PPS Destinations Report - Photo Album
South Island, New Zealand
Date: February 14 - 22, 2004
Speakers: Drs. Don Wallace, Bernie Wynn-Williams and Alison Wallace
Topic: Current Topics in Dentistry and Nutrition
Reported by Ernst 'Ernie' Schmidt
(To see pictures of this trip, please go to New Zealand 2004 photo album)
With visions of returning to the Southland and Otago regions, 35 of us made the long journey to one of PPS's most favoured venues. Despite one of the worst Februarys of the past 100 years - there's the rearing of the ugly head of changing 'global weather patterns' again - members had another great and memorable trip. Despite the tough conditions, we were still awed at the amazing potential of the area. I can simply think of no other place on earth that has so many productive waters with so many quality fish in them. Even with the tough weather, most of us had some of our most memorable fishing. Read on!
Our PPS tour started off by assembling at Kinloch Lodge on beautiful lake Wakitipu. This lake, also shared by Queenstown, has got to be one of the most scenic in the world, with Kinloch Lodge sitting right in the heart of this scenery. After all the excitement of reunions with old friends and welcoming of new
guests, the first evening was spent socializing and then culminating in the highlight program for the evening. Dr. Alison Wallace, PhD, gave an entertaining and enlightening presentation on the new paradigms of nutrition. This was a great presentation especially since it nicely re-affirmed our daily requirements for various food groups as well as red-wine. Fortunately, New Zealand ably accommodated us in our quest for this aspect of nutritional improvement!
During the next two days, members participated in a variety of exciting activities. Two-thirds of the group took to the skies and sampled some of the world's most famous fly-out fishing in an area of drop-dead scenery, while the rest participated in a group hike (day 1) exploring the natural history of the area and the Dart River Tour (day 2), viewing the beautiful rugged scenery from a jet boat. Of course, the big draw of the latter was touring the LORD OF THE RINGS sites which now form a major part of the area's tourism activity. With regard to the fishing, I began fishing Lake Wakitipu with our two speakers, Dr. Don Wallace (Queenstown/Frankton) and Dr. Bernie Wynn-Williams (Christchurch). Despite off and on weather patterns, I did manage to land two out of five fish I hooked. The others, nice sized brown trout, were too smart for me and were able to break me off. Lake fishing represents a changing paradigm for New Zealand adventure fly fishing. Whereas many people consider New Zealand to be the Mecca of River fishing, the country clearly offers some of the best Lake fly fishing in the world. Coming from BC myself, that is no easy boast, but, without a doubt, its true! Where else can you sight fish to cruisers on a large clear lake and hook numbers of quality fish while standing on dry land. On top of this, the visual experience is second to none. On the second day, I experienced one of those days that makes every trip special. I was able to snag a seat on one of the choppers and, along with my new friend and partner, Dr. David Jones, DDS of Kansas USA, I spent the day fishing my 'dream river'. Fishing in scenery which must have sprung from my wildest imagination, we both caught some quality brown trout by sight fishing to feeding/rising fish. It certainly could not get any better than this! In the back of my mind, I was heard to think that, after this, everything else is gravy. Back at the camp, we all shared our experiences and learned of some of the stories and big fish that other members also had. My friend, Dr. Chris Travis of Laguna Hills, CA (see photo), certainly felt that his fly-out was worthwhile.
Keep in mind, we spent our two days in what is arguably New Zealand's premier fly-out trout fishing waters! Of the group this day, by far, the most successful were the lake fishermen. Along with their guides, Dr. Bob and Maddy Tacy (California, USA) and Drs. Rod Wentworth and Don Pratten (Washington, USA) experienced the most productive fishing of the week while floating the shoreline along some of the steep slops emanating from Lake Wakatipu. Between the four of them, some twenty to thirty quality fish (browns and rainbows) were hooked and landed.
Now, back to my earlier thought of 'after this, everything else is gravy'. It turns out that He was listening and decided to hold me to the thought. As we departed Kinloch and made our way to the second portion of our stay, Wyndham, Southland, the weather turned for the worse and we were regaled with off-and-on driving rain for the rest of the week. One saving grace was that the rain was not constant and we did experience some nice weather here and there. Just the same, a majority of the quality rivers in the area were completely un-fishable. Our saving grace was that there were still many quality waters we could still fish despite the inclement conditions. The going was tough, however, several of the members did manage to catch a glimpse of just how productive these waters are. Any other place in the world would probably have been a total washout, however, the situation was saved by the area's diversity as well as by our gracious hosts, the members of the Wyndham Anglers. During the four days, a social program was laid out by the members of the Wyndham Anglers Club members and PPS members were treated to true Southland hospitality. Billeting of the members was largely done in local Farmstays, arranged by our good friend and gracious hosts, Beverley and Doug Smith of Smith's Farmstay. Although the mountains are not as 'grand' as those of the Wakatipu area, all of the members were undoubtedly awed by the pastoral beauty Wyndham's bucolic farming region.
During each morning in Wyndham, PPS members met in the historic Wyndham Club house where the scientific program was delivered by Drs. Don Wallace and Bernie Wynn-Williams (photo). Despite being at the other end of the world, we were impressed with our colleague's contributions to dentistry and their knowledge of the current literature. As though the fishing weren't enough, the final bond of friendship and respect was sealed by professional respect.
As the trip came to an end, only the sunny moments tended
to linger and members departed Southland with heavy hearts. Camaraderie
amongst the PPS members along with the Southland hospitality made us realize just how fantastic the
experience had been. In fact, I feel an indistinct ache in my heart just
thinking about it.
PPS members would like to sincerely thank our dear friends, Heather and Don Wallace (Frankton, Queenstown), Alison Wallace (Wellington), Bernie Wynn-Williams (Christchurch), Beverley and Doug Smith (Wyndham) and all the Wyndham Anglers for their hard work and second-to-none hospitality.
In addition, PPS would like to thank and endorse the following individuals/organizations. For those planning to visit the area on your own, PPS would be happy to direct you to these contacts:
Smith's Farmstay, Wyndham, Southland - Beverley and Doug Smith
Kinloch Lodge, Kinloch/Glenorchy, Otago - John and Toni Glover
Alpine Fly Fishing Guides, Queenstown, Otago - Jason Goomes
Harvey Maguire Fishing Adventures, Queenstown, Otago - Harvey Maguire (check out some PPS photos Harvey has posted on his website; http://www.flyfishing.net.nz/Dent.htm )
Air Milford, Queenstown, Otago - Hank Sproull
Heliworks/Queenstown Helicopters, Queenstown, Otago