REED POOL

Reed Pool Update – 2006

Generally there are no changes to Reeds Pool in the last year. Reeds deserves its reputation as a reliable producer. The favoured spot is still where the track emerges on the beach above the snag. In 2006 the Log Pool above Reed Pool appears to be increasingly popular using the access from the Reserve on Tautahanga Road. But the hot spot over the last year has been the crossing below the island below Shaws Reach below Bain Pool. (?) This is how you get there…

From Bains Pool carpark take the 4WD track down to Bains Pool (if confused or lost refer to the Bain Pool Report), then divert onto the foot-track down to Reeds. Follow the track for about 2 minutes until you reach the fork to the left leading across to the island…

Take this left fork and wade across to the island. The exit is steep onto the island but after that the track is easy to follow to the small beach. The best lie is up river on the LHS.

This leads on to an easy crossing over to the top of the Log Pool. Look out for snags… Superfly.co.nz love this pool as they sell flies…

This series of reports was originally requested by regular Tongariro River Motel inmate, Wayne Godkin, to advise him on changes to Tongariro River pools in 2005 - particularly following the February 2004 flood and river works reconstruction since. As such, some pools have not been included as they have not changed in any significant way. Therefore, perhaps the Reed Pool hardly warrants an update at all. We are advised the only major difference is that the often flooded access is more difficult, and the pool now has larger and more numerous snags.

It is practically only fishable from the wide sanddrift beach which extends 300m -400m along the northern or RHS. The river widens and the rate of flow slows to a crawl, gliding smoothly through Reeds so big casts are needed across to a current line along the LHS. This lower river area is still strewn with flood debris, tangled willows, sunken trees and is visually messy and quite mucky compared to the upper river aspects. Indeed, TRM inmates assure us that Reeds no longer really qualifies as a holding pool, nor Smallmans Reach, nor the Log Pool.

Previously one of the main attributes was a minor spawning stream which spews in at the bottom of Reeds from the LHS, but a large snaggy log jam chose the stream mouth as a perfect place to anchor and collect flies, so this has made any casting or wading unnecessarily dangerous and ridiculously expensive in lost leaders and snagged flies. With the first spawning tributary into the river, the flow rate increases strongly at this converging confluence. It may once have been an interesting spot but so many hidden snags now makes wading too dangerous.

Reed Pool - July 2005

The usual access is via Grace Road, then proceed down the only farm road on left after Herekiekie Street, just past Tongariro Lodge, along a rough and often flooded pumice track leading to the river. Limited parking is available either at the end of the gravel road or on the stoney beach for 4WD vehicles - refer to the Bain Pool report.

A winding track leads down river from just where the vehicle access joins the beach. Reeds is about 20 minutes (in waders) beyond Bain Pool along the undulating bank on what struggles to even qualify as an angling trampers track.

Alternative access directly across the private farmland track to the top of Reeds is now fenced off, or the previous sunken trail leading upriver from the bottom of Graces Road was washed out during the 2004 flood and is now overgrown and too arduous for sensible anglers. Some anglers have been known to completely lose their way down on the swampy flood plain too.

This same hardy breed of angling trampers suggest there is no easy access at all on the LHS after reconstruction works blocked the shallow spawning side stream, which only ever held skinny black recovering slabs anyway - well, so they advise.

Even if access on the LHS was humanly possible, the spreading blackberry jungle deliberately targets expensive new breathable waders trying to rip them to shreds.

The LHS bank mainly comprises overgrown willows and difficult to fish from at all.

Evidently the only reason anglers waddle down there in waders most days is for their health - anglers love tramping in the great outdoors. We notice most also take their rods as well - obviously extreme incurable optimists - just in case?

NOTE: Pool Reports for the Tongariro River are prepared from guest/anglers experiences. As such, Tongariro River Motel do not accept any responsibility for the opinions of other anglers who are traditionally acknowledged liars about their best fishing pools.