Wellington Weekly Report - 30 January 2020

Staff have been making the most of the fine weather and clear rivers, getting well into our trout population monitoring and what we're observing is very exciting.  

Numerous rivers have been dived across the bottom part of the region and, despite the low flows, the trout are present in really good numbers.

What's most impressive though is the size and condition of the fish we're encountering.

Perhaps a result of the mouse-plague, it has been years since we've seen so many trout in such heavy-set shape.

Surely some trophy browns are going to be taken this season!     

As always, we're interested to hear about your angling experiences so drop us an email to let us know how you're getting on.   

Meanwhile, the light rain today won't impact your weekend fishing plans, in fact it should freshen things up with cooler temps. Note too that the cicadas are out in full force now and trout are happily feeding off the surface to large flies. 

It all makes for exciting angling so please make the most of great fishing to be had. Don't forget to buy your licence before hitting the water.     

Pictured: Ideal conditions and great visibility for the Wellington Fish & Game drift dive team last week (Copyright Hamish Carnachan)

Here's the outlook:

Hutt River and tributaries

Click here for live weather updates.

The Hutt River and tributaries are showing just a small spike from last night's rain in the ranges. While a lot more water would have been good for the very low rivers in this part of the region, we'll take it what we can get. The fish will likely respond well to any increase in flow so it's good news for anglers. Don't worry about the wind this weekend either, it will knock cicadas into the water so go prepared.                  

Kapiti Coast

Click here for live weather updates.

The Waikanae, Ohau and Otaki have all seen a tiny extra amount of water from the rain last night, and at this time of year any extra flow is good, no matter how small. There'll be no impact on your angling this weekend other than hopefully refreshing the fish. Load up with cicadas as the blustery conditions late Saturday and Sunday will be ideal for targeting surface-feeding trout.         

Wairarapa

Click here for live weather updates.

The Ruamahanga is incredibly low but staff still observed trout feeding happily on a mayfly hatch at midday yesterday! There's been a tiny bit of an increase to the base flow in the larger tribs - the Waiohine, Waingawa and Tauherenikau - from the recent rain (showers) in the hills but high-summer angling conditions prevail this weekend.                     

Manawatu

Click here for live weather updates.     

The Manawatu, along with the Pohangina, Oroua, seem to have had more rain in the ranges with a small pulse of additional flow coming through this morning. This won't adversely impact weekend angling, rather it will help refresh systems suffering from the summer dry. There appears to have been more rain in the northern Tararuas as well, with the Mangatainoka getting a nice little freshen up, but again this won't hinder anglers this weekend.    

Rangitikei

Click here for live weather updates.

A good pulse of rain yesterday will have livened up the fish in the Rangitikei and Hautapu. The extra flow is clearing incredibly quickly though so shouldn't pose any problems for anglers heading out this weekend.    

Tip of the Week - Get Into the Cicada Action

You don't need to be a fly caster to fish dry fly imitations (Concept copyright Hamish Carnachan).   

I encountered one of our Weekly Fishing report readers on the river recently who had read about trout being on a terrestrial insect feeding-frenzy with all the cicadas, hoppers and water spiders active during summer. 

Being a spin fisher who didn't have the time or inclination to learn to fly fish, he asked how he could get amongst the action. That's exactly why Wellington Fish & Game produced the Advanced Spin Fishing how-to guide.

Fortunately I had some copies in the truck, so I sent him on his way with one. Hopefully he's made full use of it because the cicada hatch has only increased since then.  

If you are in the same boat and want to learn how to fish flies (and other effective lures) on your threadline gear, click the link above. Otherwise you can contact us and we'll mail you a hard copy.   

By Fish & Game field officer Hamish Carnachan. 

Webcams

Click the map below to go to Horizon's website showing the list of available river webcams.

Notice board

• Greater Wellington Regional Council has issued an advisory about toxic algae in the Waipoua River - read more here. Please note that this does not mean that you can't still fish, however trout in affected waters are likely to be stressed so care should be taken if you plan to release them.     
• The Otaki Kids Fishing Day is being held on Saturday, February 8. Registrations are essential and can be made through Otaki Hunting and Fishing by email, or calling (06)364-8969. 
• Anglers wanting to fish the Rangitikei backcountry must have a licence endorsement for this fishery. Click here to find out more. Or purchase your backcountry endorsement.   
• Fishing regulations changes for the Wellington Fish & Game Region in 2019-2020 might affect you. Find out about the changes here.  
• Don't get a nasty surprise by Greater Wellington Regional Council's river bulldozing ruining your day on the river. Check out the latest schedule of activity here. 
• Flushing flows from the Moawhango Dam, which will cause the rivers downstream (including the Rangitikei) to rise, will be conducted on the following dates: 

Release from Dam 9:00pm Tuesday 18 February 2020 – 5 hours
Release from Dam 9:00pm Tuesday 17 March 2020 – 5 hours
Release from Dam 9:00pm Tuesday 28 April 2020 – 5 hours (subject to monitoring triggers being met)

More info here. 

 Email Wellington Communications and Field Officer Hamish Carnachan if you'd like any fishing or freshwater-related items posted to this noticeboard.

​*This report was accurate at time of writing - For your safety please ensure you check the latest weather and river flow information before you head out on the water.