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June 3rd MEETING
General Meeting at the Millenium Hotel
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Steve Rajeff
World Champion Fly Caster Anchorage visit June 2 & 3, 2013
When it comes to delivering long, accurate casts or dropping a fly on a dime, nobody in the world does it better than Steve Rajeff, G. Loomis Director of Research & Development and World Champion Fly Caster. Rajeff has dominated the world of competitive casting for over three decades. He has no less than 34 national and 14 world All Round Championships to his credit. Steve holds the current National single hand and two hand fly casting distance records at 238 feet and 290 feet respectively. There are few other athletes who have dominated their sport like Steve Rajeff.
For several years Steve guided anglers in Alaska and Montana before joining the G. Loomis Rod Company. In addition to being a world champion caster, Steve is an excellent instructor who serves on the FFF Casting Instructor Certification Program Board of Governors.
Intermediate Fly Casting Workshop
Sunday, June 2, 2013, 1-5
Jewel Lake Park, Anchorage
Advance Registration and $100 fee
Alaska Fly Fishers Presentation
Monday, June 3, 2013, 7 PM
Millennium Hotel, Anchorage
Free and open to the public
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MARK your CALENDARS
July 1 Meeting
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June 30 (place to be announced) for an on-lake clinic.
July 1 for normal monthly meeting at the Millenium Hotel, 7 PM.
For the past 30 years, Denny Rickards has had an opportunity to fish and guide anglers over some of the most challenging trophy trout waters in the Western United States. His simplistic approach and techniques on presentation have accounted for browns over 20 pounds, cutthroats to 15 pounds, and rainbows in excess of 16 pounds.
Over 250 days a year are spent doing what he loves best; guiding, writing, tying flies, conducting fly fishing schools, and field testing developing tackle manufactures' products.
As a professional fly tier, his suggestive patterns have appeared in various outdoor magazines and are on display at Cushners Fly Fishing Museum in Florence, Oregon. Based on past reviews, his books and companion videos are now considered the "bibles" for fly fishing lakes.
When he isn't fishing or guiding, many hours are spent studying trout behavior, their habitat and the various insects found within their environment.
His knowledge and ability to teach other were a prerequisite to establishing his fly fishing schools/clinics which have become a priority for anglers seeking the ultimate from their angling experiences.
taken from his website
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FLY TYING CLINIC NEWS
from Frank Stevens
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The first clinic of the summer was attended by fly tiers, both old and new. Danny Purcella was in town visiting Jeff Uhlik. Dave Semmens and Scort Work each have new Nor-vices and were putting them to work.
David Rooker worked with beginning fly tiers, including visitors from California, tying their first flies.
The AFF fly tying clinic will continue through the summer, the third Saturday of each month from 9:00 am to 3:00 pm at the William Hernandez Fish Hatchery on Reeve Blvd.
June is a great month to tie up a box of flies for lake fishing and for grayling if you are planning a trip to Tangle Lakes or beyond! Please join us, come early and stay late. Tie flies!
As always, we are looking for tiers who would like to share a tying skill or a fly pattern with our clinic participates. If you are interested in providing a demonstration, please contact me at akfrank@mtaonline.net or 907-694-3595.
From the Bench to the River,
Frank Stevens
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FLY TYING OUTREACH
OPPORTUNITY from Frank Stevens |
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Another opportunity to share your passion for fly fishing and fly tying is coming June 18th. Please contact Scott Work at 972-5070 or scottLwork@yahoo.com for information about this clinic in Palmer to instruct youth.
Thanks to the support of the club with our ghillie raffles, we now have 10 new tool kits with our older vices to use with our outreach efforts to teach our youth the fun and art of fly tying. Let's pass on our passion for fly tying!
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PROJECT HEALING WATERS NEWS
from Jan Schnorr |
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First Trip of the Season!
April 28th marked the frist fishing trip of the season for Project Healing Waters. Bob Rima, owner of Kenai River Drifters Lodge sponsored and coordinated the lodging and guided fishing. Sunrise Café provided some meal support. Transportation for volunteers and participants was generously provided by Northern Industrial Training (NIT). Thank you for all of your support and assistance for this marvelous trip!
PHW Tours USS Anchorage
On May 2nd, PHW participants and volunteers had the privilege of touring the USS Anchorage and meeting Captain Joel Stewart. Being a Montana fly angler-turned-sailor, Captain Stewart has traveled the world with a fly rod in his sea bag. During his tours in the Middle East and Iraq, he founded the Baghdad School of Fly Fishing and taught fly fishing to numerous other military personnel. After the USS Anchorage tour, Captain Stewart and Mark Huber demonstrated their casting skills on the aft deck.
Casting Clinic
PHW hosted a casting clinic for participants on May 16th. David Little, a FFF certified casting instructor, volunteered at the event and everyone thoroughly enjoyed the practice session. Thanks David.
PHW Fundraiser
Project Healing Waters volunteers still have a few National Defense Service medal ribbon flies available. If you are interested in a fly for yourself or a military friend, please visit one of the following shops who have graciously volunteered to include them in their inventory: Mossy's Fly Shop, Mountain View Sports, 3 Rivers Fly Shop, and World Wide Angler. The suggested donation is $10.
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SUTTON LIBRARY NEWS
from Frank Stevens
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As a follow-up to our book donations, AFF held a basic tying clinic on Saturday, May 11, 2013. Thanks to members Mike, Dean, David and Frank the clinic at the Sutton Library was a bit hit. Kids of all ages learned to tie lake leaches, bunny flies, wooly buggers and essential "purple egg-sucking leach."
Contact Frank at akfrank@mtaonline.net 907-694-3595
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Where Have All the Salmon Gone?
by Bill Hauser
Another FISH TALK discusses a research report about ocean acidification and the probable negative effect on food items in the marine waters important for growth and survival of young salmon. Another report addressed the issue of Chinook salmon stocks in the Yukon River and the presenter pointed out that Yukon River Chinook salmon have been steadily declining in both size and numbers since the mid 1970s.
To read the rest of the article, click here.
Do you have a question for FISH TALK?
Bill recently published Fishes of the Last Frontier, Life Histories,Biology, Ecology, and Management of Alaska Fishes and, previously, Letters from Alaska, The Inside to the Outside.
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FISHING REPORT
From Rich Johnson, Lance Hankins, & Dennis Johnson
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Talkeetna River / Clear Creek, May 24th
A cold spring delayed the timing of this trip, but finally made it up the Talkeetna River, just above Fish Creek. The water was low and somewhat off color making fishing tough. Concentrating the bulk of our efforts in the clear water mix below Fish Creek and Clear Creek, we tried a variety of spring patterns including fry and smolt on both floating and sink-tip lines. In the end, Lance's new Hevi-Bead system and Rich's modified olive Frankensculpin tube fly were the most productive. The water was covered thoroughly at each spot by all of us, so the assumption was, "We should have been there." Arctic terns were working the water, making us conclude fry were moving downstream. Bank ice made it difficult to fish our usual haunts below Clear Creek. Given the nature of the ice and the warm temperatures, it will be gone soon. Later in the afternoon, ice chunks,sounding like miniature calving glaciers, were cracking and breaking away all around us. No complaints, as it truly was a gorgeous day to be on the river.
For more on the trip, including pictures, visit 2guysflyfishing.net |
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MEMBERS' CORNER
Our members are doing cool things!
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If you or another member you know of is doing something noteworthy, please share with us! We love to showcase the wonderful things our members do!
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"Scholars have long known that fishing eventually turns men into philosophers. Unfortunately, it is almost impossible to buy decent tackle on a philosopher's salary."
-Patrick F. McManus
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