Weather: 22.1° Rain with heavy falls clearing to fine in the morning. Strong northwesterlies, easing in the afternoon.
River Flow: 29.3 Cumecs (m³/s)
Christmas eve! In classic New Zealand fashion we are in for a bit of rain before some sunshine. Hopefully this will shift to some nice weather on the 25th for everyone to enjoy.
We have seen a nice flow of customers popping into the shop over the last couple of days to top up for the boat fishing and grabbing gifts for the family and friends.
On the river front we have still been seeing a good number of fish being caught throughout the system with more and more browns being caught as the weather gets better. The Lakes have been steadily picking up with more people heading out for the jigging and trawling as we move into the summer holidays. I will be passing by Pat Swifts place tomorrow to pick up a big top up of Lake Flies to make sure we have got everything we need.
A report from the Sam Nelley who is part of the Sporting Life and Flytackle family.
With almost two months hooning past since leaving the Central Plateau for Central Otago, I have plenty to share.
Unfortunately, I rolled my ankle severely whilst fishing when we first made the move, so my initial efforts were limited to some more local and easily waded creeks. With the crazy weather this spring and summer so far, it was a tough start!You might hear stories about South Island fly fishing being tougher compared to the Central Plateau systems, but I would say if you’ve sightfished successfully on the Tongariro, Tauranga Taupo, and Whakapapa rivers you’ve got every chance of getting it done.
However, there are less fish generally, the ones that are around are smart, spooky and cunning, and you simply don’t get as many chances to put a fly in front of them. You will end up casting from further away, with a headwind, aiming for a spot no bigger than a teatowel.
Presentation is key as always, so using 5X fluorocarbon tippet from the dry fly to a small dropper nymph might be something to try before you’re looking to head South. “Practice makes better” as my Grandad would say.
Gear does make a difference in some conditions, on the smaller water I’ve been using my Sage R8 Core 5 weight with the superb RIO Technical Trout floating line and tapered leaders of fairly normal length (about 15 feet to the dry, and varying lengths of dropper depending on the depth of water).
Where there are bigger fish present in larger rivers, I’ve also used the 6 weight version of the R8 Core with the same floating line and leader set up.
Lastly, the South Island takes a bit more logistical planning, and having a fall back in case someone set their alarm clock a bit earlier than you isn’t silly!
I’ll hit send on this now so Bluey can post it up, along with some photos from a couple of recent days
Merry Christmas, Happy New Year, Tight Lines and Safe Crossings
~Sam
As a reminder, we will be closed on the 25th of December but back to it on the 26th Boxing day to make sure everyone can pick up what they need to head out on the water. We will remain open with our usual hours including new years day.
From everyone here at Sporting Life, we wanted to thank everyone who has supported us this year! There has been many stories and photos passed around and lots of good yarns had.
We can't do this without everyone coming in and working with us.
We look forward to a new year filled with lots more laughs, stories of fish caught and much more.
I want to thank all the staff that have worked hard this year to keep the shop going and happy place to live. I am looking forward to the new year and many more adventures.
Tight Lines, Merry Christmas and a Happy New year everyone!
There will be more reports before January!
~Niamh (Bluey)