I love Autumn here in NZ for fly fishing. Cool, calm mornings and warmish days make for some great mayfly hatches ! Mid-morning - mid arvo are the prime times in autumn, when the water temps begin to rise and the fish become more active as insects begin to appear. superb southland brown trout Low light days with glare become the norm and can make things tricky for spotting trout. Be mindful of where you stand in relation to the fish when casting as long shadows will now spook fish easier as the season is drawing to a close. Stunning Southland Back country fish for Stu. Longer finer leaders ..read more

When fishing for trout fixated on willow grubs the angler needs to be persistent, the 6th cast at a fish, which seems no different to the previous dozen or so may produce a fish ! The wee red blisters on willow leaves which contain the developing larvae of saw flies which are generally known as willow grubs start to appear early on in the summer months with fish really keying in on them at the height of the summer as they drop from the leaves onto the surface of our willow lined rivers and streams here in New Zealand. another victim who fell for the sunken willow grub My wee weighted willow ..read more

With so many fly patterns available to the angler these days its all become a little confusing! There are literally 100s and 100s of different patterns in many different sizes, weights and colours available to buy from tackle shops and online stores. If you are travelling to NZ to fly fish, looking to simplify your fly selection or even just starting out heres a few of my “go to flies” that I carry in my fly box every day both guiding and fishing personally. Every New Zealand fly fishing guide will have his or her favourite flies, many of which they will have spent hours perfecting both on and ..read more

This little piece of goodness is always in my fly tying kit whether I’m tying flies at home on the kitchen table or on the road guiding for a week. Its super compact, robust, lightweight and easy to assemble on any table or bench top. Featuring hard steel jaws, quick lock cam and all packed away in a stylin' protective felt case made from recycled plastic bottles! Holds hooks from size 2 to 22 so all your bases are covered with this wee beauty ! Hard steel jaws Quick-lock cam' operation Rotary head Fully adjustable Allen key Recycled PET felt carry pouch Nice and compact once pa ..read more

What Bring If Your Visiting New Zealand Fly Fishing. Bringing your own fly-fishing gear into New Zealand is pretty easy on the whole. MAF Biosecurity staff require any freshwater fishing equipment such as your Simms Waders and Boots (note felt soled boots are not permitted to be worn here in NZ) which is not completely dry (inside and out) to be treated, regardless of whether it has been cleaned before coming to New Zealand. Treatment for some fishing items takes time and will most likely take place outside of the airport. If it is not feasible for the owner to wait for treatment to be complet ..read more

  A slender, predatory, aquatic insect found in a variety of freshwater habitats here in New Zealand.  Shallow weed beds along the lake edges, backwaters, ponds and slow-moving weedy sections of rivers all provide the perfect environment for these insects to thrive in.  Damsel fly nymphs are expert ambush predators and will lie in wait on the substrate or submerged aquatic plants, once prey is near it enough its extendable jaws will snatch out grabbing the unsuspecting insect drawing it into its mouth to be devoured quickly.  Damsel fly nymphs are a favourite trout food es ..read more

Wow what a great start to winter with a big dump of snow a couple of weeks ago!  The water temperature has dropped, the flow has increased and some nice fresh fish have begun moving up the Clutha on their way to their spawning beds. I have been out both softbaiting and swinging flies on my Switch rod over the last couple of weeks and have landed some good fish. Some of the best coloured soft baits to use at the moment have been olive pearl, fire tiger, pinks and you can get these at Southern Wild. Pop in and see Mark and Scotty they have a great selection of Berkley paddle tail soft b ..read more

First time out with my double hander rod for the year today and boy it felt good to feel the line tighten, then the weight go on at the end of the swing ! I was stoked to land a solid 5lb rainbow along with 4 other fresh wee rainbows in the 2-3lb range all fighting fit and in great condition. The takes ranged from small ‘taps’ or ‘plucks’ to full on hits that pulled the fly line from hand. Most were at the end of the swing as the fly lifted slightly or on the first small strip after having the let the fly “hang” in the current briefly. Many times a fish will follow the fly closer, until taking ..read more

February Fishing Report  My 14 year old son does a fishing report for the local sports store here in Wanaka (Southern Wild) where he works over the summer months. He loves chatting with the customers and helping them with fly and lure choices along with how to set up their rods and reels etc. Hope you enjoy the read :) Most of this February I have been fishing the local rivers in the Wanaka area with both fly and spinning gear depending on the conditions. Again the most popular soft bait colors I have found this month have been the Berkley black and gold paddle tail and the EcoGear Gras ..read more

Recently while on a short break away with the family during the October school holidays I got the chance to fish a small head water stream I’d wanted to visit for years. We had visited the region many times before but I’d never been able to sneak away for a day to explore it ! After visiting a couple of local beaches to check out the amazing rock formations and wild life on our first day I got a leave pass to fish the following day with my son Louie who is a mad keen fly fisherman and always up for an adventure on a new river or stream. Who ate all the pies ! Louie’s first fish of the day Th ..read more