Tight Lines - April 2017 The Monthly Newsletter of the Red Tag Fly Fishers Club.

TROPHY TROUT WEEKEND IN NEW ZEALAND -from Peter Coles.

The first weekend of February saw myself and a work colleague (Eric) take up the challenge of fly fishing the Canterbury area of New Zealand out of Christchurch.

Ben Haywood of Braided Rivers Fishing Guides was our guide for this trip which was in fact my first ever guided fly fishing trip:

http://salmonfishingguide.co.nz/

Ben is a master at the top of his game, and I cannot recommend him highly enough for this type of fishing. Mostly a Salmon fisher, Ben is also an excellent trout fly fishing guide who lives and breathes fly fishing, guiding nearly every day during the season.

Eric with a superb Rainbow from the Broken River, just

under 5lbs Day 1: Opihi River. -44.248266, 171.137927 Up at 4.30am for a dawn start on this lowlands river near Temuka south of Christchurch. Ben’s method was to focus on a double nymph set up under a strike indicator. Long 12-14ft leaders, Fluorocarbon tippet, and tiny 14-16 size bead head nymphs were the order of the day in the gin clear water. It took some skill to cast such a long leader with the 5 weight Sage rod Ben supplied.

This was brown trout water. The aim was for Ben to sight every fish and guide the casting angler to the target.

Eric landed the first 2 fish in the first hour, small Browns of about 1 pound much to Ben’s dismay as we were targeting much bigger fish. From then on for nearly 8 hours we cast to magnificent trophy brown trout with multiple changes of fly, both dry and nymph and every fish passed up what was on offer. After many long hours of walking, I managed to blind cast a small trout on dry fly (blowfly humpy) literally right next to the car in the last 20 minutes of the day, relieved to avoid the dreaded doughnut (zero fish)

Dejected we were glad we had another day up our sleeves.

Day 2: Broken River. -43.189086, 171.834981

Dawn, and the Winding creek, a crystal-clear spring stream

named for obvious reasons, Flock Hill Station A long drive into the mountains towards Arthur’s Pass saw us at Flock Hill station nestled between 2 magnificent mountain ranges. After a long rough 4WD trek through the property we parked on the top of a steep valley. To our left the Winding River, a beautiful NZ spring creek, and to our right the Broken River, home to some big rainbow trout and the start of a gruelling climb down carrying packs and fishing gear.

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Eric landed the first, about 1.5 lb trying for a bigger fish. It took me a while to get the hang of the subtle nymph bite these big fish have. 1 missed on nymph and one on dry, I was a bit down on myself. Then the action started.

The famous NZ dry fly, the Blowfly Humpy On a blowfly humpy dry fly I hooked up to a monster that immediately leapt into the air becoming fully airborne. Heart pounding the fight began. These fish are large but not huge, but wild fit rainbow trout are a force to be reckoned with. The fight typically was in the pool, but as it became tired would then use the power of the water to head downstream over the next rapids. This is where you simply need to run downstream with the fish as you have no chance of holding it with 7lb tippet. Lost this guy in the next rapids down because I stood on my fly line (another rookie mistake).

The prize! 4lb rainbow from the Broken Eric and I took turns to land fish after fish, pool after pool. 2 rods, 1 rigged with the humpy and the other a double nymph, the indicator adjusted to the depth of the pool.

The call was up to Ben as to which method to fish each pool. If the dry was unsuccessful then the nymph was tried. Interestingly there was no change of fly pattern. Any fish not interested we would not spend time changing pattern as the next pool was bound to hold more eager fish. My tally was 4 fish, 2 lost, 2 misses. 2 at 3lb, 1 at 3.5lb and 1 at above 4lb on dry fly (my personal highlight).

That’s more like it! 3.5lb rainbow, Broken River on nymph, Ben looking more like a photo ninja.

After the long and totally exhausting walk up to the car, there was a great sense of fulfilment that I had just had my best day’s fly fishing ever

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CICADA TIME ON THE SOUTH ISLAND -thankyou Peter Jamvold.

…seems like everyone was on New Zealand’s South Island.

Len, Vinny and I had planned the trip for a few months. Fly into Christchurch, rent a car and spend two weeks fishing for elusive trout in leading South Island trout streams and lakes.

The trip was planned for February to coincide, we hoped, with cicada season when spotted behemoths are reported to smash cicada flies without a second’s hesitation.

The trip was as good as we had hoped, except for the cicadas being mainly a no-show. We had no specific program, covered much of the South Island downhill from Christchurch, caught a fair number of fish - mostly rainbows and mostly in excellent condition at around 3-4 lbs – and enjoyed surprisingly good weather, excellent mountain scenery and warm local hospitality.

We started fishing around Twizel and Omarama. After exploring there, we checked out the Mataura River near its headwaters close to Fairlight, south of Lake

Wakatipu, followed the river down to Gore and eventually fished the evening rise between Gore and Wyndham. There were rises, which we covered with dries, but the fish were well-educated and fussy. Except for one splashy strike, we were left to practise our casting in pleasant surroundings.

From Gore, we crossed to Te Anau, from where we spent a couple of enjoyable days on the Whitestone River.

The key to success here was extended bush bashing into the better pools. An aggressive farmer made certain that easy access along his farm roads was not an option, a factor that kept fishing pressure to a minimum.

Ahuriri Delta Country

Water levels in the Whitestone were lower than we had remembered, with the trout lying mainly in predictable locations in holes alongside large rocks and below cliff faces. The fish, which took both smaller dries and nymphs, were in excellent condition. The open nature of the farm land alongside the stream made for easy and very pleasant casting. Warm weather and the low water levels were perfect for the high fashion practice of wet wading. There are no snakes in New Zealand, but we still had to constantly remind ourselves of that fact as we walked through thick grass alongside the river with only boots and thermals to protect our legs. Clearly, the threat of snakes lies deep in the Australian psyche.

One deficit in our planning that became apparent on the Whitestone was a lack of any means of practical communication between the three of us when we were spread out over a kilometre or more fishing individually up and down the stream. The answer, for our next trip, is hand-held UHF radios, which would enable us to coordinate activities and, importantly, help if anyone were injured as we fished alone.

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From Te Anau we wandered slowly back towards Omarama and Twizel. Our last couple of days were based in Kurow and spent in the “delta” area where the mighty Ahuriri River runs into Lake Benmore. Like the Whitestone, the delta also involves a decent walk in from the closest car parking spot. Unlike the Whitestone, however, there is no aggressive farmer on guard, so the area is heavily fished. But, with the delta running out into Lake Benmore, there is always a steady recruitment of decent fish from the lake into the delta river system.

Early in the mornings, with the sun in the east, the delta provides excellent sight fishing with numbers of trout visible at most times in the clear waters of the lake. Later in the day, when visibility declines, the various arms of the Ahuriri, particularly the faster, deeper water around stream bends, provided excellent fishing with a small, brown, weighted nymph under an indicator.

Kurow revealed another surprise for us. The Kurow pub, painted unashamedly bright yellow and blue to reflect local football club colours, sported the biggest, juiciest, tastiest steaks we came across in New Zealand.

On our first night in town we ordered a steak each, which was a big mistake because even Vinny could not finish his. On our second night we were more cagey, and ordered one steak and three plates … and offered a freshly caught rainbow to the lady behind the bar in compensation. The staff were very understanding and generous towards us poor, aged Aussies!

At the beginning and end of the trip, we stayed in pre-booked cabins but otherwise slept in our own back packing tents in caravan parks. As things turned out, especially with the weather being so kind, taking our tents and sleeping bags was an excellent precaution because we had no fixed plan and, without exception, cabins in the camping grounds were booked out when we arrived. For the most part, camp kitchens, showers and toilets were clean, had plenty of hot water and were easy to access.

Because we were able to use our own tents and sleeping gear and had a good idea where to fish, the two week trip was remarkably cheap. Air fares, hire car fee and daily costs (fuel, food, beer) together totalled around $2,000 (AUD) per person, a reasonably small amount to pay for two weeks spent on some of the world’s best fly fishing waters.

The limiting factor, of course, is knowing where to fish. We were fortunate because both Len and Vin had fished through the area a number of times before, so we had a good idea where to go and where to explore. For those without this knowledge, one answer is local guides who, though expensive, will put clients onto fish. Otherwise, a number of fly fishing equipment retailers in Melbourne promote well-planned fishing trips to New Zealand and other locations.

Although we scarcely saw a cicada, the fishing on the South Island was excellent though challenging, the scenery spectacular and the company terrific. Even the local steaks were something to write home about.

10 N.Z. TRAVEL TIPS

1. Make sure you carry a current passport. 2. Decide the time of year and location/s of your

visit, eg North or South Island. Then, with a date in mind, you can make significant savings on air fares by listing with the air lines, most of which have a monthly special. On our trip we saved over 25%. On other occasions savings have been over 45%.

3. Local fishing information can be found by talking with other guests in communal camp kitchens of camping and caravan parks. Useful information is sometimes also freely available at sporting goods stores.

4. While camp kitchens are well catered for, it is still advisable to have your own knife, fork, spoon, mug and bowl. On this trip we bought a filleting knife and some wasabi and soy sauce on arrival and enjoyed fresh sashimi a number of times.

5. If practicable, ask permission before passing through famers’ paddocks.

6. Be prepared to walk reasonable distances from easy access points if you want to access water with lesser angling pressure.

7. On arrival in New Zealand, buy a small, cheap,

flexible plastic tub (hardware stores have them), not only to store wet waders and boots when travelling between fishing locations, but also in which to wash wet fishing gear to stop the spread of Didymo, a nasty water born organism that contaminates many trout streams and lakes on the South Island.

8. Your fishing and any camping gear will be checked by New Zealand Customs on arrival, so have it properly cleaned and dry before arrival to avoid unnecessary delays. Serious fines can result for failing to declare this type of gear.

9. The best tip we can give you is to travel as lightly as possible. If you’re not sure you need it, don't bring it. A full range of fishing and camping gear is available in New Zealand if you find you are missing something absolutely essential.

10. The local beer is quite drinkable.

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HELPING OUR WILD TROUT IN HOT WEATHER

Key facts and handy hints to ensure you are playing your part in safeguarding Victoria’s trout

population. VRFish young, future leaders have created a poster on the effects of hot weather on wild trout populations and how anglers can help them to survive and thrive. The poster contains handy hints and key facts on increasing your chances of success whilst also protecting our wild trout from the effects of extreme summer heat.

Measure the water temperature. 12-14 degrees Celsius – Optimal growth conditions. Trout will be actively feeding. 19 degrees Celsius – Growth ceases and trout become stressed. Greater than 24 degrees Celsius – Trout are extremely stressed and potentially lethal. Avoid fishing.

Rest your river. Limit your fishing between the hours of sunrise and 11am whilst the water is still cool and the trout are not under stress. As the water temperature increases above 19 degrees Celsius during the day, trout will cease feeding and find shelter in cooler water patches. By fishing during the cooler periods, you will greatly increase your chance of success. You will also be giving the fish the best possible chance of survival if practicing catch and release.

Keep them wet and use a net. Minimize handling of the trout and use a net. Using a landing net will allow you to keep the fish wet whilst unhooking. This gives the fish the greatest possible chance of survival in extreme heat if practicing catch and release. The effects of climate change will continue to have negative impacts on our trout streams into the future. You can help minimize this by supporting river restoration projects that increase trout habitat and restore riparian zones. By following these simple guidelines you can help to ensure Victoria’s trout fishery is thriving for years to come. VRFish would like to thank the young future leaders for their work in creating this poster and the ATF for supporting their work.

http://www.vrfish.com.au/trout

RED TAG LIBRARY - REMINDER

David Honeybone has volunteered to oversee the Red Tag Library. The majority of library books have been kept in a metal cabinet which is locked with only a few books on display. David has a background in library management and would like to promote the use of books to our members. He has recently reconciled the stock and found there are a few books, DVD’s and video tapes missing from the inventory of material. David will maintain a register and all borrowed items will have a maximum loan period of 1 month before being returned to the library. The club is also seeking a lockable glass book cabinet to display the books in the clubrooms. (see below). A spread sheet has been created and will be distributed to members during February. If members would like to donate material please contact David by email with a description of the material. If any member has Red Tag books, DVD’s or videos can you please return then or send an email to David at schpudd@hotmail.com There is an existing library register and the club will follow up those individuals who have not returned borrowed items.

Can you assist the Red Tag Library?

The club is seeking a lockable glass fronted cabinet to display the Red Tag library. The cabinet can be in any condition and be approximately 1800mm high and 1200 to 1800mm wide. The club is prepared to pay a reasonable price for such an item. If any member knows where the club may be able to obtain such an item please contact Bill Jackson on 0414.254.229 or email billjackson@bigpond.com.

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Library News David Honeybone

The club library has been transferred into two handsome glass-fronted wooden bookcases, a recent acquisition with huge thanks to Bill and Barney for the heavy lifting. The library is now much more visible and is designed to encourage folks to borrow books or DVDs (or videos if you still have the technology).

The bookcase on the right contains oversize books (denoted by the prefix F on the spine label).

As the collection increases in size I will look at re-arranging the shelves as required.

Hopefully the bookcases can be unlocked every club night so you can browse and borrow. There are plans to have a printed list of the full contents to refer to and made available online.

Borrowing procedure

Choose your books (max. 5)

Enter the necessary details into the loans book (located in the bookcase)

Return the books after a month or as close as possible. If you need it for longer then update the return date in the loans book or let Bill or I know.

This is all done on trust so please don’t abuse the system and that way everyone can access this great club resource.

Happy reading!

On the Web Jon Gamble

How many fly fishers tie their own leaders these days? I am one of them, I find it relaxing. One thing I do find a challenge about it though is getting my blood knots consistent. That was until I discovered this little trick.

The humble toothpick.

Ever since I introduced this little gem into my core fly fishing gear my blood knots have never looked better.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q-QGPzEKZKo

This guy claims to tie over 500,000 blood knots a year, so I reckon he is pretty well qualified on the subject.

For those that want to show off their fly tying skills on a world stage I found a cool little app called “Fly Flasher”. The app is free, and once you register you can get access to a worldwide community of fly tiers who are all interested in showing off their latest flies and ideas for fly tying. There are some amazing creations on there, beautiful photography, and some great ideas for flies to try.

As far as I can see it only runs on iOS (i.e. Apple iPhones). Search the App Store to find and download.

I also went searching for some details on an old fly called a Keam’s Poly Hopper. Some of the more experienced amongst us may well have fished these a number of years ago. A beautiful little hopper pattern which has legs made of raffia string and a particularly fancy deer hair collar, which is known as the Keam Collar. A tricky little bugger to tie right, by the way, at least it is for me.

In the seach I found an interesting site which provides a useful Victorian fly fishing calendar (of sorts).

https://flylife.com.au/library/articles/5/5.html

Worth having a look when you get a moment.

I hope you find the sites useful.

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HAIR

No not the musical By Rob @Troutlore

When I first started tying dry fly patterns, the materials really started to build up as they are fairly varied from those used in nymphs and wet flies. When it came to hair for wings, I was pretty content with a patch of Hare line deer hair in natural for stimulators and humpies and a patch of bleached elk hair for the classic Troth elk hair caddis. These did the job and catered to most of my needs for other hair applications like hoppers, crickets and dyrets. But, as time went on, you soon realise that here is a great big world of different hairs out there and many have been specially chosen to suit a specific purpose. Rather than struggle to us an okay hair for a certain task, my tying has been made easier and the result far better by taking the correct piece of hair for certain applications.

The most common I use is deer hair, but there are all numbers of deer hair grades and cuts and it is important to choose the right one for the task at hand. Factors that need to be taken into consideration are not only tip and body colour, but also fibre length, thickness and density, all of which affect how the hair sits on a fly when thread pressure is applied. Certain patterns call for a hair wing that flairs out and so a certain amount of compression is required within the hair fibre to achieve this. Others call for a close bunching of the hair and so a different cut of hair is needed.

When tying a stimulator pattern for instance, limited flaring is desirable, so that the hairs all fold back over the body with plenty of length. It is also nice to have a bold tip variation to the body of the hair for this pattern. That is why I found and now use Nature’s Spirit’s Stimulator Deer Hair. When stacked, the tips line up perfectly and present a very striking end to the wing. This works great on hopper patterns too when you want that colour variation that comes from the rear legs’ knee joints on the natural. The beauty of this hair is that you can stack long fibres and tie them in without too much flaring, so long wings on larger sized #10 and #8 stimulators are not a problem. And let’s face it, who doesn’t enjoy lobbing big guys like them in mountain streams during summer?

For humpy patterns, fibre length is an essential factor to tying ease. As you will run the hair up and down the body, first beneath the thread and then over it to form the ‘hump’, you want a hair that offer consistently long and even fibres, with little colour variation. This is found on the back hair of older deer and makes life so much easier when a patch offers consistent length, so there is no wastage when tying these patterns. Mule deer does work well, and it is a great all-rounder when you want a few different colours in your arsenal, but a humpy specific hair really stands out in this process.

The other end of the spectrum is when tying comparaduns. Length is not an issue, rather width. Because these patterns are usually tied on very small hook sizes, you need a very fine hair that will allow plenty of fibre tips to be used without too much build up. Of course, you also want a very soft compression of the fibres so that they flair when thread pressure is applied to create the desired wing effect. Most brands offer a comparadun specific deer hair and there is really no other substitute. You simply cannot tie a size 20 dun with stimulator hair; you’d only end up with three or four fibres before it was overloaded, heavy and looking nothing like the natural.

Of course, we cannot talk about hair without discussing spinning bodies. For crickets and hoppers, as well as Dahlberg divers and big bass bugs, you need a different hair yet again. I’ve said it before and I will say it countless times again no doubt, but nothing spins like deer belly hair.

Not only that, the lighter colour of the hair from beneath a deer, and the lack of prominent tip colours, means this hair can be dyed to achieve very clean, consistent and vibrant colours. It is very course and thick which is ideal for spinning as it flairs with ease and can be stacked up nice and close to create a very dense body mass. It’s always a messy job spinning bodies, especially when the trimming process gets going, but it is not until you start cutting it back that you realise how important it was to use deer belly for this task. Many other cuts of hair will not bunch up as close and offer the mass you get from belly hair when you crank down on the threads and need the hair to fold in on itself. When you take the blade in to trim the hair back, you want to see that solid bulk come through which will aid in floatation and fly body mass.

Of course, I could go on about this for hours, and have been known to at time, but it does need to be cut short at some point before all those reading fall asleep. A couple of things to remember in preparing your hair; it isn’t just about the right choice, but how you work with the hair too. Use an appropriately size hair stacker for the size of fibres your working with and don’t trim any off without an underfur brush handy. Your hair will not stack properly and you will be unable to get the tips aligned if the underfur is left on the hair. Brushing this out of the clump before you stack it will allow the fibres to shift into place in the stacker with ease. Three seconds of grooming a hair clump will save you five

Take the easy way … choose the right cut from the start

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minutes of banging the stacker against your forehead in frustration.

Happy Fly Tying Folks

Rob @ Troutlore.

Fly Tying Night April 12 @7:30pm

Griffith’s Gnat, Brown Nymph & Rusty Dun

Midges or gnats are the staple diet of most trout. These tiny insects are found on most rivers, lakes and streams. This popular fly pattern is used to imitate egg-laying adult midges and emerging midges.

George Griffith, one of the founding fathers of the American Trout Unlimited, created one of the most important midge dressings. The Griffith's Gnat is simple, no more than a peacock herl or dubbed body, overwound with grizzly hackle. The beauty of the fly is how it floats half in and half out of the surface film representing something stuck, trying to emerge from its shuck. After having had some coverage in the British and European fly fishing press it has now successfully crossed the Atlantic. These flies are very small having a black body and whitish wings. The small black midge (polypedilum nubeculosus) and similar species are common and widespread.

Hatches are normally during the evening and often prolific. In the late summer you may come across early morning hatches if the temperature is right. The larvae and pupae of these insects can be found in countless numbers in stagnant and stillwater. You will find them in rainwater butts as well as the margins of lakes, ponds and ox-bow sections of rivers. Although called a gnat it is a great all round dry fly, effective on lakes, reservoirs, rivers and streams. It can suggest all sorts of insects that are trapped in the surface film. It is also a useful representation of chrionomid midges in a mating ball floating down the river. The body is made of peacock

herl with a grizzle cock hackle wound around its length. To help it float and keep weight down to the minimum there is no ribbing.

Nymphs exist everywhere trout do, so it comes as no surprise that they are a major food item for our speckled friends in all parts of the world. The brown nymph is a generic nymph imitation that represents nymphs from all families of aquatic insects. Tied in a variety of sizes and colours, this pattern is an invaluable fly for the trout fisherman.

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The paradun is probably one of the most effective of all Dun patterns. Use it from seasons beginning to seasons end and find it would produce more fish than any other dry fly. The combination of a highly visible wing and low riding body is highly effective.

It represents various stages of the hatch and is therefore successful more often than a dedicated 'dun', 'emerger' or 'cripple' pattern as the trout can at times unnoticeably switch between these stages of emergence.

Use only a small amount of Hi-Vis as it is suggestive of the wing and needs the light sparkling through it to be at its best. Too much really negates the effectiveness of this material.

The club will ask a small fee of $2 per person attending fly tying night to cover materials. All equipment is provided but you are welcome to bring your own. Come along get some fur, foam and feathers stuck in your teeth.

Big thanks go to our newest sponsor Troutlore who have very kindly donated 5 packets of barbless hooks for our fly tyers.

Make sure you head to the troutlore.com.au site and checkout all of the high-quality fly tying materials, tools and other fly fishing gear. Great service and great advice.

Annual Dinner The Annual Red Tag Dinner will be held on Friday 23rd June in the restaurant area at the Studley Park Boathouse, 1 Boathouse Rd Kew. The club has had annual dinners at this venue for several years and it is always a fabulous night. The club will pick up the bar tab from 6.30pm to 7pm, so get there early to enjoy pre-dinner drinks. From 7pm drinks can be purchased from the bar. Cost for this gala event is $60 per head and spouse/partners/friends are encouraged to attend. Dress is neat casual.

On Arrival Chef’s selection of canapés

Followed by Mains served alternately • Seared aged eye fillet of beef with truffle mash

and butter beans with cab sav jus • Barramundi steak on kipfler potatoes and

chorizo with herb and caper butter Finished with desserts

Trio of desserts • Banoffee tarte • Chocolate truffle • Sticky date pudding

Coffee tea and petite fours Please advise if you require special dietary needs as the restaurant will be able to cater

HOW TO PAY EFT (Internet Banking) Account Name: Red Tag FLY Fishers

BSB: 633000

Account Number: 1302 65432

Message/Remitter name: Your Surname

CHEQUE (send to PO Box 5095 Alphington Vic 3078)

CASH (at activity meeting or ring Bill Jackson to pay on the night)

Coordinator is Bill Jackson (Treasurer) 0414.254.229

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New RedTag Events for 2017 April

Saturday 8 Club Cast - Australian Skish inc. Alex Cox Trophy Yarra Bend Pool 1.15 pm

Wednesday 12 Fly Tying Yarra Bend Club room 7.30 pm Fri — Mon 14—17 Easter 2016 Wednesday 19 Committee Meeting [4] Yarra Bend Clubroom 7.30 pm

Sat - Sun TBA One Week Mitta Mitta River (FISHING) Trip @ Mitta Mitta Magorra Caravan Park

Sunday 23 Northern Open Championships Yarrambat Pool 9.30 am Tuesday 25 ANZAC DAY Saturday 29 Club Championship (1 ) ICF Skish Yarra Bend Pool 1.15 pm May Wednesday 3 Activity Meeting (4) Yarra Bend Clubroom 7.30 pm Sunday 7 Brunn Shield Round (1) Australian Skish Yarra Bend Pool 9.30 am Wednesday 10 Fly Tying Yarra Bend Club room 7.30 pm Sat -Sun 13 -- 14 NSW State Championships TBA 9.30 am Sunday 14 Mother’s Day

Wednesday 17 Committee Meeting (5) Yarra Bend Clubroom 7.30 pm

Sunday 21 Red Tag Open Championship - inc Herb Jenkins TeamsTrophy Yarra Bend Pool 9.30 am

Sat -Sun 27 — 28 Red Tag v Northern @ Eildon (FISHING) Eildon District Saturday 28 Cock of the Walk Knockout Competition Yarra Bend Pool 1.15 pm June Saturday 3 Club Championship (2) Australian Skish Yarra Bend Pool 1.15 pm

Sunday 4 Brunn Shield Round (2) ICF Skish - inc Alex Wallace Teams Trophy Yarra Bend Pool 9.30 am

Sunday 4 VFFA Sunday Morning Casting Sessions begin Yarra Bend Pool 9.30 am Wednesday 7 Activity Meeting [5] Yarra Bend Clubroom 7.30 pm Sunday 11 Southern Cross Challenge for 5 wght rods Southern pool 9.30 am Sat -Sun - Mon 10 — 12 Queen’s Birthday Weekend Wednesday 14 Fly Tying Yarra Bend Club room 7.30 pm Sunday 18 Sunshine Open Championship Yarra Bend Pool 9.30 am Wednesday 21 Committee Meeting [6] Yarra Bend Clubroom 7.30 pm

Friday 23 Annual Dinner Studley Park Boat House 6:30 pm Saturday 24 Club Championship (3) ICF Skish Yarra Bend Pool 1.15 pm Sunday 25 Victorian plug casting Championships Bullengarook July Saturday 1 Club Casting Day -- Australian Skish Yarra Bend Pool 1.15 pm Sunday 2 Brunn Shield Round (3) Australian Skish Yarrambat Pool 9.30 am

Wednesday 5 Activity Meeting [6] Yarra Bend Clubroom 7.30 pm Saturday 8 Club Championship (4) - Australian Skish Yarra Bend Pool 1.15 pm Wednesday 12 Fly Tying Yarra Bend Club room 7.30 pm Sunday 16 Ron Callaghan Trophy & Anti Cancer Event Yarrambat Pool 9.30 am Wednesday 19 Committee Meeting [7] Yarra Bend Clubroom 7.30 pm

Saturday 22 Club Cast - Harold Darby Trophy - ICF Skish Yarra Bend Pool 1.15 pm

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Sunday 23 Southern Open Championship Southern Pool 9.30 am Saturday 29 Victorian Fly Casting Championships (Dist) Southern Pool 9.30 am Sunday 30 Victorian Fly Casting Championships (Accuracy) Southern Pool 9.30 am August Wednesday 2 Annual General Meeting [7] Yarra Bend Clubroom 7.30 pm

Saturday 5 Club Cast - Aus Skish inc. George Sawyer Trophy Yarra Bend Pool 1.15 pm

Sunday 6 Brunn Shield Round (4) ICF Skish Southern Pool 9.30 am Wednesday 9 Fly Tying Yarra Bend Club room 7.30 pm Saturday 12 Australian Fly Casting Championships Southern pool 9.30 am Sunday 13 Australian Fly Casting Championships Southern pool 9.30 am

Wednesday 16 Committee Meeting [8] Yarra Bend Clubroom 7.30 pm

Saturday 19 Club Championship (5) ICF Skish Yarra Bend Pool 1.15 am Sunday 20 Australian Plug Casting Championship Bullengarook 9.30 am Friday 25 VFFA Annual Dinner Celtic Club 6.30 pm Saturday 26 VFFA Presidents' Casting Day Yarra Bend Pool 11.00 am

Saturday 26 Club Cast - Australian Skish inc. Charles Brittain Trophy Yarra Bend Pool 1.15 pm

Sunday 27 Turville Shield Interclub Teams Event Yarra Bend Pool 9.30 am September Saturday 2 Trout Stream Opening Day TBA TBA am Wednesday 6 Activity Meeting [8] Yarra Bend Clubroom 7.30 pm Saturday 9 Club Championship (6) - Australian Skish Yarra Bend Pool 1.15 pm Wednesday 13 Fly Tying Yarra Bend Club room 7.30 pm Wednesday 20 Committee Meeting [9] Yarra Bend Clubroom 7.30 pm Saturday 30 AFL Grand Final October Wednesday 4 Activity Meeting [9] Yarra Bend Clubroom 7.30 pm Wednesday 11 Fly Tying Yarra Bend Club room 7.30 pm Fri-Sat-Sun 13 -15 Stawell Fly In (FISHING)

Sat - Sun 21 -22 Wastell Trophy (FISHING) inc Ted Barkley Fishing Trophy Creswick 10.00 am

Wednesday 18 Committee Meeting [10] Yarra Bend Clubroom 7.30 pm November Wednesday 1 Activity Meeting [10] Yarra Bend Clubroom 7.30 pm Tuesday 7 Melbourne Cup Day Wednesday 8 Fly Tying Yarra Bend Club room 7.30 pm Fri-Sat-Sun 10 —12 Taggerty Family Weekend (FISHING) Taggerty Wednesday 15 Committee Meeting [11] Yarra Bend Clubroom 7.30 pm December Wednesday 6 Activity Meeting + Social BBQ [11] Yarra Bend Pool 6.00 pm Wednesday 13 Fly Tying Yarra Bend Club room 7.30 pm Note, the information is known to be accurate at the time of publishing but is subject to change at any time. If the plans change, we will give members plenty of notice.

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aussie.angler@bigpond.com.au

BIG 4 Taggerty Holiday Park For reservations:

Phone Michelle, Mathew or Simon

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book@big4taggerty.com.au

FlyFinz

Jim Baumgurtel

flyfinz@gmail.com

Gin-Clear Media

Fly fishing DVDs and films

www.gin-clear.com

FlyLife

Salt & Freshwater Fly Fishing

Rob Sloane

www.flylife.com.au

Hurley's Fly Fishing

Contact: Gavin Hurley on 9532 1583

489 South Rd, Bentleigh VIC 3209

Indigenous plants from the Melbourne area

Mon-Fri 9am to 4pm, Sat-Sun 12-4pm

Yarra Bend Rd, Fairfield. Tel: 9482 1710

info@vinc.net.au

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Swords Select Wine & Beer 348 Queens Parade, Clifton Hil

Rio Fly Lines

Contributions We look forward to receiving contributions to the newsletter. Please don’t be shy and no article is too small.

To make the next edition contributions must be received by about the 20th of the month.

Send newsletter contributions, as a text document to:

redtagflyfishers@gmail.com

Red Tag Key Contact Details

President John Trioli

0409 960 362 admin@jtriolico.com.au

Vice President Vince McCaughey

Tight Lines April 2017

13

Note: Whilst every care is taken to provide accurate information, no responsibility is taken for the occasional stuff-up!

Tight Lines

Jon Gamble

9803 6568 vinandirene@gmail.com

Secretary Niki Duckstein

0451 307 129 n_duckstein@hotmail.com

Treasurer Bill Jackson

9899 2311 billjackson@bigpond.com

MERCHANDISE.

Red Tag stubby holders are on sale at the general meetings for a bargain price of $3 for paid up members and $5 for non-financial members.