Saturday, January 30, 2010

Rhody Flat-Wing

I found another relic recently, mixed in with some of my fly tying materials. It's a fly packaging card from Narragansett Bay Flies that I think I picked up years ago at The Saltwater Edge when it was on Thames St. in Newport, RI. I'm sure the fly associated with this particular packaging has long since been buried at sea but the card managed to survive. Now it serves as blog content. The late Bill Peabody is credited with being the creator of this productive pattern. Watch this 8 and 1/2 minute video and Capt. Corey Pietraszek will guide you through tying this Rhode Island classic.



Photos by Steve Stracqualursi

Monday, January 25, 2010

Fifty Minute Hour

Fifty Minute Hour

I wanted to know as I opened the door,
Am I not your most interesting patient?
The most intelligent, sensitive, delightfully screwed-up
person to ever lie across your couch?

Are you just a little bit envious when I tell you
about the biggest trout I ever caught in the
Colorado mountains.

The reason I ask is that scrawny specimen
of a stuffed rainbow trout hanging on your office wall.

And the way you keep asking me about flies
I used – the size and color and “How remarkable:
you tied them yourself?”

Or is this just one of those tricks shrinks use
to get someone to open up?
If it is, I don’t think it’s working.
I’m not opening up. Am I?

Every time I come here we seem to talk
about fly fishing, all the places I’ve been:
Alaska, Montana, Colorado, California, Maine.

And I see you taking notes.
Just what are you writing down?

It feels odd at the end of the hour,
the check I write and that cocky look in your eye
as you say, “See you next week, same time.”

Poem by Alan Harawitz Illustration by El Pescador

Tuesday, January 19, 2010

Swimming

Frozen water flowed from the winter sky on MLK Day while my copper fish wind chimes kept swimming against a steady current.

Photo by Steve Stracqualursi

Saturday, January 16, 2010

Ed Muzeroll

Maine fly tyer Ed "Muzzy" Muzeroll's atlantic salmon fly patterns belong in a class of their own. Their beauty along with the fine motor skills and material knowledge required to produce them never ceases to amaze angler and nonangler alike. Here is a shot of Ed's pattern called Treasure Island taken by Maine photographer Chris Bolduc. Check out this SLIDESHOW to see Chris's photo collection of Ed's flies and visit Muzzy's Flies to learn more from the master.

Photo by Chris Bolduc

Sunday, January 10, 2010

National Saltwater Angling Registry

Saltwater recreational fishermen have long expressed concerns about the data used to estimate the effects of recreational fishing on ocean resources and the nation’s economy. The National Saltwater Angler Registry, which launched on January 1st, is designed to help address that concern by providing a comprehensive list of the nation’s saltwater anglers that will be used to improve surveys of fishermen. These surveys are used by NOAA scientists to assess the health of fish stocks and to estimate the economic contributions of anglers. Many saltwater recreational fishermen will be required to register before fishing in 2010 but if you have a state saltwater fishing license, you may already be part of the registry.

Who Needs to Register?

Recreational saltwater fishermen will need to register if they:

• Hold a license from one of 10 coastal states or territories which do not currently have comprehensive saltwater angler license or registration requirements—Hawaii, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New Hampshire, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, Virginia, and the U.S. Virgin Islands
• Fish for or are likely to catch anadromous species in tidal and salt waters; these are fish like river herring, shad, smelt and striped bass that live in the oceans but spawn in fresh water
• Fish in the federal waters more than three miles from the ocean shore or from the mouths of rivers or bays

Who Doesn’t Need to Register?

Some anglers don’t have to register if they:

• Hold a license from one of 15 coastal states with comprehensive licensing or registration — Alabama, Alaska, California, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, South Carolina, Texas, Washington
• Are not required under state law in one of these 15 states to hold a fishing license as is sometimes the case with seniors or active-duty military
• Are under age 16
• Pay to fish on licensed charter, party or guide boats
• Hold a Highly Migratory Species Angling permit or subsistence fishing permit
• Fish commercially under a valid license

National Saltwater Angler registration is free in 2010. To register, anglers can visit http://www.countmyfish.noaa.gov and click on the Angler Registry link, or call the toll-free registration line at 1-888-MRIP411 (1-888-674-7411) from 4:00 am to 12 midnight EST daily. Anglers are asked to provide their name, date of birth, address and telephone number, and receive a temporary registration number that will allow you to begin fishing immediately. You should receive a confirmation email within minutes and your official registration card by mail in about 30 days.

Steve Medeiros, executive director of the Rhode Island Saltwater Anglers Association and a leading advocate for a saltwater fishing license in his state, said the registry is an important step. “While it’s true that some fishermen don’t like the idea of having to register to participate in a sport they’ve taken for granted their whole lives, anyone fishing today knows that increasing pressures on the ocean are having a real effect,” he said. “If we’re going to pass the sport down to our children and grandchildren, we’re going to need sound management based on good data.”

The registry will be used as the basis for conducting surveys of saltwater recreational fishermen to find out how often they fish. It will eventually replace the use of random-digit dialing to coastal households, a system NOAA has had in place since the 1970s. The goal is to improve survey efficiency and reduce bias by making calls only to homes where people fish, and reaching saltwater anglers who live outside coastal counties.

While the registry is among the most visible aspects of NOAA’s Marine Recreational Information Program, it is only one component of this rigorous multi-year, multi-phased overhaul of the system NOAA uses to collect and report recreational fishing data. Each piece of its design and implementation has been guided by close working relationships among NOAA personnel, fisheries managers, state partners, independent scientists and the recreational fishing community. NOAA press release 12/29/09

Photos by Steve Stracqualursi

Friday, January 8, 2010

Reels and Reptiles

It was almost a year ago when Way Upstream exhibited a series of snake photographs taken by angler, artist and fly designer Tim Borski. Since then Tim has sent me a small collection of elongate legless carnivorous reptile images to share with the blog community. Here are two of them (top: juvenile water moccasin, bottom: eastern diamond back rattler). Tim has been creating some paintings of snakes in addition to his fish, bird and butterfly subject matter. Visit Tim's website to see what he has been up to and check out his photo gallery for more pictures.


Photos by Tim Borski

Wednesday, January 6, 2010

River on the Rebound



This Androscoggin River segment is from the film ExNE, produced by Gray Ghost Productions LLC. It's an 8 minute piece which chronicles a river born pure that gets infected by industrialization and then is nurtured back to a healthy set of vital signs. There are back stories of trophy fish, angling mentors and heroes combined with the authentic character of Maine.

Monday, January 4, 2010

Fly Fishing Film Tour 2010

The 2010 Fly Fishing Film Tour officially kicks off Tuesday January 26th at the Patagonia store in Ventura, CA and will continue across the country throughout the year. Approximately 70 dates are locked and loaded. Tickets are available online now. Unfortunately the only East Coast stops on the schedule at this point are in S. Carolina and Florida. If there are any independent promoters out there in the online community looking to step up and sponsor a New England date please Rise.