ETU Launches Major Fundraiser Prizes include bamboo rod, trips, lodging

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1 Newsletter of the Evergreen Chapter of Trout Unlimited The Evergreen Trout October 2009 Vol. 28, No. 8 ETU Launches Major Fundraiser Prizes include bamboo rod, trips, lodging by Karen Christopherson, ETU webmaster ETU is kicking off its first major fundraiser in several years, with a goal of $15,000 by late next spring. There will be several activities over the next seven months, culminating in a final raffle and public event. Already, we have almost $10,000 worth of items donated, including a terrific handmade bamboo rod and matched high-end reel; guided trips on the Roaring Fork, San Juan, South Platte, Uncompahgre, Rocky Mountain Nat l Park; lots of gear, autographed books, and some fantastic lodging. Our first two raffles will be drawn on December 5 at the ETU Holiday Party. You don t have to be present to win, though everyone is invited as always. The prizes are: photo by Joe Kerper/ This equiste bamboo rod, hand-made by ETU member Larry Drury, is only one of the many fundraising surprises we have in store for the months ahead. A 4 wt handmade bamboo rod (by Larry Drury) with a Ross Evolution Reel (donated by the Blue Quill Angler), total value $1,025. A full-day guided trip for two on private water at the North Fork Ranch Meadows, including gear and flies, valued at $540 (donated by Colorado Trout Hunters) PLUS a one-night stay at North Fork Guest Ranch, giving it a total value of $740. See Fundraising on page 2. Inside this Edition: Fly of the Month: Fast-Tie Ant... 3 Want to speed up your fishing success? Presidential Truths... 4 Chapter Contact Info... 2 Nick n Willys Fundraising Form... 5 Raffle Ticket Sale Form... 7 More Drool-Inspiring Photos of the Bamboo Rod up for Raffle... 8 Lots of Upcoming Events... 8 The Evergreen Chapter of Trout Unlimited meets the third Wednesday of the month at Beau Jo s Pizzeria in downtown Evergreen (across from the Little Bear). Join us for dinner, chapter business, and classes at 6:30 pm followed by the program at 7:00 pm. We look forward to seeing you there.

2 Fundraising from page 1. More details on the items are available on EvergreenTrout.org. You can buy tickets at our meetings, at Evergreen National Bank (downtown Evergreen or Bergen Park branches), by phone from Steve Murray ((303) ), by sending in the form in this newsletter, or by downloading a form at EvergreenTrout.org and mailing the form with your check to ETU. If ordered via form, your tickets will be returned to you by mail Buy a pizza at Nick n Willys on Monday, Nov 9. Print the flyer in this newsletter, give it to the cashier ETU gets 25% of your total! Got some new gear you don t want? Donate it to ETU. We will find a great way to use this in our raffles/auctions. Run a business? Donate a gift certificate or an item (does not have to be fishing related). Give a cash donation to ETU always a great way to help the fundraising. Volunteer to help sell raffle tickets or work our booth at the Fly Fishing Show in January. Attend one of the meetings or fund-raising events. Karen Christopherson is handling the donations items. K a r e E v e r g r e e ntr o u t. o r g (303) ETU board members will be selling tickets as well. Only 125 tickets will be sold for each raffle, so your odds of winning are pretty good! Sure beats playing the lottery. This is a great way to help the chapter and have a good chance at winning a terrific prize. Tickets are only $10 each or six for $50. Other ways you can help ETU s fundraising efforts To volunteer, contact Mike Goldblatt. Mike@lamtree.com or (303) , and you will go on the list. We ll let you know about the upcoming events that need help. To make a cash donation, mail a check to ETU at PO Box 1974, Evergreen CO Why we fundraise... Did you know? Of your $35 annual Trout Unlimited dues: CTU gets $2.50 ETU gets $0 TU gets the rest It is up to our chapter to raise the monies we need to continue our works on Bear Creek and kids programs. Contributing to the fundraising efforts in any manner is a great way to help fund all the activities we undertake to help further our youth education programs and environmental initiatives, mainly along Bear Creek. Watch the trout rise up the water column of our fundraising progress bar in our newsletter next month. Get ready for some fun! We ve got lots of great items to raffle and auction, and fun activities planned. Evergreen Trout Unlimited P.O. Box 1974 Evergreen, CO Treasurer Steve Murray murray_sp@msn.com (303) Secretary vacant Program/Members Randy Huiting rhuiting@comcast.net (303) Newsletter Editor Joe Kerper editor@ evergreentrout.org (303) Special Projects Hugh Gardner hughgardner@gmail. com (303) Youth Education John Ellis jellis@enbcolorado. com (303) Youth Education Jim Wilborn jpwilborn@hotmail. com (303) President vacant Vice President John Haile johnhaile@aol.com (303) Webmaster Karen Christopherson Karen@ evergreentrout.org (303) At Large Rich Reynolds mdirich@msn.com (303) At Large Mike Goldblatt mike@lamtree.com (303) At Large Wayne Kosloske (303) Colorado Trout Unlimited Office (303) Trout Unlimited National Office (800) Editorial Policy: All newsletter submissions must be received by the newsletter editor by the last Friday of the month. All items are subject to editing/space limitations. Articles are copyrighted by the author unless otherwise noted. Contact the newsletter editor for additional information.

3 Fly of the Month Wayne s Speed-Tie Ant by John Haile, ETU Vice President, with thanks to Wayne Kosloske This month s fly is another beauty, and it s another example of an easy-to-tie fly that catches fish year round in all types of water. No wonder that Wayne Kosloske, one of ETU s premier anglers, calls it one of his favorites. A year ago when ETU members selected their top dozen flies for fishing Colorado waters, the ant ranked #11 on the list of must have flies. Wayne notes that he likes this Speed-Tie Ant because it works when it seems nothing else will. It s also easy to see. Use it for those selective fish on lakes or river, and dab on a little floatant, he says. These are the fish that are feeding right at the surface but don t seem to be taking anything else you put out there. Cast this bugger out there and give it a slight twitch to make sure it is sitting upright in the water. You should be able to see the pink post. I think you re going to love it. And, as for those reports about ants working 12 months out of the year. Wayne says he has pumped the stomachs of fish in the middle of winter and found ants. I guess ants must move around on the warm days and the fish are always looking for them, he says. All I know is that this thing seems to work year round. So, tie up a few and keep them in your fly box as one of your must have flies. Tying Instructions As always, start by crimping down the barb on your hook before placing the hook in your vise. Next, secure one layer of thread from about 1/3 of the way back from the eye of the hook all the way back to just past the bend of the hook. Take about a 1-inch piece of your tubing and bind it down with a couple of wraps at the center of your hook. Wayne used the small round tubing (1/8 ) for his fly. Be sure the tubing stays on top of your hook as you secure it. Secure everything at this point with a half hitch as well. You will see in the photos that Wayne went ahead and spread his thread out back toward the bend and up toward the eye to create the thorax in the first of the flies and in the second example waited to later in the tying process. Truth is, both approaches work just fine. His instructions actually call for waiting. Wayne s Recipe: Speed- Tie Ant Hook: Dai-Riki 305 #14 or # 16 or similar dry fly hook Thread: Black 8/0 Body: Black foam tubing (as of this writing, the Quill doesn t have this in stock, but has been asked to order it) The tubing comes in sizes from 1/8 diameter up to 3/8. Rainy s is one brand. Choose based on how big of an ant you are going to tie and the size hook. Sight post: Pink Darlon (can also use Antron) Hackle: Any black hackle, sized for #14 to #18 hook, will do Next tie in a small piece of the pink Darlon for the sight post just left of the center point on the shank of your hook. Half of the Darlon should end up hanging off to one side, half to the other. Pull the Darlon up above the hook and then make a few wraps with your thread around the base and just slightly up the Darlon to create the post. Next, use your thread to bind the Darlon back slightly toward the bend of the hook so it tilts at a 45 degree angle. photos by Tim Stechert Now you can clip the excess Darlon off on top so it sits neatly on top of the hook, as in photo #3. Next bind down the tubing to create a thorax that goes up to about 1/8 from See Fast-Tie Ant on page

4 Chapter Info The True Truth About Being ETU President or just testing a pretty little fly to see what s in the water by John Haile, ETU Vice President Seeing that we ve gone three months without a president, I can only conclude there must be some misgivings and misconceptions about what serving as ETU president is all about, just how easy it is, what an honor it is and about all the benefits that come with the job. From time to time in some of the meetings you may have heard a passing reference to some of these things, but maybe it s time to get all this out in front of everyone. First of all, it s pretty obvious that we have a strong group of volunteers. Just take a look at the list of people in the back of the newsletter who are eligible to fish Buchanan Ponds. To get on the list means people volunteered on the 4th of July, at Camp Comfort, at the Outdoor Lab, at one of the stream cleanups, or maybe at the youth clinic in June. But for a group such as ours, that s a healthy number of volunteers, and that s the true truth. And what about our mission, of protecting coldwater fisheries? That s a noble cause. Just think of all the education programs we do and our work along Bear Creek. We ve fought some important battles to keep Bear Creek reasonably clean and the fish protected. And that s the true truth. The job itself isn t all that complicated. How else to explain that I ve been able to fill in for the past few months? It entails running the general meeting each month, setting the agenda for the monthly board meeting and keeping folks on track there. Then there is the piece that includes staying in touch with the folks at the state level, which really involves mostly a couple of s each week. Beyond that, the key is to have good committee chairs. Karen Christopherson and Mike Goldblatt are running the fundraising committee, and guns are a blazing. Karen also coordinates with me our Bear Creek issues. Randy Huiting and Mike handle programs. Jim Wilborn handles the Outdoor Lab programs, while John Ellis and Len Wheaton work on other of the youth education programs. Rich Reynolds usually handles the stream cleanup programs. Joe Kerper oversees the newsletter. Truth is, everyone pitches in pretty much where needed. The president also needs to take the lead on strategic planning for the group. How do we fulfill our mission, and how do we finance our goals? In other words, the president needs to lead. Sometimes just ideas are good enough. Other times, it takes a few s and phone calls. It s just like the real world. The one thing that still seems to need some work is just more fresh faces among the leadership and the volunteer corps generally. I believe ETU also needs to get back to another stream restoration project on Bear Creek. We ve done a good bit of research on a possible silt trap, or a series of traps, to improve habitat, but pulled back a couple of years ago because it looked like the financing might be a stretch for us. But, if the current campaign gets our legs back under us, then we could be in much better shape to get things moving again. What people don t know about are the perks that go with the job of ETU president. The big one is the new truck every two years. And then there is the pontoon boat, specially designed to get through that no-man s section of the Blue River below Green Mountain Reservoir. Should you hit a boulder, there s an ETU team ready to make repairs. That team is second only to the team that ties all your flies. Just make a request a couple of days ahead, and your flies will be on your doorstep in a nice new box. Then there s an ETU staff person ready to carry your gear into such difficult places as Cheesman Canyon or up the Williams Fork. If you want to fish a high mountain lake, just call ETU member Ron Belak. He ll serve as your guide, take photos of your big fish and then do a writeup in a fishing mag. And if ETU s big fundraiser works looks like you ll be getting the latest gear again next year. We usually ask that you put off boots and waders to every two years. Such perks! And that s the well, maybe not quite. Other than the meetings, my experience has been that the job takes about another three or four hours a month. Part of that is writing a column for the newsletter, of course. So, yes, it s a little work, for a good cause, with the potential for some big rewards. And that s the true truth. I m betting there s someone out there who s up to the task, who can help ETU move forward. If any of this interests you, give me a call at or drop me an at johnhaile@aol.com I ll respond quickly, if I m not out tooling around in the truck.

5 ETU Fundraising Info NICK-N-WILLY S PIZZA DOUGH-RAISER! BENEFITING Evergreen Trout Unlimited Help your local Trout Unlimited Chapter and have some great pizza too! WHEN: Monday, November 9 Store Hours: 11 AM 8 PM Watch the Broncos play Pittsburgh and win! WHERE: HOW: THE DEAL: 1153 Bergen Parkway in the King Soopers Center. Offer valid only at this location. Call , or stop by to pick up your freshly prepared pizza, salad and desserts. Nick-N-Willy s will donate 25% of net sales generated by Evergreen Trout Unlimited It s very simple call ahead or stop in on the specified date above. Take home a world famous pizza and Nick-N-Willy s will donate 25% of your net guest check to Evergreen Trout Unlimited. Just bring in this flyer and we ll take care of the rest. No other offers will be accepted in conjunction with this Dough-Raiser Night. Thank you for your understanding and for your support! NICK-N-WILLY S PIZZA DOUGH-RAISER! BENEFITING Evergreen Trout Unlimited NAME: GUEST CHECK TOTAL (before tax) $ DONATION AMOUNT 25% TOTAL DONATION $ 8 5

6 Member Report Kokanee Salmon Report: San Juan Worm is the Ticket by Len Wheaton, ETU Board Member at Large Our ETU Newsletter s request to Show/Tell Us Where You Fish prompts this ETU member to report the following: For the past five years the latesummer lure of the run of landlocked Sockeye Salmon (Kokanee) from Blue Mesa reservoir up the Gunnison river has beckoned to me and Wayne Kosloske. We have usually made our first searching trip about August 20th. And we have been rewarded with success four out of the five times we have gone this early. What is most thrilling about these lovely fish is their fantastic fight when hooked! We are usually fishing eight weight rods in order to get these salmon to hand fairly quickly for release. And we have found a totally all-fluorocarbon leader of 10 to 12 feet will get our flies down more quickly in the drift. The early-run salmon are all very silvery and always fierce fighters. By September they begin to show more typical sockeye coloring and this intensifies to the brilliant red and exaggerated kypes of the mature spawners at the height of their run near mid-month. Their wonderful fight continues the same the whole time. Fast-Tie Ant, from page 3. the eye of the hook. Take the thread back to just in front of the post where you will tie in your black hackle, first trimming the feathers and the thick stem off the end that s to be tied in. Wind the hackle from the post forward. Secure it about 1/8 back from the eye of the hook with two half hitches. Cut off the excess hackle. This 2009 early trip of August 21 through August 23 was blessed by clear weather in the 70 s on the river. Rafters and Kayakers were plentiful, but they clear through your fishing spot quickly these summer days and seem not to disturb the fish. The salmon occur in groups or pods with periods of fast action until the pod moves on upstream. We began fishing with many of the formerly hot patterns - Prince nymphs, Zugbugs, Halfbacks, Woolly Buggers, Sucker Egg bunches, Mickey Finns and soon found the lowly pink S. J. worm to be the ticket for success on all three days! Using a single, small worm got us almost all mouth-hooked fish! So often with multi-fly rigs these salmon are foul hooked, thus tending to dull the thrill of a catch. Since we each had several brown trout catches, apart from salmon hooked, we felt the small S. J. worm was responsible. I hope for another trip or two to the Gunnison for Kokanee yet this fall. These beautiful and their acrobatic aerials and bulldog fights are worth the effort. photo by Len Wheaton. Now wrap your thread forward about 1/16 while pulling slightly on the foam tubing. Finish up by trimming the ant to proportions with scissors. Notice in the photo how the tubing is cut at a 45-degree angle to give a more rounded view from below, or as the fish would see it in the water. The humble San Juan worm emerged as the top fly on Len s recent trip for Colorado Kokanee. A dab of glue behind the head on top of the hook will help secure everything and help the fly last a little longer against all the strikes it is going to get. Good tying, and good fishing

7 ETU Fundraising Info 8 7

8 Evergreen Trout Unlimited Upcoming Events October th (Wed); Monthly Board Meeting; Place and Time: 7pm Elk s Club (check for possible change in location) 16th and 17th (Fri, Sat); Free Fishing: Buchanan Ponds; For ETU members on volunteer list; can fish one of the two days; Check-in at Rec Center Win this Bamboo Rod! Full details page 1, ticket order form page 7 21st (Wed); Monthly Meeting and Program; Beau Jo s: Downtown Evergreen; Program: Kirk and Laurie Bien, Kirk s Flyshop of Estes Park; Dinner at 6:30pm; Chapter Biz at 7pm; Program at 7:15pm November th (Fri) and 7th (Sat); Free Fishing: Buchanan Ponds (if not frozen); For ETU members on volunteer list; Check-in at Rec Center 9th (Mon); ETU Dough Nite at Nick n Willys; ETU gets 25% of total bill for customers presenting ETU flyer; Nick n Willys is located just NE of King Soopers in Bergen Park 18th (Wed); Monthly Meeting and Program; Beau Jo s: Downtown Evergreen; Program: Matt Anderson, North Park Anglers of Walden; Dinner at 6:30pm; Chapter Biz at 7pm; Program at 7:15pm 20th and 21st (Fri, Sat); Free Fishing: Buchanan Ponds (if not frozen); For ETU members on volunteer list; Can fish one of the two days; Check-in at Rec Center December th (Sat); Holiday Party and Raffle Draw; Randy Huiting s house; More info to come 2010 Events Speakers and Events January 20; Chris Hall, Cutthroat Anglers February 17; Raffle Draw #2 February 17; John Duncan, Telluride Anglers March 17; Chris Conway: Wild Basin Outfitters April; Fundraising Event May 20; Greg Garcia, Charlie s Fly Box photos by Joe Kerper/ Bear Creek Cleanup Nets Lots of Litter, Cooperation ETU participated in the Bear Creek Fall Clean-up on Saturday, Sept. 26. A total of twenty-eight people joined in, including members of the Evergreen Audubon Society (TENAS) and the Evergreen HS Environmental Science Advanced Placement class. The group worked for more than two hours, cleaning a 3/4-mile stretch in downtown Evergreen, from the dam downstream, and a ½-mile section at O Fallon Park. Among the more anomalous items removed from Bear Creek were: tires, plywood, shoes, flip-flops, lawn chairs, whiskey bottles (all sizes), a badminton racket, and a car bumper. ETU also removed a few artificial dams at O Fallon, created by visitors as wading pools. Thanks to all who volunteered. The leaders were: Rich Reynolds for ETU, Brad Andres for TENAS, and Cheryl Manning for EHS. Complete volunteer list may be found on our website: Evergreen Trout Unlimited Exemplary Chapter Award 2004 Outstanding Chapter Project Award 2000, 2009 Outstanding Youth Education Program Award 1999, 2009 Outstanding Chapter Communications Award