March 15 newsletter

A posing trout By Pete Lawler

President’s FlylineAs I write this the drought has taken a serious hold on all of our rivers and waterlevels are perilously low. The fishing has started to get very difficult over the lastten days as some rivers are the lowest levels I have ever seen … includingbackcountry rivers like the Karamea and Crow.However, when water levels drop like they have, the enterprising angler sees anopportunity to explore new stretches of water that at normal higher flows aredifficult to access … especially on larger rivers like the Motueka, Wairau andBuller around Murchison for example. When trout feed under these conditionsthey tend to concentrate into more confined areas like riffles above deep holdingwater where some diligent ‘blind’ fishing can often produce good results.Thankfully water temperatures have started dropping back into a morefavourable range for the fish to feed and so there are still good fishingopportunities to be found.Sadly for the second year in a row the cicada fishing that I had been lookingforward to in February turned out to be very disappointing. The cold snap in themiddle of the month really turned them off and while I have heard a few on theMotueka and lower Wairau Rivers, the trout have shown virtually no interest incicada patterns now for nearly two weeks.For those of you who would like to chase a salmon the Wairau River is full ofthem right now. Word is that there looks like a new run has been moving pastRenwick in the last few days. I had an angler land a nice fresh 9lber on a blackstreamer (on a #6 rod) while chasing big trout last week and have seen freshsalmon of 20lb caught out of the lower reaches. Salmon will hit a streamer as wehave proved but right now is a good opportunity to break out the spinning gearand your silver Z-spinners and get amongst some fresh salmon steaks!Thanks to everyone who has put there names forward to help show members ofthe Marlborough Freshwater Anglers Club around the Motueka River later in themonth.TightlinesTony EntwistlePresidentCover Photo: My niece Ketja with a 6lber she caught while visiting NewZealand, by Gebhard Krewitt 3

Club ContactsExecutive:President: Tony Entwistle 5444565 [email protected] President: Ray Day 5441245 [email protected]: Bruce McLean 5480066 [email protected]: Ray Day 5441245 [email protected] Editor and Webmaster: Graham Carter 07 8551833 [email protected] 021 02600437Committee Scott Ingram 5441605 [email protected] Peter Lawler 5489753 [email protected] Maree Peter 522 4166 [email protected] Mathew Williams 5445996 [email protected] James Jemson 7443123 [email protected] and Greet New Members Ray Day and Pete LawlerFishing trips James Macdonald [email protected] 03 5403520Fly Tying Convenor Tony EntwistleClub Librarian Lois Rutherfurd 022 6010642Trophy Master Lois Rutherfurd [email protected] Sponsorship & Newsletter Advertising Ray DayClub Speakers: Tony EntwistleClub Night Tea/Coffee: Maree PeterNewsletter Distribution: Dennis EalamLife Members: 2007 John Willis 2012 Graham CarterPast Presidents: 06-08 Lester Higgins 08-09 Ross Walker04-06 Richard Boyden 11-13 Ray Day 13- Tony Entwistle09-11 Dennis Ealam THE NELSON TROUT FISHING CLUBMeets once a month at: Fish and Game Offices, 66 Champion Road, Richmond. Normally the 3rd Wednesday of the month 7.00pm. Please phone 5440066 if unsure. Any views or opinions expressed in this newsletter are not necessarily those of the committee, club or editor. www.thenelsontroutfishingclub.com

4Lake Brunner, Feb 16-18, 2015By James MacdonaldI was looking forward to another February trip to Lake Brunner, after the fun wehad last year catching a number of fish on cicada patterns. So it was withanticipation that Brian Richards and I launched his Porta-Bote in Iveagh Bay inthe early afternoon of Feb 16. Lester Higgins, together with Fred Frahm, hadlaunched his boat half an hour before Brian and I.Using an electric motor, Brian and I explored the shores of Cashmere and IveaghBays. Water level was low as a result of little rain recently. We saw very fewtrout and – mysteriously – couldn’t hear any hum of cicadas from the trees. Briantried a cicada pattern for a while, without success.I used a wooly bugger, cast towards shore and then stripped back to the Porta-Bote. I had a few half-hearted takes, but no solid hook-ups. “Tail-biters”, Briancalls them.

5 Lake Brunner BrownLester and Fred had slightly better luck, bringing one trout to the boat, caughtby Fred. They decided it was a keeper, which Lester took back to Brightwater forhis tea later in the week.On Tuesday Brian and I fished the SW corner of the lake, having launched atMitchells near the Lake Brunner Lodge. Again, very few fish were seen; nonewere caught in an hour or so of fishing and there was not a cicada to be heard.So we relocated to the Swan Bay area, where the Orangipuku river enters thelake. Lester and Fred were also fishing in this part of the lake. There were someenergetic and splashy rises, with fish taking red damsels that were matingvigorously. We had a couple of hours of productive fishing with hare-and-copperand red damsel patterns proving successful, before a strong westerly wind blewus off the lake.Lester and Fred returned to the Nelson area on Wednesday while Brian and Idecided to try Lake Poerua, about 5 km southeast of Lake Brunner. We launchedthe Porta-Bote at the south end of the lake and drifted across to the far sidewhere we saw a few fish rising. We wondered if these fish were also takingdamsels but had no takes and decided to move into a shallow bay, with waterdepth about 40 cm or less.

6Brian's Lake Brunner Brown

First catch from Lake Poerua Brian's Lake Poerua 5 pounderTo our amazement we saw a couple of large shoals, totaling about 30 fish, sittingmotionless on the bottom and all facing the same direction; Brian reckoned theremust be a stream entering the lake and providing a source of cooler water andthis proved to be the case.Even though the fish were not apparently putting much effort into eating, bothBrian and I caught fish using Loves Lure and ant patterns, respectively. Brian’sfive pounder made an enthusiastic one metre dash to his fly the moment itlanded on the water.Later that evening, I asked the manager of the pub in Moana about the lack ofcicadas this year and he suggested that very low rain levels made the ground toohard for the insects to burrow out. We weren’t sure about this as we have hadcicadas in the Nelson area this year, where it has been just as dry. Most likelythis a function of the natural cycles in cicada populations that can result fromenvironmental factors, such as a bad summer around 6 years ago that affects thenumber of eggs and the amount of cicadas that mate.Oh well, there is always next year ……..

8Fishing Trip to Alaska - 2014Peter WilliamsPeter traveled to Alaska in July 2014 on a mission to fish the local waters, and histrip was primarily aimed at fishing for salmon, although he did target some otherspecies that will be mentioned later.

9There are two main ways to fish in Alaska:• Go to Lodges – more organized, and usually more expensive. Involves fishing ingroups and with guides.• Fish from roads or highways – there is plenty of good accessible fishing waterall over the country. It’s a great way to see Alaska and meet the locals, and pickup tips from them on how they fish, what gear to use, and good places to go –and there are lots of them.Most of Peter’s road fishing was done around drives around the Kenai Peninsula,which is closest to Anchorage, and also around Denali National Park.There are five species of salmon in Alaska:• Quinnat• Dog• Silver (also known as coho)• Sockeye ( the “red” salmon you buy in a can)• Pink (also know as “humpies”)

10Definitely a Dog Salmon! Sockeye in full spawning colours.They all do their spawning runs at different times of the year, but the Coho andSockeye were running when Peter was there, so those were the species that hetargeted.

The number of fish that run up Alaska’s major rivers is immense. On a bad day,20,000 salmon will run up the Kenai River, so it’s no challenge to catch asockeye.

They’re hard to take photos of, as they are not docile like New Zealand browntrout when caught – all they want to do is get up that river to the spawninggrounds!Peter remarked that the dog salmon were the best fighters of all the salmon hecaught.

Fishing in the middle of Anchorage Fishing opportunities abound – even in themiddle of the city of Anchorage, but the most popular fishing place is where theRussian River meets the Kenai River –and it’s very, very popular as the photosshow.Entry to Fishing at the Russian River is only at named access points, which havebeen well prepared to handle the heavy usage.Peter didn’t appear to get tired of fishing for salmon (or eating them), but whenhe wanted to try something else, he could go after Rainbows............and DollyVarden (actually a char).Both species go after the eggs of the spawning salmon, so you can target themwherever the salmon arespawning or running.The Kenai River has some of thebiggest rainbows in Alaska. Andwhen you wanted somethingelse, you could target grayling –not the biggest of fish, but finefighters, and total suckers fordry flies.

Peter fished blind for grayling.Peter also took time out to visit a very large hatchery located in Anchorage. Thisone hatchery releases over 4.5 million fish every year.The panel on the right gives you some idea of the capacity of this hatchery!

15And Peter also got to see some of the other local wildlife – some from a distanceAnd – some a bit too close for comfort!Thanks, Peter for a very enjoyable talk – and a lot of other photos of people hemet, and other places he visited.

1614 WAYS TO PREVENT FISH MORTALITYby Louis CahillGink And Gasoline www.ginkandgasoline.com – 28/01/2013The years we spend learning to cast and drift a fly or the thousands of dollars wespend on gear and travel are all wasted if we don’t have fish.With more anglers entering the sport every day, sport fish are heavily pressuredand in grave danger.There are a lot of common mistakes that anglers make which contribute tofish mortality. Most are innocent and many don’t show an immediate risk.With that in mind here are fourteen tips to help keep our little friends happy andhealthy.The 10 second ruleA fish’s gills are remarkably efficient at collecting oxygen but the delicatemembranes that extract the oxygen molecules rely on their buoyancy to keep thecollecting surfaces exposed. Out of the water they collapse and are useless.This is to say the obvious, fish can’t breathe out of water. It’s easy to overestimate how long a fish can hold its breath. The fact is, a fish can’t hold itsbreath at all because it doesn’t have lungs. He is out of air as soon as you lift himfrom the water. Add to this that his metabolism is raging because he’s beenfighting for his life and you have a pretty desperate situation.While you are trying to get that hero shot, he’s dying. Use the 10 second rule andnever keep his head out of the water for more than 10 seconds and give him agood 30 seconds before you lift him again.Hold on looselyI can’t tell you how many times I’ve seen guys squeeze a fish until its eyes popout. Some guys just get so rattled holding a fish you’d think they never saw one.This death grip can cause serious internal injury especially to the heart. The trickis a nice loose grip. The tighter you hold a fish the more he will struggle. Tocontrol one, properly grip him just in front of his tail where there’s nothing butmuscle and let him just rest on a loose hand under the boney part of his pec finsand gill plates. He will relax and the whole vibe will be nicer.Barbless hooksOnce in a while a fish will unbutton due to a barbless hook. That’s just a fact oflife but most anglers understand that they will hold hundreds, if not thousands,of fish in their life. Decreasing that number by a few is not a crisis. The fact isthat barbless hooks go a long way to reducing fish mortality from hook injuries. Ifyou are fighting fish properly you will not lose many and if you aren’t, fishingbarbless hooks will teach you to fight fish smarter and you’ll be a better anglerfor it.

17Fight with authorityThe biggest mistake I see anglers make is not fighting fish with authority. Most ofus are taught to play fish too long, exhausting them before they are landed. Afish that is fought with authority is landed fresher and released fresher. Keep agood angle on the fish and use good side pressure and you can put a lot morepressure on that fish than you think and you will reduce the chances of an LDR.Use a netI should say that the most fish friendly landing method is to not touch the fish atall. When possible instead of landing the fish I will bring him in and grab the flyrather than the fish, easing it out of his mouth and sending him on his wayimmediately. That’s a great method but it doesn’t always work. Sometimes thefly isn’t where you can get at it, or the fish is too green, or too big, or you justwant a photo. The next best thing is a net. A good quality catch and release net,(I like the rubber ones) is very friendly to the fish and a good long handle lets youseal the deal quicker. A healthy basket is nice too. No need to fold him double.Protect their headsBelieve it or not, head injuries are the leading cause of fish mortality, even ifyou don’t count the ones that get bonked. Fish’s heads are not designed for hardsurfaces. A seemingly benign blow to the head can end in a fish going belly upafter 20 minutes or so. There is hard data on this. That’s why it’s a bad idea tobeach a fish when landing it. If the bank is rocky a flopping fish is in mortaldanger.Never beach fishDry land is no place for a fish and they face several dangers. It is impossible tobeach a fish without disturbing his protective slime. That slime keeps out a hostof dangerous bacteria and parasites. The slime will regenerate but in themeantime the fish is vulnerable. Being on the bank also dramatically increasesthe risk of head injury, eye injury and oxygen deprivation. If you are by yourselfand want to get a photo, find a sandy spot in the margin of the water where thefish can lie with one side submerged. Cover his face with a wet hand to settlehim down. Lift your hand and shoot quick.Wet your handsDry hands remove slime too. Many times I’ve caught fish with fungus in the shapeof a careless anglers hand. It’s a simple thing to do. I dip my hands as a reflexaction, almost as soon as I hook up.Don’t dig around in thereOnce in a while a fish takes a fly deep. The best way to avoid this is not to dallyon your hook-set. Still, it’s unavoidable and when it happens don’t try to be Dr.McCoy. Start digging around in there and you’ll end up saying, “he’s dead Jim.”cut the line and turn him loose, he’ll spit it out. Flies are cheap.

18Have a Coke on handThere’s nothing like it! If a fish is bleeding pour a Coke down his throat and thebleeding stops instantly. If you missed my post on this you can read it athttp://www.ginkandgasoline.com/fly-fishing-tips-technique/chug-a-coke-save-ableeding-fish/Had to laugh at this hint – I was thinking how many trips have I taken a coke onover 48 years of fishing. None!!! Taken plenty of beers though – wonder if thiswould work!! Ed.Revive before releaseYou should always revive a fish before releasing it, especially after a long fight.Hold him in medium fast current where there is plenty of oxygen. Most fish areable to pump water across their gills without the aid of current but slack waterhas less oxygen than current. Just hold him gently under the pec fins and he’ll gowhen he’s ready. If he swims a few yards rolls on his side, go get him. He needsmore time.Look for predatorsAn exhausted fish is easy prey. Before you turn the little guy loose have a quicklook around. No need in feeding the otters, herons or sharks, they do fine ontheir own. Chase those munchers off. That’s a little tougher with the sharks butyou can tow a fish to safer water, just watch your hands.Don’t freeze ‘emI love winter fishing and in general it’s better on the fish since the water holdsmore oxygen when it’s cold but there is an added danger. Fish have no body heatand when it’s below freezing the delicate membranes in their gills can freezesurprisingly quick. The colder it is the shorter the time you can safely keep themout of the water. Once it’s below zero don’t lift them at all and never, ever, putthem on the snow.Don’t beat ‘um up in the heatAs water warms up it holds less oxygen. Trout can get highly stressed as watertemperatures approach seventy degrees. The stress of a fight can raise theirmetabolism to the point that they just can’t get enough oxygen. The effects canbe lethal. When water temps are high head for high elevation streams ortailwaters. You’ll be cooler and the fish will stay healthy.Keep these tips in mind and your catch and release technique will be golden.Teach your friends and your kids these valuable practices and we will all reap thereward of a healthy and prolific fishery.A couple drove several miles down a country road not saying a word. An earlierdiscussion had led to an argument and neither wanted to concede their position.As they passed a farm with donkeys and pigs in the front paddock the wife askedsarcastically, “Relatives of yours?”

“Yep”, replied the husband, “In-laws.”Salmon Fishing MarlboroughCourtesy - Marlborough Freshwater Anglers’ Club IncThe Wairau River Bar (lower photo) and the Wairau River Diversion (upper photo)rivermouths are where salmon school up before heading up the Wairau River tospawn. Print out these photos and take them into Hunting & Fishing where DonHansen will mark for you the ‘sweet spots’ where you should target your casting.

20 BRAG PAGE21

BRAG PAGEPage 22: Top left: Another beautiful trout fallen to a Copper Don By DonClementson; top right: Brian's Bowscale Brown By James Macdonald; mid left:Never be the one with the camera. By David Haynes; mid right: Lester distractedfrom fishing by a friendly boar By Don Clementson; bottom left: Come rain or hailwe love to fish By Michael Stevenson; bottom right: The cast By MichaelStevenson. Page 23: top left: Mike's Porta-Bote on Lake Tennyson By JamesMacdonald; top right: You little beauty By Richard Breakspear; bottom left:ENRY F knee deep in a flooded Rotoroa By Don Clementson; bottom right: Briannets a Fish Lake Brown By James Macdonald.Finding a woman sobbing that she had locked her keys in her car, a passingsoldier assures her that he can help.She looks on amazed as he removes his trousers, ..... Rolls them into a tight balland rubs them against the car door.Magically it opens.......\"That's so clever,\" the woman gasps. \"How did you do it?\"\"Easy,\" replies the man. \"These are my khakis\". 22



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