Central South Island Weekly Fishing Report - 26 March 2026

Fishing Detour Pays Off

Father-Daughter fishing duo Doug and Tara took the long way home to Canterbury, via the Pukaki Canal, after dropping Tara’s 18-year-old son down at Otago University.

Pictured: Doug does battle under stunning Pūkaki Skies. Credit: Tara Wingfield.

Tara reports that it was a superb couple of days, with magic views and they landed two trout and a salmon.

The fish were caught on egg imitations on 6lb leader with a light weight. She says the key was to let it sink and drift with slow recall.

Mayfly Magic

Finn and his well earned Ōpihi brown trout. Credit: Finn Stevens.

Finn Stevens sent in the above photo of a nice Ōpihi brown trout and recalled his story for us.

“I had been out with my pop earlier in the day and we’d seen heaps of fish and had lost one.

I went back in the afternoon about 1pm for another few hours. It was quite bright and sunny, and the water was really clear. You could see fish rising, smacking mayflies off the surface and their whole body flashed in the sunlight when they turned away.

I tried almost all the flies in my tackle box before it took the blue dun. I had to chase the fish down a riffle into the pool below before I managed to land it.”

Finn set up his self-timer camera before lifting the fish out to snap the shot, he made sure to keep it in and above the water with good catch and release practices in mind. He hopes to see that fish again one day soon.

Ashburton Anglers – Join the Grey Ghosts

A table of Ashburton Grey Ghosts at their Christmas dinner. We hear there’s another dinner coming up mid-year, and you could be apart of it. Credit: Dave Young.

Providing false details, fishing without licence and fishing out of season lands angler in Court

Central South Island Fish & Game have successfully prosecuted an angler who flouted the law while fishing at Loch Cameron near Twizel in October 2025.

The angler was found fishing the day before the season opened for salmon that were released for a Kids’ Salmon Fishing Day.

Blake Thorman of Christchurch appeared in the Timaru District Court on 17^th March and entered a guilty plea to three charges; providing false details, fishing without a sports fishing licence and fishing out of season.

Thorman was known to Fish & Game having previously been issued a warning for fishing outside of the family fishing licence provisions in 2020.

Judge Savage convicted Thorman on all three charges and ordered him to pay a total of $1,500 in fines and costs.

Hopefully this will prompt people to think twice before fishing without a licence or providing false details to a ranger. It’s especially disappointing that this offender took advantage of fish released for the annual Kids’ Salmon Fishing Day.

Sockeye Salmon Spawning

Spawning sockeye salmon in the Lower Ōhau River as seen from above. Credit: Nikki Dellaway.

The month of March is the peak of the spawning run for the Waitaki Lakes’ sockeye salmon population.

The Waitaki sockeye are the only self-sustaining landlocked population of sockeye salmon in the Southern Hemisphere.

See this video we put together from last years spawning surveys and keep an eye on the facebook page for this years update.

This year’s final estimates are still pending but the raw data suggests Lakes Benmore and Pūkaki sockeye populations remain healthy, with the Twizel River once again serving as a key spawning ground. There is still a small window of opportunity to view the phenomenon of sockeye spawning, with Lake Benmore tributaries being a good place to start. A particularly good vantage point is the SH8 Bridge that goes over the Twizel River.

Remember, it is an offence to fish for sockeye in a river or stream where sockeye are present in March and April. After spawning, sockeye salmon die, contributing vital nutrients to the freshwater ecosystem.

Be aware you may come across salmon carcasses in various stages of decay. This is natural and an important part of their life cycle.

Sockeye salmon school ready for spawning.

Annual General Meeting - Waitaki Riparian Enhancement Society

The Annual General Meeting of the Waitaki Riparian Enhancement Society (WRES) or better known as the Waitaki Voluntary Salmon Hatchery is to be held on the 31^st of March at the Glenavy Hall.
 
WRES are a voluntary organisation who aim to increase the wild sea-run salmon population of the Waitaki River.

For more information check out their web page or head along to the meeting.

Date: 31 March 2026
Time: 7.30pm
Place: Glenavy Hall

Waitaki sea-run salmon season – ‘upper’ section closed April 1st

The yellow highlight marks the powerlines at Stonewall & Bortons Pond - salmon fishing is closed upstream of these powerlines in April.

The implementation of the season bag limit has allowed sea-run salmon fishing to continue longer in some waters of the Central South Island Region for the month of April.

For example, the 'lower half' of the Waitaki River remains open for sea-run salmon fishing for April. The 'lower half' is defined as that part of the river between the sea and the powerlines that cross the river between Bortons Pond on the South and Stonewall on the North side.

The 'upper' section, being everything above the powerlines, is closed for fishing from 1 April.

Remember to always carry your sea-run salmon license with you (and a pen) if you are fishing for sea-run salmon or want to keep one incidentally caught whilst trout fishing.

If you need clarification on any regulation please refer to the 2025/26 sports fishing regulation guide.

If you have finished salmon fishing for the season please return the details on your card to us.
You can do this online here, give us a call on 03 615 8400, email csi@fishandgame.org.nz or post the card to us at P.O Box 150 Temuka 7948.

Your information is helpful even if you didn’t catch a salmon or if you didn’t go out fishing at all.

Weather and Water Outlook

Please always check the weather and waterway conditions yourself before heading out to ensure an enjoyable day on the water, click on the links below to the weather and water condition forecast providers we use.

• There are some great weather forecasting websites available, we use YR.NO, Metvuw and Windy.
• Keep a close eye on river and lake levels at Environment Canterbury’s River Flow Website here and rainfall website here.
• Outdoor Access NZ offer high quality live stream webcams of some of Canterbury’s favourite fishing spots. This is a subscription-based service, but they do offer a 30-day free trial.

NOTICE BOARD

Return Your Sea-Run Salmon Bag Card

If you have finished your sea-run salmon fishing for the season, please remember to return the details of your salmon bag card to us.  Even if you didn’t go fishing, or catch or keep any sea-run salmon, your information is very important.

You can do this online by clicking here, give us a call on 03 615 8400, or email csi@fishandgame.org.nz or post the card to us at P.O Box 150 Temuka 7948. 

Please Send us your Fishing Reports!

Whilst this report is crafted by the CSI Fish & Game team, it’s your stories that truly bring it to life. We’d love to hear about your own fishing adventures. Please share your short trip reports, photos, go-to lures, or favourite recipes etc.

Email your reports to Fish & Game Officer Jase Van Beers at jvanbeers@fishandgame.org.nz

Click here for Central South Island Fish & Game on Facebook

For any questions, please email csi@fishandgame.org.nz or call 03 615 8400.