Graeme Christie | Tuesday, 5 May 2026
The places in New Zealand best known for trout fishing tend to be picture-postcard. Big trout in gin-clear water. Worth the trip. Inland often.
Less appreciated, but also very good, are the lowland waters. They run from small tributaries up into larger river networks. They also reach the coast and tidal fisheries.
Through autumn, winter, spring and summer, these areas can have an agribusiness-is-everything vibe. Farmers tend to be supportive of fishing. Views differ, but access still often holds up. Given how much rain New Zealand gets, the flows wash through, and the trout fishing is good.
The lowland smaller tributaries fish well in the early season (Spring). Fish push up out of the main river flow and sit in the pools, waiting on mayfly hatches and other insects. Find them and it's a day on dry flies, emergers, or nymphs sub-surface. Great fishing. Lots of walking, and a nice test of short-distance casting accuracy.
The main rivers fish well too, particularly away from the coast where rough gravel runs hold a lot of insect life. Trout scatter through that kind of water. Rivers that haven't been dammed or straightened tend to fish better, but the altered ones still have holding water worth targeting. I'm from Southland, and the plains there hold many such rivers, all of them good fishing. Dry fly hatches in the evening are something I really look forward to, and my casting practice means I can now cover situations where I'd never have managed a take before. My favourites have been short swirly runs where, if you're accurate with your presentation, you get 1–2 metres of travel and a take. Very rewarding. Although the trout are very picky as to what they take, often emerger mayfly patterns.
In the coastal stretches there are runs of smelt and other small fish, and the trout follow them in. Take a 5lb rainbow I caught on an East Coast North Island river one spring. The river was full of species chasing baitfish - trout, kahawai, yellow-tailed mullet. I got him out of typical trout water on a hung leech streamer. A good few hours of fishing between my daughter's games at a soccer tournament. One of about five fish, and the pick of the bunch. There was heavy fishing pressure around me, but fly casting lets you present something different from what others are throwing with bait and spinners.
The stillwaters in these areas hold fish too. They often have periodic access to tidal rivers or the sea, and the trout in them are abundant. Often a good size. Great condition and feeding on small fish, crustaceans, or local insect life. Matching the hatch when they start to rise is quite critical, a lot of fun even when you don't get it right. Good casting to a reasonable distance helps, but they are often at your feet. Failing that, actively pulling streamers of different types often gets a result. Watch out for the cows on the way in.
On a tangent, on Martyn White's recommendation, I've got hold of Pop Fleyes. Brilliant book. Looking forward to tying some of those patterns.