Angling: River temperatures in ideal range

Mike Weddell
Mike Weddell
Last weekend was good for fishing but this one should be even better as there has been a little rain and it has been cooler.

River temperatures have dropped into the ideal range which is between 14 and 18degC and although waters have risen slightly it is not enough to spoil things.

Again, I think the Mataura is a good bet and the tussock lakes will be, too, if it is warm.

All the small streams of South and West Otago and Southland look good and all of the Clutha has dropped to a good fishable level.

The upper river has a constant flow of about 140cumecs whereas the lower river fluctuates between 300 and 500cumecs with the lower figure providing the best fishing conditions.

The middle reaches of the Taieri were rather too warm for the Masters Games trout fishing competition last weekend.

Despite good numbers of fish being seen, there were very few caught.

The fish lay on the bottom, inactivity being the best option when the water is warm.

Greg Dixon won the fly section and Dave Murray maintained his 100% record, winning the spin section.

Dave has won a medal in every Masters Games fishing competition.

I had a very pleasant day on the Mataura last Sunday with my regular fishing companions, Murray Smart and Alan McMillan, as well as Bob Wyatt, from Middlemarch via Canada and Scotland, Hans Weilenmann, from Holland, and Carl McNeil, from Wanaka.

The river was in good order and the weather obliging.

In the morning there were few fish rising but they were feeding in the shallows and readily took a nymph.

In the afternoon they were in slightly deeper water and took a weighted nymph.

We fished one section systematically and picked up fish throughout the afternoon despite the fact we hardly spotted a fish in the clear water and saw only a couple of rises.

One thing worth remembering when fishing the Mataura is that even when you cannot see fish, you can be certain that there are enough there to be caught fishing blind, as this river has huge head of fish.

I cannot wait to get back there again.

Another enjoyable occasion was the regular monthly meeting of Fly Flingers and Stream Bashers fly fishing club which takes place on the second Tuesday of each month.

This week another visitor to these shores, Christian Stixner, from Germany, gave an illustrated talk on making cane fly rods.

Christian is a master of this craft and had several of his rods to show us.

The word meticulous is hardly adequate to describe his work.

These rods are objects that fly fishers would just like to own, never mind fish with.

His talk covered procuring the cane in China to the finished product and an explanation of the modern and traditional technology that goes into their making.

There are interesting speakers each month and visitors are welcome.

The venue is the Otago Yacht Club in Magnet St.

- Mike Weddell 


River and lake conditions

River and lake conditions are compiled by Fish and Game Otago with information from the Otago Regional Council received at 9am.

 

General Situation: Most waterways remain at normal or below-normal levels, clear and fishable. Water temperatures are getting high in small and medium-sized streams during the middle of the day. Fishing can be more productive early morning or late evening. If fishing during the heat of the day, target riffle areas and deep pools where there will be more oxygen in the water.

North Otago: Some North Otago streams such as the Shag have received a slight fresh but they all remain very low and weedy. Many are suffering with algal blooms in their lower reaches. More rainfall is required to rejuvenate flows and flush the algae out.

Southern Lakes Area: Most back-country rivers are at normal or below normal levels, clear and in excellent order for dry fly fishing. The cicadas have been active over the last week and anglers have been doing well with large dry fly patterns. The general level of boating activity on the lakes is reducing. Trout are returning to shallow areas early morning and in the evenings. Butchers dam has been producing good numbers of rainbows, which were released from the Macraes Hatchery. Staff have observed good number of trout in the upper Dingleburn. 

Central Otago: Most rivers are low and clear. Cicada fishing on the high-country dams has been very patchy. Poolburn has been fishing very well on certain days, but Loganburn anglers have been frustrated with a lack of cicadas making it to the water. Lake Roxburgh, which is often overlooked by anglers, has been fishing well recently. One party landed 10 fish (browns, rainbows and salmon) all in very good condition. Green and yellow king cobra lures were the most effective. Lake Dunstan has been experiencing good midge rises early morning and late in the evening. The upper Clutha is in good order for spin fishing with Veltic and Rapala lures. 

Taieri Catchment: The Taieri River at Canadian Flat remains at a reasonable level but it is very low in the middle reaches and at Outram. Trout have been chasing damsel flies on the irrigation dams. Hamiltons Dam has been drained in order to fix a leaking pipe. Boat anglers have been doing very well trolling on Lake Mahinerangi with Rapala type lures.

Southwest Otago: The Clutha River is in good order. River levels have been dropping during the afternoons, making it easier for anglers to fish the water. A 7kg salmon was landed near Stirling during the week. The Waipahi and Pomahaka are also in good condition. Some sea run trout are present in deep pools of the Pomahaka system.

Waterway levels and conditions

Kakanui River: very low, clear

Shag River: very low, clear

Taieri River at Canadian Flat: medium, clear

Taieri River at Outram: very low, clear

Pomahaka River: medium, clear

Waipahi River : medium, clear

Clutha River at Balclutha: medium, clear

Clutha River at Cardrona: medium, clear

Hawea River: high, clear

Lake Onslow: medium, clear

Lake Dunstan: medium, clear

Lake Hawea: high, clear

Lake Mahinerangi high, clear

Lake Wanaka: medium, clear

Lake Wakatipu: medium, clear


 

 

 

 

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