wfc 08/09

THE BOTTOM LINE ON THE INSIDE

President’s message . . . . . . 2

Brag Board . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Upcoming programs/outings . 3

Fly pattern of the month . . . . 4

River cleanup day . . . . . . . . . 4

Conservation corner . . . . . . . 4

My Fly Box . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5

A Father’s Day gift . . . . . . . . .5

Golden trout, part II . . . . . . . 6

Drift Boat Fishing 101 . . . . . 8

Bailiff with a Bible . . . . . . . .10

Wounded Warriors project . .11

A Case for Carp . . . . . . . . . .12

Board minutes . . . . . . . . . . .14

Financial report . . . . . . . . . .15

Club calendar . . . . . . . . . . .15

conservation of fishand their habitat." Ibelieve that the clubcan make an importantcontribution to ourcommunity and to our local fisheries.

One example of a community bene-fit is the recent casting clinic led byCharlie Shedd, with assistance by JoeMeyer and Spencer Amend. Fifty people,from throughout the state, from Lusk toCheyenne, contacted Shedd about cast-ing instruction. The first clinic wascapped at 15 students.

There was so much enthusiasm forthis event, some of the folks on the wait-ing list showed up at the clinic just towatch the WFC teach casting.

Another example of a communitybenefit is the club's involvement with theWounded Warriors/Healing Waters projecton July 29. The Healing Waters project is anational organization that supports severe-ly wounded veterans. Many of the veteransrecently served in Iraq or Afghanistan. Forthis event, club members taught veteranshow to tie flies. Those WFC members

attending included JoeDeGraw, Joe Meyer, RussNewton, Dick O'Quinn,Herb Waterman, MartyRobinson, Art VanRensselaer, Randy Stalkerand Scott Novotny. Localguides took them on floattrips down the North

Platte River the previous day.Of course, these activities would not

be possible without the participation ofour members. I'm grateful to Joe DeGraw,Charlie Shedd, Joe Meyer and SpencerAmend for donating their time for casingand or tying instruction.

I'm also thankful to Matt Stantonfor resurrecting the conservation com-mittee. Finally, I'm grateful for the com-mitment of our board members and offi-cers, a good combination of seasoned andnew members. I look forward to what wecan accomplish over the next eightmonths.

Enjoy what's left of the summer.August is prime dry fly fishing, so get outthere, ramble around, linger on ourstreams, and savor the sunshine. Winterwill arrive, soon enough.

Tight lines,Alex

was recently casting dry flies toYellowstone cutthroat trout, at ahigh country lake perched in the

Popo Agie Wilderness. Eight light-lippedcuts were stacked up in the inlet. Theyrefused to be stimulated by my stimulators.

So I tied on a large golden egg andlobbed the thing at them. I twitched it afew times. In crystal clear water, Iwatched a naive cut promptly swim overto my egg and inhale it -- this wasn't dryfly fishing, but pretty darn close. I set thehook and brought the fish to shore.

I was a little surprised that this trouttook my fly. Similarly, I'm surprised tofind myself writing the monthly presi-dent's letter, "Drag Free Drifts." I'm usedto my writing being buried farther backin the publication.

With new responsibilities as presi-dent, at a recent board meeting, Iexpressed concern about my ability to bepresent at general meetings and boardmeetings. With my work schedule, mydays off from workare Tuesday andWednesday, andI've planned aseries of campingand backpackingtrips throughoutthe summer andinto the fall, untilthe snow piles high in the back country.

During my absence at general meet-ings, Andrew Sauter volunteered to leadthe meetings. Board meetings have beenmoved to Thursdays, and I'm grateful toour board members and officers for mak-ing this change.

I thank Joe DeGraw for his leader-ship, and wish him well with his academ-ic and professional pursuits. I hope thathe can find time to close his books andexplore the streams and lakes aroundLaramie.

I appreciate his enthusiasm for con-servation issues, and for representing theWyoming Fly Casters at the recent TroutUnlimited meeting in Lander. I'm alsothankful for his participation with theconservation committee.

I believe in the mission of theWyoming Fly Casters: "... to promote andenhance the sport of fly fishing and the

Wyoming Fly Casters Monthly Newsletter

The Backcast is the monthlynewsletter of the Wyoming Fly Casters,an affiliate club of the WyomingCouncil of Trout Unlimited, theNature Conservancy and theFederation of Fly Fishers. Editorial con-tent does not necessarily reflect theviews of the officers, board or membersof the Wyoming Fly Casters.

Annual dues are $20 for an indi-vidual, $30 for a family, or $250 for alifetime individual membership or$450 for a lifetime family membership.

Visit the club website atwww.wyflycasters.org.

The deadline for submission ofinformation for each issue is the lastWednesday of the month. Make con-tributions to the next issue by e-mail-ing material to the Backcast editor [email protected], or call (307)436-8774.

OFFICERSAlex Rose, President

Melody Weinhandl, President-electVacant, Vice President

Spencer Amend, SecretaryKim Levine, Treasurer

BOARD OF DIRECTORSTerms expire in 2010

Jamie GibsonJoe Meyer

Gene TheriaultBrent “Smokey” Weinhandl

Terms expire in 2011Bob Fischer

Scott NovotnyJim Sparks

Bill WichersTerms expire in 2012

Casey LearyNeil Ruebush

Andrew SauterMatt Stanton

The Backcast is available either inelectronic format or through USPSsnail mail. To receive each newsletterthrough a monthly e-mail, you must beable to open .pdf (Adobe Acrobat, asoftware format available free ofcharge) documents. Generally, eachissue is roughly 1 MB in size, some arelarger. Your e-mail provider may havelimits on the size of attachments. Inorder to be added to the e-mail list,send a request message [email protected]. In addition toreceiving each issue of the newsletterearlier than your hard copy peers, e-mail subscribers are able to print eachcopy in vibrant color -- an added plus ifthe issue is rich in color photographs.By subscribing electronically, you alsosave the club roughly $17.40 a year inprinting and postage expenses.

Cover shot: A North Tongue River cutthroat and the size 10 stimulator that caught it.

Drag-free DrifDrag-free Driftsts

by Alex Rose, President, WFC

I

Board meetings have beenmoved to Thursdays, andI'm grateful to our boardmembers and officers for

making this change.

To include your fishing report,send information to the Backcasteditor, c/o [email protected].


Lake Helen in the Cloud PeakWilderness, west of Buffalo. BBRRAAGG BBOOAARRDD

From the membership

Fly-fishing the backcountryis August program subject

Alex Rose will present a programduring August's general meeting onbackcountry fly fishing throughout theUnited States.

The meeting begins at 7 p.m. onWednesday, Aug. 12.

During the spring through fall of2000, Rose hiked the length of theAppalachian Trail from SpringerMountain, Georgia to Mount Katahdin,Maine. He fly fished mountain streams,lakes and glacial ponds along the way.Rose will present a slide show thatincludes images from his six-month,backpacking-fly fishing adventure.

He will also show slides from a back-packing-fly fishing trip taken in theEastern Sierra of California, where hecaught very large golden trout. Lastly, hewill include slides from backcountry tripsin Wyoming in the Cloud PeakWilderness and Popo Agie Wilderness.

•In August is the traditional Ten Sleep

outing. It is slated for the second weekendin the Big Horns, Aug. 7-9. The stream-keepers are Kim and Molly Levine andMatt Stanton. In the past, this has beenone of the most popular and well-attend-ings of the year.

To get there, take highway 16 west

from Buffalo. About three or four mileswest of Meadowlark Lake, turn right atDeer Haven. Continue north on the grav-el road until you cross the bridge at DeerPark campground. The outing is head-quartered in the meadow across thebridge.

The streamkeepers are intending tooffer dinners on Friday and Saturdaynights, and breakfasts on Saturday andSunday mornings. Fishing is within walk-ing distance.

The next outing is slated forSeptember and will be a float on theGlenrock stretch of the North Platte.Details will be provided next month.

The September general meeting is tofeature the annual cookout. Don Jelinek isin charge of the barbecue.

•Mark your calendars for these upcom-

ing events:In October, Casey Leary will host the

Rod Robinder outing on Miracle Mile.In November, Wayne Hubert, PhD

in zoology at the University of Wyoming,is to present a program on “UsefulInvertebrates for Trout Fishermen in theNorth Platte River.”

And in December is the annualChristmas party.

Joe Meyer hooked and landed thisover five pound rainbow at an undis-closed place with an undisclosed flypattern.

Alex Rose and Tom Grogan back-packed and fished a lake at 10,700ft. in the Wind Rivers and caughtYellowstone and Snake River cut-throats on dry flies.

Alex Rose caught browns and rain-bows in Outlaw Canyon (MiddleFork of the Powder River) severaltimes this month, finding the fishliked parachute dry flies and orangestimulators.

All of the waters that we depend on to support our fishing and boating arebeing threatened by invasive species that have the potential to devastate thenatural habitats. These invaders are often inadvertently spread by anglers andboaters who are carrying unwanted hitchhikers to their favorite waters.

We must all take these simple actions to stop the spread of destructive inva-sive species:

INSPECT - carefully examine all of your equipment at the end of your tripto see if there are any visible signs of unwanted material attached. This includesany types of plants or mud. If you see any sign of a problem, clean you gear.

CLEAN - first remove any visitable material by hand then use water towash your equipment clean. It's ok to clean with water from where you are leav-ing because you will be leaving behind any problem that you may have pickedup. However, never clean your equipment at your put in spot since you can eas-ily be cleaning off hitchhikers that have been with you since your last trip. If youcannot clean before you leave a sitemake sure to clean at home where thereis no chance that an invader can reachthe water.

DRY - a thorough drying of yourequipment will kill any live invadersyou may have picked up. If you arecounting on drying to eliminate anyhitchhikers you must make sure thatevery bit of hidden moisture is gonebefore you can feel that you are safe.


FLFLYYof the month

H&L VARIANTHook: TMC 100SP-BL #10-20Thread: brown, black or white 70denier (I used brown here for photoclarity but will typically use white tohide the thread in the wing bases)Wings/Tail: White calf body hairAbdomen: Stripped peacock herl quillThorax: Peacock herlHackle: Brown rooster neck or saddle

The H & L Variant (or House and Lot)is an old school fly that has neverreally fallen out of favor here in theRockies. President Eisenhower usedit almost exclusively. The white wingsand tail make this pattern super visi-ble and the subtle peacock andstripped quill body are attractiveenough to pull fish in after closeinspections. The H & L is a great pat-tern to hang a dropper from as its hairwings and tail create great buoyancyand visibilty for subtle takes.

Wrap a thread base. Stack a gener-ous clump of straight white calf bodyhair and tie it in for the wings. Stackanother slightly smaller clump of calfbody hair for the tail.Separate the wings with X-wraps.Strip the butt end of a peacock herlby running your thumbnail down thestem from the middle of the feathertoward the base and tie this strippedstem onto the hook at the bend. Wrapforward. Tie in seven or eight finepeacock herls. Roll the herls in yourfingertips to spin them into a cord.Wrap a short segment of peacockherl at the front of the stripped pea-cock body. Prepare and size two hackle feathersand tie them in and wrap on bothsides of the wing.Whip finish and clip the thread. Add adrop of cement to the thread head.

Wyoming Fly Casters sponsorsNorth Platte River cleanup dayWFC, fly shops, fishing guides and volunteers combine efforts to clean up blue ribbon fishery

The Wyoming Fly Casters, alongwith local fly shops, fly fishing guides andother volunteers will leave their fishingrods at home on Saturday, Aug. 15 whenthey head to the river for a day of clean-ing up the North Platte. An armada ofdrift boats filled with fly anglers andguides plan to clean the North Plattefrom government bridge to RobertsonRoad, in Casper.

"This is a wonderful opportunity forlocal volunteers with a shared interestin a healthy river to clean the banks ofthe North Platte, a world-class, blue rib-bon fishery," said Matt Stanton, theWFC conservation committee chair-man. "Garbage along the river isn’t justbad for water quality and wildlife, ittakes away from the scenery. No oneenjoys worrying about broken glass or

watching wind blown grocery bags dur-ing a day on the river."

Following a day of filling garbagebags, the Wyoming Fly Casters are goingto host a barbeque and forum for local flyfishing guides, and let them voice anyconcerns they have about conservationissues and the North Platte. The forumwill take place at the Izaak WaltonLeague Clubhouse.

The Two Fly Foundation is support-ing the cleanup, along with governmen-tal agencies including the Bureau ofReclamation, the Bureau of LandManagement, Wyoming Game and Fishand the City of Casper. Participating flyshops and guide services includeCowboy Drifters, North Platte Lodge,Platte River Fly Shop and the Ugly BugFly Shop.

Reprinted from www.cleanangling.org

CONSERVATION CORNER


MMMMYYYY FFFFLLYYLLYY BBBBOOXXOOXX

Joe DeGraw carries all his flies in one box, a big one. Most of the patternsare streamers, but there are also nymphs, worms, eggs, scuds and even a few dryflies thrown in for variety.

Fellow Fly Tossers! I would like to take a moment to thank you for theopportunity to lead Wyoming Fly Casters. It was a wonderful opportunity whicha great deal was learned. As Alex Rose steps into the role of president, I wish himthe best of luck. I feel Alex's genuine interest is the sport, the future of the club,and willingness to get involved will provide invaluable. I trust he will do anamazing job.

Joe De Graw

The WFC needs volunteers andleadership for Wyoming Hunting andFishing Heritage Expo to be held thisSeptember.

The club needs volunteers to pro-vide casting lessons and to man a boothat the Game and Fish Expo taking placeSept. 10-12. This is an excellent oppor-tunity for the club to promote fly fishingand to put our best foot forward with thepublic.

Although the WFC has pledged toparticipate in the event and have made adonation, thus far, as of July 27, no onevolunteered to coordinate the booth andto ensure we have enough casters andvolunteers in place.

If you are interested in making ourparticipation with the Expo a success thisyear, please contact Alex Rose at 828-467-3789.

For the third time this year,Wyoming has a new state record fish, thelatest entry being a pumpkinseed thatwas caught out of a Big Horn area farmpond in Sheridan County.

The new record pumpkinseed wascaught by Sheridan angler AnthonyWendtland and weighed in at .62pounds, more than doubling the oldrecord of .29 pounds that was caught in2002 from a pond in Platte County.Wendtland's fish was 8.7 inches long andhad a girth of 8.5 inches.

WFC needshelp for Expo

Record pumpkinseed

A FATHER'S DAY GIFT

by Capt. Mark BonameI was fortunate enough to take both my son's fishing

today on Father's Day which was a gift in of itself. My origi-nal plan was to go to Pathfinder Reservoir to check out thecarp conditions, but due to high winds, I figured it best to gohide out in the protected coves of Alcova Reservoir. We didnot catch many fish but we were rewarded with a 28 inchBrown Trout with a 17 inch girth that I weighed in my netwith a Boga Grip right at 10 lbs. (caught on a #2 VanillaBugger). Both my boys took turns during the five minutefight and helped each other get the fish to the boat before itwas released. What more could a father ask for?Chase and William Boname brought a smile to their dad’s

face on June 21 at Pathfinder Reservoir.

hen reaching the top ofthe steep, rugged ridge, Iwas relieved to find avery large lake surround-

ed by glaciers. The lake closely resembledthe shape of the one drawn on my map.

I then began a long rock scrambleover boulders, carefully jumping andhopping from rock to rock, aware thatone wrong step could end in disaster witha broken leg or ankle. It took a very longtime to navigate a path through this frus-trating maize of giant boulders.

I eventually found a flat spot, aboutsix feet long and four feet wide, justenough space to squeeze in my sleepingbag. I found a shaded area underneath atall boulder and stretched my achingbody underneath. My feet and kneeshurt. I lit a cigarette, took a long drag,exhaled, and let waves of exhaustionsweep through my tired, spent limbs.

I peered from underneath the rim of


W

by Alex RosePresident, WFC

“The golden trout is larger than life. It’s not just atrout, but an embodiment of trout fishing literally

taken to its highest realm. Because they dwell in ourhighest, starkest, and most remote terrain, goldens are

not a casual pursuit. They provide a true quest …”-- Ralph Cutter, Fly Fisherman Magazine

my sweaty baseball cap and studied thesurroundings. At over 11,500 feet, I wasabove tree line, and all I could see werethe sharp, jumbled angles of boulders,towering mountain ridges, magnificent,sweeping glaciers, and the turquoise-bluewater of an alpine lake.

After a long rest, I was somewhatrevived. I pulled on my wool pants,stuffed my pockets with fishing gear,unsheathed my fly rod and rock hoppeddown to the lake.

The water was still and calm. I tiedon a streamer pattern, a beaded, oliveMutuka. I began a methodic, rythmicpattern of casting and stripping the line.

My mind began to wander. I wishedI had packed in a spinning rod and lures.I even fantasized about worms. But over-all, I was exhausted and happy, and tootired to care if I caught any fish or not.

Sometimes, when simply acceptingevents as they are, amazing things takeplace. In this case, I glanced down at myfly and noticed two very large trout fol-lowing it. I couldn’t get them to strike,though. So I tied on a different streamer,

a large, black wooly bugger, and added asecond fly behind it, a tiny, beaded, pinkscud.

I watched a fish swim immediatelyswim toward the wooly bugger and jerkhis head side to side in stern refusal.Then the trout noticed my pink scud,swam directly to it and ate it without hes-itation. I gently lifted my rod, careful notto jerk the tiny hook out of his mouth.

The trout gave a few scrappy headjerks, and I knew my hook was set. I sooncaught and released my first golden trout,a colorful 12-inch fish.

After a few hours, the sun set behinda distant ridge and cast a long shadowover the basin. The temperature grewcold, and I was just about to quit whenmy fly line stopped and the tip of my rodtwitched. I set the hook, and a very largetrout dove deep.

My rod bent over, and my reel sangto the tune of Lake Sublime. After afierce battle, I caught a large, chunky, 16-inch golden trout, taken on a size 18beaded pink scud.

After releasing the handsome fish, I

Part II

Lake Sublime, 11,546 feet

reeled in and weaved through the boul-ders back to camp. I crawled into mysleeping bag and cooked dinner on mytiny camp stove: instant mashed pota-toes with cheddar cheese, washed downwith a cup of tea.

“We seek the woods to escape civi-lization and all that suggests it,” saidHorace Kephart, “Dean of AmericanCampers,” in his classic book, “Campingand Woodcraft.” “It is one of the bless-ings of wilderness life that it shows ushow few things we need in order to beperfectly happy.”

After finishing dinner and putting mytiny camp in order, I crawled into a goosedown cocoon and pulled the sleeping bagtight under my chin. I gawked at the stars,etched out constellations, and watchedshooting stars slice through the MilkyWay. When my eyelids grew heavy, Irolled over in the mummy bag and slept.

The next morning, I packed myrucksack and navigated the bouldersback to the lake’s outlet. I stopped to restand smear sun screen all over my face,neck and arms. And then I noticed a verylarge insect, a long, black mayfly, land on my chest. I lookedup and noticed swarms of mayflies hovering over the rocks.

Goldens were rising every-where. I quickly popped openmy fly box. The closest match Icould create was with anAdams, size 14, much too smallbut it would have to do. I tiedthe fly on and cast to a largegolden trout rising to dead mayflies. The trout grabbed it with-out hesitation and I brought in afeisty 12-inch golden.

With long loops, I sent myline sailing over the lake toward risingtrout. My fly disappeared in a boil, and Islowly brought in a powerful 15-inchgolden that glistened in the sun.

After several more casts, a large troutsnapped at my fly and I quickly set thehook. The trout sprinted across the lakewhile ripping out line. I looked down atmy reel and was shocked that this trout,this golden trout, had taken out myentire fly line and was still running. I alsoknew that the chances of landing thisfish were slim, because the water at theoutlet was shallow and rocky. Sureenough, the trout wrapped around a rockand snapped my 5-lb. test line.

Soon afterward, I reeled in and leftLake Sublime, a gorgeous alpine lakewith stunning scenery and very largegolden trout.


The return to Lake SublimeAfter the thrill of catching large,

gorgeous golden trout in the backcoun-try, I wanted to drop out of life for a fewweeks, live out of a rucksack -- like JackKeroac, another Eastern Sierra enthusiast-- and roam from one alpine lake to thenext in search of goldens.

Unfortunately, an extended fishingtrip simply wasn’t an option. But Ireturned to Lake Sublime for a weekendtrip, and I brought along MarkHachtmann, of Independence, Calif., anavid Eastern Sierra backpacker and fish-erman. Since 1971, Hachtmann, 54, hashiked over 1,000 miles in the backcoun-try and caught over 1,000 trout.

Fishing is not a recreational activityfor Hachtmann; it’s a practical way toeat in the backcountry. Once,Hachtmann said that he hiked 18 daysin the Sierra without re-supplying, andconsumed approximately 100 fish. Hecan’t bear to catch and release trout,because in the backcountry, fresh troutprovide nourishment.

Because of the long hike required to

get to this lake, I was determined to catchgoldens by any means necessary. I broughtmy fly rod and a spinning rod, along witha box stuffed with a variety of flies and afew choice lures. I even brought alongRainbow Power Bait (“desperate meansfor a desperate situation”).

I asked Hachtmann his strategy forcatching fish in the backcountry. Hepaused, and then looked down at hischest. “Believe it or not,” he said, “I havecaught between 80 and 90 percent of mytrout with Velveeta cheese.”

I was both shocked and slightlyappalled. “Don’t insult the trout!” Iyelled.

“Well, it is more sporting than usingPower Bait,” he said.

We rock-hopped across boulders tothe outlet of Lake Sublime. I strung my

fly rod and tied on two flies: a large,beaded, olive mutuka trailed by a beadedpink scud, size 16.

I cast my rig into the water and slow-ly stripped my line back toward theshore. The line stopped as my rod jerkedforward. Determined not to lose this fishin shallow, rocky water, I held my nine-foot rod high while madly stripping inline. The trout thrashed just below thewater’s surface.

The gorgeous, 13-inch golden troutwas a spectacular creature, with a bold,wide, red stripe of red down his side, hisbelly bright gold. Hachtmann snapped apicture, and I slid the trout on a stringer.

I began casting my rig and rapidlycaught large goldens; every fish measuredbetween 14 and 16 inches. It was purebliss: The stars were lined up just right,and the trout were hungry and relentless-ly pounding my flies.

We caught and released about ninefish, and kept two additional goldens ona stringer. I caught several fish on flies;Hachtmann caught one trout with PowerBait, and a second one with a small lure.

Meanwhile, the clouds beganto darken, and blue skies gave wayto gray storm clouds. I joked withHachtmann that a storm “was noton the itinerary.” The temperatureplummeted between 20 and 30degrees in about a half hour.

The snow began to fall. Wereeled in, grabbed the stringer andheaded back to camp.

Using my hiking stick andparachute cord, I pitched my tarpusing a modified A–frame, withthree sides of the tarp held tight tothe ground with large rocks. Icrawled under my shelter and lis-

tened to the snow, falling much moreheavily, tap against the tarp. Hachtmanntook refuge in his tent.

After about a half hour, the stormpassed and we emerged from our shelters.A thin layer of snow covered the ground.We cooked the trout and seasoned themwith plenty of lemon pepper and salt, andenjoyed a backcountry, gourmet mealunderneath clearing skies.

The meat was the color of salmon,and Hachtmann noted that the flavorwas both “light and sweet.”

For the “catch-and-release” flyanglers horrified that we killed and atelarge golden trout, I close with the wordsof the great fly fishing writer JohnGierach: “In every catch-and-releasefisherman’s past there is an old black fry-ing pan.”


The following article is anexcerpt from the electronic book,Hunt - Don’t Pray - for Fish,Techniques and Strategies for FlyFishing from a Drift Boat, written byHarley W. Reno, Ph.D., a friend ofthe Wyoming Fly Casters and occa-sional program presentor. The entirecontent is copyrighted by the author,and is used here with his permis-sion. The CD is available for pur-chase through the Federation of FlyFishers, and 80 percent of the $25cost of each CD is being donated bythe author back to the federation forits conservation and educationfunds.

In the coming months, otherchapters of Dr. Reno’s book are tobe featured in the Backcast.

Drift boat fishing 101Chapter 10: Wind, the Fly Fisherman’s Best Friend (Part 1)

question for a moment. What are theprincipal food organisms of trout?Insects-especially stoneflies, mayflies,and caddisflies-and a scattering of otheraquatic invertebrates like crustaceans(e.g., crayfish and scud), annelid or seg-mented worms either living in the wateror washed in from adjacent banks (viz.,earthworms), occasional terrestrialinsects like grasshoppers accidentallyblown into the water, and small fishes. Ofthe insects, how many kinds are consid-ered efficient fliers? Only caddisflies areso regarded and, to a lesser extent, gnats,mosquitoes, and midges.

The caddisfly beats its wings fast justlike butterflies and moths. The caddisflyzips hither and thither across the surfaceof water and performs exotic and eroticup-and-down dances in concert withothers for the purpose of attractingpotential sexual partners. The rest of theinsects are considered "feeble fliers." Atbest, feeble fliers flutter, relying on windto gain altitude and disperse individuals.Yet feeble fliers are more abundant, and,more often, they fulfill dietary require-ments of trout and other fishes.

In the next few paragraphs, let usreview the life histories of two feeblefliers, namely the salmonfly or troutfly(Pteronarcys californica) and small

uring the summer, a ridge ofhigh pressure develops rou-tinely and lingers over thewestern third of the conti-

nental United States. Fronts moving eastoff the Pacific Ocean are forced north-ward across British Columbia, southeast-ward across the prairie provinces ofCanada, and, finally, across the easternthird of the United States.

When that happens, the weather ispredictable on a daily basis, especially overthe Great Basin, including the states ofNevada, Oregon, Utah, Idaho, Wyoming,and, stretching geography a little, perhapsparts of Montana and California. Theweather is the same from day to day, weekto week, and sometimes month to month.Daytime temperatures are cool in themorning and warm in the afternoon.Summer is the time when fly fishermenflock to the principal rivers and streams ofthe Great Basin. Mayflies and caddisfliescommonly hatch every day. Small stone-flies emerge on a regular basis. On select-ed rivers, large stoneflies emerge during afew days in early summer and during a fewdays in late summer and early fall.

Basic MeteorologyWhat some fly fishermen do not

realize is that physical and biologicalbehaviors of winds, insects, and trout alsoare predictable day after day. When highpressure settles over the Great Basin, theair is dry and elastic, expanding duringthe day and contracting during the night.That physical fundamentalism drives andregulates the biological behaviors ofstream and canyon organisms.

As the sun rises in the morning, itsradiance begins heating the floors ofdesert valleys. The higher the sun gets in arelentless march from east to west acrossthe sky, the warmer the day becomes,eventually reaching maximum tempera-tures at about 4:00 in the afternoon (alltimes hereafter are expressed in DaylightSavings Time). Thereafter, temperaturesgradually decline as the sun settles lowerand lower towards the western horizon.

As temperatures increase in themorning, air above valley floors beginsexpanding. The ridge of high pressure

pushes downward towards the surfacefrom higher altitudes, forcing theexpanding air to move horizontally upcanyons of nearby mountain ranges. Themovement of air across the valley floorand up nearby canyons evaporates dewthat settled on vegetation just afterdawn. If the canyon includes a sizablestream or river, a breeze begins blowingupstream around 10:00 or 11:00 in themorning. If the canyon is both large anddeep, the breeze may become gale-like bymid-afternoon.

Moisture evaporated from valleyfloors in the morning condenses as it risesabove ridge tops. Sometime around noonor shortly thereafter, cumulus clouds beginappearing above ridges. As winds increaseupstream, the clouds get larger and larger,reaching maximum size between 2:00 and4:00 in the afternoon. Some get largeenough to spawn localized thundershow-ers. Soon they dissipate, vanishing almosttotally by 7:00 in the evening.

Shortly after 5:00 p.m., winds beginto subside, dying altogether by 6:00 or7:00 in the evening. By about 8:00, cool,moisture-laden air above ridge topsbegins to sink. A sudden chill is felt, as abreeze begins flowing down the canyon.The cool breeze progressively escalatesuntil shortly after daylight. The risingsun begins warming air above the ridges;cooler air ceases to cascade down thecanyons; and the dense, cold air fillingthe valley floor again releases containedmoisture as dew about daylight. That isenough about desert meteorology.

Basic BiologyWhy is wind the fly fisherman's best

friend? That is an easy question toanswer. The whole biology of streams isdependent upon wind, specifically thediurnal, upstream wind. Without theupstream wind, any desert stream soonwould be stripped of its most importantinsect life. And without insects, the troutand other populations of fishes would dis-appear. For all practical purposes, streamswould become biological deserts. Storiestold and relived by grandfathers to chil-dren about trout fishing would never be.

Please think about the following

D


mayflies such as riffle-dwelling hepta-geniids and some baetids, which com-monly include the Pale Morning Dun orBlue-winged Olive known to most flyfishermen. And let us also briefly exam-ine a few behavioral aspects of the smallred-legged grasshopper. Caddisflies areexcluded from further discussion becausetheir emergence and aerial acrobatics arerestricted to the times when wind iswanting, namely early mornings and lateevenings?the times when most wade fish-ermen do their things, so to speak.

Salmonfly-The salmonfly is thelargest stonefly, measuring two or moreinches in length. Nymphs of thesalmonfly inhabit clean, fast-flowing por-tions of streams and rivers of the GreatBasin and northwest Pacific coast.Emergence of the salmonfly is nothingshort of spectacular. Bushes hanging overthe stream become so loaded withSalmonflies that they droop to the surfaceof the water, bouncing up and down inresponse to passing water. Each bounce ofthe limb sees more and more salmonfliesfall into the water only to be swallowed byhungry trout with insatiable appetites. Insome stream systems, emergence starts inMay, while in others, it is delayed untilthe middle of July. But, in most streams,emergence is early to late June, lasting forseveral days and progressing upstream at arate of a few miles per day. During the"hatch," the sky can be filled with mil-lions of those huge insects.

The salmonfly in aquatic ecosystemsplays much the same role as does thedomestic bovine in terrestrial ecosystems.The nymph-like a cow-is a grazer, con-verting plant protein into animal pro-tein. The nymph, in turn, is eaten byeverything-trout, birds, you name it.Almost every predator in the riverdepends on the salmonfly for the energyto grow and reproduce.

The life cycle of the salmonfly spansthree years. All but a few days are invest-ed in growing the nymph to an adult.Adults live only long enough to mate andlay eggs. The eggs hatch soon after beingdeposited in the river. The nymph spendsthe next three years grazing nightly onvegetation ensconcing exposed surfacesof rocks in the stream. At the end ofthree years, the nymph begins migratingfrom deep channels towards the shore.On the deep side of the river, migration isvertical, while migration towards theshallow side of the river is more or lesshorizontal.

Once the nymph reaches the bank,it waits until evening before climbing out

of the water and up any vertical object onland. After the exoskeleton dries, itsplits, and the adult insect crawls out.The two pairs of wings expand and dryquickly. When daylight comes, thefemale salmonfly has mated, and is readyfor fluttering and making the one-wayflight upstream borne on mid-morningbreezes and afternoon winds (males usu-ally die shortly after mating).

Once upstream, females land onstreamside vegetation and begin produc-ing fertile eggs that are housed in a pair ofegg sacs (each egg sac is about the size ofa 00 buckshot). When the eggs are readyfor laying, females flutter from the vege-tation out over the water. The two eggsacs are dropped into the river. Thefemale dies shortly thereafter. Each eggsac sinks and breaks, liberating a fewhundred eggs. The eggs hatch intonymphs that resemble the winglessadults. The whole adult episode lastsscarcely longer than three days.

The importance of the migration ofstonefly nymphs cannot be overestimat-ed. Trout, which spend the winter andspring in the deep channels, voraciouslyfeed on exposed nymphs during themigration. Trout follow nymphs towardthe surface on the deep side and intoshallows of the opposite side of the river.At the height of the migration, Browntrout in shallows, for example, frequentlyhave half their bodies exposed as theysearch for, root out, and feed on nymphsamong rocks and under debris. Oncetrout are to the bank, they stay thereuntil forced back to deeper water bydeclining water levels at the end of theirrigation season. In general, banks pro-vide most of the cover trout use duringwarmer seasons of the year.

Here is an important note. Each yeara phenomenon occurs which shouldinterest those fly fishermen who like tofish hatches of the salmonfly. Many, ifnot all, streams that have annual hatchesof the salmonfly are regulated by flood-control dams. The rate of discharge fromdams is controlled by federal authoritiesduring periods of potential floods andwater masters during other periods forthe benefit of agricultural enterprises andfulfillment of demands by municipalitiesand industrial interests downstream.

By mid-August, the demand forwater wanes because crops have maturedand await harvest. In some rivers like theSouth Fork of the Snake River of Idaho,the flow correspondingly is reduced rap-idly between mid-August and mid-September, specifically to conserve water

and provide populations of the browntrout, for example, with stable water con-ditions during the spawning season fromOctober through most of December.That is the good news.

However, two-year-old larvalsalmonflies in the river probably areaffected adversely by the sudden declinein rates of flow. That is, the nymphs havespent the time since the run-off the previ-ous May and early June grazing among therocks of the streambed, especially in placeswhere the water runs clear and is saturat-ed with oxygen. When the water sudden-ly starts dropping in late August, mostnymphs grazing amongst gravel in shallowwater, I suspect, are left high and dry. Thatprobably kills most and perhaps induces afew survivors to undergo transformationinto sterile "adults" (the two-year-oldwinged insect would not exhibit thebright orange on the venter of the three-year-old, winged adult; instead, the venterlogically would retain the brown or tancolor of the nymph). That is the bad news.

Coincidently, the late summer dropin water is time when the carnivoroustiger stone (Claassenia nebulosa)emerges (sometimes the tiger stone local-ly carries the epithet "golden stone").Unlike, the salmonfly, the male tigerstone is incapable of flight, manifestingvestigial wings only. The female, howev-er, is capable of flight. As a result, the ter-restrial male must catch and inseminatethe emerging feminine nymph just as sheexits the water and before she sheds herexoskeleton, becoming an adult (insemi-nation of a larval form by a functionalmale is rare in nature, indeed!). If she isnot inseminated before ecdysis, sheremains a virgin and incapable of layingfunctional eggs. Yes, there is a secondannual emergence of stoneflies; albeitsmaller than that of the salmonfly in latespring! Anyone casting a Chernobyl antor any other dry-fly imitation of asalmonfly that has a light brown ventercan catch big trout, including browntrout. When a brown takes a fly duringlow-water conditions, the waterexplodes. Brown trout have such nastydispositions! That is the good news.

Sadly, no population of stoneflies,regardless of species, can survive naturaland unnatural rapid fluctuations inwater levels in any river. Each year, pop-ulations of the salmonfly have declined,and in the South Fork of the SnakeRiver, for example, the decline has beenboth horrifying and tragic over the pastscore or more years. That is the reallybad news.

by Randy Stalker,Backcast editor


THE WFC IS GRUDGINGLY ACCEPTING THE REALITY THATfew members are willing to shoulder the responsibilities of streamkeeper.In the last few years, the term’s definition has been amended from “host”to “cook.”

Some fly tossers, mulling whether to attend an outing, want to knowwho is cooking, what is on the menu, and how many meals will be pre-pareds. As one long-term member has observed: “Are we the WyomingFly Casters or the Central Wyoming Knife and Fork Club?”

But it is becoming readily apparentthat yet another position is sorely neededat club outings, especially overnightones. And it will be even more difficultto fill.

Recent outings have demonstratedthe club is in need of an umpire to sit injudgment of the fishing narratives toldover the evening campfire. Perhaps thisbailiff with a Bible could be on hand asearly as the Ten Sleep outing this month.

Campfire conversation usuallysounds something like this, as a group offishers surrounds the glowing embers:

“I had an incredible day on PaintRock today,” one boastful angler begins.“I must have had 30 fish in an hour,not including those that shook thehook. Gee, I must have changedpatterns six times, replacing fliesthat were too chewed up to beeffective any longer.”

“Only 30 fish?” interjectedanother. “I caught one on nearlyevery cast on the middle fork ofTen Sleep Creek. Those brookiesmust have been on steroids as thesmallest one was 14 in. I had sever-al doubles, with one on the dry andanother on the nymph at the sametime.”

“Yeah, well, I wanted to bemore sporting,” chimes in another.“I was using an extended body size28 clipped deer hair hopper, trailedby a size 8 tungsten bead head half-back. I caught fish on both, neversnapping my 8X tippet. My five-oughtrod really got a workout.”

Another one changed the subjectslightly. “I was using a pattern designed toimitate the instar pupal stage of the fib-berus frequens mayfly. The fish were real-ly keying in on this hatch.”

“I got you guys beat,” another says. “Iwas having an incredible day of fishinguntil I saw Bigfoot trample through thewoods and across the creek. I didn’t have

half hour.“Can you two gun nuts holster your

egos and focus on fishing,” he orders.“Oh, sorry... he’s still upset because I

out-fished him last month on NorthTongue. I caught a 5 lb. brown there.”

“Funny, there aren’t any browns inthe no-kill stretch of the river, but youmanaged to catch one? Do you have aphoto to back up that claim?”

“Tell that to the fish,” the first oneretorted. “I also caught a whopper of abrookie on a size 2 bugger on BullCreek.”

“Enough!” the exasperated refereewhistles, as if calling a foul on a basket-ball court. “From this point on, any state-ment must be preceded with taking anoath while resting your hand on theBible.”

Instead of the rapid-fire bragging ofthe last hour, the only sound to be heardwas the popping from the burning woodin the campfire ring.

Finally, one guy asks, “Who broughtthe Bailey’s? Are we going to have anoth-er round of toasts, like we did on theBighorn in April?”

The stern-faced bailiff observed thecampfire chatter to be wholly differentfor the next few minutes.

“Boy. I nearlygot skunked today. Ifinally caught a 6in. brookie on mysize 16 elk hair cad-dis about an hourbefore dusk.”

“Yeah, it wastough out theretoday,” agreedanother. “I was tak-ing pictures most ofthe time, and I gotone shot of Homerbattling a fish onhis 4 weight beforeit broke him off.”

“I must havebeen in the wrongstretch of thestream,” another

says. “I threw everything at them, dries,nymphs, terrestrials, streamers and not abump. Pass me another can of Corona.”

“Boy you sure used a lot of patterns.I’m just the opposite. I still have the samefly I tied on in the morning. It’s not thatI like the pattern that much. It’s just thatI can’t see to tie on a different one.”

“Okay,” the bailiff sighs. “The origi-nal conversations were much more inter-esting. Resume play.”

De-barbing whoppers

a camera, but I reached for the .590Patton on my hip. Sasquatch disappearedbefore I could get a shot at him. Hewould have looked great as a trophy onmy wall, right next to the 20 lb. brown Icaught underneath the Cole Creekbridge last year.

“.590 Patton? That’s a peashootercompared to my .640 Eastwood,” braggedthe guy who prefers to toss diminutiveflies. “It throws a 500 grain bullet at 2500fps from the 5 in. barrel. I can cover allsix shots with a dime at 50 yards.”

“How can you do that when a dimeis almost smaller than the caliber of bul-let you are shooting?” doubted thePatton-wielder.

Sometime during this deepeningconversation, the bailiff -- like an NFLcoach throwing a red flag to protest a callon the gridiron -- reaches for his Bible tocontest the exaggerated and probably fic-titious accounts by the fishermen. His BSdetector has been blaring for at least a

Candid campfire conversations challenged


Do you know of a WFC memberwho is recovering from an illness or sur-gery or a death in the family? If you do,please contact Joe DeGraw at 258-0177.He will make the arrangements to send aget well card, a book or a sympathy cardto that person to let them know thatwe're thinking of them.

Know anyonewho’s under theweather?

Protect our environment

Inspect - Clean - Dry

Take the Clean Angling Pledge

www.cleanangling.org

Dick O’Quinn teaches a Wounded Warrior how to tie a wooly bugger on July 29 at theNational Historic Trails and Interpretative Center, in conjunction with the Healing Watersproject which supports severely wounded veterans from Iraq or Afghanistan.

FOR SALEFleece fingerless fishing gloves.

Coleman two-burner stove, like new.

Call Don Jelinek267-7477

•Patagonia SST jacket, XL,

Brand new. $240 (list $315).

Call Scott Novotny266-3072

Digital reminders are available for programsDo you have trouble remembering

when there are WFC functions? Have you ever forgotten a function

and then remembered about it when itwas over?

Scott Novotny is undertaking areminder program for club activities, etc.He requests that members send him an e-

New to the club? Need some advice? Most people join our club to learn

where to fish and to improve their fishingtechnique. If we are to keep membersactive, experienced members of the clubneed to be available to give lessons ontechnique or fishing location information.To that end, Joe Meyer and Daren Bulow

would like you to know that they areavailable to help and they are encouragingother members to add their names to thislist so that new members can call someonefor help, offer ideas on fishing spots, ormaybe even take them fishing. Call Joe at235-1316 or Daren at 247-2578.

mail so that he can have your e-mailaddress and then he will send out a time-ly reminder by e-mail of any activities.He promised that your e-mail addresswould only be used for the purpose ofsending the reminder.

Send your e-mail to Scott Novotnyat [email protected].

Bring your camera along on your next fishing trip, anduse it to document your catch and release fish. Then sendthe digital image to the WFC newsletter editor for consid-eration of inclusion in the next issue. Contributions arealways welcome. Who knows ... maybe your photo will bethe next month’s cover.


have been fly fishing for carp since1992. I used to and still to getweird looks, snide comments andoutright laughter when I tell peo-

ple I fish for carp. Even within the WFC,I have people be downright snobby to mewhen I tell them I fly fish for carp. Flyfishing for carp is becoming a little moremainstream, but there are always the naysayers. So I wanted to make a case for flyfishing for carp. It is actually more like achallenge.

So here is the challenge. Thinkback, what was the biggest trout youcaught on a fly rod in Wyoming this year?What has been the biggest trout youcaught in your life in Wyoming on a flyrod? Remember those numbers. So Ilooked through my fishing journals to seethe biggest trout I caught last year: 24 in.The biggest trout caught on a fly rod in

Wyoming in my life is 28 in. So what? The biggest carp I caught

last year 22 lbs. I also caught five 21 lb.fish, eleven 20 lb., fish, and too many tocount between 10 and 20 lbs. I used toweigh and take pictures of every fish Icaught. I don’t bother to weigh themuntil they push 20 lbs.

Size mattersCarp come in two sizes -- big and

bigger. The smallest carp I have evercaught was 18 in. On a bad day you mayonly get one fish that weighs 8 lbs. If youwere fishing for trout and you caught an8 pound fish, you would consider it to bea great day. A great day of carp fishing ismeasured in hundreds of pounds of fishcaught.

Fishermen always remark that youare just catching carp. I always ask thisquestion: Would you rather catch a onepound trout, a 5 lb. trout, or 10 lb. trout?

Everyone always chooses the 10 lb. trout.So when I have the choice of choosingcatching a 20 in. trout or a 20 lb. carp. Ichose the 20 lb. carp every time. I’st notthat I don’t like trout fishing; I just likecatching big fish.

ZZZZZzzzzzz factorThe ZZZZZzzzzzz factor is the sound

of line screaming off your reel. When wasthe last time you had a trout take you toyour backing? When fishing for carp it isan everyday occurrence. And if your findbig fish it may be an every fish occur-rence. They are fast and powerful fish,that can take you to your backing in aninstant.

Carp-all tunnelCarp fishing with a fly rod is great

fun, and once you get the hang of it, youcan catch a lot of big fish in a day. I use arod with a fighting butt. Several years ago

by Daren Bulow

The author with a 22 lb. carpfrom Wheatland Reservoir No. 3.

I


Smoked SteelheadIn light of this month’s article

on carp fishing, I wanted to do arecipe for them. The only way Ihave ever eaten them is smokedand they taste just about like anyother smoked fish. Since eating acarp may repulse you, I decided tosubstitute steelhead. I actuallyhave smoked a lot more steelheadthan I have carp. I will tell you this:If I catch a steelhead I don't prac-tice catch and release; they tastetoo good to let go.

This is just the directions forthe brine and preparation forsmoking. Since each smoker isdifferent, please refer to theowner’s manual as how to do theactual smoking. I will recommendJack Daniels wood smoking chipsthey give everything a wonderfultaste.

Ingredients1 cup of brown sugar1 cup of kosher or pickling salt1 cup of sugar3 quarts of water1 fresh steelhead - chunked

into 6 inch whole skin on pieces

PreparationCombine the ingredients in a

non-metallic bowl and then placethe fish in the brine for 6 or 8hours. Take fish out of brine andallow them to dry out on racks inthe refrigerator; this allows a glazeto form. This glaze traps the brineand fish oils in the meat. It is nowready to be put on the smoker.

SSTTRREEAAMMSSIIDDEE CCHHEEFFby Daren Bulow

I was fishing every weekend, with a regu-lar rod. I was catching 150-300 lbs. incombined fish in a day. By the fourthweekend in a row my wrist was sore and Ihad to start wearing a wearing a wristbrace. My wife called it a carp-all tunnelbrace.

I hope I have given yousome inspiration togive it a try. If youdo decide to flyfish for carphere are a fewtips that cang r e a t l yimprove youcatch:

ScoutingWhen you first

start out you have to fig-ure out where to go. Just like deerhunting, scouting and exploring pays off.You are looking for shallow flats thathold not just a few fish but a lot of fish. Idon’t fish out of a boat, so I spend a lot oftime glassing the flats, just like you dowhen you are deer or antelope hunting. Iam glassing the water looking for tailingfish. Once you find the fish on a flat youcan usually go back week after week, yearafter year and find fish.

Wheatland No. 3 produced a lot offish last year. The water was very, verylow in 2008. I can’t even guess if anyfish have survived. Alcova, Pathfinder,Glendo and Boysen all hold fish, it isjust a matter of finding them. On thePlatte, I fish the one ton bridge belowthe power plant in the spring and fall

when they drop the flow rates. Theaccess points downsteam from Douglason the road to Esterbrook also hold a lotof fish.

Getting outfitted for carpI use a 7 weight fast action rod, but

any 6-8 weight rod will be effectivemedicine. Load the reel with

a weight forward floatingline and 0X tippet.

My fly selectionis very simple. Forfish that are feedingon the bottom I usevariation of the

Crazy Charlie; Imove the eyes to the

back of the hook. I use itin white so you can see it

easily when sight fishing. Usingthe white color you can see the fly and

strip it in to place the fly directly in frontof feeding fish. For surface feeding fish Iuse foam hoppers or foam bluegill pop-pers with a dropper 10 in. behind. Thedropper doesn’t seem to matter. Throwthe hopper or popper in front of the feed-ing carp and twitch it. They then getcurious and swim towards the hopper orpopper. One cautionary note, don’t popthe popper, just move it slowly to make awake, so you don’t scare the fish. Oncethe fish come close and strike, about 80percent will take the dropper and 20 per-cent hit the hopper or popper.

Tying your flies I tie all my own because I like size 6

carbon steel hooks for all of my flies.

The North Platte River downstream of Glenrock produced this 16 pounder.

They won’t bend, and it may not matteron the 10 or 20 lb. fish, but the day youget on the 30 or 40 lb. fish you won’t bekicking yourself because of a bent wirehook.

So now all your have to is go out andgive fly fishing for carp a try. Drop allthose misconceptions. Catch a carp, lethim make your drag scream, allow him toput a sharp bend in your rod and straight-en out your hooks. You may end up withcarp-all tunnel.

A great day of carp fishing is

measured in hundreds of

pounds of fishcaught.


WYOMING FLY CASTERS BOARD MEETING MINUTES -- DRAFTJuly 15, 2009

The meeting was called to order by President JoeDeGraw at 7:00 pm.

All board members were present except for John Fanto[unexcused absence], Gene Theriault [unexcused absence],Bob Fisher [excused absence], Bill Wichers [excusedabsence], and Russ Newton [unexcused absence]. JohnDolan, Richard Soffe, Janet Milek, Smokey Weinhandl, andRandy Stalker also attended all or parts of the meeting.

Secretary’s note: At the board’s request, I include a list ofabsent members in each month’s report. A list of board memberscan be found in each month’s Backcast. Unless otherwise noted,all Board decisions – being done according to proper procedure –are by unanimous vote. Any positive suggestions for improvementin subsequent meeting reports will be carefully considered.

John Dolan, representing the Two Fly organization, con-firmed that group’s offer of money to help support the bar-beque that will be part of our river cleanup and guide’s forumon Aug. 15. They will provide $500 to WFC if we will agreeto provide 2-3 boats to help support the Platte River Revivalcleanup on Sept.r 19.

Richard Soffe and Janet Milek spoke to WFC’s role inthe Game and Fish Expo on September 10-12. They thankedWFC for past support and asked for our continued participa-tion and donation. Kim will follow through to get our dona-tion in their hands. Janet asked that WFC provide 3 volun-teers to man the fly casting area from 9-4 on the 3 days of theexpo. They will provide signs indicating our participation.Alex will write a piece for Randy to include in the Backcastdetailing the need for volunteers. WFC will also have abooth inside the arena as we have done in the past.

Minutes from the previous meeting and the treasurer’sreport through June were approved.

The Conservation Committee [Matt Stanton] discussedthe WFC river clean-up below Grey Reef that will take placeon Aug. 15. The clean-up will be followed by a barbeque andby discussion with local guides on their views about con-cerns, problems, and opportunities on our river. The boardapproved $500 to support this project, for such things astrash bags and additional funds for the barbeque, with theunderstanding that no WFC funds will be used to providealcoholic beverages to participants. The barbeque and guidesforum will be held at the IWL Clubhouse.

Vice President’s report: Alex Rose reported on the verysuccessful casting clinic conducted by Charlie Shedd andassisted by Joe Meyer and Spencer Amend. In fact, so manypeople wanted this instruction [about 50] that two addition-al sessions are scheduled. The next sessions will be August 10& 11. Joe Meyer is handling calls to line up and scheduleparticipants. Alex is still working on more detailed informa-tion concerning printing and mailing costs for the Backcastand hopes to have that task completed by the August Boardmeeting. Some board members have expressed frustrationthat we are spending so much time on what appears to be aminor item.

Andrew Sauter is still working on draft language related

to the criteria for including club members’ names on theSpeas Memorial Stone. Scott Novotny mentioned thatgrass and weeds have currently overgrown the stone.

President-elect’s report: To previously announcedevents, Melody added that Randy Stalker will be stream-keeper for a September outing in the Glenrock area, andindicated that Casey Leary will be leading an outing to theMiracle Mile [November?]. Feedback varied on the recentTongue River outing, but it boiled down to the fact thatalthough fishing was not up to some past experience,everyone seemed to enjoy themselves – and nobody gotstomped by a moose. Melody has a copy of the streamkeep-er guidelines drafted by Dick DePaemelere last year.Basically as streamkeeper, you get to call the shots. It wassuggested that whenever possible, inexperienced stream-keepers be paired with those who have already had theprivilege.

Old Business: Joe DeGraw indicated that on July 29,from 8-10:30 am, the WFC will provide a light breakfast andfly tying demonstration/instruction for ~10 wounded veter-ans in our support of the Wounded Warriors Project. JoeMeyer & ????? will provide the tying expertise.

There continue to be problems of communicationregarding who commits to what regarding meals on outings[per the recent Tongue River experience]. Streamkeeperscan help by being clear on their information/instructions.

New business: Succession: The bylaws are unclear onthis point. Following Joe DeGraw’s resignation due to hismove to Laramie, there was considerable discussion aboutsuccession. In the end, it was agreed that Alex Rose willserve as president through the remainder of the currentterm. A new vice president will be sought. Board meetingswill be moved to the third Thursday of the month, begin-ning in August, and Andrew Sauter will run general meet-ings, also beginning in August, until Alex’s schedule permitshim to take over that duty.

John Fanto contacted several board members concern-ing his desire to resign from the board. With regrets and withmuch gratitude for past service, the board accepted his res-ignation. Russ Newton was also relieved of board duties dueto changes in his work schedule that preclude his participa-tion. Smokey Weinhandl volunteered to fill the remainderof John Fanto’s term on the Board. Alex will contact otherpotential candidates who have indicated an interest inboard participation regarding filling the remainder of RussNewton’s term. Clarification of the bylaws regarding succes-sion [and perhaps other changes] will be a topic for thefuture.

Kim will investigate possibilities of better/cheaper serv-ice on WFC bank accounts and report to the Board inAugust.

The meeting was adjourned at 8:20 pm.Respectfully Submitted:

Spencer Amend, Secretary, 7-16-09


Ten Sleepouting

MONDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY SATURDAY

1

2 3 4 5 86 7

9 10 11 12 1513 14

16 17 18 19 2220 21

23 24 25 26 27 28

Regular meeting, 7 p.m.

WFC BoardMeeting, 7 p.m.

Deadline forBackcast info

AUGUSTTUESDAY

29

30

Full moon

31

River cleanup

SUNDAY

Ten Sleepouting

Ten Sleepouting

IncomeDate Num Description Amount

No TransactionsIncome - Total $0.00

ExpensesDate Num Description Amount7/1/2009 Monthly Bank Activity Fee ($3.00)7/8/2009 3990 Don Jelinek - Walker Jenkins Outting - food ($138.00)Expenses - Total ($141.00)

Net Income for Period ($141.00)

TREASURER’S REPORT FOR JUNE, 2009

Mentor is still needed for PRE

PRE (Platte River Emergers), ouryouth group, needs an adult sponsor. Thesponsor would help lead the group andsee that it flourishes. You would alsoserve as liaison between PRE and theWyoming Fly Casters. If you would beinterested in this sponsorship, contactDick DePaemelere at 234-2595.

TTHHAANNKKSS!!

The Wyoming Fly Casters thanks thelocal Starbucks coffee houses for donatingbreakfast to the Wounded Warriors andtyers for the recent Healing Waters eventin Casper.

Wyoming Fly CastersP.O. Box 2881Casper, WY 82602

www.wyflycasters.org

The mission of the Wyoming Fly Casters is to promote and enhance the sport of flyfishing and the conservation of fish and their habitat.

wfc 08/09

Documents

board members

im grateful

club members

im usedto

recent casting clinic

im surprised tofind

joe meyer

prime dry fly fishing