FISHERMEN’S LUCK.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 20705, 1 May 1929, Page 15

FISHERMEN’S LUCK.

ANGLING SEASON CLOSED. SURVEY OF OTAGO’S WATERS. ■ The number of anglers in and about Otago seems to increase year by year, and with the added numbers there seems to be, at the ame time, a distinct increase in the enthusiasm shown. There are the usual complaints about certain waters being badly stocked, but, to njake up for this, there are many other streams which have provided a plenitude of fish throughout the season. The Otago Acclimatisation Society has done good work in the past in stocking • the streams with fry, and this policy has been expanded recently, with the result that all the waters in the district are gradually being improved. Taking the 102 S-29 season generally, it has been a very successfulone. Nearly all the streams have been freely visited, and the majority of them have offered more than fair sport. Some waters have been particularly popular, and, of these, there may be mentioned as prominent the Pomahaka, the Shag, and also the streams nearer Dunedin. The Alanorburn and Waipori dams and Lake Hawca have each had their share of visitors, the first two giving the best results. Hawca has not been very productive of good fishing this season for some reason, and the majority of those who have fished this water have been disappointed. The Hawea River, on the other hand, has been in very satisfactory condition. The Shag River lias been visited almost every week-end by a good number of fishermen, but it has proved a somewhat fickle stream. Sometimes excellent baskets have been obtained, and at other times the, results have been anything but happy. . The season closed yesterday, and during the past week-end many local, enthusiasts fared forth with their' rods for a final cast. The weather was distinctly unfavourable. however, and results were not all that might have been wished .on such an occasion. Only one party has reported a good catch, and this was taken on the Shag, the basket containing 50 fish, none of which was outstanding in size. The Gatlins River is probably one of the best fly-fishing streams in New Zealand for medium-sized trout, and it has fully upheld its reputation'during'the past season. It, is well stocked with Scotchburn trout, and has offered delightful sport for many fishermen, particularly at the commencement of the season, when good baskets were the rule. Indeed, the Gatlins was in good condition throughout, and satisfactory results were obtained until the closing date. * At the beginning of the season the Owaka River was badly flooded, and few. if any, fish could be found. As the results of the flood wore off. however, the stream improved considerably, and. especially at the head waters,'angling was good-during the latter half of the open months. The Owaka is within fairly easy reach of Dunedin, and is a stream which' should at : tract-more attention than it does.

So far. as patronage goes; probably no stream in Otago has had the attention that has been accorded the Shag during the last few months. 'Almost every weekend there have been several parties of fishermen on this water, and the results, taking this fact into consideration, have been river will sustain the “ thrashing ” that has been the portion of this stream and still give good results < right to , the closing day, as it were, but it has been the case this year. The Shag is at its best when it is a little discoloured, but is fishable practically all the time. When it is low and clear, daylight fishing is not usually of the best, but the early evening can generally ‘be relied on to discount the disadvantages of the earlier part of the day. . The local waters—rthe Evansdale, Waitatr, and Leith—yielded a lot of sport until the flood came. The principal lures used were the fly and bait. (worm and creeper). The Waitati was probably the best of the three, good baskets of fish up to 10-11 inches being fairly common. The same remarks apply to the Leith, but,the Evansdale has been found a dif-, ferent proposition. This stream is always difficult to fish, not only on account of the vegetation on the banks, but also because of the great clearness of the water. However, good baskets have occasionally been obtained at the mouth. The flood did much damage to these three waters killing nearly all the fish .they contained. Very heavy stocking with yearlings is contemplated by the society, and, with liberal supplies of Pembroke and Scotchburn fry, every effort will be made to bring them into good condition for next season

' The Taieri yielded fair sport all the year round to those who fished in the neighbourhood of Henley with the worm and minnow. Nice trout and fair-sized perch were caught in this water. The rod fishing at the mouth has not been as good as usual. Rough weather at the commencement of the season militated against good results being obtained at the Manorburn dam until after Christmas., There was not a great deal of rain, the chief cause of the trouble being snow. The dam has been very low all the time, and this, too, has been something of a disadvantage. There are fish in the dam, however, and they seem to bo in good condition, but there ■is little doubt that the introduction of fresh blood would effect a great improvement in the quality of the trout. Some years ago there used to be .brown trout in plenty, but recently the rainbows seem to have taken possession,, and it is understood that not one brown trout has been taken there this season. The fish are also in danger from the ever-ineresing number of shags that are to be found in the district, especially when the water is going down. The fish themselves have been deteriorating from year to year, and, whereas, a few years ago 10, 12, and 15-pounders were to be had, nothing bigger than about six pounds has been taken recently. A good plantation about the dam would undoubtedly be of use there, the few trees that grow at present being insufficient to be of any great advantage. The Manorburn dam is a good water and is worth conserving. The upper end of Lake Mahinerangi (Waipori dam) has been described by one angler who goes there as “ a fisherman’s paradise.” There are two disadvantages to the water, however, and these are that it is difficult of approach in wef weather and that there ie no good camping place. If there were suitable camps, there is no doubt that many more anglers would frequent the lake. The fish can be caught there on practically any lure, and the presence of good food in plenty assures well-conditioned trout.

The Waipori River, too, has been productive of excellent sport. One angler who visits this water has had much success in the upper reaches of the stream, and this applies particularly to the latter part of the season. There have been many anglers on the' contour channel, but this water proved somewhat disappointing. The sport was fairly good up to the time of the flood, trout up to a pound and a-h’alf being fairly common. Re-stocking would probably improve this stream, which is a popular one.

There have been a few good catches in the upper waters Of Deep Stream, but the fish there are reported ter be very shy. The Pomahaka River is one of the most popular in this district, and it has been frequently visited by many local anglers during the season. There have always been good fish there in plenty, and baskets have been good throughout the open months, while, during the last few months, large catches have been the rule. The stream is very low now, but fish up to about three pounds were still available at the closing day. The Waikaia, though a little further away than most of the other streams in the district, has given results that have made it worth while for anglers to go the distance. Trout up to a pound and a-half have been very plentiful all the time. The Walpahi has been low and weedy during the latter part of the seasßn, but, before that, good sport was offered. This stream was not as good as it has been in previous years. The Tomahawk Lagoon is always well patronised, and this was the case again. The fish there were in good condition, and under favourable circumstances, good baskets have been taken. There is plenty of food here to carry more fish. The Styx River was very good about Christmas, excellent baskets being obtained on the fly. The stream could be fished all day, the trout ranging up to eight and ten pounds. All classes of water are available on the Styx—pools, flats, and ripples, and all have been good fishing throughout the season. Making headquarters at Lumsden, the angler can have at his disposal the Five

Rivers. This is probably an ideal place, for one can fish in any direction. Going up stream, the larger fish are found, and in the other direction there is a plentitude of smaller ones. All are easy waters to fish, and, in fine weather, good baskets arc the rule. The Hawea River has offered good fly fishing during the 1028-29 season, in spite of the fact that many anglers have experienced bad luck. Others, on the other hand, have secured good catches, and better should be obtained during the next month. The season in this district does not close until the end of May. The lake has been poor all the season, but should be better during the next few weeks.