Location
The Tekapo Canals are in the South Island of New Zealand, in the Mackenzie Country. A beautiful part of New Zealand, surrounded by snow capped mountains in winter, and stunning scenery that you won’t experience anywhere else.

The Tekapo Canals are part of the Mackenzie Basin canal system, which also includes the Ohau Canals, and they run for over 150km between Lakes Tekapo, Pukaki, Ohau and Benmore.
The canals were built in the 1970’s and 1980’s, and they play a vital role in New Zealand’s renewable energy system. While the canals are owned by 2 of New Zealand’s largest power companies, they continue to provide anglers with access to the canals.

The most popular sections of the canals tend to be within a few hundred metres of the salmon farms where trout and salmon can access a free, easy to find meal all year round. Fish can be found throughout the entire canal system andduring the summer, when the water is crystal clear, you’ll be able to spot them swimming along the edges. But during winter, the heads of head canal can be very productive as the fish congregate to spawn.

When to fish?
Most anglers venture to the canals during summer, but those who are willing to brave the cold high-country environment can experience exceptional fishing. So, you can definitely fish the canals all year round, and like any fishing environment – some days you’ll get lucky, and other days willbe less productive.

Some anglers prefer to fish at dawn and dusk, and they can certainly be highly productive times to fish. But trout and salmon can be caught at all hours of the day.
 
Part of the canal system close for several months each year. The upper section of the Tekapo Canal closes from 1 June until 31 August each year. This closure applies to the upper half of the Tekapo Canal, upstream of the State Highway 8 bridge to the Tekapo A Powerhouse.

This is done to conserve the fishery, managing the intensive fishing pressure experienced in that area during the peak of the winter fishing period and rainbow trout spawning season. For more information, check out the Fish and Game website.

Fishing Styles
There are a few different fishing techniques that you can use when fishing for trout and salmon in the canals. Fly fishing, softbaiting, egg rolling and spinning are all extremely productive techniques, but they all require a different gear set up and approach.

This guide will cover off egg rolling and spinning.

Egg Rolling
Egg rolling is a unique technique, mainly only used in the canals, but becoming more widely used in freshwater fishing. This method involves casting a lightly weighted egg into the middle of the canal and walking downstream at the same pace as the current, effectively rolling the egg along the rocky bottom of the canal.

It’s a popular method in the winter months, when the fish are spawning, and eggs are drifting naturally down the canal. But it can also be successful all year round. It’s important to make your imitation egg look as realistic as possible. So, you’ll need the water to be moving, and be fishing with as little weight as possible.
How to Egg Roll

1.       Attach your braid mainline to a small 3-way swivel

2.      Tie 1 metre of fluorocarbon leader to the swivel to create a branch, leading to your egg

3.      Tie another meter of fluorocarbon leader to the other swivel point, adding a small sinker to the end of the branch

4.      To roll your egg, cast upstream at a 45-degree angle and let it sink

5.      Then walk downstream, flicking your sinker out of the rocks when it gets caught and waiting for the fish to bite

Spinning
Spinning is fishing with lures that imitate small fish, which are cast into the waterway and use the depth and current of the environment to create movement and entice the local targets.

Your gear set up needs to be light but robust, to ensure it can deliver a natural looking lure, but on a set up that can handle anything it might come into contact with. Some anglers swear by spin fishing in the canals from late autumn, through to early spring.

Our Spinmax and Rattle Snack lures are commonly used by anglers in the canals and have been known to catch their fair share of 30lb+ sized beasts. Our Spinmax lures are long inline spinner style lures. They have a spinning blade at the front (off the nose) which is where most of the action comes from. The blade is harmonically tuned to attract nearly fish.

The well-weighted body which spins, and a high UV crystal flash tail, combine to create flash and movement, making them highly effective when targeting trout in lakes, rivers, and canals.

The brighter coloured lures seem to get rainbow trout particularly aggressive, whereas the classic black and gold is a must for brown trout in rivers. A great choice in dirty water because of the vibration and slower movement.
Our Rattle Snacks 'flutter' on the drop and retrieve, which triggers a predatory fish's urge to strike, and keep striking.

These lures have 2 small rattle beads strategically placed under the nose of the lure which produce sound when moving through the water, which adds to the attraction for trout.

When choosing your lure colour, you need consider a couple of things.

1.     What’s the weather doing? Is it sunny, cloudy,raining?

2.    What’s the water clarity like? Is it murky ora bit cloudy, or is it crystal clear?
Natural coloured lures work well all year round for salmon and trout, particularly if the water is clear and the weather is not too dark.

Tips for Beginners

Match your drift with the speed of the current
Keep your bait or lure presentation as natural as possible. You can do this by using lightweight lines and leaders. The right line and leader will ensure a clean drift and make your set up less visible to the fish as they have become very wary over time with the amount to fishing now done in the canals
Bites from fish aren’t always big, sometimes they can be really subtle, so time on the water is the best way to learn
Don’t rush to scoop the fish into your net. Instead, lay your net down in the water and use your rod to bring the fish towards the net
Fishing is all about balance. Ensure you have the right rod and reel for your fishin gstyle and environment, and the fish you’ll be targeting. Match your line, leader and terminal tackle to the size of the fish you aim to catch