By Tony Smith

Each year I manage to get down to visit and stay with friends in Alexandra who are immersed into the environment of hunting and fishing. This passion enhanced by wives and partners who are incredible cooks ensure any resulting harvest is enjoyed by many. If there is an adult version of being spoilt then this is me and my experience whenever in “Alex”.

My friends who contribute to these occasions have skills that could open and run a restaurant. The group has a former wine producer, a former butcher and builders, one of who is fast becoming an expert in charcuterie. They all love to hunt, are splendid gardeners and with all this I can at times add value with my chef background.

I lived here for a time in the early 60s as a child, in fact I can remember well the centennial celebrations in 1962 celebrating the gold mining era. There was a gold dredge still operating up until 1962, working up the Earnscleugh side of the river. The resulting tailings of these operations are still there to be seen and sluicing scars are everywhere around the whole region of Central Otago.

But the one single historic treasure that fascinates me most is the remains of the schist stone huts and dwellings scattered around the area, many on the river banks of the Clutha river. They were crafted by the miners from the only available material, simple and clever. Some used the natural rock shelters and enhanced them. Many of these were constructed by the Chinese miners who followed later into already worked claims, separate lives often driven by the racist attitudes of the times. Many of these industrious Chinese workers made a significant contribution to the area and further afield with their expertise in Market Gardening.

The winters in the area are as severe as any in New Zealand and I cannot imagine life in these simple shelters during these times. Maybe in our present lives of expectation a night spent in one of these huts might put things into perspective. Even then though I suspect we would spend the night in a modern goose-down sleeping bag!

The work of endurance is plain to see and include walled irrigation channels, some of which are still in use today in farming and horticultural areas.

Some distance down the river there is the Heron Cottage, recently restored to a point to prevent further gradual decay. This article from the Otago Daily Times offer further insight into this work, and the lives of the original inhabitants. And if you’re interested, a wonderful book worth searching out is Goldfields of Otago by John Hall Jones.

To fish down the river from Alexandra a boat is a huge advantage and a wonderful way to take in the delightful environment, fishing with a well chosen spinning lure is the way to go.

All of the well known spinning tackle seems to work well at times and my Alexandra friends all have their favourites. Harling close to the shoreline near to the weed beds and willows is the preferred method and trawling a weighted line in the deeper waters works well. Casting over the shallow weed beds can be exciting fishing and I know flicking a dry fly line to trout cruising and rising around the several willow lined river bays would work well.

Following a morning’s fishing we cooked a couple of fish up for lunch. Three ingredients: a little butter or oil for the pan, salt and some picked wild thyme that covers the hills down here. Salt and cook the skin side down first, the crisp skin is eaten as well.

I ‘roughly’ filleted two fish and cooked one whole, we had a small gas cooker which is perfect to have on hand for such occasions; the simple experience of cooking and sampling the harvest is rewarding for all.