On holiday at the crib. Tried one morning to drift up the Owaka River on the incoming tide and then drift home as it receded. Left too late though and had to row against the tide for about one mile. Dragged a lure all the way up and got nothing. When I got there I picked up the fly rod. I saw one and soon, as I drifted I began to see more and more. Eventually a pair of fish cruised under the boat and I was able to drop the woolly bugger very close to them, it wasn't hard, and one fish took it. It was a short but exciting fight. Here's the location correct to 5m or so.
On the way back there were many fish seen. I think a dozen all up. I formed the idea that they were sunning themselves 1n the shallow water of the true right bank. Despite my efforts only one was caught. It is legal in tidal reaches of Otago to fish from drifting row boats. Six is the limit bag in Otago!
It was good fun fly fishing standing up on the drifting boat by myself. It was possible to spook the fish and ideally I should have spent more time sitting down after spotting a fish. It would have been good to drop a big fat terrestrial on the water and see their reaction (the woolly bugger was weighted to get it on the bottom). The caught fish had a large cockabully in its gut in the early stages of digestion. Plenty of bait fish were seen. The unlucky fish weighed 0.53 kg. We cooked it in foil with pepper and lemons. It tasted very good.
