To put it simply, Ben is an outstanding guide. His years of experience are very obvious when it comes to finding and spotting fish, knowing waters and putting you in the best possible position to catch a fish. Fishing with Ben is a real pleasure.
Wow, we made the trip over to New Zealand hoping to catch a salmon each for the wall. I had mine by the first day and my mate by the second day. The trout fishing was just a bonus and was the best fishing we have had on some very large rainbows on tight skinny water. By far the most professional guide money can buy.
Ben is a brilliant guide. I spent a great day walking a high country stream with him. He seemed to know every twist, turn and pool and we saw and caught some of the biggest fish I have seen.
A really nice bloke who goes out of his way to make sure everything is perfect.
Our day fly fishing for trout with Ben Haywood was absolutely wonderful. As novice fly fishers we were a little concerned we wouldn’t be up to the task but with Ben’s advice and assistance we soon felt comfortable and relaxed, and we were onto the fish in no time. Ben’s knowledge of the river system was outstanding and his encouragement and expertise ensured we had a fun, exciting and thoroughly enjoyable day. Thanks to Ben, we can’t wait to get back so he can take us salmon fishing. I would happily recommend Ben to anyone wanting to fish in NZ. You are guaranteed to have a memorable experience and a fantastic time.
Ben is one of the best guides I have been fishing with. He knows the rivers really well and even better where the fish liked to hang out. He put me onto the fish within the half hour on the river and the action did not stop all day. In fact by the end of the day I had lost count of how many we caught and if not for all the photos Ben took throughout the day I would not have realized how many we actually put in the net.
I have already recommended Ben to some people I work with and would highly recommend him to anyone looking to go after some great New Zealand trout. He will definitely provide you the opportunities to catch fish and have a great day on the river.
I have never worked with a guide more dedicated than Ben. He was willing to start early and fish until late evening in order to give the best fishing experience ever! He really knows the rivers and how to put you on the fish. I would recommend him to any angler no matter what their experience level.
My full day of fly fishing for rainbow trout with Ben Haywood was a dream fulfilled. Ben has superlative guiding skills as well as being incredibly patient and helpful. This allowed me to catch some large trout along one of his favourite streams. His uncanny knack of spotting fish in the water, and telling you where to place the fly was very efficient in fishing long stretches of the stream. This was a fishing experience that I will never forget.
This was my third trip with Ben, that says it all! He finds fish where I can only see rocks. The only thing he doesn’t seem to control is the weather! Up your game Ben. He now knows I like challenging, hard, long days on the river. My legs and I are never disappointed. Excellent guiding! I will be back again.
I have never fished with anyone who is able to spot fish better than my guide Ben Haywood. He put me on multiple large rainbows in only a half day fishing trip. It was a first class experience and a fly fishing trip of a life time. Thank you Ben.
We spent 2 days’ fly fishing with Ben in January and it was great! He really wanted us to catch fish and we did even though it was our first time fly fishing. I would definitely recommend Ben and my only advice would be to prepare a large strong coffee because the early wake up can be hard but worth it! I hope to come back to New Zealand and fly fish with Ben again. Greg and Claude