Tongariro River · access
Taupō, North Island, New Zealand · New Zealand
- Turangi / Major Jones PoolThe most famous pool in New Zealand, and the busiest.
- Admirals Pool and the swampUpstream water with a boardwalk and good winter access.
- Red Hut / Kowhai confluenceUpper river and the tributary junction where fish stage before running.
Licence and rules
Licence and rules. New Zealand requires a freshwater fishing licence for anglers 12 and over, and the Taupō fishery is a special case: it needs a separate Taupō licence rather than the national one, because the lake and its tributaries are managed by the Department of Conservation with its own regulations. The Tongariro is largely catch-and-release upstream and a limited harvest is allowed in some lower sections. Back-country and winter rules differ, so read the current Taupō regulations before you go.
Season
Winter run from June to November is the main event; the river fishes all year on some sections
Flow
1,000–3,000 cfs, regulated by the Taupō gates; can rise fast after rain
The Tongariro's flow is controlled by the Taupō gates and by the Poutu canal intake, so it can change without any local weather at all — an angler standing in the river has been caught by a release from a dam 20 km away. Below the Poutu intake, a rise of 30 cm can arrive within minutes of the gates opening; fish the first two hours of a rise and get out before it peaks. After heavy rain in the volcanic plateau the river colours quickly with pumice silt and clears within a day.