Hapuka River Trout Fishing

The Hapuka River is a slow flowing river that is best fished from a boat using fly or spinning gear.

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Fish type	Brown trout with large sea run fish in the lagoon area
Situation	Approximately 12 kms south of Haast township
Setting	The Hapuka drains a swamy area and enters the Tasman Sea near the small coastal setting of Okuru.
Maps	Access map Access map with topography LINZ topographic map: (260 Map Series, 1:50,000) F37 Haast
F&G pamphlet	West Coast Sports Fisheries access pamphlet >>>
Description	A slow moving river with tea coloured water that drains a lowland swamp area.
Fish numbers and size	Reasonable numbers of fish can be expected especially in the estuary area.
Ease of fishing	This river is difficult to fish for the shoreline angler due to the swampy conditions and the shoreline vegetation. It is easily fished from a small boat however.
Access	Access to the lower reaches is from the Haast - Jackson Bay road. Most of the fishable section of the river can be accessed by a small row boat. See the Hapuka River access map.
Recommended lures	Nymphs: This is not ideal nymph water Dry flies: Small winged patterns such as Greenwell's Glory, March Brown or Adams or Royal Wulff can be effective on a warm summer evening, Wet flies: Any smelt pattern such as a Grey Ghost, Yellow or White Dorothy, Yellow Rabbit or Doll Fly can be effective when the whitebait are running Spinners: Spinners such as Gold or Silver Toby patterns are best.
Regulations
Applicable to	Hapuka River
Region	West Coast >>>
Season	Trout: All year Salmon: 1 Oct-30 Apr
Methods	Artificial fly, spinner, bait
Bag limit	Brown trout: 4 Rainbow trout: 2 Salmon: 2
Size limit (cm)	No limit

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