Where should I start. After almost 3 years of COVID-timeout I was looking forward to my upcoming NZ trip. Or looking forward is probably an extreme understatement. I really, really missed my long back country trips on my beloved rivers. Also good Kiwi friends and colleagues. So I planned my good 4 weeks New Zealand adventure carefully in advance to get the maximum out of it.

Since my first encounter with the beautiful rivers of New Zealand way over a decade ago my passion for sight-fishing has been growing continuously and I have returned to New Zealand’s back-country every possible season – between two and seven months on each trip. I walked the length of the South Island for over 24 months, experienced all seasons and fished more than 132 different rivers.

On my last trips to New Zealand I somehow got a bit lazy and forgot to explore new waters. But not this year. My goal was “get again out of the comfort zone!”. So I set myself the ambition to explore at least 10 new remote rivers to pursue my passion as a back country fly fisherman. One commitment – one plan.

Together and with the new ULBC equipment and the new NT11 trout fly rods we started our adventure on the remote rivers of New Zealand. The weather gods were kind to us and we spent two weeks continuously on the river, so to speak. We only went back to civilization when we were dislocating or ran out of food. This adventure was perfect to test the new Guideline material to the limit. If anyone needs good ultralight back country outdoor material and a precise and reliable trout fly rod, it’s me!

I was thrilled to see how the ULBC gear would perform in the back country. The idea of Guideline to design a ULBC line is ingenious from my point of view and corresponds the customers with the desire for adventurous fishing trips. Guideline has put a lot of thought into important details that are essential for ULBC trips. “Reduce it to the Max” was the motto and Guideline did a great job. In addition, I would like to highlight the new front mounted ULBC Waistbag 3 from Guideline. The compatibility with the ULBC Daypack but also with larger backpacks for longer trips is clever and very practical at the same time. The Waistbag is spacious enough for all the essential gear you need on a back country trip. I am excited to see how Guideline is going to complete the ULBC line. I will definitely test the upcoming material on my next New Zealand trip.

I was also flattered to be one of the first fly fishers ever to test the new NT11 on some of the best trout rivers in the world. My conclusion: probably the best rod Guideline has ever produced and a must-have for every passionate trout fisherman. Leif and I had a fantastic but very exhausting outdoor time. We experienced a lot, caught fantastic fish and in the evening we chatting about our experiences and plans. Our trip was all about one thing – It’s all about the experience!