West Coast

Karamea River

West Coast·Buller and Karamea·41.23° S, 172.49° E

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About Karamea River

The Karamea is one of New Zealand's best wilderness brown trout rivers. It rises in the Allen Ranges and runs most of its length inside Kahurangi National Park. It flows north to Karamea Bend, where the Leslie joins, turns west past the Roaring Lion, drops through a steep gorge, then crosses farmland to the sea at Karamea. Fish & Game's guide says drift dive surveys have counted more than 100 brown trout a kilometre in some sections. Fish in the upper river average over 1.8 kg (4 lb) and can reach trophy size. The lower river also gets sea-run trout.

The water stays clear except after very heavy rain, and it clears again quickly. Above the Leslie, the river runs strongly over a stable rock and stone bed: ideal nymph and dry fly water. Fish a gold bead Hare and Copper or Pheasant Tail in sizes 12 to 14, or a bushy palmered dry. Between Karamea Bend and the Roaring Lion, the water is a mix of strong rapids, glides and deep pools, and smaller nymphs and dries such as an Adams or a Greenwell's Glory work better, with a green beetle in early summer and a cicada in late summer. The gorge below the Roaring Lion is hard going and only for fit, competent anglers. The lower river is wide and suits spinning, with a Black Toby, a Tasmanian Devil or a Mepps. There is often a good evening rise where the river comes out of the gorge, and small wets such as a March Brown or Dad's Favourite work then.

Above the Kakapo confluence the Karamea is a designated water, so you need a designated waters licence on top of your Fish & Game licence. The upper river is a two to three day walk on the Leslie-Karamea Track, or a helicopter ride. DOC's track has huts at Karamea Bend, the Crow, Venus, Thor and Trevor Carter. Its streams are mostly unbridged and flood-prone. Fish & Game recommends a guide to get the best from the river. The lower river is about 1 hr 40 min by road from Westport. The West Coast Regional Council's gauge in the lower gorge is live on this page. Check, clean and dry your gear between rivers to stop the spread of didymo.

Species

Brown Trout
Primary · Oct-Apr, all year below the gorge · Over 1.8 kg (4 lb) average in the upper river, trophy fish possible
Wild and self-sustaining. Some sections hold more than 100 fish a kilometre. The best sight fishing is in the national park above the gorge.
Sea Run Brown Trout
Present (lower river) · Oct-Dec · Can be large
Sea-run browns come into the lower reaches below the gorge.

Species	Abundance	Best Season	Size
Brown Trout	Primary	Oct-Apr, all year below the gorge	Over 1.8 kg (4 lb) average in the upper river, trophy fish possible
Sea Run Brown Trout	Present (lower river)	Oct-Dec	Can be large

Sections

4 reaches

Karamea Bend to the Roaring Lion

WadeBrown Trout

Below Karamea Bend the river turns west through strong rapids and glides with some deep pools, down to the Roaring Lion confluence. Drift dive surveys have counted over 100 brown trout a kilometre in parts of the river. Every method works here. It is still designated water and still a long way from any road.

Best for: Brown trout in good numbers on smaller nymphs and dry flies, with beetle patterns in early summer and cicadas late.

Karamea Gorge

WadeBrown Trout

Below the Roaring Lion the river drops through a steep, rugged gorge, past the Ugly and Kakapo confluences, to the cableway at the mouth of the lower gorge. It is hard going and only for fit, competent anglers, but the fishing is very good for those who reach it. The designated water ends at the Kakapo confluence.

Best for: Brown trout in the pools for anglers ready to scramble, on weighted nymphs and spinners.

Above the Leslie

WadeBrown Trout

The upper Karamea, flowing north past the Crow confluence to Karamea Bend, where the Leslie joins. Strong water over a stable bed of rock and stones, ideal for nymphs and dry flies. Fewer fish than lower down, but they average over 1.8 kg (4 lb) and can reach trophy size. It is a designated water, a two to three day walk or a helicopter ride in.

Best for: Sight fishing for big wild brown trout with weighted nymphs and bushy dry flies in sizes 12 to 14.

Lower Karamea

WadeBrown Trout

From the mouth of the lower gorge, the river opens out over farmland to the sea at Karamea. Wide water best suited to spinning, though fly fishing still works, with a good evening rise where the river leaves the gorge. Sea-run brown trout come into the lower reaches. Open all year below the gorge cableway. Reach it across farmland on either bank, and leave gates as you find them.

Best for: Spinning and evening wet flies for brown trout and sea-run browns, close to Karamea town.

At a glance

Ideal wading flow: 26–87 m³/s
Blow-out: >180 m³/s
Ideal water temp: 10–18°C

Best seasons

October to April above the gorge cableway, and all year below it. Early summer brings beetles and late summer cicadas, and the evening rise is good all season in the lower river. It stays clear except after very heavy rain and clears quickly afterwards. The window is read at the West Coast Regional Council's gauge in the lower gorge. Its record covers the ten seasons to 2024, November to April. It puts most fishing days at about 26 to 87 m³/s (920 to 3,080 cfs), close to what the old Tasman District Council gauge recorded over 30 years. Over about 180 m³/s (6,340 cfs), the wettest tenth of days, it is in flood. The upper river carries far less water than these figures. Trout feed best at about 10 to 18 °C (50 to 64 °F).

Regulations

Upstream of the Kakapo confluence the Karamea is a designated water, open 1 October to 30 April. Between the Kakapo and the cableway at the mouth of the lower gorge, the season is also 1 October to 30 April. Below the cableway it is open all year. Fly, spinner and bait are allowed throughout, with a daily bag of 2 brown trout and 2 rainbow trout and no minimum size.

Licence: A Fish & Game New Zealand sports fishing licence. Above the Kakapo confluence you also need a designated waters licence, which Fish & Game issues.

Karamea catchment upstream of the Kakapo River confluence: designated water, open 1 October to 30 April, fly, spinner and bait, daily bag 2 brown trout and 2 rainbow trout.
Downstream of the Kakapo confluence to the cableway at the mouth of the lower gorge: open 1 October to 30 April, fly, spinner and bait, daily bag 2 brown trout and 2 rainbow trout.
Downstream of the cableway at the mouth of the lower gorge: open all year, fly, spinner and bait, daily bag 2 brown trout and 2 rainbow trout.
West Coast region: no minimum length for trout, and no more than 1 salmon a day.
Felt-soled waders and boots are banned in New Zealand.

The West Coast region asks anglers to keep to a voluntary limit of six trout a day caught and released. Check West Coast Fish & Game's website (https://fishandgame.org.nz/west-coast/) for the current rules and any in-season changes before you go.

Source: Fish & Game New Zealand, West Coast region: Sports Fishing Regulations 2026–27. Regulations change annually. Verify before fishing.

Getting there

Karamea, West Coast

About 1 hr 40 min (98 km) from Westport to Karamea town and the lower river. The Flora car park, at the eastern end of the Leslie-Karamea Track, is 36 km from Motueka, and DOC times the walk from there to Karamea Bend Hut at about 10 hr 30 min, usually split over two days.

Camping: Accommodation and a holiday park in Karamea for the lower river. In the national park, DOC huts on the Leslie-Karamea Track at Karamea Bend, the Crow, Venus, Thor and Trevor Carter.

The lower river up to the gorge is reached across farmland on either bank. Leave gates as you find them. The mouth is reached through the Karamea Holiday Park or from Flagstaff Road. A walking route reaches the middle river through the gorge. The upper river is a multi-day tramp on an advanced track with unbridged, flood-prone streams, or a helicopter flight.

Karamea River

West Coast·Buller and Karamea·41.23° S, 172.49° E

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Fishing: Poor
Flow: 221m³/s; Rising; Karamea at the Gorge
Water temp: —

Flow

221m³/s

Rising

Karamea at the Gorge

Water temp

—

Normal range

—

Weather

15°C

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See the full conditions on the Karamea River

Flow and temperature charts for every station, the weather, and the days ahead. Free, with an email.

A free account also gets you

5-day Fish Index forecastSee how each of the next 5 days rates on every river and lake, from the flow or wind, water temperature, weather and moon forecasts.
A dashboard for your watersSave your rivers and lakes and compare them on one board, with the last week and the days ahead.
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Already have an account?

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Solunar · next 7 days

About Karamea River

Species

Brown Trout
Primary · Oct-Apr, all year below the gorge · Over 1.8 kg (4 lb) average in the upper river, trophy fish possible
Wild and self-sustaining. Some sections hold more than 100 fish a kilometre. The best sight fishing is in the national park above the gorge.
Sea Run Brown Trout
Present (lower river) · Oct-Dec · Can be large
Sea-run browns come into the lower reaches below the gorge.

Species	Abundance	Best Season	Size
Brown Trout	Primary	Oct-Apr, all year below the gorge	Over 1.8 kg (4 lb) average in the upper river, trophy fish possible
Sea Run Brown Trout	Present (lower river)	Oct-Dec	Can be large