Pacific Professional Seminars

Otago and Southland, South Island, New Zealand

Dates:            March 2 - 14, 2009 

Speaker(s):     TBA  

Topic(s):        TBA

This venue hardly needs any introduction.  Regarded by many as some of the best, yet challenging, river fishing for trophy trout on the planet, PPS will be glad to be back

 to sample the amazing hospitality of the South Islanders.

Itinerary especially prepared for

Pacific Professional Seminars

by Don and Heather Wallace

Itinerary for Pacific Professional Seminars, Part I

Wanaka, Otago

Monday, March 2, 2009

Fly in to Queenstown Monday.  Meet at 4 pm to be transported to Wanaka, our base for the week. This is a very pleasant drive of approximately 90 minutes over the

  Crown Range . If time permits we will stop at the historic Cardrona Hotel for coffee.

Cupped in a mountain basin between lakes Wanaka and Hawea.

 Our main lodge will be Maungawera Lodge (http://www.maungaweralodge.co.nz), which is close to the beautiful resort town of Wanaka .  A visit to the website will

confirm that this area offers not only some of the world's best fly fishing but also a wide variety of activities for guests who don’t fish.

Maungawera Lodge.

Tuesday, March 3- Friday, March 6, 2009

Tuesday-Friday Riversong Guides will offer a variety of river and lake fishing over the next four days. Guests will fish two to each guide.

Hookup in the backcountry.

Take a look at Riversong’s website (www.wanakaflyfishingguides.co.nz) for a glimpse of these amazing rivers.  The mighty upper Clutha, which holds one of New

Zealand ’s densest trout populations.  The remote and beautiful Hunter River .  Or trophy waters like the Nevis or Ahuriri.

Lower watersheds are open from October through the end of April, with the high country season running a month later, November through May.  The warmest months

 in Central Otago are January through March. Although these rivers fish well throughout the entire season, late summer produces excellent terrestrial fishing and more

reliable daytime mayfly hatches and evening caddis.  Trout are feisty, surface oriented and in prime condition, and the waters are often low and clear, producing excellent

conditions for the famed New Zealand sight fishing experience.

Nice brown from the Nevis .

Access to these remote rivers is by four-wheel drive vehicle or boat.  Travel time varies between 30 and 120 minutes and traverses some of the Southern Lakes region’s

 most breath-taking scenery.

Saturday, March 7, 2009

Saturday is a free day. This may also be used for lectures. The day can also allow guests to explore the local area before moving on to Southland, as well as flexibility if

we have had bad weather. A fifth fishing day could also be arranged.  Dinner is ‘on your own’ in Wanaka or wherever you wind up and is the only meal not included in

the package.

Sunday, March 8, 2009

After a leisurely breakfast we will set out for Gore.  The trip takes about three hours from Wanaka.  Our trip south will include visiting an orchard in Cromwell, lunch

at the Gibbston Valley Winery, maybe a brief stop at the spring-fed headwaters of the Mataura.

Many of the other local wineries also do tours, and although the world has known about Kiwi Sauvignon Blancs, Chardonnays and aromatic Rieslings, one of the new

 emerging stars is the Central Otago Pinot Noir.  For more information on area wineries, go to www.otagowine.com/winetrail/index.html.

  We will arrive in Gore in time for you to get settled and have dinner with your hosts and be ready for a second week of fishing in Southland. If you’re only joining us

 for the second week, we’ll collect you from Queenstown on the way through  

* * *

The  Alternative Activities Program is available for those who don’t fish.  The Program will include the following excursions for the week:

The Siberia Experience at Makarora flies you into the World Heritage Mount Aspiring National Park for a walk though Siberia Valley before returning by jet boat.

Next day PPS guests enjoy a high country 4WD day. You’ll take your lunch and travel and trek the magnificent mountains, with glorious views of lakes Wanaka and Hawea.

A day in Wanaka is another day.  It’s a pretty, compact town with shopping and many short lakeside walks. Lunch will be included.

We’ve also planned a day trip to Cromwell and Bannockburn to experience local wineries and the historic precincts of Cromwell. We will lunch at a winery.

The Lodge can also arrange shooting options for guests.

* * *

Pacific Professional Seminars Itinerary, Part II

Gore, Southland

Sunday, March 8, 2009

Arrive in Gore before dinner.  Dine with B&B hosts.

Accommodations will be boutique B&Bs in the small rural town of Gore .  As on past expeditions to Southland, this trip will also feature the unique charm of southern

rural hospitality.  Hosts will share their attractive homes with PPS guests.

Monday, March 9,-Thursday- March 12^th, 2009

Awarded a Water Conservation Order in 1996 for its international significance as a wild brown trout fishery, the Mataura, according to many trout bums, has New

 Zealand ’s best dry fly fishing.  Its lush mayfly, caddis and midge hatches inspired New Zealand ’s first book on trout stream entomology, Norman Marsh’s Trout Stream

 Insects of New Zealand .   The lower river below Gore attracts seasoned dry fly fanatics for its robust bug and trout populations and consistent surface activity, known as

 “The Mad Mataura Rise.”

Upper Mataura below Cattle Flat

Gore has always been a crossroads.  New Zealand ’s first inhabitants knew it for the wide riffle they could cross on seasonal food gathering routes.  Gold miners later

 crossed the same riffle in the 19^th century on the route between Dunedin and Queenstown.  South below Mataura township is the Tuturau reserve, which commemorates

 the last major battle between North and South Island Maori tribes.

Gore used to have more of a cow-town ambience when I moved here 15 years ago.  But lying on the banks of the famous fishery and within a short drive of Fiordland

National Park , the town has felt the tug of eco- and angling tourism.  Is it the West Yellowstone of Southland?  Perhaps not yet, but today Gore has a Thai restaurant,

annual country music and fashion weeks, an internet café, and a burgeoning art scene.

One of the challenges of a big group in Gore is the lack of a meeting place for PPS guests to socialize, as most of the B&Bs can host only two to three couples.  So we’re

 planning a night at the Wyndham Angler’s clubhouse, possibly for a potluck.  The clubrooms are also available for PPS seminars.  An early evening barbecue on the river

with our guides is planned, weather permitting.  The hearty may then enjoy returning to the river for the famed evening rise.  We could also add a talk on trout stream

 insects of New Zealand and fly patterns, if the PPS group is interested.

                                    Monday, March, 9th 2009

The first of four days of fishing with Casey Cravens and his team at Wild Angler (www.WildAngler.com), focusing on the Mataura River .

Pot Luck Dinner with our friends at the Wyndham Flyfishing Club

Tuesday, March 10, 2009

Fishing with Wild Angler.  Dine with B&B hosts.

Wednesday, March 11, 2009

Fishing with Wild Angler.  Dine at Croydon Lodge or other Gore restaurants like Howl at the Moon Cafe.

Thursday, March 12, 2009

Fishing with Wild Angler.  Barbecue on the river then evening rise.  Timing this night will be contingent on weather. 

Friday, March 13 , 2009

We’re keeping this an open day for either seminars, to sightsee, or as a rain date in case of bad weather.  See the alternative activities page for details on local

 museums.  A fifth day of fishing can also be arranged. As you can appreciate the program needs some flexibility and may be amended depending on weather and river conditions etc.

7 pm : Dinner at Le Potager Restaurant and Garden, Mokoreta-Wyndham Rd.  

Alternative Activities Program

A day in Gore focusing on the Eastern Southland Gallery, one of New Zealand’s best regional art museums.  The Gallery holds over 250 works of regional art

from Otago and Southland, as well as nationally significant pieces.  Its most famous holding, however, is the collection of noted sexologist John Money, a Kiwi who

gained fame in the United States .  The Money Collection has over 400 pieces spanning primitive to contemporary--First World sculpture, as well as modern work by

New Zealand artists Theo Schoon, Rita Angus, Hone Tuwhare, and Ralph Hotere.

For a little background, click here:

www.listener.co.nz/issue/3454/artsbooks/6598/money_changes_everything.html;jsessionid=3CC79D5D68E277F3D76F6C63AA499520

Open M-F 10:00-4:30 ; 1:00-4:00 pm on weekends and public holidays.  Located on the corner of Main and Norfolk Streets.

The Hokonui Moonshine Museum is another possibility.  Imagine a 51-year drought in legal whiskey.  The museum celebrates the creative response of Kiwi Celtic

 ingenuity to Prohibition.  Not only did they find sweet limestone-filtered water trickling through the hills, but they often constructed elaborately concealed stills that

 piped smoke miles underground.

Hokonui Moonshine Museum

On the corner of Hokonui Drive and Norfolk Street

Admission $5; open 8:30-5:30

This day could also include a walk in Dolamore Park , a hilly scenic reserve outside town.  On clear days you can see Stewart Island from one of the lookout points.

For a map and background on the area, see the following Department of Conservation’s site:

 http://www.doc.govt.nz/upload/documents/getting-involved/students-and-teachers/field-trips-by-region/croydon-dolamore-scenicr.pdf

Tour in the Catlins

The Catlins is one of New Zealand ’s least-known scenic destinations, and one of my favorites.  The area invites leisurely exploration.  Drive the meandering hill and

 coastal routes and stop off at whatever grabs your fancy, as there are enough short scenic walks to keep you interested for days.   Curio Bay at low tide offers a glimpse

 of a petrified forest.  To the east is Porpoise Bay , a golden-sand inlet where Hector’s Dolphins rear their young and you can sometimes swim among them.  Other Catlins’

highlights are Cathedral Caves , McLean Falls , Lake Wilkie , Jack’s Blowhole, and the Nuggets Point lighthouse.  For a description on the walks, see:

http://www.catlins.org.nz/walks.htm

The Nuggets, Kaka Point

McLean Falls Holiday Park provides tours of the area.  If you’re interested in a long walk, they provide pickup and drop-off for the five-hour Catlins River walk for $85 pp.

 They also transport visitors to Nugget Point and Cannibal Bay for $120 from their holiday park.  Catlins Adventures in Owaka can also arrange horseback riding for $50-90

 for 1-3 hours.

Maple Glen Gardens is a 25-acre private garden, nursery and aviary in a woodland and wetland setting 25 minutes south of Gore.  See images of their lovely

gardens and birds here: www.mapleglen.co.nz

Saturday, March 14

Return to Queenstown. 

Airfares to 

Queenstown New Zealand

 are not included. 
 

 Fishing licenses are not included but can be purchased online. https://fishandgame.eyede.com/public/get_page.php If you do it this way you get your license as a plastic

 credit card souvenir

edition. Cost approximately $100.00 and available from the 1st of September 2008 for the 2009 year. 

There may be a slight adjustment to the final cost once numbers are finalized and closer to the time. We do not anticipate this will be significant but must peg the estimate to today’s price of petrol.

We’re happy to help arrange accommodation in Queenstown both before and after the PPS tour.

We are looking forward to hosting you again—to renewing friendships and sharing all that is New Zealand : our beautiful landscapes, large wild fish in clear water, fine wines and New Zealand cuisine.

Numbers are limited to 12 anglers to ensure the highest quality experience.

Backcountry brown

Helicopter charter trips to the backcountry are available both before and after the PPS conference.  Advanced booking is essential on these, and some of the best fisheries have controlled access during Dec.-March to preserve the wilderness experience.  Contact Casey for current bids from local helicopter pilots.