If only the fish averaged this size here at home! Seriously it was funny to see how quickly you become nonchalant about it all, walking by size this size to find the bigger ones. This one must have been caught earlier in the week when Grahame was still in Australian fishing mode. OK an exaggeration but those of you who have fished their regularly will know exactly what we mean. The photo on the right is a great example of what you can hook when fishing these rivers. This was luckily at the end of the day and we were about to finish up fishing but nevertheless hooking and landing a 200lb raft complete with guide and high school girls is an accomplishment, especially on a 5 weight with 6lb tippet.

It's a long, hard day on the river when the skies are blue and there are endless bends to walk around. Here one of the boys catches some shut eye while David retrieves the car. Speaking of which here is one of our lovely Subaru's as it looks for entire two months of trips. Full of the day's gear; wading boots, vests, rods.

Penny and her father Keith share a moment with a large fish on one of the world's best rivers. The dry fly fishing on the south island is without equal in our opinion. You can have your 5000 fish per mile in Montana, nothing beats stalking a trophy brown with a dry fly and having to make a precise presentation only to have it end in this result, a great photo set amongst some of the most beautiful river settings imaginable.

Lunch time on a peaceful pool of rising fish. On the last day of the last trip we had a phenomenal day on this stream. A solid hatch was in progress when we arrived at 10 am and it didn't stop all day. It was so good that we were late for our dinner in the main farmhouse!. The fish rose all day without stopping until we left at about 6.45pm. I don't want to even try to imagine what the evening rise was like.

Another big buck! Where have all the good women gone? Every fish I have ever caught/seen caught from this river have been male. I am not sure what the reason for this is but I am sure that the feminists out there will have something to say about it.....

'C'mon smile! I said smile. Pretend that you are back at work!' It was impossible to get Simon to smile on this trip hence this late trip report. I spent the past two weeks altering his frowns with Photoshop and I think that I have finally got it. Anyone doing a big budget Hollywood movie needing special effects done can contact me via the phone numbers on this site. My rates are reasonable and look at the results. You would swear that he was smiling.

This pool has attained legendary status over the past few years. It contains some very large rainbows but they are tough and the spotter has to be very careful not to bring the overhanging bank crashing down 150 feet to the rocky river below! Don't worry, we do the spotting! Andy and I managed to hook a great rainbow in here this year on the first day of the second last week but unfortunately it beat us.

For those willing to sacrifice an evening rise session there is the opportunity for a home cooked meal in the farm house. Lamb and venison bred on the property were the base of the dishes and when cooked with know how and complemented with a few good bottles of Australian red you have all the ingredients needed for a memorable night. Mr Modesty even took off his orange hat for the shot but it went straight back on after the photo was taken. Good work Peter!

Roger with a small brown and a large smile. I have included this photo because there are many smaller rivers where fish like this are common although they would average around 2-3lb. It's not all about size. FlyLife readers would understand. Cleo readers would not.

After seeing the second photo here of Simon (frown turned upside down with Photoshop CS2) I am not so sure that his 7.5lb fish is the biggest of the trip. Either the weight net used was faulty or we need to calibrate them as mine could be. Just compare the photos yourself. Seriously though, good work mate.

A natural looking photo of a humped back specimen...we are talking about the fish of course! The second shot shows another large fish, so large in fact that Jim couldn't bring it up all the way for the camera. Ok I am running out of things to say. You know it, I know it.

BRRRRRR! Weren't these meant to be summer trips? This was a familiar sight for those on weeks six and seven. Bad weather with snow affected the fishing on the more open trophy waters but we still were able to find plenty of fall back options and tangle with fish to 4lb. A great example of why you need more thermals and warm gear than shorts and light shirts.

Yet another good brown is held aloft for the obligatory pic. What did we do before we had digital cameras. It is great to be able to share and compare at the end of a day's fishing.

A couple of rainbows on a couple of tough days. Both Dough (left) and Andy (right) are wearing their spray jackets telling you that the weather was less than great. The beanies are a further indication of this un seasonal weather. This however did not stop us fishing it just meant that we had to go to other locations and work harder for them. I watched Andy catch a number of fish on this afternoon and finished off with a heap of solid rainbows in a huge dun hatch that went flat chat for over an hour towards last light.

Ian with the fish that he worked so, so hard for. The second last week was the most challenging of the time we spent there this year thanks to a succession of cold fronts that pushed through one after the other. Here Ian displays a very healthy fast water rainbow that he looked near last light and landed a while later.

The second shot shows why David is a great guide (see nice fish) but absolutely atrocious photographer (see his position at rear left). Dennis with a smug smile that almost says 'I've got the orange hat today boys', but you should never jump to conclusions until all of the digital photos have been viewed at day's end and the guides have verified the fish weights.

Rod on full bend with a perfect blue sky day just beginning. This is what you pray for every night of the trip. Blue sky and light wind on the open rivers is almost a guarantee of great fishing.

Another location on another day. A great fall back when the rivers are discolored are small spring creeks like this one that offer clear water no matter what the weather or rainfall. You can actually follow this creek several miles upstream to where it emerges from a hole in the ground. Afternoon light and rising fish on this day made it worth the drive and walk.

THE END