River levels continue to drop and most are fishable even if a little above ideal height. There is still colour in the Taieri which is good from the spin fishing point of view.
Fly fishers tend to like clear water but if there is surface activity, such as a rise to mayflies, any colour is good for hiding angler’s mistakes.
If I had to choose where to fish this weekend I would fish the Mataura, especially if it continues to drop. A close second is the Pomahaka as long as the riverbed can be seen in half a metre of water. Third is the Taieri and probably on the Maniototo.
However, if I was in Central Otago my pick would be the Upper Clutha, fishing the evening sedge rise down from the outlet of Lake Wanaka.
But of course, there are all the still waters. The mouths of the big lake tributaries are worth a try as well as fishing the midge rise in the evening or early morning where the lake bed is silty.
Traditionally the best times to fish are first thing in the morning or late evening, times that I rarely fish especially if driving some distance. Looking back through my diaries, most of my best day’s fishing have been through the middle of the day in fine sunny conditions.
Again, traditionally overcast weather is supposed to be better than bright sunshine. I still think that the best time to go fishing is anytime that you are free to go.
Murray Smart and I were free to go fishing last weekend and we went to Blakely’s Dam.
It was fine when we got there with a gentle shifting breeze. The water was clear and the weed had retreated from the surface, making it a bit easier to fish.
There were a few fish rising in the odd spots that were not taken over by wild fowl. Both Murray and I had a fish each quite quickly but not of the proportions that we were hoping to catch.
The wind picked up from the northwest — not ideal for the dams but we plugged away, though without success. We decided to have an early lunch and discuss our options.
We were enjoying a hot drink and bite to eat and noticed the wind had changed to the southwest. I recalled a day several years ago when the wind had changed from northwest to southwest for about an hour and the three of us that were fishing all caught two fish each before the wind shifted back. So, we decided to give it another go.
It was not long before we were into fish. They were of the size that we would expect in Blakely’s. Some got stuck in the weed and got off and others were landed. Murray had the best fish of the day at 3kg.
