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Nat Greene Flyfishers August 2005

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NAT GREENE CALENDAR

MEETINGS & EVENTS

Tuesday August 9, 2005 - Annual Summer Picnic, Bur-Mil Park Shelter Number 7, next to the Wildlife Education Center. Join us for food, beverages, fishing, and fellowship. Bur-Mil Park, Greensboro, 7:00 p.m.

Tuesday September 13, 2005 - Monthly Meeting: Eugene Schuler from Smoky Mountain Fly Fishing and finalist in last years Fly Fishing Masters Southeastern Division, "Fishing Opportunities in Great Smoky Mountains National Park," Lewis Recreation Center, 7:00 p.m.

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Troubled Waters in the Shenandoah

Death of Smallmouth Bass Brings Attention But No Quick Answers on Improving Quality

By Michael Alison Chandler, washingtonpost.com

Washington Post Staff Writer

Wednesday, July 20, 2005; B01

BENTONVILLE, Va. -- It's quiet on the South Fork of the Shenandoah River here, save for the steady sound of rain dimpling the surface of the water.

A canoe shop near the river's edge is stocked with a rainbow of recreational equipment -- red kayaks, orange life jackets, yellow plastic inner tubes -- waiting for the weekend or a sunnier day to bring crowds of people.

But business is down this summer, said Trace Noel, owner of Shenandoah River Trips.

Normally, regular customers would return week after week toting buckets of minnows or live shiners in their rented canoes to fish the nationally renowned waters for smallmouth bass.

This year, a fish kill wiped out as much as 80 percent of the adult smallmouth bass population, the third major strike in four years affecting rivers in the region. And though nobody has identified a clear cause, the trend raises new questions about the quality of water that feeds into the Chesapeake Bay.

"The entire upper mileage of the Potomac River watershed is sick," said Jeff Kelble, 33, a full-time fishing guide based in Boyce, near Winchester, who travels two hours to the lower Potomac and small rivers where he can still find popular game fish. Some guides who spend lots of time on the Shenandoah said the water quality is deteriorating, while others said it has always been poor.

Starting in April, while they were spawning and their immune systems were suppressed, smallmouth bass, as well as redbreast sunfish, began developing lesions. Locals described them as cigar burns or canker sores.

Before long, dead fish could be seen floating in the river. The same sequence occurred last spring on the North Fork of the Shenandoah, and two years before that on the South Branch of the Potomac.

If nothing else happens to the river, it still could take several years for the young fish, which were passed over in the kill, to grow large enough to interest anglers.

"This is not a typical fish kill," said Steve Reeser, a fish biologist with the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries. A more typical kill can be traced back to a source of pollution such as a chemical spill or a pipe from a sewage treatment plant.

"Those are things that are easy to manage or regulate," Reeser said.

The state Department of Environmental Quality, the lead agency investigating the case, sent live fish with lesions to pathologists and fish disease specialists, who could not find a particular virus or cause of death but confirmed that the fish had been subject to environmental stress.

"It's no secret that the Shenandoah River has water quality problems," Reeser said, though the investigation has not found data to show that the fish kill was tied to water quality.

Fishing on the South Fork has been mainly a catch-and-release sport for years. Red-and-white signs posted at river access points warn people not to eat the fish, and high levels of mercury and PCBs have resulted from industrial dumping.

The river is also known to have high nutrient levels. Nitrogen and phosphorus in high amounts cause excess plant or algae growth, which can reduce levels of dissolved oxygen. Fish struggle to breathe, and that can weaken their resistance to disease or bacteria.

The land along all three rivers affected by the fish kills is primarily agricultural. With more than 900 farms in the valley, the poultry industry dominates. High-nutrient waste from the farms is used as fertilizer and can wash into the river .

The Shenandoah Valley is also a growing population center. Reeser said it's difficult to test for runoff from the countless farms, golf courses, lawns and parking lots.

It's also hard because the Department of Environmental Quality has limited resources for river monitoring. Two fish biologists test in 14 counties, said Don Kaine, a water compliance manager with the department who is overseeing the fish kill investigation. The agency relies on citizen monitoring groups to help augment its data.

The lack of conclusive information has been fodder for rumors and finger pointing in the valley. Some blame newcomers and development. Many blame the poultry farms, but often with averted eyes or in lowered tones, hesitant to incriminate neighbors or friends.

A hundred miles away in Richmond, Jeff Corbin, senior scientist and deputy director of the Chesapeake Bay Foundation in Virginia, said he does not understand the hesitation to pin blame.

"It's infuriating that people are saying we don't know what's causing this," Corbin said.

The river is "choked with nitrogen and phosphorus pollution," which "makes these fish live under stressful conditions all year," he said.

Along Route 340, Stonewall Jackson Memorial Highway, roadside signs for chicken farms alternate with churches and country markets selling lures and spinners.

Just south of Luray, George Gochenour took a break from shoveling 10 months' worth of chicken droppings from his 28,000-chicken breeding farm. By week's end, he estimated, he would have 350 tons to give to a farmer down the street.

"I can't see how it would be enough waste to get to the river and harm the fish," he said.

Gochenour, who works for Texas-based Pilgrim's Pride, said poultry farmers used to be less careful about where they spread litter. But now, he said, regulations are in place to monitor the content of the litter and where it is spread.

Corbin said Virginia's poultry waste regulations, passed into law in 1999, are just a start.

Reeser said he hopes the fish kill will be a wakeup call to people in the Shenandoah Valley.

"There's been a lot of talk and effort to clean up the Chesapeake Bay. People who live here think, why should I worry about that, [when] it's a couple hundred miles away," he said.

"Now the impacts are closer to home."

Staff researcher Bobbye Pratt contributed to this report.

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The Gallatin River: Ideal for Novices and Pros Alike

Location: Southwestern Montana.

Short take: Lots of trout, and great for beginners on upper section. Fish become larger and angling more challenging downriver.

Type of stream: Freestone.

Angling methods: Fly, spin.

Species: Rainbow, cutthroat, cuttbow, brown.

Access: Easy.

Season: Year-round.

Running more than 100 miles from its headwaters-a little creek running out of the northwest quadrant of Yellowstone National Park-the Gallatin joins the Missouri just north of its origin, the union of the Madison and the Jefferson at Trident. In between are open riffles, roaring canyon cataracts, and miles and miles of cobble-bedded runs, turns, and pools, shadowed for most of the river's length by U.S. Highway 191. The river holds something for anglers of all skill levels, from the greenest novice who's yet to wet a wader, to the grizzled pro who's been there and done that and plans to keep doing it forever. Roughly a third the size of the Yellowstone River, and without a major entrance to the national park at its headwaters, the valley of the Gallatin lacks the grandeur of its cousin to the east. Even during the height of summer's tourist season, you may have sections of the river all to yourself, save an occasional drift boat or raft and kayak on the middle and lower mileage.

From a point where the river first hits US 191, in a broad basin within the park, north to Cinnamon Station, the Gallatin flows through open meadows. Pools are separated by shallow runs and little streamside brush reaches out to snag errant back casts. Fish in this mileage are not large-a 12-inch rainbow is a good one. Yet, they and their cutthroat neighbors seem willing to forgive a bit of drag or sloppy presentation. Run-off doesn't leave this water until the end of July, and even then it's so cold that the sun must warm the river for a while before it fishes well. Start fishing at noon and stay 'til dusk. National park seasons and regulations govern the water from the park boundary upstream. Check those, and obtain appropriate permits before you fish.

At Cinnamon Station, a one-time rail stop, the Gallatin enters a short canyon about three miles long. You'll find chutes and plunge pools here and some water that holds bigger fish. The canyon opens up into a valley called the Lower Basin and the tourist town of Big Sky, a gateway to the ski resort of the same name, which was established by a consortium spearheaded by the late NBC-TV news anchor, Chet Huntley. The West Fork enters the basin at its northern end, and immediately the river gains volume and drops into a 22-mile canyon of turbulent runs and pools. As lovely as it looks, this water does not hold many large rainbows. The average is a foot or so. But every year a number of 18-inch fish are taken.

The canyon ends at Jack Creek where the Gallatin flows under US 191. From that point, the five miles or so to the bridge over the river at Gallatin Gateway is considered the best fishing on the river. The current has slowed, gravel runs lead to pools that undercut banks creating holds for larger rainbows and cuttbows, a hybrid of 'bows and cutthroats. An occasional brown will show up in this stretch, but they are rare. Rainbows here, however, are larger than those upstream. Downstream, dewatering the river to meet agricultural demands takes a toll on the fishery, though TU is working to establish minimum flows. This section is still worthy of your attention. Browns of five pounds plus are not infrequent.

With the waters of the East Gallatin, the river gains the feel of some of the larger western rivers. For ten miles, the river flows through an intricate riparian zone, heavily brushed, and loaded with wildlife as well as with big browns undercut banks and 'bows in the riffles. The best way to fish this water is from a drift boat-legal on this stretch-though the angler who's willing to walk a mile or two from access points such as the bridge at Nixon Gulch will find outstanding sport.

Matching the hatch is not of utmost importance on the Gallatin. Caddis and Blue-Winged Olives in spring and fall, with Pale Morning Duns and terrestrials in the height of summer and the usual nymphs and streamers will handle most chores. If run-off has abated (and sometimes it has) the salmon fly hatch in late June and early July can be marvelous. At this writing, no special tackle restrictions are posted on the state-controlled waters, but read the regs before you fish.

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EVOLUTION AND THE TWO-DOLLAR FLY

In the beginning we just think it would be cool to catch a fish on a fly that we tied ourselves.

We want to catch a fish on something we have created, actually fooling a wise old trout with our creation. But how did we come to our current state in the art of tying flies? There are as many reasons as there are fly tiers and everyone has their own combination of motives. It's not always clear, when someone asks us why we "roll our own", exactly what brought us to the hobby; a hobby that generally evolves dramatically over time because we usually get better at it and our needs and fishing styles change over time just like everything else in life.

We often first realize it's a matter of economics. A young person just getting started in life will quickly do the math on two-dollar flies and snag infested rivers and quickly determine that if they're going to play this fly-fishing game then they need to cut out the high overhead costs. Those of us who are well established, at a time in life when we could, if we chose, afford to throw away two-dollar flies, remember when we could gas up the car for two dollars and we quickly do the math on two dollar flies and snag infested rivers and quickly determine that no matter what the rate of inflation is we are not going to throw a two-dollar fly into any place that has even a remote chance of hitting us for two bucks a pop. Two dollars is a still lot of money for those of us old enough to remember five-cent candy bars. At this stage of development, we are simply seeking to survive the cost of our new hobby. While money is not the only reason we take the plunge, it is often a primary motivator and while it is reason enough it often does not remain our chief motivation.

As we become more proficient in our sport we tend to get particular about the flies we toss. We are no longer content to throw generic flies during the hatch. We want our patterns to have the exact color, shade, and hue of the naturals on the particular water we're fishing. So now our hobby has evolved to one of tactical precision. We are no longer content with the basics and this is when the mass stores of fly tying materials inevitably begin to accumulate. At first its harmless enough; a few more appropriate feathers or colors of dubbing begin to take up the soon-to-be-lost-forever space on our tying desk. But this quickly evolves into the quest for the perfect material. And since our fishing skills have matured and diversified so it follows that we now need an exponential stock of every fur and feather known to science. And even once we have accumulated examples of the taxonomy of every mammal and bird on the planet, we discover the never-ending wealth of synthetics.

The synthetic obsession hits most of us at some point and we find ourselves rummaging through trash bins like the homeless in our quest for the perfect material. We frequent craft stores seeking new hitherto undiscovered space-age materials that even NASA is not privy to, all the while the material horde is growing like the 50's science fiction flick The Blob. This usually is accompanied by in increase in the number of tools we need and it is also about this time that we realize we really need a new high-priced vice. If our spouse does the math on what we've been spending they will conclude that we already have a high-priced vice - fly-fishing! And as we start to add up the cost of this obsession with materials we realize that unless we tie 2000 dozen flies a year, the cost per fly is likely to be around two dollars. Obviously we have been looking at this all wrong, cost savings is not our objective here; it's supply and demand. We need to evolve again.

We now realize the cost of a fly is immaterial and as long as we don't actually have pay two dollars for one individual fly we're OK. Averages don't count. What does count is having lots of the flies we need. Since we now have this warehouse of materials we can forget the cost of the material since the amount of material we pull from our stores for each fly equates closely to zero percent of the total cost of our inventory. All we need now is hooks and we can consider the materials to be free and since we only have to buy hooks, we can afford the best ones. No ten-cent hooks for us! We can use the crème-dela-crème hooks and now our cost per fly is down to around twenty-five cents. Of course we can also ignore the cost of something as inconsequential as thread. Now we begin stockpiling flies. Two dozen of this fly, five dozen of that fly, and gross of these. We can now toss every conceivable incarnation of fly with reckless abandon at every snag infested pocket we can find. Our fly rod is a like an Uzi that never runs out bullets. We can wear a river out with an incessant barrage of flies. This phase of our evolution also necessitates a spending spree on fly boxes. We have to have somewhere to put these all these flies and we can rationalize that since the box is not actually part of the fly it does not count in the cost of producing our munitions horde.

Eventually the accumulated production of flies has filled cabinets and drawers and we start finding boxes of flies that we don't remember tying. While part of it may be old age even young tiers with enough years behind them reach the epiphany that producing copious quantities of flies is not what it's all about either. We consider the small fortune we have invested in tools and materials and since we already dismissed the cost of those then there is no sense in counting our labor either. After all this is a labor of love and we gladly give the time for free. Even if we add labor to the pricey designer hooks and divide by the thousands of flies we've tied we should still squeak under the two dollars per fly. We came out ahead on this game after all. But if we don't do it for cost or quantity then why do we do it?

The final metamorphoses must be to become a creator of quality flies. Yes we have now reached artesian status. We no longer need to pad our fly boxes since we could fish for a couple of hundred years in any watershed in the world and not run out of usable flies. Now we seek to create perfect flies perfectly proportioned with exactly the right materials. This often necessitates buying more materials. Yes we have several jungle cock capes but we don't have any dyed to a dark claret color. But hey it's only materials and we've long since become immune to their cost. There are about a million feathers on good cape and the cost averages out to about zero per fly. Yea, that's about right. And these perfect works of art of course need some fancy new boxes but as we have already rationalized, they are not part of the fly and do not add to the cost. We also start to realize that we might not have enough time left in life to use all the flies we have tied over the years so we might find ourselves giving flies away or donating them to charitable auctions. After all, we produce artwork now and we really couldn't be seen fishing these flies created during our misguided youth. We ignore the fact that these old flies seem to have caught just as many fish as our Picasso masterpieces do, but we can assume that the fishing is not as good today as it was in the old days. If we would have had these babies we are producing today back then, man that would have been something!

Yes, we tie flies for a lot a reasons and it becomes as much a part of our sport as the fishing itself but mostly we just enjoy doing it. And we are secure in the fact that we never paid two dollars for a fly. We emerge from our chrysalis fully formed fly tiers.

In the end we just think it's cool to catch a fish on a fly that we tied ourselves.

Submitted by Daryl Crowley – member of West Michigan Hacklers – FFF Charter Club

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