Another One

[AlbertW]

Hey Raiders,

Went down to the same spot again in Queenstown and fished from 10-12. Casted out tassies and got a bite and a hookup but then it spat it out. Following tradition I returned at 3:30 for another fish and by this time I have already found out the secret of this place. Drift Fishing. I drifted out my tassie and as I was retrieve information my rod suddenly loaded up and hooked onto a good fighting trout which was pulling some line however I lost him as I snagged onto a sunken tree. Two more drops on some good fish and I switched lures and casted out to the middle of the current and as my rod loaded up I immediately knew it was a big fish after a good fight and then wondering if I snagged on because my rod was so heavy  I managed to pull out a 50cm  brown trout, unfortunately I couldn’t get a photo as I again jumped into the freezing water to collect my fish, it was almost identical to the fish from yesterday but much longer and fatter.

Cheers,

Albert

[Volitan]

Good on you Albert. You’re killing it.

I hope you realise how well you have done this. Getting across fishing in the South Island is difficult - big cold clear rivers and lakes with many kilometres between fish. Once you master it it can be productive but it can be hard to master.  Ive met many people who have done specialised trout fishing trips to the South Island and caught nothing. I’ve had that happen to me too - one donut trip - and had one trip with 4 or 5 days of intensive fishing for just one mediocre trout. In my first post I said it’s often best to regard your first trip as just a recce (recognisance, ie just learning trip) but you have gone past that in one trip.

I also note that you recognise how much greater achievement it is to do it all yourself rather then use a guide. I call it the ‘achievement dividend’ which to me is worth more then any number of fish.

its hard to provide advice from this distance but I do want to say don’t put too much stock in the Tassie devils. Yes, they are producing, but trout get habituated quickly and their effectiveness could switch off at any moment so keep varying your tactics. Is that the Kawarau River you are fishing in? If so then bait is allowed including fish roe (check anything I say, it’s hard to be sure from this distance) - I reckon some natural roe drifting through that mob of fish would be lethal.
 

 

[Volitan]

Also, you didn’t answer me on if you are going to the canals.

I reckon it would be no more difficult to get a fish out of the canals then to get a fish out of the kawarau in the middle of Queenstown. Less skill required and probably less persistence.

[Isaac Ct]

You’re killing it mate, well done.

keep it up Albert.

[DerekD]

3 hours ago, AlbertW said:

to collect my fish, it was almost identical to the fish from yesterday but much longer and fatter.

Overachiever!! Ha ha ha. Well done.

Did you make your parents happy and did you keep it this time?

[bessell1955]

You just keep on catching them! 

[AlbertW]

14 hours ago, Volitan said:

Also, you didn’t answer me on if you are going to the canals.

I reckon it would be no more difficult to get a fish out of the canals then to get a fish out of the kawarau in the middle of Queenstown. Less skill required and probably less persistence.

Yeah I already visited the canals for around 2 hours and the current was too strong so my mate who’s travelling with us visited the salmon farm and caught one of the farmed salmons and bought it.

[AlbertW]

12 hours ago, DerekD said:

Overachiever!! Ha ha ha. Well done.

Did you make your parents happy and did you keep it this time?

Nah I still released it as we still haven’t finished eating the salmon my mate bought/caught

[AlbertW]

14 hours ago, Volitan said:

Good on you Albert. You’re killing it.

I hope you realise how well you have done this. Getting across fishing in the South Island is difficult - big cold clear rivers and lakes with many kilometres between fish. Once you master it it can be productive but it can be hard to master.  Ive met many people who have done specialised trout fishing trips to the South Island and caught nothing. I’ve had that happen to me too - one donut trip - and had one trip with 4 or 5 days of intensive fishing for just one mediocre trout. In my first post I said it’s often best to regard your first trip as just a recce (recognisance, ie just learning trip) but you have gone past that in one trip.

I also note that you recognise how much greater achievement it is to do it all yourself rather then use a guide. I call it the ‘achievement dividend’ which to me is worth more then any number of fish.

its hard to provide advice from this distance but I do want to say don’t put too much stock in the Tassie devils. Yes, they are producing, but trout get habituated quickly and their effectiveness could switch off at any moment so keep varying your tactics. Is that the Kawarau River you are fishing in? If so then bait is allowed including fish roe (check anything I say, it’s hard to be sure from this distance) - I reckon some natural roe drifting through that mob of fish would be lethal.
 

 

It’s exactly the Kawaru river! I fish the mouth of the Kawaru river and I might try some bait if I can find where to get it as I’m having my last session tomorrow.

Here is the place I fish

Edited July 8, 2022 by AlbertW

[Bluebenbomb]

Good job mate, keep on persisting! Enjoy the opportunity, as we don't usually have trout that big in Australia.

[Volitan]

Ok. You could ask the local tackle shop about bait. Maybe try some orange Berkeley powerbait - it’s basically a fish egg mimic.

I’ve been  thinking about the fish you’ve been loosing too. It would be nice to reduce that number. Are you sure you aren’t going too hard on them at the beginning - perhaps in your enthusiasm to get them on the bank? Trout aren’t like saltwater fish - trying to horse them around generally ends in tears. Go easy on them, especially when they jump. When fish jump shock loading comes into play - so even if the line holds you will get hook tearout . If you watch really experience trout anglers you will see them dip their rod tips and even bend their bodies forward when their fish jump. 
 

also, if your fish is clearly swimming towards snags then don’t increase your pull back - drop the pressure or even give it line. I guarantee you it will swim away from the snag. Trout don’t naturally swim for snags like kingfish do, in fact it’s the last place they want to be when hooked - probably to do with keeping away from ambush predators or something. If the fish does get snagged, drop the pressure and give a bit of line, about 50% of the time they will swim out of their own accord, which is better odds then you get if you have a tug of war with them.

 

good luck tomorrow.

Edited July 9, 2022 by Volitan

[Rebel]

Great report.

Well done.

[Drunkenfisho]

21 hours ago, AlbertW said:

Hey Raiders,

Went down to the same spot again in Queenstown and fished from 10-12. Casted out tassies and got a bite and a hookup but then it spat it out. Following tradition I returned at 3:30 for another fish and by this time I have already found out the secret of this place. Drift Fishing. I drifted out my tassie and as I was retrieve information my rod suddenly loaded up and hooked onto a good fighting trout which was pulling some line however I lost him as I snagged onto a sunken tree. Two more drops on some good fish and I switched lures and casted out to the middle of the current and as my rod loaded up I immediately knew it was a big fish after a good fight and then wondering if I snagged on because my rod was so heavy  I managed to pull out a 50cm  brown trout, unfortunately I couldn’t get a photo as I again jumped into the freezing water to collect my fish, it was almost identical to the fish from yesterday but much longer and fatter.

Cheers,

Albert

Starting to make me want to go trout fishing in Tasmania again!

Awesome trout mate 

[Drunkenfisho]

21 hours ago, AlbertW said:

Hey Raiders,

Went down to the same spot again in Queenstown and fished from 10-12. Casted out tassies and got a bite and a hookup but then it spat it out. Following tradition I returned at 3:30 for another fish and by this time I have already found out the secret of this place. Drift Fishing. I drifted out my tassie and as I was retrieve information my rod suddenly loaded up and hooked onto a good fighting trout which was pulling some line however I lost him as I snagged onto a sunken tree. Two more drops on some good fish and I switched lures and casted out to the middle of the current and as my rod loaded up I immediately knew it was a big fish after a good fight and then wondering if I snagged on because my rod was so heavy  I managed to pull out a 50cm  brown trout, unfortunately I couldn’t get a photo as I again jumped into the freezing water to collect my fish, it was almost identical to the fish from yesterday but much longer and fatter.

Cheers,

Albert

Just a question, are tassie devils as popular over there as they are here?

[AlbertW]

5 minutes ago, Drunkenfisho said:

Just a question, are tassie devils as popular over there as they are here?

No idea, I’m on holiday here as well and the two people i have met that fish lures both use tassies one was Simon who was the skipper of my fishing charter who trolls them behind the charter boat at 3-5km/hr and I’m at a farm right now and the guide also likes fishing and she also uses tassies so honestly I’m not sure.

[Drunkenfisho]

1 hour ago, AlbertW said:

No idea, I’m on holiday here as well and the two people i have met that fish lures both use tassies one was Simon who was the skipper of my fishing charter who trolls them behind the charter boat at 3-5km/hr and I’m at a farm right now and the guide also likes fishing and she also uses tassies so honestly I’m not sure.

Sounds like they must be at least pretty popular, they are very versatile, and not overly priced

[Little_Flatty]

It sounds like you have cracked a difficult challenge Albert, as verified by a number of experts. Well done. Onwards and upwards from here!

[Volitan]

3 hours ago, Drunkenfisho said:

Just a question, are tassie devils as popular over there as they are here?

Yes, they are, although when I lived in NZ we called them Cobras and would have been incensed that Australia was claiming ownership of a lure which had been around since the 50’s.

[Drunkenfisho]

18 minutes ago, Volitan said:

Yes, they are, although when I lived in NZ we called them Cobras and would have been incensed that Australia was claiming ownership of a lure which had been around since the 50’s.

I can see where they get the cobra name from!🐍