The warm weather this week has had a beneficial effect on
rivers and streams. Last weekend, they were mainly high and
somewhat discoloured due to snow melt and rain, but now have
dropped back considerably.
The dropping of levels and the current weather forecast
should combine to give good fishing conditions this weekend.
Even the lower Clutha, which has been high for a while, is
dropping between generating peaks to a reasonable fishing
level.
Given the above information, the decision is not where can I
fish, but where do I want to fish, as everywhere will produce
fish.
It is said that anglers go through various phases in their
fishing careers, although not all anglers go through all
phases.
The first is to catch a fish, and any fish will do.
After a while, catching the odd fish is not enough, a limit
bag is the aim or even more if catch and release is your
approach. Even then, catching lots of fish starts to lose its
shine.
Next comes catching bigger fish, although this is relative to
the water being fished.
Catching lots of big fish is the next phase, but this takes
careful selection of the waters to be fished and you will
still have to put up with the odd smaller one.
Everyone would like to catch a trophy fish, at any stage of
their career, but there is a phase when trophy fish are
targeted and even blank days are tolerated in pursuit of the
ultimate fish.
If this logical progression is followed, the next stage is
catching lots of trophies, but if you catch lots of them, are
they really trophy fish?Trophy fish are by definition
exceptional and therefore not very common, but it is possible
to build up the score over many years.
The other difficulty with trophies is that the size that
qualifies varies considerably according to the water being
fished.
In some tiny streams, a 2-3kg fish would be a trophy, whereas
in others, fish would need to be twice that size to attain
that status.
There is, however, one more stage that you may attain if you
are lucky and it could be called paradise, nirvana, valhalla
or heaven.
This is the stage of fishing a water that you like using a
method that you enjoy and catching a few reasonable fish.
Which brings us back to this weekend.
If I wanted to be in with a chance of catching a good number
of fish, the lower Mataura would probably be the best bet,
although the middle reaches of the Pomahaka would not be far
behind.
For better-sized fish but fewer of them, the Taieri would be
the pick.
If you wanted to catch a big or even a trophy fish, the
Maniototo dams would offer a good chance, although hooking
one and landing one are different matters.
But then it all depends on which phase you are going through.
- Mike Weddell
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