FISHING NOTES

Press, Volume LXX, Issue 21122, 24 March 1934, Page 8

FISHING NOTES

♦ — THE IDEAL DRESS ( IJ t HI. A i K 1-jN Al\ j Tlk*# N«, v • ■ * n *' l '' :i '7 *■ 111. o-r'i. a! fry Sfttut-i rs . 1-r' ♦o: . oMa:'..nc ». us <>: cj • f-st; •' in ;t ri' i fc i»i n" HK»il "IVa k 1 i Jitt. i aV. of i' (i F.Ji:-..- o: '"i hj, I*:.—," w." j.'.'tnfi! ft " tv.n rah v.rrk. Salmon li.hm.; us tiie open river bed where an angler may have to tramp several miles during the cay, can be a very fatiguing busine.-s. Particularly is this so in the ease o! the gum-booted angler in hot weather. Physical discomforts count for nothing if the angler can land a tlsh or two. Unfortunately there is seldom any certainty about doing this in these days. The most sensible warm weather outfit the writer has seen in use was a pair of stout boots, a bathing costume, and a Panama hat. It i:-. however, scarcely the type of dress that is likely to have a with' popular appeal. .For those who have not the figure, the manner, or indeed, me courage. to wear the ideal minimum. Black Gnat would suggest the following compromise. Go Hilly clad to the riverbank and there discard heavy trousers for a pair of light "shorts." Waders went over "shorts" arc not one-tenth as hot and uncomfortable as when worn over long trousers. In such a rig the day will pass in reasonable comfort and when, at the end of the day, the angler returns to the car with the customary wader or two full of water, he will, instead of having fo drive homo wet and cold, have a dry outfit to change into. The best sport offering near Christchurch at present is in the Selwyn. This last week has seen some very nice bags of trout of up to (> : ,lb taken in this stream. Dry (lies are killing well m the daytime down at the spring hole. The lure has been accounting tor good tish at night. Salmon fishing seems generally poor. Only odd fish are being taken, and no large bags are reported. * * « Of 928 quinnat taken in nets in the Waimakariri in 1933, 27 were taken in January, 154 in February, 730 in March, and 172 in April. These returns are from the mouth of the river. March is now well advanced and these figures, which seem indicative of the time of the maximum run in any year, indicates that most of the fish have probably already passed tipstream. So far this season, comparatively little fishing has been done up this river and the paucity of reports of captures from the' upper waters is not therefore necessarily indicative of a lack of fish higher up. A traveller who looked at the water from the Gorge bridge during the week saw several tish porpoising. * * * A visitor fo Southland reports excellent sport in that district. One of the notable captures there this season was a 171b trout in Lake Te Anau. Generally there the fishing appears to have been much better than in Canterbury.

Canterbury anglers who have happy recollections of past battles with Tc Anau salmon and who have hopes of renewing their acquaintance with this fish, will be pleased to hear that there has latterly been an improvement in the average size of these fish. Those trapped for hatching purposes in the Upukororo river last winter averaged 71b. and included one of 151b. The old policy of stripping Upukororo river fish and sending the bulk of the eggs out of the district, which met with a good deal of local opposition, has happily been discontinued. At

present every enori is uemg maue to build up the .stock in the Eglinton 'and Upukororo rivers If this can be done attention will bp directed to building up the stock in the lower Waiau tributaries. The three streams named are some of the most beautiful in the country, and it is to be hoped that the efforts to improve their carrying capacity meet with the success they deserve. The f.akc Sumner district probably offers better trout fishing than anywhere else in Canterbury this Easter. "Black Gnat" lias spent a considerable amount of time angling in the series of lakes and has found the dry fly far and away the most effective lure there whenever conditions permit of its use. Save in dead calm water, 1 here is no need to use very small (lies. Given sunshine and a rippled surface, size 10 or even size 8 will kill well. In squally weather, minnow fishing in the deep water off the delta at the top end of Lake Sumner is often productive of Rood bass. Particularly is this effective with an offshore wind. ♦ » • The Opihi is likely to prove a profitable Easter angling resort. This stream provides very pleasant dry fly fishing for rather small, but very same, trout. Further, for its size, it probably contains as many or more quinnat salmon than the larger and relatively troutless snow rivers do. Handier to Christehurch is the AshIcy. winch is carrying a big stock of sizeable trout at present. There are worse places to camp than oil the banks of this stream, where there is nil abundance of attractive drv fiv water for daytime angling "good holes in which lure or bullv should kill well at night.