“I was hunting since I was two-to-three years old — duck shooting, pig hunting, deer stalking with my father.
“Fly fishing came about through my connection with my grandfather. He was a really dedicated fly fisherman and salmon fisherman from Southland.
“I was always intrigued at the mystique of fly fishing. It was seen as the sport of kings at one stage in life and I always wanted to give it a go.”
Scott’s competitive nature wasn’t always directed towards fishing. As a teenager, he won three national gymnastics titles and then turned to surfing after being injured.
“I was the editor of New Zealand Surfing magazine for 20 odd years and I’d travel a lot. During that time I got to be immersed in the wilderness of New Zealand and that’s when I really started to pick up the fly fishing again.”
He keeps a delicate balance between his personal love of fishing and life as a working fishing guide.
“I found myself very lucky that I can call my my job my passion.
”I am guiding day in, day out. I get the odd day off here and there. Usually I’m recuperating and preparing, but if I’ve got any spare time, a couple of days slotted in between jobs, then I’m out there myself. And nothing lights my fire more than a journey into the back country, into the hills.
“In 2019, I hung up my rod, so to speak, and I finished at the World Fly Fishing Champs in Tasmania. And in the very last session of that world championships I walked out the winner of that session. It was good to go out on top and I went out on my own terms.”
But Scott is not done with fishing. Covid has brought him out of retirement.
“The world’s changed,” he said. “Everybody throughout the world has had to realign their life, what’s more important to them, and we’re seeing an uplift in recreational activities across all sports.
“For me, that was no different during that period where we were all questioning what’s more important in life.”
Scott competed in 2021 and won the national title again. This year he is stepping back into the international arena and is about to head off to the World Fly Fishing Champs in Slovakia.”
Scott says Gisborne is a surprisingly good base for his work and sport.
“Gisborne isn’t world famous for fly fishing but that’s a little bit of an underground secret, right here on the doorstep.
“Within 20 minutes to an hour’s drive, we can be in some of the best rivers in the world. We’ve got lakes nearby. We’ve got the best surfing in the country. And that’s the reason why I chose Gisborne as home.”
One of his main goals is to mentor and develop the careers of the next generation of fly fishermen.
“When I started out, nobody was passing on information, especially to a newbie or somebody that would be competing against you.
“We’ve got Hugo Pearce and Ollie Bassett and I helped them prepare for the world youth championships years ago, and this now is a stepping stone. They’re now going to the senior world championships, so that’s really good to see.”
Scott has fished rivers all over the world but the waterways in New Zealand still hold a special place in his heart.
“My most favourite place to head off and fish is a local river known as the Ruakituri in Te Urewera. That there is very special to me. There’s just something about heading up there, being in that forest, being in that environment.
“Every care in the world just floats away.”
