Flyfisher Fall 2014 - Winter 2015 by Fly Fishers International

Autumn 2014 - Winter 2015 • $3

M AGA Z I N E O F T H E I N T E R N AT I O N A L F E D E R AT I O N O F F LY F I S H E R S fedflyfishers.org

C o n s e r v i n g , R e s to r i n g , E d u c a t i n g T h r o u g h F l y Fi s h i n g®

POISON THAT SAVES

FISH YELLER GOLD! YELLOWSTONE CUTTHROAT

FISHING MID-DEPTH

SMALLMOUTH

BASS

Conserving, Restoring, Educating, through fly fishing®

The International Federation of Fly Fishers Name:_______________________________________________ Mailing Address:_ ______________________________________ ____________________________________________________ Phone: ________________ E-mail:_ _______________________ m Individuals - $35 m Senior - $25 m Youth - $15 m Family: $45 m Life: $500 m Canadians add $5 for postage m International add $10 for postage Enclose check or provide credit card information: Credit Card #__________________________Exp Date______ Authorized Signature__________________________________ Return to: International Federation of Fly Fishers _ 5237 US Highway 89 South, Suite 11, Livingston, MT 59047 ®

Join by sending in the form above or online at www.fedflyfishers.org 406-222-9369

make a difference 50th Anniversary Rods! Limited edition salt water rod, trout rod and bamboo

at the store

When you make a purchase from the IFFF online_ Sweetgrass Rods

store, you support the sport you love and the natural resources you cherish. IFFF merchandise not only helps the cause of the IFFF financially, but clothing, decals and patches increase awareness of the organization that serves to conserve, restore and educate for the future of fly fishing. And, of course, YOU benefit from the fabulous book and DVD resources and all the_ items available at the IFFF online store. Make a purchase, make a difference. It’s a win-win situation for all.

www.fedflyfishers.org/store.aspx

FISHING PHOTO COURTESY DANANTHON.COM, OTHERS COURTESY PAT OGLESBY

Anywhere fly fishers have an interest, the IFFF can and does play a role. Join others who are dedicated to the betterment of the sport of fly fishing – Join the IFFF.

FEATURES

Mid-Depth Tactics For Stream Smallmouth Bass

Poison That Saves Fish

Working to save native fish from introduced species. By Ted Williams

That Sweet Yeller Gold!

Fishing for Yellowstone cutthroat trout. By Kelly G. Glissmeyer

DEPARTMENTS 6 8

IFFF Directors and Officers Just Fishing I Am a Member

Meet Al Quattrocchi

Letter Home Waters

Cover photo: Seeing a Yellowstone cutthroat trout rising to mayfly spinners would excite any fly fisher. This trout was photographed near Buffalo Ford on the upper Yellowstone River, but the cutthroat population there has dropped recently primarily due to predation by invasive lake trout in Yellowstone Lake. See “Biology on the Fly,” page 41. Photo by Verne Lehmberg This page: That Sweet Yeller Gold! – Yellowstone cutthroat trout. The gold rush begins on page 35. Photo by Kelly G. Glissmeyer

Fly fishing news and notes

Fly Fishing Fair Recap

2014 awards highlights

Focus on the Fly

40 41

Flies for Yellowstone cutthroat

Biology on the Fly

Yellowstone cutthroat trout

Fly Box

Demonstration tiers’ signature flies

At the Vise

The Super Renegade

Teaching, casting and new students

Casting

Woman’s Outlook

In praise of brown trout and choppy waters

Fly Fishing Humor

Copperhead

2014 Photo Contest Winners

Magazine of the International Federation of Fly Fishers • Autumn 2014 - Winter 2015 Volume 47, No. 2

How to take advantage of smallmouths’ favorite feeding areas. By Terry and Roxanne Wilson

Conserving, Restoring, Educating Through Fly Fishing®

IFFF Directors and Officers Board of Directors & Executive Committee International Federation of Conserving, Restoring, Educating Through Fly Fishing

IF F F H e a d q u a r t e r s

International Federation of Fly Fishers 5237 U.S. Highway 89 South, Ste.11 Livingston, MT 59047-9176 (406) 222-9369 • fax (406) 222-5823 www.fedflyfishers.org President/Chairman of the Board: Philip Greenlee • philipgreenlee@att.net Operations Manager: Rhonda Sellers • rhonda@fedflyfishers.org Education Coordinator (Fair/Clubs & Councils): Jessica Atherton • fair@fedflyfishers.org Administrative Assistant (Donations/Social Media/Guides Assn/Retailers): Judy Snyder • judy@fedflyfishers.org Program Coordinator (Casting/Conservation/Museum): Holly Sandbo • casting@fedflyfishers.org Membership Coordinator (Fly Tying Group): Gay Penney • membership@fedflyfishers.org Receptionist/Merchandise: Nikki Loy • nikki@fedflyfishers.org Bookkeeper: Sharon Cebulla • bookkeeper@fedflyfishers.org

Exec. Comm • Chairman of the Board/ President • Philip Greenlee 530-356-9430 • philipgreenlee@att.net 1911 Bechelli Ln., Redding, CA 96002

David Diaz • 205-444-0921 ddiaz444@bellsouth.net 2504 Chuchura Drive Birmingham, AL 35244

Exec. Comm • First Vice President Frank Johnson • 307-672-5164 bighornjohnsons@gmail.com 11 Spring Creek Lane, Sheridan, WY, 82801

Scott Erickson • 403 752-4801 rserickson@hotmail.com PO Box 1145 Raymond, AB T0K 2S0 Canada

Exec. Comm • Secretary • Herb Kettler 434-977-6703 • herbkettler@att.net 809 Winston Ter. Charlottesville, VA 22903

Don Gibbs • 303-526-9256 ddgibbs@ecentral.com 108 Chokecherry Rd. Golden, CO 80401

Exec. Comm • Treasurer • Finance Committee Chair • Ron Winn 321-723-3141 • ronwin@bellsouth.net 2103 Grant Place, Melbourne, FL 32901

Soon Lee • 909-731-8361 soons.lee@verizon.net 2380 Sunset Curve Upland, CA 71784

Exec. Comm. • Marvin Cash 704-759-6788 • secfff@marvincash.me 7155 Chameroy Court Charlotte, NC 28270

David Lemke • 713-839-2572 dlemke@sbcglobal.net 4002 Aberdeen Way Houston, TX 77025

Exec. Comm. • Conservation Director Glenn Erikson • 917-817-9014 glenn.erikson.phd@gmail.com 5440 State Highway 30, Long Flat, NY, 13756

Kuni Masuda • 360-573-3310 kunim305@gmail.com 2115 NW 116th St. Vancouver, WA 98685

Exec. Comm. • Fly Fishing Fair Steering Committee Chair • Tilda Evans 970-683-8879 • lewtildaevans@gmail.com P.O. Box 344, Collbran, CO 81624

Rick Pope • 214-507-8967 rpope@airmail.net 8105 Sovereign Row Dallas, TX 75247

Exec. Comm. • Bud Frasca 208-762-2631 • grizzking@aol.com 2699 E Packsaddle Dr. Coeur d’Alene, ID 83815

Al Ritt • 303-678-9709 al@alrittflies.com 12492 Wasatch Rd. Longmont, CO 80504

Exec. Comm. • Legal Counsel (not a member of the BOD) •Jim Schramm 231-869-5487• jdschramm@oceana.net P.O. Box 828, Pentwater, MI 49449

Museum Committee Chair • Sherry Steele 541-549-2072 • steelefly@msn.com 69077 Chestnut Pl Sisters, OR 97759

Exec. Comm. • IFFF Foundation President • Mike Stewart 860-653-4203 • tellicofly@yahoo.com 215 Loomis St., North Granby, CT 06060

Michael Schweit 818-601-9702 • msangler@earthlink.net 7933 Jellico Ave. Northridge, CA 91325

Exec. Comm • Flyfisher Editor in Chief Bill Toone • 406-556-7241 btoone@3riversdbs.net 198 Game Trail Rd., Bozeman, MT 59715

Jeff Wagner • 970-481-5887 wagnerflyfish@gmail.com 2446 Coronado Ct Sidney, NE 69162

Exec. Comm. • Senior Conservation Advisor • Rick Williams 208-861-1325 • troutdna@cableone.net 524 West Two Rivers Dr., Eagle, ID 83616

Membership Co-Chair • Len Zickler 509-720-3228 • lzickler@ahbl.com 328 West Jay Ave. Spokane, WA 99218

Flyfisher Magazine of the International Federation of Fly Fishers

Editor-in-Chief: Bill Toone Flyfisher is published for the IFFF by: Keokee Co. Publishing, Inc. 405 Church Street, Sandpoint, ID 83864 (208) 263-3573 • fax (208) 263-4045 www.keokee.com•flyfishermag@keokee.com Publisher: Chris Bessler Editors: Al and Gretchen Beatty Art Director/Designer: Jackie Palmer Copy Editor: Billie Jean Gerke Editorial Assistant: Beth Hawkins Advertising Director: Clint Nicholson

Flyfisher is the official publication of the International Federation of Fly Fishers, published two times a year and distributed by mail and online free to members. Send membership inquiries, fees and change of address notices to the IFFF Headquarters in Livingston, Montana, at the address above. Flyfisher is produced for the IFFF by Keokee Co. Publishing, Inc. Address all editorial and advertising correspondence to the address above. Contents of Flyfisher copyright © 2014 by the International Federation of Fly Fishers. Written permission required to reprint articles. IFFF, IFFF & Reel Design, IFFF & Reel Design with organization’s name and phrase Conserving, Restoring, Educating Through Fly Fishing are trademarks of the International Federation of Fly Fishers. The next Flyfisher editorial deadline is February 20, 2015. PRINTED IN THE U SA Please remember to recycle this magazine and any other appropriate material.

Chesapeake: Ken Tidy 302-530-5115 • kptidy@comcast.net 19 School House Ln. North East, MD 21901

Oregon: Sherry Steele 541-420-5532 • steelefly@msn.com P.O. Box 1438 Sisters, OR 97759

Eastern Rocky Mountain: Pat Oglesby 970-434-3912 • pcoglesby@bresnan.net 3095 Evanston Ave. Grand Junction, CO 81504

South Eastern: Marvin S. Cash 704-759-6788 • secfff@marvincash.me 7155 Chameroy Ct. Charlotte, NC 28270

Eastern Waters: Patricia “Sam” Decker 845-283-9555 • samfishes@hvc.rr.com 530 Prospect Hill Rd. Cuddebackville, New York 12729

Southern: Larry Wegmann 314-623-3933 • lwegmann@sbcglobal.net 5619 S Roanoke Ave. Springfield, MO 65810-2725

Florida: Tom Gadacz 727-360-8030 • thomasgadacz@yahoo.com 5353 Gulf Blvd. A-201 St. Petersburg, Florida 33706

Southwest: Michael Schweit 818-601-9702 • msangler@earthlink.net 7933 Jellico Ave. Northridge, CA 91325

Great Lakes: Jim Schramm 231-869-5487 • jdschramm@oceana.net P.O. Box 828 Pentwater, MI 49449

Texas: Russell Husted 972-567-4155 • russellhusted@sbcglobal.net 3416 Jerry Ln. Arlington, TX 76017

Gulf Coast: Kyle Moppert 225-343-0867 • bowfin47@gmail.com 2170 Terrace Ave. Baton Rouge, LA 70806

Upper Midwest Council: Todd Heggestad 218-310-9182 • theggestad57@gmail.com 209 Snively Rd. Duluth,MN. 55803

North Eastern: Bob Ford 617-536-6109 • fordrr@hotmail.com 233 Commonwealth Ave. Boston, MA 02116

Washington: Carl Johnson 425-308-6161 • flyfishalso@frontier.com P.O. Box 1206 Monroe, WA 98272

Northern California: Ken Brunskill 510-793-7913 • steamntrout@comcast.net 4731 Mildred Dr. Fremont, CA 94536

Western Rocky Mountain: Michael L. Bantam 208-323-5560 • michaelbantam@gmail.com 11896 Cedarstone St., Boise, ID 83709

THE INTERNATIONAL FEDERATION OF FLY FISHERS HAS MEMBERS IN THE FOLLOWING COUNTRIES: Argentina Australia Austria Bahamas Belgium Belize Bermuda Canada Chile China Croatia Denmark Finland France Germany Hungary Iceland India Indonesia Ireland Israel Italy Japan

Latvia Lithuania Malaysia Mexico Netherlands New Zealand Norway Peru Poland Romania Russia Serbia Singapore South Korea South Africa Spain Sweden Switzerland Taiwan Ukraine United Kingdom United States

Ohio: Jeff McElravy 513-652-1894 jmcelravysr@cinci.rr.com Cincinnati, OH

ME WA NH

PA IA

NV CO

MA CT

OR ID

THE IFFF COUNCILS

OH IN WV VA KY

RI NJ

DE MD

The International Federation of Fly Fishers represents the interests of fly fishers across the United States through its regional councils. Much of the IFFF’s most important work is carried out through its regional councils and the fly fishing clubs in those regions. If you’re a fly fisher, stay in touch with the activities of your council – and get involved!

TN OK AZ

AR MS

TX AK

LA FL

Chesapeake (PA-WV-VA-MD-DE) Eastern Rocky Mtn (WY-CO-NM-AZ) Eastern Waters (NY-NJ***) Florida Gulf Coast (LA-MS-AL) Great Lakes (MI-IN) Northern California (CA-NV-HI) North Eastern (VT-NH-ME-MA-RI-CT**) Ohio O

Oregon South East (KY-TN-NC-SC-GA-AL-FL) Southern (NE-IA-KS-MO-IL-OK-AR) Southwest (CA-NV) Texas Upper Midwest (MN-WI-IL) Washington (WA-AK) Western Rocky Mtn (UT-ID-MT-ND-SD*)

*Parts of southwestern Canada included in the Western Rocky Mountain Council. **Parts of southeastern Canada included in North Eastern Council. ***Ontario is included in the Eastern Waters Council.

Flyfisher Autumn 2014 - Winter 2015

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Conserving, Restoring, Educating Through Fly Fishing®

Council Presidents

Conserving, Restoring, Educating Through Fly Fishing®

Just Fishing IFFF IS GROWING AND STRONGER By Philip Greenlee, Chairman of the Board of Directors

f you are new to the International Federation of Fly Fishers, we want to welcome you aboard. I recommend you fasten your seat belt because if history is any benchmark, and you really love fly fishing, this journey can be a lifelong experience. No one will come and pat you on the back and tell you what to do because the journey is yours. I am trying to say it is up to you to take advantage of the fly fishing educational opportunities available through the IFFF. Whether it be casting, tying flies or doing research in the IFFF museum, all you have to do is ask. Our staff is there to help you enjoy the member benefits offered by the organization. Recently the IFFF finished the 2014 Fly Fishing Fair in Livingston, Montana. I have to take my hat off to the volunteers that made this event such

held at the Music Barn in a country setting located eight miles south of our office in the Paradise Valley. This was the first time we used this facility, and as advertised, we all got to experience the incredible grandeur of the surrounding mountain vista when the giant, auditorium-type doors were opened. For a moment I thought I was in Switzerland with the jagged, rocky peaks loaded with snow. Thursday night the city of Livingston opened its doors to us by closing the major streets in the downtown area. The store owners kept their stores open while various bands entertained us well into the evening. The concert was produced by What’s Up Buttercup and paid for by many organizations in Livingston. The event included the Fish Walk which was well supported by the citizens of Livingston.

Philip Greenlee was happy to get to know World War II veteran and Certified Casting Instructor Frank Moore at the sixth annual Fly Tying Festival sponsored by the Umpqua Fly Fishing Club.

a success; without them it would not be possible. The Fly Fishing Fair week started with a gathering of members and their guests, allowing us to show off the museum and our staff ’s working quarters. On Tuesday night we held our reception at the Shane building in downtown Livingston. I really love this function because I get to mingle with the IFFF membership. On Wednesday night we held our annual President’s Banquet and Awards Ceremony that honors those Federators who have gone beyond the call of duty. The event was

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Philip Greenlee and Skip Hosfield in Glide, Oregon, at the sixth annual Fly Tying Festival sponsored by the Umpqua Fly Fishing Club. Hosfield was a founding member of the IFFF back in 1964.

Friday night was our annual auction, and as usual, auctioneer Will Godfrey was at his top of his game, making it a very successful function. As a side note on the same subject, Godfrey joined the Federation in 1965 when the membership fee was $5. It is people like him who give stability to our organization. The most important thing we have is our IFFF culture. I’ve been in the organization almost as long as Godfrey, having joined in 1968. Recently the Fly Tying Board of Governors approved a new awards

Flyfisher Autumn 2014 - Winter 2015

program for fly tying (see the article by Gene Kaczmarek in Home Waters) that should be of interest to all tiers concerned in validating their skill level. Speaking of fly tying, the Umpqua Fly Fishing Club just finished their sixth Fly Tying Festival. I was the guest speaker at the festival and potluck dinner held in Glide, Oregon, at the Community Center. There I had my picture taken with Skip Hosfield, who was one of the founding members of the IFFF back in 1964. The event offers casting and fly-tying lessons along with a silent auction and a giant raffle. All of

the proceeds are focused on supporting education and conservation. While there I had the honor of getting to know Frank Moore, a World War II veteran who landed on Utah Beach on D Day. He was also a friend of author Zane Grey and the oldest casting instructor at the festival. His casting instructor status is well earned because he gets a lot of casting practice chasing steelhead near his home on the banks of the Umpqua River. I was fortunate enough to be invited to his house along with Elsie Marchando, a longtime

Fly Fishers, an affiliate club in Bangor, Maine, that wanted to learn more about the IFFF via my speaker’s presentation called the New IFFF. After leaving Bangor I visited the Lake Erie Fly Fishers club near Pulaski, New York, which also wanted to learn more about the IFFF. My last stop on my New IFFF presentation tour was at the 2014 Florida Council Expo located at Crystal Springs, Florida. It was a successful show, and again this year they increased attendance from last year’s event. I returned home tired but pleased to see that the IFFF is becoming stronger as it grows its membership. My thanks to all of you who have joined our organization. Share the fly fishing experience with a friend by getting them a membership. Hint: An IFFF membership would make a great Christmas or birthday present and is perfect for that special someone who already has everything!

At the request of many fellow fly tiers, Dena and Jerome Hebert created this book. It contains over 50 different fly tying techniques and step-by-step photos with instructions for tying over a dozen fly patterns. Jerome developed and used these patterns as a fly fishing guide pursuing bass, crappie, and large bluegill, in 1995-2005. Books are available at www.abayourunsthroughit.com 337-356-2991

Himalayan Flyfishing Adventures the only western-style guided excursions into the heart of the himalayas

Mahseer Snow Trout Brown Trout

Bhutan India Thailand IFFF Certified Casting Instructor and HFA guide Bryant Dunn with Himalayan Golden Mahseer

Cast Flies on Top of the World! www.FlyfishHimalayas.com +1-208-720-6668

Flyfisher Autumn 2014 - Winter 2015

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Conserving, Restoring, Educating Through Fly Fishing®

friend of Moore and his wife, Jeanne. At his home Moore shared a historical-to-present-day story with us. During World War II when the U.S. Army pushed forward from Utah Beach, they were focused on chasing the Germans. As they moved inland he ran into a house that had an Atlantic salmon hanging on the front gate identifying the Saloon River Estuary, a part of Normandy. Years later in the present day, Moore was featured in a movie in which he returned to Normandy and had the opportunity to fish the Saloon River. For him it was a thoroughly joyous day. Back on the Umpqua River, Moore offered to show us some of his favorite fishing spots. As we drove around in his 1985 Volkswagen, it became evident he was well known because it was not long before people started honking their car horns as they realized they were meeting Moore along the road. Recently I visited the Penobscot

Conserving, Restoring, Educating Through Fly Fishing®

I Am a Member AL QUATTROCCHI Residence

Los Angeles, California

IFFF Council

Southwest

Member since

2011

Home waters

The beach! Some of my favorite pieces of water are Venice, Marquesas, Martha’s Vineyard, Espirtu Santo, Breezy Point and Montauk.

Favorite fish

Tarpon

Memorable fishing experience

My most memorable fly fishing experience would have to be my first tarpon on the fly. It happened one early morning in the Marquesa Islands off Key West. We left early and ran across the channel. When we arrived, it was silent and still. There was no one there except my guide and my buddy Jerry and schools of tarpon. The first

fish I cast to turned and ate my fly. I set the hook, heard that whizzing line sound and watched the fish jump and cartwheel into the sky, putting a trash can-sized hole in the turquoise water with green mangrove islands in the backdrop, it was magical.

Reason for being a member

To continue to give back and help educate young anglers!

What others say

Al has created the OneSurf Fly Tournament in Southern California. This low-key event brings in anglers from all over to see who can catch the first, most and biggest fish in a two-hour period. This event has raised thousands of dollars for fishing-related charities and nonprofits in the region. Al also puts together the Double Hall Ball, which is a free, all-day educational fly fishing event held once a year at the Long Beach Casting Club. He is a fly fishing author, photographer and educator. He is also an innovative and generous fly

tier, helping the Southwest Council in their many outreach programs. Does your council or club have an individual you would like to be considered for a future “I Am a Member” Profile? If so, please e-mail Bill Toone, Flyfisher Editor-in-Chief, at btoone@3riversdbs.net with your consideration. Please include a brief bio (25 to 40 words) along with the reason you feel this person exemplifies the best of the Federation of Fly Fishers.

Correction Zinck Obituary We made an unfortunate error on page 17 of the Spring-Summer 2014 Flyfisher by spelling Fredrick William Zinck’s name wrong in his obituary. We inadvertently left the “c” out of his last name. We extend our apology to Mr. Zinck’s friends and family.

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Flyfisher Autumn 2014 - Winter 2015

Home Waters To supp o tion, re rt any IFFF con storatio serva n progra m, plea or education se deducti ble con make a tax tributio n to: Int’l Fed e 5237 U ration of Fly F .S is Livings . Hwy. 89 S., hers ton, MT Ste. 11 59047-9 176

CONSERVATION NEWS

Cut Hatcheries and Rebuild Wild Steelhead Stocks By Doug Schaad and Bill Redman

PHOTO BY CONRAD GOWELL

and pernicious of the four H’s. riven by a growing body They were supposed to offset the of science and a recent impacts of problems caused by the series of lawsuits, steelhead other three, because four decades management is moving away from ago, no one distinguished between almost complete reliance on hatchwild and hatchery stocks. eries toward wild fish management. In the early 1990s, a few But first a little background. An fishery biologists and many entire generation of angler/conserconservation organizations began vationists has been nurtured under to explore outcomes of hatchery the mantra of the four H’s: Habitat, production on the entire riparHarvest, Hydro and Hatcheries. ian ecosystem, with emphasis on For a number of years anglers and reproductive success. But it wasn’t a significant portion of the general until new DNA-based genetic public have understood that the first studies, that science could become three H’s have been major causes of maximally informative. Beginthe tragic Bryce Levin with a handsome wild steelhead caught ning at the turn of this century, decline You can help conserve, and released on a small coastal Oregon stream the evidence began to accumulate in restore and protect our that hasn’t been stocked since the 1980s. from small, localized studies. The stocks precious fisheries. Read the insidious effects of hatchery stocking on wild stocks began of steelhead and Pacific salmon. red patch at the top of the in the first generation and increased through succeeding Habitat needed little scientific page to learn how. generations. inquiry as it was readily apparent On February 18, 2014, an Associated Press article stated: to the public that wild salmonids “Hatcheries have thus far failed to resurrect wild fish runs. needed access to biologically intact Evidence showing artificial breeding makes for weaker fish watersheds. Harvest should have has mounted. ... Now the practice of populating rivers with been easy – kill all the reproduchatchery fish rather than making greater efforts to restore tive adults and you have no progeny. wild runs is facing a battery of court challenges.” In January, The huge dams that everyone sees a judge ordered agencies to do more to protect wild fish from (Hydro) completely block or reduce the hatchery stocking on Oregon’s Sandy River. More recently a flow of juvenile migrants downstream to the similar suit was filed on Oregon’s McKenzie River. ocean and returning adults back upstream. Continues next page We believe Hatcheries are the most divisive

Index of Articles Cut Hatcheries and Rebuild Wild Steelhead Stocks. . . . . . . . . . . 9 2014 Washington Fly Fishing Fair . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 Cuttcatch Challenge. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 Calendar. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 50 Years of the Federation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

IFFF 50th Anniversary Rod Special . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 Donating to the Organization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 Fly Tying Group Creates Award Program. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Reel Kids, Real Living . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 Fly Fishing Event in China. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 Casting Partner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Getting Married U.K. Style. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Obituaries. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

Flyfisher Autumn 2014 - Winter 2015

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PHOTO BY XXXXXXXXXX

CONSERVATION NEWS Continued from previous page

On Washington’s Elwha River, a suit brought by four plaintiffs, including the IFFF Steelhead Committee, resulted in a decision by the judge that the defendants violated the National Environmental Policy Act by not considering in their fish recovery plan an adequate range of alternatives between massive hatchery stocking or no hatchery stocking, such as a smaller number of hatchery releases. Because the Elwha Tribe went ahead with its spring 2014 hatchery releases despite that ruling, the final outcome of this legal action is uncertain. In January 2014 enough scientific evidence had accrued for the Wild Fish Conservancy to file suit against the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) for violation of the Endangered Species Act because

hatcheries were causing unauthorized mortality on wild steelhead stocks. In a consent decree in late April, WDFW agreed to release no early-timed hatchery steelhead into Puget Sound rivers except the Skykomish for 2.5 years, and release no early-timed hatchery steelhead into the Skagit River for 12 years (about three steelhead generations). Wild-fish advocates view the 12year Skagit research study as the most important part of the agreement. It will create a large trove of information on the potential of wild-only steelhead management. Subsequent to this landmark decision, Christie, Ford and Blouin published (Evolutionary Applications, 2014) the first analysis of studies across multiple watersheds of the impacts of hatchery salmonids on native populations: “Our analyses clearly show that even hatcheries using local and predom-

inantly wild-origin broodstocks create fish with lower reproductive success than their wild-born counterparts.” On average, hatchery stocking has done much more to harm rather than help wild populations. There is enough science for agencies to substantially reduce or eliminate hatchery propagation. In light of the failure of the Hatchery model to rebuild wild salmon and steelhead numbers in the Pacific Northwest, it is time for fisheries managers and scientists to craft a new vision for salmon and steelhead recovery that establishes wild fish rebuilding and sustainability as the priority management goal. And if that doesn’t do it, court orders can help. For more information contact one of the conservation officers at www.fedfly fishers.org; click on the Conservation > Contact. Doug Schaad and Bill Redman are members of the IFFF Steelhead Committee.

2014 WASHINGTON FLY FISHING FAIR Highlights from the event By Carl Johnson

he 2014 Washington Fly Fishing Fair put on by the Washington State Council (WSC) was the eighth annual fair, held inNews” Ellensburg, One “Conservation Headline Per Spread, Article Heads Small Like This Washington. This year’s show was a By Verne Lehmberg great success. The fair began Friday eveningorem withipsum the Volunteer Dinner, the mel. Mundi dolor omnis exerci eam ei, autem moCouncil’s way nominavi mei at, dolor sitof saying thank you to lestie dissentiunt et vix. Feugiat many people who give their time and qui id habeo dicant amet, ubique deseruisse in sed. Ornatus vocibus talent theeum fair a success. This minimum, graeco suseripuittoinmake vix, an inciderint est no. Harum iudico year’s dinner was put together by Dawn cipiantur in ius. Dictas impetus qualisque ad sit, ei utroque comprehensam Zickler, who did a wonderful job. omittam ut cum, in disputationi. Sit te eos. year the council tried someexerci ridens accupurtoThis scriptorem, Est an saepe nonumes consulatu. Washington State Council President Carl Johnson presents a check to Kelli Armstrong of Casting For thing new and held a dessert auction. sata has, id sea rebum fugit minim et mea. Vidit justo cu eum. Nam at sint expliRecovery, left, and Chuck Tye of Project Healing Waters, right. Every board member brought verear.Ut nam maioCu necWSC admodum cari gubergren, brute ridens ex sed. An avidisse dessert or two for Ea the event. There Healing Waters and for Recovits Annual Awards Banquetmel, and animal AucrumCasting maiestatis, an conceptam. partem blandit mandamus was an envelope ery. Auctioneer Will Godfrey kept the tion. Awards were presented to Jim agam aliquam philosopri modo labore, on eu each table for the debitis maluisset ne est, cum animal people at that table to bid on dessert. audience entertained, selling Maus and Mike Clancy, phia including sed. Has an nibh eum graeci oblique legimus admodum in. NoCouncil vel viditFedThe tableNam with the most money got first the beret off the head of nostrud, one member erators of consequat, the Year; Tim Rajeff, Jimmy scripta omnis dolorem. idque iracundia ad sonet efficianchoice for Project Healing Waters. Green Casting exerci eam ei, autem corporafor id,dessert, rebum and then the next tur sit, Fly in cum dicit Instructor fuisset. EstAward; id iriur highest The fair opened to thedissentiunt public et John Gort, signiferumque Washington Flyno, Tying Hall molestie utamur bidders periculismade ea their selection numquam utinam until everyone had made a choice. It Saturday morning with more than 50 of Fame; and the Fidalgo Fly Fishers, vix. Feugiat deseruqui. Ei sed malorum labitur vix in. Ius an alii deleniti. Lawas a funnatum time for everyone, and wehave a thick-thin tablesblack of fly tiers, isse freeinseminars, casting Council Education Award. sed. Ornatus dolores, vidisse bore gubergren te pri, ea nec nemore The photos raised $820 for education. The funds workshops, casting demos, free 9-hole The fair continued Sunday andea border of 4 points. vocibus inciderint est mel at, wisi tota defaeleniti. Labore gubergren te pri, were casting course and numerous vendors. concluded at 3 p.m., when everyone no. Harum iudico ad traxitdonated mel ad. to the Northwest Youth nec nemore facilis pertinax. Est id iriure Conservation and Fly Fishing Academy. One the highlights was the eos. castreturned home or went fishing – tired sit, eiofutroque comprehensam Ex nec tamquam referrentur, vix legimus detracto. Following dinner a brief ing demonstration conducted by Tim and happy. Ut nam maiorum maiestatis, senserit consetetur ea,we ne held ius minim Bio for author. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, auction of items thatId had been donated Rajeff. an agam aliquam philosophia Carl Johnson State Council harum consectetuer. nam quis altera ubique eripuitis inthe vix,Washington an eum impetus qualisque. with all proceeds destined to Projectin Saturday evening thenostrud, council held president and a longtime Federator. sed. Has an nibh scripta reprehendunt, accusata instructior Cu nec admodum conceptad.

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Flyfisher Autumn 2014 - Winter 2015

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CUTTCATCH CHALLENGE Hammons Receives Cuttcatch Award Reports by Rick Williams

ill Hammons from Carson City, Nevada, has successfully completed the Cuttcatch Challenge. He managed to capture four subspecies of cutthroat trout spread over a 13-month period. Hammons’ adventure started June 7, 2013 on Humboldt County, California’s Home Creek when an 11-inch coastal cutthroat inhaled his Foam Stimulator; Home Creek is in Redwood State Park. Just a couple months later, on August 18 on Mono County, California’s Wolf Creek, he caught his second fish. A 6-inch Lahontan took his Black Ant. Later in the same year, on October 20, Hammons found Strawberry Creek

in White Pine County, Nevada, a great place to advance his Cuttcatch Challenge goal. There he captured a 6-inch Bonneville cutthroat on an Elk Hair Caddis. His journey concluded July 5, 2014, when an Elk Hair Caddis tricked a 6-inch Yellowstone cutthroat into inhaling it in Goose Creek. The creek is located in Elk County, Nevada, 25 miles east of Jackpot. Bill Hammons had to travel in two states to capture his Cuttcatch Challenge Award and took a little over a year to

De Ruysscher Wins the Advanced Cuttcatch Award avid De Ruysscher is the latest individual to complete the Cuttcatch Challenge. Completing the “Challenge” means that De Ruysscher caught at least four subspecies of cutthroat trout. In fact he went beyond the requirement by three times. He caught all 12 of the extant (still living) cutthroat trout subspecies and provided excellent documentation of each fish, the location where he caught the fish and the fly pattern used. Rick Williams said, “I’d suggest we feature his accomplishment in the Flyfisher, if possible, as it goes well beyond our requirement of four subspecies and actually gets to the whole

Cowboy on Nevada’s Pyramid Lake. He finished his goal of catching all 12 subspecies on June 14, 2013, when he landed a delightful Yellowstone cutthroat on Goose Creek near Elko, Nevada, using a Muddler Minnow. His adventure that had its inception and completion in Nevada also took him to Colorado, New Mexico, California, Wyoming and Oregon. It took De Ruysscher six years to complete his goal. Good job, David! All of us here at the International Federation of Fly Fishers and the Flyfisher staff are proud of your acPHOTO BY XXXXXXXXXX

What about you? Are you up to the Cuttcatch Challenge? point of the award, which is to recognize complishment. the inherent biological diversity in the those of you reading this report The photos have a thick-thin For black cutthroat trout species.” border of 4 points. we ask, “Are you working on your De Ruysscher certainly met that Cuttcatch Challenge? Let us know. goal! Rick Williams from Boise, Idaho, is on the IFFF De Ruysscher’s quest began April 4, Board of Directors, the Casting Board of Governors and is the organization’s senior conserva2007, when he caught a beautiful, 22-inch tion adviser. Lahontan cutthroat using a Midnight

complete his goal. What about all of you reading this announcement? Are you up to the challenge? Let us know if you have completed the challenge, so we can feature you in this section of Flyfisher. Good luck with your challenge!

Richard Receives Cuttcatch Award

eith Richard from Breaux Bridge, Louisiana, has successfully completed the Cuttcatch Challenge. He managed to capture four subspecies of cutthroat trout spread over only two days while on a trip to Wyoming. His adventure started August 28, 2014, on Fremont County, Wyoming’s Bear Creek when a 14-inch Yellowstone cutthroat inhaled his Stimulator; Bear Creek is a tributary of the East Fork of the Wind River. The next day on Teton County’s Cliff Creek, he caught his second fish when a 10-inch Snake River cutthroat took his caddis pattern; that little stream is a tributary of the Hoback River. Later in the same day Richard caught a 16-inch Bonneville cutthroat on Cold Creek, a tributary of the East Fork of Salt Creek. That better-than-average fish took Stimulator. His Cuttcatch Challenge concluded the next day, August 30, 2014, when a Stimulator tricked a 13-inch Colorado Continues next page

Flyfisher Autumn 2014 - Winter 2015

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Continued from previous page

River cutthroat living in North Cottonwood Creek into inhaling it. The creek is located in Sublette County, Wyoming, near Big Piney. It appears that Stimulators were especially good to Richard on his trip to the West.

Some people take several years to earn their Cuttcatch Challenge Award, but Keith Richard managed to do it in just a couple of days. Maybe those of you reading this announcement can do even better!

IFFF EVENTS November 2014 GLC Fly Tying Expo. Lansing, MI. Information at www.fffglc.org SWC-IFFF Intra-Club Tournament. Kernville, CA. 818-968-6872. www.swc-fff.org NCC Veterans First Fly Fishing Benefit Dinner. Newark CA. 510-793-7913, steamntrout@comcast.net. www.nccfff.org January 2015 BVFF Western Idaho Fly Fishing Expo. Boise, ID. www.bvffexpo.com IFFF North Coast Fly Fishers Northern Ohio Fly Fishing Expo. Cuyahoga Career Center, Brecksville, OH. www.ncff.net SWC Fly Buy. Long Beach Casting Club. 818-601-9702. www.swc-fff.org February 2015 Greater Cincinnati Fly Fishing Show. Presented by Buckeye United Fly Fishers, Loveland, OH. www.buckeyefisyfishers.com Chesapeake Council’s Learning Center at the Fly Fishing Show. Lancaster, PA. Ken Tidy, membership@ccifff.org March 2015 SWC at Fred Hall Show. Long Beach Convention Center. www.swc-fff.org Oregon Council’s 2015 Fly Tyer Expo. Albany, Oregon. www.nwexpo.com May 2015 Washington Fly Fishing Fair. Ellensburg, WA. www.washingtoncouncilfff.org Chesapeake Council Learning Day for Families. Izaak Walton League, Pylesville MD. vp@ccifff.org August 2015 50th Anniversary of the International Federation of Fly Fishers. Bend OR. fair@fedflyfishers.org. www.fedflyfishers.org

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Hill Receives Cuttcatch Award

onnecticut’s Matthew D. Hill from Wallingford has successfully completed the Cuttcatch Challenge. He managed to capture four subspecies of cutthroat trout in a three-year period. His adventure started July 20, 2010, on Lincoln County, Wyoming’s Smith Fork of the Bear River when a 15-inch Bonneville cutthroat inhaled his Yellow Stimulator. The next year on August 11 at the primary outlet of the Pitt River on Pitt Lake, British Columbia, he caught his second fish when a 17-inch coastal cutthroat took his Yellow Stimulator. The next summer on July 20, 2012, he added fish No. 3 to his list when he landed a 17-inch Rio Grande cutthroat on a Black Beetle. That fish fell to his offering on the Lake Fork of the Conejos River in Colorado.

C ALENDAR

7 28-1 Hill’s journey was completed July 13, 2013, when an Elk Hair Caddis tricked an 8-inch Lahontan cutthroat living in the upper Truckee River. The river is located in Alpine County, California. Matthew Hill’s adventure took three years and trips from his eastern United States home to four different locations in two different countries. By reviewing the dates, it’s fairly easy to see when he scheduled his vacations. He traveled many miles to reach his goal.

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Events are subject to change. For the most current information, please visit www.fedflyfishers.org.

IFFF CASTING INSTRUCTOR CERTIFICATION

Steele Receives Cuttcatch Award

alifornia’s Craig C. Steele has successfully completed the Cuttcatch Challenge. He managed to capture four subspecies of cutthroat trout over a twoyear period. Steele’s adventure started January 25, 2013, on Washoe County, Nevada’s Pyramid Lake when a nice 22-inch Lahontan nailed his size-8 Black Woolly Bugger. Later in the same year, July 6, Steele found his home waters at the mouth of Prairie Creek in Redwoods State Park in Humboldt County, California, a great place to advance his Cuttcatch Challenge The photos have a thick-thin black bordergoal. of 4 points. There he cap-

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tured an 8-inch coastal cutthroat trout on a size-16 Blood Midge. His journey continued April 14, 2014, when a small deer-hair caddis tricked a 7-inch Bonneville cutthroat living in Strawberry Creek into inhaling it. The creek is located in Great Basin National Park in White Pine County, Nevada, about 100 yards above the access trailhead. He completed his Cuttcatch Challenge July 2 on Elko County, Nevada’s Goose Creek near the confluence with Coon Creek. There he got a 9-inch Yellowstone cutthroat to rise and take a size-12 Stimulator. Craig Steele had to travel in two states to capture his Cuttcatch Award. Would you like to replicate his success? Therefore we ask, “Are you up to the challenge?” Let us know if you have completed the challenge, so we can feature you in this magazine. Good luck! We’ll see you on the water.

Flyfisher Autumn 2014 - Winter 2015

The following events offer IFFF Casting Instructor Certification. Pre-registration is required. Call 406-222-9369 to register. You must be a current IFFF member. November 7-8. CI Test April 11-12. Test #0714 Albert Town, #0315 Kolding, New Zealand Denmark November 13-16. April 16-17. CI/MCI CI (15th-16th)/MCI THCI Test #0415 (14th)/THCI (13th) Test EWF Furstenfeldbruck, #0414 /Wentworth Germany Falls, Australia EVENT May 1. Test #1505 CLOSED Ellensburg, WA January 15-18. CI/ May 15-17. CI/MCI/ MCI Test # 1501 ISE THCI Test #0115 Denver, CO Gargazon, Italy January 23-24. Test #1503, Somerset, NJ June 4-7. CI/MCI/ THCI Test #0215 February 28. Test Pilichowice, Poland #1504, Lancaster, PA Casting test events are often scheduled with other IFFF events, so please check the IFFF Casting Testing Calendar for updates. www.fedflyfishers.org/ Casting/CalendarofEventsTestingDates.aspx

IFFF CASTING CONTINUING EDUCATION Continuing education classes for certified instructors are available and posted on the IFFF website. For more information about all casting events, please visit: www.fedflyfishers.org/Casting/ CalendarofEventsTestingDates.aspx

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CUTTCATCH CHALLENGE

By Al Beatty

50 years

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ARTICLE HEADLINE

Subhead - sometimes needed

By Verne Lehmberg ifty years ago in 1964 a spark of an Whitlock and Mel Krieger, but there were amet, idea brought to reality by well-known many othersorem overipsum the lastdolor five sit decades. ubique eripuit in vix, eum fly fishers Lee Wulff, Gene Andregg So why am I taking this walkandown impetus and several others culminated in this group, memory lane? That qualisque answer is disputationi. easy. IFFF Sit te of purto minim et the oldest national fly fishing organization. Chairman the scriptorem, Board Philipfugit Greenlee mea. Cu nec admodum vidisse concepThe idea was quite simple; organize the has asked us here at Keokee, the publisher tam. Ea pri modo labore, eu eum graeci many independent clubs in the country of Flyfisher, to produce a commemorative, oblique dolorunder one umbrella so they could speak with historical, limited-edition publication em. Namthe idque a strong, national voice. The first meeting of documenting group’s first 50 years. The corpora id, the minds was in Eugene, Oregon, with the publication will be available electronically to rebum utamur fledgling Federation of Fly Fishermen (FFF) all members and for sale as print media at periculis ea qui.Fair in Bend, Oregon, the name of the new organization resulting the 2015 Fly Fishing Ei sed malorum have a thick-thin border ofour 50-year from the planning session. The opportunitiesThe forphotos the new FFF inblack September, celebration. dolores, natum were many, but the pitfalls were there as well.4 points. Are you a founding member, or do you know one? vidisse mel at, your knowledge Today, 50 years later in 2014, the International We need to hear from you to glean Federation of Fly Fishers (IFFF) is a strong, world-wide about the organizationwisi as ittota hasdematured over the last five traxit ad. your knowledge and organization with many “wins” under its belt, such as this decades. Will you help us bymel sharing Ex nec publication, the Flyfisher. Many of you may not realize experience? Please contact us at flyfishermag@keokee.com or tamquam it, but the Flyfisher (originally the Flyfisherman) was the fivedecades@fedflyfishers.org. The only way this publication The photos have a thick-thin first fly fishing-only magazine in this country. As it and can come to fruition isreferrentur, with your help. Please contactof us via black border 4 points. vix an senserit the organization grew in popularity, the two together were e-mail so we can arrange interview. We look forward to consetetur ea, ne ius minim harum responsible for the growth and recognition of many fly fishing hearing from you. consectetuer. Id nam quis altera reprecelebrities. Two names that readily come to mind are Dave Al Beatty is a longtime IFFF member from Boise, Idaho. hendunt, accusata instructior in mel. Mundi dolor nominavi mei at, qui id habeo dicant minimum, graeco suscipiantur in ius. Dictas omittam ut cum, in IFFF 50TH ANNIVERSARY It can be as easy as transferring stock exerci ridens accusata has, id sea rebum ROD AND REEL SPECIALS verear.Ut nam maiorum maiestatis, an agam aliquam philosophia sed. Has By Ron Winn an nibh scripta nostrud, omnis exerci n spite of all the world’s troubles, here in the United States the SWEETGRASS RODS, THOMAS & THOMAS, ABEL eam ei, autem molestie dissentiunt et stock markets are near all-time highs. This implies that there vix. Feugiat deseruisse in sed. Ornatus REELS AND IFFF ARE TEAMING UP to celebrate the are some healthy gains within some portfolios and presents an vocibus inciderint est no. Harum iudico opportunity for those wanting to contribute to the Federation. organization’s 50th anniversary with a Special Rod/ ad sit, ei utroque comprehensam eos. The International Federation of Fly Fishers (IFFF) is a Ut nam maiorum maiestatis, Reel extravaganza! The rods are top-of-the-line pieces charitable organization, and as such, your donations to IFFF an agam aliquam philosophia become a charitable contribution. When one donates appreciof beauty any fly fisher would be proud to own. The sed. Ad pro eruditi consulatu. ated stock to a charity, provided it has been held for more than Cu mel eius domri numquam Sweetgrass Rod is a five-sided bamboo; the trout and one year, the donor can deduct the full value of the stock at the signiferumque no, Has an nibh saltwater rods are the best Thomas & Thomas has to date of the donation and not have to report the gain as taxable scripta nostrud, omnis exerci eam income. This gives the taxpayer a donation at the fair market ei, autem molestie dissentiunt offer; and the Abel Reels are their Super 4N and Super value of the stock, not the original cost. et vix. Feugiat deseruisse in sed. 7/8N models. All bamboo rods or rod/reel combinations The IFFF also has a foundation that would allow a donor to Ornatus vocibus inciderint est no. request the funds be used toward a specific area. Such things as are limited in availability and will be allotted on a firstHarum iudico ad sit, ei utroque scholarships, club conservation, youth clubs and education are just comprehensam eos. come, first-served basis. Net proceeds will help fund the a few of the available accounts. For example, the IFFF recently Iudico causae mea et. Eos case received a donation designated to helping defray the costs of the IFFF Conservation and Education programs. Visit the audiam habemus in. Ad pro eruditi Osprey newsletter utilizing the donation of common stock. consulatu. Cu in. Ius an alii delIFFF store (www.fedflyfishers.org/store.aspx) for more One thing I have learned in my years as an accountant eniti. Labore gubergren te pri, ea nec is that each individual’s situation is unique to them. Be sure details or to make a purchase. Watch for more titillating nemoOrnatus vocibus inciderint est no. to check with your tax adviser before proceeding with any re facilis pertinax. Est id iriure legimus information about this great opportunity in the spring planned contribution. Please contact our office in Livingston detracto. should you want to go ahead with any donation (stock or issue of Flyfisher. Don’t miss out on this opportunity; visit Bio for author. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, funds), and we will be glad to make arrangements for you. ubique eripuit in vix, an eum impetus qualisque. the website to learn how you can capture a great You’ll find contact information in the front of this magazine or on Cu nec admodum conceptam. Ea pri modo labore, the website at www.fedflyfishers.org. fly fishing equipment adventure for yourself! eu eum graeci oblique dolorem. Nam idque rebum

DONATE TO THE IFFF

utamur ea qui. malorumFlorida, dolores, IFFF Treasurer Ron Winn has been apericulis practicing CPAEi insed Melbourne, natum vidisse mel at, wisi tota detraxit mel ad. for more than 35 years.

Flyfisher Autumn 2014 - Winter 2015

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50 YEARS OF THE FEDERATION

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FLY TYING GROUP CREATES AWARD PROGRAM By Gene Kaczmarek

PHOTO BY BT’S PHOTO

re you a fly tier? Do you want to be one? Or, if you want to improve your existing skills then read on. The Fly Tying Group (FTG) of the International Federation of Fly Fishers (IFFF) announces a new awards program to help all tiers advance their skills, the IFFF Fly Tying Skills Awards Program. The Bronze Award is the first to roll out with two others not far behind. All IFFF members are eligible to participate. This is a way to improve your skills and have fun doing it.

This is the caption, under the photo. The photos have a thick-thin black border of 4 points.

How it Works

Fly Tying Group members left to right, Tom Logan, Jim Ferguson, Phil Greenlee, Frank Johnson, Carl Ronk and Gene Kaczmarek.

program is meant to be enjoyable, informative (educational) and encourage cooperation and camaraderie amongst those taking part. Participation by IFFF members is entirely voluntary.” Any tier who wishes to participate in the Bronze Award program may download the handbook from the IFFF website that contains all how-to details for the program. This handbook can also be used as the basis of a formal tying class, but independent work on the program is totally acceptable. The handbook contains other information useful to a beginning tier, such as information on hooks, tools, techniques and materials. When the tier has completed his/ her learning process, they will submit

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The Awards Program is managed by the FTG. Three awards (i.e. Bronze, Silver and Gold) are offered for demonstrated skills in fly tying that requires submittal of prescribed fly collections for review. Each collection requires an increasing level of diversity and complexity of tying methods. The Bronze Award will require a tier to learn and use many important fly tying techniques, a variety of materials and tie effective fly patterns. Tiers who successfully complete the Bronze Award program will receive an IFFF Bronze Fly Tying Award certificate, an IFFF Bronze Award pin, and recognition in the IFFF Fly Tying Group newsletter and on the IFFF website. This program is an opportunity for the IFFF to reward tiers for advancing their tying skills, providing educational opportunities and contributing to the FTG purpose, which generally is to preserve and enhance the art form of fly tying. Frank Johnson, chairman for the program, wants all to know: “The

The photos have a thick-thin black border of 4 points.

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Flyfisher Autumn 2014 - Winter 2015

three samples of five specified flies along with three samples of three other flies of personal choice to an evaluator. An evaluator for the Bronze Level could be an evaluator for a club or an IFFF at-large evaluator. Once the evaluator has reviewed and approved the flies based upon method and consistency, the flies will be submitted to the FTG Awards Evaluation Panel for final review, and the award will be sent to the appropriate club for presentation to the tier. The tier will fill out an application for entering their submission to the program and pay a nominal administrative fee for the evaluation, pin and certificate. We appreciate the encouragement and graciousness the U.K. Fly Dressers’ Guild has shown in sharing the details of their awards scheme with the IFFF. Their willingness to allow us to adapt their scheme to our needs is indeed a welcome gesture. We sincerely thank U.K. Fly Dressers’ Guild General Secretary Chris Reeves and Chairman Charles Jardine for their cooperation. Please visit the FTG web page at www.fedflyfishers.org/Tying/Fly TyingSkillsAwardsProgram.aspx for more information. Gene Kaczmarek is a member of the Fly Tying Group Board of Governors.

By Bob Shoberg

ARTICLE HEADLINE

Subhead - sometimes needed

By Verne Lehmberg the disease and coping mechanisms with other local families n 2004 our local fly fishing club, the High Sierra Fly Castorem ipsum dolor sit amet, who have faced similar experiences. It also provides expert ers of Gardnerville, Nevada, became involved as volunteers ubique eripuit in vix, an eum fly fishing instruction that enables the participants to learn a for Reel Recovery, a nationwide organization providing fly impetus qualisque disputationi. new skill and form a healing connection with nature. We have fishing retreats for men living with cancer. At the same time, Sit te purto scriptorem, fugit minim et managed to turn a couple of dads into potential “trout bums.” we also began to volunteer with Casting for Recovery, another mea. Cu nec admodum vidisse concepSince 2007 we have served more than 150 children and family nationwide program, serving women living with breast cancer. tam. Ea pri modo labore, eu eum graeci members. Financial support has been facilitated by the High We were so impressed with how well these programs oblique dolorSierra Fly Casters using donations from numerous local serworked that, in 2007, we came up with the idea of doing the em. Nam idque vice clubs, churches and individuals. The retreat support from same thing for children and their families who are living with corpora id, individual volunteers has been overwhelming. cancer. At that point we had obtained the expertise, equipment, rebum utamur As one can imagine our experiences over the past seven funding and volunteers to start this program. The immediate periculis ea qui. years have produced many uplifting and downright incredible problem was finding a source of participants. Through a series Ei sed malorum The photos have a thick-thin black border of stories. We think one of our dads summed it up best. As we of fortuitous events, we partnered with the Northern Nevada dolores, natum 4 points. were walking along Pleasant Valley Creek, he stopped, looked Childhood Cancer Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to facilividisse mel at, around the valley and said: “You know, my family spends tating support services for childhood cancer families. wisi tota demost of its time in hospitals and doctors’ offices, and we just Our retreat offers a full day of fly fishing, food and fellowtraxit mel ad. don’t get to experience the outdoors anymore. Thank you for ship at the Pleasant Valley Fly Fishing Preserve in MarkleeEx nec bringing us to this beautiful place. Just for today, my son has ville, California. Northern Nevada children, ages 10-18 who tamquam The photos have a thick-thin forgotten he has cancer.” are in treatment for, or recovering from cancer, are invited referrentur, black border of 4this points. We very much appreciate the opportunity to share along with their parents and siblings to experience a unique vix senserit program with our friends at IFFF. Our Reel Kids Committee day of support and fun in the beautiful high Sierras. consetetur ea, ne ius minim harum is comprised of Todd Wilcks, Bob Macias and Jim Norton. Over the past years we have found that this program proconsectetuer. Id nam quis altera repreThey can be reached at 775-782-2277. vides a safe, reflective environment for participants to discuss hendunt, accusata instructior in mel. Mundi dolor nominavi mei at, qui id habeo dicant minimum, graeco suscipiantur in ius. Dictas omittam ut cum, in exerci ridens accusata has, id sea rebum eastward. streams. The fish caught were ma cou By Soon Lee verear.Ut nam maiorum maiestatis, an The invited (horse mouth) and hong wei, (red tail) the agam aliquam philosophia sed. Has n inaugural fly casting faculty former on dries and nymphs, the latter an nibh scripta nostrud, omnis exerci fly fishing were Peter Hayes, on streamers. eam ei, autem molestie dissentiunt et convention Casting Board of Fly casting is mostly self-taught in vix. Feugiat deseruisse in sed. Ornatus was held in Suining, Governors, from China, as there is no YouTube acomnis exerci eam ei, autem molestie vocibus inciderint est no. Harum iudico in Sichuan Province Australia; C.K. cess and zero fly fishing literature in dissentiunt et vix. Feugiat deseruisse in Subhead sometimes needed ad sit, ei utroque comprehensam eos. in southwest -China on Ling, master Chinese. Information is mainly shared sed. Harum iudico ad sit, ei utroque Ut nam maiorum maiestatis, May 1-3, 2014. More casting instructor through Internet forums cohosted by comprehensam eos. By Verne Lehmberg an agam aliquam philosophia than three dozen registered participants fromEst Malaysia; and Soon S. conLee, twothe few members proficient in Chinese. an saepe nonumes sed. Ad pro eruditi consulatu. came from oremvarious ipsumparts dolorofsitChina, amet, handed casting instructor, Nonetheless, nice loops were thrown sulatu. Vidit justo cu eum.Casting Nam Board Cu mel eius domri numquam including the provinces of Sichuan, ubique eripuit in vix, an eum of Governors emeritus, frombrute the United by some of the casters. The more at sint explicari gubergren, signiferumque no, Has an nibh Shaanxi, Guizhou, Guangdong, Fujian, impetus qualisque disputationi. States. program was conducted advanced attendees were interested in ridens The ex sed. An partem blandit scripta nostrud, omnis exerci eam Shandong, Liaoning, and the cities of Sit te purto scriptorem, fugit minim et over two days. Hayes anddebitis Ling kept casting certification with the goal of mandamus mel, animal ei, autem molestie dissentiunt Shanghai and Beijing. (China is just mea. Cu nec admodum vidisse conthe attendees attentive and entertained becoming better teachers. maluisset ne est, cum animal et vix. Feugiat deseruisse in sed. slightly larger than the United States in ceptam. Ea pri modo labore, eu eum with an introduction toNo fly casting, The organizing committee delegimus admodum in. vel viditroll Ornatus vocibus inciderint est no. land area and isdolorem. divided into provinces, graeci oblique Nam idque casting, pick-up-and-lay-down, and acveloped their comradeship through iracundia consequat, ad sonet Harum iudico ad sit, ei utroque similar states.) corporatoid, rebum utamur periculis ea curacy and sit, distance casting. Accuracy Internet contact. Only one of them is efficiantur in cum dicit fuiscomprehensam eos. Sichuan Province is located qui. The Ei sed malorum dolores, natum and distance games were detracto. conducted by full-time in the fly fishing business, as a set. Est id iriure legimus Iudico causae mea et. Eos case in the upper reaches of the Yangtze vidisse mel at, wisi tota detraxit mel ad. the prizes were awarded. manufacturer of Chinese branded fly Ad organizers pro eruditiand consulatu. Ad pro audiam habemus in. Ad pro eruditi River.ExWith mountains as high as 9,000 nec tamquam referrentur, vix Soon conducted session on tworod, reel and line. Several are involved eruditiLee consulatu. Adapro eruditi consulatu. Cu in. Ius an alii delfeet immediately to its west, Sichuan’s senserit consetetur ea, ne ius minim handed casting and a lecture on loop part-time as distributors for U.S.-based consulatu. eniti. Labore gubergren te pri, ea nec terrain gradually descends from west harum consectetuer. Id nam quis altera dynamics. also familiarized rod/reel manufacturers. This group IudicoHe causae mea et. Eosthe case aunemoOrnatus vocibus inciderint est no. to east into a valley basin as low as reprehendunt, accusata instructior in attendees with the IFFF,conand intends to hold a fly fishing convention diam habemus in. mission Ad pro of eruditi re facilis pertinax. Est id iriure legimus 750 in elevation. Multiplemei rivers mel.feet Mundi dolor nominavi at, then handed outeius membership applicaeach year, so watch the Flyfisher and sulatu. Cu mel domri numquam detracto. drain thedicant Yangtze, and there are qui idinto habeo minimum, graeco tion forms, te brochures on fly casting and IFFF electronic newsletter for informagubergren pri, ea nec nemoOrnatus more than 1,000 lakes. Chengdu, Bio for Lorem ipsum dolorMeanwhile, sit amet, suscipiantur in ius. Dictas omittamthe ut fly tying inciderint programs. est no. re facilis pertition onauthor. the time and place. vocibus capital of Sichuan (hometown ubique eripuit in vix, an eum impetus qualisque. cum, incity exerci ridens accusata has, of id was spotty at detracto. the resort the activities of some of these Chinese nax.Fishing Est id iriure legimus Cu nec admodum conceptam. Ea pri modo labore, Deng Xiaoping, paramount ruler in the sea rebum verear.Ut nam maiorum lake, but a thoroughly productive time fly fishers may be followed on www. eu eum graeci oblique dolorem. Nam idque rebum Bio for author. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, o 1980s), is situated at the western end of maiestatis, an agam aliquam philosowas had by all who fished the following facebook.com/ChinaFlyOutfitters. utamur periculis ea qui. Ei sed malorum dolores, laboresse mel at, wisi tota detraxit mel ad. this Suining is a scripta two-hour drive phiavalley. sed. Has an nibh nostrud, two days at farm impoundments and natum vidisse mel at,ofwisi tota detraxit ad. Soon Lee is a member the IFFF Board of mel Directors.

FLY FISHING EVENT IN CHINA

A ARTICLE HEADLINE L

Flyfisher Autumn 2014 - Winter 2015

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REEL KIDS, REAL LIVING

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CASTING PARTNER

Helps People with Disabilities Enjoy Fly Fishing By Dean Childs

arl Johnson, president of the Washington Council IFFF recently announce a gift of $1,500 to help develop equipment to assist fly fishers that have lost the use of one hand or arm. The device, invented by Olympic Peninsula Fishing Innovations (OPFI), is called the Casting Partner. It helps the fly fisher to manage the tasks normally performed by the “line hand” and employs features that help a one-handed individual to handle the fly line, to change flies, or to fight and land fish. According to OPFI president Dean Childs, the Casting Partner was developed to serve wounded veterans but is also designed to serve accident and stroke victims. It has been under development for more than a year and field tested by potential customers all over the United States and Canada. Now the finalized design is ready for release, and funds are

needed to produce the unit in volume. OPFI also produces the Evergreen Hand, a device invented by Jesse Scott, that enables an individual to tie flies with one hand. It is available from IFFF, OPFI and Project Healing Waters Fly Fishing. Like the Evergreen Hand, the Casting Partner will be distributed by the same organizations. The Casting Partner will be ready for distribution by early fall 2014. Either product is given to anyone who has a need. OPFI is funded by donations and grants, including substantial support from IFFF fly clubs nationwide. To see a video of the Casting Partner in action, go to www.fishagain.org and click on Casting Partner. Please support this worthwhile project; the organization needs to raise about $20,000 to add to the existing $10,000. Please send your donations to OPFI, P.O. Box 1221, Sequim, Washington, 98382. Dean Childs is a longtime IFFF member and owner of OPFI.

here was quite a gathering of Hampshire, England, fly fishing people recently when Alistair Robjent and his longtime partner, Kirsty, married in the church at Wherwell. The reception following the wedding was on the banks of the River Test, a worldfamous chalk stream well known for the large trout residing within its placid

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waters. As you might imagine this was a fly fishing themed wedding to include a mayfly on the front of the announcement and a wedding cake decorated with salmon flies. Expanding on the fly fishing theme, the tables at the reception were named after famous area trout and salmon rivers. In keeping with the fly fishing theme, the groom and good friend Charles Jardine took time away from the photographs and the reception to grab a fly rod and catch a couple of trout. After all, fly fishing personalities can’t let a good hatch and eager trout go to waste, even if the event unfolds in the middle of a wedding. Jardine’s friends at the IFFF weren’t surprised regarding his priorities, but we wonder what the bride may have thought about the unscheduled

Flyfisher Autumn 2014 - Winter 2015

PHOTO COURTESY CHARLES JARDINE, ESQ.

GETTING MARRIED U.K. STYLE

Longtime IFFF friend and international fly-fish ing personality Charles Jardine took time out at a recent wedding on the banks of the River Test to give a local brown trout a bit of a tussle!

recess from the wedding festivities? On second thought, we’re sure his smile and winning personality probably calmed any rough waters! Information and photo provided by Charles Jardine and Rhea Topping.

OBITUARIES Albert “Al” Himmel

lbert A. Himmel, a chemistry professor and avid fisherman, died April 8, 2014, at his home in West Seneca, New York. He was 89. Himmel was born in the town of West New York, New Jersey, across the Hudson River from Manhattan. He served with the U.S. Army’s 279th Engineer Combat Battalion during World War II in the European theater. A graduate of Syracuse University, Himmel moved to western New York in 1962 and took a position teaching chemistry at Buffalo State College. He retired 25 years later as a full professor. Himmel was a lifelong member

Donald W. Larmouth

onald Wilford Larmouth from Green Bay, Wisconsin, died of Parkinson’s disease June 12, 2014. He was born November 24, 1940, in Chicago to the late G. Wilford and Margaret (Carpenter) Larmouth. Larmouth graduated from high school in Esko, Minnesota, in 1958. He received his bachelor’s in English from the University of Minnesota-Duluth in 1962, his master’s in 1965, and his doctorate in linguistics in 1972 from the University of Chicago. He married Judy Ann Smith July 27, 1968. Larmouth joined the faculty at the University of

Charles T. Newmyer

harles Thomas Newmyer passed away in his home in Ridgecrest, California, July 22, 2014, from complications due to prostate cancer. His family and beloved dog Herman were with him. Known to everyone as Chuck, he was born in Long Beach, California, July 31, 1935, to William and Lois Newmyer. He attended Stanford University and graduated with honors from UCLA in 1958 with a Bachelor of Science in mechanical engineering. Newmyer married Charlene Lewis in 1954; they celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary in May. After an engineering career he retired in 1994. As a lifelong fisherman, Newmyer founded the Aguabonita Flyfishers

of the International Federation of Fly Fishers and Trout Unlimited and was the author of seven fly fishing booklets on such topics as identifying insects and salmon fishing in New York state. His work appeared in Fly Fisherman magazine and the Catskills Fly Tyers Guild Gazette, along with other newsletters and publications, including the Buffalo News. His reputation in the regional fly fishing community has been described as “legendary.” Michael Levy, the late Buffalo News outdoors writer, once quoted Himmel’s monograph, “What Every Trout Should Know,” in a story. Himmel wrote that there were three types of fishermen: “Type A’s, who are aggressive, compul-

sive and willing to go to any extreme to locate wild fish; Type B’s, who fish with flies for wild fish but are willing to use attractors if insect imitations don’t work; and Type C’s, who are just out for a pleasant day on the stream, but likely to be dry fly enthusiasts.” Himmel described himself as a Type B, a purist who would use any kind of fly that produces fish. Himmel’s wife, Anne, died in 2003. He is survived by a son, Brad, and two daughters, Karen Himmel and Lynne Seaw.

Minnesota-Duluth in 1965, teaching English, linguistics and computer assisted composition (Socrates Program). He joined the faculty of the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay and retired with emeritus status in 2000. During his career he taught courses in linguistics, scientific and technical writing and Chaucer. He held positions as dean of arts, sciences and graduate programs; chair of communication and the arts, and chair of the University Committee. Administration was his calling, but teaching was his love. Larmouth’s other great passion was fishing in Canada, the Midwest and Florida. He was the proud author of the books “Tarpon on Fly,” “Riffles and Back Eddies” and “Days and Nights in the Northwoods.” For the last 50 years he contributed many

articles to fishing magazines and journals. Don was a proud member of the International Federation of Fly Fishers, Classic Anglers of Wisconsin and Trout Unlimited. He is survived by his wife, Judy Ann, and their two children, Mary-Margaret (Sean) Zindren and David (Roberta) Larmouth; three grandchildren, Olivia and Anna Zindren and Morganne Larmouth; and his brother, Richard (Ellie) Larmouth. Don was preceded in death by his parents and his sister. In lieu of floral expressions a memorial fund has been established in Larmouth’s name. To send online condolences to his family, go to www. prokowall.com.

(club) in 1979. He opened the High Sierra Flyfisher (fly shop) in Ridgecrest in 1982. He was a member of the International Federation of Fly Fishers and received awards for Legends of Fly Fishing, the Charlie Brooks Award, and Dick Nelson Fly Tying Teaching Award and President’s Pin. Newmyer was the only angler to receive the California Department of Fish and Game Volunteer Award for work on the Wild Trout Program. He never missed an opportunity to fly fish in Montana, Utah, Alaska and New Zealand. He made countless trips into the Sierra Nevadas with friends and family, and Hot Creek Ranch was his favorite. His other interests included Burros Boosters, UCLA sports and scholarship committee, the Angels and Lakers, men’s fast-pitch soft-

ball, camping and backpacking, puzzles, home and yard projects, and many environmental conservation projects. He is survived by his wife, Charlene; son Billy; daughters Karen and Diana; granddaughters Veronica Benavides and Stacey Newmyer; grandson Charles Newmyer; great-grandson Brandon Benavides; and many aunts, uncles, nieces and nephews. He was predeceased by his parents, brother Gary Newmyer and nephew Richard Newmyer. He will be remembered for his humor, kindness and humanitarian spirit. A celebration of life was held at the Ridgecrest United Methodist Church July 31, 2014.

Information from Proko-Wall Funeral Home and Crematory.

The 2014 IFFF International Fly Fishing Fair

International Federation of Fly Fishers AWARD

2014 Awards

RECIPIENT

Lapis Lazuli Award......................................... Herb Kettler Buszek Memorial Award.................................Oscar Feliu Dick Nelson Fly Tying Teaching Award............ Bill Heugel IFFF Conservation Award..............University of Southern Mississippi – Gulf Coast Research Laboratory Leopold Award.................................. Christopher Camuto Stanley Lloyd Conservation Award......... Austin Fly Fishers Roderick Haig Brown Award........................George Black Federator of the Year................................ Russell Husted Sherry Steele McKenzie Cup...............................Fort Worth Fly Fishers Southern Sierra Fly Fishers LaFontaine Aquatic Entomology Scholarship........ Matt Green Lee Wulff................................... Living Waters Fly Fishing Silver Creek Outfitters Lew Jewett Memorial Life Award..........Ronald E. Ziarnowski Charles E. Brooks Memorial Life Award........ Marc Pinsel Don Harger Memorial Life Award..................Pat Oglesby Arnold Gingrich Memorial Life Award..................................... Ralph Morgan Parker President’s Pin(s)..........................................Dean Childs Dave Roberts

COUNCIL AWARDS OF EXCELLENCE

Eastern Rocky Mountain........................... Ron Robinson Florida...............................................................Ron Winn Jack Neely Great Lakes.................................................. John Bebow Gulf Coast...................................................... Marc Pinsel Leon Cuccia Chesapeake................................................ No candidate North East..................................................Frank Flowers Northern California............................... Gene Kaczmarek Ohio............................................................. No candidate Oregon.......................................................Marv Clemons South East................................................... No candidate Southern....................................................... Michael Kyle South West............................................... Gary Applebee Texas.............................................................. Jack Janco Upper Midwest............................................. No candidate Washington............................................ David P Williams Vicki Hoagland Western Rocky Mountain...............Lee & Nancy Davison

CASTING BOARD OF GOVERNORS AWARDS

Governor’s Pin........................................Richard Williams Lifetime Achievement in Fly Casting...............Bob Jacklin Governor’s Mentoring Award..................... Dwight Klemin Mel Krieger Instruction Award............... Chuck Easterling Jim Valle Jay Gammel Award...........................................Soon Lee Pat Oglesby from Grand Junction, Colorado, is a longtime IFFF member, the official fair photographer and the author of the awards profiles. In his spare time, Pat and his lovely wife, Carol, operate and judge the yearly IFFF Photo Contest (see pages 54-55).

Recap

ORDER OF THE LAPIS LAZULI AWARD

he Order of the Lapis Lazuli Award is the highest honor in the International Federation of Fly Fishers (IFFF) and is not necessarily awarded each year. The award is for exemplary and individual achievement, and the selection is by a two-thirds majority vote of the Executive Committee. The recipient receives a one-of-a-kind, specially designed gold ring with a lapis lazuli stone and the IFFF logo. Lapis lazuli is regarded as the stone of friendship and truth. The deep azure stone is said to encourage harmony in relationships and aid its wearer in authenticity and the ability to display his or her opinion openly. Herb Kettler became interested in fly tying while attending high school in his native state of Illinois. He started tying on a vise he constructed in school and used it for tying intermittently during his college years. He Order of the Lapis Lazuli Award recipient Herb didn’t tie for a number of Kettler (right) with IFFF Chairman Phil Greenlee. years, but 20 years ago he started seriously pursuing his hobby of fly tying. Kettler got into fly fishing after he and his 14-year-old son visited an Orvis store and after looking at equipment decided it was an activity they could enjoy together. Twenty years ago, at the urging of Art Mazzier, Kettler joined the IFFF and became a member of the DuPage River Fly Tyers in Glen Ellyn, Illinois. He immediately became active at both the club and council levels. In 1997, Herb became interested in volunteering for the national organization after attending his first Conclave in Grand Rapids, Michigan. He was impressed with all the instructional opportunities and the quality of presenters available at a single venue. Kettler wears many hats in his involvement with the IFFF. He plays an integral role in the success of the national Fly Fishing Fair by serving as workshop chairperson. This requires selecting workshop topics, soliciting presenters, organizing schedules, arranging space requirements and overseeing more than 100 workshops during the week of the fair. The workshops have been very successful and are an important source of revenue for the IFFF. Serving as chairman of the Awards Committee, Kettler solicits and collects the awards nominations and distributes them to the committee members so selections can be made. Following the selections, recipients must be notified, awards secured and engraved, and the Fair Awards Program scheduled. Kettler also accomplished a monumental task as secretary of the IFFF for the past 10 years. The secretary is responsible for keeping minutes of all the board and Executive Committee meetings, as well as the council presidents’ meetings, and distributing them to the appropriate parties in a timely manner. The secretary is also charged with being the custodian of the corporate records and transactions. Although the duties sound simple enough, anyone who has served as an officer of an organization knows that these are just a few of the many functions performed by the secretary, and they require a major investment in time. To Kettler the award is validation for all the work he has done for the IFFF. It also reminds him of all the members who have supported him during these activities, and he would like to thank them.

Articles and photos by Pat Oglesby

FEDERATOR OF THE YEAR

he Federator of the Year Award is presented annually to an individual(s) who has demonstrated unusual devotion to the IFFF, and through outstanding contributions has benefited the Federation as a national or international organization. This award is bestowed upon an individual for achievements wide in scope and not limited to local or regional activities. The criteria require devotion and contributions to the IFFF in order to be consistent with IFFF’s objectives.

enthusiastic with the proposal, and he spearheaded the possibility of the changes with the Texas clubs. He quickly had the leadership of the north Texas clubs agreeing with the changes and also gathered support from the Gulf Coast Council. Husted is credited with building the Fort Worth Fly Fishers into the strongest and most financially successful club in Texas, and with his background and skills in team building, he put together a board of directors, officers and committee members

Russell Husted

Russell Husted was born in Kansas City, Kansas, and lived there for 16 years before moving to Texas. Although his father didn’t fish, one of his grandfathers loved fishing and often took him to local farm ponds where they caught catfish and brim. He was active as a Boy Scout and attained the status of Eagle Scout. Scouting sparked his interest in the outdoors, and he became an avid spin fisher. When he moved to Texas, he took up bass fishing. He met a young lady, who later became his wife, and he discovered her father was a trout fisher. Her father invited Husted to go fishing with him in Colorado on his next trip. During that trip Husted caught a brown trout on his first cast and he was thrilled. For the past 25 years he has made two trips annually to Colorado’s high mountains to fish for trout. Fifteen years ago Husted heard about the Fort Federator of the Year Award recipients Russell Husted and Sherry Steele with Phil Greenlee Worth Fly Fishers, and out of curiosity he attended one of their club meetings. He became involved with the leadership of the club, holding offices and serving on the to operate the council. Since forming the new council, memberboard. Eight years ago he joined the IFFF and became active in ship has grown from 520 to nearly 800 members, and two new the Southern Council as regional director. charter clubs have been formed. Through Husted’s efforts, two Since Texas is so large, it was difficult to get the Gulf Coast of the largest clubs in the state were converted from affiliate Council members together to conduct any type of show or to charter status. Without his tireless efforts, this achievement event. In 2012 Kyle Moppert, president of the Gulf Coast Counwouldn’t have been successful. During the past year he drove cil, realized that changes were necessary to have functioning thousands of miles in Texas, attending events and visiting clubs, councils. He contacted Husted and proposed forming a Texas all the while promoting the IFFF. Council and a smaller, revised Gulf Coast Council. Husted was Continues on page 23

The Roderick Haig-Brown Award is presented to recognize individuals who have made significant contributions to angling literature. The award is presented to an author of a book, books, or combination of articles and books that embody the philosophy of Roderick Haig-Brown. This year’s recipient is George Black. George Black is the author of “The Trout Pool Paradox,” “Casting a Spell: The Bamboo Fly Rod and the American Pursuit of Perfection” and “Empire of Shadows: The Epic Story of Yellowstone.” All three books speak directly to the membership of IFFF: about our conservation ethic, our love for casting fine fly rods, and about our love of Yellowstone. He is also the executive editor of OnEarth magazine, a publication of the Natural Resources Defense Council. His three books are varied in content and cover a wide range of subject matter. His superb writing style expertly delves into the lives of two adjacent Connecticut rivers – one polluted so bad it will

PHOTO COURTESY GEORGE BLACK

RODERICK HAIG-BROWN AWARD

barely sustain life, while the other is vibrant, exciting and alive. His conclusions make for an interesting read. Contrast that book with his interesting book on the Yellowstone River, one of the few undammed rivers in the continental United States. It is a must read for any IFFF member. Last but not least is his comprehensive look at the bamboo fly rod, from its use on the water to its birthplace in a remote valley in Guangdong Province, in China. Whether introducing tools or techniques for crafting exceptional fly rods, investigating adjacent rivers or discussing the mighty Yellowstone, Black is a writer who generates thought and excitement with the written word. Therefore, the IFFF was proud to present him with this award in recognition of his superb writing ability.

Flyfisher Autumn 2014 - Winter 2015

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Recap

DON HARGER MEMORIAL LIFE AWARD The Don Harger Memorial Life Award is presented each year to an individual (or in his/her memory to a family member) who is actively engaged in, or has been actively engaged in, or is closely related to some aspect or area of fly fishing, either as a vocation or avocation. It is required this person has made some noteworthy contribution as an educator, writer, conservationist, photographer, fly tier or proponent of fly fishing rights. Pat Oglesby from Grand Junction, Colorado, a member since 1985, received this year’s award. Oglesby writes and photographs for Flyfisher magazine. He has chaired the annual Fly Fishing Fair Photo Contest for the past several years and has acted as the show photographer, providing photos to be used for advertising and marketing, and reporter.

of the Western Colorado Fly Fishing Exposition for 15 years. He became a certified casting instructor in 1992, teaching casting to a wide range of students. For several years prior to the casting group taking over the casting competition, Pat Oglesby (left) received the Don Harger Mehe conducted the casting morial Life Award, presented by Phil Greenlee. competition held at the conclave for the Colliander Cup and the Barbara Rohrer Cup. He is currently the Eastern Rocky Mountain Council president.

Oglesby is a member of Grand Valley Anglers, a chapter of Trout Unlimited and an affiliate club of the IFFF. He has been one of the guiding members of that organization for more than 20 years. He is past president of the chapter and was chair

He has worked tirelessly for the art of fly fishing by teaching others all aspects of fly fishing through personal teaching, writing and photography. Oglesby is a most deserving recipient of the Don Harger Memorial Life Award.

PHOTO BY BT’S PHOTOGRAPHY

The 2014 IFFF International Fly Fishing Fair

ARNOLD GINGRICH MEMORIAL LIFE AWARD year’s recipient. Someone once asked Parker if there was a way to fish with a dry fly in salt water. Parker couldn’t think of any hatch to match, and the only dry he could think of was when the helicopter was eaten in Jaws II. So, being the man he was, he tied several helicopter dry flies. The fly with a propeller on the front made many people in the fly fishing community jeer and some cheer, but almost everyone thought it would be a flop. It turned out to be one of Parker’s most popular and most used flies. It is currently available on a retail basis in the Umpqua catalog. The Propeller Fly is just one of many, many patterns that he created. He was always working on new techniques, new designs and new ways to throw everyone

off-guard. Some of his major accomplishments, in fly fishing specifically, were being a founder of the Evergreen Trout Unlimited club, being a lifelong member of the International Federation of Fly Fishers, and his three IGFA world records. For 20 years he was the Fly Video Theater Director for the International Sportsmen’s Expositions, and at the age of 72, he became an Alaskan fishing guide at the Good News River Lodge. Yes, Pete Parker was a man of many talents, a longtime Federator and close friend of this magazine’s editors. He was a man special to many people in and around the fly fishing industry. We are very pleased to see this award granted to him.

LAFONTAINE AQUATIC ENTOMOLOGY SCHOLARSHIP AWARD This award was created to honor Gary LaFontaine and the aquatic entomology he loved and spent his life studying. A fund was established in the IFFF Foundation, the interest of which will be given to a graduate student (master’s or doctorate) doing a research project in aquatic entomology. This year’s recipient is Matt Green, a student seeking a master’s degree in biology at Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina. Green requested financial aid to help with research to better understand how tailwaters influence aquatic insect populations, particularly how tailwaters affect aquatic insect life histories and habitat quality. In addition to this research, a portion of his master’s thesis project will explore how the invasive diatom Didymosphenia geminata affects the population dynamics and nutritional ecology of the sulphur mayfly, Ephemerella invaria, in the South Holston River tailwater.

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Flyfisher Autumn 2014 - Winter 2015

Green’s results of this research will be published in peer-reviewed journals and will be shared with the scientific community at next year’s annual meeting for the Society for Freshwater Science. Any results published in peerreviewed journals will be credited to funding granted by the IFFF in the acknowledgements section of such publications. The IFFF is pleased to help Matt Green with his research via the LaFontaine Memorial Scholarship Award and look forward to reviewing the results of his research. His thesis project will hold value for many stakeholders, tailwater managers and anglers alike.

PHOTO COURTESY THE GREEN FAMILY

he Arnold Gingrich Memorial Life Award is presented to that person of outstanding achievement in any of several areas that are part of, or related to, the sport and science of fly fishing. Those areas include angling writing, original fly fishing theory, conservation and environmental protection, entomology, education in the sport of fly fishing, and innovation in the fly fishing techniques. The late Ralph Morgan “Pete” Parker is this

Articles and photos by Pat Oglesby

LEE WULFF AWARD

BUZ BUSZEK MEMORIAL AWARD

his award is presented to recognize the business side of fly fishing. It is awarded to a business(es) that has shown outstanding innovation in the industry through their products, stewardship of water and fisheries resources, and a combination of both. This year the Lee Wulff Award goes to two organizations. They are Silver Creek Outfitters from Ketchum, Idaho, and Living Waters Fly Fishing (LWFF) from Round Rock, Texas. LWFF is a fly fishing, fly tying, education and conservation-minded organization. Their leader Chris Johnson is a registered, professional fly fishing guide in Texas and Oklahoma who regularly volunteers his time to assist new fly fishing enthusiasts in fly casting, fly tying and general knowledge of the sport. One evening a week is dedicated to fly tying at the LWFF office where instruction and all materials are offered to the general public free of charge. LWFF conducts open and free clinics every weekend to encourage others to participate and enjoy the sport of fly fishing. This includes events on their home waters at nearby Brushy Creek. In addition, LWFF holds events for beginners and experienced fly fishermen alike on other local waters like the Llano River, San Gabriel River and the Guadalupe River, just to name a few. LWFF has the largest and most extensive inventory of fly tying materials of any establishment in the Central Texas area. If a fly tier requires a particular or exotic material and it’s not in their inventory, they will get it without delay. Since the early 1960s Silver Creek Outfitters (SCO) has had a tradition of service. Under the leadership of owner Terry Ring, every member of the Silver Creek Outfitters family understands that their success depends on the customer’s continued interest and satisfaction. There is a strong sense of purpose amongst Silver Creek employees to help their customers understand and enjoy everything that the Sun Valley lifestyle offers. With 26 IFFF certified casting instructors and two master casting instructors, SCO is proud to have the best guide staff on the planet. Their motto is, “If the customer is intimidated, they shouldn’t be.” SCO is in business to help you, teach you and become lifelong friends. Both organizations are real professionals bringing a strong commitment to their customers. They are excellent examples of what the IFFF Lee Wulff Award represents.

he Buz Buszek Memorial Award is presented annually to that person who has made significant contributions to the art of fly tying. The recipient may be either an amateur or professional who displays tying skills, creativity, innovation and shares knowledge by teaching or publication. Achievements and contributions should promote the advancements of the art and qualifications should be superior to other candidates. Oscar Feliu of The Villages, Florida, is a native of Chile and grew up fishing for trout in the Andes Mountains. He immigrated to Mount Pleasant, Michigan, in 1969 and attended Central Michigan University, majoring in music with a minor in biology. While attending college he volunteered for a Michigan Department of Natural Resources Brook Trout Study program conducted on small streams. He became interested in entomology Phil Greenlee (left) with Buz Buszek Memorial Award after seeing Carl Richards and Doug recipient Oscar Feliu (center) and Tom Logan. Swisher’s fly fishing programs on television. This interest took him to aquatic studies on numerous streams, and he put his entomology and fly tying together to create some of his fly patterns. Feliu joined the IFFF in 1974, and after moving to Florida, he successfully started two clubs and serves as president of one of them, Sunshine Fly Anglers, a charter club. In 1986 he met outdoor writer Ralph Queen and teamed up with him to collaborate on a series of eight articles that were published in American Angler, Trout Canada, Fly Fishing, Field & Stream and Scientific Angler’s Quarterly. His innovative fly patterns have become well known throughout the Great Lakes region and have received recognition in many local and national publications. Feliu produced the popular DVD “Mayfly and Caddis: Life Cycles,” along with three other DVDs and has been recognized in numerous publications throughout the United States, Canada and Italy. He has been a member of the Whiting Farms Pro Team for the past eight years, demonstrating the use of Whiting products and designing flies using Whiting materials. In 2008 he entered his flies in the Wisconsin Red Badger’s Fly Tying Competition and took first place. In 2008 and 2012 he was the recipient of the Southeastern Council’s Fly Tier of the Year Award. As a fly designer, Feliu doesn’t limit his creations to a specific species. He produces patterns for fresh and saltwater species. Feliu leads a fly fishing program for The Villages Charter Schools. He conducts three, six-week courses each year that focus on fly tying and fly fishing. He feels we need to do a better job of reaching out to our youth and getting them interested in fly fishing and fly tying. He assists with the Youth Fly Fishing Camp for the Florida Council and participates with the Florida Boy Scouts Merit Badge. At The Villages Lifelong Learning College, he instructs fly tying classes for both adults and youth. Feliu is a regular youth fly fishing instructor for the Florida Council’s annual Fly Fishing Expo. During the winter months he can be found at various fly fishing shows in Florida sharing his fly tying skills. Each summer at the Fly Fishing Fair, his “Life Cycle of the Caddis” workshop fills quickly. He is respected as one of the most professional and skilled fly tying instructors in the country. Feliu learned fly casting from Bruce Richards while living in Michigan. Also longtime friend the late Mel Krieger was a major influence for his casting skills. In addition to being an outstanding fly tier, Feliu is known in IFFF circles for his musical talents. He is a big hit each year at the annual BBQ, singing and playing his guitar. He started studying classical guitar at age 12 and at 17 was offered a recording contract, which he regretfully turned down. Professionally he plays guitar and sings opera. Feliu would like to dedicate this award to the late Darwin Atkin for being his friend and mentor. He feels the award is all about legacy. The award isn’t something he expected but always wanted. He feels it is recognition of his efforts in the IFFF and is deeply honored to be the recipient.

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The 2014 IFFF International Fly Fishing Fair

LEW JEWETT MEMORIAL LIFE AWARD

THE MCKENZIE CUP

he McKenzie Cup is given to the IFFF club(s) that has made the most outstanding contribution to the organization. This year the organization is proud to award the McKenzie Cup to two outstanding clubs. They are the Fort Worth Fly Fishers and the Southern Sierra Fly Fishers.

The Lew Jewett Memorial Award is presented annually to those who have done one of these things: made efforts to bring more people into the sport of fly fishing and enhanced their knowledge and ability; devoted Ron Ziarnowski (left) is awarded energy toward the Lew Jewett Memorial Life youth education; Award, presented by has been an Phil Greenlee. innovator in equipment and techniques; has been a proven teacher; has made a contribution to the preservation and enhancement of fisheries; has made a contribution to organizations or has made a contribution to our biological knowledge of the sport and habitat.

Fort Worth Fly Fishers

The Fort Worth Fly Fishers (FWFF) from Forth Worth, Texas, recently changed its status to that of a charter club. This huge accomplishment brought more than 100 new members into the IFFF. Many are on the board of directors and volunteer at the council events. They also helped start a new Project Healing Waters Fly Fishing group in North Texas. This group has grown fast while working with wounded fly fishing soldiers. They supplied funds, guides, materials and their time to make the veterans’ group a success. The FWFF also supports other nonprofits, such as Reel Recovery, Casting for Recovery and Lower Mountain Fork River organizations. Over the past four years, FWFF has donated more than $20,000 to support these groups.

Southern Sierra Fly Fishers

Southern Sierra Fly Fishers (SSFF) from Kernville, California, was founded in 2005 to focus on conservation of the Kern River watershed. Since then it has grown to 130 members. This club is unique because it draws its membership from as far away as 280 miles. The club participates in the Silver Creek Lahontan Conversation Project, the Golden Trout Project, Monache Meadow Fence Maintenance and the Southwest Council Inter-Club Tournament. It holds an annual fundraising Rendezvous, which generates between $7,000 and $8,000. The club teaches rod building and an annual youth fly fishing school. To date, 116 students have graduated; each youth receives a new fly rod outfit, fly box, flies and fishing vests all donated by SSFF. The IFFF appreciates all that these two clubs and the many other local clubs do to support its organizational goals. We are proud to recognize two of the best of the best with the McKenzie Cup Award.

Ron Ziarnowski was a founding member of the Lake Erie Chapter of the IFFF in 2007 and has been the president for five of those years. In his role as president, he was responsible for bringing many interesting programs to the club. Program topics included fish feeling pain, fracking, water quality, reading the water and an interesting demonstration by Sergeant Maxt, a German Shepard trained to seek contraband salmon. As part of this club he has been active with the western New York and Pennsylvania region of Project Healing Waters Fly Fishing. He volunteers his time at the local VA hospital teaching veterans to tie flies. This past year he was recognized by the state of New York Legislature for “his many contributions to the sport of fly fishing and many hours of volunteer service, particularly to our youth and our veterans.”

Federators Enjoy Great Music At the Hoot in Livingston

Joanne Gardner and John Lowell of What’s Up Buttercup produced an outstanding free musical concert Thusday evening of the 2014 International Fly Fishing Fair. Federators enjoyed musical talents of Grammy Award-winner Rodney Crowell with a surprise performance by John Mayer. The IFFF thanks Gardner and Lowell as well as other community organizations that supported the Federation’s annual event. We thank the Livingston School District, Livingston Area Chamber, City of Livingston, Livingston Business Improvement District and many others who helped make this event a great success.

Flyfisher Autumn 2014 - Winter 2015

The local Orvis store invites him to work with them in their fly tying and fly casting classes. In each session Ziarnowski spends at least three hours each Saturday assisting them with their program. He does rod building workshops with whomever asks.

PHOTO COURTESY THE LIVINGSTON CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

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Recap

While still focusing on the fly fishing product arena, Ziarnowski is the person many members turn to for help in selecting what rod or line to purchase for different streams or species of fish. Why do they ask him for help? The answer is simple. It’s because they trust his judgment. It must be true because many members contacted the Awards Committee to nominate him for this award. The Lake Erie Chapter of the IFFF was proud to nominate him, and the IFFF was proud to recognize him with this award.

Articles and photos by Pat Oglesby

Save the Date !

DICK NELSON FLY TYING TEACHING AWARD

FEDERATOR OF THE YEAR Continued from page 19

As council president Husted regularly attends and actively participates in the IFFF council president’s monthly conference calls. He recently developed the IFFF council report that has benefited the presidents with their conference calls. At the local level Husted serves as vice president of the Fort Worth Fly Fishers. When Russell Husted looks at previous recipients of the Federator of the Year Award, he is deeply humbled. The plaque has a special place on the wall at his home in Texas.

Sherry Steele

Sherry Steele grew up in Florida and fished for warmwater and saltwater fish with her father, an avid general tackle angler. She got into fly fishing 12 years ago when she went on vacation from Florida to Sisters, Oregon, to visit friends. While there she noticed a fly shop and that sparked her interest. She walked into the shop and saw a huge display of what she would find out were flies. She was intrigued. Using borrowed equipment she went on her first fly fishing trip and loved it. She was really interested in fly fishing and purchased equipment for her next trip to Oregon. She was still fascinated with flies and became interested in fly tying and so she enrolled in a class. She knew it was something that she wanted to learn more about and thus started her fly tying career. A business move took her to California, where she worked in the technology industry. From there she was close enough to Oregon she could drive there for weekend fly fishing trips. In 2001 she bought property in Oregon and a couple years later sold her horse ranch in California and moved so she could be close to the fishing opportunities. In 2004 she joined the IFFF and immediately offered her services as a volunteer for a council event in Northern

PHOTO COURTESY THE HEUGEL FAMILY

he Dick Nelson Fly Tying Teaching Award is presented to an individual who excels in teaching the art of fly tying to all skill levels. The recipient must be able to demonstrate and teach the varied skills of fly tying and be able to teach techniques developed by others and themselves and have experience teaching in both group and individual environments. Bill Heugel lives on the shores of Toledo Bend Lake near Hemphill, Texas, where he spends much of his time tying flies and fishing for largemouth bass. He is a member of the Piney Woods Flyfishers. Like fellow Texas fly tiers, Billy Munn, Jeff Mack and Jimmy Nix, Heugel is an excellent fly tying artist, creating works of art with deer hair. He prefers to spin hair and carve out divers, a specialty of his. As is the case with many versatile fly tiers, Heugel is adept at tying a variety of fly styles. Over the years he has been a guest demonstration fly tier at many fly fishing events including the Texas Fly Fishing Show, the Sow Bug Roundup, the Smallmouth Rendezvous, the IFFF South-

August 11-15, 2015 BEND, OREGON

The next International Fly Fishing Fair

eastern Council Conclave, the Toledo Bend Rendezvous and the IFFF Southern Council Conclave. Heugel is a regular volunteer at many of the Texas Parks and Wildlife events including Fly Fish Texas, an event where anglers from novice to expert gather to teach as well as learn. He is a volunteer with Project Healing Waters at the Charlie Wilson Veteran’s Administration facility in Lufkin, Texas, even though it requires a 75-mile drive. Heugel is currently the fly tying chairperson for the IFFF Gulf Coast Exposition. He sat on the board of the Gulf Coast Council and is currently seated on the board of the newly formed Texas Council. He has traveled extensively to provide tying lessons to clubs in Texas, Louisiana and Arkansas. Bill Heugel received the 2010 Fly Tier of the Year Award from the Gulf Coast Council and is most deserving to be recognized nationally.

California. The show scene fascinated her, and she started attending shows to demonstrate her fly tying skills. A local Oregon fly fishing personality, Denny Rickards, became her mentor, although she has also been influenced by Californian Ben Bing. In 2004 Steele joined her first fly fishing club, the TriCounty Fly Fishers, and became the fly tying chairperson. She started working at a fly shop, Pacific Coast Anglers, and formed a fly tying group that met weekly. The following year she was thrilled to be invited to demonstration tie at the IFFF Northern California Council Conclave in Redding, California. In addition to tying she volunteered to assist with their raffle/ auction. Two years later Steele was elected to the Oregon Council Board of Directors as their communications and newsletter chairperson and received the Central Oregon Fly Fishers Special Recognition Award. In 2008 Steele became involved with the Oregon Council and served as the expo vendor chairperson. The following year she founded the Central Oregon Fly Tyers Guild, an IFFF charter club with a mission to instruct the art of fly tying, including classics to freestyle art flies. In 2010 Steele was the recipient of Oregon Council’s Federator of the Year Award and the Oregon Council Award of Excellence. She attended her first IFFF Fly Fishing Fair and was elected to the board of directors. She spent time that fall at the Livingston office installing hardware and software upgrades, including an operations evaluation system for the national office. She has spent hundreds of hours at the national office working on cataloging and organizing the fly fishing museum housed there. In her spare time Steele is President of the Oregon Council. Sherry Steele feels the award is recognition for her accomplishments with the IFFF and she takes pride in being part of the organization. Flyfisher Autumn 2014 - Winter 2015

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The 2014 IFFF International Fly Fishing Fair IFFF COUNCIL LEADERSHIP AWARD

IFFF CONSERVATION AWARD

he IFFF Council Leadership Award is presented to an individual for outstanding contributions at the council level. Kyle Moppert has a long history of working with councils in the southern part of the United States. Born in New Orleans, raised in Shreveport and now a resident of Baton Rouge, he was a cofounder of the North Louisiana Fly Fishers in 1984. He has been involved with the Southeast Council, the Gulf Coast Council, Southern Council and now the newly redrawn Gulf Coast Council. His first introduction to the IFFF was when he joined the Red Stick Fly Fishers Club based out of Baton Rouge; subsequently he served as president. He is especially proud of working with Russell Husted to rearrange boundaries of the Gulf Coast Council and create a new Texas Council. He has served as the president of the Gulf Coast Council for seven years. Currently there are 11 clubs in the council, of which four are charter clubs spanning Louisiana, Mississippi and coastal Alabama. Kyle is excited about having their first show this fall and they will donate some of the proceeds to the Gulf Coast Research Lab, an organization working to restore stripers in the Gulf Coast. Moppert has a passion for working with the Boy Scouts; during the past two years the Council has introduced over 400 scouts to fly fishing and fly tying. Moppert served as IFFF vice president of membership for two years under president Tom Jindra, and they were successful in increasing IFFF membership by nearly 20 percent. Another office he held at the national level for two years was vice president of education. As a fly tier he has tied at shows in many of the Southern states since 1987 and either chaired or cochaired dozens of council and club events. To Kyle Moppert the award means he is recognized for his efforts over the years, but he feels he is just doing his part for the IFFF.

he IFFF Conservation Award is presents to individuals, groups or organizations that have made extraordinary contributions to the conservation of fisheries resources. The award could be based on a single outstanding contribution or on a continuous prominent effort promoting conservation. This year the organization receiving this coveted award is the University of Southern Mississippi – Gulf Coast Research Laboratory (GCRL) in Ocean Springs, Mississippi. The main office for the university is in Long Beach, Mississippi, where it operates one campus and four teaching and research sites situated along the Mississippi Gulf Coast. This organization is receiving this award in recognition for their 40-plus years of diligent work to restore striped bass along the Gulf Coast and their contributions to basic science and knowledge of striped bass everywhere. The marine research programs at the GCRL are multidisciplinary and applications-oriented. Programs include: Marine Biodiversity; Marine Ecology; Marine Biodiversity; Landscape Ecology; Marine Education; Fisheries Ecology; Marine Microbial Ecology; Marine Pathology; Parasitology; Marine Toxicology, including oil, dispersants and food webs; and Marine Aquaculture. The latter program is devoted to developing technologies for environmentally sustainable approaches to marine aquaculture and marine stock enhancement, including cobia, shrimp, red snapper, spotted sea trout, and specifically the Striped Bass Restoration Program that is referenced for this award. The GCRL holds evening Science Cafés, “cookies and milk” seminars that feature their current work on species from blue crabs to striped bass to tarpon, such that the community can “get to know” these species, their environmental challenges and the conservation efforts to protect them. This kind of outreach is extensive. The Gulf Coast Research Laboratory has Summer Field Programs, Summer Camps for Young People, “Catch More Fish with Science” seminars, “Resources for Anglers” websites and more. GCRL staffers speak at area clubs and meetings throughout the region. They present at IFFF clubs like the Historic Ocean Springs Saltwater Fly Fishing Club, the Magnolia Fly Fishers and the Mississippi Coast Fly Fisher. In return all of the area clubs help as volunteers for their Summer Camp, which is a win-win for everyone. Given all this organization does for the fishing public, marine ecology and especially for striped bass, it is quite evident why the GCRL was recognized with the highest conservation award the IFFF presents.

T PHOTO COURTESY KYLE MOPPERT

Recap

MEMBERSHIP SILVER AWARD OF MERIT The Membership Silver Award of Merit is to recognize the council that increased enrollment more than 25 percent and represents the greatest increase in the time period. The newly formed Texas Council, which includes the whole state, had a phenomenal year of recruiting new members. The council achieved an

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increase of 32 percent during the year. In February alone the membership grew by 65 members. With the addition of a Fort Worth club converting to charter status, an additional 100 new Federators were added. Congratulations to the Texas Council. Award of Merit to Council President Russell Husted representing the new Texas Council

IFFF PRESIDENT’S PINS

IFFF LEOPOLD AWARD

The President of the IFFF presents pins annually to individuals who have assisted him during his term in office. These are people who the president can depend on to be there to offer him, and the organization, assistance. President Phil Greenlee made presentations to Dave Roberts from Eagle Point, Oregon, and Dean Childs from Sequim, Washington, for their hard work on behalf of the organization.

The IFFF Leopold Award is presented to an individual for outstanding contributions to fisheries and land ecology. The person should have followed an adherence to the land ethic espoused and demonstrated by Aldo Leopold, Luna Leopold, A. Starker Leopold and the other family members. Recognition for the value of all ecosystem parts, not only fish and wildlife but all biotic and abiotic components, are an integral part.

President’s Pins recipients Dave Roberts (left) and Dean Childs

CHARLES BROOK MEMORIAL LIFE AWARD

PHOTO BY BRUCE SUBLETT

he Charles Brook Memorial Life Award goes to an individual who demonstrates a deep affection for the outdoors, is an innovative fly tier, has some background in writing books or magazine articles, is a member of the IFFF, and has some history of serving at banquets, seminars or regional conclaves. The recipient should have the enthusiasm of Brook and be “a character.” Marc Pinsel from Hammond, Louisiana is this year’s recipient. Raised in his native city of Memphis, Tennessee, Pinsel grew up fly fishing for both warm and coldwater species, playing bass fiddle in a regionally known folk band and racing sports cars. He was the “Jewish kid” in Catholic school, and his school-day tales are hilarious. In the mid-1960s Pinsel was a security specialist in the U.S. Army, a calling which he continued throughout a long and distinguished career with the Department of Defense at Stennis Space Center working for the Navy as a spy. A brilliant mix of a guy, he’s an excellent caster and extremely knowledgeable fly fishing guide. In 1992 Pinsel attended his first Federation conclave in Mountain Home, Arkansas. After that first conclave Pinsel quickly became a fixture at many council shows, where he often served as auctioneer, master of ceremonies and the voice of the card draws. In addition he served as the awards chair for the IFFF for two years. Pinsel is an award-winning, international fly tier and member of the Whiting Pro Staff who has been presenting fly tying demonstrations for many years in a large range of venues throughout the United States and Europe. His tying specialties include wool head and feather wing bass patterns, as well as flies for trout, steelhead, and Pacific and Atlantic salmon. He’s well known for trading fine flies for fine cigars. Yes, Marc Pinsel is definitely a talented, enthusiastic individual and a real character. This award fits his personality and skills perfectly!

STANLEY LLOYD CONSERVATION AWARD For IFFF clubs working on conservation projects we offer this award. The project must be related to fisheries enhancement and preservation. Applicants or nominees must be active IFFF Affiliate Clubs. The award is presented for a completed or planned project which is fishery related and focused on conservation, enhancement and preservation. The club is to provide “matching funds” for the project of at least 50 percent of the total value of the project. This year Russell Husted, recipient of the 2014 IFFF Federator of the Year and president of the new Texas Council, nominated the Austin Fly Fishers for the highly cherished award. The club is very active with a major focus on conservation projects. They have adopted Brushy Creek near Austin as their home waters, where they have partnered with the Living Waters Fly Shop and the

Christopher Camuto is an American nature writer, scholar and poet. He is the author of four books, three that focused on the southern Appalachian. They are “A Fly Fisherman’s Blue Ridge” (Henry Holt, 1990), “Another Country: Journeying Toward the Cherokee Mountains” (Henry Holt, 1997), “Hunting from Home: A Year Afield in the Blue Ridge” (W.W. Horton, 2003), and “Time and Tide in Acadia: Seasons on Mount Desert Island” (W.W. Horton, 2009). “Another Country” is the most complex as it interweaves historical accounts of the Southern Appalachians, reflections on the Cherokee language’s relationship to the landscape, and accounts of efforts to reintroduce the endangered red wolf into Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Since 1995 Camuto has been the book review columnist for Gray’s Sporting Journal, where he comments six times a year on sporting literature and art. Since 1998 he has written the quarterly “Watersheds” column, which he created for Trout Unlimited’s Trout magazine. He was the book review columnist for Audubon from 1999 to 2002 and has written for a wide range of nature and environment periodicals devoted to nature and the environment. These periodicals include American Rivers, Audubon, The Boston Globe and Chesapeake. After reviewing his qualifications it is evident that Christopher Camuto is more than qualified for this award.

local community to keep this stream pristine. Through their efforts it is an amazing fishery as it runs through urban Round Rock, Texas. The club organizes annual cleanup work events along the stream banks, usually bringing 50 or more helpers to complete the work. This year they plan to expand the project and clean up a much larger territory with the help of the Texas Council, the Central Texas IFFF clubs from San Gabriel, San Marcus, Kerrville, Waco, Fort Worth, Dallas and New Braunfels. By the time you read this article, this huge event will be complete. Club members expect the function to create quite a stir in the state and communities near the creek. Austin Fly Fishers also has plans for additional projects this year and into the future. Members are seeking grants to help them achieve their conservation goals, and this award will only help them reach those targets. This is a very motivated club; we expect to see more from them as the years unfold.

PHOTO COURTESY CHRISTOPHER CAMUTO

Articles and photos by Pat Oglesby

The 2014 IFFF International Fly Fishing Fair

Recap

LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT IN FLY CASTING INSTRUCTION AWARD

he Lifetime Achievement in Fly Casting Instruction Award is given by the IFFF Casting Board of Governors in recognition of those who have made significant contributions to the art of fly casting instruction. Bob Jacklin of West Yellowstone, Montana, is owner of Jacklin’s Fly Shop. He began his professional career and volunteer service in fly casting instruction in 1969 when he accepted a summer, full-time job teaching at Bud Lilly’s Fly Fishing School, where he remained for three years teaching during the summers. In 1972 Jacklin became the casting instructor for the Fenwick Western Fly Fishing School. He worked there for 10 years and concentrated on improving fly casting teaching techniques. Jacklin was on the pro staff of Sage Rods for 18 years, and this is his 16th year on the St. Croix Rod Company pro staff. He has been one of the featured fly casting

celebrities at many of the International Sportsmen’s Expos and The Fly Fishing Shows in New Jersey, New York, Denver, Michigan, California and Japan. Jacklin is known for offering free casting instruction every summer in West Yellowstone and has written several articles and produced an instructional DVD on fly casting instruction. As a Charter IFFF member, he became one of the first to achieve certification and was one of the first six casting instructors who tested and achieved master casting instructor status. He was elected to the Casting Board of Governors and has served for the past 10 years. Jacklin received recognition as a “Fly Fishing Legend” by the IFFF in 2004, was inducted into the Catskill Fly Fishing Center & Museum “Hall of Fame” that same year, and in 2008 received the IFFF’s highest recognition, the Order of the Lapis Lazuli Award. He

Lifetime Achievement in Fly Casting Instruction Award recipient Bob Jacklin (right) with David Diaz.

is known among Federators as a willing educator who has represented fly casting instruction with passion, zeal and class. He is among the best of the best.

MEL KRIEGER FLY CASTING INSTRUCTORS AWARD

he Mel Krieger Fly Casting Instructors Award is presented by the Casting Board of Governors (CBOG) in recognition of those who have made significant contributions to the IFFF Casting Instructor Certification Program (CICP), have dedicated themselves to fly casting instruction, and have shared their knowledge with others. This year the board selected two people to receive this important casting award. They are Chuck Easterling and Jim Valle. Both individuals exemplify the selfless dedication and enthusiasm that is appropriate for the Mel Krieger Fly Casting Instructors Award, named in honor of Mel Krieger (a founding member of the CICP).

Chuck Easterling

Chuck Easterling is very much a student of fly casting. He does well in challenging himself as well as those around him to discover more about the nuances of fly casting and fly fishing. He has a style of teaching that includes the Socratic method of self-discovery as well as being well versed in the written literature on fly casting. He simultaneously has the character of being an expert and yet is humble in his approach to teaching.

Jim Valle

Jim Valle’s programs on how to become a certified casting instructor are filled with information and personal energy. He has a wide repertoire of teaching techniques and approaches to getting his point across to students. His technique of turning his baseball hat around to demonstrate the direction of the wind to teach about casting in the wind is now in the toolbox of many

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Flyfisher Autumn 2014 - Winter 2015

Mel Krieger Fly Casting Instructors Award recipients Jim Valle (left) and Chuck Easterling (right) with David Diaz.

instructors. His advice to throw three aerial mends at once to gain control over the aerial mend is just another of the many tricks he shares with his classes. Upon reviewing the qualifications of the two individuals selected by the CBOG to receive the Mel Krieger Fly Casting Instructor Award, it is quite evident why Chuck Easterling and Jim Valle were chosen. They both are CICP ambassadors and epitomize the high standards of the IFFF Casting Instructor Certification Program.

Articles and photos by Pat Oglesby

“The Essentials of Fly Casting” was the first published work that treated fly casting from the instructor’s perspective. When the IFFF published Jay and Bill Gammel’s “Essentials” in 1993, the 24-page pamphlet changed the teaching of fly casting forever. Named after Jay Gammel, the award is to be given to a person, persons or group for material presented in the form of written publications (books, magazine articles, Loop articles, websites, etc.), David Diaz (left) presents the Jay instructional Gammel Award for Fly Casting material Instruction to Soon Lee. (course materials, lesson plans or material of that nature) or electronic media (hosted websites, DVDs, CDs, videos) that have made a lasting contribution to fly casting instruction. Contributions recognized will be exclusively for teaching how to instruct, not for examining, administrating tests, coaching or mentoring candidates. Because of his three-part series of articles on “Loops,” “Casting Stroke” and “Stop” published in The Loop Journal, later incorporated in a 42-page monograph, Soon Lee received the Jay Gammel Award. In three ways, Soon Lee’s written works improve the thinking and understanding of fly casting instructors everywhere. He examined the mechanics and force that produce fly line loops and composed a simpler, more elegant and improved conceptual model for understanding loop formation. His revised model meets the test of prediction, the key metric in science. In his published booklet, “Fly Casting: Loop Dynamics” available at Amazon. com, he refined the customary and vague designation of what constitutes the casting stroke, specifically where it commences and terminates. He wrote persuasively that omitting some of the action of the rod in its recovery movements was necessary and productive to a clear understanding. Fly casting is not a natural phenomenon like water movement in rivers. Nevertheless, knowing how fly casters actually produce the loop in the fly line enables those in the know to predict the results. Soon Lee’s work is a major contribution to fly casting instructional literature.

CASTING BOARD OF GOVERNORS’ PIN

he Casting Board of Governors awards pins in recognition of continued support of the Casting Instructor Certification Program in areas of administration, committee involvement or program implementation. In 2014 the Governors’ Pin was awarded to Rick Williams from Boise, Idaho, in recognition of his contribution to the Casting Instructors Certification Program (CICP) by exemplary direction of the Strategic Planning Committee and the origination and implementation of the Examiner Development Pathway (EDP). Williams has long been involved on the Casting Board of Governors,

and he serves on the IFFF board of directors. He is often observed running between meetings while Casting Board of Governors’ Pin covering Award recipient Rick Williams (right) with David Diaz his bases in both groups. In his spare time he travels to various parts of the globe teaching casting and advancing the IFFF goals and the CICP. He is a highenergy person certainly deserving of this important recognition.

GOVERNOR’S MENTORING AWARD

he Governor’s Mentoring Award goes to an IFFF member, or members, for long and continued support of the Casting Instructors Certification Program (CICP) through mentoring. Mentoring involves sharing casting knowledge voluntarily with individuals, groups or clubs to perfect members’ casting skills. Mentoring helps advance the CICP by educating and recruiting members into the instructor ranks as well as advancing casting instructors to more advanced certifications. In 2005, Dwight Klemin was a certified casting instructor with a goal to become a two-handed casting instructor (THCI). To be immersed in the two-hand world, Klemin with cofounder Stan Steel formed an IFFF Charter Club for Spey casters called the North Santiam Spey Casters. It is the only IFFF Charter Club solely dedicated to Spey casting in the nation. The group meets regularly on Saturdays where Klemin leads discussions, gives demonstrations and mentors fellow club members. He received his THCI certification in 2006, yet his involvement remained nonstop. He provides both mentoring and teaching twice weekly for general

fishing-type casters and for those interested in IFFF certification. After receiving his THCI, Klemin became a master casting instructor in 2009. In 2007, Klemin developed a teaching program for students interested in becoming certified. The course is condensed into a handbook, “A Guide To Fly Casting Instruction.” The true strength of the CICP is local instructors mentoring others. Klemin has shown a tireless commitment to help fellow casters both in mentoring and in providing opportunity for instructors. He inspires students and fellow casters to excel. How appropriate that Dwight Klemin was recognized by the Casting Board of Governors with the Governor’s Mentoring Award. Contact him at dgklemin@msn.com for information on purchasing his book. PHOTO COURTESY KLEMIN FAMILY

JAY GAMMEL AWARD FOR FLY CASTING INSTRUCTION

Flyfisher Autumn 2014 - Winter 2015

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The International Federation of Fly Fishers wishes to thank all the sponsors, donors and volunteers who made this event a great success!

2014 Sponsors

Livingston, MT

Comfort Inn - Yellowstone North • Yellowstone Gifts & Sports • Stu’s Fly Shop Jacklin’s Fly Shop • Prudential Montana Real Estate • Quesenberry Insurance IFFF Florida Council • IFFF Great Lakes Council • IFFF Southwest Council 2 - 49th Annual Fly Fishing Fair

Mid-Depth Tactics For Stream Smallmouth Bass Story and photos by Terry & Roxanne Wilson

atching smallmouth bass on the surface has to rank as one of life’s most delectable pleasures, while bumping a crayfish imitation along the bottom is considered by many anglers to be the most common presentation for the species. The truth is that both of these areas of the water column only offer the fish an opportunistic meal. In neither location are the bass actively feeding. When a smallie seeks food it most often prefers to set up in slower stream flows in which little effort to maintain its position is required. This location allows swifter water nearby to drift edibles past its lie. While topwater and bottom-bouncing presentations are both highly successful at times, they often require equipment adjustments that involve heavier rods to cast weighted or windresistant offerings. However, mid-depth flies can be comfortably delivered with 5- or 6-weight rods, floating or intermediate lines, and 4X leaders. Tiny smallmouth hatchlings begin their lives feeding on microscopic organisms, but as they continue to grow, their grocery list expands to include terrestrial insects, larger nymphs, minnows and the hatchlings of other fish species. Eventually they’re able to target crayfish, leeches and frogs. Many menu items are most often confined either to the water’s surface or the stream’s substrate. That means terrestrial insects, adult insects and crayfish can be eliminated from the mid-depth equation. That allows mid-depth presentations to focus upon larger nymphs that are rising toward the surface, minnows, the offspring of other spe-

Above, cast into the swift water of a current seam and allow the current to drift it into the slower water.

cies and leeches. Practically speaking then, our mid-depth fly boxes need only to contain nymphs and streamers. While mid-depth refers to the portion of the water column that is sandwiched between the surface and the stream bottom, the most productive areas to target are the current seams and pocket water. Seams are areas where fast and slow water merge and often the slower water forms an eddy that is easily identified visually as the water is circled back upstream. Bronzebacks are able to position themselves in the slower water to conserve energy while enabling observation of the smorgasbord of edibles that are constantly swept by their positions in the faster current. Pocket water is also easily identified where the water appears “humpy.” This is caused by rocks hidden just beneath the surface that forces the water up and over their tops. These water humps (slack water) are formed immediately downstream from the rocks, which serve as current breaks that enable bass to comfortably maintain their positions before darting out into swifter water to grab passing morsels. Smallmouth bass often feed on nymphs at mid-depth in moving water because they provide easy, reliable meals. Because these nymphs are presented in moving water, an impressionistic replication of mayflies and caddis flies is adequate. While your favorite nymph patterns will be equally successful, we use a pattern we call the North Fork Nymph to represent mayflies. It’s simply our adaptation of mid-20th century English river keeper Frank Sawyer’s Pheasant Tail Nymph. We tie it “in the round” (without a carapace) so that as it tumbles through the current, it will appear Flyfisher Autumn 2014 - Winter 2015

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natural. The thorax is formed with picked-out rabbit dubbing. Subaquatic caddis, actually larval and pupal stages that fly fishers refer to as nymphs, can be imitated by simple, soft hackle flies consisting only of thread, floss or dubbed bodies and sparsely wound feathers from partridge, grouse, woodcock or starling. The late Sylvester Nemes revitalized these popular flies that date back to the second century in “The Soft-Hackled Fly” and his other books. Both mayfly and caddis representations are effective along the seams of the lower sections of riffles and in pocket water with moderate current. Cast upstream and allow the fly to sink to the desired depth or cast it upstream and across at an angle determined by the speed of the current so that drag doesn’t negatively affect the fly too quickly. In sluggish currents, downand-across presentations can be equally effective. At the end of a down-and-across drift when the fly is affected by drag and begins to rise to the surface, it may appear to the smallies that

Sizeable smallies like the one the author is holding will inhale nymphs fished along a seam in the current. Left, the authors find pocket water can be fished with both nymphs and streamers at mid-depth.

the nymph is about to emerge as a dun. Many strikes occur in this portion of the drift if current speed is slow enough to permit the nymph imitation to get deep into the water column. A reach cast and mending the line lengthen the drag-free drift and enable the fly to reach a suitable depth. Many anglers, especially while employing the upstream or up-and-across presentation, prefer to use a strike indicator or a fluorescent mono section to connect the fly line to the leader to help them detect hits. The use of strike indicators eliminates the nymph’s rise to the surface at the end of the drift, but it does ensure a drag-free drift, which is the most difficult aspect of any dead-drift presentation. Short casts are necessary to maintain control of the fly. Long casts make strike detection and positive hook-sets more difficult. Smallmouths suck in nymphs but they are capable of rejecting phonies very quickly. Slack line or late strike detection dramatically reduces the number of hook-ups. Getting close to bass, especially in clear water, increases the risk of spooking them. Swift water helps to some degree to conceal the angler, but care must be taken in choosing casting locations. A little planning is necessary in advance of the first cast. Try to determine where the bass will be holding and what position you need to take in order to best accommodate an effective presentation. Minnows provide smallmouth bass with meals that are higher in calories than any of their other menu items. Smallies often cruise areas that attract minnows and take up lies where intercepting them is likely. Many different species of minnows occupy smallmouth streams. In addition anglers tend

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Flyfisher Autumn 2014 - Winter 2015

to classify the fry of other game fish as minnows, which further expands the list. Matching the minnow is certainly one productive concept but again, we prefer a more impressionistic approach. Several classic streamer patterns such as Black Ghost, Black-Nosed Dace, Muddler Minnow, and the ubiquitous Woolly Bugger have produced well for decades. Unweighted streamers presented on slow-sinking intermediate lines enable both natural fly action and depth control. In relatively shallow and slow water, a down-and-across cast is best. Allow the fly to swing across the current on a tight line before imparting short, darting strips. Then let the current drift the fly back to its original position before repeating the strips. Deeper, faster seams and pocket water can be approached in two ways. Cast slack line well above the targeted area and allow the line to tighten as the fly sinks so that it can be manipulated at the desired depth. Try the other option by casting up and across the stream and provide action by lifting, then lowering the rod tip before stripping to control the inevitable slack line. These mid-depth tactics will enable you to effectively present flies to smallmouth in areas of the water column that are ignored by many anglers. It also provides an easy transition for the trout angler wanting to expand their angling opportunities because the equipment, fish locations and techniques are already part of their fishing bag of tricks. Terry and Roxanne Wilson of Bolivar, Missouri, are longtime Flyfisher contributors focusing on warmwater fly fishing. Their new book, “Crappie Fly Fishing: A Seasonal Approach,” is available through their website at www.thebluegillpond.com or e-mail them at terrywil@windstream.net.

Poison that Saves Fish

he greatest threat to species and subspecies of trout is hybridization and competition by aliens superimposed on their habitat by humans. But the threat went unnoticed until shortly after the mid-20th century. Before that even the managers were playing musical chairs with fish. As a result native trout are flickering out all across America. For instance, in Yellowstone National Park the old U.S. Bureau of Sport Fisheries stocked rainbow trout from the Pacific Northwest, brown trout from Germany, brook trout from the East, and lake trout from the Great Lakes. Todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s fisheries managers understand that trout are wildlife, too, and that preventing extinction of unique forms is no less important than saving whooping cranes. Sadly, such an epiphany still eludes elements of the environmental and angling communities. Flyfisher Autumn 2014 - Winter 2015

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PHOTO BY CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND WILDLIFE HERITAGE & WILD TROUT

PHOTO BY YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK NATIVE FISH CONSERVATION PROGRAM

PHOTO BY YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK, NATIVE FISH CONSERVATION PROGRAM

A project’s goal is frequently to save the Arctic grayling, Yellowstone cutthroat trout or the beautiful golden trout (shown top to bottom).

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Flyfisher Autumn 2014 - Winter 2015

In most cases the only tool managers have to save imperiled trout is an organic poison called rotenone. No poison is selective, but rotenone formulations currently used in fish recovery are as selective as poison gets. Fisheries managers use far weaker doses – less than 50 parts per billion in streams, slightly more in lakes. What’s more, it is easily neutralized downstream from treatment areas. Rendered from tropical plants, rotenone has been used for centuries by South American tribes to collect fish for food. There is no danger to terrestrial organisms or even aquatic organisms with lungs. Modern rotenone formulations have never been seen to permanently affect an aquatic ecosystem except to help it restore. The formulations do kill some aquatic insect larvae, but these insects can fly as adults, so they repopulate from untreated areas. In a response to stress called “catastrophic drift,” many of the larvae dislodge from rocks when they sense a threatening change in water chemistry, letting the current carry them to safety. After insects repopulate they often do better than before treatment because they don’t have to contend with alien predators. Of course, rotenone kills all the alien and hybrid fish – that’s the whole idea. Managers then release natives they’ve previously evacuated and held in hatcheries or natural sanctuaries. Some environmentalists fear rotenone possibly because they have misread Rachel Carson’s “Silent Spring.” Carson had no problem with short-lived poisons like rotenone without which protecting native ecosystems from invasive aliens would

PHOTO TO LEFT AND RIGHT BY CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND WILDLIFE

It takes a lot of equipment and supplies to support 50 people at two stations on opposite ends of California’s Silver Creek project. The two stations include a rotenone drip station upstream and the potassium permanganate neutralizing station downstream. All of the supplies were packed into the project area using horses and mules.

Above (also pictured on page 31), a rotenone upstream drip station on California’s Silver Creek.

ederation of F nal F ly F o i t ish na r e te

sm ®

restrials, insects and other animals that live in or drink from the poisoned water.” Even Peter Frost, the Law Center attorney who argued against rotenone in court, privately acknowledges that the statement is patently false. For a decade litigants and appellants blocked recovery of America’s rarest trout – the Paiute cutthroat, native to California’s Silver King Creek in the Carson-Iceberg Wilderness of the high Sierras. But in 2013 fisheries managers finally prevailed in court and applied rotenone using the upstream drip and down-

Veterans FIrst Fly FIshIng

be impossible. She only opposed what she called “biocides,” poisons like DDT that persist and magnify in food chains. Gross misinformation about rotenone issuing from some environmental groups has convinced clueless judges and water boards around the West to shut down recovery of imperiled trout. Representing many of these groups has been the Western Environmental Law Center. “The chemical,” it proclaimed in a press release, “does not just kill the fish in the water but the entire ecosystem, including turtles, snakes, frogs, birds, ter-

is a growing group of fly fishers who conduct and/or participate in fly fishing workshops for our veterans. Hundreds of disabled veterans, both the physically disabled and those with post traumatic stress disorder, are finding peace and rehabilitation with the Veterans First Fly Fishing program. The program originated with the northern California Council of the International Federation of Fly Fishers and is expanding nationwide. Please join us in our mission to put veterans first.

Our Name is Our Mission Statement To ParTiciPaTe

Contact: Ken Brunskill, Chairman Veterans First Fly Fishing at steamntrout@comcast.net

To DonaTe

Mail Check to: IFFF/VFFF 5237 U.S. Hwy 89 South, Ste. 11 Livingston, MT 59047 See and LIKe US on FaCeBooK! VeTeranS FIrST FLy FISHIng With Veterans First Fly Fishing, units are part of their regional IFFF council’s education component using their 501(c)(3) status, insurance and treasury.

www.nccfff.org/vfff.html

Flyfisher Autumn 2014 - Winter 2015

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sons that control invasive plants, insects and fish are essential to wilderness management. The language of the Wilderness Act guarantees their use. Another litigant, the Center for Biological Diversity, contended that rotenone threatened mountain yellow-legged frogs in Silver King Creek, but frogs don’t occur there. Even if they did, rotenone would

“Parkinson’s-like condition” – i.e. tremors – in an animal model. In an effort to correct the tragic mistakes of the U.S. Bureau of Sport Fisheries, Yellowstone National Park is trying to restore long-lost fluvial (river-dwelling) Arctic grayling and save westslope and Yellowstone cutthroat trout from extirpation, if not extinction. This goal can’t be attained without rotenone. The park faces vicious opposition from a few anglers who don’t care what’s on the end of their line so long as it’s tight. The founder of the Orwellian-named Wild Trout Conservation Coalition, Peter Moyer, defends trout hybridization with such statements as, “I am a bit of a mongrel myself” and falsely proclaims in widely circulated missives that rotenone is “highly toxic to humans and animals.” The coalition and its allies don’t speak A motorized augur applies potassium permanganate at the bottom of the project area to neutralize the for most anglers, but they shout louder. rotenone. The progress of the project is monitored around the clock to avoid killing fish below the project’s The beautiful California golden treatment area. trout, the state fish, remains on this not have affected adults, and tadpoles planet thanks to rotenone and aquatic would have been evacuated. Ironically, biologist Phil Pister, formerly of the Calithe National Park Service is planning to fornia Department of Fish and Wildlife. use rotenone in the high Sierras to save In the 1970s alien brown trout outnummountain yellow-legged frogs from the bered native golden trout by about 100 to alien trout that are devouring them. 1. Recovery, says Pister, started “before Authors, speakers available Almost without exception, rotenone the use of rotenone became so controfor club events and shows. opponents cite a “link” with Parkinson’s versial. ... I can safely say that had I not Slide shows, seminars, and disease, basing this fiction on an Emory been able to use rotenone, the California tying demonstrations. University study in which concentrated golden trout would now be extinct.” Warmwater fly fishing. rotenone was mainlined into rats’ juguTed Williams, a former information officer for the (largemouth and smallmouth lar veins via pumps implanted under Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife, bass, bluegill, and other species) writes about fish and wildlife for national publicatheir skin. At the end of a year and a tions and serves as conservation editor for Fly half, no rat had Parkinson’s disease. The terrywil@windstream.net • 417-777-2467 Rod & Reel magazine. researchers merely wanted to establish a PHOTOS BY CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND WILDLIFE

stream neutralize method of application. As a result of this rotenone application project, the Paiute cutthroat is on track to be the first trout restored to 100 percent of its habitat and taken off the Endangered Species List. “Poison has no place in wilderness stewardship,” proclaimed one litigant, Wilderness Watch. But short-lived poi-

Terry and Roxanne

Wilson

For anyone who has a natural curiosity about the abundant variety of fish species in the Columbia Basin, fisheries biologist and author Dennis Dauble answers familiar questions and delves into a variety of factors related to 60-plus species in his guidebook, Fishes of the Columbia Basin. If you’re on a quest for fishes and the places they live, Fishes of the Columbia Basin is an indispensable guide.

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east of

YELLOWSTONE

Geology of Clarks Fork Valley and the Nearby Beartooth and Absaroka Mountains

Robert J. Carson

Photography by Duane Scroggins Foreword by Don Snow

East of Yellowstone invites the curious into the dramatic geologic beauty of the Clarks Fork Valley just east of the world’s first national park, as guided by geologist and professor Bob Carson. Featuring beautiful images by photographer Duane Scroggins, this book is essential to exploring the geology along roads and trails outside Yellowstone National Park.

Available at www.KeokeeBooks.com

Flyfisher Autumn 2014 - Winter 2015

Yeller Gold! That Sweet Fishing for Yellowstone Cutthroat Trout

PHOTO BY KELLY G. GLISSMEYER

By Kelly G. Glissmeyer

IVING IN SOUTHEAST IDAHO, A FLY ANGLER LIKE ME DEVELOPS A FONDNESS FOR NATIVE TROUT. SINCE MOST TROUT DO NOT LIVE IN UGLY PLACES AND MOST WESTERN NATIVE TROUT DWELL IN PARTICULARLY BREATHTAKING REALMS, IT IS HARD NOT TO BECOME ENAM-

CUTTHROAT TROUT (YCT) TO BE SPECIFIC. While there are other subspecies of cutthroat trout throughout the west, the Yellowstone cutthroat (Oncorhynchus clarki bouvieri) dominates in and around that magic ecosystem known as Yellowstone Park. Today’s Yellowstone cutthroat range spreads over Montana, Wyoming, Idaho, Utah and Nevada. The major populations are on public lands in Montana, Wyoming and Idaho. Many of those populations are found in roadless and wilderness areas. This is probably the main reason they continue to thrive. Yellowstone Lake in Yellowstone National Park, the Yellowstone River that flows through the park, and the many tributaries in and around Yellowstone hold a strong and healthy population of YCT – a popular draw for anglers worldwide. Currently there is a concern in Yellowstone Lake where voracious lake trout were illegally introduced several years ago and endanger the resident YCT population. While the cutthroat numbers are stable, the lake trout do threaten takeover due to their aggressive nature and because they grow large by feeding on resident cutthroats. The Snake River and its tributaries from its origins in Wyoming’s Grand Teton National Park and along its entire length downstream through Idaho contain a strong and vital population of YCT. The lower river (the South Fork of the Snake River) also contains a cutthroat subspecies known as the Snake River Fine-Spotted Cutthroat Trout – distinguishable from the YCT by a proliferation of smaller black spots that differ from larger spots usually present on the Yellowstone variety. The South Fork is currently striving to maintain a healthy population of cutthroat trout by encouraging catch-andkeep of any and all rainbow trout in the river, even offering a bounty on rainbows. Cutthroat trout in general are distinguishable by the prominent red or red/orange slashes under the jaw thus giving the trout its namesake; in addition, the Yellowstone subspecies exhibits a particular pattern of black spots on the body making it distinguishable from other subspecies. To me the Yellowstone subspecies is one of the most beautiful of all. They are a combination of golden olive on top along their back changing to brilliant golden sides interspersed with numerous black spots on the top and sides of the fish working forward from the tail and culminating in that vivid red/orange slash at the jaw line. During the season most YCT also exhibit deep red/orange gill plates that add spectacular color to these fish. These trout range in catchable size from several inches to over 20 inches. Yellowstone cutthroats are a joy to catch, first because they are so willing to rise to a dry fly and second because of the beautiful places in which they reside. YCT are located in high mountain lakes and streams as well as in lower elevation lakes, reservoirs,

PHOTO BY MICHAEL GLISSMEYER

ORED BY THE CUTTHROAT TROUT – YELLOWSTONE

Photos clockwise from top: Many spring creeks hold good populations of Yellowstone cutthroat trout, this beauty fell to a KG’s Spring Creek Scud trailed behind a Pheasant-tail nymph.

PHOTO BY CHRIS PARKS

When the annual salmonfly hatch occurs on Idaho’s South Fork of the Snake River, Yellowstone cutts are looking up for a large meal! The ‘Big Ugly’ Rubberlegs nymph is an excellent fly when these large bugs begin their migration to shore prior to emergence.

PHOTO BY KELLY G. GLISSMEYER

A typical Yellowstone cutthroat trout found in most western waters in and around the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem.

streams and rivers of all sizes; wherever you find them the setting is usually beautiful enough to take your breath away. Cutthroats usually spawn a bit later in the spring than do rainbow trout. Since their spawning time usually overlaps the tail end of the rainbow trout spawn, the two species occasionally interbreed producing a hybrid known as the cut-bow. This hybrid trout is said to be sterile and cannot breed, although they consistently go through the motions when the time comes. Cut-bow hybrids also tend to grow quite large very quickly. Depending on the circumstances, equipment choices for YCT can vary greatly. Popular choices range from short, medium action rods and double-tapered floating lines to fairly stout, longer, fast action rods with full-sinking lines. Quite frankly, anglers run the gamut when it comes to what to use to catch these feisty fish. My son prefers Flyfisher Autumn 2014 - Winter 2015

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PHOTO BY KELLY G. GLISSMEYER

PHOTO BY MATT HIVELY

PHOTO BY KELLY G. GLISSMEYER

a 7-foot, 3-weight, medium-action rod for high-country creeks and smaller streams. When fishing my local rivers, such as the South Fork of the Snake River or the lower Henry’s Fork, I opt for a 5- or 6-weight rod that can throw a weight-forward floating line with ease. Fly fishing lakes, ponds and reservoirs requires a small arsenal of two or three rods, each with a specific purpose and line for the task at hand. I usually spend the day on my favorite stillwater with my 5-weight, fast action rod paired with a floating, weight-forward line along with my 8-weight rod equipped with a full sinking line and an extra spool with an intermediate line on it just in case I need it. I can usually cover all angling situations with these setups. My favorite way to pursue the Yellowstone cutthroat is with dry flies. There is nothing like sight-fishing to a feeding cutty on a mountain stream with a dry fly. While I often adhere to the school of matching the hatch, I know that it is not so critical when fishing for these beauties. My favorite fly on smaller creeks and streams is the ubiquitous Renegade or one of its versions such as the Royal Renegade. Another favorite is the Parachute Adams. The pattern usually does not really matter but a good, drag-free presentation is very important. One of my favorite cutthroat streams is a tributary to a large reservoir in southeast Idaho. There is a strong kokanee salmon run in late summer up this tributary, and the cutthroat follow the salmon upriver as they leave the reservoir to spawn. This particular water requires a bit of a hike, but the rewards are well worth the effort to reach a beautiful, fish-filled mountain stream located in some breathtaking country. Not long ago while enjoying a good day on this water, I spotted a nice fish and laid out a fairly decent (for me) cast just upstream of its position. The fly dropped perfectly and was drifting over a pod of the spawning salmon before becoming available to the trout, so I thought. As the fly drifted over them, a large trout exploded out of the middle of the pod and

KG’s Favorite Cutthroat Flies By Kelly G. Glissmeyer

PARACHUTE ADAMS

RENEGADE Hook: Dai-Riki 300, size 14 Thread: UTC Ultra 70 Denier, black Tag: Gold tinsel, small Rear Hackle: Brown Body: Peacock herl, 4 strands Front Hackle: White

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‘BIG UGLY’ RUBBERLEGS Hook: Dai-Riki 280, size 6-8 Thread: Gold or brown, 70 denier Weight: 20 wraps of .030 non-lead wire Legs/Antennae: Superfloss, yellow or gold Body: Variegated yellow/brown chenille

Flyfisher Autumn 2014 - Winter 2015

Hook: Dai-Riki 300, size 14, 16 Thread: Black, 70 denier Tail: Brown and grizzly mix Abdomen/Thorax: Gray or olive-gray Superfine dubbing Wing Post: SAAP Hi-Vis (poly yarn), white Hackle: Grizzly brown mix

took my fly on the surface. I had no idea he was where he was, and he surprised me enough that I almost jerked the fly out of his mouth. Thankfully, I still hooked and landed this fine fish. What a hoot! Henry’s Lake, Idaho, is another of my favorite waters for cutthroats; it is filled with them, cut-bow hybrids and brook trout. I love to fish a 5-weight rod using an active retrieve over shallow-water weed beds in early spring and late fall. I find using various leech patterns with a small olive scud on a dropper to be my best fly-pattern combination (see the patterns in the sidebar). The strikes are vicious and the fish are large and full of fight. My largest cutthroat trout have come from Henry’s Lake using this method. Another method I like is fishing the deeper waters of this lake under a slip-strike indicator using midge patterns. This method can be very exciting and result in some very large fish. No matter how you fish for them, you can’t help but fall in love with the native Yellowstone cutthroat trout. They are addictive as heck. When out West, make sure to spend some time pursuing these beauties and you too will become hooked on chasing that “sweet yeller gold!” Kelly Glissmeyer and his wife, Cathy, reside in Rigby, Idaho, where they participate in all things fly fishing. He can be contacted at kggliss@hotmail.com.

Photos, clockwise from top: This feisty cutt was taken with a wellpresented Parachute Adams dry fly on a small Idaho stream. Joe Hively with a backcountry Yellowstone cutthroat caught on an olive Parachute Adams. There is nothing like this classic drift boat to reach rising Yellowstone cutthroat trout on Idaho’s South Fork of the Snake River. IFG fisheries biologist Brett High tied into one of the river’s many Yellowstone cutts.

KG’S SAND CREEK LEECH

KG’S SPRING CREEK SCUD

Hook: Dai-Riki 730, sizes 8-12 Thread: Olive, 70 denier Bead: Silver or copper, sized to fit hook used Weight: 15 to 20 wraps of 0.015 non-lead wire Tail: Long noodle of the same dubbing used for body Rib: Silver or copper wire to match bead Body: Light olive Arizona Simi Seal dubbing (picked out)

Hook: Dai-Riki 125, size 14 Thread: Olive/Dun, 8/0 Tail: Small noodle of the same dubbing used for body Shellback: 3/16-inch strip of thin plastic or Scud Back Rib: Pearl Krystal Flash Body: Light olive-amber mix of Arizona Simi Seal dubbing (pick out dubbing and trim to length equal to hook gape)

BEAD-HEAD FLASHBACK PHEASANT-TAIL NYMPH Hook: Dai-Riki 125, size 14 Bead: Copper 3/32 Thread: Brown, 70 denier Tail: 5-7 Pheasant-tail barbs Rib: Chartreuse wire, small Abdomen: Pheasant-tail barbs, wrapped Abdomen flashback: UTC Mirage medium tinsel, opal Wing case: UTC Mirage large tinsel, opal Thorax: Peacock herls, wrapped Legs: Brown-mottled hen-saddle feather

Flyfisher Autumn 2014 - Winter 2015

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Conserving, Restoring, Educating Through Fly Fishing®

Focus on the Fly SUBHEAD

This is a sub-subhead

Ribbon Caddis Oscar Feliu, 2014 Buszek Award The Villages, Florida

Blue-winged Olive Nymph Gene Barrington Cumming, Georgia

PMD Sparkle Dun Ellen Clark Fort Washakie, Wyoming

By Verne Lehmberg

lies for Yellowstone cutthroat trout span the spectrum from realistic caddis and nymphs to attractor patterns, from newly designed flies like Walter Wiese’s Pink Clacka to the House and Lot, an old fly that R.C. Cauffman originated for the Frying Pan River in Colorado. He supposedly sold enough to Dwight Eisenhower to buy a cabin and lot on that river. Cutthroat will sometime take only realistic flies like Feliu’s Ribbon Caddis or Barrington’s Blue-winged Olive Nymph. Super realistic flies like Blackstone’s Giant Stonefly are not necessary for cutthroat. His flies are framed. Simple stoneflies and old attractors, including the Renegade and House and Lot, will do just fine. Humpies, invented in the 1930s, are high floating flies for rough water, and the Foampy is Ed Morphis’ version using modern foam for flotation. Taylor Williams, a guide and fishing partner of Ernest Hemingway, invented the Renegade in the 1920s. It and the House and Lot have white wings and are easy to see on the water, a real help to ensure a drag-free float. The Car Top Caddis has an interesting history. When the IFFF’s own Darwin Atkin was having trouble catching cutthroat on the Yellowstone in the park, he tied this simple tiny caddis beside the river, using only elk hair. Al Beatty inherited a patch of Darwin’s elk hair this summer and used it to tie the Car Top Caddis on this page. Give these old flies a try for cutthroat. Verne Lehmberg from Dayton, Texas, is a longtime Federation member and Flyfisher contributor. See more of his excellent photography on the cover and in “Biology on the Fly,” page 41.

Foampy Ed Morphis Grants Pass, Oregon

Pink Clacka Walter Wiese Park’s Fly Shop, Gardiner, Montana

Green Drake Floating Nymph Blue Ribbon Flies West Yellowstone, Montana Tapewing Caddis William E. Heckel, 2003 Buszek Award Franklin Park, Illinois

House and Lot Hair Wing Variant Car Top Caddis Richard Parks Darwin Atkin Design, 1982 Buszek Award Parks Fly Shop Al Beatty, 1999 Buszek Award [40 ] Flyfisher Autumn 2014 - Winter 2015Gardiner, Montana Boise, Idaho

Giant Stonefly Bill Blackstone, 1985 Buszek Award Ojai, California

Renegade Dan Bailey’s Fly Shop Livingston, Montana

YELLOWSTONE CUTTHROAT TROUT By Verne Lehmberg

utthroat trout, Oncorhynchus clarki, are the only native trout widespread in the western United States. Rainbow trout are native to the western United States, but their native range is confined to the Pacific Rim. Yellowstone cutthroat trout, O. clarki bouvieri, is one subspecies of cutthroat and lives in Wyoming, Idaho and Montana. It has a range of more than 7,500 square miles, which is about 40 percent of its original range. Genetically unaltered populations occupy about 30 percent of its historical range, which is a much higher percentage than with other cutthroat subspecies. Yellowstone Park is the epicenter of Yellowstone cutthroat. Yellowstone cutthroat are further divided into the large-spotted form from the upper Yellowstone River basin and lower Snake River and the

genetically indistinguishable fine spot Snake River cutthroat trout, O. clarkii behnkei, that is dominant in four of the upper Snake River basins. The red “cuts” under their throat and the bright red colors along the sides of the breeding Yellowstone cutthroat males make them the most beautiful cutthroat subspecies.

Fishing for Yellowstone Cutthroat

My personal best experiences fishing for Yellowstone cutthroat in the park peaked in the early 1990s. The upper Yellowstone River in the park opens to anglers in the middle of July after most spawning is finished. Every time one of my relatives came West in mid-July to visit, I would take them to the Yellowstone River above Buffalo Ford or near Cascade Picnic

Area, put on my favorite green drake and show them how to catch a trout. The cutthroat in those days were very cooperative, taking real mayfly spinners and caddis from the surface, within easy casting distance of my brother, my niece and nephew. After a little observation, my brother could time his cast based on how often the rising fish would take a real fly. It was a real pleasure to show them that when the cast was poor and the fly was dragging on the surface, the trout ignored it, but a well floated spinner would work just about every time. We caught fish and released fish until it was embarrassing. I finally cut the hook at the bend and sort of “counted coup” on rising fish, a fun way to trick them without having to fight and handle them – real touch and release fishing. Bob Gresswell,

PHOTO BY VERNE LEHMBERG

The cutthroat fishing in Yellowstone River during years prior to lake trout decimating the cutthroat was phenomenal. Photo taken above LeHardy Rapids in 1985.

Flyfisher Autumn 2014 - Winter 2015

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Conserving, Restoring, Educating Through Fly Fishing®

Biology on the Fly

Conserving, Restoring, Educating Through Fly Fishing®

Biology on the Fly who has studied Yellowstone cutthroat since 1969 and is currently working on lake trout reduction in Yellowstone Lake, remembers back in the early days when he first came to Yellowstone that his friends would compete to see who caught the first 50 fish out of the lake. He said that his friends would go through their fly kits trying to find a fly they wouldn’t bite on. Favorite flies on the Yellowstone River in the park between the falls and the lake varies, of course. The trout there can be very selective like trout anywhere. Some days I would wonder what happened to those dumb, naive cutthroat and how they got replaced with all those smart trout that were rising but refusing my fly. However, if you finally find the right fly, the trout will rise consistently to it. They are not shy and would often swim just downstream of where we were wading to catch nymphs that we dislodged from the gravel. In the park I especially remember using green drakes, giant stoneflies, size 12 brownish tan fabric wing caddis, PMDs, and a fly I tied matching an unknown brown mayfly that I never identified. The Yellowstone River has tremendous insect species diversity. After an IFFF Conclave in West Yellowstone, Buszek award winner Billy Munn showed me how to catch fish on

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a size 18 Car Top Caddis, a tiny, easy to tie elk hair “Humpy” style pattern. Later I found out that Darwin Atkin invented this tiny fly while fishing the upper Yellowstone River and used it to imitate any small mayfly cripple or a caddis fly that had not completely transformed into an adult. Favorite flies vary with the rivers. One notable cutthroat river is the South Fork of the Snake in Idaho. The Yellowstone cutthroat population is healthy in the Snake, a favorite destination today for Western fly fishers. Tremendous fly diversity throughout the season keeps fishers busy changing from salmon flies followed by caddis, golden stones, Yellow Sally stoneflies and pale morning duns. In most Yellowstone cutthroat waters, bluewinged olives during blustery spring and fall weather are always a good choice. Of course, the old standbys Elk Hair Caddis, Renegades and Humpies will do the trick most of the time for cutthroat. Great fishing for Yellowstone cutthroat can be found over most of its range, especially in the South Fork of the Snake, but the fabulous fishing in the Yellowstone Park from the falls up to the lake is a thing of the past, in large part due to the illegal introduction of lake trout into Yellowstone Lake. When, and if, that fishing returns, it will be due

Flyfisher Autumn 2014 - Winter 2015

to the National Park Service’s efforts to remove those lake trout.

Threats to Yellowstone Park’s Cutthroat

Of the 14 cutthroat subspecies, two are extinct, and three are listed as threatened. The reasons for the cutthroat’s decline include the introduction of non-native species and habitat degradation such as overgrazing, timber harvest and water diversions. Also, global climate change and an extended drought in the West have played a major role in coldwater habitat reduction. Cutthroat trout are not as aggressive as the non-native rainbow and brown trout that compete with them for habitat, so cutthroat decline when non-natives are introduced. Nonnative rainbows also breed with native cutthroat, diluting their genetic purity. The need to protect native fish is spelled out in the IFFF’s Native Fish Policy, adopted in 2001. It states support for “habitat restoration, control of non-native fish species, and reintroduction of native species into habitats where they have been extirpated.” The policy also states support for existing de facto native fish refuges. Yellowstone Lake above the falls is a de facto refuge for the Yellowstone

chemistry seems to confirm the origin. Otoliths are ear stones made of calcium carbonate with a little strontium carbonate in an organic matrix. Otoliths grow as the trout ages, adding calcium carbonate rings similar to rings on a tree. The oldest lake trout the Park Service biologist caught in Yellowstone Lake all had an otolith Sr/Ca ratio that changed, matching the ratio in Lewis Lake when the individual was younger and matching Yellowstone Lake’s chemistry as the fish aged. Researchers found that the fish were introduced from Lewis Lake in the early 1980s. Yellowstone cutthroat spend most of the year in the lake, but they leave the lake to spawn between March and August when the water temperature is about 5 C (about 41 F). Spawning peaks in May and early June. Some are fluvial populations, staying in the river yearround and spawning there. These are not subject to lake trout predation. The majority of the cutthroat do not stay in the Yellowstone River year-round. They spend from a week to several months there, then return to the lake. Most of the cutthroat from the lake either ascend tributaries or move downstream into the outlet of the Yellowstone River to spawn. These are key times for the bears, otters, ospreys and eagles dependent on cutthroat since they can catch the trout in shallow water.

PHOTO BY JUDY LEHMBERG

PHOTO BY VERNE LEHMBERG

Tahoe in California and Jackson Lake in Wyoming. Actually, more than 200 Western lakes now hold lake trout, many of which provide lake trout anglers with recreation but at a cost to native fish. Lake trout in the Great Lakes is a superb sport fish but are detrimental to native fish when introduced in Western lakes. The effect that the lake trout has on native fish populations varies from one lake to another. In comparison the lake trout have a much greater impact on cutthroat populations in Yellowstone Lake than they do in Jackson Lake. This is probably because Jackson Lake has many more forage fish species giving the lake trout more meal opportunities that are not focused on cutthroat trout. In Yellowstone Lake, the cutthroat have flourished in the past based largely on an invertebrate diet. They evolved with no other large carnivorous fish in the lake, but now lake trout are there and eating cutthroats. In Yellowstone Lake, an average lake trout can take 40 or more cutthroat per year. The U.S. Fish Commission, which stocked many formerly fishless lakes and streams in Yellowstone, introduced lake trout into Yellowstone Park’s Shoshone Lake back in 1889. Of the dozen or so theories about where the lake trout in Yellowstone Lake came from, the most likely source is fish transferred illegally from Lewis Lake. A study of the otolith

Left, Yellowstone cutthroat in their brilliant spawning colors swim into shallow streams. Above, the author netted and released two Yellowstone cutthroats that his brother and niece caught. Right, Yellowstone cutthroat feed largely on invertebrates – insects and scuds.

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Conserving, Restoring, Educating Through Fly Fishing®

cutthroat. Having a reservoir of genetically pure cutthroat in Yellowstone Lake is a treasure. Why are they pure? Todd Koel, supervisory fisheries biologist for the Center for Resources in Yellowstone National Park, says: “Yellowstone Lake and the upper Yellowstone River is above the Great Falls of the Yellowstone River at Canyon in Yellowstone National Park. Because of those falls this entire system upstream here has been protected from invasion by other introduced fish species downstream. And so we don’t have things here like rainbow trout, brown trout and brook trout. It has been isolated and protected, and so our cutthroat trout here are actually genetically pure, which is becoming more and more rare throughout the range of cutthroat. It is very important that they stay that way.” Yellowstone Park contains more than 90 percent of Yellowstone cutthroat’s range. Yellowstone Lake in Yellowstone National Park has historically been a vast reservoir of Yellowstone cutthroats, holding the largest population of the subspecies. The new threats to that population come from European whirling disease and Great Lakes lake trout. Whirling disease has affected all trout populations all over the West, but the introduced lake trout take a major toll on cutthroat trout watersheds in large, deep lakes such as Bear Lake in Utah, Pend Oreille and Upper Priest lakes in Idaho, Lake

PHOTO COURTESY OF STACEY GUNTHER, NPS VIA PAT BIGELOW, NPS PHOTO COURTESY OF NPS

Above, six Yellowstone cutthroat were taken from these two lake trout stomachs. Lake trout are piscivorous, and have decimated the cutthroat population in Yellowstone Lake. Opposite page, cutthroat in shallow spawning streams fight over the best gravel spawning beds and are very vulnerable to grizzlies and black bears at that time. Judy Lehmberg photo. Right, NPS fisheries personnel and contract fishers have netted and removed more than 300,000 lake trout from Yellowstone Lake in both 2012 and 2013. Below, ospreys and eagle prey on cutthroat. This scarred trout escaped an ospreyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s claws.

PHOTO BY VERNE LEHMBERG

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Biology on the Fly

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Flyfisher Autumn 2014 - Winter 2015

The life cycle of the Yellowstone cutthroat and their predator the lake trout are very different. The lake trout can live 30 or more years, and the cutthroat perhaps 7 to 10. The lake trout spawn deep in the lake for 10 or more years in its life, while the cutthroat spawn in shallow streams perhaps only once or twice. The young lake trout compete with cutthroat for invertebrates, then switch to eating cutthroat exclusively when they are five or six years old. Overall, cutthroat numbers in Yellowstone Lake have decreased by at least 90 percent, primarily because of lake trout predation. The drop in spawning cutthroat numbers in some spawning creeks is astounding. Clear Creek is a prime spawning creek draining into the Yellowstone Lake. During the 1970s to early 1990s, the number of spawning cutthroat entering Clear Creek averaged 43,580 fish. By 2006 that number had dropped to 471, a 99 percent reduction. Yellowstone cutthroat trout in Yellowstone is a keystone species. A keystone species is named after the keystone in a stone arch; if it is pulled out, the entire arch will collapse. This will also happen to a group of animals that depend on a keystone species for their survival. Around

PHOTO BY JUDY LEHMBERG

than 1.4 million lake trout have been removed with 600,000 of those during 2012-2013. Presently Hickey Brothers Research has been contracted to do much of the netting and can put out 27,000 feet of gill net each day. They use gill nets in deeper waters. Trap nets are now placed in shallower waters where both cutthroat and lake trout reside. The gill nets target the large lake trout. Small fish go through the gill net. The smaller mesh trap nets keep the fish alive, and the fish are retrieved every three days. The lake trout are destroyed and cutthroat released. Tyler Long, who operates one of the Hickey Brothers boats, says that over the last few years they are finding more medium-sized cutthroat in the trap nets, a very good thing since it means a new age class is surviving lake trout predation. He contends that things are “feeling right” for cutthroat recovery. Another recent innovation is the use of acoustic biotelemetry to track lake trout’s movements around the lake and to pinpoint the spawning areas. Only about 4 percent of the lake is considered prize lake trout spawning habitat, so hitting both the adults and the embryos there is the key. The National Park Service (NPS) and U.S. Geological Service (USGS) began a pilot study in which a hydroacoustic

tag is inserted in adult lake trout and then released and tracked. Spawning occurs in September and October, so lake trout tracking during these two months is critical. This research is being funded in part by Trout Unlimited (TU), the National Parks Conservation Association, the Greater Yellowstone Coalition, Yellowstone Park Foundation and the IFFF. The USGS, and their partners, in coordination with the NPS and Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), initiated this research. Acoustic biotelemetry helps find lake trout holding areas in the lake, providing subsequent areas to net. Suction and electrical termination of embryos may be future control methods as spawning grounds are pinpointed. The embryos are very susceptible to electricity for a month or so after being fertilized. What the netters would like to do is simply net everything on the spawning grounds after the tracked fish swims down to spawn. John Ellsworth of Idaho TU reports that as of June 2014, more than 150 lake trout have telemetry transmitters implanted, with 50 permanent receivers on the lake, and another 175 temporary ones set up around suspected lake trout spawning beds. All this equipment generates location data, which helps with the placement of gill and trap nets and is

Flyfisher Autumn 2014 - Winter 2015

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Conserving, Restoring, Educating Through Fly Fishing®

30 species utilize spawning cutthroat, including otters, bald eagles, osprey, white pelicans, mergansers, harlequin ducks, great blue herons, grizzly bears and black bears. Even American dippers catch the trout fry. All have been adversely affected because of the introduction of lake trout into the lake. Since lake trout spawn in the fall in deep water, the fish predators can’t catch them, so substituting lake trout for cutthroat in Yellowstone Lake is of no benefit for those predators. I first heard about the lake trout problem from John Varley, formerly director of the Yellowstone Center for Resources. During a Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem Scientific Conference, he announced a “rump meeting” (sit down meeting) to discuss the lake trout problem. He said that a 17-inch lake trout was caught in Yellowstone Lake by an angler in July 1994, and he predicted a major cutthroat trout population drop because of that introduction. Many possible solutions were offered then, but what has been the most utilized has been netting which started in 1996. Over the years, both large mesh gill netting for large, deep lake trout and smaller mesh nets for juvenile lake trout have been used, and the techniques have improved. As of October 2013, more

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Biology on the Fly essential as new methods to control embryos are developed.

Future Lake Trout Control Methods

Back when John Varley announced the lake trout problem at that rump session, I suggested to a couple of fisheries biologists that some sort of reproduction disruption was about the only way I had ever heard of to control or even eliminate a species, as was done with the screwworm fly in Texas in the 1950s. Sterile male screwworm flies were released, mated with wild females and the eggs laid didn’t hatch. The fish biologists had some very real objections to sterile male lake trout release, since the biology of screwworm flies and lake trout are so different, and a released lake trout can live 30 years or so eating cutthroat. Still, some sort of reproduction disruption, including vacuuming eggs or killing them with electricity, may be in the future for lake trout control. When questioned about the release of sterile males, Bob Gresswell, who directs the acoustic biotelemetry research, said:

“A technique that could be used on an annual basis that would be able to maintain a low lake trout abundance, but some type of sterile male or daughterless male technology might in the long run be able to take (the population) down to no lake trout, but that it should probably be initiated when we got down to a much lower number of lake trout.” So, after netting and other present-day techniques bring down the lake trout to the point that it makes economic sense to try, some combination of reproduction disruption techniques may be the answer.

Why be Concerned with the Yellowstone Cutthroat Trout in Yellowstone Lake?

David Hallac, chief of Yellowstone Center for Resources said that the lake trout’s annihilation of Yellowstone cutthroat trout has become one of the park’s greatest conservation priorities. Bob Gresswell, who was presented the IFFF’s Leopold Award in 2012, believes “they (the cutthroat) are the focus, the keystone species in Yellowstone Lake, the focal point of the entire food web, they provide an important food source

for mammals and birds.” Ted Williams, given the IFFF Leopold Award in 2002, recently wrote an article in Fly Rod & Reel, and applauded the National Park Service’s cutthroat recovery efforts: “For a half century the National Park Service in Yellowstone National Park has led the world in native-ecosystem preservation and restoration, setting an example for the nation and the world.” Being able to participate in significant conservation projects requires the IFFF to cooperate with others who share our goals and policies. The IFFF’s Native Fish Policy is being carried out by the work of many dedicated people working in the park and non-governmental organizations. The recovery of Yellowstone cutthroat is in their hands. The IFFF owes a special thanks to them and the many organizations too numerous to mention here. For more information go to www. nps.gov/yell/planyourvisit/upload/ fishar9-18.pdf. Verne Lehmberg from Dayton, Texas, is a longtime Federation member, excellent photographer and writer. He is the Flyfisher team’s “Biology on the Fly” columnist. Give him your feedback at vernelehmberg@yahoo.com.

SAVE YELLOWSTONE CUTTHROAT TROUT The cutthroat fishery will recover more quickly if more people recognize its value and how good it was several years ago. Do you have a story to tell about fishing for Yellowstone cutthroat in the park? Go to

PHOTO COURTESY WADE FREDENBERG, USFWS

Facebook. Register if you are not a Facebook member. This lake trout will receive a hydroacoustic tag, then be released and tracked to its spawning area deep in the lake.

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Flyfisher Autumn 2014 - Winter 2015

Search for “Save Yellowstone Cutthroat Trout,” (www.facebook.com/saveyellowstonecutthroatrout). “Like” the page in the top right of the title photo. Tell us your story, along with a photo if you wish, in the first “Write something on this Page” box.

By Verne Lehmberg

nternational and local fly fishing shows throughout the country afford opportunities for the visitor to learn from experienced fly tiers as well as newcomers to the art. Livingston’s national show was no exception with tiers such as Danny Beatty, past president of the IFFF, with his Knudson Spider, a fly that has been used for steelhead since the 1940s. Newcomer Dominic Singe, a 13-year-old tier from Washington, amazed all showgoers with his flies. He made it to the finals in the Iron Fly, a fun competition introduced at this year’s Fly Fishing Fair. Anyone attending future shows should pay attention to the excellent fly tying workshops offered by the IFFF’s cadre of teachers, everything from midge patterns, soft hackle, historic wet flies, to Atlantic salmon flies. Wayne Luallen offered his thread control class, where the participants learned how, among other things, to split mayfly tails using thread tension and twist. Wayne Luallen’s CDC Rusty Spinner and Steve Fernandez’s Tutti Fruiti Ben Franklin, shown on this page, were incorrectly labeled in previous “Fly Box” pages. Apologies to the readers and tiers.

PMD Rusty Spinner Wayne Luallen 1991 Buszek Award Visalia, California

Verne Lehmberg from Dayton, Texas, is a longtime Federation member and Flyfisher contributor. See more of his excellent photography on the cover and in “Biology on the Fly,” page 41.

Coma Cocahoe Glen Cormier Baton Rouge, Louisiana

Crazydad Mike George Olathe, Kansas

Tutti Fruiti Ben Franklin Steve Fernandez, 2012 Buszek Award Venice, California Knudson Spider Danny Beatty Anacortes, Washington

Paintbrush for Steelhead Henry Hoffman, 2008 Buszek Award Warrenton, Oregon

E.P. Bluegill Steve Jensen Springfield, Missouri Yellow Sally Dan Kellogg White City, Oregon Laser Baitfish Dominic Singh Ellensburg, Washington

Turtle Fred Hannie Lake Charles, Louisiana

Deerhair Popper Shelby Carpenter Santa Fe, Texas

Chubb Bass Fly Mary Orvis Marbury Style Kyle Hand Saginaw, Texas

Firemander Salamander Developed by Jason True Tied by Kevin Hutchison Austin, Texas

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Conserving, Restoring, Educating Through Fly Fishing®

At the Vise TYING THE SUPER RENEGADE By Kelly G. Glissmeyer

he Renegade dry fly is aptly named, because not only is it a renegade in design, but as a fly that seems to resemble nothing in nature it is certainly an effective renegade at catching fish. My good friend, mentor, IFFF Buz Buszek Award winner, fly tier and fly fishing author, Bruce Staples, says the following about the Renegade fly, its original design and the many versions since: The Renegade was conceived in 1928 by Taylor “Beartracks” Williams for an evening fishing on central Idaho’s Malad River. Fore and aft patterns were not new, even then. They were conceived in Europe centuries before. But Beartrack’s pattern, tied in his Sawtooth Shack fly shop that 1928 afternoon in Gooding, Idaho, would become the world’s best known of this type. White hackle in the front gives high visibility and brown hackle lends physical and artistic balance. Williams could not have chosen a better material than peacock herl to form the body. It remains, in this age of high-tech synthetics, a consummate attractor of fish. Williams’ Renegade produced whether presented wet or dry. Thus, within a handful of decades, its popularity spread worldwide. Williams went on to be the chief guide at the Sun Valley Lodge and to be a fishing companion of Ernest Hemingway. Fly tiers admire each other’s work, but they also consider that work to be springboards for self-expression. Thus began the alteration of Williams’ Renegade. The Reversed Renegade and Double Renegade made appearances. The Renegade Nymph came out of Colorado. There have been a number of claims on creation of the Royal Renegade. An Eastern Renegade was created on the other side of the Mississippi. Henry’s Lake got into the act with the Henry’s Lake Renegade, Half-Assed Renegade and Over-Wing Renegade. Their origin is obscure but not so for the Super Renegade. Ardell Jeppsen of Labelle, Idaho, created it while in a hospital recuperating in the winter of 1959-60 from polio. He named it “The Hooligan” and kept it a secret. It had the Renegade’s white front hackle, peacock body and brown hackle. To these Jeppsen added a white chenille rear body segment followed by a rear grizzly hackle. But someone spilled the beans and offered it commercially as the Super Renegade. It went on to be modified into a bewildering assortment of body colors and hackle combinations. And so it goes in fly tying where the Renegade’s story is familiar, but now such stories will not require decades. Use of the Internet makes it possible for a fly tied in one place to be realized around the world in days. This is certain to intensify the fun and fascination in fly tying where modification is the name of the game. While in this Internet age it is possible to find out information on almost everything, it was nearly impossible to find anything regarding the Super Renegade fly besides what I provided above from author Bruce Staples. Since I, too, am a resident of Labelle, Idaho, I would like to present here step-by-step instructions for tying Jeppsen’s The Hooligan, now known as the Super Renegade, as close to the original recipe as I am able. While the original Renegade could be fished successfully wet or dry, the Super Renegade is usually fished subsurface and is highly effective on the cutthroat trout in the South Fork of the Snake River, its birthplace, as well as on many other rivers. It is a fairly simple tie and I hope this old standby pattern makes it into your fly boxes in the future. Give it a try as well as allowing this fine fly to become your springboard into creating some new version that works well where you live and fish. Editor’s Note: This is really a “killer pattern” here in Idaho. How does it work in your part of the world? Let the author know so he can share your thoughts with us or write us directly at Letter to the Editor (albeatty2@aol.com). Kelly Glissmeyer and his wife, Cathy, reside in Rigby, Idaho, where they participate in all things fly fishing. He can be contacted at kggliss@hotmail.com.

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MATERIALS Super Renegade

HOOK: Dai-Riki 710 (4X long), size 8-10 THREAD: Black TAG: Gold tinsel REAR HACKLE: Grizzly saddle 1-1/4X hook gape REAR BODY: Medium white chenille MIDDLE HACKLE: Brown saddle 1-1/2X hook gape FRONT BODY: Peacock herl, 6 barbs FRONT HACKLE: White saddle 1-1/4X hook gape

Step Tie in medium gold tinsel just past the hook bend, wrap forward three touching wraps, tie off and trim.

Step Tie in grizzly hackle by the stem. Wind five turns, tie off and trim.

Step

Step Tie in white chenille and wrap up to just before mid-shank of hook, tie off and trim.

Tie in white hackle by the stem. Wind five turns, tie off and trim. Whip finish.

FLY TIPS

Step Tie in brown hackle by the stem. Wind five turns, tie off and trim.

Step Trim the tips from the Peacock herl barbs and tie them in along the entire length of remaining front section with butt-ends laying over the front of the fly. Make a peacock chenille rope with your tying thread (See “Fly Tips, Do It Yourself Peacock Chenille,” page 46 in the Autumn 2013-Winter 2014 issue of Flyfisher magazine) and wrap the peacock back and then forward, leaving enough room for five turns of the white hackle and to finish the fly behind the hook eye. Tie off and trim.

Emerger and Nymph Legs Made Easy By Kelly G. Glissmeyer

I struggled for years getting feather legs on nymphs to come out even in number and the right length on either side of a finished fly. As my tying improved I tried adding legs to emerger patterns as well and was no less frustrated. The late, great Shane Stalcup in his excellent book “Mayflies: Top to Bottom,” teaches a simple method on how to have great-looking legs on nymphs and emergers using hen saddle feathers, and I have since adapted the method to include using CDC puffs as legs on many of my flies, both nymphs and emergers. After completing the thorax, place a CDC puff on top of the thorax with the stem over the hook eye and the puff fibers laying over the back of the hook. Bind the CDC down with two loose wraps behind the hook eye and slowly pull the feather stem while keeping slight pressure on the top of the feather until the desired leg length is achieved. Divide the CDC fibers as evenly as possible to either side and pull the wing-case over, tie it all down and trim. The CDC fibers give extreme life-like movement in the water or on the surface.

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Casting TEACHING, CASTING AND NEW STUDENTS Story and photos by Tom Tripi

s an experienced casting instructor, I’ve encountered individuals who are genuinely new to fly fishing and are eager to learn. There are others who, although veteran members of a local fly fishing club, are still struggling to break that invisible 40-foot casting barrier. Most of the “40-footers” say that they only need to cast short distances anyway. A few clubs I’ve visited over the years include casting practice before their general meeting. Few are fortunate

to have a certified casting instructor in the club who is available to demonstrate or assist during sessions. If I attend a meeting as a guest, I always try to participate in casting practice. It’s one of those little teaching moments that doesn’t seem important but gives immense satisfaction to the club members attending. During initial sessions with inexperienced students, I emphasize how to complete the basic forward cast. I demonstrate the cast and its basic

Above, Jenny Pelc, in her first time casting, is trying the “lawn chair approach” to learn the basics of arm movement; she is starting a simple roll cast from the lawn chair. In this image, Jenny completed one of those inadvertent pile or puddle casts with her line falling on the water in coiled loops in front of her – essentially an almost perfect cast.

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Flyfisher Autumn 2014 - Winter 2015

principles for a few minutes and then hand the rod over to the student. This is one-handed practice because line control with the other hand comes later in the session. The student basically begins to mimic what I demonstrated. Some do quite well; others insist that 12 o’clock really means pointing the rod behind them at say 3 o’clock, etc. Here is where it gets interesting for me. A few individuals, while attempting to complete the cast being discussed, will unintentionally cast a totally unrelated cast, and do it quite well. That “almost perfect cast” may just happen to be, for instance, a curve cast, when the object is to complete a simple forward cast. If only I could have students memorize those perfectly performed “incorrect casts” for later use! I still compliment them on their ability to complete that cast and take extra time to further discuss it. I think it adds to their confidence level. Case in point: I recently taught a very experienced saltwater spin fisher the basics of fly casting. After completing my general intro and demos, I gave him the rod. He started to cast, which quickly led to him flailing at the grass in front of my house to the point where I was considering putting off cutting it for a few days! In a short time he settled down, and I was doing more observing than instruction. Soon he began to stop the rod at 11 to 12 o’clock on the forward cast and allowed very little forward rod drift to complete the cast. His line was then dropping in coils about 10 feet in front of him. I finally asked what he was trying to accomplish. He replied that he thought he could narrow his open loop. I told him that instead of a forward cast, he was completing a good pile (or puddle) cast and that it was an important slack line technique used while fishing downstream in fast moving water. I then demonstrated several variations of the cast and how to use them under various circumstances. He was quite pleased that he quickly, although inadvertently, completed a new cast. But getting back to the task at hand, that little bit of confidence helped him gain control of the basic forward cast in short order. First casting scenario: A pair of

Jenny begins to learn the sweeping arm motion of a Belgian cast. Then, Jenny completes the arm motion of a Belgian cast; her line sailed out in an open loop; however, its full 35 feet fell in a straight line on the water.

former students came to my “studio in the woods” for a crash course in basic casting before a trip to the Northwest for salmon. They currently fish small impoundments for large bass, usually in a small flat boat. They cast big poppers by using wide open loops (and casting a relatively short distance, I later observed). But now they were heading to big windy water. We spent time covering the basics of achieving distance and narrowing loops. One guy seemed to catch on but couldn’t control his backcast, or he even wanted to watch it. The other was a lost cause as far as a short term quick fix was concerned. He would need a few weeks of TLC. Then during the course of trying to improve the backcast for the first guy, he performed two nice Belgian casts. The first cast surprised him; the second one impressed him (and me). He asked me what it was, as he saw that I was intently watching. He had just completed the forward component of his “Belgian cast” and achieved a respectable distance; it impressed his partner, too. I explained that he just inadvertently did a Belgian cast and that such a cast may be of great value on the open windy water for which they were practicing. I then demonstrated variations of the cast, emphasizing its nonstop – constant motion. I made sure that Mr. “I can’t watch my backcast” saw that the cast didn’t require a formal backcast. The TLC guy quickly picked up on how to swing his rod in a wide arc, then bring the rod forward to complete a decent forward cast. They were especially pleased when I told them that the Bel-

gian is my favorite cast for working the surf along the Gulf Coast, as it can be used in almost any windy situation. All in all, both parties finished up feeling pretty good. I picked up on an “error” by one of the casters and turned it into a quick fix for two guys who were on a short fuse to improve their casting. Second casting scenario: In the early 1990s, I had been working with a retired lady who wanted to learn basic casting so she could fish with her husband. She was of small stature, had little arm strength and even less rod control. She was using her husband’s 9-foot, 6-weight rod, which although light was too heavy for her. I solved the rod problem by letting her use one of my slow action, 8-foot, 4-weight graphite rods. But she was still having difficulty with both going through the casting cycle and controlling hand/ arm coordination. I decided to try something different. I had her sit in a lawn chair and rest her casting arm on the arm of the chair (which I padded), and then just use her lower arm / wrist to cast the rod. I’ve found that keeping the arm anchored helps keep the rod in a straight path for some beginning casters. She quickly became relaxed because she was sitting comfortably and her arm wasn’t carrying a heavy rod. She could concentrate on casting. I had her move the rod and reel through a normal cast, sans line. After a few minutes I had her do “micro-stops” in both forward and backcasting motions. She soon began to achieve rod control and coordination. After a few intervals of repetitive casting motion with some

rest included, I had her stand and stay as relaxed as possible and then begin another session of arm motions. No problem, so I added the line and fed out 25-feet plus a 9-foot leader. She started to throw respectable but wide loops. This session ended with a homework assignment of continuing her exercises partly seated, partly standing. She borrowed my rod and reel. The following week she had much more confidence and a fairly nice loop. She had started on her own to lay down line on the lawn with a 30- to 35foot consistency. But she had another request; she wanted to learn a cast that her husband didn’t do. I said, “Simple. Can you do this while you’re going through your casting motion?” I demonstrated the twist of wrist required to complete a simple curve cast to the left. She started to mimic my actions with her hand only, then with the rod and line. And slowly at first, the end of the leader began curving to the left. She was elated. She soon cured the bad casting habits learned from her husband and was gaining a confidence that helped improve her casting. If you’re an instructor, you should be observant of those little things that students do; while learning or practicing as students, we all should sometimes think, Maybe if I change the cast this way, it will work better. Sometimes it just does. That’s exactly how I taught myself to fly cast. Master Casting Instructor Tom Tripi is from Folsom, Louisiana, where he uses a fly rod and canoe to pursue his favorite fish, teaches casting to students of all ages, and studies astronomy in his spare time.

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Conserving, Restoring, Educating Through Fly Fishing®

Headline

IN PRAISE OF BROWN TROUT AND CHOPPY WATERS PHOTO BY BT’S PHOTOGRAPHY

Conserving, Restoring, Educating Through Fly Fishing®

Woman’s Outlook By Carol Oglesby

musky smell in the woods and a nip in the air foretell the changing of colors soon to reign in the oak brush and aspen groves. This is my favorite time of year. Rivers are ripe with brown trout sporting orbs of blue and red surrounded by lusty shades of an overly browned butter hue. It’s a paradox of new life spawning in a season of decline and death soon to be buried in a shroud of silent white – at least in our part of the world. This year the irony of the season mimics my emotional upheaval. On one hand I wonder how dare there be new life sprouting now when I feel a call for respite and renewal? On the other hand I feel a great relief that there is birth and that life still flourishes. Autumn marks the beginning of a new season and nearing the end of a year coping with choppy waters. It has many faces but only one name. It’s a traitor, a menace and an unwelcomed intruder. It stole our calm, comfortable, complacent, lazy existence and brought fear, doubt and many strangers into our lives. But like the brown trout that spawns when all else seems to be shutting down, it brought new growth and awareness into our lives. Like a “cruel kindness” the oxymoron stole into our home unbidden. Our existence was rattled like a muddy landslide gushing right through our front door; no knock, no doorbell, no phone call to say it was coming. It was just there like a bookie come to collect his due – our odds were up. The intruder called “cancer” had arrived. One week before Christmas my husband, Pat, was diagnosed with colon cancer. It was December 17, coincidentally the same date my mother passed away from cancer in 2002. To get through the holidays and the shock, we put the “C” word on hold and waited to let the “whale out of the live well.” The day after Christmas the barrage of tests began, and we discovered the liver was involved – stage 4. In solitude I fell to the floor in tears and bargained with God. Together we vowed not only to get through the coming days but to keep a good attitude and enjoy each other and our friends,

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When life brings choppy waters we know that softer, gentler water is just a little farther downstream.

stay focused, and find satisfaction and appreciation in our days. Like the “ring of the rise,” we saw hope, life and a promise of lighter and more productive times ahead. We opened our lives and let in friends and family. In just a few days another shock struck. A couple close to us, great fishing companions, found out the wife has a very rare form of breast cancer. Like an emergent winter midge hatch, the news spread through kindred wings. Good wishes were sent, prayers were said, and the days became lighter and longer. The four of us reaffirmed a vow to live and live large. The strangers that entered our lives were good and kind people. Doctors, nurses and friends have been a tremendous gift. The doctors assured us they just needed to find the right “bait” to lure the intended “catch” and control the disease. Luckily one biopsy indicated eligibility for a chemo-cocktail for Pat’s type of cancer that was more effective and with fewer side effects. The long treatments each week began to make Pat stronger and better able to cope. The side effects were a nasty rash on his face and upper body, some hair loss and fatigue. The rash made him extremely sensitive to the sun, so our days on the water have been vicarious through friends’ tales and

Flyfisher Autumn 2014 - Winter 2015

photos and memories of days past. But that will change and we look forward to resuming some time riverside. Following the six months of chemotherapy and a PET scan with good results, the regimen has switched to daily doses of radiation to specifically target the tumor, combined with chemo pills to continue warding off the other cancer cells. We’re halfway through this 25-day series. We’ll see what’s next. We concentrate on staying afloat (keeping a good attitude), maneuvering slippery rocks (warding off negativity), wearing studded boots (keeping our balance), using a wading staff (friends to lean on), avoiding mossy rocks (the people and things that invite woe, turmoil and drama). It’s a lot like reading the water: You learn where there’s good holding water, where the current is too swift to maneuver, and where the food flows from and where the resting pools exist. I’ve found that danger lurks in the back eddies of life where secrets lie, anger gurgles and where fetid, stinky thoughts swirl and overthinking mixes in a scum line that grows and churns. When that pool begins to form I’ve learned to DO something; TALK to someone; have a LAUGH and be grateful. When we need to, we rest in the calm waters and enjoy the rejuvenation that sleep and serenity bring. Our relationship has

COPPERHEAD By Jason Duncan

changed for the better. The difficult times have brought more patience, love, humor, tolerance, openness, and an urgent need to get important things done and to let go of trivial junk. Thanks to the brown trout that has given rise to a new understanding in my life and has affirmed that life does go on! Like the changing flow of a river, we’re learning to negotiate the fall and rise of the currents that cancer has swept into our existence. Today we continue to keep a good attitude and focus on attractor patterns that bring good into our lives. I acknowledge that this is an odd topic for a fly fishing publication. You know the old adage, “Write what you know.” This is what I know right now. Were it not for the support and love of the many friends we’ve made through our fly fishing connections, I’m not sure how we would be dealing with this fork in the river. Cancer is rampant. Every time we’re in the oncology center, it’s like old-home week; we meet people we know from old jobs, fly fishing, high school and church. I share this story not only in memory of the many friends we’ve all lost to a devastating condition but also in the wish that it might bring openness, an end to secrets, and generate hope to someone who might be struggling with a life-altering disease or situation. Pat and I also want to sincerely thank our extended fly fishing family for the tremendous outpouring of heartfelt prayers, good wishes, love and humor brought to our lives. We’re grateful to you all. You are the BEST. Our phone line is always open! This I know, autumn is in the air, the weather is balmy, the sun is low, waters are calm, life is transforming and the brown trout are putting on the feedbag! The streamers are packed and fishing gear is in the truck; it’s time to spend a day on the river! Happy fishing! May you catch all you’re deserving of in fishes and good wishes! Our gratitude for your friendship surpasses words. Our humble thanks to you, our friends. Carol Oglesby from Grand Junction, Colorado, is a regular contributor to Flyfisher on female fly fishers’ interests. You may contact her at pcoglesby@bresnan.net.

orty feet upstream on the Amawalk Reservoir Outlet in upstate New York, I can see a small fish routinely leaping out of the water in the calm above a boulder, and I can’t tell what kind of fish it is, and I can’t tell why it’s leaping and I don’t want to guess without a closer look. Maybe it’s jumping at a bug or maybe it’s jumping just for fun, though I don’t think fish do that. Maybe it’s being scared out of the water from below, though I don’t think fish do that either. I have been fishing all day, and I haven’t caught a thing and I have been watching rising fish in no fewer than three separate spots, and I am increasingly approaching that diminutive space between doing something violent and giving up fishing altogether. Changing flies, again, I glance down and I see Mr. Copperhead, six inches away from my wading boot, water bound. (But would he indeed be Mr. Copperhead, or instead something else more lowly? Brother Copperhead perhaps, or just plain Bro.) Bro is not moving much. Watching him tread water, I am reminded of what Jim Harrison said American Indians proclaimed upon going into battle: “Today is a good day to die!” Or maybe it was: “Well, ya gotta die of something.” Neither is particularly inspiring while repeating it to yourself in a state of panic. After slowly retreating and noting that Bro isn’t registering my movements, I take one final step backwards and then promptly run crashing out of the stream and straight to the car. I haven’t been back to the Amawalk Reservoir Outlet since. I have always heard, “A good snake is a dead snake.” Or maybe it was, “The best snake is a dead snake.” Either sounds about right. Whatever the case, I have heard this axiom often enough for it to make a real impression. For the sake of the snake-o-philes in the readership, the vital role snakes play in our grand ecosystem is obviously invaluable. No one with a brain can deny this. So, what is the easiest way in which to avoid snakes? Steer clear of their habitats. And where are snakes’ habitats? Turns out, just about everywhere. For as much as he may try, it would

seem to be something of an incredibly difficult endeavor for this author to in fact avoid everywhere. Perhaps the larger issue here is: Am I afraid of everything? Am I (gulp!) a coward? Well ... I don’t think I’m a coward. I think not liking snakes is just good sense. My reader may now ask for my definition of good sense. Well ... It galls me as a conservationist to see unnecessarily dead animals anywhere, even snakes run down by sedans on a blind curve. I wish to see dead snakes no more than I wish to see dead fish. Or dead hedgehogs. Or dead otters. Or dead koala bears. But are any of these animals as frightening as a venomous snake when one nearly steps on him midstream? To avoid run-ins such as this, maybe I should target goldfish at the pet store and leave the trout fishing to the snake lovers. But when I look to the left of the goldfish tanks? Ahh! Parrots! Those beaks look ready for beaking and the look in their beady bird eyes is decidedly untrustworthy. And then down the row from the bird section and just past the rodent aisle? There they are – the snakes. And they’re eyeing those poor rodents, and many of the birds, and possibly even one or two of the humans, in a manner that can only be described as unneighborly, if not downright inhospitable. It’s a fact. Snakes are inhospitable. (Though portraying them that way may remind my readers of another creature who stalks our waters, and I can’t help but imagine that steelhead and smallmouth and Yellowstone cutthroat alike are all thinking, Just look at those fly fishers! They can only be described as ... well ... I mean, look at them! They’re clearly ... inhospitable! Those fly fishers are not your friends! Let’s develop a tiny bit of self-preservation and let’s get the heck out of here! Hey ... wait ... where’d everybody go?) Jason Duncan is a regular contributor to Flyfisher magazine. He also writes the fishing blog Fly Fishing, Et Cetera. He lives with his wife, daughter, and Welsh terrier in New York City.

Flyfisher Autumn 2014 - Winter 2015

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Conserving, Restoring, Educating Through Fly Fishing®

Fly Fishing Humor

The IFFF International Fly Fishing Fair

2014 Photo Contest Winners By Pat Oglesby FLY ANGLERS IN THEIR ELEMENT 1st: “Andy Swings the Tongariro” by Stu Hastie of Hastings, New Zealand. Location: Tongariro River, New Zealand 2nd: “Early Morning Steelhead Float” by Gary Carlson of Bonners Ferry, Idaho. Location: Upper Kispiox River, British Columbia, Canada 3rd: “What Have You Got On?” by Stu Hastie of Hastings, New Zealand. Location: North Island, New Zealand INTERNATIONAL FLY FISHING EXPERIENCES 1st: “Traditional Hand Crafted Atlantic Salmon Guide Boats” by Gary Carlson, of Bonners Ferry, Idaho. Location: Namsen River, Norway 2nd: “Out in the Fog” by Stu Hastie of Hastings, New Zealand. Location: South Island, New Zealand 3rd: “Stalking” by Patrick Richards of Hereford, Arizona. Location: Oreti River, New Zealand NATURALS AND THEIR IMITATIONS 1st: “Resting” by Patrick Richards , of Hereford, Arizona. Location: Matura River, New Zealand 2nd: “Damsel and Brown” by Stu Hastie of Hastings, New Zealand. Location: Lake Otamangakau, New Zealand 3rd: “Darner Dragonfly Nymph” by Richard Mercer, of Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Location: Skitchine Lodge, Kamloops, British Columbia, Canada

“Andy Swings the Tongariro” by Stu Hastie

NATIVE FISH OF NORTH AMERICA 1st: “A Bow from the Bow” by Richard Mercer of Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Location: Bow River near Calgary, Canada 2nd: “West Slope Cutt” by Fred Kirk of Tulsa, Oklahoma. Location: West Fork Bitterroot, Montana 3rd: “Golden Release” by Patrick Richards of Hereford, Texas. Location: Wind River Mountains, Wyoming DIGITAL 1st: “Good Job Buddy” by Martin Alwin of Coyhaique, Chile. Location: Rio Paloma, Chile 2nd: “His Best Fish to Date” by Stu Hastie of Hastings, New Zealand. Location: New Zealand 3rd: “Almost Gone” by Stu Hastie of Hastings, New Zealand. Location: New Zealand PEOPLE’S CHOICE AWARD “Andy Swings the Tongariro” by Stu Hastie of Hastings, New Zealand. Location: Tongariro River, New Zealand GRAND PRIZE JUDGE’S CHOICE “Andy Swings the Tongariro” by Stu Hastie of Hastings, New Zealand. Location: Tongariro River, New Zealand

“West Slope Cutt” by Fred Kirk “Damsel and Brown” by Stu Hastie

“Resting” by Patrick Richards

“Good Job Buddy” by Martin Alwin

“His Best Fish to Date” by Stu Hastie “A Bow from the Bow” by Richard Mercer

“Out in the Fog” by Stu Hastie “Early Morning Steelhead Float” by Gary Carlson

“Traditional Hand Crafted Atlantic Salmon Guide Boats” by Gary Carlson

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