Poronui: Heli-Fishing for Trophy Trout

For those that know me or have spent any time discussing trout fishing with me, my enthusiasm for the New Zealand experience is obvious. When Ken Morrish and I started Fly Water Travel in 1999, the first big decision we collectively made was who would take New Zealand, and who would take BC, and to a large degree we both got what we wanted most, but Ken secretly feels a bit left out, and for good reason. I love all forms of trout fishing but when I get to combine hiking, hunting/spotting fish, and a bit of the extra pressure that sight fishing to larger than average fish entails, I enter my happy place. Throw a chopper into the mix, and I really couldn’t be any happier.

Last fall I was able to spend the better part of November with my favorite traveling companion (my wife, Heather) as well as one of our closest traveling partners. We visited three of our favorite lodges, Poronui, Owen River Lodge, and Cedar Lodge. We also spent time with a former lodge owner that we have been friends with for many years and did what is called the “Grand Traverse”, which is two of the country’s most scenic multi-day treks (the Milford and Routeburn) back-to-back with Ultimate Hikes.

The only bad part about the trip was even with that much time in the country I was not able to see our other favorite lodge, Tongariro Lodge, or spend time with our network of independent guides. There’s certainly next time! 

Over the coming months I will write about each part of the trip, but this portion is dedicated to our first stop of the trip, Poronui on the North Island. 

How did you get there: 
I find it interesting that whenever I speak with guests that have not traveled to New Zealand they are often concerned about the difficulty of the travel. It does take a while but from the west coast I find the trip quite easy. I always travel from our small town in Oregon to San Francisco where there are direct flights to Auckland each evening. This flight is pretty long, 11-13 hours, but because it is overnight and the time zone in Auckland is only four hours difference (20 hours ahead), and you arrive in the morning, it feels quite reasonable. I typically have a strong black coffee in the Auckland airport and another around lunch time and off I go. From Auckland it is just a 50-minute flight to Taupo and from Taupo it is another 40-minute transfer to the lodge.

What was your accommodation and meals experience like? 
Poronui does an amazing job of walking the line between a luxury and a homestyle lodge. It is set on a 16,000-acre property, has ample sized well-appointed cabins, and a classically comfortable main lodge, complete with a fireplace and a dining room table big enough to host 12 guests as well as guides for dinner each night.  However, what makes it truly special is the atmosphere. Originally created by the longtime manager Eve Reilly and continued by the current manager Clair Hall, the best word I can find to describe it is welcoming. A few things that really stand out for me are the family-style dinners with all the guests, a few of the guides, and the host all gathered around the table. I also love the fact that there is always someone there to get you a drink or top off your glass, but you also feel comfortable just grabbing one for yourself, and of course the always magically full cookie jar. 

Where did you fish and what was your experience like?
In general, the fishing at Poronui is like other New Zealand fishing experiences in that it is mostly sight fishing. 

You can read more the sight fishing aspects in New Zealand here in my article Trout Hunting New Zealand: https://farbank.com/blogs/fly-water-travel/trout-hunting-new-zealand 

Poronui’s program has its own unique qualities. First, the North Island has a higher percentage of rainbow trout than the South Island and they tend to be a bit more user friendly, resulting in higher catch rates by New Zealand standards. They also have two beautiful rivers that run through their property, namely the Taharua and the Mohaka. They are both wonderful and most guests fish one or both of these rivers during their stay. That said, as good as these rivers are, the real draw of the Poronui program is their helicopter access. They are located right next to the helicopter company that accesses all the surrounding rivers, and they pick up and drop off guests right on the lawn next to the cabins. Also, they give each beat ample rest between flights so it is about the closest thing you can get to a guarantee of rested water. All water in New Zealand is public so there is always a slim chance some adventurous angler has made the long walk (often multiple days) in to gain access. I would go as far to say if you plan on going to Poronui and want to see the best of what it has to offer, a helicopter budget needs to be part of the process.  From my experience it is well worth the price of admission.  

What was your go-to tackle setup: 
Another thing I love about New Zealand is that the tackle requirements are simple, and the guides always supply the flies. This trip I took the new Sage R8 CORE in a 5 and 6-weight. I actually never used the 6 as for me, a good 5-weight is the perfect tool for the job. I had it loaded with test versions of the RIO Gold XP and RIO Gold Max. In general, I am a fan of the Sage R8 rod series. For me it feels a bit slower and bends a bit deeper than past models, which I like. The Gold XP was perfect for the majority of the time, and I really liked the Gold Max in a few situations where we used some good-sized heavy nymphs. 

Favorite Moments:
This trip there were a few particularly memorable fishing experiences, and I was a bystander for each of them.  We had flown into a smaller, deep green, heavily forested stream with our good friend and head guide, Paul McDonald and immediately after the helicopter dropped us off, I had one of those “this is going to be a great day” feelings. Not long into the day I watched my wife, Heather, spot, hook, and eventually land a particularly beautiful trophy brown trout on her own.  The special thing about this is that she doesn’t fish much. I mean hardly at all! That said she is fit, loves to hike up rivers, and has an uncanny ability to see fish. As she made her presentation, I didn’t see the fish she was targeting, which probably explains why I was so relaxed when she hooked it. After a solid fight and a few failed net attempts the first of what turned out to be many beautiful fish was brought to hand.  

The second experience that really stuck with me was seeing a particularly large fish sitting very close to the bank in water with very little current and I handed the rod to Paul. He did the usual guide thing, “oh man I can’t – no you take it – I hardly ever fish”. It was a good act, but I knew I could get him to do it. Watching someone that really knows what they are doing is always a thing of beauty to see, and watching Paul hook this fish on his first cast was no exception. There was a very narrow window into which the fly needed to drop, and he handled the situation masterfully. There’s so much to love about New Zealand but one of the things I love most is that the fishing is often so visual, it can be as much fun to watch the action as to be in it. 

Who is this trip best for: 
Poronui ticks a lot of boxes for traveling trout anglers. They access a wide variety of productive fisheries, and it is ideal for people who love to walk and wade and sight fish for larger than average rainbows and browns. Anglers looking for quality vs quantity when it comes to numbers, appreciate exceptionally comfortable accommodations, and have the budget to feel comfortable letting their guide make helicopter decisions based on the best fishing options are perfect candidates for this lodge. Anglers with a wide variety of angling skills and physical abilities can enjoy this experience but those with moderate to advanced fishing and walking/wading ability will get to take full advantage of everything Poronui has to offer.