Page 2 OFFICERS Melody Weinhandl, President Vacant, President-elect Andrew Sauter, Vice President Casey Leary, Secretary Matt Stanton, Treasurer BOARD OF DIRECTORS Terms expire in 2011 Bob Fischer Scott Novotny Alex Rose Bill Wichers Terms expire in 2012 Spencer Amend Neil Ruebush Brent “Smokey” Weinhandl, DDS Vacant Terms expire in 2013 Greg Groves Joe Meyer Will Waterbury Herb Waterman The Backcast is the monthly newsletter of the Wyoming Fly Casters, an affiliate club of the Wyoming Council of Trout Unlimited, the Nature Conservancy and the Federation of Fly Fishers. Editorial content does not necessarily reflect the views of the officers, board or members of the Wyoming Fly Casters. Annual dues are $20 for an individual, $30 for a family, or $250 for a lifetime individual membership or $450 for a lifetime family membership. Visit the club website at www.wyflycasters.org. The deadline for submission of information for each issue is the next to last day of the month. Make contributions to the next issue by e-mailing material to the Backcast editor at ChevPU57@aol.com, or call (307) 436-8774. The Backcast is available either in electronic format or through USPS snail mail. To receive each newsletter through a monthly e-mail, you must be able to open .pdf (Adobe Acrobat, a software program available free of charge) documents. Usually, each issue is roughly 1 MB in size, some are larger. Your e-mail provider may have limits on the size of attachments. In order to be added to the e-mail list, send a request to ChevPU57@aol.com. In addition to receiving each issue of the newsletter earlier than your hard copy peers, e-mail subscribers are able to print each copy in vibrant color -- an added plus if the issue is rich in color photographs. By subscribing electronically, you also save the club roughly $17.40 a year in printing and postage expenses.
Wyoming Fly Casters Monthly Newsletter
Drag-free Drif ts by Melody Weinhandl, President, WFC brooktrout6671@gmail.com hen the average person thinks of a trout, the one that most often comes to mind is the brilliantly colored rainbow. The rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) is a species of salmonid native to tributaries of the Pacific Ocean in Asia and North America. The species has been introduced for food or sport to at least 45 countries, and every continent except Antarctica. They were originally named by Johann Julius Walbaum, a German doctor and avid angler, in 1792 based on type specimens from the time of his exploration of the Kamchatka peninsula in extreme western Russia. Originally grouped into the Salmo genus, DNA studies showed rainbow trout are genetically closer to Pacific salmon (Oncorhyncus species) than to brown trout (Salmo trutta) or Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar), so the genus was changed. Unlike the species' former name's epithet iridia (Latin rainbow), the specific epithet mykiss derives from the local Kamchatkan name “mykizha” (or "colorful one"). Oncorhyncus is Greek for "hooked snout," so the fancy sounding scientific name Oncorhynchus mykiss simply means "snazzy fish with a big nose." Funny how scientists all over the world can recognize that, but I for one know the beautiful rainbow just as one of my favorite Wyoming fish. Equally odd is the concept that our familiar rainbow, a fish many of us cut our trout teeth on, so to speak, is as well known to us as to a Mongolian tribesman or some denizen of a back country northern Chinese village. The rainbows' home is the northern hemisphere Pacific basin and coastal rivers that feed the North Pacific. The ocean going form (including those returning for spawning) are known as steelhead, (Canada and the United States) or ocean trout (Australia), although they are the same species. Like salmon, steelhead are anadromous: they return to their original hatching ground to spawn. Similar to Atlantic salmon, but
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unlike their Pacific Oncorhyncus salmonid kin, steelhead are able to spawn yearly (iteroparous) and may make several spawning trips between fresh and salt water. The steelhead smolts remain in the river for about a year before heading to sea, whereas salmon typically return to the seas as smolts. Different steelhead populations migrate upriver at different times of the year. "Summer-run steelhead" migrate between May and October, before their reproductive organs are fully mature. They mature in freshwater before spawning in the spring. Most Columbia River and Pacific Northwest steelhead are "summer-run." "Winter-run steelhead" mature fully in the ocean before migrating, between November and April, and spawn shortly after returning. The maximum recorded life-span for a rainbow trout is 11 years. Rainbow trout are predators with a varied diet, and will eat nearly anything they can grab, even Joe Meyer's flies. Their image as a selective eater is only a legend, except when Alex Rose is storytelling and trying to justify why he hadn't caught anything at all on a three day weekend fishing trip. Rainbows are not quite as piscivorous (fish eating) or aggressive as brown trout or lake trout; however, the mighty brook trout really does put the run on their larger rainbow brethren and will own the entirety of many a mountain stream where one might always expect to find rainbows present. Young rainbows survive on insects, fish eggs, smaller fish (up to 1/3 of their length), along with crayfish and other crustaceans. As they grow, though, the proportion of fish diet increases in most all populations. Some lake dwelling lines may become planktonic feeders. While in flowing waters populated with salmon, trout eat varied fish eggs, including salmon, cutthroat trout as well as the eggs of other rainbow trout, fry, smolt and even salmon carcasses. The first rainbow trout hatchery was established on San Leandro Creek, a trib(continued on page 6)
The Wyoming state record for rainbow trout is 23 pounds
Wyoming Fly Casters Monthly Newsletter
Ten Sleep Creek 2010
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LETTERS
Wyoming Fly Casters Monthly Newsletter
Tailing Loops
Flycaster help needed On Saturday Sept. 18, the outdoor education classes at Natrona County High School will be having a field trip to Harry Yesness pond where they will be participating in a fly casting, knot tying, canoe, kayaking activity. I am asking for your help. We need between 5-8 instructors to demonstrate fly casting and basic knot tying. We will rotate between casting, knot tying, canoeing, and kayaking. We have instructors for the "on the water experience." The class will go from 8 to noon. The school will furnish fly rods with the possibility of the club loaners being used. This will be a great opportunity to showcase our club and contribute to the educational process in Casper. Please reply asap so we can plan accordingly. If there are any questions please do not hesitate to email me with your concerns. Scott Novotny gscottn@gmail.com
Newsletter nuggets In 1997, an enterprising fishery biologist in Cody put out the first angler’s newsletter. Typed and reproduced on a copier, it was mailed to a small list of persons. In 1998 it was the same format and I received my first copy. By 1999, Casper had gotten into the act and the letter was now computerized and all that neat stuff. Now all the fishery districts publish a yearly newsletter. You can read them online at the G&F website: http://gf.state.wy.us/ and follow directions. All the back issues are available. The letters contain many nuggets of information. It was through the Cody letter I learned goldens had been planted in three lakes next to the Beartooth highway. Two of the lakes are only a mile or so from the highway. The chance to catch a golden after a short hike was previously unknown when pursuing goldens. I’d love to spend a week on the Beartooths fishing for them, but physically I can no longer hack it. There are many other choice bits of information in these newsletters. Herb Waterman
by Randy Stalker, Backcast editor chevPU57@aol.com Even Napoleon had his Watergate. -- Yogi Berra know what you’re thinking: Has that goofball Stalker lost his mind? What’s a non-fishing photo doing gracing the cover of this month’s Backcast? Well, it is a fishing photo, in a way. Breanna Leary, a second grader, enjoys the campfire at the Ten Sleep outing in early August, sharing her chair with her new-found friend, Gigi Knight. Fourteen attended this year’s tradition in the Big Horns, and it was a terrific weekend. The fishing was good, the food was terrific and the cameraderie was outstanding. Hence, this month’s photo. It demonstrates that the Wyoming Fly Casters is a family-friendly club, and even second graders are encouraged to cast a line at brook trout. During my 28 years at the helm of a small weekly newspaper, I always sought a photo of a kid with a pet to grace the front page. Those issues were always good sellers. So when Bree was enjoying the campfire after chowing down on Matt Stanton and Bill Knight’s dinner fare, my camera naturally sought to capture the moment. Speaking of Matt Stanton . . . the club’s treasurer and two-time Ten Sleep streamkeeper has been honored as the “distinguished young pharmacist of the year” for Pharmacist Mutual. Congrats, Matt. • Here’s a deal too good to pass up. Herb Waterman has some bonefish flies to give away to the first fly tosser to claim them. “Will they catch fish? Some will, some won’t. But they are all pretty,” Herb says. Give him a jingle at 235-5638. • Regular readers of the Backcast might note the conspicuous absence of the “Fly of the Month” feature usually appearing to the left of this column. Well, two months ago, I invited WFC members to submit their favorite pattern, describe it, and include a recipe.
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The idea was that 12 “flies of the month” could be framed as a fly plate for the annual fund-raising banquet in the spring. The response was underwhelming. No one has, so far, submitted a fly pattern. So without contributions, I am discontinuing this feature. • There is still time to head north and sample the outstanding fishery of North Tongue River. In mid-August, four or us took the 3 and a half hour trip to the no-kill stretch. The Tongue has never been a morning river, and it demonstrated this well-deserved reputation when the chemist, the plumber, the miner and I arrived shortly after 11 a.m. A few fish were caught, but all on size 14 hare’s ears or Prince nymphs dangling below a foam hopper. But around 3 p.m., fish began looking up. The Yellowstone and Snake River cutthroats, and some rainbows as well, started dimpling the surface, their rises subtle but consistent. So we switched to size 18 elk hair caddises, and we all were in double digits of fish by 4 p.m. But then the surface action appeared to subside. So the miner and I tied a foot long dropper behind the adult caddis imitation, and knotted on an emergent sparkle pupa. Boom! The action was explosive. We caught ten fish on Gary LaFontaine’s emerger to every one hooked on the lead fly. As we were breaking our rods down at 6 p.m. and preparing to return home (with a stop at Sheridan’s Dragon Wall buffet), another fisherman stopped to chat. “I caught four fish this afternoon on blue wing olives,” he bragged. We complimented him on his success, muffling our chuckles. We didn’t have the heart to tell him the fish were eating caddisflies, not baetis mayflies. By the way, foam hopper patterns caught a few fish, but nothing like the caddis imitations. Get a bunch of guys or gals together, carpool and sample the Tongue before cooler weather sets in. You might see some familiar faces. Tight lines,
Scoop
Wyoming Fly Casters Monthly Newsletter
BRAG BOARD
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Wyoming Fly Casters Monthly Newsletter
President’s message (continued from page 2)
M Y F LY B OX . . . C A S E Y L E A R Y
utary of San Francisco Bay. The hatchery was stocked with the locally native rainbow trout from local creeks. The fish raised in this hatchery were sent as far away as New York(!) and the lucky ones came to Wyoming. Shortly after the pioneers and the Army, rainbow trout were introduced into Wyoming in the 1890s. On one very fortuitous day in the spring of 1893, an eastbound Union Pacific train hauling many thousands of rainbow fingerling from San Leandro broke down near what was to become Saratoga. The cooling equipment quit with the power plant of the locomotive, and the fish were going to rapidly warm in their tanks in the freight cars and die. UP personnel did the only humane thing they could do, which was to dump the fingerling into the North Platte River. Interestingly, the Platte was naturally devoid of trout at this time and the rainbows found a virgin home to colonize. Most people forgot about this stocking until regular catches of rainbows nearing 30� began to be caught years later, catapulting Saratoga to preeminence as the rainbow trout capital of the world during the first decade of the 1900s. The Wyoming state record for rainbow trout was caught in Burnt Lake, Sublette County in 1969 by Frank Favazzo, a monster of 35 and a half inches and weighing 23 pounds! The world record for the largest rainbow was in Lake Diefenbaker, Saskatchewan in 2009. Sean Konrad's catch of 42 inches and 48 lbs. humbles even Wyoming's best. These large fish doubtlessly provided many fine steak fillets, and family and friends dined contentedly revelling in the magnificence of the catch and the succulence of the meal. This would have been, I dare say, a happy denouement and a fitting "end of those particular rainbows'" lives. So, the next time you're fishing the North Platte you'll have a new angle on any rainbow trout you catch. Who'd have thought their ancestors would hijack a train just so they could relocate and populate the world famous Miracle Mile? Happy angling,
Melody
Wyoming Fly Casters Monthly Newsletter
Soldier Creek treatment to benefit the Yellowstone cutthroat trout Yellowstone cutthroat trout, a native species and one of Wyoming's Species of Greatest Conservation Need, will benefit from a restoration project to be conducted in the headwaters of South Paintrock Creek. The stream is located on the west slope of the Bighorn Mountains. In cooperation with the Bighorn National Forest, WGFD fisheries biologists planned to begin the second phase of this multi-year project of brook trout removal for Yellowstone cutthroat conservation last month. The project begins by treating Soldier Creek with Rotenone, a chemical used in very small doses that is toxic for animals having gills. Rotenone is not toxic to humans, pets, cattle or sheep in the quantities that will be used for treating the stream. Prior to treatment, the remnant population of Yellowstone cutthroat from lower Soldier Creek will be transplanted to Buckskin Ed Creek where brook trout were removed in 2008 and 2009. These transplanted fish are expected to expand and provide angling opportunities in coming years. A series of waterfalls and sinkholes in the drainage will isolate Yellowstone cutthroat trout from fish downstream. To prevent elimination of Yellowstone cutthroat trout in the drainage, brook trout must be removed. Rotenone drip stations will treat the water for eight hours. During the treatment period the treatment portion of the creek will be closed to fishing until the project is complete. "As an added safety precaution, we do not want anglers fishing in the area while we are working," Smith said. A detoxification chemical will be dispensed immediately upstream of the waterfalls during the entire time the Rotenone is in the stream. Blocking nets will be set between drip stations and at
the sink to determine the effectiveness of treatment and to remove dead fish. Rotenone sand-mix will be applied to small seeps and areas where the chemical does not mix well. Following this year's treatment, most of the brook trout will be removed. However, completely removing fish from a stream requires a minimum of two years. "We anticipate very few fish will remain in the stream following the treatment," said fisheries biologist Mark Smith. It will likely take two or three years to complete the Soldier Creek portion of the project. "We plan to treat the same section again in 2011 to ensure that we have achieved our goal to remove all brook trout. Then we plan to move Yellowstone cutthroat trout back to the stream from Buckskin Ed Creek, sometime in 2012," Smith said. The Big Horn Mountains contain hundreds of miles of brook trout streams, but only a few isolated miles of Yellowstone cutthroat trout streams remain. "We like brook trout and we have no intention of removing them throughout the Big Horn's. We just need to provide enough habitat for Yellowstone cutthroat to thrive in the area and to provide anglers a diversity of fishing opportunities," Smith said. South Paintrock Creek on the west side of the Big Horn Mountains contains one of the few remaining Yellowstone cutthroat trout populations in the Big Horn Mountains. The loss of Yellowstone cutthroat trout has occurred largely due to competition by introduced species such as brook trout and hybridization by introduced rainbow trout.
ster www.wyflyca
Annual club picnic Sept. 8, 6:00 p.m. Izaac Walton League clubhouse (Bring a covered fish to share)
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BE INFORMED www.wyflyca ster
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Receive each issue of the Backcast in a timely manner, without relying on the Post Awful to deliver it. Sign up for electronic delivery! Not only do you receive each issue near the end of each month, but it will feature color photographs and graphics. And you can save the club precious money and resources because printing and postage costs and the chore of stapling, stamping and stickering the monochrome hard copy are eliminated. Just drop the editor a line, requesting electronic delivery at chevPU57@aol.com.
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Wyoming Fly Casters Monthly Newsletter
WYOMING FLY CASTERS BOARD MEETING MINUTES -- DRAFT August 18, 2010 Vice President Andrew Sauter called the meeting to order at 7 p.m. Excused absences: Melody and Smokey Weinhandl, Bill Wichers, Alex Rose and Will Waterbury. The board approved the secretary’s report as printed in the Backcast. Matt Stanton provided the treasurer’s report and the board approved. Matt reported he filed the annual report with the secretary of state. Conservation: Matt is trying to get funds for the club’s commitments, discussing ideas of raffles, etc. Matt will have a meeting soon and once the date is set, it will be announced. The Platte River Revival is coming up and due to high water no drift boats will be needed. Outings and programs: The September meeting will be the annual picnic. Casey Leary and Will Waterbury will cook. Andrew Sauter asked members bring a side dish. Mark Boname might present a program on entomology, specifically caddisflies, in November. Matt reported the Ten Sleep outing was a success, 14 attended, everyone enjoyed themselves. The streamkeeper collected $56 for the outing and the board approved to pay the balance of the expenses. Matt reported he has been in contact with the Game and Fish regarding the possible fish stranding prevention project below Pathfinder to see if it is worthwhile. Joe Meyer will be having another “Fishing with Joe” outing on Aug. 21, at Petro and Water
Tank ponds. Old Business: The board approved Abe Knapp to purchase 24 MacTavish patches at $4.25 each and 4 MacTavish pins at $2.75 each. Joe Meyer reported that due to recent changes at Sam’s Club the club discounts are not complete and he is looking into the matter further. Scott Novotny indicated a fly fishing clinic for high school kids will be held on Sept. 18, 2010 at Harry Yesness Pond for 8 a.m. to 12 noon. Casting, knot tying, kayaking and canoeing skills will be demonstrated. No actual flies will be used. He is looking for 8-10 members to assist. An article will be placed in the Backcast. Joe Meyer was contacted by Mark Mackateer of the Boy Scouts to have members teach fly tying and casting. Due to prior commitments, Joe will ask see if the Boy Scouts will seek alternate dates. Joe reported the WFC will be helping at the Expo on Sept. 9, 10 and 11. A pentathlon will be conducted on Sept. 10, 7:30 a.m., consisting of 16 teams of 3, casting 10 times into hula hoops. Joe reported he has adequate member support. Trout Unlimited would like to co-assist with casting at the Expo again. WFC will have a booth at the Expo and Matt is looking into the fish stamps to have at the booth. The board tabled discussion on the Memorial Access stone to allow more information on plastic and wood signage.New Business: None Meeting adjourned at 7:38 p.m.
SEPTEMBER Club Calendar SUNDAY
MONDAY
5
6
TUESDAY
7
13
14
FRIDAY
SATURDAY
1
2
3
4
8
9
10
11
Regular meeting, 6 p.m.
Labor Day
12
WEDNESDAY THURSDAY
G&F Expo
15
G&F Expo
16
17
18
23
24
25
WFC Board Meeting, 7 p.m.
G&F Expo
19
20
21
22 Autumn Equinox
26
27
28 Deadline for Backcast info
Night outing at Grey Reef
Full moon
29
30
Wyoming Fly Casters Monthly Newsletter
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WFC TREASURER'S REPORT (ending July 31, 2010) Date Income
Vendor/Item
Amount
07/07/10 Deposit - Dues $110, Banquet $3220.80 (Platte River Fly Shop Receipts) 07/20/10 Deposit - Dues $150, Banquet meals $175, July raffle $115 07/30/10 Deposit - Dues Total
$3,330.80 $449.00 $30.00 $3,770.80
Expenses 07/14/10 07/20/10 07/20/10 07/20/10 07/30/10
#4052 Izaak Walton League, July rent #4053 Ugly Bug July raffle #4054 Tony Martin, Backcast postage (multiple months) #4055 Fed Ex Office, June Backcast printing #4056 Joe DeGraw, Walker Jenkins outing Total
Self-checks are key to AIS introduction Thousands of aquatic invasive species inspections have been conducted this summer as inspection crews have traveled the state to set up check stations at Wyoming's lakes and reservoirs. The number of waters and launch points far exceed what inspectors can cover, and not every boater who heads out will encounter an AIS check station. With that being the case, a good deal of the prevention of AIS introduction into Wyoming will be tied to the self-checks boaters do before launching their boats in Wyoming. The purpose of a boater self-check is to ensure they are not transporting mussels or other AIS into Wyoming waters. To facilitate an effective self-check, a boater can use a self-check form, which is available at all watercraft check stations, the Game and Fish website, regional offices and in small kiosks on signs at many boat ramps in Wyoming. The selfcheck form guides the boater through a self-inspection and ensures the boat is "Drain, Clean and Dry."
"The majority of our Wyoming boaters never take their boat out of state and their boating activities are confined to nearby lakes and reservoirs. As a result our boaters present a low risk of infecting Wyoming waters with AIS," said WGFD AIS Coordinator Beth Bear. Drain, Clean and Dry still applies to all boaters. This will limit the spread of existing AIS in Wyoming, like whirling disease and New Zealand mudsnail, as well as prevent the spread of invasive mussels if they are detected in our waters. The real danger lies when a boat is used in an out-of-state water where AIS is present and is brought back into Wyoming or when a boat is purchased from another state. "We have had a number of these instances this summer," said Bear. "Instances where boaters have contacted us, telling us where their boats have been and requesting inspections before they launch." She adds this level of concern will be key to preventing AIS introduction in coming years.
Our members are very special to us and we want to remember them in times of adversity. If you know of a member or their spouse who is ill or is recently deceased, please contact Donna Diesburg at (307) 2344278 or e-mail her at faith10@bresnan.net.
$75.00 $98.48 $88.00 $83.88 $59.03 $270.36
SORRY The new, and popular, regular feature on WFC members usually featured on page 7, did not arrive a day after deadline, so this issue of the Backcast is being distributed without it. The WFC member profile was to be on Bob Fischer. Look for it in the October issue of the newsletter.
CLASSIFIEDS
GOOD STUFF FOR SALE (CHEAP!) Patagonia SST jacket, XL, Brand new. $175 (list $315). Scott Novotny 266-3072