An Afternoon Swing

I had a free afternoon on Tuesday of this week and was feeling pretty amped after watching Rio's Modern Spey Casting DVD earlier in the day so decided to head on down to a favorite section of the Clutha river to put in some practice. The Clutha river has been running fairly high, but clear ever since the deluge of rain we had early in the month of June. As the water temperature drops over the winter months here in NZ a fish’s metabolism slows-down, making them a little more reluctant to move to quickly or far for their food. Fish are more interested in conserving their energy so it becomes essential that you put your fly right in front of them ! I like to use fly tying materials like grizzly marabou, magnum rabbit zonker strips , and bright crazy rubber legs, all of which create a very life like swimming action to your streamer. Swinging flies on an 11' Switch rod using a Skagit line with varying lengths and weights of sink tip is a great way to cover a lot of water and quickly , especially on bigger waterways such as the Clutha river ,Makarora river and Matukituki river all of which have certain sections open during the winter months and all ideal for this type of fishing. The takes can be electrifying and can take you by surprise if your not paying attention !