New Zealand Gold Prospecting & Metal Detecting Forums Archive

I heard a story this week about a guy down south who used to mine/dredge in the Clutha river, at that time he was having some trouble getting RC (resource consent) like usual there was bloody snot nose greenies.....and fisherman having a whinge about stirring up the water and poisoning all the fish life, what a lot of crap this turned out to be, after some months the person suction dredging keep noticing something out of the corner of his eye coming up behind him but every time he turned around in the water it disappeared, after some more time...the dredger noticed that just behind the dredge out feed was at least 10 fish & eels, before long the fish were at the dredge persons hips diving into the dredge face at little critters...some of these fish where easily 5 to 15 Lbs.
I've since discovered this is not an uncommon occurrence, however greenies will still whinge......but fisherman might do well to chuck there line in downstream from people dredging.....

Digger

Hi GBM & Digger,

I have heard the same up the Wakamarina in regards to trout comimg up to feed, I have never seen the little buggers feeding while dredging but they seem to turn up in numbers at times to check out the action.

Most of them are rats, maybe only one to two pound but still nice to see.

Snot nose greenies Digger, yep if there is one thing the pisses me off is the greenies, a bunch of informed time wasting, backside lickers that keep the country suppressed (thanks MMP).

Over 80% of the West Coast in the south island is locked up in DOC Admin. around 500 km's in length and around 50km's in width at the widest point.

How much gold could extracted from the Paparoa Rangers with little effect on the enviroment?,take a look across the Tasman, pretty simple stuff.

Cheers Steve

ive had large brownies come up behind me sniping feeding off disturbed nymphs, there not at all scared when easy food is on offer. Eagle too has had this and he is or was a trout fishing guide

Yes it is common for fish and eels especially to nose up behind the dredge to feed off any insects worms etc that get stirred up out of the gravel. I remember many years ago one of the most humongous eels I ever saw, a veritable taniwha come up behind my father - I thought it was going to have a go at him!!! Dad saw it and waiting for the right moment impaled it on his pick. I had never in all my life seen anything like it - the eel went mad, the water got stirred up into a muddy mass and you couldnt see a thing except..a foot, an eel tail, head - of eel, dads head, an arm, eels tail, a foot and so on until eventually dad struggled up onto the bank with the eel wound around his arm and still struggling.
I never did like eels much and another instance back about 1970 concerned a large eel cruising up behind me as I was working under an old wing dam. I decided that the nest time I was there I would demolish this particular eel so took up about ten sticks of chemical persuasion - threaded the 'goods' along a long length of cordex and let rip. Half the rocks along the wing dam became hurtling missiles, stripping the willow trees of branches and leaves and heres me dodging falling rocks but feeling very smug - until a short time later every eel this side of purgatory was cruising around waiting for a feed!
After that I kept my single shot .22 rifle on the bank...for shooting rabbits of course!

Edited by user Wednesday, 8 June 2011 4:03:11 PM(UTC)  | Reason: Not specified