North 40 Fly Shop eMagazine December 2016 | Page 4

NEW ZEALAND
STORY BY: JACK GAULD

The new season has just kicked off over here in
New Zealand and it’s shaping up to be an absolute
ripper! With the combination of a very mild winter
and rather low rainfall, the trout have kept some
serious condition. All reports from the South Island
have been of happily feeding fish, in both the
backcountry and the lowland rivers.
I’ve been busy doing plenty of exploration missions
to both new water, and to my good old favorite
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rivers and streams on the North Island. Recently,
I’ve been blown away by the average size of the fish
that I’ve landed. I’ve found that most fish are one to
two pounds heavier than this time last season. Now,
what does this mean? Well, if there’s one thing NZ
trout hate more than being pricked in the face, it’s
losing their condition. Almost every fish I’ve seen
so far has been feeding hard. This is great news for
anglers, who may be thinking about visiting NZ this
season.