Most anglers who travel to New Zealand's South Island for trout arrive with a fly rod. Adam, from the Fishy Business YouTube channel, went the other way, swapping feathers for soft plastics on a multi-day trip through the braided rivers and high-country lakes of central Canterbury.
"I'm not fly fishing today," he explained at the start of the trip. "I'm actually joining up with a few mates and we're going to be soft baiting for trout in a few different spots all around the South Island."
The setup is deliberately simple: a long, soft-tipped rod that can cast a lightweight jig head a long way yet still cushion a big fish, quality braid and around two metres of fluorocarbon leader. Jig weight is where the local knowledge counts. Asked what he reaches for, veteran angler Malcolm was specific.
"Generally I would work anywhere from a 16th of an ounce up to maybe a quarter of an ounce in very heavy water," he said. "But a 16th of an ounce and a 12th of an ounce would be the most common I'd use, both in lakes and in river situations."
The presentation borrows heavily from fly fishing. The crew cast upstream, ahead of holding trout, and let the bait drift back naturally. "We generally fish them upstream so that you're behind the fish — you don't scare them," Adam said. Spotting the fish first is half the battle. "Good quality polarised fishing glasses are essential for this kind of fishing," he added. "You'd never see a well-camouflaged trout sitting on the bottom without removing the glare."
The method produced quickly. Malcolm landed four fish inside the first couple of kilometres of water, including a solid five-and-a-half-pounder, before the group moved on to Lake Sumner in central Canterbury. There, casting Bait Junkie 2.5 minnows in natural colours over the lip of the lake and retrieving them with a slow, erratic action, they kept the run going — Adam reckoning they landed five fish in the first 20 minutes.
"The soft baits are just creaming these fish," he said. "It's such a cool way to fish. Not hard — you've just got to get the weight of the jig right and the right colour soft bait, and you're away. Very different to fly fishing. Probably a little bit easier, to be honest."
The trip's standout came on the final, weather-beaten day, when Malcolm took Adam to a tiny creek he had fished as a teenager. Adam hooked a heavy brown that bored into the weed before he wrestled it to the bank — an "absolute ripper" he put at around 10 pounds. He handed it to Malcolm to set free. "Seeing as it's your spot, I'll let you release this beauty for me," Adam said.
It was catch-and-release throughout, as is the norm in the high country. Anglers planning the same trip should note that trout fishing in New Zealand requires a licence, with regulations varying by region — worth a look at the Fish and Game website before heading out.