Our annual hosted trip to the West Ranga has just come to an end – and what a trip it was!

I am always slightly nervous of fishing reports coming to me before a trip that suggests that the river is fishing staggeringly well and the whole experience has been amazing – can it last?  Will it be a case of “you should have been here last week”

I should know better when we are talking about the West Ranga!

It really is top class in every respect, and the sheer reliability of the river makes it the dream destination to fish and to host.

Some rivers can blow out, some colour quickly, some have intermittent runs etc etc.  The West just keeps producing fish regardless of conditions.

Over our 4 days, we had rain, sun, high wind, no wind, drizzle and even weird light – we also caught just over 300 fish between us (308 to be precise)

I hover by the wader room at the end of each session, and it is just a brilliant feeling to see everyone coming back with huge smiles, laughing with their guides as they get out of the trucks and then telling me another fabulous session they have just had.

It is also a very fair river.  Those with plenty of experience will catch plenty and those who have just started will catch some and the learning curve is so much steeper when you are playing fish, losing fish and hooking fish.

I could go on about the fabulous food, the generically brilliant guides, the seamless logistics, the superbly appointed lodge and the sheer fun of being on a river which is populated by silver bullets, but it is simpler to say what is not good about it – nothing!

I will be hosting the same trip next year and if you want to know more, please contact me at Charlie.white@roxtons.com