For the second weekend in a row it looks as if fishing conditions are about as good as they get. All waters are at a fishable level, although some may be too low or weedy for some anglers. The difficulty will be which water to choose.
The three rivers I would fish are the Taieri throughout its length, the Mataura and the Pomahaka. But if I was hoping for a good evening rise the lower Clutha would be the place to go. Do not forget if it is fine and warm that the tussock lakes will be worth a visit too.
Many fly anglers do not like fishing rivers or lakes when they are weedy. Hooking weed can be a nuisance and fish can get the line tangled in it and break off, but I think the advantages of weed far outweigh the disadvantages. Weed harbours a lot of trout food which means that trout hang around weed beds to feed so they are easier to find, especially in still waters.
In streams where trout lie in places where the current concentrates a flow of food they choose places in the channels between the weed where the water is flowing freely. Again, they are easier to find. I remember once on the Waipahi with my son Chris we caught three good trout from a run in the weeds about half a metre wide and four metres long.
Last weekend Murray Smart and I fished the upper Taieri, which is now low and very weedy in places. The morning was cool and overcast with a downstream breeze but there was the odd rise as I walked downstream while Murray went up. Casting to the first rise there was a bow wave and the fish was spooked. The next fish was rising every few seconds and moving back and forward in the current. I could not see what the fish was taking so I covered it with the diving beetle imitation that was already attached to my tippet. The third cast landed in the right spot and a nice fish of 2kg was in play.
Just after this I ran into a herd of heifers and they followed me as I fished. There was a fence to keep them away from the water but it had been knocked down and they were right down to the water - not a good look. However a few minutes later a farmer arrived and soon had the fence up and the cattle kept back from the water. Most farmers do care about the environment.
We fished further downstream in the afternoon and it was very weedy but trout rose first to damsel flies and then to a hatch of duns and they were right up in little pockets between the weeds and although I was broken on one and lost a few from playing them hard to keep them out of the weed, the fishing was great as we fished to rising fish all afternoon.
