Across
the Stream - March 2005
A
Publication of Heart of America Fly Fishers
HOAFF March Meeting
Monday, March 21, 2005 - 7pm
Darrell Bowman
Arkansas Game and Fish Commission
He will be bringing us up to date on the Trout Management Plan,
Minimum Flows, and other issues important to Arkansas’ Trout.
President's Message
Spring is Approaching
by
Mark Borserine
The Crocus are beginning to appear in our Rose Garden
which is a sure sign of warmer weather on the way. The HOAFF is entering our
“busy season”! We had a very successful
Spring Seminar both educationally and financially. Thanks to a good turnout, we
came out financially much better than in the last two years. I said in my first
message that we are entering 2005 “fully-staffed and fully-funded”. The
successful seminar makes the “fully-funded” more true than ever.
But, we have a challenging schedule ahead of us.
Almost immediately we enter into our NFFW (National Fly Fishing Week)
activities; we need to staff two consecutive Saturdays, the 23rd and 30th of April and due to increased
publicity we are expecting much higher turnout than last year.
We have the money for this, but more importantly we
need the people. Volunteer! Turn out
and help us with this project, please! Even if you’re a bit shy about teaching
fly tying or casting, we need help with lots of other things; if you can just
come out, we’ll find something useful for you. Money is great, but without
hands to make it work, it does nothing of itself. This is where “fully-staffed”
is all-important!
If you can help, call Hod McIntosh at (913) 722-3684,
e-mail singingreels@worldnet .att.net or Mark Borserine, (913) 381-0722,
(913) 915-1002 cell, e-mail MAJBORSER@aol.com.
The
Nature Conservancy: Bennett Spring/Niangua River Project
"The
John Bell Challenge"
by Mark Borserine
If you have been coming to meetings or
reading the newsletter you should be aware of the joint project between The
Nature Conservancy (TNC) and the
Missouri Dept of Conservation (MDC) to improve a major area of the Niangua
Watershed. This is huge project which
will affect agricultural practices, improve terrain, preserve and create
woodlands all with the object of protecting the water quality of the
Niangua. TNC has requested $5,000 from
the HOAFF. The Club Officers &
Directors have voted to donate $1,500 of club funds with the hope that the
membership will also donate. A member
who wishes to remain anonymous has pledged that he will match individual
donations up to $1,500 which would mean the club and its members would donate
$4,500.
This project is for our HOME waters! If there has ever been a
conservancy project of immediate interest to our club this is it! John Bell has challenged just 15 members to
donate $100 each to reach this goal.
This can be done! I took my wife
to dinner a couple of weeks ago and spent over a $100 - one dinner to
sacrifice! And, your waistline will thank you for it! The end of March is our deadline, so bring your checks Monday
night the 21st or mail them to John Bell at 3034 Campfire Drive, Lawrence,
KS 66049!
Spring Outing to Arkansas' White River
Plans are being made for a Spring Outing to the White River. Mark
your calendars for May 14, 2005. Details will follow but Springtime on the
tailwaters is always a great trip.
Outings
Outings are an important part of what our club does
every year. Our club does and is doing things well but we always want to
improve what we do. Our Outings Chairs, Jim and Bill, have set some interesting
outings for this year, but are still looking for your suggestions for outings.
They look forward to hearing from you!
Jim Jorgensen Bill
Lyon
Jjorgensen@ci.lenexa.ks.us blyon51@yahoo.com
(913) 469-1950 home (816)
525-1243 home
(913) 481-1129 cell (816)
769-6116 cell
2005 Officers
PRESIDENT
Mark Borserine
majborser@aol.com
(913) 381-0722
pAST
PRESIDENT/SECRETARY
David Andrews
davidgandrews@kc.rr.com
H (816) 741-8314
tREASURER
Paul Bennetts
pbennetts1@comcast.net
913-338-3837
NEWSLETTER
EDITOR
Tom
James
tom@blackdogsports.com
O (816)
718-0393
PROGRAMS
Cliff Cain John Bell
cliffcain@hotmail.com j.bell@kcc.state.ks.us
H (913) 780-3865 H (785) 843-1782
O (913) 433-5224 O (785) 271-3139
OUTINGS
Jim
Jorgenson Bill Lyon
jjorgens@ci.lenexa.ks.us blyon51@yahoo.com
H (913) 469-1950 (816) 525-1243
O (913) 477-7701
MEMBERSHIP
Cliff Newton Fred Clark
ccnewton@sbcglobal.net fclarks@planetkc.com
H (816) 943-8306 H
(913) 831-0305
O (816) 426 3925 x260
CONSERVATION/BLUE
RIVER PROJECT
Raymond Zook
rzook@kc.rr.com
H (816) 941-2862
LIBRARIAN
Doug McDonald
mcdoug5148@sbcglobal.net
(913) 669-5222
EDUCATION/RECOGNITION
Bill Lindley Jim Mattes
(913) 888-3177 (913) 248-1030
SPRING
PROGRAM COMMITTEE
Dick Martin Don Grundy
rlm@mllfpc.com dlgrundy@msn.com
H (816) 781-9557 H (816)-781-9019
O (816) 221-1430
WEBMASTER
Vicky Newton
svnewton@sbcglobal.net
H (816) 943-8306
AUCTION/RAFFLE
Dan Zimmerman
dzmmrmn@aol.com
(913) 829-4768
HISTORIAN
Bill Brant
billandkathy@kc.rr.com
H (816) 941-9691 O (913) 458-6826
SOUTHERN
COUNCIL LIAISON
Hod McIntosh
singingreels@worldnet.att.net
Home: (913) 722-3684
BANQUET
CHAIR
John Richards
jreyedoc1@aol.com
H (816) 781-0545 O (816) 781-0500
Heart
of America Fly Fishers Meetings
Meetings
are held at 7pm on the 3rd Monday of each month
Community
of Christ Church
79th
& Mission Rd, Prairie Village, KS
Hatch of the Month
Bring a fly or a couple of flies to add to the Match of the Month
collection. During each meeting names are drawn and the winner receives the
collection of flies. This is a great way to learn new fly patterns and share
some of your favorite flies with the rest of the club. Members can also donate
a dollar to enter for the drawing.
Featured
Fly Tyer
Featured
Fly Tyer will be tying at the March Meeting so you will want to come early to
see some new patternsl. If you are interested in being a featured fly tyer,
contact Dave Andrews.
2005 Hooked on Fly Fishing Program
by Hod McIntosh
Last year we all had a good time working with people
really interested in learning about our sport of fly fishing and we hope more
club members will be involved with our program for 2005.
We are pleased to have the following members to
handle the publicity and instructional programs:
• Publicity
Jim Mattes
• Fly
Tying Mark Borserine
• Knot
Tying Bill Lindley and Cliff Cain
• Fly
Casting Tom James
• Lakeside
Management Fred Clark
You do not have to be a Pro tyer or caster to help
make our program a success, so when one of these members ask for your help,
please say “YES” and lend them a hand, you will enjoy working with people
interested in learning about our sport of fly fishing.
If you are not comfortable in helping with the
teaching programs you can assist us by helping out with the following duties:
• help
with setting-up and taking down and storing equipment each day
• directing
people to the instruction areas, to the fishing lake and public facilities
• arranging
for food and drink for those working on this program
• we
would like to gather information on the people attending this event so we want
to have a sign-in sheet for the attendees to give us their name and home city
and a check-off section to indicate how they learned of this program
You see there are plenty of opportunities to assist
your club put on a successful Hooked on Fly Fishing Program.
So remember when you are asked, and you will be
asked, to help with this project the answer is “YES” and you will enjoy this
event.
Meeting Protocol
We have experienced a couple of behavior
“incidents” at recent monthly meetings. These incidents are uncharacteristic
for the club, reflect poorly on all of us, and cannot be allowed to continue.
The Board has met with outside professionals and taken appropriate actions with
respect to the parties involved.
Going forward, it is important that our
members understand how club meetings will be run.
• We have a set of by-laws that clearly govern all meetings through
parliamentary procedure, giving authority to the officer presiding over the
meeting. Under parliamentary procedure, only those recognized are allowed to
speak. The presiding officer is allowed to recognize, not recognize, bring
closure if off topic or beyond allotted time, and evict if necessary.
• Outside counsel has indicated it is inadvisable for a 501(c)3
organization to restrict freedom of speech. Opinions of our members should
never be considered the official position of the HOAFF.
• Meetings will be run from a meeting agenda. Anyone wanting time on
the agenda will need to clear it with the club president in advance of the
meeting.
• We will offer a short Member Forum in our agenda at the March, June
and September meetings for other member announcements. We will publish the
months of the Member Forum in the newsletter, so members will know in advance.
The presiding officer will clearly indicate this is a Member Forum, enforce the
rules and state that member opinions are not the opinions of the HOAFF.
• Membership in the HOAFF is a privilege. Members failing to abide by
the Articles and By-laws of the HOAFF or who display abusive behavior toward
other members should expect to have their membership privileges revoked.
If you have any question about meeting
protocol, see an officer an the next member meeting.
River
Run Outfitters Grand Opening
For
a long time they’ve had a dream of moving their retail operation out to a
location close to Table Rock Dam and out of downtown Branson. They’ve finally
done that and are having a grand opening on April 30, 2005 from 9am to 4:30pm
and are having tackle reps and lots of demonstrations, free food, etc.
River
Run Outfitters
2626
State Hwy. 165
Branson,
MO 65616
417-332-0460
Fishing
Small Flies
by Ed Engle
Stackpole Books, Mechanicsburg, PA, 2005
163 pages, hardbound, illustrated,
B&W with 4 color plates
suggested price $24.95
If you are an Ed Engle fan you will of
course buy this book. If you need a Cliff Note short course on presenting a fly
to trout you will find this book handy. However, if you are serious about
presenting small flies or any flies for that matter to trout there are better
books available.
The author has presented well-known and
many times published information on presentation, casting, fly selection,
patterns, and leader selection under the guise of small-fly fishing as a
separate niche in the fly fisherman’s world. However, none of the information
is really specific to small flies and none of it is unknown to anyone who has
fished for trout with a long rod for any length of time. The presentation of
the information is well done and is readable. The highlight of the book is
really the high quality of the black and white photograph reproduction. Good
clean solid blacks, very good tonal range, and very little if any bleached out
whites.
These are probably the best black and
white photograph reproductions in a book since the original printing of The
Essence of Fly Casting by Mel Krieger. The book includes chapters on the
Anatomy of a River; Tackle for Small Flies; On Stream Observation; Nymphing
Techniques; Dry Fly Techniques; Playing Fish on Light Tackle; Major Small-fly
Hatches; and what the author calls The Elements of Style. The information is
all solid though well known and many times published.
The coverage is also solid generally well
written and readable. This is a book you have to want to have, not one you need
to have.
European Nymphing
by Mark Borserine
John Wilson’s presentation of European Nymphing
Techniques at last year’s FFF SOC Conclave created quite a “buzz” and I was
lucky enough to be one of five who attended this “hands on” class.
John is a unique individual: professional guide,
Olympic competitor and coach. Yes, there is Olympic competition in fly
fishing! We are going to have John as
one of our presenters in the next year.
John taught us three methods: Polish, Czech and Spanish. These methods are
similar, the differences based on the difference in waters in the respective
countries.
All methods are based on multiple fly rigs, wherein
the point fly is always the heaviest. All three methods demand that the flies
sink very quickly; these are fast water techniques for fast shallow “runs” and
the “bubble line” created by runs as opposed to deep pools where John would use
the more conventional strike indicator rig.
John taught us how to rig and fish all three methods
on the water. We used no strike indicator other than an 18” piece of 20lb.
Amnesia mono shooting line which is bright red.
In the Polish rig, we used two flies, a heavy point
fly and a smaller, lighter dropper fly. The entire rig is short, only about six
feet after the Amnesia, which is the “butt”. The Polish rig is cast straight
upstream with short “flip” casts. The rig is worked back toward the angler by
stripping in until the “butt” reaches the rod tip; then cast rapidly back up
again. At no time should the fly get downstream of the angler.
The Czech method is very similar, except it uses
three flies which are much heavier than the flies used in the Polish method.
The Czech method is for very fast water. The three fly rig is also cast
directly upstream with a very short line but unlike the Polish method, no extra
line is cast. Instead, John had us “pin” the line to the handle with our rod
hand.
The rig is actually pulled downstream to the angler
just slightly faster than the current is moving and then immediately “flipped”
upstream again. The length of line is short and fixed.
The Spanish method uses two flies like the Polish
rig. The Amnesia (indicator) is moved to the end of the leader just above the
flies. In otherwords, there is about six feet of leader, the 18” piece of
Amnesia, then the two fly tippet section about three feet long. This method is
used when you cannot get right up to the water you are fishing. It is for
casting some (still fairly short) distance because after you have cast, you
lift and hold all line down to the amnesia (so you can see it) off the water.
This method is fished perpendicular (90% angle) to the angler unlike the Polish
and Czech which are fished directly upstream.
These are all fast water techniques with the Czech
being for very fast water. They are fished rapidly with quick repeat casts. All
three are “tight line” techniques, using very little or no slack. Strikes are
detected by any movement in the amnesia section or by feel.
All tippets John uses, whatever his method, are
fluorocarbon for two reasons: visibility and its smaller diameter so that the
flies sink more quickly. All three methods are fished very, very quickly and
there is limited time for the flies to sink.
John showed us some special knots and rigging
techniques which enhance these methods. Stop me some time and I’ll show them to
you! Also, there was an article in a recent
issue of “American Angler” authored by a friend of John’s. For those who
read the article, the method shown is the Czech method.
Hook
Assortments Available to FFF Clubs
The FFF will make available hook assortments to FFF
clubs to use for their fly tying programs. Because of a generous donation from
the Mustad Hook Co. the FFF is able to make a pack of 500 various size hooks
available for the cost of $5.00 each to cover shipping and handling. Contact
Matt at the Fly Fishing Discovery Center to obtain these hooks for your club.
E-mail Matt at educate@fedflyfishers.org or call 406-222-9369.
FLy
Rods from the FFF
Orvis has donated several used rods to the FFF. Clubs
may obtain 5 of these rods on a first come, first serve basis until they are
gone. The rods are various lengths, weights, and brands. Contact Matt at educate@fedflyfishers.org
or call 406-222-9369.
FFDC
Needs Your Old Gear
Is there an old rod and reel gathering dust in the
garage? How about fly tying equipment/materials that have found their way to
storage in favor of new gear. Or fly fishing/tying videos that are not watched
any more. The FFDC can use all of these items for their equipment loan program
and video program. Every year these programs reach thousands of participants.
Additional materials are needed to keep up with this demand. All donations are
tax deductible. Contact Matt at educate@fedflyfishers.org or call 406-222-9369.
Steelhead in Alaska Special from Maloney's Guide Service
Will Mahoney gave the club a certificate for a
steelhead trip at $750 per person. At this time, Fred Clark (4) and Jim Ohnemus
(1) have expressed interest. The fee covers 4 days five nights guided fishing
and lodging, 2 per room, all equipment, breakfast and lunch. Dinner is in
restaurants with Will. Other extras are license, flies, air and car rental. Car
rental is 25 % cheaper off airport. Air can be much cheaper than group rates by
checking internet and booking in Jun / Jul.
If you
are interested in joining a trip to Alaska for Steelhead, contact Dave Andrews
or any other officer.
Upcoming Events & Programs
March
21, 2005 Darrell Bowman -
Arkansas Game and Fish Commission
April
18, 2005 Paul Sodeman -
Kansas Fly Fishing
May
14, 2005 Spring Outing -
White River, Mountain Home Ark.
May
16, 2005 Olaf Borge - Silk
Fly Lines
June
18, 2005 One Fly - Location to be announced
September
19, 2005 Club Picnic - Shawnee Mission Park
October
15, 2005 Fall Outing - Branson MO
December
3, 2005 Winter Outing - Bennett Springs MO
Visit
our Advertisers:
Black
Dog Sports
www.blackdogsports.com
The
Fishing Hole
Ray & Jonell Fincke
(913)
642-5554
3731
W. 95th • Overland Park, KS 66206
Rainbow
Fly Shop
4706-D
Shrank Drive
Independence,
MO 64055
816-373-2283
9-5
Tuesday - Saturday
K&K
Flyfishers’
Everything for Todays Flyfisherman
• Total Equipment Selection
• Great ”How To” Schools
• Pro Staff for Your Questions
• Fishing Trips: Alaska • Canada • Montana • Bahamas
87th & Grant, Overland Park, KS 66212
www.kkflyfishers.com • 913-341-8118
Fishing
River Custom Rods
Bill
Kreitz
13715
Nation Rd.
Kearney,
MO 64060
E-mail:
b.kreitz@att.net
816-628-5071
Cell:
816-392-6720
River
Run Outfitters
2626 Hwy
165
Branson,
MO 65616
417-332-0460
877-699-3474
(toll free)
www.riverrunoutfitters.com
Branson
Lodge
2456
State Highway 165
Branson,
MO 65616
1-800-334-3104
www.bransonlodge.com
Sawdust Clay Art
Handmade
wood sculptures of your favorite fish.
PO Box
575 • Liberty, MO 64068
(816)
792-4603 • lylesw@mdc.state.mo.us
Loon
Outdoors
www.loonoutdoors.com
Pomeroy
Auction
James “J.P.” Rozine
Auctioneer
Kansas City, Kansas
(913) 334-2153
Blue
Ribbon Flies
West
Yellowstone, Montana
www.blueribbonflies.com
Lilleys'
Landing
1-800-LILLEYS
367
River Lane
Branson,
MO 65616
www.lilleyslanding.com
Dr.
Slick Co.
www.drslick.com
Rio
Products
5050 S.
Yellowstone Hwy, Idaho Falls, Idaho
83402 USA
• Tel. 208-524-7760
Fax
208-524-7763
e-mail:
rio@rioproducts.com
website:
www.rioproducts.com
Spring
View Fly Shop
Ed
& Kay
417-588-2116
11726
Highway 64
Lebanon,
MO 65536
Bennett
Spring State Park Concession Shop
26248 Hwy
64 A
Lebanon,
MO 65536
417-532-4307
1-800-334-6946
Gaston’s
Tackle
Bennett
Springs State Park
11798
Highway 64 - Lot 63
Lebanon,
MO 65536
417-532-9449
Sand
Springs Resort
1996 Hwy
64
Lebanon,
MO 65536
417-532-5857
417-588-3110
fax
www.sandspringsresort.com
Wilkinson
Outdoor Adventures
Clint
Wilkinson
272
Wild Cat Shoals Road
Gassville,
AR 72635
870-404-2942
CGFlyfish@excite.com
Riley’s Station
Miles
& Michelle Riley
129
CR 640
Buffalo,
AR 72653
whiteriver.net/rileys/
888-533-2151
870-425-4221
Dale
Fulton’s Blue Ribbon Flies
1343 Hwy. 5 South
Mountain Home, Arkansas 72653
(870)
425-0447
Fax
(870) 425-6954
http://www.mtnhome.net/fultons/
http://www.mtnhome.net/brf/
E-mail:
bluflyar@mtnhome.com
Two
Rivers Fly Shop
13718 Hwy
5 South • Norfork, AR 72658
870
499-3060 • Fax 870 499-5951
www.tworiversflyshop.com
Wapsi
Ask for
Wapsi at Better Fly Shops Everywhere!
Mountain
Home, AR 72653
Brass
Door Motel
Hwy 62W
Gassville,
AR 72635
Motel
Phone
(870)
435-2988
Restaurant
Phone
(870)
435-2288
(877)
272-7736
White
Sands Motel & Restaurant
Highway
62B - Next to Cotter's Rainbow Arch Bridge
870-435-2244
whitesands@mtnhome.com
www.whiteriver.net/whitesands
Bass Pro Shops
www.basspro.com
Chapman Creek Fly & Tackle
2701 North Marshall
Chapman, KS 76431
785-922-6630
www.chapmancreek.com
Rim Shoals Lodge & Fly Shop
River Front Lodging
Guided FIshing Trips
Boat/Motor Rental
Full Service Fly Shop
Gary & Paula Flippin
(870) 435-6144
www.rimshoals.com
Legler Knives
www.leglerknives.com
Guide Lines Guide Service
To Schedule a trip on Kansas Lakes: