Tongariro anglers’ requests for the updated 2023 Pool Ratings chart continues. This week we have about 14 anglers (including six from West Island) booked in and asking for their Tongariro River maps. We apologize for the delay, but…

Last year after the flood the need to update the Tongariro River Bucket List of “Fifty pools to fish before you die” became apparent. Each time the review was started the river flooded again, and for the first four months of 2023, it flowed well above the usual levels due to both weather and a maintenance programme that closed the canal across to Lake Rotoaira. Only now is it back to near normal fly fishing levels when the pools can be reinspected to more accurately assess the ‘pool ratings’ chart.

The example used previously was the Bridge Pool. In the last map edition in 2017 it was ranked a maximum of 9 for reliability. Now it is almost unfishable on the TLB (True Left Bank looking down-river) with the only safe wading restricted to the TRB. It now scores 2/9.

Yesterday we checked out the Poutu Pool TLB access from the Blue Pool road – about 9 km south of Turangi. The photos illustrate the problems. During the storms in January/February, three mature pines were blown across the walking access track. The severe wind dumped these huge old wilding pines which soared above the surrounding older native bush. Now you need to be more agile than me and much younger to clamber over the fallen trunks and wade the new stream that is steadily eroding the original track along the banks. You have been warned…

This obviously affects the ratings on the Pool Ratings chart. This new bypass stream is slowly becoming more permanent and increasing its strength and flow with each flood. It has broken through the TLB of the main river below the Cliff Pool above Boulder Reach and joins the Poutu Stream about 50 m above where the Tongariro River converges with the Poutu Stream. The best wading and casting water is now above the convergence.

So this is to explain to anglers requesting the 2023 version why the printing of the new maps has been delayed in the interests of providing more up-to-date accurate ratings.

Photos below feature some of the access problems to the Poutu Pool.