South Island anglers are celebrating a record start to the salmon season.
Fish are being caught in record numbers, and anglers are putting it down to the fish finding a good food source out to sea.
There's a nervous tension on the banks of Canterbury's Waimakariri River. Salmon are running and anglers are keen to be part of the action.
“We're all out here hoping we're going to hook an early season salmon,” says angler Paul Cutherbertson.
The word's out about record catches in the main Canterbury fishing rivers – the Waimakariri, Rakaia, and Rangitata.
“[Catching one feels] like a freight train,” says Mr Cutherbertson. “Usually your lure comes to a dead stop and you wonder whether you've caught a snag or a rocklike a snag.”
It's a family affair, with Mr Cutherbertson's son is out there too.
“[It is a] big adrenaline rush and a good feeling when you land it,” he says.
Reports of runs of big, well conditioned salmon aren't just fishy stories; anglers are putting up proof of their catches on YouTube.
Fish and game say some are around the 10kg mark, which shows they have a good food source in the ocean.
Releases from hatcheries are also boosting the numbers, especially in the Rangitata.
“It's the best year since 1999,” says Rangitata salmon angler Bill Whipp. “I've kept record since 1999. In November we got 80 fish, compared to none last year.”
Just recently, 86 were caught in a five-day stretch, and they aren't tiddlers.
“One other guy had one that spooled him and he had neoprene gloves on,” says Mr Whipp. “It burnt right through to the thumb.”
If the runs continue, turkey might be off the menu for Christmas dinner for some in the South, replaced by salmon instead.
3 News
source: newshub archive
