ANGLING.

Otago Witness, Issue 3384, 22 January 1919, Page 49

ANGLING.

By Jock Soott.

To bo a perfect fisherman you require mor# sxcellencies than are usually to be found in suoh i small spa** an is allotted to a man's carcase— Parker Gn.UOUB. Readers are invited to contribute items oi local ashing news for Insertion in this column. Foe insertion in the ensuing issue they should reaok Dunedin by Monday sight's mail.

BANK NOTES.

Akatore Creek?—My correspondent is not quite sure of the name of the small water he fished, which is south of Brighton some miles, and it is my own suggestion that the name of the creek is Akatore. In any case the name is immaterial, so long as tha locality is disclosed. Two Dunedin anglers got out to this small stream last week-end, and found it very low and clear, and tha fish not taking. It was a venture. The pair fished the tidal waters, where the condition was best for angling purposes, bub the response was "nulla bona." "Very few fish were seen. Rainbow Trout.—An angler, speaking of rainbow trout, says "It a man gets one rainbow he gets sufficient sport to satisfy him for the day. They go to market and fight like any salmon. You won't land him in half an hour-" A Trip to Lake Hawea.—Two Dunedin anglers quite well known in piscatorial circles went to Hawea during the holidays, and spent some time there. They camped at Timaru Creek, which they made their headquarters. Tho two gentleman fished the mouth of Timaru Creek for a start, and one of the twain landed a couple of very nice rainbows, which the trio recognisa as falling very far short of the possibilities of the lake, or, to particularise, Timaru Creek, which runs into the lake. It was not apparently altogether ■an absence of fish (the trout is well known to be fickle), but conditions were against the anglers. Is sounds legendary, but it is nevertheless true. I know that. If you want to get fish, out of any partioular water, you have got to wait your opportunity, and only ono person can do that—the person resident in? the locality. Many an angler from a distance has condemned a stream because h» has not got very much. That is due to tha stream, or, more accurately speaking, tha fish,, being "off colour." That may apply to the present instance. It does not follow because a trout fisher fails to get fish that he does not fish hard and fish well. If tha trout are not "on the go" .no one will eaten them. And in some circumstance* the angler might fish for « week with these conditions unaltered. I speak from bitter experience. With this digression, I resuma my story of the two Dunedin anglers. Tha following day '■' we tried further up tha creek," to use tho words of one of tha anglers, " the water having a reputation for yielding good catches." Apparently tha fish had gone down —that Is, had descended into the waters of the lake Itself. "After being there a week,"- says my contributor, "we made a trip as far as the Dingle," and{ from this piece of water two very nice trout yielded to the seductions of one of tha anglers. The trio then came back to Timaru Creek. My contributor continues: "Fishing in Hawea is going to be a featura of angling in this district. It (the lake) is not quite ready yet (for fishing). Tho laka will require to bo more freely stocked. We came across no small fish, and those caught and those clearly seen were of 81b, 101 b, and 111 b weight. The condition of the fish caught waa excellent, which is an evidence of Food being plentiful in the lake and its tributaries." Apparently from an examination of their interior regions, the trout caught were feeding almost entirely on the caddis fly. But, my correspondent adds, "there is no lack of minnows*—the food supply of the lake is abundant." Continuing, he says "We saw off Rocky Point some magnificent fish, but the day was too fine to do anything with them." Apart from the four fish mentioned, several othere were caught during the stay, which extended over a fortnight, tho biggest fish taken weighing about 121 b. The lure was the "bully" minnow, which is apparently an imitation of tho real " bully." My correspondent, again speaking, reiterates: "We saw no small trout in the lake—nothing like lib. We were only on a portion of the lake, and there is a lot of water the other side, where there may bo smaller or larger fish." The presence of fry In Timaru Creek presents to my mincJ a great promise for tha future, without a great deal of restocking. It looks as if the lake could hold its own until such time as the pot-hunter loose there. My correspondent practically concludes with the remark: "The weather experienced on tha whole was good, but -no good for fishing, the wind being too cold."