fish will take a pheasant tail type nymph if presented properly. Hares ears, PT's and half backs (traditional and modern variants) will all work. Tungsten beads are a must. Most fish will take size 16 nymphs. But make sure your hooks are strong and have a wide gape. Specialist wide-gape hooks stick well. Another trick is to tie your nymphs on short shank hooks. Eg. tie your #16 nymphs on a #14 short shank hook. You will then have a #16 nymph with a wide gape but thicker wire than a regular #16. Royal wulffs, cicada type patterns and humpies all work well in summer. Emergers and parachutes work well for rising fish.

Try to sight fish as much as possible because you will be infinitely more successful if you can see a fish before casting. But blind prospecting likely runs is worthwhile in streams that are known to have a good head of fish.

A bit of rushed reply. Just ask if you have any specific questions.

Cheers
Kevin

Wow, I was just casually reading this on a Sunday morning, now all you have made me want to do is get to NZ and hunt some tough trout. That sounds like a challenge I cant miss.

It kind or reminds me of this video:

[Kevin James]

Jade, that is an awesome video mate.

You don't know how close that is to the truth right there at times.
I just returned from South Island fishing a mate and it was almost an exact de ja vu experience this video for him as he struggled with long leaders and clear conditions.

That valley these blokes are fishing is magnificent and I'm privileged enough to probably have cast to these same fish over the years as these are resident fish in this area.

Very cool and thanks for sharing!