Tongariro River book shares history of trout fishing

Grant Henderson has recorded the history of fishing on the Tongariro River.

The Tongariro River’s rich trout fishing waters aren’t exactly a secret, but there was never a single account of its history- until now.

Author Grant Henderson spent large parts of his 60-year angling career on the Tongariro River, and has now written a full retrospective of its relationship with trout and humans in the book Fishing the Tongariro: A History of Our Greatest Trout River.

The book traces the development of the Tongariro through the 20th century, from the first anglers on the water to the advent of the hydroelectric scheme and beyond.

Henderson set about writing the book because he was surprised to learn that no account already existed.

“I wrote this book because it seemed important to record more than 100 years of fishing on New Zealand’s finest rainbow trout river- something no one else had done.”

The book recounts the history of trout fishing alongside the development of the Tongariro River.

Alongside a comprehensive history of the river, the book features a wide variety of photographs showing the landscape and people of the area.

Henderson collected stories from many different sources, including angling legends like John Parsons, who contributed some photographs and ideas to the book.

“Much has happened at Taupō since trout were introduced to the region some 120 years ago.

“But as John Parsons wrote in his book Parsons’ Glory, ‘it doesn’t matter if you don’t catch anything’.

“Hope springs eternal, and there will always be the magical thrill of simply going fishing.”

Henderson will be signing copies of his book at Naylors Bookshop in Tūrangi on Saturday, August 12 at 1.30pm and at Hunting and Fishing in Taupō on Sunday, August 13 at 11 am.

The Taupō and Tūrangi Herald has a copy of Fishing the Tongariro: A History of Our Greatest Trout River to give away. To be in with a chance to win, email the answer to this question to news@taupoturangiherald.co.nz, with your name and contact details:

Which two species of trout are commonly caught in the Tongariro River?