How to Catch Brown Trout in the Hutt River (Willie Young)

Last month we had a real treat at our club meeting when Willie Young presented on how he fishes the Hutt River.  If you did not get to attend the meeting it is worth a solid watch as Willie details the Where and How to catch the brown trout in the Hutt River.

And there are a lot of fish in the river, drift dives last season revealed over 160 trout in one 1.4 KM section. That was the highest Fish and Game count anywhere in the region!

​I took a few notes when Willie presented at the club meeting. Here were some of the Gems, I recorded to get you excited and help prepare.

• Fish are brown trout average 2-3lb with some larger
• Willie fishes above the Melling bridge, normally between 11;00amd to 3:00pm
• Fish rise through the day in summer, he then uses a parachute fly
• Fishing is mainly sight fishing, have the sun behind you using a nymph off a dry indicator fly
• The nymphs are very small sizes 16 or even 18
• Patterns are mainly hare and copper style with a 1mm or if very swift up to 3mm bead (See photo of Willies fly box below)
• Approach the river slowly as fish can be close to the edge of the river. Stand back from the water’s edge and observe the fish, elevation helps, walk quietly and not in the water.
• Use a 7ft Poly leader, then 4ft of 8lb maxima nylon to a dry fly indicator fly and 4ft of 5lb tippet to the nymph.
• Rod is a 5 or 6 weight
• Long casts upstream at a 45-degree angle
• Work your way up the pool or run

And below is a snap of Willie’s fly box for the Hutt – sighters he can see and 16 & 18 PTs.​

by Mike Noon