As
one of New Zealand 's best known fly fishing
guides Chappie explains the passion that
he has for fishing.
" I caught my first fish at age six.
It was not a trout, but I discovered fly-fishing
at thirteen. Where I grew up, there was
a mountain, from whose graceful slopes
flowed no fewer than three hundred streams,
most of which held trout.
Some of those streams were small, and
that's where I started to learn my craft.
To this day my preferred fishing, is with
a dry-fly in a small stream. In the mid
1970's I did something that was considered
radical (at least in those days). I sold
up and quit my job, brought a 4WD vehicle
and a caravan, and went fishing for the
next three and a half years. I guess if
you do something for long enough, you
are bound to get proficient at it sooner
or later!
I have been guiding anglers
for over twenty years, although that has
not always been a full time job for me,
as it is now. I spent a good number of
years in the fishing tackle industry,
both at wholesale and retail, during which,
I have had the opportunity to be involved
with design and development of some of
the more popular brands of fly-fishing
tackle on the market today.
In addition to fly fishing
guiding, I run about twenty five, two
day fly-fishing schools at introductory
to mid level, and about five or six three
day advanced level.
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