Fly Rods Over Fortnite – Teenagers Choose Trout Over Tech

Written By James Fuller

For many teenagers today, downtime often means screentime. Whether it’s playing Fortnite or Minecraft, scrolling TikTok or watching Netflix, the tractor beam of the screen can be all powerful. But not for 14-year-old Anthony Guest from Rotorua, who has found a different passion.

“Yes, it’s an obsession,” smiles the Rotorua Boys’ High School student, as we head up one of his local streams accompanied by his dad, Richard, who nods in agreement.

“It’s become a bit of an addiction, to be honest,” says Richard. “He absolutely loves it though and as a parent, I couldn’t be happier. As obsessions go, it’s a good one to have.”

As we watch Anthony expertly navigating the water, it’s remarkable to think this is just his first full year of fly fishing. In the first six months of 2025, he caught more than 650 trout. By the time the Christmas decorations are coming down and ill-fated New Year’s resolutions are being contrived, he intends to have broken the thousand mark.

Extraordinary figures, but perhaps what’s more impressive is the self-reliance, curiosity and boundless enthusiasm he has displayed in getting to them. He regularly ties flies late into the night, spends hours prepping gear and then, first thing in the morning, catches two buses across town before scooting six kilometres uphill to his favoured spots for his fishing fix.

It was only in 2024, at 13 years old, that Anthony properly discovered fly fishing.

The start of | an obsession

Anthony grew up in a family that fished. His dad, Richard, has long been a keen angler and hunter, and the family spent plenty of time trolling and harling on the lakes of Rotorua and Taupo. But it was only in 2024, at 13 years old, that Anthony properly discovered fly fishing.

The spark was lit, as it has been for many, when attending a Fish & Game ‘Kids’ Fish Out’ Day at his local Eastern region headquarters, in Paradise Valley, Ngongotaha.

Sibling rivalry almost extinguished the flame before it could take hold though.

“His younger brother Cameron did the Kids’ Fish Out with him and really got into fly fishing as a result,” Richard says. “The two boys have a bit of a dynamic at the moment where they don’t really like having the same interests. So, Anthony initially thought, well if that’s going to be Cameron’s thing so be it.”

That was until Anthony’s friends Tyson Pearce and Jaden Moore helped get him firmly hooked.

“I just went out with whoever I could for a start, whoever wanted to go,” Anthony says. “It started with spin fishing and then progressed to fly fishing. I just love the challenge of fly fishing. It’s exciting, you get a really good vibe from it, and then you get to show people the pictures of what you catch afterwards.”

Anthony intends to take up competition angling this year.

Learning from the best

Working initially with tight line techniques and drop-shot rigs, Anthony’s catch rates started to climb rapidly. Then in November he attended a youth workshop run by Sport Fly Fishing NZ, the national body which governs and runs fly fishing as a competitive pursuit in this country, and which sends representative teams to international championships. Held in Hawke’s Bay across two days, the event was an eye-opener for a fishing-obsessed kid.

To be a consistent contender in sport fly fishing you have to be proficient in all disciplines, up to speed with the latest developments and be organised and disciplined in your approach. Hosting the course were some of the country’s best young anglers in Ollie Bassett, Hugo Pearce, Nahan Pollard and Noah Shapiro.

“I picked up so many tips, different rigs, set-ups, how to fish dries, dry-dropper, and even more on euro nymphing. And it was great to hear from people closer to my age,” says Anthony, who intends to take up competition angling this year.

By December, he’d invested in a dedicated euro nymph rod and since then he has been out almost every weekend.

“In summer, I was going four or five times a week. It’d mostly be hitting the streams on both days of the weekend and then, during the week after school, I’d fish the stream mouths during the evening. They really fire in the summertime. In winter it probably drops to two or three times a week, because of the light.”

The early bird catches the… fish

To fit all this in, Anthony has devised a routine that would humble most adults. His family live on the Redwoods side of Rotorua. With other children and commitments his parents aren’t always available to operate as taxi service for his weekend fishing excursions, but that’s not an issue for Anthony.

To get to his favoured fishing haunts, he’s up at 6.30am, scrambles out of the door with fishing gear and push scooter to catch his first bus to Rotorua. From there he hops on another bus bound for Ngongotaha and, having been dropped off along the main drag, begins his marathon scoot up to the stream.

“I used to walk but scooting takes a third of the time, so more time on the water,” smiles Anthony. “I would say to other kids my age not to depend on your parents, do it yourself, find ways to make it work if you can.”

Every trip is planned meticulously. Evenings are spent tying flies, laying out gear and thinking through which pools and techniques to try, and even setting himself goals for the coming day.

“I do a lot of fly tying. I got into that at the same time as the fishing, when I saw how much flies cost. Whenever I get a bunch of hooks, I just tie them as fast as I can until I’ve used them all up.

“I spend a lot of time thinking about fly fishing as well. What I’m going to do and how I’m going to do it,” he says. “And what my goals are. Sometimes it’s ‘catch 10 fish today,’ or ‘target browns’. Whatever it is, it keeps it exciting. I’ve got a tally chart, too, I keep records of everything.”

It is remarkable to think this is just Anthony's first full year of fly fishing. In the first six months of 2025, he caught more than 650 trout.

Reaping the rewards

It’s an approach which has certainly paid off. As well as the impressive numbers of fish, Anthony has also landed some big ones. The biggest?

A stonking 14-pound brown.

“I probably don’t want to go out with him now. He’d show me up too much,” laughs his dad. “He’s beaten me on biggest fish already.”

As we walk, wade and talk, it’s obvious Anthony is an absolute sponge when it comes to fly fishing information. It’s equally clear he now knows these waters intimately, as he talks us through each section, spots which have been good and bad throughout the year, and what he’s doing as he goes. He explains techniques of how to slow the drift, dropping it deeper, giving his flies more time in the zone.

“This section looks like good water, and there should be trout there, but I’ve never caught a fish in that run.”

As we progress upstream, he spots a brown stationed near an overhanging willow. Three casts later he has hooked it, and the fish tears off downstream. It ultimately escapes, but Anthony’s reaction is telling. Rather than getting upset he analyses what happened, already certain of what went wrong and how he’d put it right next time.

“I’m going to start taking my GoPro more too,” he adds, “so I can spot any mistakes I’m making in drifts or fighting fish.”

Learning by doing, and helping others

Richard believes at least part of Anthony’s success is rooted in his willingness to experiment.

“Young guys aren’t tied down by all the ‘shoulds’ and ‘shouldn’ts’ we often have as adults,” he says. “They just try anything and see what works. That, together with so much time on the water, and you end up with a pretty big data set.

“He’s also happy to talk to others, and 99 per cent of the people Anthony’s met on the river have been hugely supportive. Older anglers are genuinely pleased to see young guys out there, catching fish and learning. It’s great for the whole fly-fishing community, and that’s been a really positive aspect of his journey so far.”

Anthony agrees. “Don’t be afraid to ask people for help when you’re on the river. I’ve found people to be super helpful, telling me what they’re doing and how they’re doing it. You can also just watch people and see what they’re doing. And if I’ve been doing well and someone asks, I’ll show them exactly what I’m doing too.”

Memories that last

It may still be early in Anthony’s fly-fishing life but he has already clocked up some cracking memories, ones which brighten his face as he retells them.

“There was this pool in summer, super clear water, and we could see this brown sitting there. I cast, started the retrieve and then stopped it about a metre in front of this fish. I could see him flex, move, get ready. I took one hard strip, then another and he just smashed it. Seeing it all happen like that was awesome.”

Stealthy stalks followed by accurate bow-and-arrow casts are also high up the hitlist.

“I love catching browns on the bow-and-arrow cast,” he says. “One time we were going up a real skinny part of the river, and we could see a brown just beside the bank. So, we went across, keeping low, crawling pretty much, snuck all the way up to it and I put a bow-and-arrow cast into it. He took it on the second cast. Then he boosted it and just jumped. When browns jump like that it’s just so cool because they don’t often jump. That picture just stays in your mind.”

But even for this young gun, it seems things don’t always go to plan. Anthony tells a story which might have a familiar ring to it for many anglers of more mature years.

“One day we spotted two nice browns side by side, they were below a pool, just above some rapids. First cast at them, my mate hooked the brown and lost it, but it just went back into position where it had been before, right back where it was. Then I had a go, so I cast and it was drifting back to them nicely… then this small rainbow came all the way up between the two browns and smashed my fly. That was the end of that.”

In just 30 minutes on the water with Anthony he'd caught two trout and lost one in trying conditions.

Why fishing beats Fortnite

For this outdoorsy youngster, who is also an avid hockey player just like his dad, video games are something of a non-starter.

“They’re pretty boring,” says Anthony matter-of-factly. “I might play them if I’m sick.”

“He’s quite lucky in that he’s found a group of friends who aren’t really into them either,” adds Richard.

For Anthony, the simple enjoyment of being outdoors, meeting people on the stream, the challenge of catching fish, thinking through problems and the confidence being gained in doing so independently is hugely rewarding. It’s something Richard believes parents should encourage if they have the opportunity.

“Even if that means going with your kids at first to build up their confidence then so be it,” he says. “Anthony’s got so much out of it and so have his friends. It’s great to see them outside and active.”

 

Getting your own kids started

So how can other families follow Anthony’s lead?

Fish & Game’s Kids’ Fish Out Days are a great place to begin. Joining a local angling club is another. Or simply accompanying an adult who fishes.

“Just encourage them,” says Richard. “Whatever that looks like. Getting the kids off the couch and into nature. It’s all worth it.”

As we walk off the water after a quick 30-minute hit-out, Anthony has caught two and lost one, in less than ideal conditions. And, of course, it’s the adults with commitments who have called an early halt to the fun.

If Anthony’s story is proof of anything, it’s that when young people discover fishing, it ultimately adds up to so much more than catching fish. They will end up learning lessons no screen can teach.