| Special Issue 49 Softbaiting Rivers What's happening in your region! SPEY CASTING: OPENING NEW HORIZONS H-130 // EVERYTHING PROOF. Fly tackle ad 1 full page DesigneD with intention THE TROUT ANGLER QUIVER sageflyfish.com flytackle.co.nz X igniter troUt LL Dart esn Multi-ApplicAtion tech conditions presentAtion sMAll wAter euro nyMph RRP2 $319. FISH & GAME95 NEW // ZEALAND FIND IT AT // VERTEX.SPIKA.CO.NZ DesigneD with intention THE TROUT ANGLER QUIVER sageflyfish.com flytackle.co.nz X igniter troUt LL Dart esn Multi-ApplicAtion tech conditions presentAtion sMAll wAter euro nyMph SPECIAL ISSUE: FORTY-NINE 3 SPECIAL ISSUE FORTY-NINE | Special Issue 49 CHIEF EXECUTIVE MARTIN TAYLOR EXECUTIVE EDITOR: KEVIN POWER ADVERTISING KEVIN POWER Softbaiting [email protected] Rivers 027 22 999 68 PRODUCTION & DESIGN MANAGER CLARE POWER [email protected] FEATURE CONTRIBUTORS ANTON DONALDSON, CHRIS BELL, ADRIAN BELL, JACK KÓS, JACK GAULD, DAVID MOATE, RICHARD COSGROVE, ADAM ROYTER, MARK WEBB We welcome submissions for features from the public. Please contact us in the first instance with your article idea and for our article guidelines and What's information at: happening [email protected] in your The act of sending images and copy or related region! SPEY CASTING: OPENING NEW HORIZONS material shall constitute an express warranty by the contributor that the material is original, exclusive to Fish and Game magazine and in no way an infringement on the rights of others. OUR COVER: It gives permission to Real Creative Media Ltd to Pictured is Olive Armistead, 10-years old, holding one use in any way we deem appropriate, including but of her catches from a trip to the canal system in the not limited to Fish and Game magazine, or on Fish Mackenzie country. It's only a small one for the area, but and Game websites or digital media and in future it is still a great catch on light tackle. publications by Fish & Game. On a previous trip to the canals Olive managed to Opinions expressed in contributions need not hook herself into the current Small Fry World Record, conform to Real Creative Media Ltd’s editorial (10-years old and under), with a 14lb rainbow trout. policy as we wish to provide a vehicle for This world record catch brought her tally of world discussion of different points of view on all things records to four!! hunting and fishing. Fishing-mad Olive has been surrounded by fishing her ISSN 1172 434X whole life. Growing up whilst dad, Mark, was running a pretty busy fishing charter business, she was exposed to plenty of fishing talk and has met her fair share of fishing personalities. For her, catching a fish is only a small part of what she loves about fishing — the rest is the adventure and the entire journey. It’s the little things — like cooking PUBLISHED BY REAL CREATIVE MEDIA LTD marshmallows on the campfire, enjoying a hot chocolate PO Box 8187, Cherrywood, Tauranga 3145 at the end of a cold day or just hanging out with her dad NEW ZEALAND for a few days — that she really enjoys. PH: 027 22 999 68 4 FISH & GAME NEW ZEALAND CONTENTS SPECIAL ISSUE: FORTY-NINE FEATURES 8 LOWLAND RIVER LOWDOWN ANTON DONALDSON REGULAR COLUMNS 6 CHIEF EXECUTIVE COMMENT 11 CAREFUL CATCH & RELEASE MARTIN TAYLOR TACTICS - CHRIS BELL 7 CHIEF EXECUTIVE COMMENT 16 GOING WITH THE FLOW 41 LATEST GEAR FOR THE SEASON SOFTBAITS IN RIVERS AND STREAMS 46 FEMALE COUNCILLORS ADRIAN BELL 50 FISH AND GAME NEW ZEALAND COUNCILLOR PROFILES 22 HITTING THE RESET BUTTON, MY YEAR AS A NON-RESIDENT JACK KÓS 28 TAKE A MATE FISHING REGIONAL VOICE JACK GAULD 54 NORTHLAND 32 IT'S ALL ABOUT THE ANGLES 56 AUCKLAND/WAIKATO DAVID MOATE 60 EASTERN 36 SPEY CASTING 64 HAWKE’S BAY THE TECHNIQUE OF TWO-HAND CASTING - RICHARD COSGROVE 66 TARANAKI 68 WELLINGTON 38 19 FISHING DO’S AND DON’TS 72 NELSON/MARLBOROUGH ADAM ROYTER 78 WEST COAST 84 A NEW ROAD TO SEA-RUN 82 NORTH CANTERBURY SALMON RECOVERY 87 CENTRAL SOUTH ISLAND MARK WEBB 90 OTAGO 96 SOUTHLAND SPECIAL ISSUE: FORTY-NINE 5 CHIEF EXECUTIVE COMMENT FISH & GAME~ 30 YEARS OLD FISH & GAME AS AN ORGANISATION IS Internally, we face financial challenges. ALMOST THIRTY YEARS OLD. Over that Our five year financial modelling indicates period we’ve had a significant impact we can’t just keep increasing license on New Zealand through the proactive fees to meet cost increases – and yet positions we’ve taken on Water we also know that increasing the fee by Conservation Orders and intensive even $3 per year (or $15 over five years) farming pollution. will not produce enough to cover our All in all, being successful for the next thirty years will only be possible if all governors, staff, anglers and hunters accept that change is inevitable and work together proactively to respond to all the challenges we face. Without Fish & Game there would not expenses. So it’s clear we need to get a be the present high level of focus on handle on these costs, as well as focus on cleaning up our rivers, lakes and streams. identifying new sources of income. We Without Fish & Game there would not be owe that to our anglers and hunters. As an overwhelming level of public support an organisation we need to become more for Government regulations to start efficient and effective. reversing the sad state of some of our We also have to be mindful that in our waterways. Across the organisation those role as a regulator of a public resource governors who supported this approach, the Government expects us to be efficient and their CEO Bryce Johnson, have an and effective. This means that our costs environmental legacy to be proud of. have to be demonstrably reasonable so In 2019 Fish & Game knows that that licence prices are kept to a minimum. the next thirty years are going Collectively these challenges – to be just as challenging as the environmental, societal, and financial last thirty, but we hope that by – are significant. But each can be 2050 all those lowland rivers addressed, and each does provide in both islands which have been an opportunity if, and only if, we’re destroyed by intensive farming will have proactive in our response and we start recovered. that response now. If we’re not proactive, But over those thirty years we will also and we don’t plan and respond to these have to deal with a warming climate, known challenges then Fish & Game will and the impact this may have on water decline and lose relevance. temperature, and the distribution of All in all, being successful for the next ABOVE: trout and salmon; it’s probably fair to say thirty years will only be possible if all FISH & GAME NZ CE, MARTIN TAYLOR things will change. In addition, we will governors, staff, anglers and hunters have to respond to societal changes and accept that change is inevitable and work the way younger generations consume together proactively to respond to all the goods and services, and their approach challenges we face. The good news is that to recreation. Perhaps the buying of a the current NZ Council understands the facebook.com/FishandGameNZ full-season licence and being posted a situation and accepts that success over the single-use plastic card will be replaced next thirty years will begin with the work @fishandgamenz with digital day licences purchased on a we do in the next few years to meet the https://fishandgame.org.nz smart phone. challenges we know the future holds. twitter.com/fishandgamenz MARTIN TAYLOR, Chief Executive, NZ Fish & Game Council 6 FISH & GAME NEW ZEALAND NEWS Conservation CAWTHRON AND PROFESSIONAL FISHING (Indigenous Freshwater Fish) GUIDES TOGETHER AGAIN Bill Update TO SUPPORT TROUT AND SALMON RESEARCH Members of the NZ Professional Fishing Guides Association (NZPFGA) have made generous donations to the Cawthron Institute’s Freshwater Fisheries Fund, which was set up to support long-term trout and salmon research – to counter the fact that salmonid research funding in New Zealand has hit an all-time low. Association members have also offered to assist the Cawthron Institute with environmental data collection, and will be encouraging their clients to give back to the resource through donating to the Freshwater Fisheries Fund. Cawthron is working with the NZPFGA and Fish & Game to plan how the guides’ donations will have the greatest benefit. Most likely, the first project to be funded will be a Master’s research scholarship, to investigate trout habitat management in our front country rivers. Such a project will create knowledge while upskilling a New Zealander in evidence-based trout fishery management. This initiative is partly the brainchild of Tony Entwistle, Just a quick note to update you on the resource consents and Regional Plans, and picks up from a historical partnership Conservation (Indigenous Freshwater and exposing intensive agriculture's between Cawthron and the NZPFGA. Fish) Bill which has reported back from adverse environmental effects. This Twenty-odd years ago the NZPFGA Parliament's Environment Committee. has benefited all fish in New Zealand's were one of several key parties that Like you, Fish & Game had some freshwaters. successfully convinced the government serious concerns when this Bill was Fish & Game were concerned that to fund a Cawthron study on the impact introduced into Parliament. However, I am the Bill would, among other things, give of tourism on the sustainability of trout very pleased to report that the Bill is now freshwater management plans priority over fisheries. The outputs from that research in a much better shape that Fish & Game Fish & Game plans; alter restrictions on the are still being used in the Environment New Zealand can now support! taking, possessing or selling of sports fish Court to argue against developing By working with the Select Committee under Treaty settlements; and reduce Fish backcountry fisheries.