Tale Waters The Voice of the North Arkansas Fly Fishers

Transcription

1 Tale Waters The Voice of the North Arkansas Fly Fishers April 9, 2019 North Arkansas Fly Fishers Tale Waters North Arkansas Fly Fishers meetings are held on the 3rd Tuesday of each month. Meetings are held at the Van Matre Senior Center located at 1101 Spring St Mountain Home, AR Membership meeting starts at 7:00 pm. All members and guests are welcome and encouraged to attend. NAFF Board of Directors meetings are held on the first Tuesday of the month at 1:00 pm 1st Security Bank on 9th St. All members are welcome and encouraged to attend. Visit North Arkansas Fly Fishers Online at Officers President Mike Tipton (870) Vice President Susan Parsons (618) Secretary Pat Smith (870) Treasurer Cindy Louis (870) Directors Conservation Tommy Hagan (870) Property Kevin Boddy (870) Education Ceil Gasiecki (219) Membership Paul Ashton (870) Past President Ken Sickels (870) Appd. by Pres. Danny Barker (870) Tale Waters is published 2nd Tuesday of each month. Article deadline is 1st Tuesday of the month. Staff: Mike Tipton & Rita Billbe Contact: sowbug@northarkansasflyfisher.org TL Lauerman to Discuss Bonneville Cutthroat Program TL Lauerman and Dave Whitlock at first planting of Bonneville Cutthroat. This month T.L. will share his perspective on the program that made it possible for us all to enjoy catching and releasing these beautiful fish. Since its inception T.L. has been a vital part of the Bonneville cutthroat program in the White and Norfork Rivers. His experience and knowledge of the subject are unparalleled. T. L. Lauerman joined the team at Wapsi Fly after finishing a degree in economics at the University of Tennessee in He is the sales manager at Wapsi where he puts his talents to good use in managing many business aspects of the company. When not working he enjoys spending time outdoors with his sons 22nd Annual Sowbug is History and a Success Sowbug 2019, the 22nd Annual International Sowbug Roundup, has come and gone. Whew! Hurray! From the viewpoint of the Fly Tiers and the attendees, Sowbug was another rousing success. The financials aren t all in, but they are looking good. The tiers universally agree that Sowbug is the best fly tying show that they attend. And some of them attend a lot of shows. When I ask them, What makes Sowbug the best? they say it is friendly, low key, well run, and the tiers are treated well. The tiers like the fact that we set things up to facilitate the interaction between the tiers and the other attendees. Many shows have the tiers sit elbow to elbow and don t provide for any extended interaction between the tiers and the at- Cont. Pg.2

2 Page 2 Sowbug from page 1 tendees. Sowbug is a tier s show and that is what makes it work. When Paul Craig said those words a few years ago, I was skeptical. But he was right! We don t have a number yet on the attendance, but most observers thought it was well attended. Jim Walz who directed the parking thought that the parking lot was fuller than it had ever been. The attendees enjoyed themselves. There was only one blowback about the increased admission fee. Attendees were pleased that we trusted them if they left and returned to show. No hand stamp needed! Parents were pleased that they got in free with their kids! We probably had 80 or more volunteers. The show would have been impossible without them! To be replaced with a real parking area! April President s Message We are living in exciting times! The Sowbug Roundup was quite a success. The parking area at Roundhouse Shoals is to be completed in May (better keep your fingers crossed). And we will have quite a picnic this spring at Miles Riley s place in Buffalo City. The financing of all of this stuff is made possible by the Sowbug Roundup. The Sowbug Roundup is made possible by the efforts of all of the club volunteers and donations. One of the goals of Tony Spezio s original scheme for the Sowbug Roundup was to have an event that would help bring the club members together. I think that this year s Sowbug demonstrates the success of that goal! Remember. We only have a year to prepare for the 23rd Annual International Sowbug Roundup! Roundhouse Shoals Parking Area Planned for May After years of Tom Emerick toing and froing between the City of Cotter, Union Pacific Railway, and the AGFC, the construction of a parking area at Roundhouse Shoals will begin in May. Next month! After years of unravelling red tape, everything finally came together with the election of Mac Caradine, a NAFF member, as the mayor of cotter. NAFF and TU are both contributing $5000 towards this project. AGFC is providing the design work and in kind materials. The City of Cotter is also providing in kind materials and labor. The only red tape that remains if for a resolution by the Cotter City Council to accept the donations as amendments to their budget. Mike Tipton delivered NAFF s donation to Mayor Caradine on Wednesday, April 3.

3 Tale Waters Page 3 April Fly of the Month The Jawbreaker with wood filler and sand smooth. Coat with primer then top coat with acrylic paint. This may take several coats. Apply dots and mouth with pin applicator. Tie tail, hackle and rubber legs as desired Kenny Shipp Spring River Report I call this popper "Jawbreaker" because when you catch a good sized bream the fish can't get its mouth open enough. This fly is very effective in warm water. I supply a person that lives on Crooked Creek with this popper. It's about the only fly he uses. When you cast this fly, let the ripples run out and twitch it one time. If nothing comes up, move to the next spot. Materials: 3/8" round cork Mustad no. 8 hook Water base wood filler (thinned to a slurry) used to fill cork Primer filler paint Acrylic Paint Ceramcoat gloss exterior varnish EP fibers for the tail 1 neck hackle 3 rubber legs Flatten the bottom of the cork. Cut slot for hook. Install hook with epoxy. Fill cork positories Weather Cancellation Policy NAFF Activities or Meeting will be cancelled or postponed when the Mountain Home Public Schools Cancel Classes. Check KTLO radio website for school closing info. Water levels are running at 450 cfs, 350 avg, at the spring and water clarity is good. The river is above normal flow and the clarity has a heavy green tint. This is some of the best conditions we have had in a while. It does take extra work to get the fly down with the higher flow. Additionally, weight may be needed. Y2ks and large woollies have been working well. Extra care should be used wading with the higher flow at this time. A wading staff can be a great asset when wading in the Spring River due to its very slick river bottom. Tight lines and good luck, Mark Crawford springriverfliesandguides.com

4 Page 4 Jimmy T s Fishing Report As I sit writing this on the first day of the Sow Bug Roundup, two things come to mind. Finally, some lower water and the caddis hatch. The previous day we started just as the water was turned off and headed up into the C & R area. I was looking for some lower water and of course it falls the quickest there. My 24 years experience on the White River also told me that when the water falls and drops out, the fish will come up to the surface and they did. A black ant did the trick. Hooking up with a few good bows with explosive takes on the surface will get the adrenaline flowing. Once the water dropped out, we headed for the state park. I had a couple of rods rigged with some new caddis patterns and on the first drift we hooked up. The caddis were hatching and the fish were taking our flies well; and it was getting more crowded. I headed downstream to Cane Island. Virgin water and it was for us. It didn t take long, and we hooked up again. We worked Cane Island for an hour and a half. Jim from Dallas hooked a good brown trout which then broke off. I re-rigged him with a higher X factor of tippet not wanting to lose another fish. It didn t take long and Jim had another one. It gave a good fight and we got it into the net. After a few pictures and a measure, it taped out at 21 1/2. Gotta love the caddis hatch and lower water. After a very wet winter, the lake levels rose steadily and so did the flows with heavy generation for most of the month of March. We did of course get a shad kill with most of it happening during the evening which of course made for some tough day time fishing. Our fish though are very fat and happy. That s a lot of protein which produces some rapid growth for the fish on both rivers. So, as I get ready to head for the 22nd annual Sow Bug Roundup, I am thankful that some lower flows and the caddis hatch arrived just in time. If you are looking for a winning caddis fly, drop by the shop. To book some fishing give me a shout at James Traylor Wishes and Fishes Fly Shop

5 Page 5 April Raffle Items Nice variety of fly tying material, reels, hooks and beads.

6 Page 6 Hog Farm Update 2 &Clean Water Act Senate Bill 550 You may have heard by now that Senate Bill 550 has been withdrawn by its sponsor in the Arkansas House of Representatives and moved to interim study status. Your quick action to voice your concerns about SB 550 to your elected officials was a key element in this important win for conservation. I just wanted to thank everyone who took the time to take action. Your voice mattered! You'll recall that this bill would remove the responsibility for issuing permits to farms with liquid animal manure systems, such as hog farms, from the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality and transfer it to the Arkansas Natural Resources Commission. The end result would have been a more permissive regulatory environment for hog farms and, based on our ongoing experience with these farms in the Ozarks, an observable decrease in the water quality in our rivers and streams. You were not alone in having concerns about this bill. Governor Hutchinson expressed his reservations of making such a change while he seeks a sweeping overhaul of the organization of the agencies i n A r k a n s a s ' s e x e c u t i v e branch. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency indicated that it would need to review the impact of the bill on the shared responsibilities of the federal and state governments to protect water quality. Former Pollution Control and Ecology Commission members exp r e s s e d c o n c e r n s a b o u t "unintended consequences." Utilities such as Central Arkansas Water and the Beaver Water District indicated their concern that the change could lead to higher levels of phosphorus in source waters, which would lead to more algae and higher water treatment costs for them and higher water bills for their ratepayers. While this was an important win for clean water, vigilance will be important as the bill may very well reappear again. If so, we will let you know that your voice on the matter will once again be needed! The Clean Water Act Massive Algae Bloom on the Buffalo River The ability of the federal Clean Water Act to ensure the quality of the water in our streams, rivers and lakes is facing its greatest threat since the act was passed in The EPA and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers have published a proposed rule redefining "Waters of the United States," often simply called WOTUS. This definition is so impactful because waters that fall within the definition are protected by the Clean Water Act, and those that do not would no longer be protected. In short, if these proposed regulations are finalized, longstanding Clean Water Act protections would be removed from millions of miles of streams and tens of millions of acres of wetlands. Friends of the Rivers has summarized what these proposed regulations could mean for Arkansas and how you can make your voice heard in the short document "Weakening the Clean Water Act: What It Means for Arkansas" The public comment period for this proposed regulation is open until April 15. We strongly en-

7 Page 7 courage you to make your voice heard by submitting comments. Simply go to D=EPA-HQ-OW and click on the "Comment Now" box in the upper right hand corner, all you have to do is type your comments in the box that will appear. FOR's position is that these proposed regulations should be withdrawn because they would greatly reduce Clean Water Act protection of the streams and other waters of the Ozark region, and ultimately affect the water quality in the North Fork and White Rivers. Even though you may not take the time to read through all the legalese of the proposed rule, your comments are valuable if they simply express your personal concerns for maintaining strong Clean Water Act protections for the waters that mean so much to your recreational and other interests and to the water-based economy of the region. Telling them in your own words that you care, and why, is valuable because the agencies discount comments submitted as part of an obvious campaign. So, please take a few moments to let the agencies know you care about strong Clean Water Act protections by submitting comments supporting a broad definition of "waters of the United States" before the April 15 deadline. Thank You Scott Yaich, Ph.D. Certified Wildlife Biologist Board Member Friends of the North Fork and White Rivers Membership Report Sowbug is over and we are still tallying the new member lists. Introduction of new members will start in the May newsletter. For April, we have one new member, two new sponsors and three returning sponsors. Jerry Wilson of Batesville, AR Bill Shank - Epoch Marketing Jeremy Hunt - Flys and Guides Harry Boyd Boyd s Rod Company Dave and Emily Whitlock - Whitlock Fly Fishing Keith Gann - Moose Creek Knives and Rods We hope everyone stopped by the membership table to renew their memberships. Paul Ashton - Membership April Outing Farm Pond NAFF s annual spring outing at the Country Oaks B&B farm pond is scheduled for Thursday, April 18. The pond is located on State Highway 9, south of Mountain View and just past the Humane Society. We meet at the building on the east side of the pond at about 9:00 am. The Country Oaks pond is full of pan fish and bass. This time of year, you can see the bass patrolling along the shore of the pond. The pond is float tube and kayak friendly. Bob Verboon always catches a bunch of crappie trolling from his float tube. Even the Tenkara guys catch a lot of fish!

8 Page 8 Fly Tying Tip: Cut Material to Length At times trying to cut material to the proper length on the hook after doing your initial thread wraps is difficult and messy. Better yet is to cut it to length before you bind it down to the hook. One of the best examples is doing the wing on a Western Coachman. If done properly, there is virtually no head room in front of the hackle. You still get the flare on the ends, but now you do not need to trim them and you get a smaller cleaner head. Don t Forget! Fly Tying Every Friday At Dally s 1:00 to 5:00 Trying to bind down the uncut wing (Photo-2) produces a flared section that will be extremely hard to trim clean given the amount of headspace before placing the wing. You can cut virtually any material to length prior to binding them down. This saves time and can result in a cleaner fly. David Boyer Instead, trim the wing to length and only grab the wing about one to two thread widths up the wing and bind down.

9 Page 9 Sowbug Tiers Report April Sowbug Roundup is behind us again for another year, and, in my view, more successful than ever (even before the financials are in). We had a much larger number than usual of late cancellations, but still had around 130 demonstration tiers in attendance. These demonstration tiers are the Stars of the Show for without them there would be no event. This worked out well anyway, since tiers were able to tie all they wanted and some tiers who weren t registered were able to sit in and tie. Our new and exciting tiers were a big hit, even including a rock star. The tying classes were a great success thanks to our talented instructors and the featured tiers demonstrated clearly why they were honored as Featured Tiers. The Tier s Party for registered tiers and the Sowbug committee was held at Rapp s Barren and featured outstanding weather and a friendly atmosphere. We thank Harps Market, Walmart, and especially Dally s Fly Shop (our main sponsor) for their support for the Tier s Party. The Wapsi Tour once again was a big hit with 60 participants taking the Joe Jackson, Sunny, and Jalen Riley tour, up from around 50 last year. We thank Wapsi for this event and also for providing gift packs of tying materials to be distributed to the registered tiers. I personally want to thank Richard Thomas and Dave Boyer for working with me for the tiers, the Tier s Party, the featured tiers, and the tying classes. I also want to thank all of those who pitched in to help with the Dally s Tier s Party. The large number of other folks who stepped up to help with the Tier s Party and other things are also due a large THANK YOU! Rapps Barren Brewing Company was a great venue for this event and the management and staff are thanked for their extra effort in making this event successful. Sunny Riley at 7 years old was our youngest tier. Sunny tied Friday and Saturday and was recognized as an official Sowbug Tier with her own credentials on Saturday. Sunny s 11 year old sister, Jalen, was registered to tie last year, was unable to because of illness; but made up for it by tying full time this year. Other colorful new participants at this year s Sowbug included Rick Takahashi from Colorado and John Shaner from New York. Rick is an accomplished fly tier and author and you can see his great fly tying books online at the Stackpole website. John Shaner has an extensive and impressive resume and his most recent interest in fly tying history has made him the go to guy on Spider (soft hackle flies) and their history. They brought a lot to our event. If you missed the great Sowbug Roundup coverage by Scott Liles in the Baxter Bulletin, it was front page news with pictures on Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday.

10 Page 10 Eli Schmidt of Mountain Home made the front page on Thursday and Ralph Rhoades, our Thursday morning Featured Tier, on Friday. Then the Saturday paper featured a picture of a deer hair kingfisher tied by Joe Jackson of Indianapolis, our rock star tier. Joe is a veteran who credits Healing Waters with helping him get started in his present career. He is quite entertaining to talk or listen to because of his many interesting life stories. Check out his Facebook page for more on Sgt. Bassfisher and about his 14 year military career as an infantryman in the story in the March 30, 2019 Baxter Bulletin. This doesn t even begin to cover the interesting people and stories of this year s Sowbug, but you get the picture. It was a great event, the tiers enjoyed themselves, new tiers dropped by to get their names on our list; and this sets the stage for a good start toward next year. And, finally, but far from least, I d like to add my personal thanks to all those volunteers who make the success of this event possible. Ron Beasley The success of the 2019 Sowbug Roundup hinges on many factors. Not the least of which is Club Member donations for the auctions and raffles. This year club members donated over $10,000 worth of merchandise. These donors include: Lyn Ashton Danny Barker Bill Barksdale Sandy Barksdale Ron Beasley Kevin Boddy David Boyer Terry Briggs Mary Kay Caldwell Grant Carter Tom Emerick David Fulghum Dennis Galyardt Amy Galyardt Ceil Gasiecki Rob Gellenbeck Suzanne Griscom Keith Hensley Ron Hulstein Misako Ishimura Bob Jensen Naif Khoury Bob Krause Club Donors Thank you!! Cindy Louis Jack Manning Ron McQuay Bill Osbourne Susan Parsons Art Pratt Henry Seay Pat Smith Stan Suszka Rueben Swenson Buddy Swingle Mike Tipton Bob Verboon Gary Woodward

11 Page 11 Food, Float, Fish, Fun NAFF BBQ PICNIC Date: MAY 19, 2019 Host: The Riley Family Where: Rileys Station, Buffalo City, AR Food Time: 6:00 pm All Members are invited to come out for our Bi-Annual Riley Station Outfitter. We will be meeting and cooking at Cedar Gables, a luxury cedar log home on the White River in Buffalo City. There are large porches and shade where we will be well protected should the weather become unfriendly. Rileys will supply: smoked Brisket & Chicken baked beans sandwich buns Iced Tea & Lemonade Dining ware NAFF Members will supply according to the following plan: Last Name ending in: A - M bring a Salad Last Name ending in: N - Z bring a Dessert BYOB- bring other beverages of your choice. Floatin Time: Rileys will shuttle floaters ALL DAY: Kayaks & canoes are available through Rileys at a special club rate. Rim Shoals: 4-hour float (last shuttle 1 pm) White River Valley: 2-hour float (last shuttle 3pm) Fishin Time: Rileys will run local shuttles for fly fishers ALL DAY: (by Jon Boat) Buffalo River- shuttle up river a couple of miles and float back to Rileys on kayaks White River- Local wading at Rileys OR shuttle to Buffalo Shoals This is a family friendly event, so bring your spouse or fishing buddy and the kids and enjoy this early summer event. We will be raffling off a few Door Prizes. Fun, Fun, Fun!!

12 Page 12 The Joy Of Jigs If you haven t tied or fished with slotted tungsten bead-head jig nymphs, you are missing out on a wonderful opportunity to catch more fish. Jig hooks have been around for many years; most of us are familiar with the 90-degree style jig hook for both fresh water and saltwater fishing. As a teenager, I remember using a bucktail jig when I went fishing in Virginia s Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries for striped bass. My favorite color was white tied with red thread. I would troll or cast from a boat, catching fish weighing anywhere from ten to sixty pounds. People that were fly fishing used small jig hooks tied with hair, fur and feathers. They fished for trout, crappie, bluegills, bass, and anything that would attack a small jig. The 90-degree jig hook came in various sizes and weights, usually with the weight molded around the hook eye to create a head. In 1983, the World Championship of fly fishing began, pitting teams from different countries against each other. By 1988, the Czech Republic team was using lead weighted jig flies with great success. Soon after their success, the rules committee banned the use of weighted jigs. Several years later, in 2001, the rules were changed to allow the use of one bead with a maximum diameter of 4mm, and the Czechs were able to start fishing with lead head jigs again. Just before the 2004 World Championship started, a new explanation of the rules stated that a bead was permitted, but it could not be a permanent fixture to the hook. In other words, the lead head could not be molded to the jig hook: they must be separate. With the World Championship drawing near, the Czechs only had molded lead head jigs. They quickly looked for an alternative. Just before the competition began, they slid a gold tungsten bead head up on the hook shank of some 45- degree jig hooks. The Czech team once again became very competitive as they used their weighted jig hooks. Due to international regulations, a new style of competition jig hooks with slotted tungsten bead heads were developed over the next couple of years. Nymph rods ten to eleven feet long were starting to be used to fish these jig nymphs. Techniques like contact or tight line nymph fishing with heavy weighted jig nymphs and bicolor sighter have become very popular in the European countries that compete in the World Championship. In the last twelve years, many new innovations have been developed as a direct result of competitive fly fishing. I use many of them, and I can guarantee that they catch a lot of fish. In the last few years, fishermen in the United States, like myself, have started to use many of these techniques as well. For the last ten years, I have been tying and fishing with 60-degree style competition jig hooks. I use tungsten slotted bead heads of various weights to get my flies to depth. At first, I was buying my hooks and beads online from European suppliers because I could not find a supplier in this country. Eventually, I found a fly shop in Evergreen, Colorado, that was just starting to sell them. Most fly shops now carry competition style jig hooks and slotted tungsten beads. Everything I tie is on a competition jig hook except my egg patterns, which I tie on a scud hook. All traditional fly patterns like the pheasant tail, hare s ear, attractor patterns, you name it can be tied on jig hooks. Jig hooks come in sizes four through twenty. That s a wide range of sizes. Slotted tungsten beads are available in size 1.5 mm. through 5.5 mm to fit the different sizes of jig hooks. Today, the beads come in not only a variety of sizes but also a variety

13 Page 13 of colors. Why use tungsten beads over ones made of lead, brass or other materials? Tungsten is two times heavier than brass and 1.74 times heavier than lead of the same diameter size very dense. It allows you to tie bead head nymph patterns with smaller diameter heads. I know traditional fly fishermen today who tie nymphs without a bead head and add split shot or tungsten putty along their leader to acquire the desired depth. Personally, I do not like to use split shot or putty. I am always fumbling with lead or putty when trying to add it to my leader. Now, there are very few instances where I need to add split shot to my leader. In fact, when you add split shot to your leader, most people will get more tangles during their cast. It s also more difficult to feel the take from a fish when the split shot is placed above the fly. I am a firm believer in tying tungsten bead head nymphs to get my flies down where the trout feed ninety percent of the time. Tying wet flies on jig hooks works great as well. The jig hook is versatile, allowing you to tie flies that can be fished on the film, down to the stream bed, and everywhere in-between. I know, because I use them for almost all applications, even small streamers like the wooly bugger. There are several advantages in using competition style jig hooks over conventional fly hooks; for example, the hook point rides up, allowing your jig nymph to avoid snagging and fouling along the stream bottom. This means that you have more time fishing and less time rigging. Competition jig hooks come barbless, with very long hook points. They have a very sharp needle point and they are deadly in hooking fish. Most fish hooked on jig hooks will be in the snout rather than the bottom jaw, or sometimes on the side of the jaw. Hooking a trout in the snout will allow you better control in landing your fish. This becomes very important when hooking and playing a big fish. It s kind of like leading a bull with a ring in its nose. You get better hook sets due to the lever action of the bend. As pressure is applied to a hooked fish, the angle of the jig hook continues to stick deeper into the fish s mouth. This is important when using barbless hooks; fishing jig nymphs on a nymph rod will greatly increase your catch rate, giving you more fish in the net, as well as larger, harder-to-catch fish. If you haven t tied or fished with tungsten bead head jig nymphs, you may want to try them out. You might be surprised by how good they are. In 2014, I kept track of how many fish my clients caught and released throughout the year. The average catch rate was 9.7 trout per hour, with just two people fly fishing from a boat. All of those fish were caught on jig nymphs. Danny Barker Fly Fishing Guide

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15 Events of Interest to NAFF Members April 4/09/2019 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM Sowbug Roundup meeting, Baxter County Library 4/ 13/2019 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM Tri Lakes Fly Fishing Expo, Brighton, MO 4/16/2019 7:00 PM - 9:00 PM NAFF Membership Meeting, Van Matre Senior Center 4/18/2019 9:00 AM -- 3:00 PM Fishing outing the Country Oaks B&B pond in Mountain View May 5/07/2019 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM NAFF Board Meeting, 1st Security Bank, 105 E 9th St 5/14/2019 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM Sowbug Roundup meeting, Baxter County Library 5/19/2019 Sunday Afternoon NAFF Picnic Riley s, Buffalo City June 6/04/2019 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM NAFF Board Meeting, 1st Security Bank, 105 E 9th St 6/11/2091 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM Sowbug Roundup meeting, Baxter County Library 6/18/2019 7:00 PM - 9:00 PM NAFF Membership Meeting, Van Matre Senior Center