Thanks for watching and I hope you found the video enjoyable and maybe even picked up a tip or two. If you did do let me know in the comments what it was.
Hi cool video!! Im off to the Tongariro next week, do you have any advise on fly selection for this time of year? Is a 12foot leader standard for the whole river?
If it rains before you go and flows are up make sure you use a heavy nymph, double tungsten beads are good e.g. Simon's ugly. I found egg patterns combined with that was working well last week (I went again). Try to find out where the most fish are holding in the river. I had one tough day on the upper river and the next day went downriver and did really well. The fish move a bit. Also get on the river early. 12-15ft leaders are the way to go for sure and if you use a movable indicator then you don't need to change it, just move your indicator if you are fishing shallow. Tight lines and hope you get plenty.
Hi, at that time in the morning the fish are close to you rather than at the far bank and 12ft leader is about normal. There are some very strong fish in the river, I hooked into 4 lbs Rainbow and It felt like a ten pound brownie, few fish but very deep. Enjoy!
Very true about the fish close to the bank in the morning. I did fish my feet first but those bits had to be cut from the video. Strangely I didn't pick any up close to me so that's why I made the comment about the far bank. I'm looking forward to getting down after the rain, should be full of fresh fish. Such an awesome spot.
Crazy About Fly Fishing Hi, when I first fished this river (50 years ago!) I fished the right bank for a week and then the left. At that time I could not afford accommodation so I slept below a tarp in the bush. Great fishing, but things change, some for the better and some for the worse; but any day on the river is the best day of my life! These days all I pray for is “one more season, please God”!
I hope you get many more. I'm just getting to know the river and exploring new sections each time I go down. I'm hoping to spend a bit of time down there this year, although it will mostly be one night trips from Auckland. Worth the drive though. Just love it.
Hi Keith, this was my very first fishing session with the V-top and it performed well. It's much faster than my Sage SLT and the ILLF Camo rods (5wts) with which I have fished extensively and hand no trouble handling the heavy nymphs and long leader with indicator. It was rollcasting well. Barrie did put a 7wt line on it though because it is fast. It is I 40 and/or 46T carbon and is rather light as well compared to my older TFO Lefty Kreh 6wt which now feels like a brick. I did hold a 5wt primal a week ago and that was a tad lighter so I think it would be comparable in weight to a 6wt Primal but I have not fished with those, so I can't comment. The finish on it was lovely and it handled well and I hope to fish with it again on my next trip down there. Hope that helps.
Thanks you for that. So much hype about sage and scott etc and therefore hard to imagine that cheap rods can be so good. How do you think the v-top would go if you had to present a smaller dry on slow water? Do they make the v-top in a 5wt?
@@keithwright4136 I own a v-top 6wt and a couple of high end sages. Wont lie - i love my sage X but soes it perform $2k better, I dont think so. I actually used a 5wt v-top the other day on the Tongariro and really liked it although it was loaded with a 6wt line. they are a powerful rod and the 1 line up i think works for them (so does that make the rod a 6 wt?? I always find that an interesting question when lining up a rod). I reckon a 4wt with a 5wt line would be an awesome combination, but not sure if they make a 5wt v-top. Honestly, unless you own 4 or 5 different rods you will never have the 'absolute perfect rod! In my humble opinion the v-top 6 or 5 will cover you for just about any situation including your dry fly scenario - it may not be the perfect rod, but how many rods do you want to buy? I personally dont believe that there is a huge difference between low mid range rods and high end rods these days - they are all pretty good. Ask another fisherman and you'll get a different answer, but value for money the v-top will deliver. Tight lines
@@keithwright4136 True, but to be fair those companies have a good reputation which they have built over a long time and their quality is great. But you pay for that. However, that doesn't mean that lesser known brands aren't also very good and are often made in the same factories as well known brands. Unfortunately I have only thrown heavy nymphs with the V-top for half a day so it's really hard to comment on that level. I aslo tend to fish slower 5wt rods on smaller water and for dries. I can't imagine it being much different form any modern fast action 6wt. The V-top is available in 4wt, 6wt and 8wt.
Thanks for watching and I hope you found the video enjoyable and maybe even picked up a tip or two. If you did do let me know in the comments what it was.
Hi cool video!! Im off to the Tongariro next week, do you have any advise on fly selection for this time of year? Is a 12foot leader standard for the whole river?
If it rains before you go and flows are up make sure you use a heavy nymph, double tungsten beads are good e.g. Simon's ugly. I found egg patterns combined with that was working well last week (I went again). Try to find out where the most fish are holding in the river. I had one tough day on the upper river and the next day went downriver and did really well. The fish move a bit. Also get on the river early. 12-15ft leaders are the way to go for sure and if you use a movable indicator then you don't need to change it, just move your indicator if you are fishing shallow. Tight lines and hope you get plenty.
@@CrazyAboutFlyFishing Thanks I appreciate the advise. Hopefully i can land a few good fish.
@@Trouttaranaki happy to help mate. Let me know how it went.
love that part of the river , easy minimal wading, i always catch at the braids
Yes, it served me well this winter and I noticed in summer there are heaps feeding on vinehoppers under the willows if you can find a fly that works.
Very good fishing.
It was awesome and I would be trying to fry fishing like you one day
Thanks very much. Lucky to have great fishing here.
Hi, at that time in the morning the fish are close to you rather than at the far bank and 12ft leader is about normal. There are some very strong fish in the river, I hooked into 4 lbs Rainbow and It felt like a ten pound brownie, few fish but very deep. Enjoy!
Very true about the fish close to the bank in the morning. I did fish my feet first but those bits had to be cut from the video. Strangely I didn't pick any up close to me so that's why I made the comment about the far bank. I'm looking forward to getting down after the rain, should be full of fresh fish. Such an awesome spot.
Crazy About Fly Fishing Hi, when I first fished this river (50 years ago!) I fished the right bank for a week and then the left. At that time I could not afford accommodation so I slept below a tarp in the bush. Great fishing, but things change, some for the better and some for the worse; but any day on the river is the best day of my life! These days all I pray for is “one more season, please God”!
I hope you get many more. I'm just getting to know the river and exploring new sections each time I go down. I'm hoping to spend a bit of time down there this year, although it will mostly be one night trips from Auckland. Worth the drive though. Just love it.
Well done on that last one, Nice fish m8
Thanks mate.
Some nice fish. Interested in what you think of the ILLF V-top rods. Have you fished with other rods that you could compare them with?
Hi Keith, this was my very first fishing session with the V-top and it performed well. It's much faster than my Sage SLT and the ILLF Camo rods (5wts) with which I have fished extensively and hand no trouble handling the heavy nymphs and long leader with indicator. It was rollcasting well. Barrie did put a 7wt line on it though because it is fast. It is I 40 and/or 46T carbon and is rather light as well compared to my older TFO Lefty Kreh 6wt which now feels like a brick. I did hold a 5wt primal a week ago and that was a tad lighter so I think it would be comparable in weight to a 6wt Primal but I have not fished with those, so I can't comment. The finish on it was lovely and it handled well and I hope to fish with it again on my next trip down there. Hope that helps.
Nothing wrong with the v-top rods - hard to beat at the price!
Thanks you for that. So much hype about sage and scott etc and therefore hard to imagine that cheap rods can be so good. How do you think the v-top would go if you had to present a smaller dry on slow water? Do they make the v-top in a 5wt?
@@keithwright4136 I own a v-top 6wt and a couple of high end sages. Wont lie - i love my sage X but soes it perform $2k better, I dont think so. I actually used a 5wt v-top the other day on the Tongariro and really liked it although it was loaded with a 6wt line. they are a powerful rod and the 1 line up i think works for them (so does that make the rod a 6 wt?? I always find that an interesting question when lining up a rod). I reckon a 4wt with a 5wt line would be an awesome combination, but not sure if they make a 5wt v-top. Honestly, unless you own 4 or 5 different rods you will never have the 'absolute perfect rod! In my humble opinion the v-top 6 or 5 will cover you for just about any situation including your dry fly scenario - it may not be the perfect rod, but how many rods do you want to buy? I personally dont believe that there is a huge difference between low mid range rods and high end rods these days - they are all pretty good. Ask another fisherman and you'll get a different answer, but value for money the v-top will deliver. Tight lines
@@keithwright4136 True, but to be fair those companies have a good reputation which they have built over a long time and their quality is great. But you pay for that. However, that doesn't mean that lesser known brands aren't also very good and are often made in the same factories as well known brands. Unfortunately I have only thrown heavy nymphs with the V-top for half a day so it's really hard to comment on that level. I aslo tend to fish slower 5wt rods on smaller water and for dries. I can't imagine it being much different form any modern fast action 6wt. The V-top is available in 4wt, 6wt and 8wt.
Great video of I may make a minor critique tighten that drag up a little for your sake and the fish again great video !!
Thanks mate glad you enjoyed it. You're right about the drag, I'm often too light when I should be stopping them from dusting me.