ANGLING AGAIN ON TUESDAY

Southland Times, Issue 24243, 28 September 1940, Page 10

ANGLING AGAIN ON TUESDAY

New Season Opens RIVERS SHOULD BE IN GOOD ORDER By MATUKU Tuesday next marks the opening of another angling season and enthusiastic ' anglers will be trying their luck on the I various Southland streams. Unless there is heavy rain in the meantime the streams generally will be in excellent fishing order for this period of the year. The rain-fed streams are slightly above normal at present, but are clear enough for fishing. The petrol restrictions will tend to concentrate angling on the streams near town and these streams will probably have more fishermen than usual. The Makarewa in the vicinity of the Settlers bridge and the footbridge further upstream contains a good stock of trout of fair size, but generally speaking they prove very difficult to catch. On some days there is a great rise of these fish, but the ordinary dry fly proves of little use in catching them. They seem to rise at a midge or nymph just at the surface of the water and the ordinary dry fly is not attractive to these fish. No doubt an angler who can evolve a successful artificial fly to imitate the natural fly on which they are feeding would get great sport. On rough, windy days the minnow proves a fairly successful lure in the Makarewa and the exponent of the humble worm is also fairly successful. PERCH IN MAKAREWA The Makarewa also contains a great number of perch. These perch can be taken with a small red minnow drawn rather slowly through the water. The perch are not as fast as trout in capturing their food and will not take a minnow if drawn too fast. If a large wet fly is worked slowly through the water it will prove a successful lure for perch. On days when the trout are not feeding an angler can spend quite an interesting hour or two catching perch. For the angler with the natural or artificial minnow the tidal reaches of the rivers give good sport at the beginning of the season- The trout follow the shoals of whitebait into the tidal waters and a natural smelt proves a successful bait for these trout. The tidal

reaches of the Oreti,- Makarewa, Waikiwi, Waimatuku and Aparima all have their runs of whitebait and trout feeding on them. In the Oreti and Aparima trout are reported to be numerous. Some anglers/now use a streamer fly such as a Matuku instead of a minnow and it proves quite a successful alternative lure.

For anglers seeking fly fishing, the smaller streams further inland will provide the best prospects of good sport. The Hedgehope, Otapiri, Lora and Orawia and the Wyndham and Mimihau are all early streams and on a favourable day will provide dry fly fishing from the opening of the season. If conditions are too rough and windy for the dry fly the wet fly will prove equally successful. On the other side of the Hokonuis the Waimea and Otamita are also early streams. About + hree weeks ago a visitor to the Otamita near Mandeville reported an excellent rise of fish in this locality.

WELL-STOCKED RIVERS On the larger snow-fed streams, the Aparima, Oreti and Mataura, most fishing for the first month of the season will be with the minnow and worm. These streams, particularly the Oreti and Mataura, had a good rest from fishing last season and no doubt contain a big stock of fish. The Aparima comes into good order early in the season and should soon give good fly fishing. The Mataura fishing has a charm and presents problems peculiar to itself. There is a most prolific hatch of flies and nymphs nearly every day during the warm weather and the -trout rise in hundreds at the hatching insects. Anglers who have studied the problems of the Mataura fish have evolved fairly successful methods of catching them. A small wet fly on a small nymph fished dry seems to be the successful lure for these fish and provides good sport when the fish are feeding. The Waiau, Mararoa and Upper Oreti above Mossburn and the Eglinton are not usually in good order till late in November, although a few good fish are taken early in the season with the minnow. It is to be noted that the creeper or worm is an illegal bait on the Oreti above Lumsden. This year there seems to be much less snow than usual on the mountains and it may be that the larger streams will soon get in good fly fishing order.