THE HUTT VALLEY ANGLER - Christchurch Fishing and Casting Club

THE HUTT 

VALLEY ANGLER 

No 371 

Newsletter of the Hutt Valley Angling Club Inc 

September 2012 

Casting at the Cliff Pool 

10th 

12th 

18th 

22nd 

24th 

26th 

SEPTEMBER ACTIVITIES 

Club Meeting — King Lion Hall 7:30pm 

Film Festival — Lighthouse Cinema 8:00pm 

Committee Meeting — Community house 7:30pm 

Wairarapa Excursion — Upper Hutt Station 7:50am 

Copy Deadline for October Newsletter 

Fly Tying — Community house 7:30pm

Editorial 

A full season licence offers great value for money in New Zealand. Just ask 

Bill Harris and Ian Lawson who have returned from different overseas 

locations. They both managed to get in a little trout fishing and I would not 

be surprised if they paid the equivalent of a NZ season licence – or more, for 

a few days of trout fishing. 

Ian looked tanned on his return but he insists it is rust from all the rain he 

endured in England. 

It is good to see them back and our local trout will need to be a bit more 

careful after a couple of months rest. 

John Millar 

Editor 

President’s Piece 

As we head into September, it’s time to renew your 

fishing licence for the new season. In reading the 

latest Fish & Game magazine, 3 people were fined 

sums of $658 up to $908 plus gear confiscated for 

fishing without a licence. Further on, it also shows 

the number of offences in the Central South Island 

region – 61 of them. So you need to be fully aware 

that ignorance is not an excuse and you must have 

a current licence or no fishing. As a club we must 

fully support the licence requirements. 

Likewise a reminder that subscriptions are due and so if you haven't paid, 

then contact Grahame Kitchen as soon as you can. The club has not 

increased our subs for close to 10 years so it does everything it can to keep 

your costs down. 

We have another great speaker to look forward to this month with Jim 

Rainey, a long time sponsor of the club – Green Trout Guiding talking about 

his guiding work. This follows the fascinating talk by Tony Houpt at our last 

meeting. So come along and support Jim as well as he has supported us. 

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Hutt Valley Angling Club Incorporated - September 2012

Another feature this coming month is the annual Fly Tying Competition, this 

year being hosted by the Kapiti Club. Jeff Wood is the chief judge for this 

competition and Alan Markham is our club judge. So a big thank you to both 

Jeff and Alan for assisting with this. We would like as many of you as 

possible to turn up at the event this year to support our team of John Millar 

and Graham Odlum. We will advise of travel arrangements at the 

September club meeting. 

There is also the on river workshop for newer members being held on the 

29th September – you need to bring your own gear (if you have any) as this 

is a hands on session where you will be setting up your rod for the various 

fishing styles – dry, nymph, etc. Members who do not have their own gear 

yet should let a committee member know so that we can supply club 

equipment for the day. We will be looking to get numbers for this at the 

club night or register online. This is to give you as much assistance as we 

can prior to the new season. 

There are also a number of club trips to look forward to so register your 

interest online or contact Robin Bound. 

Just a reminder to take two rods if you go away on a trip – as I was fortunate 

when I was away recently and due to a memory lapse on my part – no more 

information due to another loss of memory, I was down to one rod – 

however I could continue to fish later in the day with the back-up rod. I also 

managed to land a trout on my first time fishing the Tongariro – and I was 

the fourth in a line of other fisherman – I only had the confidence to do this 

due to all the support and coaching that I have received from other more 

experienced club members – so take advantage of the casting clinic, the 

buddy programme etc so you too can feel more confident and comfortable 

when out fishing. 

Tony Houpt made a kind comment about the number of people who were at 

Green Trout Guiding 

Sponsor of the Club’s Guiding Raffle 

Phone Jim Rainey (06) 382-5507 

Kawhatau Valley Road, RD7, Mangaweka 

office@greentroutguiding.co.nz www.greentroutguiding.co.nz 

Hutt Valley Angling Club Incorporated - September 2012 3

our last club meeting and the positive vibe the club has – this is something 

that we should all be proud of so thanks to you all and all the best for the 

new season. 

Thought for the month: 

“The trout do not rise in the cemetery , so you better do your fishing while 

you are still able.” (Sparse Grey Hackel) 

Fraser 

CLUB NEWS 

Casting Tuition 

Fraser is co-ordinating some 45 minute individual coaching sessions offered 

by Jim Rainey on Sunday 9 September. There will be a charge for this 

service but if your casting needs some fine tuning then why not speak to a 

professional. As we go to press, all time slots are taken but check this out 

with Fraser because someone may have cancelled. Ring Fraser on 499 8606 

Club meeting 10 September 7.30 pm in King Lion Hall King Street Upper 

Hutt 

Our guest speaker this month is Jim Rainey from Green Trout Guiding. He 

will be talking about ‘The Life of a Trout Fishing Guide’. Jim sponsors the 

Annual Green Trout Guiding Raffle and you can read reports from Peter 

Jacobson and Fraser Gibbs in the March issue of the newsletter. There is no 

doubt that Jim offers a great fishing experience and this can be doubly 

exciting if combined in a raft/fishing trip. 

Interclub Fly Tying Event Monday 17 September at Kapiti Club 

A few club members may be unaware that three freshwater fishing clubs - 

Hutt Valley, Kapiti and Wellington compete each year for the Umpqua- 

Feather Merchants Trophy in a fly tying competition. Each club enters a 

team of two tiers who must dress four flies each in one hour. There are 

three compulsory flies, a dry fly, a nymph, and a lure. Each club takes a 

turn, by rotation, to pick a pattern for one of these classes of fly. The fourth 

fly is the competitor’s own choice and this gives an opportunity to show off 

the individual’s skill and flair. The competition has been held for five years 

4 


and the Wellington team has won the trophy on four occasions so they must 

be rated as favourites to repeat their success. 

The competition will be hosted by the Kapiti club this year and will be held 

on the third Monday in September. Hutt Valley Angling Club’s team would 

appreciate good support from members. The date is 17 September and the 

event will be held in the Otahainga boating Club at 19 Makora Road, 

Otahainga. If travelling north turn left into Otahainga Road (towards 

Southwards Car Museum). Drive until the road intersects with Makora 

Road , turn right and drive until you reach 19 Makora Road on your left. The 

host club will put on a very good supper. 

The Competition sponsor is Feather Merchants. They will supply all tying 

materials and hooks for the compulsory flies and provide the trophy. 

Website address: http://www.feathermerchants.co.nz 

For phone orders: 0800 100 515 

For fax orders: 0800 100 516 

Wairarapa Excursion - Saturday 22 September 

This is a half day excursion to fish rivers in the lower Wairarapa. 

Meet at 7.50 a.m. at the Upper Hutt Rail Station Car Park. Transport will be 

shared. 

Register by contacting Steve Doughty on (04)527 7799 or register online in 

the club Forum on our website. In the event of a cancellation those 

members who have registered will be notified. 

Kid’s Day at the Wellington Fly Fishers Fishout Pond. Sunday 23 September 

We have kindly been given the opportunity to take our kids and grandkids for 

a 2 hour session at the Fishout Pond which is administered by the Wellington 

Fly Fishers. 

This outing has been booked for 10.00 a.m. on Sunday 23 September. The 

activity is restricted to kids aged 12 or under. If your name is not on our list 

and you wish to be included then contact John Millar as soon as possible 

(phone 563 6491) or notify him at the club meeting next week. There will be 

a charge of $5 per child who is fishing and these young anglers will be 

allowed to catch and kill 2 trout to take away and eat. Catch and release is 

permissible. Transport sharing is a possibility. Fly rod and a camera should 

be taken. The kids will be assisted by experienced volunteers from 

Wellington Fly fishers. Special flies will be provided by HVAC. 


Fly Tying - Wednesday 26 September 7.30 p.m. Community Meeting House 

off Logan Street beside Upper Hutt Medical Centre. 

Skill: Adding ‘hot spot’ features. 

Hot Spots are a known attractant for trout and other fish. 

We will add hot spots to several of the standard fly patterns that should be 

in everyone’s fly box. 

All tools and materials will be available at the meeting. 

Riverside ‘Getting Started’ Workshop Saturday 29 September 

The club will run a half-day riverside skills workshop which includes the 

casting clinic. 

The workshop is open to all members but is aimed particularly at our 

inexperienced anglers. 

The workshop will be held on the Hutt River at Silverstream. Participants 

are to assemble in the car park between the rail and road bridges. Start 

time is 8.30 am and finish is expected to be 12 noon. 

You will need to bring your fishing tackle including waders (if you own 

waders) otherwise bring Wellington boots. As always, we recommend the 

use of a wide brimmed hat or peaked cap and Polaroid sunglasses to aid in 

spotting fish. 

Guidance will be given in setting up for the four most common fly fishing 

styles- nymph, ‘wee wet’ fly and dry fly all with a floating line. Using a 

sinking line, for lure or ‘wee wet’ flies. We will offer some suggestions on 

knots and making up leaders for these different styles of fishing. 

Fly selection will be discussed and recommendations on fly choice will be 

given. 

Progressing to the water, the styles of fishing listed will be demonstrated. 

Provided that course participants have a licence they can try their hand. 

For new club members who don’t hold a current licence check with a 

committee member before you purchase one. 

Casting Clinic - Saturday 29 September Silverstream 

A clipboard will be placed on the table beside the raffles. If you need help 

with your casting and are available on this date then add your name to the 

list. We saw several new faces at last month’s casting clinic. Keep up the 

practice guys, improving your casting is the quickest way to catching trout 

with a fly. 

6 


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Looking Ahead 

The committee has lined up some great meeting programmes to the end of 

this year. 

October – Talks by Fish and Game and also NZ Fly Fishers Association so 

have your questions ready. 

November – Ground breaking video link to four top anglers in different parts 

of the country. Don’t miss it. 

December – Club BBQ 

Buddy Programme 

If you are keen to go out with a fishing coach, give Ross Goodman a phone 

call and he will do the rest. Ross’s contact details are at the back of the 

newsletter. 

Library – Maureen has purchased three new DVD’s for the library and these 

will be available at the September meeting. One of these was filmed in 

Australia and deals with Saltwater Flyfishing. Ask at the meeting. 

Magazine Swap Box - will be taken over by Colin Lewis and will be available 

at most monthly meetings. If you have an outdoors magazine you would 

like to share why not swap it for another in the box. Donations of magazines 

welcomed. 

Club Trips 

Turangi Trip (2 nights) 14/15 September 

Accommodation has been booked at the Sportsman's Lodge, 15 Taupahi 

Road, Turangi. If you want to join this trip contact Robin Bound now. . 

Waipukurau Trip 12/13 October 2012 

Accommodation has been booked for eight members to stay at the Tuki Tuki 

Motel in Waipukurau. Cost of accommodation is about $42.50 each per 

night, and two one bedroom motel units have been booked. 

The rooms have a double and single bed in the bedroom with two single 

beds in the lounge/kitchen/dining room. Separate bathroom/toilet. Full 

cooking facilities plus tea and coffee making requirements. 

Cancellation policy – We will have to make a decision on the Sunday before 

departure ie 7 th October, if bad weather was predicted. 

Names to Robin Bound (ph 5298330) by 10 th September please, or you can 

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put your name on the clip board on club night. 

TAUMARUNUI (Whanganui River) Trip (2 nights) 9/10 November 2012 

Accommodation has been booked for eight members to stay at the 

Taumarunui Holiday Park, State Highway 4 South, Taumarunui. Cost of 

accommodation is about $25 each per night, and two small twin cabins have 

been booked, plus a self contained unit that sleeps 4. 

The rooms have bottom sheets, pillows/pillowcases. Facilities also include a 

full kitchen, guest laundry, and toilet/shower block. 

Cancellation policy – The Club will have to pay a deposit which will be 

transferred to another date if we have to cancel because the rivers can’t be 

fished. Names to Robin Bound (ph 529 8330) by 10 th October please. 

Anyone wishing to discuss these trips should contact Robin Bound. 

Last month’s meeting 

At the August meeting Bill Harris gave us a tip to prevent tangles when 

fishing with a stripping basket. Bill uses electric cable ties fixed to the 

bottom of his basket and pointing upwards and slightly forward away from 

his body in the direction he will be casting. The cable ties, sticking up, 

prevent his coils of line from becoming tangled as he shoots line from the 

basket during casting. The cable ties aid in separating the coils as they lie in 

the basket. Tangles and knots in your fishing line are all too common if you 

don’t take steps to avoid them. Add in the extra problems associated with 

fishing in darkness while trying to cast a reasonably long line and you don’t 

need to be struggling with a tangled line! Thanks for the tip Bill. 

Tony Houpt gave an excellent talk on his experiences when fishing for the 

NZ Silver Flies at the World Championships in Slovenia. 

He began by explaining how he became interested in 

competition fly fishing for trout. Originally he had been a 

volunteer controller up until about six years ago when he 

took the plunge into competitive angling. Clearly, it has 

been a move that he has not regretted. He has now 

represented his country on several occasions both at 

home and away. Overseas destinations have included 

Wales, Tasmania, Poland and Slovenia. No doubt Tony 

will be working hard to make the NZ team at next year’s 


World Championships to be held in Norway. 

Tony listed some of the differences between competition and ‘hobby’ 

angling. 

In competition angling the following conditions apply: 

Competitors use barbless hooks. 

Anglers are assigned beats on the water. 

There are multiple sessions, so competitors will follow others on a 

beat. 

Indicators are not allowed. 

There are rules on spacing of flies and how many can be used etc. 

Various local rules apply. 

In New Zealand, team selection is based on accrued points from regional 

competitions. The top twenty competitors form the basis of the teams 

selected to represent New Zealand. The five highest scoring anglers will be 

chosen to fish at the World championships and remaining fifteen will qualify 

to fish in the Commonwealth and Oceania competitions. 

Competing in Slovenia 

In many European countries the competitors are not solely fishing for trout. 

Grayling and some other coarse fish such as Dace and Chubb may also 

count. The competitions in Slovenia were mainly fished on smaller but 

beautiful, clear rivers running from the mountains. These were often 

stocked waters and held Rainbow, Brown and Marble Trout as well as 

Grayling. The championship comprised of one lake session and four river 

sessions. 

Another observation Tony made is that dry fly fishing was a predominant 

style used in the competitions. There is generally a much larger population 

of smaller fish in the rivers in Europe and these are free rising. Fishing a dry/ 

nymph combo downstream was another successful method. 

Fishing to Grayling with a floating fly required a variation in technique to 

achieve a successful hook-up due to the fact that grayling have small, soft 

mouths which are set on the underside of their jaw. 

There were twenty eight teams competing in the competition. 

New Techniques 

Tony talked about some of the techniques applied during the competition. 

Czech Nymphing. Using heavy, sparsely dressed flies. 

“Cleaning” where the wading angler shuffles his feet on the stony 

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iverbed to dislodge invertebrates and other food which are carried 

downstream to feeding fish. The angler was able to drop his nymph 

downstream on a short line, count to three then lift to hook fish. 

Tony said that this was successful where Grayling and stocked Trout 

were the target species. One French competitor caught 76 fish in one 

hour using this technique! 

Upstream wet fly for a rapid sink into the feeding zone. 

Coils – coloured thread wrapped on leader/line to act as indicator 

when Czech Nymphing. 

Flies tied on small Jig Hooks and using silver beads rather than gold or 

copper. Jig hooks are more likely to present the fly floating point up 

reducing snagging on the bottom. 

Micro Nymphs – Very small flies tied on fine wire, oversize hooks i.e. 

# 20 fly on # 14 hook. This is done to ensure better % hooking. 

There are some critical factors that need consideration if we are to be 

successful as fly fishers. 

Keep in contact with the flies particularly when Czech Nymphing or 

wet fly fishing to detect a take. 

Identify likely lies for feeding trout and fish them carefully. 

Tippet size is important. Size of flies and fishing style has a bearing on 

this. 

Flies and hooks need to be in prime condition i.e sharp 

Knots need to be reliable and can be coated with “Knot Sense” to 

mask the lump where a join is tied. 

Presentation is really important when trying to fool a fish. 

Tony passed on a wealth of information and answered a number of 

questions on Czech Nymphing and other techniques. He advised that a 

Czech Nymph leader can be made up using a 9ft knotless tapered leader and 

a length of tippet added. These leaders were usually tied to the fly line 

rather than attached by loop and a piece of coloured nylon joined in at that 

point as a marker/indicator. In competition fishing the leader was not 

allowed to exceed two rod lengths so a length of around fifteen feet (5 

metres) was quite suitable. 

This was a very good presentation that generated much interest from the 

members. 


The president proposed a vote of thanks to both speakers and the large 

crowd responded with a hearty round of applause. 

Hutt River Tree Planting 

Club members John Olds, Grahame Kitchen and George Skinner were part 

of a Club group working at the Hutt 

River tree planting day recently. 

Trees were supplied by the Greater 

Wellington Regional Council and the 

day coordinated by Friends of the 

Hutt River. 

Thanks to Mike Travers and Keith 

Tourell who advised us of this event 

Raffle winners last month were: 

Green Trout Guiding Entry Raffle won by Colin Lewis. 

Monthly Raffle Prize of a wading stick won by John Olds 

Fish of the Month Entries in the club fishing diary qualify for our fish of the 

month award. Entries please to John Millar, email and phone contacts at 

the back of the newsletter. 

The August winner was John Millar with the only diary entry for the month, 

a 2lb 4oz Brown Trout from the Hutt River. The fish was caught on a size 14 

Prince Nymph. John received a $10 voucher from sponsor Hunting and 

Fishing Lower Hutt. 

Remember to support our club sponsors. 

Fishing at the Big Bend 

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Tales from the Riverbank. 

Friday 24 August was another beautiful day. The day before had been warm 

and bright which would have given the swollen rivers a chance to clear. 

One of our members went to the Hutt River around midday to do a spot of 

nymphing. There was a light wind from the south but conditions were fairly 

good. The water was higher than normal but had cleared well to a weak 

whisky colour. This would still allow sight fishing so the angler was quite 

optimistic. The plan was to fish for a couple of hours and mainly to enjoy 

the fresh air and to exercise his casting arm. 

He started using a dry fly dropper and nymph rig. The nymph was a size 12 

Cadillac Brown Stonefly Nymph with copper bead. Even in the middle of the 

day there was a noticeable glare on the water surface at times and this 

made it difficult to track the large sized Bivisible indicator fly. He fished the 

same stretch of water as he did one month earlier. 

His tungsten bead nymph snagged on rocks a few times but he was always 

able to retrieve it. In one instance the hook caught in a fissure on the far 

side of a rock. The water was too deep to reach down with his arm so a 

piece of broken tree branch was used to disengage the hook. On inspection 

the hook was unusable. It had been straightened out so that the tip was at 

90 degrees to the shank. He reached into his sporran to find his hook 

straightening pliers but they were missing. The angler had to bend the hook 

back into shape against a small stone. The gape was noticeably wider now 

but it looked serviceable. He tested the hook and checked his knots, all 

were in working order. He wanted to see 

if the hook was a write-off or if it could 

still hold a fish. It was about that time 

and place he had hooked a trout the 

previous month. He carefully fished 

through that particular stretch again and 

what do you know, he hooked played and 

landed an acrobatic brown jack of two 

and three quarter pounds. 

His trusty nymph has gone back into the 

fly box and will be tested again, hopefully on a bigger fish. 

The following day six club members made a trip over the Rimutaka Hill to 

the Wairarapa. On arrival at the Ruamahunga River the guys were shocked 


to find that the river was running high and coloured. Steve had been 

monitoring river levels on the web and was convinced that they would be 

able to fish but it became obvious that their choices would be very limited. 

They checked out the Waiohine but found it was also running high and 

quite dirty. They did find another spot on the main river where they could 

fish along a clear edge but there was no chance to move up or down in the 

river or to cross. Gary Jacobson did manage to catch a small Rainbow Trout 

on a nymph but they soon ran out of fishable water. A quick look over 

Gladstone Bridge confirmed that there would be no more fishing that day. 

There was little else to do so they retired to the Gladstone Pub/Cafe for a 

coffee and to tell a few lies. 

August on the Tongariro River. A report from Phil McKeown 

It has been a pretty busy month for me on the Tongariro River. 

Having fished 3 weekends with 5 sessions we came out with some pretty 

good results. 

The first weekend I fished 2 sessions with Ray Wright, (ex-member of 

HVAC), as Paul was having a break in Wanganui. The Saturday afternoon 

we spent fishing the upper river. Starting at Boulder Reach, we had the 

pool to ourselves which was a surprise. The pool looked very inviting with a 

nice touch of colour after some rain earlier in the week. It wasn’t long 

before a solid take was felt and a few minutes later a nice fresh hen was on 

the bank. On the board early so confidence went up a notch or two as the 

adrenalin started working. But something must have told the trout we 

were about and that was it, 1 fish for the pool. 

Onward and upward we went to the Cliff Pool. As the pool is quite small I 

left it to Ray and sat and watched him fish through without any 

success. The next pool proved to be a bit better and another hen came to 

the bank. It was a nice fresh hen about 2½ lbs. and was duly returned. Ray 

again found the going tough and no further fish came to the net. Being 

such a good day with clear skies and no wind to speak of, we were 

beginning to wonder what was needed to tempt the fish. Time was getting 

on so we ventured to the next pool. Now this pool had been performing for 

Paul and myself in prior weekends so hopes were high for more of the 

same. Alas it wasn’t to be, but I did manage to tempt a very nice plump hen 

which was despatched and put aside to take home. My first kept fish for 

some months and upon gutting and cleaning I was pleased with the lovely 

orange fillets. As Ray hadn’t been fishing for a while we socialised Saturday 

14 


night and planned the attack for Sunday morning. 

Sunday’s plan was to head downstream and look at 3 pools. We parked up 

at the Red Hut car park and headed downstream on the true right bank. 20 

minutes hard slog up the steps and along the cliff tops we went. We were 

looking for the track down to Upper Birches Pool and found it without too 

much difficulty. Down we climbed and set about fishing through the 

pool. This pool had changed a bit after the last fresh and we both found the 

going tough. Not a touch! So out we came, up the steep track and back 

along the cliff to the Silly Pool. This pool has also been affected by the fresh 

and was looking pretty good. It wasn’t long before Ray found his touch and 

he hooked 3 and landed 2 in quick time while I could only manage 1. Having 

previously had success in the pool I was pleased to see the lies were still the 

same. 

The following weekend Paul came to Turangi and we headed out to our 

usual haunts. (This is what happens when you become creatures of 

habit). The weather was forecast for rain and rain we got. But when the 

fish are about who cares about the rain. A great morning was spent with 9 

hook ups between us and 5 fish landed. All were returned but what a 

fabulous time we had, so much so that we didn’t realise how wet we had 

become. It was one of those mornings when the rain just came straight 

down in heavy showers and didn’t put the fish down either. 

Missed the next weekend due to a family commitment and Paul took 

advantage of that to have a weekend off as well. 

Paul arrived for the last August weekend. So this the latest up I can 

provide. I had already sorted out my gear and added some newly tied flies 

to the fly box ready for the morning. It was another great morning with no 

wind. After a very heavy frost Friday morning it was quite overcast and 

without frost on Saturday. Back to the ‘creatures of habit’ pools Saturday 

morning and saw more anglers about. In fact I think it was the most anglers 

we have seen on the river for weeks. We fished 4 pools and for a total of 8 

fish hooked for the morning. On the other bank were 2 members from the 

club (Namely Bill Harris and Ian Lawson). Bill told us he had 14 fish for the 

week. There seem to be fish about and if you’re lucky and catch a run, you 

can have a ball. We have seen this pattern recurring regularly lately and 

have been trying to make the most of it. Sunday morning was a frustrating 

session with Paul hooking a fish on his first cast and then hooking a second 

not long after. This fish proved to be a stronger fish and resulted in Paul 


losing it after his rod broke in the middle of the second section. We hightailed 

it back home where a replacement was rigged up and we started out 

again. We had another fish in the pool we finished at and I managed to 

hook and almost immediately part company with a fish. We then went up a 

couple of pools and met up with Bill again on the other bank. He was just 

bagging a fish as we arrived. He was on his own as Ian was learning the 

Tongariro Roll Cast with Herb Spannagl. 

We had no success there so headed back downstream where Paul hooked 

and landed one and managed to hook and lose another. In the next pool 

down I managed a repeat performance in hooking and parting company. 

There have been more anglers about over the last week or so I get the 

feeling the end of winter fishing is nigh! 

By the way, I went to Taupo Thursday morning (23 rd August) and noted the 

car park at the TT was overcrowded around 9.30 am and there were still a 

number of cars there around 1.30 p.m. when I passed again on the way 

home. So that would tell me that there must have been some fish moving 

through. Also an 81 year old Aucklander landed a 12 lb plus rainbow in the 

Waitahanui last week. He has been fishing there for 30 years and it was his 

first 10 lb plus fish. So there is hope for me yet. 

I get the feeling that if conditions stay similar to this past month, there could 

be every possibility that those coming on the Tongariro trip in September 

may strike it right for a change. 

I am look forwarding meeting up with those coming and I’m sure you will 

enjoy the fishing. 

Tight Lines 

Phil M c Keown 

Here is a report from member Kieran Govind who spent a few days at Taupo 

recently. 

I’ve missed a few club meetings and Wairarapa fishing days of late, however 

I have managed to get out and fish. In the early hours of Tuesday 9 Aug I 

headed up to Turangi for a winter fish. I caught up with an old friend of 

mine who resides in Auckland and we’ve been saying that we would do this 

for years. This year it happened. By the time I got to his place, he had 

already got one fish from the TT below the bridge. That afternoon we 

headed to the Tongariro, unfortunately a lot of other anglers had the same 

idea. The pool immediately below SH1 had 4 fishermen in there, looking 

further down the river another 4 or 5 could be seen. We thought we’d try 

just above the bridge as we were wetlining, we could move down when 

16 


someone moved on. That didn’t happen and we had no luck where we 

were. Our next stop was the Breakfast Pool. Again there were about 4 

anglers in there. Back in the car and head to the Hydro Pool. Again at least 

4 anglers. So much for mid week being a quiet time to fish. In the end, we 

crossed the Birches Bridge and managed to get into the river between the 

Hydro and Breakfast Pools, still no luck. We called an early finish to the 

fishing and headed home. Not satisfied with the day’s effort, we fished the 

mouth of the TT wading out towards the rip. 2 anglers were there before us 

and over about 2 hours there was only 1 fish (eventually lost), between the 

four of us. Not exactly what I thought winter fish runs were all about. 

Would our luck change the next day? 

Early Wednesday we went for a spot of trolling out on the lake. We 

managed one fish, in great condition on a cobra. We had trolled for about 

2.5 hours, it was hard going and a bit cold. At that stage we had 2 fish in 

about 24 hours, this was as tough as summer fishing except it was much 

colder. In the afternoon we headed up the TT. At the car park, there were 

7 cars at 1p.m., obviously we were not the only ones who thought the 

Tongariro was too busy. This is a river that is difficult to describe as the only 

map that I can easily find appears to be quite old and I'm not sure it 

represents the river anymore. About 15 minutes walk in from the car park 

was a nice long run with no anglers. We split the run into an upper and 

lower half. We were both wet lining. I had a strike but that was about it, 

my mate managed to land a hen. Moving further up the river, we came 

across a Dutchmen with his bag limit. Asking a few questions, it was 

apparent that he was one of the first on the river that day. He had been 

further up and said the fishing was good up there. 5 minutes later a couple 

of older guys (relatively speaking), were coming back empty handed, they 

said the fishing further up was woeful and that the lower part of the river 

was more productive. Who do you 

believe! We carried on and 

because the track had been washed 

out in a big flood a month or so 

earlier (see picture of Huehue 

Parade below State Highway 1, 

showing the resultant road being 

washed out), we would need to 

cross the river a couple of times to 

reconnect with it. At our first 


crossing we found another nice piece of river and we split up again. I went 

further up about 0.5km, crossing the river once more before commencing 

fishing. I fished a deep run at the head of a pool, half a dozen casts and I 

was hooked up. Not the best fight but a fish none the less and my first fish 

on the river and second for the day. Later it turned out that this was the 

worst conditioned fish of the whole trip and given the fishing improved 

vastly over the next few days, we had the luxury of being very selective of 

our fish. Casting back into the same spot I hooked up again. This one had a 

bit of fight in it launching out of the water twice but keeping him out of the 

fast water meant he was at the bank in a few minutes and released to live 

another day. An hour or so later my mate caught up with me, he had his 3 

for the day and I had one to go. Heading back down the river I picked up a 

nice hen and we were done for the day but still had a 30 or so minute walk 

to the car. That night it rained. 

Thursday we were at the TT car park at about 6.45a.m. We were second in 

the car park. Straight back to where we were the previous day, but with the 

rain the previous night the river was up maybe 100mm. No luck at the long 

run, across the river at my mate’s spot and he was in, in no time. Another 

nice hen – he made it look too easy. I moved into his spot and landed an 

even nicer hen. 2 fish within 20 minutes. A couple more were caught and 

released. I moved further up the river to where I had been fishing the day 

before, but had no luck that morning. A couple of elderly gents came by and 

advised me that some guy caught 12 and lost about as many at the Cliff 

Pool. After getting directions I was determined to get there later in the day. 

Continuing fishing slightly further down at the tail of the pool it was all on 

again. My mate and I caught and released a number of fish and kept one 

nice jack. By about 10 in the morning I was ready to move onto the Cliff 

Pool, and off we went. In the absence of a track we needed to make our 

way in some parts, but it wasn’t pioneering stuff. Arriving at the Cliff Pool 

we weren’t quite sure where to fish and initially fished the main deep pool. 

No luck. It all changed when we fished the tail of the pool. We pretty much 

had a strike every second or third cast as the river level began to noticeably 

fall. Unfortunately we did not keep track of the numbers released or lost as 

we were having too much fun. We eventually left around 3p.m. with our 

limit. It was a solid 1 hour walk back to the car. 

Friday dawned, second at the car park again - Groundhog day. We fished 

the same pools and caught and released more fish. We arrived at the Cliff 

Pool earlier than the prior day, only to find we had been beaten there by the 

18 


anglers that stayed at the lodge about a 10 minute walk away. We were not 

too concerned and left it to them. We turned back and fished the same 

places from the morning and previous 2 days. We didn’t quite keep our bag 

limit on Friday as we were much more selective. 

Purists and conservationists have probably been counting how many fish we 

caught and kept. I normally like to release fish, but I also happen to like 

eating Taupo fish and so does my family. Given I usually come home empty 

handed, this time I was providing a few meals. My mates place has a smoke 

house dating back to the 50’s, inside the smoke house its like it has been 

painted with tar and the smoked trout out of that smoke house are the best 

I have had anywhere. A memorable trip, hopefully we will get to repeat it. 

Ian Lawson and Bill Harris spent a few days fishing the Tongariro and you will 

have read that they were spotted by Phil and Paul at Boulder Reach. They 

found the fishing pretty hard with long hours put in each day. Bill caught a 

total of thirteen trout and Ian had six over several days, which is a 

disappointing result by their standards. Bill had caught ten trout the 

previous week. 

You can see by the photos that Ian had 

more luck with Koura at the river 

mouth when night fishing. Anyone for 

Scampi? 


Discovery Page 

If you are new to trout fishing these pages are for you 

Over recent newsletters we have looked at casting faults and fixes and so 

now we will consider where to find trout. 

Trout can’t read books so they 

can be found almost 

anywhere in a river or lake. 

Think of the 4 things they 

need. 

1. Steady food supply. 

2. Escape route or shelter. 

3. Cool, clean, oxygenated 

water. 

4. To maintain energy surplus by minimising effort to feed. 

If you can’t tick at least one of the above then they probably won’t be in 

that spot. 

The 4 factors can alter during the day. 

Each river provides different habitat. 

Insect life varies depending on river type and quality of the water. 

Slow flows suggest more cruising fish. 

Fast flows are conveyor belts carrying food where fish will be holding 

position. 

Check out ‘seams’ where fast and slow currents meet. 

Trout will always face into the current unless they are moving. 

The following list is adapted from Les Hill and Graeme Marshall’s excellent 

book “Stalking Trout” Their study was made over several seasons on a 

number of rivers in the Nelson region. 

Eye of a pool 23% 

In front of an obstruction 15% 

Behind an obstruction 14% 

Drop-off 12% 

Middle of pool 11% 

Beside a creek mouth 6% 

20 


Lee of a jutting bank 6% 

Tail of pool 5% 

Riffle 8% 

This list of prime spots suggests where the angler should focus to find fish. 

Bear in mind that trout will move to different parts of a pool or stretch of 

water depending upon conditions at the time. Fish lying near a creek mouth 

may lie upstream of the creek but in safer or better water. 

Early morning and late evening 

Trout can be found very close to the bank in shallow water. 

Expect trout to be in the slower, quieter waters. 

Before dawn and after dusk trout are bolder. 

Feeding fish are less fussy (sometimes). 

Spotting Trout 

Improves with practise. 

Two pairs of eyes are better than one. 

Usually leads to success. 

Angling for sighted fish. 

Is hunting trout. 

Requires stealth. 

Can get you very close. 

Is pretty exciting. 

Short casts, usually. 

Try to think like a fish. 

Make your first chance count. 

Trout are very alert and have sharp senses. 

Move quietly. 

Catch the fish in your mind first. 

Increases your observation skills. 

Avoids wasting time in unproductive water. 

Is satisfying and gets results. 

Just remember that you won’t catch trout in books or videos, they can only 

be found in rivers and lakes so get out there and find some trout. 


Meet the Member- Simon Muckley 

G’day all. 

I did happen to like John’s comment 

that writing this piece would save me 

from becoming known only as ‘the 

new chap’. My name is Simon 

Muckley and I currently live in Stokes 

Valley with my extremely patient and 

understanding wife Michelle and my 2 

boys Nathan (18) and Cameron (15). I 

have been a golf professional since I 

left school. I am currently working as 

a Customer Service Agent for Air New 

Zealand at the Wellington airport. 

This position now affords me the little 

luxury of varying shifts and differing days off so my fishing and hunting 

ventures may prove more profitable as I won’t be fighting for spots. Mind 

you New Zealand is blessed with plenty of places to hunt and fish and so I 

doubt I will have any problems whenever and wherever I might venture. 

That’s one thing I have come to appreciate since moving here in 1987. We 

truly are very lucky with our hunting and fishing opportunities. 

Being somewhat of a ‘city slicker’ back in the UK I only dabbled with a short 

stint of coarse fishing as a boy trying to hook Tench, Perch, Rudd and the 

likes without much success. Since coming to NZ I took up an opportunity to 

hunt game birds on an Opening Weekend back in 2000. I was very fortunate 

to know Tom Caithness who was the President at the golf club that I was 

working at. He introduced me to clay target shooting at the Hutt Valley Gun 

Club soon after and then suggested that if I wanted to continue with game 

bird hunting my best bet was to contact a local club known as The 

Wellington Wildfowlers (a break-away club from the original Acclimatisation 

Society). I have enjoyed over 10 years association with this club of which I 

have been the Secretary for longer than I care to remember! It is my current 

mission to try and inject some new members into and re-invigorate a rather 

small and struggling club membership. It has been great to see how the 

Angling Club works and I have to admit that some of the ideas and activities 

will be making an appearance at the Wildfowlers. I believe that there is real 

value in being a member of a club. 

22 


A chance meeting and subsequent conversation with Robin when out 

walking my new gun dog has now seen me attend a couple of club nights, a 

fly tying night, a casting clinic and part with what I now consider to be a very 

value-for-money subscription. I have to say that so far I have been very 

impressed with the club, its membership and what it has to offer. As an 

absolute novice the opportunities, activities and knowledge that the club 

freely offer are fantastic. 

I served on the Fish and Game council from 2006 to 2009 and hope to get 

back on to the council this year. I believe it will benefit me to know a little 

more about fishing and be able to contribute more to the council. If there’s 

one thing I am keen on is the nasty business of losing habitat (for both game 

birds and fish). I am very interested in keeping regional councils honest 

about their work on the rivers and their compliance with the RMA. I have 

already had a taste of fighting for our rights to hunt and fish with the recent 

Treaty Settlement at the Pencarrow Lakes. I know that we haven’t heard 

the last of it and as a club we must continue to make sure our voices are 

heard and we don’t lose public access to these resources. 

I look forward to meeting you all over the coming months. 

Important Press Release from Fish and Game 

It was our intention to publish, in full, a letter from Bryce Johnson CEO of 

Fish and Game to Hon Amy Adams Minister for the Environment. 

However this meant that we would need to delete some important club 

news or increase the newsletter by up to ten pages to accommodate this 

document. As a compromise we have printed only the first paragraph of 

Bryce’s letter, which sets the tone for what follows, and we ask members to 

read the entire letter on our website www.huttvalleyangling.org.nz 

There are some very important points made in this letter and it highlights 

some of the ways our rights as anglers could be eroded by this government. 

Your committee advises that every member should read this document. 

If you do not have internet access to our website, a hard copy can be 

obtained from the club library. 


9 August 2012 

Hon Amy Adams 

Parliament Office 

Private Bag 18888 

Parliament Buildings 

WELLINGTON 6160 

By email 

Dear Minister 

TAG Report on RMA Principles 

Introduction 

Fish and Game New Zealand has been an active participant in Resource 

Management Act (RMA) processes since the Act’s inception and has 

successfully championed the recognition and protection of a number of 

New Zealand’s natural water bodies. This advocacy, which has attracted the 

respect and support of the environmental and outdoor recreational NGO 

community, along with that of the general public, has had the effect of 

providing some significant integrity behind the ‘clean and green’ New 

Zealand brand. In turn, this outcome has benefited both our exporting 

industries that depend on that brand and helped underpin the Kiwi lifestyle 

that is based upon our natural environment. This successful advocacy has 

been possible because the 

RMA has enabled sustainable management of natural and physical 

resources such as freshwater by specifying the environmental constraints 

necessary to sustain resources dependent upon it. The RMA has 

specifically recognised, for example, as a matter to which particular 

regard shall be had, the protection of the habitat of trout and salmon, 

which is a statutory responsibility of Fish and Game Councils under the 

Conservation Act 1987. The RMA has enabled a considerable increase in 

the use and intensity of use of freshwaters since its passage in 1991, so 

Fish and Game does not accept that there is need to amend the Act to 

further facilitate this process. Indeed, the absence of effective limits to 

freshwaters and subsequent degradation of many freshwaters despite the 

current Act’s provisions suggest that, if anything, better and clearer 

24 


specification of limits is required, as has been recommended to you by the 

collaborative process of the Land and Water Forum. 

Hutt River 

Below weir 

Regal Fly Tying Vises 

If you are a fly tying beginner, or just looking for a moderately priced, 

basic tying vise, the Regal INEX Vise was designed to fill that need 

without compromising quality. It features the traditional Regal head 

and jaws, and is fitted to a non-rotating stem with a basic C-clamp. 

The vise fits hook sizes from 22 to 1/0. 

This one is a great vise for the beginner 

The INEX Vice with C-Clamp. . . . $159-95. 

Also available: 

The Regal Medallion Standard Rotary Vise $220-00 

or the Regal Medallion Big Game Rotary Vise $260-00 

For further details: 

Jeff Wood m 021 204 8978 

Email shop@akaufishing.co.nz 

www.akaufishing.co.nz 


WELLINGTON SHOW: Wednesday, 12 th September 2012, 

8pm - 10pm. Light House Cinema - Petone 

Check out www.gin-clear.com/filmfest for tickets, tour information, 

videos, photos and more. Tickets are available online or at the door, 

subject to availability. Tickets cost $25. 

Fish Heads Wanted 

Fish and Game Wellington are keen to receive heads from fish killed 

by anglers. The heads will be used for scientific research. 

Fish and Game particularly want fish heads from catches made on 

the Mangatainoka River and the Pohangina River. 

If you prefer to catch and release then that is great, but if you kill the 

fish to eat them please wrap and freeze the heads. 

Arrangements can be made through the club to collect these for Fish 

and Game. 

As well as the head, F+G would like to know where the fish was 

caught, its vital statistics of weight and length if possible, and the 

method of fishing. 

Contact a committee member if you wish to surrender a fish head. 

Ranger Contacts 

If you encounter any instances of suspected illegal activity contact one of 

the following: 

Thane Walls GWRC Hutt River ranger 027 283 7991 

Fish & Game 

Brendan Digby-Smith 027 231 776 

Dan Thomas 04 386 4442 

26 


CLUB CONTACTS 

President Fraser Gibbs (04) 499 8606 

Vice President Steve Doughty (04) 527 7799 

Secretary John Olds (04) 934 4150 

Treasurer Grahame Kitchen (04) 971 6696 

Committee Robin Bound (04) 529 8330 

Maureen Burgess (04) 238 2304 

Ross Goodman (04) 233 0087 

Ian Lawson (04) 563 5486 

John Millar (04) 563 6491 

Buddy Programme 

Coordinator 

Trip Coordinator 

Ross Goodman 

rgoodman@globe.net.nz 

Robin Bound 

robin_bound@slingshot.co.nz 

(04) 233 0087 

04) 529 8330 

Librarian Maureen Burgess (04) 238 2304 

Newsletter Editor 

Newsletter Publisher 

Fishing Diary Holder 

Club Web Site 

John Millar 

john.millar@xtra.co.nz 

Grahame Kitchen 

grahame2@paradise.net.nz 

John Millar 

john.millar@xtra.co.nz 

www.huttvalleyangling.org.nz 

(04) 563 6491 

(04) 971 6696 

(04) 563 6491 

Club Web Master Steve Doughty (04) 527 7799 

Club email address 

huttangler@hotmail.com 

Club Mail address PO Box 40135, Upper Hutt, 5140 

Any articles published in this newsletter are the opinions of the 

author alone and do not necessarily represent the views of the 

Club as a whole or other members of the Club.

THE HUTT VALLEY ANGLER - Christchurch Fishing and Casting Club

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