Lower North Lowdown Weekly Fishing Report - 4 January 2024
- Wellington Taranaki Eastern
- 4/01/2024
Summer Fishing in Full Swing
Pictured - A beautiful big and healthy brown released to fight another day (Credit: Nick King)
Happy New Year! Hopefully you've kicked off 2024 with some awesome summer angling.
If you're lucky enough to be on leave, you'll appreciate there's nothing quite like taking your time when fishing rather than racing against the clock, squeezing it in after work or around other commitments.
That makes the summer break the perfect opportunity to introduce friends or family to the pursuit.
Need some tips and ideas on how to get a mate started? We've got you covered!
Click here to watch our introductory videos or check out our Tip of The Week below which offers info ranging from starting out to advanced angling techniques.
BUY YOUR FISHING LICENCE ONLINE
Get them schooled up, grab them a licence, and get out on the water together.
Here's the outlook for the weekend:
Hutt River and Tributaries
Click the link for live updates and forecasts for the Hutt Valley.
Live river flow information for the Hutt and Akatarawa can be viewed by clicking the highlighted river links. If you're after more info on the waterways in this part of the region, find out more about How To Fish the Hutt River here, or check out our dedicated access website where you can download maps and access instructions.
The Hutt River at Te Marua - stunning trout fishing water just minutes from town (Credit: Hamish Carnachan).
Kapiti Coast
Live river flow information for the Waikanae, Ohau and Otaki can be viewed by clicking the highlighted river links. If you're after more info on the waterways in this part of the region, check out our dedicated access website where you can download maps and access instructions.
A cracker Otaki rainbow from below the SH1 bridge (Credit: Andrew Harding).
Wairarapa
Click the link for live updates and forecasts for the Wairarapa region.
Live river flow information for the Ruamahanga and major tributaries - the Waiohine, Waingawa and Tauherenikau - can be viewed by clicking the highlighted river links. If you're after more info on the waterways in this part of the region, check out our dedicated access website where you can download maps and access instructions.
Pete de Boer with a lively Ruamahanga River brown trout (Credit: Andrew Harding).
Manawatu
Click the link for live updates and forecasts for the Manawatu region.
Live river flow information for the Manawatu and its main tributaries - the Oroua, Pohangina, Mangatainoka and Mangahao - can be viewed by clicking the highlighted river links. If you're after more info on the waterways in this part of the region, check out our dedicated access website where you can download maps and access instructions.
Beautiful water for sight fishing high up on the Mangatainoka River (Credit: Hamish Carnachan).
Rangitikei
Click the link for live updates and forecasts for the Rangitikei region.
Live river flow information for the Rangitikei and Hautapu can be viewed by clicking the highlighted river links. If you're after more info on the waterways in this part of the region, check out our dedicated access website where you can download maps and access instructions.
Hooked up on the Rangitikei River above Springvale (Credit: Hamish Carnachan).
Taranaki Ringplain
Click the link for live updates and forecasts for the Ringplain region.
The latest live flow data for Taranaki Ringplain rivers can be found here. If you're after more info on the waterways in this part of the region, check out our dedicated access website where you can download maps and access instructions.
The Waingongoro River with Mount Taranaki in the background on a lovely summer's day (Credit: Allen Stancliff).
Waimarino
Click the link for live updates and forecasts for the Waimarino region.
Live river flow information for the Mangawhero River can be viewed by clicking the highlighted river links. If you're after more info on the waterways in this part of the region, check out our dedicated access website where you can download maps and access instructions.
Fishing the evening rise on a slow-moving Manganuiateao River (Credit: Hamish Carnachan).
Hunting & Fishing Photo Comp - Win $300 To Spend in Store
Keep those summer holiday trout fishing pics coming in!
Simply send in your favourite fishing photos from this season and you could be in to win a $300 voucher to spend in store at Wairarapa Hunting & Fishing.
You don't have to reveal your secret spot, but please include the name of the angler(s), photographer's details, and general location in the Wellington-Taranaki Fish & Game region.
Click here to submit you entry.
You can send us as many fishing photos as you like. By submitting images to enter the competition you acknowledge that Wellington Fish & Game can publish and use the photos for publicity material.
Entries must be in by 5pm Tuesday, April 2, 2024. The winner will be announced in the Lower North Lowdown report on Thursday, April 4, 2024.
Tip of The Week - Grab Our Handy 'How-To' Guides
The team at Wellinton-Taranaki Fish & Game have produced some handy ‘how-to’ guides to help you get the most out of your investment in a licence and catch more fish.
These cover tips and techniques that will help you get started, take your fishing to the next level, or trouble-shoot some common issues anglers encounter on the water.
Select from the links below to download the right resource for you:
- SPIN FISHING BASICS
- ADVANCED SPIN FISHING
- READING THE WATER
For any anglers who are visiting the Wellington region over the summer holiday period, and have had the Hutt River on their bucket list, we've designed a dedicated brochure to help you be successful on this exceptional but challenging piece of water.
Although the fishery holds high numbers of trout, the Hutt isn't an easy river to fish. However, the rewards are exceptional with large hard fighting browns the prize.
Summer Holiday Reading
If you missed it in the mail at the start of this season, you can click on the cover of Fish & Game NZ magazine above to download a copy.
There you'll also find issues going all the way back to 2016.
So, there's heaps of summer fishing and hunting reading just waiting for you.
Also packed full of news, tips and prospects for the season ahead is the Wellington-Taranaki Angling Newsletter which is out now.
Didn't receive a copy in the post? You can download a copy here or get in touch and we'll send one out to you.
Have Your Say on Waterways In The Horizons Catchment
Please help us to help protect the waterways and fisheries in the Horizons Regional Council area.
We've put together a very short tick-box survey here, which takes less than one minute to complete.
Make sure you have your say if you value trout fishing in the catchment and want to see healthy waterways and sustainable fisheries into the future.
Lower North Island - An Angler's Dream
Click the YouTube screenshot below to watch a snapshot of some of the stunning angling on offer in the lower North Island.
GWRC Weekly River Bulldozing Schedule
Don't get an unwelcome surprise by Greater Wellington Regional Council's river bulldozing impacting your day on the river.
For information on the weekly activity schedule, please contact GWRC.
Notice Board
-
Moawhango River Flushing Flow dates for 2024 have been confirmed:
- 23-24 Jan, 21:00-02:00
- 13-14 Feb, 21:00-02:00
- 12-13 Mar, 21:00-02:00
- 30-01 Apr, 21:00-02:00
- The algal bloom at Lake Ngangana, near Waitara, has now subsided and open to fishing for trout and perch.
- Lake Namunamu will be closed to public access from early November 2023 for logging operations. Access to the lake is likely to be restricted for at least three years, however, Earnslaw-One has promised to let us know if there are opportunities to access the lake during breaks in harvest.
If you have any information you'd like to have considered for addition to the notice board, please get in touch with us. before you head out on the water.