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Whakapuaka River Trout Fishing

The Whakapuaka is a small attractive river that meanders over open land and contains a reasonable number of fish.

Fish type	Brown trout
Situation	15 minutes from Nelson
Setting	The Whakapuaka is a small river that rises in the Bryant Range and flows to the sea at Delaware Bay near Nelson.
Maps	Access map Access map with topography LINZ topographic maps: (260 Map Series, 1:50,000) O27 Nelson
Weather forecast	View MetService weather forecast for Nelson.
Description	In its headwaters the Whakapuaka is a small stream that runs through dense bush. At the State Highway 6 bridge it is joined by the Lud and then flows across mostly open land to the sea. It is an attractive river running over a sand and gravel bed and contains a reasonable number of good trout. Due to its proximity to Nelson however it is heavily fished and the resident trout see many flies and spinners over the course of a season. There is often a good eveniong rise in the warmer months.
Fish numbers and size	A reasonable number of fish mostly in the 2-4lb range.
Ease of fishing	Belsow State Highway 6 bridge, the river runs over open land allowing easy fishing for both fly and spinner.
Access	Access is via the Cable Bay road which follows the river for most of its fishable length. See the access map.
Recommended lures	Nymphs: Very small (16 to 18) lightly weighted nymphs such as Pheasants Tails and Hares Ear. Dry flies: terrestrial fly imitation such as Dad's Favourite and Greenwells Glory. Beetle patterns such as Coch-y-Bondhu work well from early summer. Wet flies: Small wets such as March Brown or Greenwell's Glory work well fished subsurface during the evening rise. Spinners: Small balded Mepps or Veltic work best.
Regulations
Applicable to	The Whakapuaka river
Region	Nelson Marlborough >>>
Season	1 October to 30 April
Methods	Fly or spinner
Bag limit	2 fish (with only one fish to exceed 500mm in length)
Size limit (cm)	No minimum size

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