Sage, Redington, Rio unite to help save Bristol Bay

Big names in the world of fly fishing gear have announced their next step in the fight to save Bristol Bay, Alaska from the peril of open pit mining. Press release follows:

Bainbridge Island, Washington - The threat of a massive hard rock and open pit mining district in Bristol Bay has sparked three of the most recognizable names in fly fishing to come together for a fundraiser for Trout Unlimited Alaska.

Sage Manufacturing, Redington Tackle & Apparel, and RIO Products International are creating a special ready-to-fish outfit that will be released by April 2008. Only 300 limited edition outfits will be produced.

The outfit will come with a Sage Z-Axis 9-foot 8-weight rod and a Redington moss-colored CD 7/8 reel pre-spooled with RIO Gold fly line. A case will also be included, which will be embroidered with a unique graphical slogan, “More Precious Than Gold – Save Bristol Bay”. Purchased separately, this outfit would retail for more than $875. The companies plan to retail this special outfit for $600. It will be available to purchase directly from Sage, through Redington.com, and through their authorized dealer network.

From each outfit sold, Sage, Redington and RIO will donate $200 to Trout Unlimited Alaska. Through a special dealer program, any authorized dealer will have the opportunity to match the corporate donation. Total anticipated donation, which will be earmarked for campaign activities dealing with the Bristol Bay mining district as well as production, marketing and distribution of the film Red Gold, will be between $60,000 – $120,000.

The 9-foot 8-weight Z-Axis is one of the most popular and sought after rods Sage currently produces. Because of this, Sage will commit one entire production day to manufacture the 300 rods for the outfits. Redington reels will be spooled with RIO fly line in-house by distribution staff, and a special informational brochure will be developed and inserted by the marketing & sales staff.

“We’re dedicating one day for this cause so our entire company will feel involved in the campaign. Employees on the production floor don’t often get the opportunity to get involved on a public level, so this is an opportunity for them to do so. They will know that every rod, reel or case they touch that day will be for a great cause, and that sales will help Trout Unlimited Alaska fight mining development in this special region,” states Marc Bale, Vice President of Sales & Marketing, “The health and vitality of sport fishing in Bristol Bay, Alaska is important for our businesses. Keeping this ecosystem intact is important to our industry.”

Sage, Redington and RIO are appropriately calling this event “One Day For Bristol Bay”

To date, Sage, Redington and RIO have donated more than $10,000 for public and media awareness and the production of a new documentary about the region, entitled Red Gold, about the Bristol Bay fishery.

For More Information: www.savebristolbay.org

Catching the River God's Daughter

National Geographic is doing a feature on Megafishes and just recently got around to the world's largest trout, Hucho tiamen of Mongolia.

This fish is not like other trout and salmon species," said Zeb Hogan, a fisheries biologist with the University of Reno in Nevada.

Waist-deep in the clear, fast-moving waters of the Eg, Hogan prepared to release a newly tagged, 44-inch-long (112-centimeter-long) taimen back into the river.
The fish, which takes up to nine years to fully mature, can live for 50 years, said Hogan, who is a National Geographic Society Emerging Explorer. (National Geographic News is owned by the National Geographic Society.)

"We only see a few animals this size per mile in the river, so if you remove one of them, it's going to take a long time before it can be replaced," he said.

For additional information and a unique view on fly fishing for Tiamen check out the AEG Media blog, Trout Bum Diaries, which chronicles the making of their latest film.

Media Reference: Fly Fisher = Financier?

In Barron's: an article about financier Scott Amero and looking for bargains in a down credit market.

Bargain-hunting when credit conditions are uncertain and markets relatively illiquid isn't for the faint of heart. But Amero, born and raised in Maine, is the model of an unflappable New Englander. "He seems like a calm, patient, very analytical guy," says Morningstar's Jones. "That will probably serve him well in making his way through the current market environment."

Amero's favorite pastime suggests he's both patient and persistent. An avid fly-fisherman, his idea of a great vacation is a fishing trip with his family, including all four children, ages nine to 17. "You've got to be stubborn and lucky in fly-fishing," he says.

The same is true in today's credit markets, where investment banks are looking for opportunities to convert some $300 billion in bridge financing for leveraged buyouts into longer-term leveraged loans and junk bonds.

Perhaps our skills are being wasted....

Jeff Paisley on the good kind of teardrops.

Many of you have followed Jeff Paisley's teardrop camper project on this blog. Jeff sends us this article that he wrote about the process:

TEARDROPS – THE ULTIMATE OUTDOOR RETREAT

I started discussing building a teardrop camper a couple of years ago with my old friend from flyfishmagazine. He liked to make jokes about "those little campers", but I had a feeling, teardrops would be the perfect camping machine for us fish crazy people. After researching a number of designs I was set to start building my first Teardrop.

The design I longed to build was the vintage 1937, 4’ x 8’ Teardrop. First I had to find a set of plans. Next, I reviewed them and customized the plans to fit my needs. Then I started out on the scavenger hunt of a lifetime. Once completed, I had all the needed materials to build my Teardrop. After three and a half months of working on the weekends and missing a few fishing trips, the Teardrop was ready for it’s first voyage. My wife and I loaded the little camper and headed for the Blue Ridge Parkway where we spent a couple of wonderful nights.

We setup camp in about five minutes. We just backed the Teardrop in and popped the hatch. Wow! How easy is that? As we set around the campfire, we discussed how effortlessly camping had become with the Teardrop. By now it was time to turn in for the night. The next morning was met with great enthusiasm. My wife loved the camper. It was warm, comfortable and relaxing. Making our trip most enjoyable. The amount of room in the Teardrop was amazing to. There was enough room to move in the cabin without disturbing each other.

The next night the temperature dropped to 35 degrees and the wind was blowing about 20 mph. It was very chilly so we turned in early. Once we entered the Teardrop and closed the door, it was like sitting in your living room. The howling wind couldn't penetrate the walls, leaving the Teardrop warm and relaxing. In minutes we were fast asleep in the comfort of our new little camper. The next morning when I woke up I knew the Teardrop was the ultimate fishing retreat because of all the advantages it brings to the table.

Teardrops are great little campers with many purposes but I would suggest them for the avid fisherman like myself. It only took one trip for me to understand how great these little campers are. There is little set up time involved, allowing more time on the water. The comfort is unparalleled by any tent, air mattress and sleeping bag. You wake up refreshed and ready to go fight those big fish again. Another advantage of this style of camper is it can be towed by small cars with little effort. Because the camper only weighs 700 pounds, it also doesn't impact gas mileage very much, if any? Maybe one of the greatest advantages is you can park it almost anywhere. The numerous advantages of the Teardrop sure outweigh the small size of these units. I’ll be a Teardrop owner for many years to come. Hope to see you out on the Teardrop trail one day. If you have questions about Teardrops please let me know and I’ll try to help if possible.

Here is a link to all of our coverage of Jeff's build. Remember if you are a fly fisher who is into DIY let us know about your project.

When you only have one fly....

...you might have to do some pretty wild things to keep it. Dave Strege of the OCregister writes about strange behavior on the creek bank during the annual Jackson Hole One Fly Tournament.
One fly-fisher stripped his clothes off and swam naked into the river to retrieve his fly that got snagged.

Another stood on the shoulders of the guide and used pruning shears to cut down the branch where his fly was lodged.

A lucky one hooked a big fish that snapped his line, losing fish and fly, only to wait five minutes before the fly somehow dislodged from the trout's mouth and popped to the surface. He netted it — the fly, that is.

Here is a link to this year's results.

Friday Videos

Watch the latest videos on YouTube.com

Patent 1,815,568: The New Yokk Fly Box

NEW YOKK FLY BOX L. JACQMEIN


NEW YOKK FLY BOX L. JACQMEIN

Abel Reels Sold to New York Investor Group

FlyFish.com is reporting that Abe; Automatics, Inc.

A small group of private investors has acquired Abel Automatics, Inc. manufacturers of precision machined fly-fishing reels and fishing accessories, announced Don R. Swanson, president and chief operating officer. New York-based Abel Holdings LLC assumed control of the company Nov. 9.

Read the rest of the article here.

Visit AbleReels.com where they currently are selling discontinued product.

Shucks

NAISSANCE D_UNE EPHEMERE
envoyé par grand

Tip of the hat to Peddler from the SEFFF for pointing this one out.

Ross Worldwide announces 6 weight Essence Fly Rod

Here at FlyFishMagazine.com we are all about good quality, inexpensive fly fishing equipment. We feel that if our sport is to continue to grow, companies will have to come forth with products that offer exceptional value. After all, most novice fly anglers (and cheapskates like me) will rarely try a new sport that requires several hundred dollars worth of equipment from the start. Ross Worldwide was one of the first companies to realize this and do something about it with their Essence line of quality, affordable fly rods. Now we are pleased to see them introduce a 6 weight to the product line. Here is their press release:

Ross adds 6wt. to the Essence Series Fly Rods
Essence FS, Essence FC and Essence FW 690-4 Rods available January 2008

Ross Worldwide is pleased to announce that we are expanding the Essence rod series with the addition of a 9 foot 6 weight model in each of the three series -FS, FC and FW. The new 6 weight models will be available January 1, 2008.

Ross Worldwide worked with Mel Krieger on the development of the Essence series rods. All three series are manufactured with a "Ross Exclusive" proprietary graphite design, resulting in rods that are smooth casting, sensitive and precise. The Essence series fly rods carry line effortlessly when casting in close, or reaching out to far away targets. All three series are powerful and sturdy, yet light enough to minimize fatigue with long days on the water.

The Essence series fly rods have been assigned graphite designations of R-1, R-2 and R-3 to highlight design differences. While the fundamentals of each series remain true to the design, a higher numbered R-Value indicates a slightly more progressive action. All three series are 4-piece rods that ship complete with a rod sock and rod case. The three Essence rod series are priced at just $99.00, $149.00 and $199.00. These fly rods will set a new standard for what an angler should expect from an affordably priced fly rod. For your money, there is not a better value on the market today!

Additional sizes in each Essence series will be available in spring 2008.

For more information about these new rod series, please contact the Ross factory at 970-249-1212 or visit the company online at www.rossreelsworldwide.com.

Ross designed these rods and their tapers with input from Mel Krieger. In our opinion this along with a choice of materials gives them a feel that rivals a more expensive rod. Ross extends the value of these rods by selling them as four piece rods and including a rod case and sock.

Idaho's Silver Creek: Tainted Trout

MontanasNewsStation.com is reporting that a recent study has shown trout in Idaho's Silver Creek fly fishing destination to be contaminated with high levels of mercury.

The study by the U.S. Geological Survey on a sampling of 10 brown trout found the fish contained an average mercury level of .48 parts per million.

Jim Vannoy, program manager at the Idaho Division of Public Health, says that's above the safe level of 0.1.

Some of the fish were taken from The Nature Conservancy's Silver Creek Preserve, a fly fishing destination that draws anglers from around the nation.
The preserve is catch and release, but anglers can keep fish in other parts of the system.

Kurt Finlayson: Inside Competitive Fly Fishing

Kurt Finlayson has written an excellent article for FlyFishMagazine.com about the Western Regional Fly Fishing Teams experiences at the National Fly Fishing Championship in Colorado earlier this year. Kurt's team pulled off what many would call and upset and won the Bronze medal, in the process knocking off international teams from Europe and Canada. Bringing a group of competitive and highly motivated anglers together into a team has its challenges:

Two days before the competition, our entire team met for the first time at a lake for practice. We were stringing up rods and it started; the parking lot turned into a mouth-fight filled with mistrust, anger, and egos fueling the blaze. Other teams watched as we argued and yelled at each other like idiots. Finally, after a few tense moments, all the grievances were voiced and the air cleared. Now, we had a clean slate on which to build a real team. We fished the lake together and talked about how we caught fish. That night we had dinner and the team continued to bond. The next day we practiced on a river and more egos dropped while our attention turned to figuring out the river and its fickle fish.

Read the rest of Kurt's article at Fly FishMagazine.com

We finally found it...

A picture of the laptop that no self respecting fly fishing blogger would post without. Behold the Bamboo laptop via Gizmodo. Just think you can now wear a bamboo shirt andbamboo pants, fish with a bamboo rod, and then blog about it from your bamboo laptop.

Thanks Veterans!

It's posted a bit late in the day but we want to say thanks to all those who serve and have served their country. We appreciate all that you do and have done to protect our freedoms.

On this day of thanks to our veterans we ask that you remember worthy causes such as Project Healing Waters.

TU to Join Stream Access Fight.

Bill Schneider of NewWest.net is reporting that Trout Unlimited has decided to reaffirm its commitment to stream access issues. Or rather a policy that allows its local chapters to join the access fight where they see fit.

“We’ve largely resolved this access flap,” assures Farling in an interview with NewWest.Net, “and we’re back we started.”

At a September meeting in Boise, TU’s Board of Trustees and the National Leadership Council, composed of one member from each state chapter, strongly supported the 2006 policy. In fact, the leadership council voted 29-1 (with New York dissenting) on a resolution brought to the table by Montana Trout Unlimited that re-affirmed the 2006 policy allowing state chapters to intervene in access disputes such as the recent controversy over bridge access points to streams in Montana.

Cue the old light bulb over the head thing.

“Having TU involved in access disputes is actually wildly popular within our organization,” countered Farling. “Basically, we went through this, unnecessary, unproductive, gut-wrenching exercise that we didn’t need to do, and now we are back at square one.”