The Virginia Sportsman Winter 2019

VIRGINIA'S ELK HERD | OLD CROW MEDICINE SHOW ON STAGE | JAMES RIVER'S COMEBACK | YVON CHOUINARD'S LIFE LESSONS

WINTER 2019

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THE WINTER 2019 ISSUE

FEATURES 28 GREENLAND’S ICEBERGS

Take a tour through the lens of alpinist and Academy Award-winning filmmaker Jimmy Chin.

36 NEW RIVER ON THE FLY Casting for smallmouth bass in southwest Virginia.

42 SAVING THE BOBWHITE QUAIL

Explore efforts to restore habitat for the prized gamebird.

46 TAGGING TARPON

Bonefish & Tarpon Trust’s new project aims to understand movement and habitat use.

T H E N AT U R A L B E AU T Y O F G R E E N L A N D ’ S I C E B E R G S A N D FJ O R D S OVERWHELMED LENSMAN AND ALPINIST JIMMY CHIN. WINTER 2019 | THE VIRGINIA SPORTSMAN

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DEPARTMENTS THE WINTER 2019 ISSUE

12 FROM THE FIELD Elk habitats are making a big comeback in Virginia.

Plus, a look at the restoration of the James River.

54 YVON CHOUINARD CHECKING OUT THE VIEW FROM THE BIG SUR LEDGE ON THE FIRST ASCENT OF THE NORTH AMERICA WALL ON EL C A P I TA N , YO S E M I T E . 1 9 6 4 . P H OTO

BY TOM FROST/AURORA

26 OUTFITTED Get in the holiday spirit with our gift guide, filled with ideas for sport and style.

51 GREAT ESCAPE Foxhunting in central Virginia with the Farmington Hunt Club.

54 WELL READ We review “Some Stories: Lessons from the Edge of Business and Sport” by Patagonia founder Yvon Chouinard.

60 THE SOUND Old Crow Medicine Show releases new live album from Nashville’s storied Ryman Auditorium.

62 OPEN SPACES A journey to Iceland to fish wild Atlantic salmon and an appreciation of an ardent conservationist.

IN EVERY ISSUE

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THE VIRGINIA SPORTSMAN | WINTER 2019

ON THE COVER ONE OF GREENLAND’S F R E S H - WAT E R ICEBERGS CAPTURED

BY LENSMAN, ALPINIST AND ACADEMY AWARD-WINNING FILMMAKER JIMMY C H I N R A D I AT E S BLUES AND GREENS. PHOTO

BY JIMMY CHIN

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T H E V I R G I N I A R O C K Y M O U N TA I N E L K F O U N DAT I O N S TAT E C H A P T E R ’ S ANNUAL ELK RENDEZVOUS WEEKEND F O C U S E S O N R E S T O R I N G E L K H A B I TAT. PHOTO BY GABRIELLA HOFFMAN

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The Winter 2019 Issue

EDITOR’S NOTE

HELM’S CARTER HILLIARD, JIMMY HAZEL A N D J O E S H I E L D S S TA N D I N S U M M E R G R A S S E S O N H A Z E L’ S F A R M I N G R E E N E C O U N T Y, V I R G I N I A . H E L M H E L P S H A Z E L C R E A T E A N D M A I N T A I N H E A LT H Y H A B I TAT F O R Q UA I L A N D OT H E R WILDLIFE. PHOTO BY ANN MCDANIEL

T

he Virginia Sportsman celebrates sporting life and culture. Our aim is to present ideas and topics in a creative format that reflect traditions, wildlife and natural resources that must be preserved for future generations.

People who embrace a sporting lifestyle appreciate and must consider animals, birds and fish in the natural world they live in. We can enjoy fly fishing and hunting, equestrian activities and sailing, but only if we take steps to create and maintain healthy habitats.

Our publication features writing and imagery that highlight extraordinary people, places, art, literature, foods and spirits. These things fascinate us but are only valuable if measures are taken on local, national and global levels to protect destinations and creatures that trigger the imagination and encourage journeys.

Winter 2019 is a departure. It’s the first issue that focuses mostly on conservation. We creatively refer to it as “The Conservation Issue,” but I think it stands for much more than that. I believe the content in these pages offers calls to action that support ideals worth living for.

Jimmy Chin’s tireless work is a great fit for the cover story. He is an award-winning filmmaker, photographer and mountain-sports athlete who has captured amazing human feats and natural wonders. Chin is best known for producing “Free Solo,” which won an Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature.

Last year, Chin explored Greenland and filmed its skiing and mountaineering potential. The natural beauty of its icebergs and fjords overwhelmed him. We are delighted to share images from Chin’s Greenland collection with you in this special issue.

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THE VIRGINIA SPORTSMAN | WINTER 2019

“I aspire to create images that encourage people to be out in nature, to get people to think about how fragile this planet is,” said Chin. “And if I can do that, I’ve done my job.”

Chin did his job, and it’s important that we cover more than sporting in these pages because we can’t take natural wonders for granted. Similarly, it’s important to feature people who are making a difference and organizations that are working for environmental recovery.

In this issue, we highlight Orri Vigfússon, an Icelandic entrepreneur, outdoorsman and conservationist who took a different approach to saving North Atlantic salmon in international waters. We also feature Bonefish & Tarpon Trust’s Tarpon Acoustic Tagging Project, which studies the movement patterns, connectivity and conservation concerns for tarpon across the southeastern United States.

On a local level, the James River recently won the Theiss International Riverprize, the world’s foremost award in river-basin management and river-restoration achievements.

We also feature land management practices aimed at quail habitat recovery and the comeback of the elk population in Virginia.

I conclude this note with mention of a book review of Patagonia founder Yvon Chouinard’s latest work, “Some Stories: Lessons from the Edge of Business and Sport” (Patagonia, April 2019, hardcover). In the final pages, Chouinard presents Patagonia’s new mission statement: “We’re in business to save our home planet.”

There’s nothing left to say.

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The Winter 2019 Issue | FROM THE FIELD

VIRGINIA’S COMEBACK KID

BY GABRIELLA HOFFMAN

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THE VIRGINIA SPORTSMAN | WINTER 2019

V I R G I N I A’ S B U R G E O N I N G E L K P O P U L AT I O N I S M A K I N G A C O M E B A C K T H A N K S T O R E C E N T C O N S E R VAT I O N E F F O R T S . P H OTO BY G A B R I E L L A H O F F M A N

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t was the last Friday in March. With winter behind us, spring had finally made an appearance. The air was crisp and fresh. The valley was expansive and lined with gold.

As dusk started to settle in, I spotted an unlikely figure in the distance.

“Dad stop the truck. It’s an elk! Let me photograph it,” I said.

He stopped the vehicle and I got my camera ready. With my Canon DSLR in tow, I began snapping photos of the spike bull elk.

Stoic yet graceful, the magnificent animal stood there in the field unperturbed by our group of trucks. He was full-bodied, healthy, and boasted light tan fur.

After he darted off to follow some elk cows, we followed the rest of our party to the next

location. Then, 100 or so members of the burgeoning herd appeared before our eyes.

They were wild and free, in their element, deep in the heart of Virginia’s coal country.

This encounter was a great way to kick off festivities for the Virginia Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation (RMEF) state chapter’s annual Elk Rendezvous Weekend.

From March 29-31, 2019, volunteers from around the Commonwealth, nearby West Virginia and as far as Maryland, descended on the town of Grundy in Buchanan County to help restore habitat and meet other elk enthusiasts.

Organizers said 28 people previously showed up to help the year before. Thanks to social media promotion, attendance reached 124.

While I reported on the miracle happening there, my dad, a general contractor by trade and an eager helper, took the lead in helping improve existing shelters and other wildlife-viewing structures on site.

For many of us, that weekend was life-changing. It certainly was for me.

H i s t o ry o f E l k i n V i r g i n i a

Seeing North American elk (Cervus canadensis) thrive downstate isn’t an anomaly. In fact, it’s the “Elk Capital of Virginia.”

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But this wasn’t always the case.

Its predecessor, the Eastern elk (Cervus canadensis canadensis), was last reported in Clarke County in 1855. Because of unregulated hunting and habitat loss, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) officially declared the subspecies extinct in 1880.

The future of this magnificent, towering creature was bleak and grim. But the formation of wildlife agencies last century would soon inspire great change.

Recovery prospects were greatly boosted after the Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act of 1937, or Pittman-Robertson Act, passed. As excise taxes became collected on hunting licenses, ammunition and firearms, those monies collected started going back to wildlife management, habitat restoration and hunter education courses.

Guided by principles inset in the North American Model of Wildlife Conservation, this established ethics discouraging bad practices like poaching and markets for wild game.

Despite attempts to bring them back here in the early 1900s, it wasn’t until the 2000s when opportunity was ripe for reintroduction.

2012 proved to be a critical turning point in the Virginia’s comeback kid saga.

Over the last seven years, the state’s elk restoration project has taken off thanks to the work of private landowners, RMEF volunteers and Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries (VDGIF) biologists and staff.

From 2012 to 2014, 75 elk were introduced from Kentucky to Grundy in Buchanan County. Today, the Elk Management Zone (EMZ) spans across three counties— Buchanan, Dickenson and Wise—and is home to approximately 250 elk.

Funding for the project derives from RMEF, hunting license sales, and USFWS’s Wildlife and Sport Restoration Program, which is administered by the Pittman-Robertson Act.

VOLUNTEERS SUPPORT THE VIRGINIA ROCKY M O U N TA I N E L K F O U N DAT I O N S TAT E C H A P T E R ’ S ANNUAL ELK RENDEZVOUS WEEKEND BY RESTORING E L K H A B I TAT. P H O T O B Y G A B R I E L L A H O F F M A N

By 1907, 40,000 elk roamed the entire country. Today, more than one million of them are found across the nation thanks to RMEF, its supporters and volunteers. The organization’s “Eastern Elk Initiative” has successfully placed Rocky Mountain elk back in their native, historic ranges across the Eastern United States.

Fertile Ground on Reclaimed Coal Fields

The experiment in Buchanan County, once referred to “America’s Last Frontier” during the 1970s coal boom, is evidence of balanced use in action.

In recent years, the industry took a hit and fewer coal mines dominate the landscape today. Coexistence between well drilling and wildlife conservation, however, is clearly evident. For the sake of the elk, it must be the case.

This harmony was encouraged by the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977, which established guidelines for surface mining activities and coal-mined lands reclamation without encroaching on precious natural resources, flora and fauna. And that is exactly what’s happening in elk country.

I asked Leon Boyd, chair of the Southwest Virginia Coalfields RMEF chapter and vice president of Noah Horn Well Drilling, about this phenomenon during Rendezvous weekend. He explained reclaimed coal mine land is suitable ground for elk to inhabit and thrive.

Boyd was tapped to lead the restoration project in 2010. His primary duties include ensuring healthy habitat, working with

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A M AT U R E B U L L E L K E N J OY S B E T T E R G R A S S L A N D S A N D C O V E R I N V I R G I N I A . H A B I TAT R E C O V E R Y E F F O R T S I N C LU D E P L A N T I N G N AT I V E G R A S S E S W I T H P O L L I N ATO R M I X E S S O B E E S A N D B U T T E R F L I E S A L S O B E N E F I T F R O M H E A L T H Y H A B I T A T . P H O T O B Y E M I LY G E O R G E

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landowners on land leases and organizing eco-tours for visitors to the region.

The reclamation put back after mining has taken place, he explained, is “regulated by the Department of Mines, Minerals and Energy.”

Boyd noted how the elk have better grasslands and more clover to enjoy now.

Chapter members and volunteers also plant a lot of native grasses with pollinator mixes so bees and butterflies can also benefit.

Emily George, a past VDGIF content specialist, visited the herd in September 2019 and noted, “Each time I visit Grundy, I am in complete awe of the significance of this project.”

A lifelong Virginian, George believes what Boyd and other volunteers have done in coal country is truly special.

“This is a habitat restoration success story that has come to life wholly through hard work and passion,” she said. “This project and its stewards are a role model for wildlife and environmental restoration."

A Future Managed Hunt Can Ensure Longevity

VDGIF and its stakeholders, including Boyd, believe the expected draw from tourists can help sustain the project’s longevity for the time being.

Ultimately, they expect an elk-hunt drawing similar to Kentucky’s lottery system to sustain the project’s funding. The allure of hunting elk in the Old Dominion will result in increased monies from license tag purchases that will in turn fund conservation. A new 10-year management plan passed on March 21, 2019, aligned with this sentiment.

Boyd added if hunting isn’t a part of the management program, “Then diseases would wipe out our population of deer, elk, turkeys and all.”

For a place that has endured fires, floods, economic downturns and recent tussles with the opioid crisis, locals believe the elk’s comeback to the region can help people bounce back too.

Visit coal country and witness history in the making. Learn more about the Elk Restoration Project at www.dgif.virginia.gov/wildlife/elk.

Gabriella Hoffman is an award-winning freelance outdoor writer. Her work has been featured in Verily Magazine, Sporting Classics Daily, Sporting Classics Magazine, Field & Stream, Outdoor Life, and other publications. She lives in Alexandria, Virginia.

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The Winter 2019 Issue | FROM THE FIELD

THE JAMES RIVER OFFERS I D E A L WAT E R S F O R CANOEING, TUBING, R A F T I N G , K AYA K I N G , CAMPING AND FISHING— AND IT’S MAKING A BIG COMEBACK. PHOTO BY JA M E S R I V E R A S S O C I AT I O N

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THE VIRGINIA SPORTSMAN | WINTER 2019

THE JAMES RIVER MAKES A COMEBACK “Am e r ic a’s Founding R iver ” w ins an in te r n a tional award f or r iver-basin ma n agement and rest or at ion.

BY PATTERSON CUNNINGHAM

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F LY - F I S H I N G O P P O R T U N I T I E S A R E PLENTIFUL ON THE JAMES RIVER. P H OTO BY JA M E S R I V E R A S S O C I AT I O N

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THE VIRGINIA SPORTSMAN | WINTER 2019

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n late October 2019, William H. Street, chief executive officer (CEO) of The James River Association (JRA), caught a plane to Brisbane, Australia. Normally Street travels the halls of the Virginia General Assembly, the highways of the James River watershed and the James itself—by way of kayak, canoe, bateau and pontoon boat—lobbying for clean water and river health.

A flight halfway around the world was out of the ordinary for Street, but the business of championing “America’s Founding River” has suddenly become global. As a current member of JRA’s board of directors, I want to share the reason for, and the significance of, his international flight.

Street headed to Brisbane to attend the International Riversymposium because the James River was nominated for the Theiss International Riverprize, the world’s foremost award in river-basin management and river-restoration achievements. It was a journey that in many ways began 43 years ago with the founding of the James River Association.

THE JAMES RIVER’S HEADWATERS BEGIN IN Alleghany County, where the Jackson and Cowpasture Rivers converge. It flows 347 miles through farmland, towns and cities, past manufacturing plants and historic plantations, and empties into the Chesapeake Bay. More than 2.6 million people live in the James River’s 10,000-square-mile watershed, which covers one fourth of the Commonwealth. While pollution discharged from large industrial and sewage plants has been largely

regulated and reduced, the human impact of farming, development and daily modern life still greatly affects the river’s health. While challenges remain, the James River is making a tremendous comeback.

When I was a kid, no one swam in the James.

Old-timers claimed the river water peeled the paint off their boats. In fact, the James was considered one of the most polluted rivers in North America—and for good reason.

In the mid-1960s, Allied Chemical Corporation began illegally dumping Kepone, the chlorinated insecticide it manufactured in Hopewell, Virginia, directly into the James. The company continued to poison the river with this unregulated industrial waste for more than a decade. People began to question the practice after workers at the plant began experiencing symptoms that included uncontrollable shaking and blindness.

Findings from a subsequent investigation were shocking. Kepone was found in the river, in the fish, in the soil and in the workers—all were poisoned. Virginia Governor Mills Godwin banned fishing on the James from Richmond to the Chesapeake Bay; the ban lasted 13 years. Communities and fishermen that once considered the James their lifeblood were devastated. The Kepone environmental disaster—not to mention years of neglect, overfishing and other pollution—prompted action.

In 1976, a group of citizens founded the James River Association to serve as a voice for the river and to protect and restore its health. Since then, our membersupported, non-profit organization has worked to educate people who live in the watershed to understand environmental impact. We want to connect people to the

river. Whether you fish, paddleboard, bird watch, boat or simply cross the river on your way to work, each of us has a part to play in the ongoing comeback story of the James.

In 2018, more than 10,000 school children participated in JRA environmental education programs.

Our organization also patrols more than 1,000 miles of the James and its tributaries through our Riverkeeper and volunteer RiverRat programs. During the past six years, we have also added 37 new access points to those waterways.

The James River’s comeback is further evidenced in the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science (UMCES) annual Chesapeake Bay Report Card.

“The James River improved from a C+ to a B- in 2017. There were improvements in aquatic grasses, water clarity, and total phosphorus.

Over time, this region has a significantly improving trend,” UMCES stated in its report.

Similarly, JRA produces a State of the James report, which shows that the health grade of the James River has improved from a low D to a B- minus in 2019.

WHETHER YOU FISH, PADDLE BOARD, BIRD WATCH, BOAT OR SIMPLY CROSS THE RIVER ON YOUR WAY TO WORK, EACH OF US HAS A PART TO PLAY IN THE ONGOING COMEBACK STORY OF THE JAMES.

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Street had a good story to tell when he arrived in Australia.

“I am extremely proud to have the opportunity to share, on a global stage, all that JRA has accomplished in its 43 years,” he said.

STREET’S TRAVEL TO BRISBANE WAS LONG BUT worthwhile; it mirrors the journey of the JRA and the river for which it advocates. America’s Founding River won the 2019 Thiess International Riverprize. After traveling all that way, Street accepted the award on behalf of the JRA and our members, donors, volunteers and partners.

“Rivers represent just one drop of every gallon of water in the world, yet that one drop touches all of us,” Street said in his acceptance speech. “Congratulations JRA. Let’s keep the comeback coming.”

Virginia Governor Ralph S. Northam was equally proud of the organization’s important work and achievement: “The James River is a shining example of conservation and river stewardship. I’m proud that Virginia’s own James River is receiving the prestigious Thiess International Riverprize, helping Virginia showcase the improvements and important work of many public and private partners across the Chesapeake

Bay watershed to bring the river back to life over the past 40 years. Restoring the James has led to immense positive impacts for our people, our economy, and our environment in the Commonwealth, and we intend to continue this upward trajectory and finish the job.”

The story of the Atlantic sturgeon is a vivid example of the James River’s return. Sturgeon are an ancient fish, living fossils that have been around for 120 million years. They spend their adult years in the Atlantic Ocean and return each spring and fall to spawn in the rivers where they were born. Once common in the James, commercial harvesting and a lust for caviar decimated the population in the late 1800s. The fish was listed

“RIVERS REPRESENT JUST ONE DROP OF EVERY GALLON OF WATER IN THE WORLD, YET THAT ONE DROP TOUCHES ALL OF US,” STREET SAID IN HIS ACCEPTANCE SPEECH. “CONGRATULATIONS JRA. LET’S KEEP THE COMEBACK COMING.”

PA D D L E B O A R D I N G I S A G R E AT WAY T O E N J OY T H E JA M E S R I V E R . P H OTO BY JA M E S R I V E R A S S O C I AT I O N

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THE VIRGINIA SPORTSMAN | WINTER 2019

Whether it’s stories from the campaign trail or the Virginia Capital Trail, our commitment to you hasn’t changed, only our name.

Community Idea Stations is now VPM, Virginia’s home for Public Media.

VPM.org

ICONICGEORGE! PRESENTED BY

jan. 10–12, 2020 preview night: thurs, jan. 9

lecture & luncheon with ben pentreath: friday, jan. 10 images courtesy of the mount vernon ladies ’ association and winterthur museum

washingtonwintershow.org

40+ outstanding dealers • dealer talks • design panel • jazz night & more WINTER 2019 | THE VIRGINIA SPORTSMAN

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A G R E AT F I S H HAS RETURNED TO THE JAMES RIVER AND HAS A N I PA N A M E D A F T E R I T.

under the Endangered Species Act in 2012 and has been compromised since 1997.

JRA partnered with other environmental organizations to construct three experimental spawning reefs in the James downriver from Richmond. In 2004, a yearling sturgeon was captured in the James—proof that sturgeon are reproducing in the river.

During spawning season, JRA hosts sturgeonwatching paddles and boat rides. This past fall, there were more than 30 sightings of the famous sturgeon

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breach; rocketing straight out of the water like a missile, the fish breaks the surface of the water—and for several gravity-defying moments, flies directly up in the air—then slams down with a reverberating, belly-flop landing.

No one really knows why sturgeon breach; there are a number of theories. The one I like the most speculates the fish is just having fun. In fact, the fish is so fun it has a beer fittingly named after it: The Great Return IPA. The West Coast Style IPA is brewed by Hardywood, a craft brewery rooted in Richmond. Hardywood contributes $5

per barrel of The Great Return to the JRA. Try one. I did, and it reminds me of a comeback river and a fish that’s trying to make a great return home.

Learn more at thejamesriver.org.

Patterson Cunningham is an active supporter of the James River Association and a member of its board of directors.

Born and raised near Charlottesville, she is an educator and freelance writer who is interested in conservation, travel and the outdoors.

The Winter 2019 Issue | OUTFITTED

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GIFTS FOR THE SPORTING LIFE The holiday season is here. If you’re on the hunt for adventure-ready gifts, check out our editor-approved seasonal favorites.

BY JEDD FERRIS

MOUNTAINSMITH DRY TOUR [1] Mountainsmith’s classic lumbar pack gets outfitted for wet adventures in this version made with coated nylon, welded seams and waterproof zippers. The angler-friendly Dry Tour not only keeps essentials from getting wet; it’s also loaded with storage features, including detachable bottle holsters, accessible webbing loops and a back-panel sleeve that’s perfect for a fishing net. $179.95; mountainsmith.com

GARMIN INREACH MINI [2] For hunting and fishing trips in remote locations, Garmin keeps you connected with this small satellite communicator. The GPS-equipped, hand-held device has the ability to receive texts and, through Garmin’s optional services, offers weather updates and access to a GEOS 24/7 emergency response team via an easily triggered alert. To purchase locally, visit Virginia-based Crutchfield (crutchfield.com). $349.99; garmin.com

LEATHERMAN FREE K4 [3] When you need to quickly snip a line or change a fly, Leatherman’s Free K4 features a sharp blade and spring-action scissors, along with a half-dozen additional tools, all accessible with one hand. $89.95; leatherman.com

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2

3

HURLEY X CARHARTT PHANTOM DEFENDER JACKET [5]

A SMITH BOWMAN DISTILLERY JOHN J. BOWMAN VIRGINIA STRAIGHT BOURBON WHISKEY [4] In the fall, this Virginia-made single-barrel whiskey won a double gold medal at the North American Bourbon & Whiskey Competition. This is the latest of many accolades for this lauded bourbon made by the Fredericksburg-based distillery and named after the great, great uncle of A. Smith Bowman’s namesake founder. With rich notes of toffee, fig and almonds, it’s a perfect whiskey for sipping by the fire on cold winter evenings. asmithbowman.com

4

Two iconic brands with proven track records for making apparel to handle the outdoor elements have teamed up for a series of collaborations in 2019. The latest is this lightweight yet extremely durable waterproof jacket made with stretch-friendly poly for easy movement on job sites or fishing boats. One of our favorite features on this rugged jacket is the three-piece adjustable hood that comes with a storm flap for extra coverage in rough weather. $250; carhartt.com

5

BLUNDSTONE ORIGINALS 500 [6] Blundstone’s rugged Originals have been around for half a century. The longstanding boots are made of supple leather that enables an easy slip-on and gets more comfortable with age.

They’re also outfitted with gritty rubber soles that can take the beatings of long city walkabouts and backyard projects. Available for both men and women. $184.95; blundstone.com

6

FURRION LIT ADVENTURE KIT [7] Perfect for downtime at the campground or hunting lodge, Furrion’s LIT Adventure Kit combines a weatherproof, high-quality Bluetooth speaker with an extremely bright, built-in LED flashlight. The tough, travel-ready device is designed to absorb the inevitable knocks and bumps of rugged adventures. It also comes with an emergency light and siren, as well as a wireless charging dock and multiple straps and mounts to adapt to your surroundings. $149.99; furrion.com

8

7

HYDRO FLASK LIMITED EDITION WONDER COLLECTION 20-OZ. WIDE MOUTH COFFEE [8] Hydro Flask celebrates the wonders of nature with a limited collection of 20-ounce travel mugs featuring artwork inspired by different landscapes. In addition to the creative look, you’ll get the cup’s durable stainless-steel construction with double-wall insulation that keeps your brew of choice hot for up to 12 hours. $32.95; hydroflask.com

MOUNTAIN KHAKIS PEARL STREET FLANNEL SHIRT [9] Made in colorful patterns for both men and women, Mountain Khakis’ Pearl Street is a techsavvy flannel partially made from recycled oyster shells. With just the right balance of comfortable warmth and performance stretch, it’s a shirt made for the cold season that moves easily between long days at the creek and long nights at the tavern. $89.95;

9

mountainkhakis.com

BERETTA DELIVERS A VERSATILE SPORTING SHOTGUN FOR WOMEN Beretta, a longtime leader in the shotgun industry, has once again inched their way ahead of the competition with the new Vittoria series. The company’s new line of shotguns designed for women offers a shorter length of pull, monte carlo inspired stock and the phenomenal action that’s long been a Beretta staple. Currently available in the 690 o/u series and A400 xcel, with more models coming soon, the 691 Sporting Victoria was recently available for testing by numerous women and men during several local demos and in private lessons. Shooters were particularly impressed by the swing, fit and function of a firearm built for smaller frames that doesn’t sacrifice function. — Kate Ahnstrom WINTER 2019 | THE VIRGINIA SPORTSMAN

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GREENLAND'S ICEBERGS T H ROU G H T H E E Y E S O F L E N S M A N A N D A L P I N I ST J I M M Y C H I N

ACADEMY AWARDWINNING FILMMAKER AND RENOWNED PHOTOGRAPHER FINDS INSPIRATION IN THE ICE STORY BY ERIC KALLEN

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WINTER 2019 | THE VIRGINIA SPORTSMAN

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W

hen he was a child, Jimmy Chin longed for adventure and experiences beyond those near his home in rural Mankato, Minnesota. One of his early influences was “The Hobbit,” a book that gave him wanderlust. His parents—librarians who immigrated from China—pressured him to follow a traditional career path.

“I always thought there were only three things I could be when I grew up,” said Chin. “A doctor, a lawyer or a businessman.”

After he graduated from Carleton College, Chin asked his father for a reprieve from finding a job.

He wanted one year to ski and climb so he could “get them out of his system.” His father was skeptical and wanted his son to find a standard profession.

“That didn’t work for me,” Chin said. “I felt that I needed to find something that gave my life meaning and purpose. Climbing played that role for me.”

One year led to seven years, during which Chin lived out of the back of his 1989 Subaru Loyale.

He was a “dirtbag” climber and ski bum who embraced both passions around the country. His parents did not approve; they spent their savings paying for private boarding school and a pricey liberal arts college.

“As far as they were concerned, I was a homeless person.”

Chin’s fortunes changed for the better when he sold an image he had taken with his climbing partner’s camera for $500. The transaction ultimately launched his career as a professional lensman.

“Photography was a way to facilitate the lifestyle that I wanted.”

To learn his new craft, Chin followed an approach he learned as an alpinist: find someone with experience and follow their lead. His mentor was the award-winning landscape and adventure photographer Galen Rowell. A college dropout with no formal training, Rowell pioneered a new method. When he photographed, Rowell saw himself as part of the scene being photographed—and not just an observer on the other side of the camera clicking a button. He accomplished this by relying on his skills as a mountaineer and climber; he was able to position himself on high peaks and ragged cliffs to capture stunning imagery from unique vantage points.

In his book “Mountain Light,” Rowell elaborates: “Balancing human subjects in action against their surroundings came naturally because I was part of the experience. I entered a world with no firm boundaries between working, playing and living.”

Chin appreciated Rowell’s philosophy and art and drove his Subaru from Yosemite Valley to Rowell’s office and gallery in Berkeley, California, so he could meet the man. He arrived without an introduction or an appointment.

“I just sort of showed up,” Chin explained. “When the receptionist asked who I was, I said, ‘I’m Jimmy, and I’m here to see Galen.’”

After loitering in the lobby for a week, Chin’s persistence paid off. Rowell met Chin and offered him two hours of his undivided attention—which led to invaluable advice and guidance. The direction gave Chin a basis for his development efforts and an opportunity to collaborate with Rowell on expeditions.

“The greatest gift that I’ve been given, as a photographer and a person, has been my mentors,” Chin said. “I never thought about being a photographer. I didn’t even think of it as a career. It just happened. The logic to becoming a photographer was not a noble pursuit, or a pursuit of art or creativity. It was literally a pragmatic decision. If I can sell one photo a month, I can do this forever. That was the logic of a 25-year-old.”

In 2002, Chin and Rowell—along with mountaineers Conrad Anker and Rick Ridgeway—partnered on a National Geographic-sponsored expedition to the Chang Tang Plateau in Tibet. During the climb, Chin snapped an impromptu photograph of Rowell walking the summit ridgeline on a 17,000-foot peak.

The striking image was published as a two-page spread in National Geographic. This was a fitting tribute to Rowell, who, along with his wife Barbara and their pilot, were killed in a small-plane crash in Alaska prior to the photo’s publication in the April 2003 issue of the magazine.

" I WA S O N C E TO L D T H AT T H E R E W E R E T W O G R E AT R I S K S I N L I F E : R I S K I N G T O O M U C H A N D R I S K I N G T O O L I T T L E . YO U ’ R E A LWAY S T R Y I N G T O F I N D T H AT B A L A N C E B E T W E E N T H E T W O .” — J I M M Y C H I N .

PHOTO BY CHRIS FIGENSHAU

WINTER 2019 | THE VIRGINIA SPORTSMAN

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“I was really sad that I was never able to continue my relationship with Galen because I learned so much on that expedition,” Chin said. “Watching how he shot, watching what he did, just little things.

When you see somebody who’s been doing something for 45 years, you know that whatever they’ve been doing has been refined to the finest criteria. These things are the things that I think about every day when I’m working.”

Chin’s observations and hard work have paid off; he has achieved tremendous success, both in front of and behind the camera. His work has garnered numerous photography awards from Photo District News (PDN), Communication Arts, the American Society of Magazine Editors, and others. Chin’s photos have appeared on the covers of National Geographic and The New York Times Magazine, among others.

As a filmmaker, Chin’s years of experience in the adventure and extreme-sports worlds enables him to bring an authentic and unique perspective to his storytelling. He and his wife, documentary filmmaker Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi, have produced two feature-length documentaries. “Meru” (2015) won the Audience Award at the Sundance Film Festival and was on the 2016 Oscar shortlist for Best Documentary. “Free Solo” (2019) won a BAFTA, seven Emmys and an Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature.

A longtime member of The North Face Athlete Team, Chin has led dozens of exploratory expeditions and completed first ascents (and first descents) around the globe, working with the best adventure athletes in the world. He climbed the Shark Fin route on Meru Peak in the Indian Himalayas—one of the most-coveted and challenging summits in Himalayan big-wall climbing. Chin was also the first American to ski down the summit of Mount Everest. He has directed commercial film projects for a diverse range of clients: Apple, Chase, Pirelli, Red Bull, The North Face and RSA Films.

( L E F T ) C L I M B E R G A L E N R O W E L L L O O K S T O W A R D C H I N ' S C A M E R A O N T H E C H A N G TA N G P L AT E A U I N T I B E T. T H I S WA S C H I N ’ S F I R S T T W O - PA G E S P R E A D I N N AT I O N A L G E O G R A P H I C M A G A Z I N E . P H O T O C R E D I T: J I M M Y C H I N ( R I G H T ) S I M P L E R T I M E S : C H I N P L AY S A D J E M B E I N T H E B AC K O F H I S S U B A R U LOYA L E , H I S H O M E F O R S E V E N Y E A R S W H I L E M O U N TA I N C L I M B I N G . P H OTO F R O M T H E J I M M Y C H I N C O L L E C T I O N

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“Greenland has always been a blank spot on the map for me,” said Chin. “Growing up, I imagined exploring all the remote places on the planet. These are still the experiences I am looking for today.”

WINTER 2019 | THE VIRGINIA SPORTSMAN

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“The greatest thing about climbing and skiing, photography and filmmaking, is that they have been incredible vehicles to drive my exploration of the world.”

One such opportunity presented itself in 2018, when drone-maker DJI offered Chin and freeskiing champion Kit DesLauriers a trip to Greenland. Their purpose was to explore and film the ski and mountaineering potential on the world’s largest island.

“Greenland has always been a blank spot on the map for me,” said Chin. “Growing up, I imagined exploring all the remote places on the planet. These are still the experiences I am looking for today.”

DJI’s 4K lightweight drone technology enabled Chin to capture tremendous skiing footage and Greenland’s barren peaks from a different perspective. The natural beauty of ice and fjords overwhelmed Chin: “It’s really hard not to be moved in a landscape like this.”

On a day off from filming, Chin photographed Greenland’s iconic fresh-water icebergs, which are renowned for their size and majestic splendor. They originate in the ice shelf—a vast body of ice covering approximately 80 percent of the surface of Greenland—and glaciers; the icebergs float in the open ocean. While normally white, under the right conditions, icebergs can display hues of blue and green.

Chin used a special camera to capture his icy subjects. Manufactured by the Danish company Phase One, Chin shot with a 100-megapixel camera capable of higher resolutions than most commercial cameras. The instrument costs more than $50,000 and is one of the most expensive medium-format cameras on the market.

The spur-of-the-moment undertaking and Chin’s photographs could not be more timely or important. National Geographic recently featured NASA scientists’ concerns as they try to understand how the region is responding to climate change. Greenland’s ice sheet is losing mass roughly six times faster than it was a few decades ago. Between 2005 and 2016, melt from the ice sheet was the single largest contributor to sea-level rise worldwide.

Chin’s images are moving. Many are foreboding, offering sleek contrast between dark skies and translucent sea. In some photos, lustrous ice radiates blues and greens; in others, the ice shimmers white and borders black ocean. Chin’s photographs give the ice life, as if ice is a mythical being rising from the water.

Rowell encouraged Chin to take photographs that combine personal vision with “splendid events.”

The idea was to let the image and human imagination work together to produce images more powerful than reality. Rowell asserted, “The best photographs speak for themselves.”

The Greenland still images were not part of an elaborate plan and neither was Chin’s career trajectory. Chin found inspiration in the ice, in the contrasting beauty that is Greenland.

“I aspire to create images that encourage people to be out in nature, to get people to think about how fragile this planet is,” said Chin. “And if I can do that, I’ve done my job. Sometimes I get pigeonholed as a ‘climbing photographer,’ but the ideas I want to share are broader.”

The Greenland stills are for sale as signed, limited-edition prints. They are a departure from Chin’s typical work but represent his vision and talent. They speak for themselves. Perhaps they convey something more dire about the natural world we live in.

Eric Kallen is editor at large of The Virginia Sportsman.

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THE VIRGINIA SPORTSMAN | WINTER 2019

TO VIEW OR PURCHASE CHIN’S WORK, VISIT JIMMYCHIN.COM.

“ M Y G OA L I S TO C R E AT E A C O N N E C T I O N B E T W E E N T H E S U B J E C T A N D T H E V I E W E R .” — J I M M Y C H I N PHOTO BY JIMMY CHIN

WINTER 2019 | THE VIRGINIA SPORTSMAN

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22” 36

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Fly Fishing for Smallmo uth Bass o n the New River

BY DALLAS HUDGENS

T

he cicada fly landed loudly and created a small wake after it hit the water. Beneath the surface lay a deep section of river littered with boulders and sunken trees.

My quick mend of the line created a good drift in the current.

I didn’t see the fish swim up to the fly; the fish delicately opened its mouth and I suddenly noticed an empty ripple where my fly once lay. I set the hook. The fish dove for cover but I stripped line to keep it away from deadfall and rocks on the bottom.

The fish pulled line from my hand, but I was able to make up ground. I felt it rise and watched the 22-inch smallmouth bass leap three feet in the air above the New River—the second oldest river in the world. *** I booked the trip after checking my Instagram feed at the right time; a Virginia guide advertised a special rate after a client canceled at the last minute. Driving along the winding roads of southwest Virginia, I rolled through the morning fog and passed by country stores where, outside, old men sipped coffee from Styrofoam cups.

I parked at a busy gas station and shook hands with Wesley Hodges.

“You’re going to use a 7-weight with floating line and target fish feeding on the surface,” Hodges explained. “Big smallmouth bass don’t always blow up on a fly the way largemouth bass will. Big smallies are more subtle and behave similar to brown or rainbow trout.”

The guide inspected his drift boat and trailer and then invited me to hop in the passenger seat of his Toyota Tacoma. I noticed we shared a similar taste in music and mouth tobacco: a can of Copenhagen rested in the center console and The Dead South’s “In Hell I’ll be in Good Company” played on the radio.

G U I D E D F LY F I S H I N G F O R S M A L L M O U T H B A S S I S A G R E AT WAY TO E X P E R I E N C E T H E N E W RIVER.

WINTER 2019 | THE VIRGINIA SPORTSMAN

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“Dallas, that’s a certification smallmouth—it must be 22 inches long. People fish this river for decades and don’t hook one this size.”

VETERAN GUIDE WESLEY HODGES HOLDS AN 18-INCH SMALLIE. PHOTO BY WESLEY HODGES

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THE VIRGINIA SPORTSMAN | WINTER 2019

The drive to the river took 15 minutes. We put in and drifted with the current. Hodges handed me a 7-weight with a yellow popper attached to the end of the tippet.

“With these poppers you don’t want to make them gurgle too loud,” he said. “The big fish like a fly that’s slowly worked and drifts well.”

I followed the guide’s advice and quickly landed a nice smallmouth. We drifted past grass and I caught more fish. Hodges navigated to the shady side of the river after the sun rose above the tree line and the fog burned off. He advised not to let the fly land so gently on the water—I wasn’t throwing size 18 flies to brook trout, he said.

“Smallmouth like action and that loud splat will bring them in.”

This sounded more like sacrilege than instruction to a brook-trout angler like me; poorly thrown flies spook trout on mountain streams. But I did what I was told, and it took a little getting used to. Hodges reminded me throughout the day to land my fly hard.

Just before noon, the temperature rose, and the bite cooled off. Hodges switched my fly to a cicada imitation and I cast towards overhanging tree limbs and other structure. I caught a few more smallies that way and the heat started to take its toll on both of us.

It was a balmy 91 degrees, but we still needed a break from the sun. Hodges dropped anchor in the shallows beneath in the shade of a tree. We ate sandwiches and swapped stories about life off the river.

I learned that Hodges had served in the military and had a baby on the way. He also told me he was once held hostage by crackheads in a Myrtle Beach hotel room.

(If you’ve been to certain parts of Myrtle Beach you’ll understand.) People and fly fishing guides in particular, live interesting lives.

After lunch we continued on our New River journey.

The guide avoided a stretch of water dirtied by a muddy connector stream and discovered clearer water and plenty of grass and submerged timber for me to cast toward. I took a few more smallies on the cicada fly, but they weren’t very big. The afternoon sun began to set and there was more shade along the banks.

“There’s only one more hole to hit before the boat ramp,” said Hodges.

Luckily it was a large hole—with big fish. We spotted one and screamed with delight in unison when I set the hook.

“Dallas, that’s a certification smallmouth—it must be 22 inches long. People fish this river for decades and don’t hook one this size.”

F LOAT I N G F O R S M A L L I E S I N V I R G I N I A I S A G R E AT WAY TO C ATC H T H E S E F I S H . Q U I T T I N G T I M E A N D LU N C H O N T H E WAT E R I S P R E T T Y G O O D TO O. P H OTO BY W E S L E Y H O D G E S

I worked to keep the bass off the bottom of the river to avoid tangling and breaking line on whatever gnarly structure the fish could find. I kept the line tight and the rod firm in my palm. Fearing the tippet might break, I gave line when the fish ran and then pinched it tight until my forearm burned.

Hodges coached me: “Keep him up near the surface.” Then he argued with himself: “Damn, should I anchor the boat? No, I should keep floating and I’ll keep steering. Oh the hell with it—I’m gonna anchor.”

The guide dropped anchor and the fish continued to fight. Each time I brought it to the surface it dove right back down. The battled waged on. At one point the fish resurfaced and Hodges attempted to net it by stretching half his body over the side of the boat. He missed and the smallie disappeared. I gave it a little more line to release tension on the tippet as it dove back down. But this time that was where it stayed. My rod went limp; taut

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THE VIRGINIA SPORTSMAN | WINTER 2019

line slackened. The fish was gone.

We sat in silence. I didn’t cast, Hodges didn’t row. We moped, disappointed by missing a trophy smallmouth.

“There’s a hundred things I could’ve done different and a hundred things you could’ve done different, and sometimes it just happens that way,” Hodges finally said.

“What are you thinking?”

I sighed. “Let’s go catch another one.”

“I like it.” *** Hodges tied on another cicada fly and we continued drifting the last hole. I cast a few more times but had nothing to show for it. Near the end of the run, we saw a fish slowly rise to my fly and suck it down gently. I set the hook and my orange line tightened, spraying water

in the air. Just as before, the bass ran deep towards the safety of timber and rocks, but this time I didn’t let it win.

I fought the fish and it jumped a few times, revealing the size of another good smallmouth. I pinched the line hard between my forefinger and the corked rod handle and didn’t give the fish another inch.

I wrangled it close to the boat and Wes quickly nabbed it with the net. My prize was another good smallie—an 18-incher. It wasn’t the 22-incher, but an 18 is nothing to scoff at and evidence of a good day on the water.

Book a trip with Wesley Hodges at wesleyhodgesflyfishing.com.

Dallas Hudgens discovered his passion for fishing on Virginia’s suburban public lakes. In his youth, he pursued bass with a baitcaster. Today he lives in the heart of the Blue Ridge and enjoys fly fishing for brook trout in the mountain streams of his home state.

JOIN TODAY. PROTECT TOMORROW.

BTT is a membership-based organization,

and our members are our lifeblood. Since our founding in 1998, we have grown to include concerned anglers from over 20 countries, researchers from throughout the world, and guides committed to working with BTT in order to educate anglers and gather data while on the water. The generous support of our members is critical to our mission: Conserve and restore bonefish, tarpon and permit fisheries and habitats through research, stewardship, education and advocacy.

We have celebrated many accomplishments, but there is still much more work to do.

Please help us in our mission by joining and urging your friends, guides, lodges, and fishing clubs to join. Please go to www.btt.org and click “Join BTT� to become a member today.

Creating Habitat to Save the Bobwhite Quail PRIVATE AND PUBLIC LANDS CAN DO MORE FOR QUAIL—AND OTHER WILDLIFE

BY JOE SHIELDS

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THE VIRGINIA SPORTSMAN | WINTER 2019

T

he male Northern bobwhite quail’s (Colinus virginianus) distinctive mating call— which sounds like “bob-white” to the human ear—is something very few people get to hear anymore. The prized gamebird’s whistle used to fill the air across 38 states and was a common herald of spring in rural Virginia.

But today, modern clean-farming techniques, urban and suburban land usage, houses and strip malls have eliminated much of the habitat upland birds require in the Commonwealth. In many areas, these once plentiful birds have been reduced to isolated pockets and are rarely seen or heard.

Data from the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries (VDGIF) estimates the number of quail hunters here has dropped by 90 percent since 1966. In 1973, more than 1.2 million bobwhite quail were harvested in Virginia by 143,000 quail hunters. Last year’s annual figures totaled 12,000 harvested by 8,000 hunters.

Limited lumbering, controlled burns, herbicides and other habitat-creating measures are helping the situation. But the promise of restoring healthy quail and other upland bird habitats depends on the involvement of government, non-profits, private landowners and game preserves.

Virginia’s Quail Recovery Initiative (QRI) was started in 2009 to restore bobwhite quail populations to their native range. The partnership involves the VDGIF, the Conservation Management Institute at Virginia Tech and the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service.

QRI’s mission is to educate the public on the importance of quality, early successional habitat for quail and other wildlife species. The QRI also provides technical assistance to landowners interested in creating or maintaining early healthy habitat on their properties; it also helps implement financial assistance programs aimed at benefitting wildlife.

Jimmy Hazel has been on many statewide boards and chaired several of them.

These included the VDGIF, where he served for 10 years and chaired for three.

“The board-level decision to approve the Virginia Quail Initiative marked the first time in 20 or 30 years that the agency allocated serious resources to protect the bobwhite quail,” said Hazel. “For years, VDGIF did so much for the whitetail deer population. We felt it was time to address the declining quail population.

Conservationists are on the ground, meeting and speaking with people in a broader conversation about habitat so landowners can make a difference.”

Seventeen years ago, Hazel and his wife purchased 300 acres in Greene County, Virginia. An avid sportsman who hunts and fishes, Hazel was drawn to the spot because of its close proximity to trout streams, including the Rapidan, Conway and South Rivers.

(The South River runs through his property.) Today they live in Charlottesville and spend a lot of time at South River Preserve.

“When I use the word ‘farm’ to describe my home, the first thing people want to know is what kind of livestock I have here,” he explained. “I don’t have any. I manage my property with a ‘maximum carrying capacity per acre for wildlife’ philosophy in mind. This

( L E F T ) N AT I V E S U M M E R G R A S S E S O F F E R B O B W H I T E Q UA I L A N ABUNDANCE OF PROTECTION AND FOOD. (ABOVE) THE PROMISE OF R E S T O R I N G H E A LT H Y Q U A I L A N D O T H E R U P L A N D B I R D H A B I T A T S D E P E N D S O N T H E I N V O LV E M E N T O F G O V E R N M E N T, N O N - P R O F I T S , P R I VAT E L A N D O W N E R S A N D G A M E P R E S E R V E S .

entails eradicating invasive species, managing hardwoods, growing and appreciating warm-season grasses that some people might find unsightly. But to bobwhite quail and other wildlife, this type of habitat offers protection and food.”

According to Hazel, approximately 150 acres is now suitable habitat for bobwhite quail and other birds, including indigo buntings, gold finches and bluebirds. In fact, his property is part of a 10-year study by Virginia Working Landscapes (VWL), a program of the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute (SCBI) located in Front Royal, Virginia.

SCBI serves as an umbrella for the Smithsonian’s global effort to conserve species and train future generations of conservationists.

“The Virginia Working Landscapes study involves a number of properties in the Piedmont, including our farm,” said Hazel. “One of its observer teams recently came to the farm to count bird species, pollinators and native plants. The team counted 83 different bird species. I couldn’t believe it.”

Hazel credits Charlottesville-based Hilliard Estate & Land Management (HELM) with helping transform his property into a rich habitat for wildlife. The company manages the effort throughout the year, planting and cultivating warm-season grasses and native plants, burning fescue and other unwanted groundcover and managing hardwoods.

For example, Helm replaced locust and poplar trees with little bluestem grass, which provides overhead cover and food for quail and other small birds. The remaining hardwood trees offer habitat for bear, deer and turkey. Last year, HELM, together with the engineering firm Resource Environmental Solutions (RES), completed a river restoration project on the property that repaired the South River after extensive flood damage.

“Owning land comes with a tremendous responsibility, and there’s a whole science to it,” said HELM Founder Carter Hilliard. “My goal is to optimize every inch of the property to meet the owners’ needs. I also want to instill in them a sense of urgency to manage the property wisely with a focus on native grasses and removal of invasive species.”

HELM has been in business for 10 years and has a team of 20 full-time employees.

The company has the know-how, equipment and vehicles to manage land in a sustainable and intelligent way. Hilliard acknowledges there has been a recent swing in the pendulum to “get back to the land.” He sees this with younger families who want to make a farm their own and enjoy many years of raising their children on the land.

Hilliard often begins the conversation with first-time landowners by asking them why they purchased the land and their objectives. It is not uncommon to hear that they have a love for the land but need some guidance on the right way to properly manage their WINTER 2019 | THE VIRGINIA SPORTSMAN

43

(LEFT TO RIGHT) HELM’S CARTER HILLIARD AND LANDOWNER JIMMY HAZEL U N D E R S TA N D T H AT H A B I TAT MANAGEMENT ISN’T ABOUT ONE SPECIES OF WILDLIFE. PHOTO

BY CHRIS SUTTON

farm. Hilliard helps landowners establish goals for maximizing use and enjoyment of their farms, while incorporating a good balance of wildlife habitat into these multifaceted properties.

“I realize the bobwhite quail populations are declining, but habitat management isn’t just about one species,” Hilliard added. “When you create a habitat that attracts quail, the landowner is also creating a welcoming environment for other species. The same grasses that offer knee-high cover for quail also make great bedding for deer. Habitat is not always neat and tidy. What people need to understand is these unkempt areas are necessary for browse, bedding and travel corridors. Jimmy Hazel understands this, and his philosophy and property are examples of what I believe in.”

Hilliard’s words reflect the beliefs of Quail Forever, a non-profit that is dedicated to conserving quail through habitat improvement, public awareness and land management.

“Quail is a good indicator species that reflects habitat health for other wildlife, said Quail Forever’s Tim Caughran, director of field operations. “We live in a hi-tech world that is not very suitable for quail. The more efficient we are at managing land and precision farming, the better chances we have at restoring quail populations in Virginia and elsewhere. Our organization wants farmers to understand that they can create good crop yields and healthy habitat for quail. If there’s a rough edge or section on the property, plant the right seasonal grasses for quail and more wildlife will follow. It might not be pretty, but it’s healthy for birdlife and animals.”

Last year, Quail Forever received a large grant to expand conservation efforts in the southeastern states. In the coming year, Caughran hopes to address quail recovery work that is needed in Virginia. The non-profit has already set up several chapters in the Commonwealth, with more opening soon.

“If we reach more landowners with the right message, we might be able to make people look at land differently with an eye for the right kind of beauty.”

Visit dgif.virginia.gov/quail, quailforever.org and hilliardmanagment.com for more information.

Joe Shields is the editor of The Virginia Sportsman. He is a writer and marketing executive based in Charlottesville, Virginia. His writing and photography have appeared in The Virginia Sportsman and other publications. Whether fly fishing or surfing, he loves the outdoors and celebrates sporting life and culture in his narratives.

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BONEFISH & TARPON TRUST’S TARPON ACOUSTIC TAGGING PROJECT Multi-Year Study Aims to Better Understand Tarpon Movement and Habitat Use

BY JOE SHIELDS

A N E W R E S E A R C H I N I T I AT I V E M O N I TO R S THE MOVEMENTS OF DIFFERENT AGE A N D S I Z E C L A S S E S O F TA R P O N U S I N G S O P H I S T I C AT E D T E C H N O L O G Y. P H O T O

BY B O N E F I S H & TA R P O N T R U S T

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THE VIRGINIA SPORTSMAN | WINTER 2019

I

listened, double-hauled and let the purple streamer— fly. For once, I didn’t unnecessarily false-cast, hook the guide or fumble line. My fly landed gently over a bed of seagrass. I stripped slowly, and a juvenile tarpon that was resting there followed.

The guide and my friend Charles Lunsford hollered with excitement. They fell silent when the young tarpon spooked and darted across the flat to the dark reaches of more grass.

A Virginian, Lunsford spends time in Boca Grande, Florida, which is known as the “Tarpon Capital of the World.” He is on the water as much as possible with renowned tarpon guide and teacher Tommy Locke; Lunsford says Locke has forgotten more about tarpon than most of the best tarpon fisherman will ever learn.

Lunsford is also passionate about the fishery, and his obsession for chasing tarpon (“poon”) there has rubbed off on me. So has his regard for the Bonefish & Tarpon Trust (BTT).

BTT’s mission is to conserve and restore bonefish, tarpon and permit fisheries and habitats through research, stewardship, education and advocacy. The non-profit takes a science-based approach to protect and enhance healthy, functioning flats fisheries and habitats in the Western Hemisphere, and restore those

in decline. This work is being done in collaboration with institutions and governments.

One of BTT’s newer research initiatives monitors the movements of different age and size classes of tarpon using sophisticated technology. A few years ago, Lunsford sponsored one of BTT’s tarpon-tracking tags, and Locke helps BTT tag fish with the devices. Each tag is surgically implanted in the tarpon’s abdomen, and then movements are tracked following safe release.

“Previous studies on tarpon movements relied on expensive satellite tags, which are limited to large fish for shorter periods of time,” said BTT Research Fellow Andy Danylchuk, Ph.D., professor of fish conservation at the at University of Massachusetts (UMass) Amherst.

“Using satellite tags, researchers could only track fish weighing more than 100 pounds, and it was difficult to piece together movement patterns on individual fish because of short-term tracking capabilities. Acoustic telemetry is a real game changer, as it sidesteps these challenges.”

Danylchuk and Lucas Griffin, Ph.D., post-doctoral fellow at UMass Amherst, are leading BBT’s Tarpon Acoustic Tagging Project. The multi-year study, which is now in year four, uses acoustic telemetry to identify the movement patterns, connectivity and conservation

concerns for tarpon across the southeastern United States. The work is funded by a BTT grant and sponsored by Maverick Boat Group.

“Tarpon are primarily a catch-and-release species, and we don’t really know a lot about the population health,” said Griffin. “Bonefish & Tarpon Trust and collaborating scientists rely on anecdotal evidence from guides and anglers before tackling research.

We’ve heard that tarpon populations are in decline, but we don’t have the data to support that. This is where acoustic tagging comes in.”

Acoustic telemetry involves tagging fish with acoustic transmitters. Each tag emits ultrasonic pings through the water that are tracked by receivers strategically placed in the ocean. When a tagged fish swims within range of an underwater receiver, the “listening station” detects and stores the tag’s unique code and the date and time it was detected.

Tagging tarpon can be challenging because of their size, strength and the negative effects of taking fish out of the water. As Danylchuk explained, “When these fish are taken out of the water, gravity takes over and potentially impacts the tarpon’s organs and physiology.”

“Catching a tarpon is difficult,” Griffin said. “Factor in open-water surgery, and you can see what we’re up WINTER 2019 | THE VIRGINIA SPORTSMAN

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against." Sunbrella, a leader in performance fabrics, addressed this concern by designing a custom-made sling for BTT that helps keep tarpon safe and secure in the water while the team implants tags. "The sling has been a key factor in stabilizing tarpon after capture and in our ability to gather datasets after release. But as you know, they’re still tough to catch.”

The particular tags being implanted in tarpon enable researchers to track tarpon for five years. They are small enough for tagging fish that weigh as small as five pounds; they are also suitable for tagging fish that weigh 200 pounds or more. BTT tagged 65 tarpons in 2019 and has tagged 170 so far in the study.

BTT and collaborators have deployed 100 receivers (“listening stations”) spanning the Everglades to points west of Key West. The project also uses an extensive network of more than 4,000 receivers ranging from the Chesapeake Bay to locations across the Gulf of Mexico. As scientists detect tagged fish on their receiver networks, they share data with other scientists, effectively expanding the study area.

“I’ve spent a lot of time fishing in Florida and the Bahamas,” said Danylchuk, who also serves as an ambassador for Patagonia, Thomas & Thomas Fly Rods and Sight Line Provisions. “It’s important to figure out how to manage recreational fishing and discussing wildlife management and conservation.”

For example, there are no limits on harvesting

tarpon in Mississippi and Louisiana. Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina impose limits, while Florida and Virginia are only catch-and-release states for tarpon.

Data from the tarpon tagging project may help BTT influence regulations to enforce catch-and-release in states where populations might be compromised.

“This is a long-term study that starts collecting data on a fish from the day it’s tagged for a period of five years,” Griffin added. “There’s a lot of speculation about tarpon behaviors. We work with stakeholders to define the questions, gather data to understand behaviors and how they relate to conservation. Bonefish & Tarpon Trust is truly unique because it collaborates with anglers and guides, then identifies the best-suited experts to do the science.”

BTT selected UMass’ Danylchuk and Griffin, as well as integrative biologist and conservation scientist Steven Cooke, Ph.D., from Carleton University in Ottawa, Canada, because they are specialists. Both universities and team members have vast experience with acoustic telemetry and the critical backend piece: statistics, modeling, visualization and data analysis. All members are also recreational anglers, so they understand motivations behind why people fish.

“When people see our truck in Florida with Massachusetts license plates and UMass logos on the side, they often wonder why local scientists don’t play more of a role in this program, but our skillsets are a

O N C E A TA R P O N I S C A U G H T, A TA G I S S U R G I C A L LY I M P L A N T E D I N T H E F I S H ’ S ABDOMEN, AND THEN MOVEMENTS ARE TRACKED FOLLOWING SAFE RELEASE. P H OTO BY B O N E F I S H & TA R P O N T R U S T

match with the questions being asked and the best tools to use,” said Danylchuk. “There’s more to it than that, and we are collecting data that is helping inform and change government regulations for the benefit of these amazing fish.”

Data collected thus far reveals that tarpon have traveled as far north as the Chesapeake Bay and Virginia Beach. Danylchuk and Griffin believe tarpon are following high-lipid food sources, such as mullet and baitfish, into darker salt and fresh waters rich in nutrients. Anecdotal evidence even suggests that tarpon have migrated as far north as New Jersey and Martha’s Vineyard.

Maybe I won’t have to travel to Florida to spook my next tarpon.

Visit bonefishandtarpontrust.org for more information.

Joe Shields is the editor in chief of The Virginia Sportsman.

He is a writer and marketing executive based in Charlottesville, Virginia. His writing and photography have appeared in The Virginia Sportsman and other publications.

Whether fly fishing or surfing, he loves the outdoors and celebrates sporting life and culture in his narratives.

Support BTT by sponsoring an acoustic tag for $3,000. You can name the tarpon and receive a certificate with its name and initial capture information, including general location and measurements. You will also receive access to a password-protected website to find periodic updates of your tarpon’s movements. You can also sponsor and name an acoustic receiver for $3,000. Sponsors will receive reports summarizing the tarpon detections it has recorded.

BTT notifies sponsors about when and where they will be working. If you are fishing in that area on tagging dates, call BTT when you catch a tarpon. Researchers will come to your boat, transfer the tarpon to the sling and implant a transmitter. You can also ride along with the team and watch scientists and anglers at work.

WINTER 2019 | THE VIRGINIA SPORTSMAN

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The Winter 2019 Issue | GREAT ESCAPE

FOXHUNTING AND THE FARMINGTON HUNT CLUB

BY ELIZABETH SUTTON

IT’S MID-OCTOBER AND ALL IS SILENT IN THE PREDAWN HOUR. The jarring “ping” of my cell phone alarm interrupts the quiet and my sleep. Today is a hunting day, and it’s time for chill and darkness—and the stable to get ready for the hunt.

After some time, the sun begins to beam and creates shadows as it rises over the dewy grass near my home in western Albemarle County. My horse and I join dozens of riders and an eager pack of foxhounds. Soon, we gather at the “meet,” which happens to be at the Farmington Hunt Club Kennels near Free Union.

The masters greet us and make announcements.

We then set off promptly at 9 am for a morning ride and follow hounds over streams, through woodlands and

open fields. This same routine happens three days a week throughout the hunting season, and on different properties in our hunt country. *** Each season begins with cub hunting, or “cubbing” in September, when the young hounds are still in training.

Similarly, the young cub foxes quickly learn how to successfully evade our hounds. A fox might find safety in a ground hog hole or run through water to mask its sent and throw off the hounds. It might dive under a pile of sticks or brush, and escape safely “to ground,” leaving our young hounds bewildered, panting, scratching and

sniffing at the ground in vain. The thrill of the chase delights riders; it’s even better when you catch a glimpse of the fast-moving fox as it darts out of sight.

Early season weather is usually dry, which makes the scenting conditions and the ground very hard on the hounds and the horses. The hunt begins early when it’s still cool, and the length of the hunt is limited to allow for conditions and protect the health and safety of the animals.

As the weather changes and rain begins to fall, conditions for hunting improve. The hounds follow the fox with their nose to the ground, and the best hounds have a keen “nose” (sense of smell) that enables them to track the fox’s sent easily over moist terrain. Visibility for

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the riders improves as the leaves fall. Our hunt country is heavily wooded, with ravines and rivers, so hearing hound “voices” (intensity and tone of their barking) is oftentimes the only way to know where they are. Road whips—volunteers who follow the hunt by car and keep hounds from crossing roads—track the hounds with radio collars that transmit signals via GPS. Formal hunting begins in late fall, when more riders attend the “opening meet.” This is a celebratory occasion and marks the first day of the official hunt season.

Foxhunting mandatory attire changes from tweed to formal black coats for ladies and sometimes scarlet for men. Special members who have been awarded their “colors” (honorary designation for experienced riders in the field) wear collars with Farmington Hunt’s Belgian Blue. (Different hunt clubs have their own colors.) In this centuries-old-sport, traditions of dress and protocol have remained unchanged for centuries. The Farmington Hunt keeps this tradition active and alive all year.

The formal season is in full swing by Thanksgiving and will continue until severe weather. In January and February, frozen ground and icy footing sometimes forces riders to continue on foot. When the hunting season ends in March, club-sponsored horse activities, trail rides, horse shows, and social events keep members busy until next season.

Hunting style and variety depends on terrain and climate. Farmington hunts on land in southern and northwestern Albemarle and Greene counties. These boarders are recorded by the Masters of Foxhounds Association. This is an international association that governs all hunts in North America and Canada. The Association was established in 1907; initially its purpose was to prevent territorial conflicts between hunt clubs and to maintain a stud book of foxhound pedigrees.

Joy Crompton, Joint-Master of the Farmington Hunt Club, said, “Permission to allow fox hunting by private landowners is not so much a service for the farmer, but a field sport for the enjoyment of landowners who ride and the people who support the conservation of the land required for foxhunts,” said Joy Crompton, joint-master of the Farmington Hun Club. “Killing the fox or the coyote is not the goal so much as the challenge and fun of the chase. It’s a privilege and pleasure getting out in the beautiful countryside that we have and appreciating the natural environment with the desire to preserve and protect the wildlife that live there.”

Farmington Hunstman Matthew Cook echoed Crompton’s sentiment: “Enjoyment. I just want to see people out here enjoying the sport.”

Foxhunting requires large expanses of open territory; preserving the land and streams there that support wildlife is a critical component of the pursuit. The Farmington Hunt Club is dedicated to land conservation efforts, and Albemarle County is the second most heavily protected county in Virginia in terms of conservation easements; these total more than 100,000 of protected acres. Leaders and members of the Farmington Hunt Club played a big role in this successful land preservation.

“The total protected acreage in the Farmington hunt territory is actually close to 84,600,” said Rex Linville, field representative for the Piedmont Environmental Council for Charlottesville, Albemarle and Green Counties.

In 2011, the Farmington Hunt and J.B. Birdsall—a longtime foxhunter, landowner and hunt member— received the Masters of Fox Hounds Association (MFHA) Hunting Habitat Conservation Award.

“As Farmington Hunt Club enters its tenth decade, there are many positives for which the club should be thankful, said Foxfield Racing Director W. Patrick Butterfield, joint MFH. “We are located in a beautiful part of Virginia and are privileged to hunt over countryside that we have hunted for 90 years. Generous landowners have protected some of our original hunt country despite encroaching development, and we have been able to add many new fixtures.” *** Today the hunt ended before noon. I can’t wait for the next one. I can’t wait to ride again over more open spaces.

Elizabeth H. Sutton is a freelance writer and photographer who lives in Albemarle County, Virginia. She can be contacted at bethhsutton@gmail.com. .............................................................................................

Farmington Hunt Club—A Brief History THE ORIGINS OF THE FARMINGTON HUNT CLUB PREDATE THE FIRST WORLD WAR. It was originally referred to as the old Albemarle Hunt Club but was disbanded because of the trying times of World War I. Afterwards, several private packs continued hunting the same territory.

In 1929, a group of landowners and equestrians revived and reorganized the old Albemarle Hunt and its Belgian Blue colors under a new name: Farmington Hunt Club. The new organization was governed by more formal conditions set by the National Foxhound Club of America.

Soon afterwards, the Farmington Hunt acquired permission to hunt farmlands in western Albemarle County. Hounds were purchased or gifted from private packs and local farmers. Grover Vandevender was elected huntsman, a position that he held for 32 years.

He kenneled the hounds at his home near Ivy. Today, the Farmington Hunt kennels and clubhouse are located in northwestern Albemarle, near Free Union.

Diverse terrain encompasses rolling hills and fields at the base of the Blue Ridge Mountains and stretches into historic southern Albemarle along the Hardware and James rivers.

THE PEOPLE

Farmington Hunt Club’s membership totals approximately 275 people of all ages from the Charlottesville area and beyond. Staff includes one professional huntsman who is responsible for the care and management of the hounds; he has the help of a kennel man or paid assistant. In addition, five honorary or volunteer riders serve as whippers-in, or outriders who assist the huntsman in keeping the hounds safe and hunting together.

There are three “fields” or groups of riders, each led by an honorary staff person (“field master”) who is responsible for guiding and protecting the welfare of riders, and for making certain that the landowners’ property is respected.

THE HOUNDS

Farmington Hunt Club currently has mostly American hounds totaling more than 60, including un entered puppies. The huntsman usually takes out 16 to 25 hounds at a time depending on “the fixture,” which is the hunt location on a given day. Each hound has a name and a distinctive set of identifying markings; hounds are also recognized by their “voice” or sound of the bark.

Hounds are trained to hunt together as a wellorganized pack and respond to commands from the huntsman who controls them with his voice and his horn.

Whippers-in ride on the outskirts of the area hunted and use their hunting crops with lashes to make loud cracking noises; these noises signal the errant stragglers to keep together.

THE LAND

Farmington Hunt territory includes 84, 600 acres that are protected by conservation easements. In addition, 24.9% of the territory has been preserved for open space.

For more information about foxhunting and the Farmington Hunt Club, visit farmingtonhunt.org.

For more about land preservation, visit pecva.org.

WINTER 2019 | THE VIRGINIA SPORTSMAN

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The Winter 2019 Issue | WELL READ

CHOUINARD AND A YOUNG MONK NEAR JAKAR, B H U TA N . 1 9 8 5 . P H OTO BY JOHN ROSKELLEY

54

THE VIRGINIA SPORTSMAN | WINTER 2019

“SOME STORIES: LESSONS FROM THE EDGE OF BUSINESS AND SPORT” Patagon i a R e l e a s e s Ne w B ook Fe a tur ing Yvon C h o u i n a rd ’s Ic on ic S tor y te l lin g, Favo r i t e Wr i t i n g s a n d L if e L e s s on s

BY JOE SHIELDS

E

arly in “Some Stories: Lessons from the Edge of Business and Sport” (Patagonia, April 2019, hardcover), Patagonia founder Yvon Chouinard recounts being elected secretary of his falconry club when he was 15 years old. Keeping the minutes was his first writing assignment outside school, and the previously unpublished “Southern California Falconry Club” documents one of the most formative times of his life.

Adult club members, including Tom Code, then a graduate student at UCLA, taught Chouinard and others falconry and climbing, which was necessary to reach nests. These pursuits also gave the young man a solid foundation for his love of the outdoors and fierce environmental activism.

“The thin, crushed eggs we found were the first evidence implicating DDT in the demise of the peregrine falcon in North America,” writes Chouinard. “There were no falcons east of the Mississippi River and few pairs left in the West. Tom [Code] and a few friends developed a captive breeding and release program that pulled the peregrine back from the edge of extinction. Now the peregrine is a common bird all over the country.”

For nearly 80 years, Chouinard has followed his own advice, pursuing outdoor adventures, business excellence and environmental activism with equal fervor.

Since 1950, he has captured the lessons and revelations he’s learned in articles and books, personal letters and poetry, introductions and eulogies.

“Some Stories” is Chouinard’s collected writings.

The 464-page book features his favorite stories through the years of falconry, fly fishing, surfing, backcountry skiing, climbing and environmental activism—ultimately showing us why he has never retired.

The book includes 56 of pieces of Chouinard history illustrated with 250 photos, many never published before. The result is a compilation of the man’s provocative thinking, his skilled storytelling and sense of humor, and a picture of the evolution of his thoughts

and philosophies. The book marks Chouinard’s place in the Golden Age of outdoor sport and preserves his unique legacy in business, sport and environmental activism.

Angler and author Thomas McGuane, arguably our country’s greatest living writer, eloquently endorses Chouinard and the book: “I know of no better example than Chouinard of what entrepreneurial Americans do best combined with our original, charitable and democratic impulses—themselves as endangered as the planet itself. Chouinard’s book displays his excellent, idiosyncratic writing—direct and unbeholden to customary or unexamined thinking. Free of sermonizing, it is the best possible result of a life of thoughtful action.”

The first half of the book includes dispatches from young Chouinard about his misfit days in Yosemite Valley, selling pitons and carabiners from the back of his car, and personal stories of his misadventures, including an attempt to earn some extra cash that cost him 18 days in an Albuquerque jail.

Selections cover Chouinard’s exploits in outdoor sports through the decades: climbing, skiing, kayaking, fly fishing and surfing—his favorite pastime for 30 years.

Journal entries recount his first ascent of El Capitan in 1964 with Tom Frost and Royal Robbins, which made the evening news and was the first time Chouinard’s parents

“

T h e f i r s t ha l f o f t h e book i n c l ud e s d i s pa tch es f r o m yo u n g Ch oui n a r d a bou t h is misf it da y s i n Yos e m i te Va l le y, sel l in g p ito n s a n d c a ra b i n e rs f r o m t h e ba c k of h i s c a r, a n d pe rso n a l sto r ies of h i s m i s a d ve n t u r es, in c l u din g a n a tte m pt to ea r n so me e xt ra c a s h th a t c os t him 1 8 da y s in a n A l b u q u e r q u e j a il.

WINTER 2019 | THE VIRGINIA SPORTSMAN

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THE VIRGINIA SPORTSMAN | WINTER 2019

discovered the seriousness of his climbing pursuits.

In “Bhutan Brown Trout: Here Be Caddis,” Chouinard recounts his 1985 attempt to climb Gangkhar Puensum, which at the time was the highest unclimbed mountain in the world. The trip went sideways because of unreliable Chinese and Indian military maps, so he abandoned the effort and went fishing.

“On another river, just outside Thimphu, the air reverberated with a deep Ohmmmmm coming from hundreds of chanting monks in the monastery nearby,” he writes. “I wasn’t having much luck, so I sat on the bank, taking in the chants and searching my fly box for

answers.”

A monk approached, which terrified Chouinard because it is prohibited to fish within a mile of temples and monasteries in the strictly Buddhist nation. When he reached the frightened angler, however, the monk selected a gray nymph from the fly box and handed it to him.

“On the first cast, I hooked a twelve-inch brown and released it. The monk clapped and laughed from deep in his belly, just like the Dalai Lama.”

The second half of the book centers on Chouinard’s commitment to the planet with articles and essays on

THE HOTEL GIARDINI POOL ON THE SESIA R I V E R , I T A LY . P H O T O B Y M A U R O M A Z Z O

climate change, voter engagement, the fight for public lands and corporate responsibility. In the final pages, he presents Patagonia’s new mission statement: “We’re in business to save our home planet.” With it, Chouinard entreats every person’s obligation to reflect on, commit to and act on this mission.

“Some Stories” is printed on 100% post-consumerwaste recycled paper. Buy online at Patagonia.com.

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WHISKEYS TO RING IN THE NEW YEAR

For holiday O ld Fashione d s or s ip p in g n e a t by th e fire on a l on g w in te r 's night , here' s a var iet y of s om e of th e b e s t w h is ke y s b e in g m ad e tod ay.

Breckenridge Bourbon Whiskey A Blend

John J. Bowman Virginia Straight Bourbon Whiskey Single Barrel

PROOF: 86 DISTILLERY: BRECKENRIDGE LOCATION: Breckenridge, CO

PROOF: 100 DISTILLERY: A. SMITH BOWMAN LOCATION: Fredericksburg, VA

Deep honey-amber hue with warm, pronounced aromas of under-ripe banana and brown sugar, with spicy notes of white pepper and toasted sesame. Light body with warm texture and long sweet oak, vanilla finish with a touch of bitterness to balance. Reminiscent of a slice of toasted rye bread with honey drizzled on it.

Hailing from A. Smith Bowman Distillery—Virginia’s oldest and most award-winning distillery —John. J. Bowman Bourbon is hand-selected from some of the oldest barrels in the warehouse to produce a single barrel bourbon with hints of toffee, leather, figs, and almonds. John. J. Bowman was awarded World’s Best Bourbon in 2017.

Bootjack Rye Whiskey

Catoctin Creek Roundstone Rye Distiller’s Edition 92 Proof

PROOF: 90 DISTILLERY: MCCLINTOCK DISTILLING LOCATION: Frederick, MD This traditional, Maryland-Style High Rye Whiskey is made from non-gmo heirloom grains and milled in house with traditional stone-milling techniques. Recently awarded a double gold at the International SIP Awards, this whiskey has a beautifully rich complexity with notes of cherry and black pepper with a buttery smooth finish.

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PROOF: 92 DISTILLERY: CATOCTIN CREEK DISTILLING CO. LOCATION: Purcellville, VA A culmination of several years of planning, Catoctin Creek’s Roundstone Rye 92 Proof “Distiller’s Edition” is hand-selected whisky from one in every ten barrels.

Specially curated for flavor, it shows a spicier rye profile at a higher proof (think cloves, cinnamon, black pepper), while still being remarkably smooth.

Doc Porter's Bourbon

Prelude: Courage & Conviction

PROOF: 90 DISTILLERY: DOC PORTER'S DISTILLERY LOCATION: Charlotte, NC

PROOF: 92 DISTILLERY: VIRGINIA DISTILLERY COMPANY LOCATION: Lovingston, Virginia

Doc Porter's Bourbon is hand-crafted in Charlotte, North Carolina by true artisans who care about quality, sustainability and supporting local farmers. Doc's Bourbon is a high wheat blend with a mash bill of 60% corn, 30% wheat, 10% malted barley.

This limited-edition whisky is a sneak peek into the new American Single Malt line, Courage & Conviction.

Prelude: Courage & Conviction is made from 100% malted barley and aged a minimum of three years in Sherry, Cuvée and Bourbon Casks. The combination of these results in notes of caramel, butterscotch, fig, barrel spice and dark red fruit. Available now in Virginia ABC stores.

THE VIRGINIA SPORTSMAN | WINTER 2019

PHOTO BY ADAM JAIME

SP E C I AL A DV ERT I S I N G S E C T I ON

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The Winter 2019 Issue | THE SOUND

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THE VIRGINIA SPORTSMAN | WINTER 2019

HOME SWEET HOME OLD CROW MEDICINE SHOW RETURN TO NASHVILLE’S RYMAN AUDITORIUM FOR NEW LIVE ALBUM

BY JEDD FERRIS

“IT ALWAYS SOUNDS A LITTLE SWEETER AT THE Ryman Auditorium!” Old Crow Medicine Show leader Ketch Secor makes this exuberant declaration just before launching into the opening lines of his longstanding band’s ubiquitous hit “Wagon Wheel.” It’s one of the many highenergy moments on the Grammy-winning old-time revivalist group’s new concert album, Live at the Ryman, a culled documentation of Old Crow’s many performances at the historic Nashville venue.

The band has performed at the Ryman—the former home of the Grand Ole Opry, still known as the “Mother Church of Country Music”—more than 40 times, delivering particularly beloved annual New Year’s Eve shows at the venerable hall since 2009. That’s quite an accomplishment for the mainstay Americana act (now members of the Grand Ole Opry), who started from humble beginnings busking on street corners and eventually building a loyal fan base by relentlessly touring with a fiery brand of string-band music.

Old Crow founders Secor and Critter Fuqua both hail from Harrisonburg, Va., and grew up learning old-time tunes in the surrounding Shenandoah Valley. As a teenager Secor wrote “Wagon Wheel” by adding verses to a leftover Bob Dylan chorus. The wanderer’s anthem came out on Old Crow’s 2004 debut album O.C.M.S., and was later made a chart-topping country song by Darius Rucker.

On Live at the Ryman, the Old Crow members also run through other staples from their six studio records, including “Tell It to Me” and “Brushy Mountain Conjugal Trailer.” While maintaining raw verve, the familiar cuts now have a fuller sound, showcasing the group’s growth to larger stages necessitating the additions of drums and piano.

The live set also features a few special guests: Lee Oskar adds harmonica to the blues chestnut “CC Rider” and dynamic vocalist and singer-songwriter Margo Price duets with Secor during a hopping run through “Louisiana Woman, Mississippi Man,” made famous in the early 70s by Loretta Lynn and Conway Twitty. The album ends with a celebratory take on the early country standard “Will the Circle Be Unbroken,” an appropriate choice for a band authentically

carrying traditional sounds forward.

Old Crow Medicine Show return to the Ryman Auditorium for two shows with UK country-soul singer Yola on December 30 and 31.

3 MORE RYMAN CONCERT ALBUMS Jason Isbell & the 400 Unit LIVE AT THE RYMAN The Americana star and his rock-driven backing band hold court at the Ryman for a multi-night (seven in 2019) stand every year. This record released last year pulls together great moments from the 2017 run, featuring 13 tracks highlighted by scorching, guitar-heavy versions of “Hope the High Road” and “Cumberland Gap,” both found on Isbell’s latest studio album, The Nashville Sound. The singer-songwriter also showcases his pensive side with a poignant version of the mortality meditation, “If We Were Vampires.”

Levon Helm RAMBLE AT THE RYMAN The late Levon Helm, legendary drummer and singer for the Band, spent the end of his career focused on his Midnight Rambles—roots-driven revues hosted at his intimate barn in Woodstock, N.Y. He also occasionally took the show on the road, stopping at the Ryman in 2008 for a night that included plenty of Band classics, including “Ophelia,” “Rag Mama Rag” and “The Weight.” Released in 2011, Ramble at the Ryman highlights the best of the evening, which featured a huge roster of guests: Sheryl Crow, Billy Bob Thornton, John Hiatt and Buddy Miller, among others.

Emmylou Harris and the Nash Ramblers AT THE RYMAN After the Grand Ole Opry left the Ryman in 1974, the hallowed venue sat mostly dormant for nearly two decades.

The room’s revival was assisted by country singer Emmylou Harris and her band the Nash Ramblers, who played a three-night run at the Ryman in 1991 and released this live album of highlights in 1992. The dynamic effort features Harris and her honeyed voice covering everything from bluegrass standards to takes on Steve Earle’s “Guitar Town” and Bruce Springsteen’s “Mansion on the Hill.” The Ryman underwent extensive renovations the following year, and Harris returned to celebrate At the Ryman’s 25th anniversary with a full run through the album at the venue in 2017.

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The Winter 2019 Issue | OPEN SPACES

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THE VIRGINIA SPORTSMAN | WINTER 2019

CAST AGAIN A Tribute to Orri Vigfússon, The Greatest Friend Wild Atlantic Salmon Could Ever Have

BY ERIC KALLEN “PICK IT UP AND CAST AGAIN,” SAID ELVAR Fridriksson, eyes focused on the eddying river. My guide spoke firmly; his instruction cut through the wind.

Absent from his tone was the frustration I felt from stripping my fly and recasting the stout seven-weight, single-handed rod for what seemed like the hundredth time. Fridriksson was patient as only one could be who spent most of his life fishing and guiding Icelandic rivers abundant with North Atlantic salmon.

Our day on the West Coast of the Nordic island nation began with calm winds, bluebird skies and unseasonably warm temperatures. As the morning progressed, however, a cold front produced heavy rains and raging wind. The change made it perfect weather for salmon fishing but challenging for a burgeoning salmon fisherman like me.

This wasn’t my first trip to Iceland, nor was it my first attempt at salmon fishing. (I wrote about my travels there in the Spring 2018 issue of this publication.) My experiences pursuing this amazing fish reinforced my desire to transform myself into a salmon fisherman—and not just an angler fishing for salmon.

“Your cast must be perfect,” insisted Fridriksson, clearly sensing my frustration after another errant cast.

“These fish aren’t eating, they strike for reasons that aren’t completely known, but you need to work the water in a systematic manner and ultimately get the fly right where they can see it. You need to make them angry.”

Standing in the unspoiled, icy reaches of the Haffjarðará River, I was moved by the beauty of the surroundings and reminded of the importance of our natural environment. The Haffjarðará also happens to be one of Iceland’s most prolific salmon fisheries.

Originating at Lake Oddastaðavatn and running south to the sea, the Haffjarðará meanders through lava fields, desolate stretches and dramatic outcrops. It has been a fly-only river for decades and is extremely well

ORRI VIGFÚSSON DREW ON HIS BUSINESS AC U M E N , N E G OT I AT I N G S K I L L S A N D FIRSTHAND KNOWLEDGE OF THE FISHING I N D U S T R Y T O P R E V E N T T H E S E E M I N G LY I N E V I TA B L E D E S T R U C T I O N O F T H E W I L D N O R T H AT L A N T I C S A L M O N P O P U L AT I O N S .

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managed; its annual catch numbers (during the last five years averaging nearly 1,600 salmon caught on three beats) prove the effectiveness of catch and release.

I am grateful to my friend Chad Pike for giving me the opportunity to fish the Haffjarðará. Pike is an expert fly fisherman and conservationist. He and his wife Blake are the driving force behind Eleven Experience, an adventure travel company with 10 properties around the globe customized for a variety of pursuits. Conde Nast Traveler recently named Pike one of 48 people changing the way we travel.

Pike is passionate about salmon fishing. He invited me to fish with him and his approach was direct and accurate: “You need to meet me in Iceland so we can fish the salmon-fishing equivalent of the Augusta National. When you return to the States, you’re never going to want to fish your dinky East Coast trout streams ever again.”

Iceland’s damp weather delivers plenty of rainfall and hundreds of glacial rivers rich in nutrients flow fast through the lowlands to the North Atlantic Ocean. It’s no wonder Pike loves to fish there and established an Eleven Experience resort with local guides so others can 64

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D E C L I N I N G N O R T H AT L A N T I C S A L M O N P O P U L AT I O N S A R E A P R O B L E M I N B OT H N O R T H A M E R I C A A N D E U R O P E . P H OTO BY: THE ELEVEN EXPERIENCE

enjoy his passion. I certainly did and am now fascinated by these wonderful fish.

Atlantic salmon are known as the “King of Fish” and are anadromous—they can live in fresh and salt water.

Their lives begin with spawning, hatching from eggs laid on the gravel bottoms of cold-water streams and rivers in Europe and North America. Called “smolts” during their three to four years of juvenile rearing, the fish undergo physical and behavioral transformations as they prepare for their journey to the ocean.

Striped flanks morph to a silver sheen as salmon adapt to their new oceanic environs. Fish that survive the perilous journey inhabit the North Atlantic for one to three years as they eat and grow into adulthood.

Subsequently, innate homing instincts drive the fish back to the fresh waters of their birth to spawn, completing the circle of life.

Sadly, finding fertile salmon rivers has become increasingly difficult as more and more these prehistoric fish succumb to natural and man-made threats. Dams block access to quality habitat. Ongoing subsistence fisheries off Greenland complicate matters. Changing sea and climate conditions exacerbate their plight.

Poor water quality is a new reality; degraded freshwater habitats from land use practices also threaten populations. In addition, disease, predation from introduced and invasive species and interbreeding with fish raised on farms for commercial aquaculture have impacted healthy populations.

“Experts estimated the North Atlantic salmon population to be nearly 10 million in the 1970s,” Fridriksson said. “Today, the estimates I’m aware of claim the numbers to be three million and declining.”

Aquaculture, over-harvesting and climate change are real threats that put these fish at risk for extinction.

Some of these threats are environmental, while others are caused by humans.

“Salmon are an indicator species,” said Kateryna Rakowsky, who, along with Pike, sits on the board of the U.S. arm of the non-profit North Atlantic Salmon Fund

AN ANGLER CASTS FOR SALMON ON ONE OF ICELAND’S PRISTINE SALMON RIVERS, WHICH A R E U N D E R T H R E AT F R O M N E W L E G I S L AT I O N ALLOWING OPENNET FISH FARMING. PHOTO BY THE ELEVEN EXPERIENCE

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A NEW THREAT: OPEN-NET SALMON FARMS

U N T I L H I S D E AT H , ORRI VIGFÚSSON MADE TREMENDOUS STRIDES IN HELPING STOP THE DESTRUCTION OF W I L D N O R T H AT L A N T I C SALMON. PHOTO C R E D I T: T H E E L E V E N EXPERIENCE

(NASF). “Their health is a direct reflection on the health of the entire ecosystem.”

Only a small number of salmon become adults; some estimates report two fish reach adulthood from 8,000 eggs. Salmon must navigate fresh and salt water during a 2,000-mile journey from birth rivers to the sea.

These fish are constantly under attack—from the feeding grounds off the coast of Labrador, to the West Coast of Greenland and the Faroe Islands. Common predators include larger fish—sharks, bluefin tuna, toothed whales and seals—birds and mammals.

Genetics play a key role in salmon survival. The fish swim fast, dive to depths of more than three thousand feet and can jump 12 feet out of the water.

Salmon have survived natural and human threats for millennia and have inhabited more than 2,000 rivers in Europe and North America. The picture is bleaker today.

Faced with habitat degradation caused by commercial overharvesting and now global warming, salmon populations are at risk everywhere and the fish is now listed as an endangered species. But there is hope, thanks to the creative efforts of a salmon fisherman in Iceland.

Orri Vigfússon was an entrepreneur, outdoorsman and conservationist who took a different approach to save salmon. A man of action, Vigfússon recognized the pressures placed on salmon and understood commercial fishing operations in the North Atlantic were not sustainable. He also understood people and their livelihoods: hundreds of thousands of salmon were harvested each year by Greenlandic fisherman who needed to feed their families. Using the skills he developed over a lifetime as a businessman, Vigfússon went directly to the commercial fishermen. His approach centered around putting market forces to work for, and not against, conservation.

“I am a new kind of environmentalist,” Vigfússon 66

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said. “I don’t take the moral high ground. I sit down with people and say, ‘Let’s make a deal.’ I simply want to make a deal that’s good for them, good for us and good for salmon. We all come out as winners.”

Vigfússon formed the NASF in Iceland in 1989 and raised more than $35 million to purchase commercial netting rights in the North Atlantic Ocean. This quota buyout paid fisherman not to fish and supported related economic and social issues in the region. The efforts of the NASF have dramatically increased salmon stocks in numerous countries. The non-profit estimates commercial open-sea salmon fishing in the North Atlantic has dropped by more than 75 percent in the last 15 years.

Sadly, Vigfússon died in 2017, after fighting tirelessly for salmon for more than 27 years. He was named Time’s “European Hero” among other notable tributes. One rang particularly true: “[Vigfússon was] “the greatest friend wild Atlantic salmon could ever have. Every time we in the future see a leaping salmon, we will bow our heads in memory and respect of the great man, friend and bridge builder, Orri Vigfússon.”

As I stood in the swift-moving waters of the Haffjarðará, with only my waders protecting me from the cold, I felt fortunate to fish for this ancient species in such a pristine environment. I surveyed barren Icelandic landscape, harsh volcanic peaks and snowcovered mountains in the distance. It was not difficult to understand why this river was Vigfússon’s favorite—and with a tug at my fly—why the salmon was so special to him.

Learn more at the Northatlanticsalmonfund.org.

Eric Kallen is an avid sportsman who spends his time between homes in Charlottesville, Virginia, the mountains of western North Carolina and the shores of Mobile Bay, Alabama.

The challenges that salmon face are real and growing exponentially from changes that humans force on the environment. These ancient fish struggle to adapt, as they have done since the ice age, and a new threat has arrived: aquaculture’s open-net pen salmon farms that are run by commercial enterprises in the open ocean.

While salmon are confined inside circular nets, the “cages” may hold hundreds of thousands of fish with feed, excrement, antibiotics and other chemicals that settle to the seabed and pollute native waters. These conditions are ideal breeding grounds for sea lice, which attach to farmed fish and multiply in large numbers. Sea lice often attach to young and vulnerable smolts on their way to the ocean. These parasites feast on the salmons’ mucus and skin before feasting on muscle and fat, which can be lethal for the fish.

Conservationists are concerned these farmed salmon escape and breed with wild stocks, which contributes to the decline of the species.

“Farmed salmon is just like a domesticated animal—it has been bred, genetically modified or enhanced to grow quickly, similar to how a chicken is farmed,” said Iceland’s North Atlantic Salmon Fund (NASF) Chairman Frid Gudmundsson. “A farmed chicken will not survive very well if it escapes because it cannot adopt to the wild. The same can be said about farmed salmon.”

As pressure increases in places like Iceland to open fjords to commercial fish farming, conservation organizations such as NASF and the Icelandic Wildlife Fund (IWF) are raising the alarm and working with communities, industry and government to craft solutions. One approach is to encourage consumers to avoid eating salmon raised in these open-containment environments and instead ask for sustainably caught wild salmon or salmon farmed in closed-pen, landbased farms.

Yvon Chouinard, Patagonia founder and producer of the documentary “Artifishal,” which addresses the financial, environmental and cultural costs of fish hatcheries and farms, said it best: “If we value wild salmon, we need to do something now. A life without wild nature and a life without these great, iconic species is an impoverished life. If we lose all wild species, we’re going to lose ourselves.”

LEARN MORE AT NORTHATLANTICSALMONFUND.ORG AND AT PATAGONIA.COM.

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SHIFFLETTS MILL ROAD • $295,000 The approach to this remarkable estate parcel is via a lovely country road that meanders along the banks of beautiful Buck Mountain Creek. The land includes bottom land along both sides of this creek as well as a tributary. The magnificent, elevated, protected and private building site overlooks pristine farmland and incredible, close-in Blue Ridge Mountain views. In what is still a truly rural, and stunningly beautiful pocket of Albemarle County, this tract offers the opportunity to create a remarkable estate or retreat property. 25 minutes from Charlottesville, Shiffletts Mill Road is already home to many understated, multi-million dollar properties. MLS# 592054

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