P r e s i d e n t ’ s C o r n e r
Mike Bryant (mjbryant1954@hotmail.com)
I hope everyone has had a great summer so far. It’s been both a busy and productive season for Jan and I, though we were both worn out after a couple of consecutive weeks of visitors. Our seven year old grandson and three year old granddaughter have a seemingly endless bundle of energy. But we had a great time with them, taking them into the Park and fishing as well. After the kids and grandkids left, our best friends from Arizona came to stay with us. We fished up in the Park and both friends were able to catch wild rainbows despite the low water conditions. Despite the typical summer slowdown, fishing continues to be pretty good for me personally. Check out the article below on summer fishing in the Park.
The Lynn Camp brook trout evaluation was completed in June. Overall, there is good news on the health of the brook trout population. I was able to help out one day and was happy to see brookies taking hold in the stream. I forgot how pretty this small stream is and look forward to the day we can fish there again. Charlie Chmielewski has an article below with the details.
Thanks to Bill McConkey for coming up from McMinn County to present at our June Meeting. Bill is active in bringing trout wildlife management to the classroom and he provided us with aquatic insect behavior information as well as thought for how we might do a better job at getting classroom kids involved in preserving our waters for its inhabitants.
I was also able to help out at Trout Camp this past June. The folks who organize and lead this program do an outstanding job. The kids were energetic and eager to learn. This is a great youth educational program that will definitely pay dividends in forming our conservation leaders of tomorrow. More details can be found in Charlie’s in the Newsletter.
One Final Comment: About three weeks ago, I was fishing the Little River above the Elkmont Campground. When I started walking up the trail, I saw a truck pulling into the lot with three gentlemen who obviously planned to fish there as well. So I walked up the trail a good mile or so before wading into the stream, assuming the others might want to fish the lower section. After fishing for about an hour or so, I finally figured out what the rainbows were willing to eat and I started to have many successful hook-ups. At one point I happened to glance up on the trail and noticed the three others watching as I hooked a couple of nice trout. I went back to fishing without a second thought, happy at my success. Unfortunately, five minutes later I looked upstream and saw two of the gentlemen fishing literally only 75 feet upstream of me. With 800 miles of trout streams in the Park, you would think they would have had the courtesy of walking up farther and given a fellow fisherman his space.
There have been times when I have waded into a stream only to then see someone already fishing there. When this happens, I reel up and get out of the stream so they can continue to fish. I think I recognized one of the three and knew that he should have known better. Fortunately, most of us have enough common respect and courtesy to spread out. We live in a great part of the world, and there are plenty of great streams to fish, so consider your fellow angler before dropping down into a stream. Just something to think about.
I hope you’ll plan to come to the July meeting – free dinner, casting lessons, fishing opportunities. Doesn’t get much better than that!!!
– Mike
J u l y M e e t i n g a t R i v e r J o h n ’ s
How about a free dinner?? Our July Chapter Meeting (Thursday, July 24) will be outdoors at River Johns Outfitters. River John’s Island – located on the Little River, just northeast of Maryville on Cave Mill Rd. (Map) http://www.riverjohns.com/
Directions: From the last Pellisippi Pkwy exit, go left on Hwy 33, right on Sam Houston, left on Wildwood, right on Cave Mill. (Map)
Under the capable hands of Outdoor Chef Extraordinaire Mike McKinsey, we will be grilling some great food. There’s the opportunity to fish, meet fellow members, learn a thing or two about fishing in the Little River. There will be casting lessons given by Ross Schweinforth, a IFFF Certified Casting Instructor. Class size is limited to six, so make sure to reserve a spot.
We are very pleased to have Ross teach this class. He has the background and top-shelf credentials to provide excellent instruction. He is a certified Casting Instructor with the International Fly Fishing Federation of Fly Fishers (IFFF), the premier organizationdedicated to excellence in fly-casting instruction through rigorous examination, continuing education, and strict standards. Ross has been actively involved with Project Healing Waters Fly Fishing (PHWFF) and serves as the PHWFF Program Lead for SE Tennessee and-NW Georgia.
After a four-year enlistment in the U.S. Marine Corps and a tour of duty in Vietnam, Ross settled with his young bribe, and the two have remained together in the southeast. His 34 year career encompassed fisheries biology, aquatic toxicology, environmental engineering, and regulatory compliance management. Retirement has allowed Ross to travel, fish, tie flies, build rods and generally be engaged in anything fly-fishing.
We are going to offer the casting class from 4-6PM at the picnic area. If there is enough interest we will have a second class. If you are interested in fly-casting instruction please Email Chuck James at huck3185@gmail.com to reserve your space. I will need to set the schedule no later than Wednesday, July 16, 2014.
If you are going to take the class Ross is suggesting that you bring an 8 1⁄2 – 9ft rod with X0 or X1 leader. He will supply the ribbons, no hooks needed. Regardless of your fly-casting ability, Ross will be able to help you become a better fly-caster.
Chuck James – Program Chair
