| Fish type |
Brown
and rainbow trout averaging just under half a kilogram with
a large population of small fish. |
| Situation |
The Oraka Stream rises in the
hills south of Putaruru and flows north past Tirau to join the
Waihou river just south of SH 29. |
| Maps |
Access
map
Access
map with topography
LINZ
topographic maps: 1:50,000 (260
series)
|
| Check conditions |
View the MetService
weather forecast. |
| F&G pamphlet |
South
Waikato Spring Creeks Trout Fishing access pamphlet |
| Description |
The Oraka
Stream is a small clear water that flows through well-defined
banks over a shingle and mud bottom. As it is spring fed,
it seldom discolours after rain. Areas of the upper reaches
can be hard to fish as the banks can be quite overgrown. The
section between Putaruru and Tirau however provides several
kilometres of excellent accessible water.
The river is wadable though surprisingly
deep in many places. There is ample bank side vegetation and
consequently there is plenty of food to support a good population
of small to medium sized fish.
|
| Access |
In the
headwaters there is public access that extends approximately
10 km upstream from Putaruru. From Domain road, of SH 1, there
is access for approximately 5 km upstream.
There is limited access around Tirau and
so it is necessary to ask permission from the landowner's
before crossing their land.
|
| Methods |
The Oraka Stream is ideal water
to fish with a dry fly or a nymph (and using a dry fly and nymph
in tandem can be very effective). The fish also respond very
well to small wee-wets and soft hackled flies fished down and
across. |
| Recommended tackle |
Rods of around 9 foot capable
of casting a weight five floating line with leaders of 10 to
12 feet in length (with very light tippets) are recommended. |
| Recommended lures |
Dry
flies: Sedge
and caddis
patterns work well throughout the summer with beetle
patterns working very well in early summer and cicada
and cricket
patterns from late summer to autumn.
Nymphs: Small
lightly weighted nymphs in sizes 14 to 18 in patterns such
as Hare and
Copper, Halfback,
and Pheasant
Tail work well throughout the season. During the height
of summer, unweighted midge patterns work well in early evening.
Wet flies:
Red Setters,
Hamill's
Killer, Mrs
Simpson or a small soft hackled fly such as a March
Brown Spider or Gosling.
Spinners: Very
small bladed spinners such as Veltic
or Mepps work
well especially in red and gold |
| Regulations |
| Applicable to |
Oraka Stream |
| Region |
Auckland/Waikato
regulations |
| Season |
Oct 1-Jun
30 |
| Methods |
Artificial fly, spinner |
| Bag limit |
5 |
| Size limit (cm) |
30cm |
