Long Leaders and tight Roll-Casts

Trout Season is upon us. The foliage along the banks and trail into the river resemble shades of cilantro and lime green.

 Fiddlehead Fern fronds emerge from the soil and fill the air with a scent that can only be Northern Michigan on a favorite stretch of cedar toppled headwaters. Daytime temperatures dance near seventy degrees and intermittent hatches of our early season bugs have arrived.

Casting, Stealth and Luck.

 Black caddis, small and mid sized mayflies, and millions of midges have taken to their adult stages while securing the next generation. Many of our smaller streams that have been forbidden now yield some spectacular fishing. We must be careful. This resource cannot be exploited or we shall push it near extinction. But, we must go out and relish this time of the year, some days can be stellar- 30 or 40 fish, although only a few will break the 8″ mark. You never know when a fish from a few prior generations and double that measurement may come to hand. Go forth, breath in the air, practice your tight roll cast, tie on a #16 rubber-legged stimulator, extend your leader a few feet and have a blast. The renewed vitality of spring and all of its promises remind me of an even more important message~

It’s the feeling of satisfaction that comes from limiting your kill instead of killing your limit.

It’s communing with nature where the chief reward is a refreshed body and a contented soul, where a license is a permit to use, not abuse, to enjoy- not destroy our trout waters.      ~Art Neumann

Blue Haloes

I feel refreshed and rejuvenated, although the day was not a banner day by the books, I know the river is alive and she is ready to play.

These cold winter months have us enthralled with the SIC/PALS class as well. We last left off with Picking up the eggs, which are now 3 inches long and about 50-60 of them, but a few months back they were small little fry with yolk sacs weighing them down in the aquarium. In March, we took a field trip to the Tip of the Mitt Watershed Council to talk about Watersheds- What are they? Jennifer Gelb, Ecology Biologist, happily led the class through the many displays of our states great water and shoreline attributes and we also touched base on the threat of non-native invasive species- such as purple loosestrife, phragmites, zebra & quagga mussels and the ever threatening Asian Carp. She even passed around lamprey in a tube(preserved) for everyone to see. The highlight of the visit is the scale model of a small community. We sprinkle various colored Kool-Aid drink crystals across the landscape to represent fertilizer, salt, road oil, dirt/mud, industrial pollutants and various other non-source point pollutants. The best behaved kids are then chosen to operate the spray bottles and make it rain down on the village. Slowly, all the colors of lemon-lime and kiwi-strawberry collide with grape and cherry and other childhood memories become a flood of brown grey muck as they funnel down the banks and roadside drainages to the lake at the end of the stream. Everyone gasps a resounding “EEEEWWWW!!” The message is clear, these kids are headed home to tell their parents not to cut the lawn too short, over water or use fertilizer, keep the car maintained and use more environmental friendly methods to rid ice in the winter and have a ‘green’ home.

A short month later, the PALS class had the honor of being joined by Heather Seites-Hettinger from the DNR to actually dissect a fish. We luckily obtained a few small coho and chinook that had ‘gone to the big sea in the sky’ during the night prior from the Platte River Hatchery. I personally thought we would get some resistance from the children about cutting up the poor little smolts- there was none. They dove right in, all of them. We talked about various fins and fin function, went inside, made the slice from ventral fin up to  the gills and explored the visceral functioning organs of the fish. After pointing out the obvious stomach, liver, intestines, gills and air bladder, a few daring young biologists followed Heather’s lead and went in to find the brain. I am very glad we added this aspect to the SIC experience, these kids all walked away with a memorable moment they will recall when they are in AP Biology in High School.

BUGS! BUGS! BUGS! I love macro-invertebrates~ especially on a Northern Michigan stream that is beaming with life. A widely known secret, kids like bugs as well. They are equally impressed when you show them a frozen landscape and dip a net into a river and then pull out a screen wriggling with life. We walk down to the Bear River at Sheridan Bridge because of proximity and it has two very diverse eco-sytems. Above the bridge, the river is sluggish and still show signs of when this was a working river. Old farm tractor parts and former concrete dam scraps dot the bottom, filled in by silt and sand. We rarely find much diversity here, scuds(amphipoda) and cranefly larvae with a few mayfly and caddisfly larvae. Below the dam begins the Whitewater park and recent Kayak improvements move the water along and carry sediment, exposing more gravel and woody debris. We find between 20 and 22 different families: Mayflies(Ephemeroptera- isonychiidae, heptagenidae, baetiscidae and ephemerellidae) and Stoneflies (Plecoptera-pteronarcyidae, taeniopterygidae, and perlidae), dragonfly, damsel fly nymphs, tons of scuds and trichoptera species. Take a child to a river and turn over a few rocks or old wood and watch their eyes light up when a hellgramite or giant stonefly crawls out from between its niche. Kevin Cronk from TotMWC joins us and  explains how these animals are bio-indicators and how monitoring a stream can help determine if something has happened or changed in the past year if certain sensitive EPT(ephemeroptera, tricoptera, plecoptera) families have diminished or completely disappeared. These microscopic animals are the literal ‘canary in the coal mine’ for our watersheds. Behind us, in the river, we have to be very careful not to disturb a steelhead on a recently made redd as she readies to deposit a future generation of silver bullets. We always want to leave a minimal footprint when we enter the river so we always release our macro-organisms back in to the water after the class has had the chance to watch their amazing behaviour.

Yesterday, we went to Sheridan Elementary to have our last classroom visit with the SIC/PALS kids. Next week we release the salmon into the Bear River. The entire school will attend, newspaper and local television will be on hand as we escort the 70 or so salmon fry to their new home. The visit yesterday was a casting lesson for the 3rd, 4th and 5th grade classes. As Mother Nature would have it, winds were a steady 30 mph and the mercury may have touched 40 degrees, but not for long. A fine mist greeted us and later we saw white pellets dance from the clouds. That did not phase the kids. Paint the sky, answer the phone, pause, hammer a nail into the wood, flick the paint off the brush~ all various explanations we use to teach the newly sired wielders of the fly rod how to lay a line out and get that de-hooked woolly bugger in the hula hoop some thirty feet away. The girls tend to be more natural at casting, they don’t force it. The boys may have to prove something or they have residual spincasting tendencies  and don’t allow the fly rod to work with them. We may have a few future potential anglers of the fly in a few years. We always take time to answer questions the children have about fishing and our coldwater resources, always encourage them to become a  member of Stream Explorers at www.tumembership.org/youth or www.streamexplorers.org

Find a River Clean-Up and help keep our planet beautiful.

Tying w/ April

Her story is nothing less than picture perfect, chasing chrome and her dreams from an early age, she dropped out of school and made guiding and tying flies for her beloved Onchorynchus mykiss a full time adventure. In less than a decade, she has become one of the top venues at many Fly Fishing Expo’s across the country and parts of her native Canada. She knows her stuff as well.

We started off our day lesson with background on Spey casting and some of the Skagit style techniques she has adapted and found very suitable for the large waters they fish in the Pacific Northwest. Rubbing shoulders with some of the areas other top Steelhead Gurus, she has amassed quite an arsenal of tricks to aide any angler on most waters that can accommodate anadromous species. She also made it very clear that particularly in the Northwest, if you happen across a hatchery steelie, to ‘Please take it home, that is why is was put there.’ There is another lengthy debate on pure genetics and that of hatchery steel mixing with wild genetic chrome code that we don’t have time, space, nor the Ph.D to debate in this post. I do, however see her point. Needless to say, the room had a variety of technical questions and we all had fun getting perspective from someone who fishes beautiful water made for massive omega-3 shrimp gorged chromers. If you haven’t seen any of the footage from the coastal waters you should check out www.flynationtv.comand see what #20-25 steelies look for in a perfect habitat. Just before lunch, we started to tie our first ‘Intruder’- the April Vokey version. After getting our wire on the shanks and cutting off the barb we paused for some of Ray’s phenomenal Chicken Chowder and delicious baguettes.

The life-like maneuverability of the Arctic Fox and Rhea coupled with Silver Pheasant and a touch of Krystal Flash make for a very enticing fly. As Michigan anglers, we all pondered what type of baitfish this pattern was to mimic. But why does it have to imitate? Could it simply elicit a strike from a territorial buck steelhead or does it look pretty enough to deserve a crushing blow from a hefty double digit hen? Why or why not? Point is they do more than sell to the fly angler, they work very well on the swing in a variety of water depths and velocities. I also have found new uses for a plethora of feathers in my tying den I used only for colorful streamers I tie when Simone is busy at the bench with me.

INtent Tyers

Guinea Hen, Hot Pink, Blue, Purple, Schlappen of all intensities now can be wrapped along side our new found talent in dubbing Arctic Fox(or Polar Bear if you happen to be so lucky). The properties of Arctic Fox and Polar Bear require that they readily shed water and yet insulate the animal in sub-zero climates, yeilding it the perfect accessory to a fly that is very minimal but has a voluminous sub-surface profile. They have developed synthetic craft fur that will suffice, but when you are done tying and you can’t figure out why your fly never looks like the one in the picture, chances are, the quality of materials used.

April was diligent in scoping out each individual fly as we tied them. She also has a worthy cause, check it out at http://www.flygal.ca/ They were all each our own identity in creation, but she was the Creator, and thus, we were not going to falter too far from the mold.

Too much Dubbing~

The gentlemen behind me were chuckling on every other wrap, “this one is for the downed White Birch, or Maple, or good Hemlock.” They were less than enthusiastic in their personal achievements and had already determined that this fly would be great for Chinook season, perhaps to be lost in the nearest logjam. April was convincing, she knew the talents of her pupils, and she also knows her materials. After we completed our flies, she fired up the hydro-viewing chamber. We were going to swim all of our flies and see how well they actually performed. Way better than tying a fathead streamer to a short stick and figure-8 ing around the bathtub. In a few short clips, the first fly was submerged and the ‘Ooohs’ and ‘Aaahhs’ very much like the Fourth of July resounded across the room. It was nothing short of Fantastic- how cool to actually spend nearly a couple of hours tying a new fly pattern and then to see how it undulated in various currents. When we got to the last row- the LogJam Boys, they were still hesitant in the likeliness that their flies would well, swim well. They in fact did, and looked very enticing, which inspired other pattern ideas, something for Mr. Fontinalis, something for Mr. Salmon trutta, even ideas for those lazy hot summer days chasing bronzebacks near some of the drop-offs in our Great Lakes. The Intruder is  a pattern that has unlimited potential, I can see it having it’s very own pocket in a dedicated box in my vest within the next year, for many years to come. Thank You April for sharing your day with us and for stopping at so many other great establishments across Michigan. If you have the opportunity, please say ‘Hello!’ to her at the MidWest Fly Expo in Warren Michigan this weekend. There will be so many “in-the-know” peeps at the show, I wish I could attend. Truth is, I have never been. Maybe next year, I may have to make a point of it. Cameron from The Fiberglass Manifesto, Jason from Fontinalis Rising fame, hundreds of fellow Michigan Trout Unlimited Members, Rod makers, net weavers, fly tyers, Industry leading manufacturers, hope you all have a wonderful and safe weekend. I hope to see you soon on the water~

Koz and Ape

Tight Lines,

Koz

In this I must be clear> These are merely suggestions to other fellow readers in the Fly World who would like some references that I have personally read AND are in my own collection. There are others I have read and borrowed from fellow fishing buddies that must be mentioned. Titles like Selective Trout by Swisher and Richards, What the Trout Said by Datus Proper, In the Ring of The Rise by Vince Marinaro and Trout by Ray Bergman to name a few. I have also made good use of my local library card and read a few excellent observations by Tom Rosenbauer- don’t hold it against him, he gets paid by the guys that also make dog beds, but his writing is often provocative and to the point. Such works like Orvis’s Guide to Fly Fishing, Reading Trout Streams, and Prospecting for Trout go down as highly recommended reading for beginners and experienced anglers alike.

Sometimes I have read a few of my books three, four, even a half a dozen times before something in it clicks within my mind. Whether it is because a certain event occurred on the stream and a sudden realization enlightened me, or because I finally got to a level or point in my angling that I was ready to accept or invite that information into my knowledge base. We as humans are funny creatures. We can repeatedly do the same manual maneuver over a thousand times (like with tying flies) and then , in an instant- KAPPOW!!- you suddenly see a better way. Posting hackle on a parachute pattern for example, the easiest way to tie it off is to actually wrap the thread around the post, thereby capturing the hackle feather and then whip finishing the fly. No more messing around with tying the tip of the hackle feather and most of its barbules to the hook itself. What an Epiphany that was!!! How many years had I been missing that one? And why didn’t it come sooner?

“The List” from the TU readers is as follows: TROUT by Ray Bergman, TROUT FISHING by Joe Brooks THE COMPLETE BOOK OF WESTERN HATCHES: AN ANGLER’S ENTOMOLOGY AND FLY PATTERN GUIDE by Rick Hafele and Dave Hughes, A RIVER RUNS THROUGH IT AND OTHER STORIES by Norman Maclean, STEELHEAD FLY FISHING by Trey Combs, THE CURTIS CREEK MANIFESTO by Sheridan Anderson, CADDISFLIES:A MAJOR STUDY OF ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT AQUATIC INSECTS-ENTOMOLOGY, FLY TYING, AND PROVEN FISHING TECHNIQUES by Gary LaFontaine, A MODERN DRY FLY CODE by Vince Marinaro, TROUT BUM by John Gierach, NYMPHS- VOLUME 1 & 2 by Ernest Schwiebert, FLY CASTING TECHNIQUES by Joan Wulff and finally THE RIVER WHY?  by David James Duncan. All are extraordinary, they have made huge impacts on many fishermen and women of all ages, just that some don’t particularly pertain to my neck of the woods. Allow me to explain.  When asked to embark on a journey of faith to Belize eight years ago to assist in the wedded bliss of a fellow angler, I did all the research on bonefish and the varieties of Crazy Charlie’s I could tie. I haven’t touched Mr. Fernandez’s insights on boney behaviour since. Last year, when prepping our family fall color trip to Colorado and staying near Estes Park, I read and bought several books on the multitude of rivers and techniques to fish that foreign landscape prior to going. The Best of a slew of “Fly Fishing Colorado….” destination books was “Where to Eat, Sleep and Fish Colorado” by Mark D. Williams and W. Chad McPhail. Hilarious, comical, informative, priced right, great budget/itinerary, awesome fishing, did I mention funny? They catalog summers of trekking up and down the Rockies while searching out the best honey holes, inventing great ideas for toilet paper dispensers and chuckling at Kum & Go gas stations. It is amazing what crazy things men can find humorous and creative in the same breath while on a fishing journey.

The novels and instructional books that have changed the game for me aren’t altogether completely different, it is more a regional taste. I would trade a Traver/Voelker novel for a Gierach book in a heartbeat, simply because it is in my backyard. LaFontaine, Hughes & Hafele for Swisher and Richards, Bergman and Maclean for Tomas McGuane and Jerry Dennis. I have also dedicated a certain section to the history of Michigan and its authors. If you are curious about Trout Unlimited and its origins, as well as how one acquired gas stamps to sell hosiery and fish the AuSable and Boardman Rivers during the 40’s and 50’s pick up a copy of For the Love of Trout by George Griffith, it is a truly remarkable trip. The Olde AuSable by Hazen Miller gave me a glimpse of a former logging boom-town I have only known the aftermath in my lifetime.

Michigan Authors

You can’t fish these waters without giving credit to Rusty Gates for fighting to keep them as they are today and hopefully shall remain for generations to come. It was in his ability to get you to sign up for a duty or task without you ever knowing you had committed to the job. We need more like him and his presence when we visit the shop will eternally be missed.  Seasons on the Au Sable recounts the many trips to the waters edge to see what was hatching, who got stuck in the two track getting wood and who managed to get that hawg out of that secret stretch of water nobody will tell you about. Josh Greenberg does an excellent job of recounting many of these moments, faithfully maintains the Lodge and has a hot cup of coffee waiting for you if you stop in for the latest river report. My other favorite Michigan author writes so eloquently of the little things we treasure in Northern Michigan- Jerry Dennis. From A Wooden Canoe, The Living Great Lakes and The River Home are all recommended, but if you have a child or a wife who asks sensible nature minded questions like- Why do leaves change color? or What kind of clouds are those? and you would much rather have a correct answer other than “Those clouds are cirrus-stratus/cumuli-nimbous.” Because there is much more to seasonal change and the climate of the Great Lakes and in the book It’s Raining Frogs and Fishes by Mr. Dennis covers a host of natural and other phenomenal acts of nature that I occasionally like to refresh my knowledge on.

You could search and find a million titles regarding all types of fly tying and tying techniques. The one I always go back to for reference is appropriately titled Fly Tier’s Benchside Reference by Ted Leeson and Jim Schollmeyer. A hefty book with 437 pages of varying posts, hackle, dubbing and other techniques, you may never exhaust it’s true potential. It may set you back a smooth C-note, but you will get every penny in return when you produce quality good looking flies that perform and outlast your previous attempts at awkward quill body wrapping. FISHBUGS by Thomas Ames Jr. combines magnificent photography and a touch of entomology to entwine a magical close-up look at the macroinvertebrates we seek for trout food. I have brought this book in to my college Macro-Invert professor and he continually uses it to show the stages of complete metamorphosis the giant stonefly goes through to reach adulthood. If you want to up your tying game or improve on your latin dialect, grab this beautiful coffee table book and see if you wife will let you keep it out, even if it is only at the cottage. NYMPHS- 1 & 2 by Ernest Schwiebert takes it to the next level. If you are looking for Ph.D in your Latin and want to know every family of mayfly or stonefly, this is your tome. Ernest was dedicated to the pursuit of knowledge and passing it on. A true giant among men, he is one of the many men I wished I might have had the opportunity to meet but his passing in 2005 makes him one of our most treasured contributors to our past-time. He was an architect by trade and held two doctorates in Architectural design & principles from Princeton, but his true passion was found in the rivers around Chicago where he grew up. A few stories recollect fishing the Pere Marquette near Baldwin and this is where I feel a connection. In the same order of science and nature, TROUT and SALMON by Dr. Robert Behnke is a must read for those learning the species and elevations/locales of our quarry. Amazing detail and color illustrations by Joseph Tomelleri, this is my go to reference for all ichthyology related questions when you want to debate the difference between Oncorhynchus mykiss gilberti and Oncorhynchus mykiss newberri (not that this may ever impact my Great Lakes fishing).

Environmental issues have been plaguing us in the Great Lakes region ever since we opened up our doors to the Atlantic Ocean via the St. Lawrence Seaway. Muskegon Chronicle reporter Jeff Alexander wrote a great book on its development and history- PANDORA’S LOCKS. In it we find how we had nearly become the nations largest seagoing system, we could move large shipments of various commodities halfway across the United States by boat and save millions of dollars in trade. But at what cost? We are only beginning to find out the price tag on environmental issues and we don’t see the end in the near future. Invasive seagoing lampreys that quickly modified to our sweet water and mussels that could filter liters of water a day had a brand new neighborhood to call home. It was similar to  a perfect storm, all the right pieces were in place, greed for growth and lack of ethical policy, a vast freshwater aquarium teeming with fish and life just waiting to be brought to near extinction. We had already wiped out Grayling and the Passenger Pigeon, Whitefish and Lake Trout were soon to be on that list.

Four Fish by Paul Greenberg recounts the trophic levels in the Ocean as we decimate each one, starting with the Salmon and alewives of the East Coast, everyone’s favorite table fare Chilean Sea-Bass, or should I say Patagonia Toothfish? Not a very palate pleasing nor menu selling moniker, so we edited a little. Then moving out deeper in the sea for great Cod depletion of the 1980’s, further out yet to find the last of the great Tuna fisherman and how we have built massive ships that can do everything from catching, cutting, deep-freezing and packaging our filet-o-fish before it even reaches shore. Read it if you dare, it is eye-opening, much like watching FOOD Inc. for the first time, we are slowly becoming aware consumers. How did we get this way? Well, first we had to go to war, a world war, not once, but twice. then we became a wealthy country, then we had educated young men with talents and not much to do with those talents after the war. So we built things. Great things. Huge superhighways, and massive dams large enough to drive several lanes of traffic over the tops of them. Some airplane pilots discovered they could fly up into the mountain lakes and drop rainbow trout into isolated and barren lakes in the Northern region of California. In An Entirely Synthetic Fish: How the Rainbow Trout Beguiled America by Anders Halverson, we see the development and the spreading of America’s most accepted fish hatchery trout- the rainbow trout. It was once indigenous to the McCloud River, and after early settlers risked their lives camping in hostile Native American territory to bring this fish to thier fishing ponds, it quickly became a sportfishing favorite and delectable campfire nourishment.

I believe everyone has read or at least seen the Robert Redford narrated version of Norman Maclean’s A RIVER RUNS THROUGH IT, easily a classic, and if you haven’t, I do suggest you give it a read. I rather enjoyed THE RIVER WHY? by David James Duncan as much. Taking a journey to find oneself in the Pacific Northwest while chasing steelhead and figuring out

enjoy a good read~

 life’s bait versus fly technical query is every young fisherman’s fantasy, throwing in a mermaid who can cast and catch a fish is merely a bonus. For other light-hearted stories I have enjoyed the writing of David Ames. True Love and the Woolly Bugger and A Good Life Wasted are fun and frivolous accounts of the guide life put to prose in a way we all can relate to. Thomas McGuane, THE LONGEST SILENCE and 92 in the SHADE> wow< I saw that 92 in the shade was made into a movie in the 60’s, it would be remarkable to see it adapted to modern times and share that fishing story with the world. McGuane has a writing talent like few others, you immediately are sucked in, and like all good writers, you don’t want to stop. Pick one of these up, throw a log on the fire and see for yourself.

Two game changers that have played the biggest active role in my angling success and failures- I only say failure, because without skunked days, I cannot improve on what I could have done to be more effective in my fly angling pursuit (let’s be honest, it’s called ‘fishing’ and if everyday was a bang-up hilatious-catch-a-fish-on-every-cast kind of day, would we really keep coming back?- I sure would)- The TROUT and The FLY by John Goddard and Brian Clarke look at the world through a trout’s

revisit old standards>

eyes, like many others, but in this edition- the third, they have revisited earlier theories, line color, mono-versus flouro, feather and hook dimples, and they have rettracted and edited previous thoughts or shown significant differences. These are the invaluable resources  for the angler to improve his odds on the animal that has a brain the size of a pea and a guesstimated memory of a mere 30 seconds. I have also been a big fan of the big take. Huckin’ meat some would say. Throwing wet tube socks is another great analogy. The pioneer of my day would have to be Kelly Galloup. When he teamed up with another Michigan angler, Bob Linsenman and co-wrote the  modern code of MODERN STREAMERS for TROPHY TROUT, many anglers took notice. Yes, it can be tiring slapping that 7 or 8 wt all day and hitting wood, snagging, dislocating shoulders or rotator cuffs, but when a 22-24 inch swamp donkey comes crashing out of the LWD and absolutely crushes your Circus Peanut or eternal favorite Zoo Cougar- your adrenal quickly reduces your sunburnt/aching shoulder to a non-existent numbness and you yell —>”FISH ON!!!”

It all begins with a collector’s permit that the teacher will get upon certification of training. The State of Michigan offers workshops at either Oden State Fish Hatchery or Wolf Lake Hatchery to properly train the teachers on regulation of pH, algae, fungus, water temperature, life cycle of the fish and a host of other incidentals. The DNR has had a tremendous growth in popularity of this program with little or no moneys used to advertise or promote its growth. Currently there are 154 schools in the state and more apply every year. Just ten years ago, this was merely an idea. Seems we really do want our next generation to connect to the outdoors and the wonderful resources we have here.

Our pick up destination is the Platte River Hatchery, near Honor Michigan. The ride is a pleasant one for early November, the air is crisp and many of the leaves have fallen. Hunter’s are eager for opening of deer season and I have spied a few salmon pairing up on the upper stretches of the Bear River  behind our home. This is one of the most spectacular times of the year to live in the Great Lakes State. Rolling hills with majestic golden views, inland waterways dotted with fire-lit trees along the background and sunsets that set the horizon aflame as they burn out. At the hatchery, we were lucky to get the nickle tour and see what a vast system they have set up from the weirs and the rearing tanks and the rows and racks of egg trays. This facility takes care of most of Northern Michigan’s stocking for Chinook and Coho Salmon reproduction and it is huge. If you can get a chance to visit this or any of the state fish hatcheries, as a family or a school trip, I highly recommend and promise you won’t be disappointed. We are given two scoops of eggs- roughly 200 green eggs and place them safely in my Glad air tight disposable container and safely wedge them in between a few ice packs in my trusty Fishpond cooler for the 1 1/2 hour ride back to Petoskey. It is exciting, I know we are not transporting bullion, but I do feel like we are in a Brinks truck with highly prized cargo, it is liquid gold. We need to make it back to Sheridan Elementary by 1:00 pm so that we can meet with the News Review and have the photos taken with the students and their newly acquired babies. The kids are beaming. They are all selected to represent various elementary schools based on thier academic achievements and it quickly becomes apparent who are the ones with a million questions and who are the ones with a story about whatever it is you are trying to convey. Ironic, I see a little of myself in each of them. I guess thats why I love connecting with so many kids through something I love.

A small handful of people have asked me – Why raise salmon? Why not Trout in the Classroom? It is true, many states, New York, Vermont, Connecticut, South Carolina and a few others, do raise trout in the classroom (TIC), many of these states have been doing so for nearly twenty years. The most common response I have heard is that salmon are more tolerant of environmental conditions, meaning, small fluctuations in temperature and pH don’t have an immediate nor detrimental affect on the species as would be the case with brook trout or brown trout. Another popular answer is that salmon spawn in the fall, while trout are spring spawners and that wouldn’t coordinate well with the school year. Last time I checked, only rainbows/steelhead (Oncorhynchus mykiss) spawn in the spring while the other two tend to be autumnal spawners. Another school of thought is the  expendability factor – for lack of a better term. Salmon do seem to have a minimal long term impact on an ecosystem. They usually die off in three years after spawning and return vital nutrients to the watershed.  The sensitivity issue seems to win most arguments, but that doesn’t mean we won’t see TIC in Michigan. We have hopes and may one day soon see a pilot program that can test the viability of its success.

This is the day we meet for the first time. I get to introduce myself and the lucky individuals who will be volunteering throughout the year. This past year we thought it would be wise to have 2 assistants that can either carry the program on if something should happen to me on the river (Heaven forbid) or if I get the opportunity to chase trout in distant waters in the future. I am fortunate to have two equally gifted gentlemen that have brought different aspects and points of view to the SIC/PALS classroom. The first is Spencer McCormack, who studied Environmental Sciences at Ohio State University. He has a way of connecting with the kids in a very simple and kind manner. They say in teaching others, especially children, you either have it or you don’t. Spencer has it. They listen and they tend to hang on his very next word. The other gentleman is Paul Wiemerslage from the Au Sable Institute of Environmental Studies. Paul has his resume dotted with names like Western Washington University and Bethel University along with the North Cascades Institute- he taps into that spot we all relate to as a child, the place we held secret and safe– a place on the water. It is a joy to have both of these men adding to this year, and I can’t wait to see where it develops.

Every year we glance back and reflect on what worked, what didn’t, timing throughout the school year, how can we make it better and how can we keep it simple. There is no need to re-invent the wheel so I am not going to go through all of our rough sketches or drawing board failures, but rather how we have perfected it to fit our kids and our school. It looks somewhat like this:

• November~ Egg Pick up> meet class and get acquainted with new students.
• December~ What is Trout Unlimited? watch TU 50th anniversary DVD and talk conservation, restoration and protection.
• January~ Fly Tying> bring materials and vises and teach every child how to tie their first woolly bugger!
• February~ What is a Watershed? Visit Tip of the Mitt Watershed Council and see a scale model of how non-point pollutants enter a stream. We also talk about invasive species and the Great Lakes.
• March~ Fish Dissection >Joined by DNR employee and we take a look inside what makes a fish stay bouyant, among other things.
• April~ Macro-Invertebrates> Kids love Bugs!! walking trip down to Bear River and classify stream quality by the number of class I, II,  & III organisms. ID and key insects to order (ephemeroptera, plecoptera, odonata, trichoptera).
• May~ Salmon Release- entire school walks down to the river as we bless the tiny salmon parr a safe journey. Field Trip to Jordan River National Fish Hatchery- students try their hand at catching a trout. Casting Clinic- five or six MVWTU volunteers come out and we teach the entire school the better methods of landing a fly in a hula hoop across the playground.
• June~ Bear River Clean-up> in coordination with local non-profit organizations such as Tip of the Mitt and Little Traverse Conservancy.

These programs have generally been one day a month for an afternoon. Michigan Department of Natural Resources has a web page for further information and questions regarding application dates and requirements http://www.michigan.gov/dnr/0,1607,7-153-10369_50075—,00.html The month of May is crazy because it is the nicest weather for us to do the things we can do outdoors without freezing in a foot of snow or sleet> Northern Michigan can be temperamental and we must be flexible in our scheduling. We have done our fly tying this month and the students absolutely LOVE IT!! They get to take something home and show their parents, something they made that isn’t an ashtray (do they make those in school anymore?) We have found having the materials pre-packaged in zip-locks ease in distribution with the narrow time frame we work with and keeping the 24 kids on task. I generally tie the first fly with the class watching and then they go to their seats and we walk through it step by step. I have purchased vises at garage sales and on-line, so we have close to a dozen. The students partner up and switch off for each fly they tie. Allow yourself plenty of time, newcomers have lots of questions, thread breaks frequently, they get confused on right hand versus left hand and clock-wise wrapping. Best advice- have plenty of assistants, be patient, have a couple bobbin threaders, you do the whip-finish on all flies, get a picture with each student with their finished fly and <Keep It Simple>

Tight Lines!

Koz

We had a great turnout! from beginners~

along with a few pro’s~

If you are ever in the Petoskey Area, swing on in for a Short’s Hanging Frank or a frosty Bell’s Seasonal Ale and join us for some Tying>>

We always have a great time sharing stories and planning our next venture on the water.

“If you had to choose one fly for all occasions, what would it be?” I posed.

Often thought about, we each pondered a moment and gave up our preference.

“The Woolly Bugger is by far the fly that catches the most species of fish.” One retorted.

“Yes, true, but an egg pattern catches everything, anytime.” The second pitched in.

“I would have to choose the Muddler Minnow.” They both paused briefly and uttered a resounding~

“Good call.”

Many flies adorn my boxes, from pheasant tail nymphs, copper johns, little black stones, hares ears, to Adam’s, Hendrickson’s, BWO’s and a slew of streamers, but during my childhood adventures, I recall a late Saturday afternoon in September to which I base my loyalty.

Each year growing up, I eagerly anticipated the opening of trout season and traveling three hours north to Grayling to visit family and further explore reaches of the Au Sable not yet known to a fourteen year old. Something magical and mystical happens on your journey north. The elevation changes, the trees become more coniferous, the air more decidedly trout habitat. You know when you are in Grayling when the scent of tall pine trees mingles with the fragrance of fish pellets on your hand. A quick walk along the river’s banks in bare feet introduces you to the prickly needles dotting the trails and, if you pay attention, a trout rising in the bend behind the hospital. There is a section of river below the Fish Hatchery on N. Down River Rd. that was dedicated to Children Only (under 16) and I waded its cool waters as much as possible. It was in this beautiful stretch of river that I began my soon to emerge lifelong love of all things trout and flyfishing. Dozens of brookies, a few browns, and a fair share of rainbows enticed me deeper into the art and beauty of my leisure. It happened on the last Saturday of the season, after a semi-haphazard roll cast to a half submerged tag alder that I became enamored with the mystical power of the Muddler Minnow.
A sudden vicious grab and take startled me to attention. My 8’6” 4wt. silver fiberglass Abu Garcia doubled while the matching metallic Ryobi reel screamed off line like never before. Panic was my only reflex, fingers fumbled and knuckles were beaten until I regained control of my line and managed a beefy twenty-inch rainbow to the bank. I couldn’t stop my knees from shaking and in delirium ran back to my aunt’s house to get my younger brother, Barry, and coax him in to returning to the hotspot. He initially tied on a Warden’s Worry and I kept with what I was throwing. Not long after and I was into another hefty ‘bow from the shadows of the fallen shrub, and again a third, all nudging the twenty inch mark. Barry became perplexed and inquired as to what the secret fly was and I cautiously relinquished one of my #12 Muddlers to him. Moments later he connected with the monster of the hole and we both freaked. After a run up and back down the river, he finally guided the 23 3/4” brute to the net. It’s girth and magnificent color made my fish pale in comparison. The season ended that day with my brother only catching the one and I with four between 19”& 21”, but Barry decided to cash in on an offer my father presented to us both. “I will pay for each of you boys to have one fish mounted, but only one.” His offer still stood and resonated in the corridors of my mind some twenty plus years later.

Each year growing up, I eagerly anticipated the opening of trout season and traveling three hours north to Grayling to visit family and further explore reaches of the Au Sable not yet known to a fourteen year old.

The introduction of the Muddler Minnow happened quite by coincidence at our cabin in Canada just the year prior. Evenings become very dark, pitch black would be more appropriate. So, our family gathers each night to play cards, bantering about the day and planning the next day’s events. “A hike up to Rainbow Lake or Lost Lake? How about that porcupine we saw scamper across the train tracks today?” In the midst of one such evening, a gentleman from across the lake showed up at our door to say “Heh.” Friendly enough of a chap, he soon found out I had just

begun to take to flyfishing and he offered a feathered combination from his worn bushman’s hat. “This here is a Muddler Minnow, eh. Its all you need up here for dem specks.” Apparently, across the border, brook trout become ‘speckled trout’ and lakers become ‘greys’. After that, the solo canoeist slipped into the darkness and cut a smooth ripple into a black hole. I had done very well on previous trips up to Camp Grayling, throwing the very trusted Panther Martin in yellow with red dots into the mouth of any tributary on our vast lake, but the art and act of enticing the trout with a fly- that was the beginning of the end. Our ventures took us to a beaver dam above a favorite waterfall we would often tease 7-inch brookies with our gold tru-turns adorned with leaf worms. The Algoma Central Railroad had slated to blow a dam that had become too large and posed a threat to the train tracks and the bridge below if it were to go on it’s own someday. Tales of beaver ponds as large as football fields and loaded with eager brook trout were the stuff of lore and fiction I had read in other anglers journals, a treasure of this magnitude had to be found. We trecked, sweated, hiked, and moaned about the weight of our gear and raspberry scratches from the bush. Bitten and swollen from black flies that somehow elude your attention when we finally discovered our personal Holy Grail.  This was like finding the Great Wall of China. Poplar, birch, beech and assorted pine with the engineering detail of an MIT grad. Multiple beaver families had amassed a complex network of mini dams that consumed more than a football field. I had on my lucky Mickey Mouse T-shirt, yet to discover the wonders of Simms and other industry standards we have today and as soon as my fly hit the water, it was spanked by a parr marked stunted brookie, then another, and another. I don’t believe any of the specks we caught that day broke the 8″ mark, but they were too colorful and I too enthusiastic to care. That dam was blown out shortly after our discovery, and we like to believe all those malnourished adolescent brook trout found a new home in our much roomier lake. To this day, I never had the chance to say “Thanks!” to the man who gave me that fly which caught well over 30 fish that day.

I have had the pleasure of fishing much of Michigan’s waters, some of Canada , and a trip to Belize for Bones. For most of my freshwater excursions you will be sure to find a Muddler in various mottled turkey colors and sizes in my box.  I am still waiting to catch a true ‘trophy’ fish, but will indeed need to have it mounted on my own dime. My father passed away last April, the week prior to opener, and I hadn’t yet taken him up on his offer.

Tight Lines,
Koz

[Age, wisdom and personal growth have brought me to the stage of appreciation, conservation and education of our limited natural resources. While in this day and age it wouldn’t be PC to stuff a creature merely to hang it on a wall. I rather take a few quick pictures and relish in the reward of releasing a creature that he/she may pass on their beneficial genetic make-up for the next generation. The memory of those moments, and others like them are more than enough to keep the spirit in me alive.]

As I am sitting at Christmas Eve service, my mind reflects on the past year. Some memorable fish, excellent trips with good friends, and stellar moments on the water. Coupled by bitter-sweetness in the loss of my father and the wish I had more time spent on the water with him. Then I think about salvation. I would like to believe if the rapture were to occur next week, I would have a better than average chance of ‘getting clearance’ — not because of the good deeds I have done or the quality of life I have led, or even the benevolence I have shown towards God’s wonderful creatures; but because I have spent countless days learning patience while casting my 3-weight at dozens of upper-class trout that would have no part of my offerings. Along with the many hours dedicated to helping and sharing my passion with family and friends the art of the fly, maybe this is the repentance for the multitude of hours I formerly squandered in dirty bars of my younger days?

This all began when I received a Christmas card a few weeks back. In it were the words, “Too bad every time we talk, all you can talk about is fishing. Like that’s all there is in life.”

Funny, but not. I have been dwelling on this for days. I know I should not let it rent space in my head, but then other things people have said pop into my brain. Things like, “I had to delete you from my ‘friends’ on Facebook because all you ever post is about fishing or rivers or tying flies.”

I was OK with that and have  not accepted friend requests because they didn’t have proper fishing credentials to be allowed in the circle, so they were permitted to deny my ‘friendship’ status. But the Christmas Card — that struck a chord, and it was becoming a tenant in my head. HAVE YOU MET ME?

Whenever I drive by an empty retail shop,  in my head, I already have the layout for a fly shop, where I can set up the TV monitors so we can have TU movie nights and extra tables for a Tie-One-On! fly tying nights. I have gone over countless inventories for the start up materials needed for a successful shop — it needs a good balance of high-end and entry-level equipment, it needs to have monthly events to draw in people and a warm staff and fresh coffee always brewing. On the flip side I would give up this life in paradise tourist town to live in the mountains along some stream with hopes of starting a lodge or B&B to invite others into my world of addiction. There, I said it. I have admitted I am addicted to all things FLY.

This all began when I received a Christmas card a few weeks back. In it were the words, “Too bad every time we talk, all you can talk about is fishing. Like that’s all there is in life.”

Last week it became all too clear. Channel 34 — Discovery, it was after work and I enjoy a diet coke and slowing down from the hectic pace of taking care of everyone else’s needs and desires. The program was on Addictions. These people were legit crazy. They had given away everything. They would work every angle, every minute, to find a way to their next high. I am grateful I am not like that  [or am I?]  I do think every minute about how to tie that Hendrickson pattern a little better or a stronger material for that upright wing, but will still float it. I go over and over in my head that one cast I sent in the cedar above that 20 incher that sent him/her for cover and how I could get a do-over. For the Meth/Crack/Cocaine/LSD addict — they are “Chasing the High”. A term used  to refer to the first time they used — often unattainable and the cause of their repeated search leading to death, delusion or confinement. I am on a search for that first time, however, I believe in the purity and beauty this addiction has rewarded me with a quality of life I would rather not replace. A short decade ago, I too was living on the streets looking for something — chasing a high that  would not have a beneficial direction for my life. I am thankful I found my way back to the Tying Vise — and making it my only vise, others are not so fortunate.

A newly made fishing friend from FB mentioned on his status something his wife said — and my wife completely agreed. She hinted that their family Christmas photo should be a postcard of her and the two girls and the Dad in the river holding a brown from the Rogue in Rockford. He jokingly said that was cool. I do envision a family photo of my troop, all in waders in the middle of the Thompson or the Blue Rivers, with heavily padded and flocked trees in the background. Someday.

My wife is a blessing, as is my entire family — truly. She doesn’t totally understand the addiction thing. She can have a glass of wine and leave it on the coffee table 1/2 full She is kinda crazy like that. Chocolate and shopping are the only things that might be considered her vices. I only qualify shopping as her addiction because few ‘normies’ actually plan on going shopping at midnight on Thanksgiving and shopping all evening into the next morning with pre-arranged intervals of juicing up with Redbull and Monster drinks. Who would chase sales and deals for nearly 18 hours on end? INSANE! or is it? I have worked all day and gone Hexing into the wee morning hours for nights on end, and when that was over — it became Mousing Time. In the end, it is all about your passion. What is your passion? I am very happy to have found mine swimming in the swift currents of any river that is cold and cool enough to dangle that carrot before my face….