Tony Entwistle

Women on the Fly NZ encourages women to build confidence on the water through shared learning, mentoring, and time spent fishing together. Occasionally an opportunity comes along for someone to spend time with an experienced guide and accelerate that learning even further. Jill Holdgate recently spent three days fishing and learning with Nelson guide Tony Entwistle of Fly Fishing with Tony. The conditions were far from ideal, but as Jill discovered, challenging days on the water often produce the biggest learning moments. Jill’s Story Spending three days with Tony Entwistle in January 2026 was the highlight of my summer. The fishing was challenging and trout were scarce, but there was something new to learn every minute. Fairly new to getting out on the water, I arrived ready to learn. Tony soon put me at ease, and the learning began almost immediately as we drove around the Nelson region searching for fishable water. Our first stop was St Arnaud, where we paused to visit the eels in the crystal-clear water. Tony told me how his guiding career began there while teaching at an outdoor school. It was a place that helped launch the path that eventually led to Fly Fishing with … Read more