Fly Fishing in New Zealand
Articles & Stories Index

Tenkara Fly-Fishing System
- The Good, Bad and Downright Ugly

What does fly-rod 'action' mean
and how does it affect casting?

Unexpectedly great fishing strikes again
- at Taupo, New Zealand.

Tenkara and European nymphing
- where the old becomes new.

The Frisbee cast
- The perfect cast for very tight places.

Do big bright flies catch brown trout?
The answer is a definite maybe - in the right time and place.

Does a ten foot fly-rod
for light line-weight rods make you a better caster and angler? Read about my conversion to the long side.

Fly-fishing after a flood
How to find trout to fly-fish to after a flood or high water.

How to fight and land a trout - Books and articles are full of information about fly-fishing and fly tying, but fairly light on how to fight and land fish when you finally manage to hook one. This might help fill some of that hole.

Fugly Foam Flies - How Foam flies can make for fabulous fly fishing all year round.

Fly Fish Taupo - All the information you need to fish this world famous trout fishery. Situated in the Central North Island of New Zealand the rivers and streams that flow into Lake Taupo provide great fishing, much of it all year round.

The Very Famous Fisherman's Dirty Little Secret
So I take a leaf out of the sensational magazines and tell a story about a very famous fly fisherman, and how the camera can, an often does, lie.

Was the fishing that good back then?

The Other NZ fly-fishing Destination
The South Island Fishery has a great deal going for it; big fish in clear water, demanding fishing even for good and better fly fishers. Most South Island waters are open during Summer, but closed during Winter. But the North Island too, has superb fishing, in clear streams and rivers as well, especially throughout the central North Island, and especially for anglers prepared to venture off the beaten tracks. But many of these streams and rivers are closed over Winter as well. So what do do, apart from tie flies, tell lies, and wait?...[More]

Imitation or Approximation
Bit of a post Christmas dinner rumination on tying effective flies. Should we try for approximation or shoot for imitation?

To cast better
Try start slow, finish fast, stop dead. It really is that simple, but we humans seem to have made taking something simple and turning it into something difficult an art form.

Catch & Release Dogmatists
A bit of a rave on one of the more prevalent bits of dogma that pop-up too often in fly-fishing.

Introduction to 'Czech Nymphing'
A highly effective nymphing method that can be used in roily and turbulent water. Saves your casting arm too!

Bead Fly Updated
One of the most read articles on my site is a short little piece on Bead Flies. Here is a new article that updates what I have learned about these lethal flies, since 1998.

Best Time to go fly-fishing?
What is the best time to go fishing for trout? Well there is plenty of advice if you listen to the 'conventional wisdom'. But is this wisdom wise? Try these thoughts.

Reading the Water
How to find lies, the ones trout lie in, not the ones fishermen tell when they can't find those lies.

Spotting Trout
Finding trout to toss a fly at, can be the most important skill for success. Here are some proven methods to help you spot more fish.

Expect the Unexpected
Sometimes the best planned, most anticipated fishing trips just do not deliver - then there are dream trips that pop up out of nowhere.

No Great Expectations
Sometimes a dream fishing experience just seems to pop up out of the blue. For no particular rhymes or reasons - it just happens.

Rufazgutz
How to make a store-bought fly more 'fishy'. Most store bought flies are designed to catch fishermen, here are some thoughts on turning store-bought flies into fish catchers.

Lose More Flies!
Have I gone mad; am I seriously suggesting losing flies when fishing the big rivers of the Central Plateau in New Zealand's North Island - there is a method in my madness.

Blue Moon
Do trout see colours we cannot - is there more in feathers and fur than meets our eyes. There sure is, and it is best to know about it.

Fishing in a Goldfish Bowl
Truly standout days are rare, otherwise they would not stand-out. Eddie my boy, and I had a stand-out day on smelting trout recently.

One Step Too Far
Power wading is the name given by a few lunatics to a new sport - might be a way to reduce congestion on our rivers. Have a look what can happen if you take that one step too far.

Nymphing The Rip
Use a nymph where rivers enter the lake? Sure, and it can beat traditional methods such as casting and retrieving streamers and wet flies.

Plucking Pluckers
Why do trout sometimes just nip and pluck at a fly? Or Do they? I reckon the Jury is out on this question.

Lurking Around Lakes
Sight fishing to trout around lake edges is superb sport.

Booby Flies
Maybe the strangest fly ever tied, but perhaps the most lethal, in lakes, and sea.

Big Brown Bogey
Finally, a ten pound brown trout. It took a while but finally I got lucky.

Night Moves Part 1
Fishing at night produces big trout, on lakes and on rivers. But fly-fishing at night exposes the angler to a whole range of new things to consider. Here is what I have learned.

Night Moves Part 2
Hints & tips on trout fishing in the night, part two.

Night Moves Part 3
Fishing at night in rivers can be very productive, it can also be risky unless soem simple precautions are taken.

Picture Perfect Memory
How a computer can help enhance memory of the size of fish.

Logs, Hogs and Fogs
Big brown trout in a small stream - narrow enough to step over? Yes Sir!

A Fish Called Nelson
Why we should break the 'rules' when fishing.

Temptation
The urge to go fishing can tempt us all - sometimes there is nothing to do but give in - a bit of humour.

The Most Expensive Fish of All to Catch
The title says it - well, nearly all.

Catch a Salmon and Live to 152!
Every hour spent fishing is added to your allotted life span

Zorro and Roses
The trials and tribulations of split cane rods.