Hi there,
Well I'm a new member to the site and also reletively new to fly fishing, but done a year or so on Corrib.
Im heading of to NZ at end of the year and will be based near the Motueka River, on the South Island

Is it worth me taking any kit out there or go shopping when im there, can anyone advise on flies tfor over the xmas time out there??
Is it worth taking any over from the West.

Thanks for your help in advance.

Maybe our resident Kiwi Joey 1 will help you out on that one.

__________________
Sean


>>>>>>>MEMBER OF THE S.S.F.D.<<<<<<<<<

I will do my best to send you a PM this evening on this, depending on when i get home from work... I have fished the south island quite a bit over the past few years, although i didn't do a whole lot up as far as Nelson as its pretty busy up there with 30 plus guides operating in and around that area and a lot of oversea's anglers tend to concentrate their fishing around there. That said if you make an effort you will find lots of water..

cheers
JJ

ps.. I am incredibly bitter that you are going to NZ... It is unreal and will be a welcome change from all the **** going on over here.. It truely is gods country with the best trout fly fishing waters in the world.. it makes me wonder... Is god is a fly fisherman.... mmm... probably..

Its definately worth taking Kit. Even with the exchange rate you will find tackle really expensive there, also your flies from here should be perfectly suitable.
There's a few good local patterns you can pick up when your there, but theres really no need........ just dont take anything wooden ( like priests) and no Felt soled waders.
Cant advise you on fishing that end, my experince is all based in southland and Otago district.

Hi, the Motueka is a good river, it has some good browns that are not easy to catch! All the normal dry fly patterns will work, I normaly start with a parachute adams or in the evening a spinner or an elk hair caddis will see you right almost anywhere in NZ as will a Cicada patern if it is a hot summer, as for nymphs Pheasant Tail, Hairs Ear and Gold ribbed hairs ear are all good, with and without beads. Try a gold ribbed hairs ears with a blue wing case, I use the blue feather from a mallard wing. This pattern was developed on the Motueka. Add a few Caddilac and cripple pheasant tails and some emergers like Klinkhamers and you are good to go.
If you have a car I would buy a large scale map, choose a river, drive to it and look for the Fish and Game access signs. All the rivers in the area hold good stocks of fish, some to look out for are the Aorere ( over the hill close to Takaka and the pue pue springs) the Buller and Gowan rivers are good and so are any other rivers the Buller area.
If you can aford a guide for a day then you will learn allot about the "how to" but basicaly most of the techniques you use in the U.K. will work here.
Do be aware that felt soles are not allowed and you will need to check clean and dry your gear between watersheds as all these rivers have didymo.
Hope this is of some help.
All the best.
Mike

The lower Mot is noted dry fly water and within an hour or two (mostly south) there are plenty of nice rivers and a couple of lakes. A 9'#5-6 should cover most options. One of the nicest parts of the country too.

A good plan is to find a local tackle shop, buy some flies etc and ask. Another is to hire a guide for a day or two

Fishing map Nelson Marlborough-trout fishing waters map-nzfishing

Ha - syncro posts!

One thing you wont find there is OS maps to help you.
There is a road atlas book there called Reeds atlas. Not cheap but it shows every little track and every little stream in NZ. Along with the local pamphlets given out by the fish and game people at tackle shops, and a good book on South island fishing like the John Kent guide, you are pretty well set up.

Some body else mentioned it.... if you can stretch your finances, hire yourself a guide for a day or two, it really does help unlock the secret to success on those waters.
Like Championship Golf courses, New zealands waters arent the best because they are easy. The fish are there, but without the techniques it is easy to blank and not see a fish all day unless its bow waving away from you.

Hi
My wife and i were over there in March this year,NOT a fishing holiday but i did take gear over with me.The guys on here gave me plenty of advice as well.
Just remember that you will need to declare on the customs form that you have tackle with you and it might well be inspected to see if all items are dry.I had no problem, but then my luggage went awol for 24 hours and i had to leave keys with customs but am pretty sure it never got opened-never got the keys back either
Don't take tying materials either.
Although i did fish alone,and caught,i did enlist the b and b proprietors guiding on two occasions (half day trips)which was really very useful and got taken to some really nice stretches of river.
I found tackle pretty expensive over there,i did buy one or two small items as its hard going into a tackle shop and NOT buying anything
Wonderful place,sure you will enjoy it.

Thanks a million for that advice from all of your. I will let you know how things go and will take reel and flies, will prob pick up a rod over there as i think the chances of it arriving with the rest of my stuff is remote and dont want to loose it..
Next thing is to sort out the flies and pack my gear..

Can see why this forum is so popular...

Thanks again.

Tackle is expensive in NZ. Why don't you do as I do and pack a multi piece rod in your luggage? I travel with a rucksack and a nylon holdall and have a complete outfit based around a 4pce rod in each, in case one goes missing.

Some Motueka tributaries should normally be worth fishing, but I hear the river levels are low up there at the moment, so fish will be spooky.

There is a pretty reliable evening rise on the Motueka itself.

Alex