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Suburban trout fishing in NZ


Houseplant
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Northland where I live is the worst region in NZ for trout fishing (and hunting), but the urge overtook me yesterday and I decided to try and catch some trout. Few people target them as our saltwater fishing is world class. I went to a small area of conservation land which is freely accessible to the public. Certainly not a backcountry adventure, more suburban fishing. I haven't cast a line in to a river for a while, maybe a decade. I forgot how annoying trees can be! Had a good time and managed to land a few small  fish in a couple of hours on light gear with jigs and spinners.

Fishing-Trout1.jpg

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5 hours ago, old'un said:

What do you mean the worst region in NZ, is that because of lack of game/fish or because the area is over fished/hunted?

Good question. Worst because it is the worst region by a good degree. As to why it's the worst, hunting and freshwater fishing are separate issues.

Hunting - the legal status of deer in NZ is a pest species; government and the Department of Conservation (DOC) want them gone from these lands; this is usually achieved with mass poison drops and cullers shooting from helicopters. Deer have been absent in Northland for quite some time. There are a lot of wild boar around, but there is a problem. The subtropical bush is so dense and impenetrable that hunting them without dogs is almost impossible on public land. If you are lucky and have access to private farmland, you can often shoot them at the edge to the bush. Same goes for wild goats. Having said that, DOC are working hard to eradicate pigs and goats too. Rabbits, hares, turkeys and possums are plentiful, but you need access to private land to hunt them.

Fishing - trout are not indigenous to NZ, they were brought over from North America and Europe. We have many self-sustaining populations throughout the country, but the waters in Northland are too warm for trout to thrive and stocking must take place to bolster numbers. There are a few lakes which are popular with anglers in the region as rainbow trout grow in excess of 10lb, but few people fish the rivers. I had the entire river to myself yesterday, despite it being a sunny Sunday afternoon at the end of summer. 

The saltwater fishing is amazing, but that is another story 😀

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I can assure everyone the bush is THICK.  My guide Alan Simmonds was at one time, a pro culler and I was amazed how he found his way about. He completely lost me one afternoon , I didn't know which was north , south east or west and he said just push through the bush to your left and a yard away was Alans truck, we where back where we started.  Amazing place, amazing people.

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Bush tends to be denser in Northland than the rest of the country due to the sub-tropical climate. Myself and a hunting buddy went a little off-piste one afternoon and it took us nearly three hours to get back to the track which was under 0.5km away. We weren't lost, just fighting the bush. The tree roots are so dense in places that you don't realise you're walking a metre above the ground until you fall through! 

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I hunted with Alan SOMEWHERE south east of Turangi/Taupo and saw a small tree which as a keen stick maker I imediately asked if I could cut it and from Alans reply I have a feeling I shouldn't have BUT it now resides in my study sporting a UK fallow coronet.  Correct me, but I think he said it was lancewood.  What are the statute of limitations in NZ, this was 30yrs ago.

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