Dame Lynda Topp supports Fish & Game angling and hunting campaign

Fish & Game New Zealand chief executive Corina Jordan (left) with Dame Lynda Topp at the launch of the Rewild campaign.

Kiwi icon and avid hunter and fisher Dame Lynda Topp is supporting a new campaign aimed at “rewilding” New Zealanders.

The Rewild campaign, launched in Christchurch yesterday by Fish & Game New Zealand, aims to hook Kiwis on the experience of freshwater fishing and hunting.

The campaign, which will feature stories, social media content, billboards and advertising across the country, will include events and resources to support people wanting to have a go at fishing and hunting.

“We’re saying you need to get wild again,” Topp told The Country’s Jamie Mackay.

“People have such busy lives, and they end up working or hanging out with friends in town... you need to back out into the beautiful rivers and mountains, and while you’re out there, have a go at hunting and fishing.”

Novices were welcome, as the campaign was aimed at all skill levels, Topp said.

“If you’re new to the game ... I’m sure you know somebody - or somebody who knows a hunter or an angler who would love to take you.”

The campaign was also an opportunity for the hunting and fishing community to “step up”, Topp said.

“[They can say], ‘I can take you fishing, I know a good spot for beginners or young kids’.”

Topp said it wasn’t just about catching the biggest trout or bagging the most impressive stag.

“Not only is it about hunting and fishing, but it’s also about getting out into the environment - a healthy environment.”

Apart from food-gathering, there are other benefits, such as environmental stewardship and conservation.

The environment was important to Topp, who said she was a trustee of Hunters for Conservation.

“The idea is that hunting and fishing and conservation go hand in hand.”

She said the community had “a new mindset” about conservation nowadays.

“There’s a different feeling from the hunting and fishing people out there who are concerned about the environment - climate change is upon us and all sorts of things - and that will affect game animals and fish and birds.

“So we have to be aware of those things, and we also have to make sure that all our native birds and our native fish are looked after as well - so it’s a nice combination.”

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Fishing and hunting were also great for physical and mental wellbeing, and the Rewild campaign aimed to raise awareness of this, Topp said.

“I think what’s happened is that people have forgotten that fresh air and a little bit of sunshine in a really beautiful environment - it takes you somewhere else.

“What it does for me is, it makes me stop and think about nothing.”

Topp was diagnosed with Grade 3 invasive breast cancer in December 2021.

She found wading in cold rivers helped with the neuropathy in her feet, which were “numb and painful from the chemo”.

She said she intended to take full advantage of this discovery.

“It’s a good excuse to let everybody know that I have to go fishing at least once a week now - just as a medical treatment,” she laughed.

• Find out more about the Rewild campaign at rewild.fishandgame.org.nz.