Reel Life October 2024 - Auckland/Waikato

The Waikato is full of fish it is time to get out there!

The Waikato River is fishing well so it is time to take advantage of trout on your back door if you live in the Waikato. The Hunting and Fishing 2024 Lower Waikato River trout contest had some huge browns entered including Steven Sharpe’s 3.17 kg brown trout that landed him first place in the competition. Tracey Farrar won the women’s division with a 2.10 kg brown, and the junior division was won by Dylan Farrar 2.14 kg brown. Staff asked the competition organisers about tips to help new anglers and where the big fish were caught. The response was not to be afraid to fish low on the river as fish were caught as low as Les Batkin Reserve next the Tuakau Bridge. In terms of gear, soft baits still dominate the competition and are a great way to catch trout in the Waikato.

Dylan Farrar with three nice Waikato River brown trout.

Steven Sharpe 2.5 kg brown trout from the Waikato River.

Please keep an eye out for the Spring flyer in your inbox

Staff are busy working on our spring flyer and there will be some important information for anglers so please keep an eye out in your email. If you would like a flyer and don’t check your email, please contact the office and request one.

Rule changes

Auckland/Waikato Fish and Game Council will be updating our fishing rules and are calling for any suggested changes. This round of potential changes will be quite unique as we will be considering a national push to simplify the fishing rules to make things easier for anglers including suggestions like:

1. Year-round season on most rivers (excluding spawning areas)
2. No restrictions on gear (spin, bait and fly on all streams)
3. 2 fish daily limits for all rivers

The full list of suggested changes will be outlined in the spring flyer and a survey will also be emailed to licence holders who have given email details. If you know any anglers that do not receive correspondence from Fish & Game that would like to participate, they can call our office to be added to the mailing list. If you would like to make suggestions on the rule changes to be considered by council for the next three years, please email us at adaniel@fishandgame.org.nz or post your suggestions to 156 Brymer Road, RD9, Hamilton 3289 by 31 November 2024.