The FishJet NZ TEAM
About Us
Fishjet NZ is locally owned business that is dedicated to providing exceptional guided fishing experiences in the Fiordland Region. We all have a passion for all things Fiordland and it’s wild, untamed beauty. Within our team and close relationships with other local operators, we can cater to more complex multi-day itineraries that incorporate non-angler outdoor adventures, big game hunting, and lodging packages in the Southland/Fiordland Region. Get in touch with us and we can work with you to design the trip itinerary that best suits your specific requirements.
Meet The Fishjet NZ Team
Ken Mitchell
Skipper and Fishing Guide
Ken grew up amongst the great outdoors on a farm close to the Mataura River, near Gore (the Brown Trout Capital of New Zealand) and spent much of his youth fishing and hunting in Fiordland. He is one of the most quintessentially kiwi blokes out there, having worked as a deer culler, farmer, professional Paua Diver and deer pregnancy scanner. A local of Te Anau for over 25 years, Ken knows Fiordland and Southland’s landscapes like the back of his hand.
Ken is a fully qualified skipper with over 25 years of experience. He has driven jet boats on the Waiau river for over 20 years and he was one of the original guides when Fishjet first started in 2012.
Jet boat Driver and Fishing Guide
SHaun Bilham
Shaun (pictured left) started out with the original Fishjet operation many fishing trips ago. Beneath the humble Southern Man persona, Shaun offers a sharp wit and impressive culinary skills. You’ll catch him guiding our Wilderness Fly Fishing and Jet Boat Fishing experiences where he delivers an outstanding day whether it’s for devoted anglers or absolute beginners. Shaun’s keen for everyone to experience Fiordland at some stage in their life.
When he’s out on a fly fishing trip, he likes to remind himself he is taking people into a location that offers some of the best fly fishing in New Zealand. To be able to catch wild trout surrounded by a World Heritage area; according to Shaun, it doesn’t get much better.
Skipper and Fishing Guide
Craig Hind
Craig (pictured left) brings over 20 years of commercial skippering and guiding to the Fishjet NZ team. Craig guides our jet boat and walk-wade fishing trips for both fly and spin fishing. In his own words Craig is just your typical “Mad Keen Fisho”. If it swims around Fiordland, he has fished for it! .
Craig grew up targeting many different fish species in his home country of South Africa, but his absolute passion has always been fly fishing and targeting fish on ultra light tackle. He moved to NZ in 2008 and started a fishing charter business, spending many years targeting trout and Salmon on the Southern lakes and guiding fly fishing guests on the rivers of Southland, Fiordland and Otago.
What Craig love the most about his job is seeing the joy on peoples faces when they land a fish, it gives him such a buzz and sometimes he get’s even more excited than the client.
Fishing Guide
Brayden HILL
Brayden’s spent his life fly fishing around the South Island, so there’s very few rivers and streams he hasn’t explored with a fly rod at some stage. Since taking up fly fishing at age 10, he’s developed a true talent for art, tempered by a humble approach that compliments the Fishjet NZ ethos.
Being a Southlander, he knows the many local rivers and Fiordland well, so you’ll find Brayden guiding our walk-wade fly fishing trips on the local streams and in the Fiordland Backcountry.
Fly Fishing Guide
Scott Slater
Scotty’s spent his life in pursuit of fish with a fly. He has a passion for sharing his knowledge and fly fishing skills with clients of all ages and abilities. He brings over 30 years of fly fishing experience and knowledge from his “other job” as an aquatic ecologist to his guiding career.
Scotty guides our Fiordland backcountry and Southland walk-wade trips. He also guides our drift boat experiences. He enjoys technical fishing, so he’s always trying to find ways to catch the fish that many anglers would deem uncatchable. As a master fly tier, Scotty has developed many special fly patterns for the Fishjet NZ team.
When he’s not guiding or at the vice, he is usually out on the water fishing or in the hills hunting.
Accounts and Administration
Deborah Wood
Debs has spent countless hours on the Waiau River fishing and recreating with her husband Jon and their children. Debs manages the Fishjet NZ books and she will be the person issuing and chasing up invoices. She brings her past life as an attorney to the Fishjet NZ team’s skill set, so we are very lucky to have a member of the team who can work out the fine print!
Bookings and Trip Support
Pam Mitchell
Pam manages all of our bookings and enquires during the busy fishing season. She’ll be your main point of contact for bookings.
She’s also the key support person keeping our trips and guides organized each day. A tremendous amount of work goes on behind the scenes to prepare and harmonize every trip, so we’d be lost without Pam keeping the operation running smooth.
