New Zealand May 2003

I managed to miss a flight home after being on business in NZ one time and rang my good customer and friend Charlie Gray to find out what you could do on the weekend in downtown Auckland. Charlie suggested we go fly fishing - which neither of us had ever done before. I let my fingers do the walking and a short Google later I was on the phone to a fantastic guide at Lake Taupo named Peter Fordham. Peter sorted out all our lodgings, meals, gear, the works. Nothing was too much trouble. We made our way from Auckland to Taupo on the Friday evening and were greeted by Peter at our humble accommodation for the weekend. I say humble (sarcastically) as the lodge we were booked into could have accommodated 20 of us and would have befit royalty in standard of abode. Very nice start to what was to come. The next day Peter arrived and fitted us out with waders and gear and we were off to the lower reaches of the Tongararoo. Pulling off into a forestry dirt road we weaved our way into a secrete spot affectionately named by Peter as the "Honey Hole". In a small clearing Peter gave Charlie and I about 10 minutes of casting lessons and then we were off down a small ridge to the pristine waters below. From 30 feet away, Peter was able to clearly point out the fish in the water lined up like sardines in a can. First up was Charlie with instructions to duplicate the casting he'd just been shown a few minutes earlier. Three casts later saw him hook a good 6 pounder which after coaching by Peter was led to the net and promptly photographed before returning to the water. I was up next and hit the mark on my 4th cast and landed a similar sized 'first timer' fish. Could it get any better? You bet. This was the start of a day of landing magic fish in a magic location. This was the start of my passion for fly fishing. Also let it be known that missing a flight home isn't the end of the world - it can be a whole new beginning!