Thank you for feedback on the proposed changes to Taupo fishing licences…
Many angler guests claimed this is just a window dressing exercise by DOC to show they have consulted with their licence holders.
Others suggested the changes have already been made and are awaiting signing off by the Minister of Conservation.
Others commented what a ridiculous bureaucratic system to require changes to have to be approved by central Government in Wellington – it should all be decided on a local level.
Others were asking why it takes almost four years to implement changes from the 2013 Fishery Review.
Following replies are typical.
Plenty of response which should be directed to DOC – i.e.
So DOC, having totally mismanaged the Taupo Fishery for the past three decades and more (in cahoots with the Taupo District Council and Mighty River Power) – and having seen the number of licence holders ‘halved since the late 1980s’ as a result – is now proposing to ‘solve the problem’ of the declining quality of the fishery and resultant dearth of licence holders by:
Allowing ‘anglers’ to catch six fish a day – instead of three.
Allowing ‘anglers’ to kill and keep trout the size of herrings i.e. 35cm – instead of the current 40cm (down from 45cm a few years back).
Allowing boat ‘anglers’ with noisy, smoking, diesel motors to troll on top of river/stream mouth fly fishers i.e. within 200 metres of river mouths (instead of 300m) – when boat anglers already flout the law especially in the evenings coming well within the 200m range already anyway.
Hmmmm, I’ll have to have a think about these changes. Maybe a better change is to let Fish and Game take over?
Thanks Ross…I have completed survey…I don’t want boats sitting out at the end of the Waitahanui Rip when I am enjoying the ambience of the place…there is a huge lake out there for the boaties. I also hope if they adopt the Family Licence it is not based on on the NZSFL model. I have suggested that now we can buy licences on line that they can be purchased on a pro rata basis..not only daily and weekly but monthly. The 6 fish limit???WOW I wish I could even get a 3 bag limit…here’s dreaming! A little fat fish I did catch that measured 41 cm was the nicest trout I have ever eaten…so maybe we can enjoy more sweet eating trout if it is dropped to 35 cm. I don’t know enough about “Czech” nymphing but I have looked at a few rigs out there..some look like a cross between jigging and spinning with no fly line in sight..very very efficient so some clarification would be great…wouldnt want to get on the wrong side of DOC.
Maybe we should bottom fish Lake Taupo using the DOC new sized 350mm trout as live bait?
🐠
Decline in condition is not something I am experiencing trolling the Lake, particularly so in the past three or so years. There also appears to be plenty of smelt showing on sounders as well. Leave it at 3 per angler and leave the size where it is. All is working fine, leave it alone.
Got my questionnaire yesterday and immediately thought, “Why are they dancing around the edges?”
Tell the new age anglers to kill more fish, simple!
You don’t have to keep them, just kill them!!
If they’re in the river to spawn and under 40cm, kill them! We don’t want small fish to breed.
The best eating fish are in the 2-4 lb range. Keep them.
Over 4lb, keep the odd one but release the rest to breed more from the same gene pool.
Under 2lb, painful to clean and the bones become an issue. Kill them and add back to the foodchain in the river.
We need less anglers practising catch and release of substandard fish. Kill them!!
Regards,
You know who.