Tongariro River · fly box
The most reliable winter trout fishery in the southern hemisphere, in a volcanic valley.
| Pattern | Imitates | Size | Technique |
|---|---|---|---|
| Glow Bug, orange | Trout egg | #14-16 | The winter standard: dead-drift it under a small indicator through the spawning redds. |
| Pheasant Tail Nymph | Mayfly nymph | #14-16 | Tight-line upstream in the riffles; works all year. |
| Hare and Copper | Caddis larva | #12-14 | Fish it deep in the pools when the winter run is holding. |
| Mr Glister | Smelt / small fish | #6-8 | Swing it for the big lake-run rainbows in the lower river. |
| Kaufmann Stone | Stonefly nymph | #10-12 | Dead-drift along the boulder edges of the volcanic bed. |
The dressing plate
On this river
The winter nymph rig
From June the standard Tongariro rig is a small indicator, 3 to 4 metres of leader, a #14 glow bug as the point fly and a #14 Pheasant Tail 40 cm above it. Fish it upstream on a dead drift through the riffles, adjust the depth by moving the indicator rather than adding weight, and expect the take to happen just as the rig straightens at the end of the drift.
Fishing the spawning redds responsibly
The winter fish are on the redds and they are not feeding — they are reacting. That makes them easy to catch and easy to damage, so the rules matter: do not wade through visible redds, do not lift a fish out of the water, and take the photo in the net. A spawning rainbow returned properly will spawn within hours; one that has been handled dry will not.
Summer fishing the volcanic water
From November the run is over and the fishing changes to resident browns and rainbow in the riffles. The volcanic bed means the water is slightly basic and very clear, so fish spook easily; approach from downstream, use a long leader and a small fly, and fish the broken water at the head of the pools rather than the flat glides.