www.wyflycasters.org
Backca!
"e Vol. 39 No. 6
The Monthly Newsletter of the Wyoming Fly Casters
Trout Derby - June 2nd Speas Fish Hatchery Event - June 13th WFC Member Receives State Award Water’s Edge - “Fishin’ with Joe” Recipe & Fishing Tip Know you Knots Event Calendar
June 2012
Will’s Le"er for June Greetings Flycasters! We’ve got some big e v e n t s coming up in the next m o n t h . Starting with the kids fishing day June 2 n d . Flycasters are teaming up with the l o c a l Walleye Club to help Game and Fish with their kids fishing day activities at Yesness Pond. Contact Greg Groves for more information. This is a great public involvement opportunity for the club, so call Greg and get involved. The following week is the June general meeting. It will be held on Wednesday, June 13 at the Speas Fish Hatchery. “NOTICE.� There will be a change in meeting format just for this meeting! The hatchery folks have graciously agreed to allow us to have our meeting at their newly remodeled facility. This is a great opportunity for the club to get a private and thorough tour of this wonderful new hatchery. I need to make a point of clarification. A “$2.00 tour� is not really $2.00, it is an expression that means you are getting a full or great tour, as opposed to the ‘$.50 cent tour ’ which is just the bare minimum. There will be no charge for the tour. Please come and check it out! The sequence for the evening will be a simple bar-be-que (burgers and dogs) at 6:00 pm, our regular meeting at 7:00 pm, including raffle, and the program will be a hatchery tour that may last shy of an hour. Since there should be ample light 2
left in the day, this will be a great opportunity to fish at the adjacent WFC Memorial Access. So bring your gear and let’s spend some time enjoying fishing with fellow club members. We will be setting up at 5:30 pm, all help is welcome. We will begin serving at 6:00 pm. We will be done and cleaned up by 6:50 pm so we can start our meeting at 7:00 pm sharp. There will be signs directing you to the location once you get to the hatchery. This is a family friendly event, so bring your children, grandchildren and spouses! The next event will be the Miles Landing (Government Bridge) Access Dedication on Saturday, July 14, starting at 11:00 a.m. I recently met with BLM folks and the WFC have 10-13 invitational spots available for this event. The event planners are limiting the attendance to 55 people. We currently have 5 openings left. If you are interested in attending the event, please email me promptly. First come first served. The plan this year for our Adopt a Highway section at Alcova will be to tackle it in two phases. One after a work day and one weekend day. The after work Adopt a Highway Litter Pickup at Alcova will be on Tuesday, June 5. We will meet at the Robertson Road boat ramp at 6:00 p.m. We will do 2 to 2.5 hours, leaving a little time for fishing if you choose. I D E S P E R AT E LY N E E D SOMEONE TO FACILITATE THE WEEKEND DAY AS I WILL BE WORKING EVERY WEEKEND ALL SUMMER. Would someone please step up and be the point person for the weekend day? Please email if you would be willing to take this on.
Will
Will Waterbury, President 503-349-7595 Lee Tschettert, Vice President 307-267-1528 Casey Leary, Secretary 307-473-2441 Matt Stanton, Treasurer 307-258-9915 BOARD OF DIRECTORS Spencer Amend, Neil Ruebush Brent â&#x20AC;&#x153;Smokeyâ&#x20AC;? Weinhandl, DDS Terms expire in 2013 Greg Groves Joe Meyer Alex Rose Herb Waterman Terms expire in 2014 John Dolan, Jim Johnson, Chris McAtee, Andrew Sauter The Backcast is the monthly newsletter of the :\RPLQJ )O\ &DVWHUV DQ DIĂ&#x20AC;OLDWH FOXE RI WKH :\RPLQJ &RXQFLO RI 7URXW 8QOLPLWHG WKH 1DWXUH &RQVHUYDQF\ DQG WKH )HGHUDWLRQ RI )O\ )LVKHUV (GLWRULDO FRQWHQW GRHV QRW QHFHVVDULO\ UHĂ HFW WKH YLHZV RI WKH RIĂ&#x20AC;FHUV ERDUG RU PHPEHUV RI WKH :\RPLQJ )O\ &DVWHUV $QQXDO GXHV DUH IRU DQ LQGLYLGXDO IRU D IDPLO\ RU IRU D OLIHWLPH LQGLYLGXDO PHPEHUVKLS RU IRU D OLIH WLPH IDPLO\ PHPEHUVKLS 9LVLW WKH FOXE ZHEVLWH DW ZZZ Z\Ă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
Wyoming Fly Casters
June 2012 This is my fifth newsletter and I’m hoping that WFC readers have noticed that some of my ‘greenery’ during the handoff of this project is starting to wear off. I appreciate your patience in allowing me to try out a few different formats and my thanks to all those who have offered suggestions or just sent words of encouragement. As with any publication it is a team effort and I can’t stress the importance of your contribution to the newsletter as well. To that end, I am open to all suggestions and information that you’d like to offer and share. I welcome fishing experiences and stories, tips, recipes, pictures, events ... etc. The challenge is to define for our readers access to all information without the chance of any of it being overlooked. With numerous suggestions on how to handle this you might have noticed duplication of information. Sorry about that. We’re working on several ideas to improve the newsletter and our distribution of the digital and printed versions of it. Already in process is, streamlining the presentation so readers will know exactly where to go for the type of information they seek and two, updating the member database so technology can be used to inform and remind our members about club meetings, events, fishing opportunities, tours etc. By the end of the summer we hope to have the improvements complete. Again thanks for your patience. Peg June 2012
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Will’s Letter
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Trout Derby & Speas Hatchery BBQ
5
Member Notes, Classifieds
6
Meeting Minutes
7
MacTavish Alumni
8
WFC’s Bill Mixer
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Fishing with Joe
10
Recipe Box & Joe’s Fishing Tip
11
Know your Knots
12
Event Calendar
CONTENTS
Summer is here. Isn’t it grand. I’m so excited about it. I happen to think that Wyoming has the best summer of all. Yes, we needed those rainy and cloudy days in late May... because now, everything is green!
TABLE OF
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WFC assists in supporting Trout Derby on June 2nd On Saturday, June 2nd, the Recreation Foundation and Casper Recreation Division will host the 17th annual trout fishing derby for kids age 14 and under. There will be two intervals to the tournament located at Yesness Pond. The first group will begin at 9 - 11:00 am and the second from 12:00 - 2 pm. The pond will be stocked with 500 additional Cutthroat and 1000 Rainbow Trout for the event. This is a free event and a limited number of fishing poles will be given away. So participants are encouraged to bring their own gear. There will be spinner gear, fly’s, cleaning tables, fish bags and other supplies.
The co-sponsors are expecting a greater number of participants this year topping last years 300 fishermen. Co-Sponsors of the event are The North Platte Chapter of the Walleye Group, The Wyoming Game & Fish Department, the city of Casper, the Wyoming Fly Casters, Schwans and Sportsman’s Warehouse. Members from all organizations will be on hand to help in whatever way is needed. The Casper Rec division suggests that the participants dress appropriately for weather.
Dan Speas Fish Hatchery for June’s WFC Meeting On Wednesday, June 13th the regular WFC meeting will be held at Speas Fish Hatchery. All members are invited to come and enjoy a cookout that will begin at 6 pm followed by our regular WFC monthly meeting at 7 pm. After the monthly meeting biologists from the WGFD will be our guides for a ‘behindthe-scenes’ tour of the new facility. They’ll be sharing some of the interesting data they’ve collected over the past few years. So if you have any questions, the biologists will be happy to answer them. What better way to wrap up the evening than a little bit of fishing! Yep, while they’re still daylight to burn, bring your gear and enjoy some early evening fishing at the WFC Memorial Access. area. See you there!
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Speas Hatchery Creek
Wyoming Fly Casters
Member Notes: Beginning Fly Casting instruction is being offered by WFC’s “Fishin’ with Joe” Meyer. Joe has gotten permission from Mike at Izaak Walton Lodge to teach beginners at the pond behind the lodge. This will be ‘catch and release’ instruction only. Permission to fish at this location has been approved on one condition, that Joe is present when fishing. If interested please contact Joe at: fishingwithjoe2@gmail.com. or 307-235-1316. On Saturday, June 2nd, The 2012 Trout Derby will be held at Yesness Pond. The tournament begins at two different intervals; 9 - 11:00 am and 12:00 - 2 pm. Ten WFC members have already signed on as volunteers. Thank you! On Tuesday, June 5th will be the first phase cleanup of Adopt a Highway Litter Pickup at Alcova. Meet at the Robertson Road boat ramp at 6:00 p.m. Two to two and a half hours to clean up with a little time for fishing if you choose. Wednesday, June 13th the regular WFC meeting will be held at Speas Fish Hatchery. All members are invited to come enjoy a cookout that will begin at 6 pm followed by our regular WFC monthly meeting at 7 pm. Fly tying for young adults at the Casper Library on Tuesday, June 19th, 2 - 4 pm. Lee Tschetter is asking for 3 - 5 members to help out. If interested please call Lee at 307-267-1528 or email him at ltschetter@yahoo.com June 2012
COMING EVENTS
Classifieds Large selection of framed, signed and numbered
The Official dedication for the Miles Landing Ceremony will be on Saturday, July 14th at 11 am. Representatives from Wyoming Game & Fish, the City of Casper and members of the WFC present. Government Bridge/Miles Landing is the fourth stop along Trapper’s Route. It is located in T. 31 N., R. 82 W., section 23, NE1⁄4SE1⁄4. Wyoming Highway 220 and County Road 404 provide vehicle access to this landing site.
Vivi Crandall and Terry Redlin prints (contact me for names/prices)
The WFC have 10-13 invitational spots available for this event. Attendance is limited to 55 people. With five openings left, if you are interested in attending the event, please email Will at wwaterbu@yahoo.com promptly. First come first served.
Matt Stanton 307-258-9915
Stay tuned for 2012 dates for the Ten Sleep outing = August and the Tongue River outing = September.
Knot Feedback: WFC members have voted a “thumbs up” for the Kreh Knot and “thumbs down” on the Surgeon’s Knot from last month’s newsletter. Voters said the Kreh Knot was very reliable and effective. Thanks to everyone that provided their feedback.
and Men’s Chaco Z/1 Sandal. Size 13. “Matrix color. New in box, $45. OBO
Classifieds are free to WFC members for sale, drop a line. To advertise your item to marketingmavenaha@gmail.com
Remembrances
Our members are very special to us and we want to remember them in times of adversity. If you know of a member or their spouse who is ill or is recently deceased, please contact Donna Diesburg at (307) 234-4278 or e-mail her at faith10@bresnan.net.
Kelly’s first fish
Congratulations to Kelly on catching her first fish. Now that school is officially over, you’ll have a lot more time to fish. Wishing you many more to come this summer. Tight lines!
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Minutes of the Wyoming Fly Casters May 16, 2012
Call to Order: A board meeting of the Wyoming Fly Casters was held on May 16, 2012. The meeting was convened at 7:00 pm, President Will Waterbury presiding, and Casey Leary Secretary. Members in Attendance: Will Waterbury, George Auxland, Casey Leary, Joe Meyer, Herb Waterman, Spencer Amend, Jim Johnson, Greg Groves, Brian Bayer, Bob Fischer and Chris McAtee. Guest Peg Novotny Members Absent: Matt Stanton, Lee Tschetter, Alex Rose, Jesse McGregor, Phillip Smith, all excused. Approval of Minutes: Motion was made by Spencer Amend to approve the Secretary’s Report. Motion carried. Treasurer’s Report: None. Old News: The grand opening ceremony for the Miles Landing (Government Bridge project) has been moved to July 14, 2012 at 11 AM. Members of the WFC are welcome to attend. Some WGFD, BLM personnel and dignitaries will be present. Will discussed having a short boat drift for the dignitaries and will seek WFC volunteers. Will to seek more information regarding possible funds for the BBQ. Will reported it will be a small gathering of 50 to 60 people. Next month’s general meeting will be held at Speas Hatchery, BBQ at 6 PM, general meeting at 7 PM, followed by a tour of the facility and fishing the access area if desired. Motion by Will Waterbury that the WFC to spend up to $100 on food for the BBQ. Motion carried. Greg Groves reported the June 2, 2012 Trout Derby at Yesness Pond will be held in two shifts, 9 – 11 and 12 -2, Greg suggested the members who signed up arrive early, around 8 am. Motion by Greg Groves that WFC spend up to $100 to purchase fishing bubbles for the fishing derby, if needed. Discussion was held regarding WFC attire for various functions so members can be easily identified. Bob Fischer will look into costs as well as Jesse McGregor. WFC vests are a possible solution.
New Business: Joe Meyer secured permission to take new members and fish the Isaac Walton League pond and Joe must be present at the time. Please contact Joe Meyer. Peg Novotny is receiving members e-mail addresses. Will is seeking help to assist in the clean-up of the WFC Adopt a Highway Section near Alcova on Highway 20-26. No date set.
Meeting adjourned at 7:59 PM.
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Wyoming Fly Casters
MacTavish Alumni
Front Row: Don Jelinek, Bob Fischer (2012 recipient), Randy Stalker, Marvin Nolte, Joe Meyer. Back Row: Dick Depaemelere, Casey Leary, Andrew Sauter
By Marvin Nolte
A Most Generous Angler
Not far from the bank a forlorn fisherman stands. The river is the Yellowstone in the Park. Fish abound, and are rising. A William A. MacTavish dreamscape. Except for our fisherman. Everyone else seems to be catching fish. Another angler notices the fishless man, who is holding his rod limply at his side. The observant angler, with rising trout within an easy cast, stops fishing. He wades over to Fishless, says something inaudible, pulls out his fly box, grabs the dangling leader, fusses a bit, and then hands the leader back to Fishless. Some pointing and
June 2012
nodding from the visiting angler, then Fishless casts. Sip. Fish on! I kid you not – on the first cast. Fishless beams. The visiting angler wades back into position.
The doctors said his condition had to improve before they would risk a transplant.
Fishless is, and will remain, a stranger. The helpful angler was Bill MacTavish. Bill’s friends have seen this drama played out many times. We smile, remembering when Bill helped us.
His friends knew the truth: they couldn’t find a heart big enough to replace Bill’s. After his death a group of friends gathered informally to consider an award in Bill’s honor. The result, first presented at the annual Fly Caster’s banquet in 1989, is the William A. MacTavish Award.
William A. MacTavish was a most generous angler. He was a steadfast member of the Fly Casters – giving demonstrations on knot craft, boat handling, fly tying, and casting. Bill could tell the best stories, he was a brilliant raconteur. Bill died in 1987, while waiting for a heart transplant.
Twenty-five Fly Casters have since received this honor. Our latest recipient Bob Fischer is pictured with other MacTavish Alumni. All of these men and women represent the best of angling’s traditions – generosity – exemplified by Bill MacTavish. Flyfisher, teacher, and friend.
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WFC’s own Bill Mixer wins state award Excerpts taken from the Casper Star Tribune
Dean Travers said “Bill has evolved his classes over time using his information and evaluations to improve his classes. He is always reading about online evaluation and matrixes and always tweaking his instruction.”
WFC Member Bill Mixer has been named the Master Distance Educator for Casper College 2012, by the Wyoming Distance Education Consortium. Lesley Travers, Dean of the School of Business and Industry at the college, nominated Bill because he was one of the “first educators at Casper College to embrace distance education and to begin hybrid classes too.”
Mixer received his bachelor’s from Ohio State University, and his Master of Public Administration from the University of Wyoming. He is a certified water, wastewater, collection, and distribution system operator; American Society of Safety Engineers backflow tester and surveyor; underground utility locator; and a National Environmental Health and Safety Association certified environmental trainer.
Bill Mixer, WFC Member
As Director of Environment Training Center at Casper College and the Department chair for the Casper College Environmental Science Department, he has been with the college since 1983. He develops and teaches classroom and Internet courses in the water quality technology degree and certificate, and the electronic technology programs.
He has won six regional Environmental Protection Agency Most Improved Plant awards the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 104 Program Enthusiasm Award, National Environmental Health and Safety Association Environmental Trainer of the Year, Water Environment Federation Hatfield Award for outstanding service to the wastewater industry, and Wyoming’s Louise Cordova Cup for outstanding commitment to Wyoming water and wastewater utilities.
Bill began using online teaching when Casper College first began online instruction. He worked his way through all of the WebCT classes and today is currently using Moodle.
He also won the 2006 Rosenthal OUtstanding Educator Award at Casper College, and in 2012 was selected for a National Institute for Staff and Organizational Development Excellence Award by the college.
Spencer Amend & Granddaughter
BRAG TIME!
Joe
Gary
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Wyoming Fly Casters
Joe
WFC Women fishin’ with Joe
Chris
Kathy
SOMEWHERE, WY — A little pond just north of Casper was a really hot spot with some great fishing for several fly casters “Fishin’ with Joe.” At 8:50 a.m., May 20th, Chris Beekman, Kathy Knapp, Marty Robinson and Peg Novotny met at Joe’s house to begin a great day of fishing. The weather was perfect. Sunny, warm and no W-I-N-D! Driving up the access road to the pond, I didn’t want to park right in front of the entrance. So I drove a little past it. When Joe asked why I was doing that I explained I didn’t want to block anyone from being able to turn around. How silly was that? Just my city upbringing I guess. Of course, there wouldn’t be anyone else coming to the pond that day. This is Wyoming, and you know what, the fish couldn’t be happier we were there. Ha! Ha! Following tradition, Joe was the first one to hook a fish. A frisky one at that. It hit the fly as soon as it landed on the water. This was a true indication of how the rest of the day would go. We all experienced this type of action. Fishing with the women in our group is a bit less intimidating to a new fly caster. For instance, as a newbie, you can get by with personalized terminology. You can explain to a fishin’ gal pal that you’re using a big black harry thing for a fly instead of a “Woolly Booger.” Or you could say you’re using a copper headed thing with some kind of wing thing on it and a green body instead of a “Bead Head Pheasant Tail Flash.” Stress free fishing for the newbie. You have to enjoy it while you can because you are expected to learn like everyone else.
Marty
The day was wonderful and I can say that all the fish made it back into the water in good health. As a matter of fact I overheard a lot of one-sided conversations between “fisherwoman” and fish. A short chat and then, they were all lovingly set free. Well, one made a return splash dive. Fishing any of Casper’s local ponds is terrific experience for both the seasoned fly caster and the newbie. There’s plenty of these ponds around and “Fishin’ with Joe” knows all of the secret places. Just ask him. June 2012
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WFC’s Recipe Box Joe’s Canned Fish Recipe per Jar Use 1 Pint or 1/2 Pint Jars 1 tsp salt 1 tsp barbeque sauce 1 tsp lemon juice Remove skin from fish fillet. (Ok for bones to be canned). Add salt, lemon and barbeque sauce to each jar of fish. Boil lids of jars. Wipe lips of jars clean. Snug down lids but not too tight. Cook in pressure cooker for 90 minutes at 12 to 15 lbs. pressure. You use as many jars as will fit in the pressure cooker without touching each other. “I like pints or half pints. You can stack them in the cooker if you have a piece to set on top of the jars that are in there.”
Joe’s Fishing Tip If you cast your fly without moving it a little first, it will cause the fly line to pick up water for 8 or 10 feet and make a noise and make the water raise up where the fly line leaves the water with a “Rooster Tail.”
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Wyoming Fly Casters
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June 2012
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Trout Derby Yesness Park 9-11 am & 12-2 pm
Regular Meet. Speas Fish Hatchery 6-9 pm Casper LIbrary Young Adults Fly Tying 2-4 pm
Father’s Day
Flag Day
Board Meet. Izzak Walton Lodge 7 pm Deadline for Backcast info
%e Backca& Newsle"er www.wyflycasters.org
Wyoming Fly Casters P.O. Box 2881 Casper, WY 82602
The Mission of the Wyoming Fly Caster’s is to promote and enhance the sport of fly fishing and the conservation of fish and their habitat. 14
Wyoming Fly Casters