ANGLING NOTES.

Digger (Invercargill RSA), Issue 28, 24 September 1920, Page 4

ANGLING NOTES.

By "Creel."

By "Creel."

"The Song of the Oh, the song of the ripple is the song for me, Out where Na-ture lives life free; Where the song is the gurgle of waters cool, As they stride along to the deepening pool; And the scent of the fern waftg thro the air, And God is good ; Life wondrous fair. And I rise all eager, adjust my creel, And I long for tho song of the angler's r,eel, As with lightning run, it liums an* sings, Ahj you must know the joy it brings, When with a cast that is true, you get your wish, And you hook with cave, your first good fish. And the song of the ripple sounds sweeter still, When you know he's a "beauty" to test your skill ; When with splash and twirl, a run he takes, And a beautif ul " bow in your rod he makes ; There' s the flash of silver through waters cool, And he dives for safety, deep down the pool. Ah, the song of the ripple with cadenzas thrill, When I've oreeled at last, my first good kill ; , And the river sings in it's sweetest stram, And the world is free from strife and pain ; 'Neath God's Hue sky. it's fair and free, Oh, the song of the ripple, is the song for

me.

Friday the 1st of October sees the open. ing of the Angling Season for 1920-21. Everything points to a very successful season ; as most of the rivers should be in excellent condition. Some of us are apt to forget to whai an extent Southland is blessed in being an angler's paradise. One has only to live in our Northern Cities to irealise this fact. Meeting an old angling friend the other day, he remarked ■ how much he would like to have the op-portunity-of fishing our rivers again, and on my enquiry why, he enthused on the virtues of our various rivers. Being an ardent fly fisherman, he extolled on the qualities of the Mimihau and the Wyndham (although not in the Southland District, yet within easy access). He then. mentioned the sport to be obtained on the Otamita and Waipahi, a few miles trom Gore. Coming nearer home, he reterred to the Dunsdale, Aparima, Waiau, Makarewa, Otapiri, Lora, and finally he said : "What more fascinating sport, than casting the fiy in the Oreti about New Year time, when one is apt to hook a fish up to 201b weight." (One of the big "dogs", he called 'em). To w7hich I readily agreed, and I think my readers will approve: This year I would like to see the various Angling Clubs hold a greater number of inter-club competitions, as they are an excellent means of bringing sportsmen together, and are also a source of education and enlightment to anglers themselves. Any interesting information from the various Club Secretari.es, and anglers in general, will he welcomed by "Creel," and duly published in this column. For the enlightenment of any angler new to our district, I attach a short description of our principal rivers. Mimihau (near Wyndham township) : An ideal fly stream, with fast running rips and long deep holes, where fish up to eight pounds have been taken on the fly. Average width, about a chain. (In fra dig to fish with the minnow on this stream). Wyndham (near Wyndham) : Contains one of the best species of fighting fish known. Difficult stream to strike the fish on the move, but good bags have been secured under favourable conditions. Minnow permissible. Otamit a (near Gore) : A fine clear fly stream. Full of fish, and some big bags are taken every year. (In fra dig to fish" with the minnow, although some anglers use the natural creeper). Waipahi (near Pukerau, Otago District) : One of the best fly streams within strik. ing distance of Invercargill. Good heavy bags are secured when the fish are on the "take." Dunsdale (near Hedgehope) : With 10ft fly rod an ideal fly stream for a bag. Fish are smaller, but good fighters. Aparima (nearest Thornbury) : A nice clean river, with gravelly beaches and long rips. Good sporting fish. Minnow mostly used In the early part of the season.

\ , aiau (near Tuatapere) : The mighty Waiau. The big man's paradise. Big ush. Big tackle. A salmon has been taken from this river and there will be more. Makarewa (nearest Makarewa Junction) : A slow sluggish running river, very. suitable for natural and minnow fishing. A fine species of trout inhabit this river. their flesh being of Salmon pink colour and very palatable. For the first three months of the season, suitable for- fly work, and striking the fish on the move, some hefty fish may be creeled. Otapiri (near Borwns) : Another stream somewhat similar but a little larger than the Dunsdale. Fly and creeper are mostly used. Fish average better than the Dunsdale. Lora (Lora Gorge) : A very pretty rocky bottomed stream,. with good fish, averaging 31b. Essentially a fly stream, and in the Cricket season that bait is deadly. Oreti or New River (nearest locality Stiven's Wallacetown)-: Undoubtedly the finest river in Southland. A river that stands any amount of fishing, and always seems to be well stocked with fish. Will accommodate any style of angler. in the early parts of the season, when the snow water is coming down, the best results are obtained with the "snake" or worm, and minnow. For night fishing with the natural bait some very big fish may be encountered, fish 201b weight and over being secured every season. A fine easy river to fish, as its long gravelly reaches, allow an angler plenty cf room to play her fish. After the New Year the best fiy stream in Southland. The above chronicle, I hope, will be the means of deciding some brother angler where he will get his favourite style of fishinjg. Re Tackle. — On making enquiries 1 understand there is a good supply available this year. -** Tips for new chum anglers : — 1. Carry your license in your tackle hook. 2. Soak your casts and traces in water over night. 3. Test your cast or trace with a genfle pull before making fast to the line. 4. See that-the line is wound evenly on the barrel of reel. 5. If you are "gcraping" fish, inspect your flies or minnow. Ypu may have lost a barb off the hooks. 6. Treat your tackle and gear as something sacred, to he taken care of . 7. If a few trips are "duds" don't despair, have patience, and some day you'll get 'em, and.never look back. In concluding these «notes, I want to wish all anglers in Southland a very successful season, although no doubt, some ot us will sometime strike "fisherman's luck,'' but as all true sports say "It's all in the game."