FIELD AND STREAM.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 45, 16 November 1907, Page 9

FIELD AND STREAM.

(Br "Dnv Fit.")

The boisterous weather experienced at Wei* hngtdn last Monday completely spoilt the chances of any..big bags. One angler who journeyed, to .the- upper reaches of.,the Hutb Rivor'secured.l2 trout of about a pound averago, on minnow,, Two, who fished the Malcara last Monday, drew a blank. A few bags ranging from four to a dozen were taken from, various streams, , but tho weather conditions made fishing: anything but pleasant. ■ 'Reports from' Nelson this season show thaif the season there , , so far,'-has not be«n good. : '■ One of the first trout catches "to tho limit , ' (20) with the artificial fly (red-tipped gover* nor)-in the Maitai was made by a local angler one day last week. The fish averaged ■about Jib. each, some larger;.and some: sniallor. .;All decent takes in.the Maitai arc ba_ing secured high up the. stream, the. lower : being somewhat barren. ■ Two anglors, fishing at Lake Rotoehu, Rotorua, secured nino trout averaging sJlbs. Four Waihi sportsmen secured 170 good fish at Okero during the first three days of the season. Fishing at Rotorua and tho surrounding districts is reported to be very good this season. ': Masterton anglers are finding tho local streams productive of very fair fishing, trbufc being numerous, though still on the small side. Mr. J. Arthur made a 12-fish catchlast Monday ovening, tho trout varying from lib. t'b. slightly over. 21b. Minnow fishing is,., almost exclusively confined to tho larger streams, as the Waingawa and Ruamahauga, whilst fly-fishing is tho method employed in the smaller fisheries. Wo arc informed that trout are more than plentiful in tho Manawatu Gorge this season, and a continually increasing number of anglers from surrounding districts aro finding \ their way out there on every possible occa* sion. Some large catches have been made. , A Cambridge correspondent writes: As.fa* as trout fishing in the Waikato, in the neighbourhood of Cambridge, is concerned, it is aa utter failure so far this season. On the opening day quite .a number were out, but the majority did not oven see a fish. The onlj one that was caught in the river near her* fell to the rod of Mrs. Alf. Cubis, who landed a nice 4}-pounder at the foot of the Bald Hill ;at.Pukeroro.: : Four small fish were caught in tho Waipa above Horakbra; but at Waotu, 11-am told, hardly a fish'is to be seeli; and hundreds: of skeletons of good fish- can ba found in the feriv on the lower lands, where s tlioy were stranded after the flbod. In the streams about Lichfield a few good fish have been taken, but'on.the whole the season-so far has not-been a productive oiio. There is. one encouraging sign, and that is that there appear to be plenty, of small fish in .the creeka running into tlie Waikato; and perhaps when the water gets finer better sport will be had.

The "Rotorua'Chronicle,", of November. 9, reports' as follows: —Eight days'of the fishing season have now passed,over, and from-a gontleman qualified to judge, wo learn that the catches each day have been unusually large. It is computed that fully 300 fish have been taken frquivthe lakes and streams daily since the opening'of the season, but from the quantity, that have been sent away, by each' morning's train wo should say that the number was Well within the mark. Taking'the fiolv at an average of 31bs. each, , which is not an uver-estithate, should tho same' ; number bp secured'each-day'until the end of. the season, and of the same average weight,' there will have been removed, over seventy, tons of trout from the ~ lakes and streams around Rotorua. That this is not an exaggerated cstim'atd may. be. gauged from last, s'easoni when there were' , known to be quito; fifty tons .of fish caught, while, in 'addition to this,-the Maoris caught thousands of fish of which 110 rocord was. kept.

Amongst the successful anglors this season at Rotorua may bo mentioned Mrs. lies and party, who, in the launch Maori, caught 22 hue fish in a few hours. In tho same launch on Thursday, November 7, Messrs. Carl, liarwood, and Harris, angling in Lake Rotoiti, placed in-their-baskot- 32 lovely trout. Messrs Naden, Harris, and Sutherland, who also took a "turn on tho: lake in tho launch Maori, caught, 19,' all exceedingly good tish; and .Messrs. Bennett and Rogers, in.an hour, took- homo with them 6 beauties.' Messrs. Insloy and'.party were also successful, their basket containing 281 trout, averaging quite 31b. ■ ■• ■ ■=■ ■-.

The Christchurch Gun Club's November Handicap, of £100, was decided on Thursday, November 1, in a howling nor'-west gal'o. The conditions naturally atfectod the shootirig, ■ but still three competitors, "Mayfield, ,, J. Gorton, and F. G. ITrampton, killed fourteen out of fifteen birds, and divided the money, tho others being put out with twe misses. After the. big handicap, throe sweepstake matches of £1 each were shot off. The first brought .out seventeon competitors. At tho end of the third round, Svonson, Rain'oy, Gardinor, and Eraser took £3 each, and shot' oft--for tiib balance, Fraser finally winning the first five-barrol kills. In the second thcr<( wore twelve competitors,i and Shand, Frampton, and ' Soseingrave divided, taking £41 each. Nino competitors , took part in the' third match. At the ond of the fifth round J.. Gorton and M'lllwrick took £3 each, and sliofoff for the balance. .The former missed his-sixth, and M'lllwrick killed, and wa« d* clared the winner- '.'.■■ .