| Fish type |
A
high population of mainly rainbow trout with a few brown trout
mostly in the stretch below Pearce's waterfall. |
| Situation |
The Little Waipa rises from
a spring to the west of Tokoroa and flows north to enter Lake
Karapiro. |
| Maps |
Access
map
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map with topography
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topographic maps: 1:50,000 (260
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|
| Check conditions |
View the MetService
weather forecast for Hamilton. |
| F&G pamphlet |
Fish
and Game access pamphlet >>>> |
| Description |
The Little Waipa is a spring
fed river that runs over a stable pumice and sand bed. The
water is generally very clear and the banks are covered with
thick aquatic vegetation making it a challenging river to
fish. Upstream from the mouth the river flows through a steep
gorge which holds few fish and is indeed very difficult to
access. The water above Pearce's Falls however is over open
land giving sevral kilomtres of excellent fishing water.
Fish numbers are high, particularly above Pearce's Falls
where drift dives by Fish and Game have shown there to be
several hundred fish per kilometre. Fish are not large on
avarage but are also challenging to catch. Despite flowing
into Lake Karapiro, all the fish are resident as there is
an impassable gorge about 1km above the confluence with the
lake. There is excellent fishing to be had around the mouth
however as fish take advantage of the very cold water that
flows from this river.
|
| Access |
Four roads cross the river.
The Horahora Rd crosses near the mouth giving access to the
lower section and the lake. The upper sections can be accessed
from the Arapuni-Putaruru, Pearsons and Old Taupo roads though
most of the river flows over farmalnd requiring anglers to seek
permission from the landowners. A good area to try is over private
farmland accessed from the Huihuitaha Rd. |
| Methods |
The Little Waipa is a superb
dry fly water in the warmer months as fish rise freely to the
abundant insect life. Fishing with small wet flies is also likely
to produce results. |
| Recommended tackle |
Light 4 - 5 weight rods with
as long a leader as you can cast. These fish are finicky about
who they will let catch them but once hooked will head for the
weeds of which there is plenty so have enough strength in the
tippet to be able to put some pressure on them to avoid any
trailing flies catching in the vegetation. |
| Recommended lures |
Dry
flies: During the early summer
beetle patterns and cicada
patterns in late summer work well during the day. Otherwise
try smaller patterns such as a Royal
wulff,
Dads Favourite, Adams
or Blue Dun
or a Twilight
Beauty or during the change of light in the evening. Sedge
patterns will work well particularly in the evenings.
Nymphs: Small
nymphs such as Prince
nymphs, Hare
and Copper,
Pheasants Tail and Halfback
patterns are all effective.
Wet flies:
Small wee-wets such as a Greenwells
Glory or March
Brown fished across and down through the faster water
can induce some very hard takes from these feisty fish.
Spinners: Very
small bladed spinners such as veltics
or Mepps. |
| Tributaries |
There are no tribuatries of
note and interest to the angler. |
| Regulations |
| Applicable to |
Little Waipa Stream (the Horahora
Rd Bridge is deemed to be the mouth and so part of Lake
Karapiro) |
| Region |
Auckland/Waikato
regulations |
| Season |
Oct 1-Jun
30 |
| Methods |
Artificial fly, spinner |
| Bag limit |
5 |
| Size limit (cm) |
30cm |
