A chilly/misty start here in Turangi but it has since dissipated as the sun has risen, and with the little breeze present it makes for a very hot day for those fortunate enough to be out in the sun – and ideally with a rod on your favourite water.

I went for an afternoon wander with a couple of rods so I could set up rigs to fish various techniques and see what I could come up with. First up was a large pool which was nymphed using the RIO Elite Indicator line – a new addition to my autumn/winter fishing kit which enables me to cover more water with dead drifts through each pool but on this particular day an animated nymph was what worked for me. At the tail end of the pool there were a few pushes/rises on the surface so a duo of wee wet flies was used to good effect, mostly juvenile fish but the larger ones are often feeding amongst them so for me it is always worth the shot and a fun way to fish.

I briefly euro nymphed the multi-current rapids and picked up a few in succession, then walked further up river and noticed small mayflies drifting by which large fish were feeding on intermittently within a swift back eddy and in between that and myself was a fast current. I spent some time to figure out the best way to approach the situation before me, so I increased leader length and stood in the river where I could best avoid the opposing current and keep the fly in the back eddy for as long as possible with minimal to no drag. Technical fishing can take up some time and perhaps that pesky juvenile fish takes the fly before the target does – but for me it’s the experience gained and attitude of “giving things a go” which makes it rewarding

Lastly, I joined Neil for a night session of spey fishing and the moon was so bright I could see my boots through the water! We landed a couple of rainbows before a hot bevy was calling, but we were both happy with the progression of our spey casting and perhaps the night fishing has helped that as sight is cancelled out by the night and there is a reliance on feel or memory of the technique.

A reminder that the Sage X rods are on sale at $1,125.00 down from $1,499.99 and are in limited stock so be sure to get one before they are all sold out.