Opawa River and Taylor Stream Trout Fishing

The Opawa is a small river that meanders over open farmland and contains a number of small fish. It flows close to the town of Blenheim and joins the Wairau river near its mouth.

Taylor Stream, a tributary to the Opawa River runs on a northerly course to join the Opawa at Blenheim.

Access map
Access map with topography

LINZ topographic maps: (260 Map Series, 1:50,000)

View graphs at the Marlborough District Council website of recent:
- Taylor river flow
- Blenheim rainfall
- Taylor (Beneagle) rainfall

View MetService weather forecast for Blenheim

The Opawa and its tributary the Taylor are sedate rivers (or streams) that contains a reasonable number of small fish. They mostly meander over farmland between banks of grass and willow trees.

There is a lot of weed life in the river which is home to good aquatic life and so a food source. However, the weed can become a real problem as the weather warms up as it can make fishing more difficult, but the open banks allow for easy casting.

Taylor Stream is the major tributary of the Opawa and although it also holds fish, it is not highly recommended.

Access to much of the Opawa river is easy as it flows close to the town of Blenheim.

See the access map.

Nymphs: Small lightly weighted nymphs such as Pheasants Tail or Hare and Copper work well (sizes 16 is best)

Dry flies: Small terrestial dry flies such as Greewell's Glory or Adams in small sizes.

Wet flies: March Brown and Greenwell's Glory work well during the evening rise.

Spinners: Small bladed spinners such as Mepps or Veltic.

Opawa River upstream from State Highway No 1 Bridge.

Taylor River (Taylor Stream) upstream from the New Renwick Road Bridge.

Opawa River downstream from State Highway No 1 Bridge (including Roses Overflow)

Taylor River (Taylor Stream) downstream from the New Renwick Road Bridge