May 12 2017

NZ Walkabout comes to a close Posteb:by Julian Wicksteed - ANGLER Walkabout

RAINBOW RELEASE COLLAGE

My summer fly fishing around the NZ South Island has come to a close and I’m back inVictoria Australia working on the book and film I endeavoring  to put together from my time there. It will be the 7th book in my Angler Walkabout Series, and the 3rd film.

Why didn’t I venture into the north Island I hear you say?
Three reasons:
1. I have family in the south island whom I was catching up with when passing through Ashburton.
2. In one summer the south island was still too vast to effectively cover it all, perhaps one day I’ll return and work on a north island book. But that brings me to my third reason.
3. After a 10 years absence from NZ, I found the south island crowded enough with anglers, guides, car rentals, milk trucks, without going north to the even more densely populated north Island. Not to mention the fact that the watercourses were being flogged by over irrigation and over fertiliser use.  

In short, New Zealand appeared to be in trouble and sadly, the fact that it seemed to me that every man and his dog was flogging New Zealand for as much monetary gain as they  could muster, will be a major focus of my book and film. Sure the fishing was still great, but even after ten years away, it was far from what it was. Stay tuned…