Solo Backcountry River Trip

I've completed my first backcountry fishing trip alone since the guys left, and it went as well as I could have hoped.

There is a river in Fiordland that is reputed to have both brown and rainbow trout up to 10 pounds swimming in it, yet it sees very little angler pressure.  As I'm not naming the rivers I visit on this trip, I will just say that the one I had in my sights flows next to a famous New Zealand hiking track, and is difficult to access.  In fact, hikers must take a bus to a backwoods boat dock, take a ferry across a large lake, and must register to make the walk months in advance.

Once on the hike, they must stay in Department of Conservation huts (paying $50 per night) with 40 other hikers, and are required to walk to the next stop the next day.  Most people think that camping along the trail is illegal.  In fact, the rule is that camping is not permitted within 500 meters of the track, which for the most part means that camping isn't a viable option in the steep confines of the valley.  Upon consulting maps, however, I found 2 suitable side canyons that I knew would have sites, so I booked my bus and boat trips in and out, and went for it.

Coming in on the boat

In 1888, the man who discovered this route to the sea disappeared.  His small wooden boat was found on this small rock island, and the cross is the only testament to the incident.

Getting closer

First glimpse of the river

After disembarking the ferry and starting the walk with 40 other tourists and their guides, I stuck to  the trail for a bit, then found my canyon and crossed the main river to go up to my site.  A Canadian guy named Sam who was doing the full walk came along for the afternoon, and we went all the way up the side canyon to a lake that very few people ever visit.  Good start to the trip.

Bushwhacking with Sam up to the lake

We made it

For the next 3 nights, I camped at my little site on a gravel bar next to the tributary stream, and would walk out to the main river during the day.  Thousands of people visit this river every month, but it seems they all stick to the hut in the evenings and get their walking done during mid-day.  This left me a perfect access trail next to the river where I could duck in to the water, fish all day, then exit the river and walk back on the trail, knowing it would be nearby.

The river

I did see other people on occasion, like the foreign couple I stumbled upon at twilight while wearing my grey fishing clothes, tactical-looking fishing vest, Buff over my face, and gloves.  They were visibly frightened and I mumbled an apology and backed into the bush, only to see them high-tail it back to the cabin.  I laughed.

The other rivers we have fished here on the South Island have predominantly brown trout in them, and this river had an even mix of both rainbows and browns.  I caught an even amount of both species, and can honestly say the rainbow trout in this river were the most brightly colored I have ever seen.

Had to take pictures with a pocket tripod (thanks for the Christmas present, Stuart!)

Once again, the weather window for the trip was perfect.  It rained until the night before I left for the trip, was sunny for most of it, and started raining the night I came back out.  It was important to have good weather, as I knew getting back out with the river swollen from rain would have necessitated quite a bit of bush-whacking back to the river mouth (a situation in which I would have been on the 'wrong' side of the river from the trail).


The scenery at the head of the valley where I did most of my fishing was some of the best I've ever seen.  One valley was mostly exposed granodite carved by glaciers into a U-shaped valley, covered in patchy snow, and the other was heavily treed and shrouded in mist most of the time.  Standing at where they converge, it was possible to look up into both.

One night, the pump on my stove had issues.  I had brought a valve and gasket repair kit, and my first time taking it all apart was with sandflies all over my eyes and fingers, but I got it done.

Yes, different fish

On my way out, I fished for a while behind my docked ferry boat and hooked a large brown that jumped and got off right behind the boat.  The crew was very laid back on the return trip, never asking for a ticket, and even giving me a free ride back to town on their bus so I didn't have to wait for the bus I had booked.  Two French girls drove the massive boat most of the way back, so our course had a certain predictable left-right-left feel to it.

This is a river I would like to bring people back to someday, and it is cool to know that I picked it out in a fly shop in Idaho, and have finally seen it.  Now, time for an adventure to find the next cool place.  Check back soon.

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