Travel guides suggest some great fishing destinations

There are plenty of reasons for travelling, and sport and recreational interests are certainly among them.

It definitely adds to the pleasure of visiting somewhere new if part of the object is to, say, try out the trout fishing, or head upriver in a kayak, or set off to explore by boat.

It's also an area where guide books can be useful, providing advice on the best places to go, where to hire gear and how to deal with any problems.

DIVE - THE ULTIMATE GUIDE: 60 of the world's top dive locations

By Monty Halls

Penguin Books ($79.95)

Reviewed by Dean Tully



The perfect coffee-table companion for a diver planning to travel, Dive - The Ultimate Guide describes 60 of the top dive spots around the world. Just the thing to get you excited as you decide which of these exotic dive locations to choose from.

A4 in size and 320 pages long, Dive contains a lot of information and images.

But - one word of caution - do not buy the book expecting high quality photos. The low quality reproductions are generally rather disappointing. The washed-out look gives the impression that many were taken in the 1970s.

The information on each location is fairly comprehensive, outlining the key dives, main attractions, how to get there and any downsides.

Dive centres, dive organisations, recompression chambers, hospitals and conservation societies are included for each site with contact numbers and emails.

The book also gives each site a dive level rating, from beginner to advanced, so that you can choose a location to match your experience.

A particularly useful section in the guide is the best time to visit, which outlines temperature and visibility throughout the year at each of the dive locations allowing you to time your holiday to make the most of each location.

The author's selection of top dive locations throughout the world is well spread over the globe with South America the only region receiving little coverage.

And the strong conservation message throughout the book is good to see.

As New Zealand has a very high proportion of scuba divers, this book should go down well.

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THE ARTFUL SCIENCE OF TROUT FISHING

By John Hayes and Les Hill

Canterbury University Press $49.95

Reviewed by Harvey Clark

Scientist John Hayes and photographer Les Hill, South Island troutfishers with a wealth of experience, combine to produce one of the most exceptional books on angling published in New Zealand.

The book serves as an invaluable guide to the tourist angler as well as sounding a wake-up call on the degrading state of the world-renowned New Zealand fishery and what must be done to protect and conserve it, particularly our pristine back-country wilderness rivers which, unlike the lowland rivers and lakes, are still largely free of polluting farm run-off and dairy herds.

Discussing complacency about our so-called clean, green image, the authors point out that some dairy farms have as many as 4000 cows. "The nutrient pollution from a farm this size is equivalent to a town of 16,000 people."

In their well-researched arguments for greater environmental awareness, conservation and more funding, they point out that not only are trout pursued by 160,000 New Zealand anglers; in the year 2000 nearly 50,000 international visitors went troutfishing here and they spent $200 million - almost twice as much as the non-fishing tourist. Hence the value of the fishery to the economy.

Hayes' easy-to-read research findings - he is senior scientist with the Cawthron Institute in Nelson - is fascinating and informative.

It is the sort of stuff that should instil in any reader the desire and know-how to improve their angling ability - he gives away a lot of little secrets - and inspire them to do their bit for conservation.

The authors cover in detail how, when, where and why trout feed; why and when they prefer certain types of water over other types; how well they can see; their life cycle, senses and behaviour; fishing strategies and how to read water and select the potential lies. The book title is well chosen - troutfishing is indeed an artful science.

They point out that the modern philosophy of catch-and-release was introduced by overseas anglers, particularly Americans, and that in one recent South Island back-country survey the release rate by overseas visitors was 98.8 per cent compared with 80 per cent by New Zealand fishers.

So increasing angling pressure can hardly be blamed on tourists. It would seem that tourists appreciate our country more than we do ourselves.

For the travelling angler, the book is an excellent general guide to be preferred over the more specific guide books on the market, which can become outdated as trout habitat changes through nature's moods such as floods.

A visitor having read the book will know, for example, to head for the Tongariro spawning runs if he's in the North Island in the winter/spring; to head for the cold stream mouths if he's visiting Rotorua in high summer; to try for trophy browns if he's staying near South Island east coast tidal reaches in spring; to fish at night in high summer if back-country trout are lethargic and failing to feed by day.

It's a fine book, so we can forgive the inexplicable lack of expertise in choosing a cover photograph of an angler wearing a bright yellow shirt easily spotted by any cruising trout; or the bright blue jacket on page 232 which could be seen on the moon.

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RECREATIONAL BOATING GUIDES

David Bateman, $39.99

Reviewed by Alex Robertson

When Captain James Cook came to Aotearoa, he was sailing in pretty much uncharted waters. Rocks, reefs and fast-running tides were all hazards that he and his crew would have faced without the benefit of knowing where they were and how best to avoid them.

Three hundred years later and your average Kiwi boatie still faces similar problems. Fortunately, thanks to Cook and generations of cartographers and hydrographers the coastline of New Zealand can be safely navigated with the aid of charts and tide tables.

Navigational charts are fine things for negotiating a safe passage across the water. They present complex information in a relatively easy-to-understand graphic format, but that's about it. So, once you've avoided the submerged rock that could make the difference between a fabulous weekend and your last voyage, the fishing quota has been met and the wind has dropped below 8 knots, what else is there to do?

David Bateman's Recreational Boating Guides could be the answer. A sort of a cross between a cruising guide and a navigational chart, there is useful local knowledge on places of interest and walks, where to drop your anchor and how best to take a tricky channel using the tide and wind to your advantage.

They're based on the Navy-produced navigational charts and include all the essential information on buoys, lights, underwater obstructions, tidal streams and navigable channels. And because it's a book of maps, they've included larger-scale charts of the more popular bays and good anchorages.

And there's more: they're spiral bound (so the spines won't break) and come inside a sealable, plastic pouch.

One could argue that these map books take the adventure out of sailing. But, if it's adventure you really want, why not pull up in a deserted bay, row ashore and read all about Captain Cook and his voyage to the New World.

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OLDER AND BOLDER

By Judith Doyle

New Holland ($30)

Reviewed by Chris Garner

We're all living longer and healthier lives, or so the health gurus tell us, so age should not be a barrier to outdoor adventure.

Author Judith Doyle has followed this philosophy to the full and in the past 10 years (she is now 70-plus) has kayaked and camped in the Marlborough Sounds; ridden horses and lived rough in the rugged Ureweras; gone cross-country skiing near Wanaka and indulged in many other exciting activities.

Her accounts of all her adventures, detailed in Older and Bolder, are at once inspiring, interesting and informative.

Like the sensible person she is, Judith has undertaken her intrepid journeys in the care of organised tours making it easier for others to follow in her footsteps.

Not a wealthy person, she saved to finance her trips and made the most of them, showing that you don't need to be rich to be adventurous.

However, she thinks everyone contemplating an intrepid journey should check recommended fitness and health requirements.

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KIWI AFLOAT

By Doris Coppell

Addenda Publishing ($34.95)

Reviewed by Chris Garner

Quite the opposite, but just as adventurous, is Doris Coppell's tale of an abiding love of barges, boats and British canals.

Although New Zealand-born, Coppell spent 20 years in Yorkshire in the 1970s and 80s where she and her second husband Alec Coppell found a common interest in boats.

Over the years she kept a detailed record of their adventures afloat, beginning with their first purchase, an old boat called Salidha, which they revamped with almost their last pound then set off in to explore the local waterways.

Written in a humorous style, the book is a wonderful travelogue of the journeys the Coppells and various friends undertook along meandering canals through England and Wales.

Despite some knowledge of sailing the couple were amateurs when it came to negotiating the waterways with its complicated system of locks and many funny events occurred throughout the years.

Most of us probably have an idyllic dream of barging on Britain's waterways, savouring fine pubs, beautiful villages and grand old manor houses along the way.

Kiwi Afloat may be just the inspiration you need to make it happen.

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ARE WE THERE YET? Rach and Jules take to the open road

By Rachael Weiss with Julie Adams

Allen and Unwin ($27.99)

Reviewed by Chris Garner

Two thirty-something Aussie chicks hit the road "in search of the ultimate solo holiday and the secret to external happiness".

I suppose it could appeal if you're single, 30-ish and interested in ideas for a girlie holiday in Australia. Oh, and judging from this pair's adventures, you'd need to be pretty focused on trying to impress any males you meet.

Funny? Well, for some reason, maybe age-related, I didn't enjoy the tone or style of writing.

There are times, such as when the girls strike trouble at the Southern Highlands health retreat, or get in a pickle horse-riding in the Blue Mountains, that can induce sympathy and a smile for this pair. Otherwise, not for me.