I am writing this column in Tauranga, as I am here pursuing one of my other interests - athletics - but due to the wizardry of modern technology, I have a good idea of the fishing possibilities for this weekend.
The websites of the Otago Regional Council, Southland Regional Council and Environment Canterbury are a great source of information for anglers.
They have a network of height, flow and temperature gauges on rivers and streams. They not only display height but also whether a river is rising or falling which enables an angler who knows the water well to judge what conditions will be like over the next day or so.
Another website that is useful in combination with the regional council websites is that of the New Zealand Meteorology Service which will give you a weather forecast up to 10 days ahead, as well as a rainfall map.
On to the fishing this weekend.
According to the websites, everything looks good.
Making the decision where to go will not be based on where is fishable but on which waters you like the best.
It is not common for the whole of the Taieri to be in good order at the same time. The only factor to be wary of is the temperature for the upper river, which can be high as the river level drops.
The lower Clutha looks in exceptional order. It has been running low over the last week, between about 250 and 350cumecs, which gives access to a lot of water usually unfishable.
It will still fluctuate according to the power generation programme at Roxburgh, so be careful.
• Written by Mike Weddell.
