Home The Fishing Stages of the Season Guides & Tuition Equipment & Flies Rivers The Lodge Accommodation Tariff Photos Non Fishing Activities South Island of NZ Contact & Registration Links Lodge News Lodge Reviews Guest Testimonial Jeff – North Carolina March 2013 A Must for Your Bucket List! If you are planning a fishing trip to New Zealand, the Owen River Lodge is a must. For a long time, I have planned to visit the beautiful country of New Zealand. My son and I love to fly fish and did our homework before traveling to New Zealand in the last two weeks March, 2013; the Owen River Lodge was recommended to us for an excellent fishing venue. We travelled/fished the South Island for two weeks and purposely left the last week for the Owen River Lodge. Our stay at the Lodge was perfect; Felix and all the Lodge staff made us feel at home, accommodations were picture-perfect overlooking the Owen River, dinning (chef selections and socialization with other guests) was wonderful. Our fly fishing guide (Paul) is a professional. On the first day he listened; because of physical limitations (my bad knees) he selected fishing locations that were accommodating to my needs. And at locations, he made sure there were no difficulties crossing rivers. Most importantly, Paul put us on big brown trout and very effectively taught us new fishing techniques necessary for catching the feisty New Zealand brown trout. The Owen River Lodge gave us a perfect New Zealand fishing experience. Both of us have gone back to the USA, my son back to North Carolina and I to Virginia, with photographs of big brown trout caught in the Owens River region and thankful to Felix, the Owen River Lodge staff and Paul for our bucket full of memories. more reviews..
	OWEN RIVER LODGE STAGES OF THE FISHING SEASON
	The river fishing season varies slightly depending on which part of New Zealand you are fishing in. In the top of the South Island the season opens on the 1st of October and ends on the 30th of April, which means that the session starts in spring, moves to summer and ends in autumn/fall. Early Season – October & November The early season fishing in New Zealand has some advantages and disadvantages. On the very positive side, the fish haven’t seen an angler for 5 months and there are few anglers about. Some of the rivers we fish will be running high due to recent rain, and this can make crossing some of our larger rivers challenging. However, with over 26 rivers to choose from (within a 90 minute drive) we can normally find a wonderful stream to spend the day on fooling an early season fish or two ! It’s early in the season that the brown trout in this region seem to love big nymphs – the stone fly is a classic early season fly. The fishing is still very much casting to sighted fish, with rivers such as the Owen usually has mayfly hatches on a sunny afternoon. Typically early season will see you fishing 50% of the time using a dry fly. The weather this time of the year can be changeable, so it’s always an idea to pack your dull-coloured rain coat. Mid Season – December, January, February & March This is summer in New Zealand. It’s the busiest time to fly fish in New Zealand as it's classic New Zealand dry fly fishing at its best (busy being a very relative term). The river levels have dropped and the weather is usually quite warm and stable. The sound of cicadas fills the air and the brown trout seem to spend a lot more time looking up for a tasty morsel to float by. Typically, 75% of your fish will be caught using a dry. (Cicada, Blowfly or Adams patterns work really well). Late Season – April April sees the weather cooling and this in turn sends a message to the browns that it is time to stack on weight in preparation for their spawn in June. Mayfly activity increases so it's parachute adams and small nymph time! The weather is less stable than high summer, but the good news is that there are very few anglers on the river and thus any angling pressure is greatly diminished.
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	Owen River Lodge New Zealand’s finest 5 star rated fly fishing lodge Owen Valley East Road, Murchison Nelson, South Island, New Zealand Tel: +64 3 523 9075 stay@owenriverlodge.co.nz