Nov. Meeting reminder

This Tuesday Nov. 24th we will be having our monthly membership meeting @ 7pm in the DAR house on 8th Ave.  Due to how close this is to Thanksgiving, we will be having a very informal fly tying night.  Please feel free to bring your vise and show off your favorite pattern or technique, or take this opportunity to ask questions of some of our Chapters best fly tiers.  We hope you can joins us.

Holiday Get Together 12/8 7pm

"Predation", by Stellwagen Media

OK, its not trout, but really cool.
PREDATION from Stellwagen Media on Vimeo.

International Fly Tying Symposium 11/21 & 11/22

Meeting Minutes

The meeting minuets for Sept and Oct. are now available on the Publications page, towards the bottom.  The October version has the results from the annual election.

Fall Joint Chapter Meeting Feat. George Daniel 12/15/15

CLICK  *** HERE *** for details.

Meeting Reminder for 10/27/15

A reminder that tomorrow Oct. 27th, will be our monthly membership meeting, along with our annual elections.  We will hold the elections first, and then have the pleasure of being joined by Paula Piatt, the Eastern Sportsmans coordinator for TU.  Paula will be giving her presentation on the importance of headwater streams.

Meeting time is 7pm at the DAR house in the Rose Garden Park on 8th Ave. in Bethlehem ( across from Nitchsmann middle School).

Fall Clean Up at the AJCA Recap

On Wednesday Sept 23rd memebes from Monocacy TU, Friends of Johnston, and the Monocacy Creek Watershed Association all gathered to tackle a few projects on the stream.  One group tackled the removal on invasive plants, and another took on a huge willow tree that was blocking the creek.  The groups made some great progress and even got some coverage from 69NEWS.

TU National Meeting Conservation Tour Recap

AMD Entering Lackawanna River

The TU National Meeting was held this past Thursday- Sunday in downtown Scranton, PA.  On Thursday, chapter member Todd Griffith joined a conservation tour which consisted of several sites that highlighted local projects.  The fist stop was the Old Forge Bore Hole, which is a 44inch several hundred foot deep hole drilled by the Army Core of Engineers in 1961.  The hole is used to relieve groundwater pressure that was caused by the flooding of coal tunnels by the Susquehanna River.  The Bore Hole drains about 60 MILLION gallons of mine drainage PER DAY.  For the past 50 years.

The second stop was a project to protect a small tributary that passed through a working cattle farm.

Last but not least was a visit to some gas drilling operations, with representatives explaining the process.  TU's own Katy Dunlap was on hand to ask specific questions.

A thanks to Todd Griffith for joining the tour ans taking the pictures.

Fall Clean Up at AJC

Fall Newsletter

The Fall Newsletter is now live HERE. Or by Clicking on the link to the right.

Hall Pass

If you are married, this is for you...

6th Lehigh Valley Watershed Conference

Lehigh University STEPS Building
1 W Packer Ave
Bethlehem, PA 18015

Event Detail:  YOU MUST REGISTER FOR THIS EVENT CLICK HERE

The Lehigh Valley Watershed Conference brings together professionals, citizens, watershed groups, municipal officials, professors, students, and YOU. The Conference presents up-to-date engaging and timely information on a variety of water resource topics. The theme of this Sixth Watershed Conference is Fresh Water Ecology. 


Join us for a special plenary session from invited guest speaker, Dorothy Merritts of Franklin and Marshall College who will discuss "Streams in Pennsylvania - a Historical View." This year's conference also features two half-day workshops designed to give watershed volunteers hands-on, practical information and a special landscape track with SA Certified Arborist, PCH, PDH, Pesticide Credits and PA Landscape Architect CEUs available. (Contact Kathy Salisbury at 215-345-3283 or kvs14@psu.edu for more information.)

This conference is brought to you by: Watershed Coalition of the Lehigh Valley, Lehigh University Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Environmental Initiative, Penn State Extension, Northampton County Conservation District, Lehigh Gap Nature Center, Nurture Nature Center, and Wildlands Conservancy.
For a printable pdf file of the complete schedule click here.

Forks TU Pig Roast

Hokendauqua Chapter Completes Coplay Creek Project

On August 24-26th,   Hokendauqua Chapter worked to complete a stream habitat restoration project on Coplay Creek in Hokendauqua Playground.  The restoration consisted of about 19 devices over 100+ yards of stream.  The project was a collaboration between Hokey TU, the Hokendauqua Playground Association, PFBC, among others.  Click HERE for a MCall article about the project.

PFBC announces new Big Trout Program for 2016

from patrout.org

 Aug 03, 2015

A new stocked trout program will be introduced by PFBC in 2016 in which approximately 10 percent of the larger 2- to 3-year-old-trout in the PFBC hatchery system that are stocked each year

A new stocked trout program will be introduced by PFBC in 2016 in which approximately 10 percent of the larger 2- to 3-year-old-trout in the PFBC hatchery system that are stocked each year will be allocated to eight waters currently managed under Delayed Harvest Artificial Lures Only regulations. These fish, which will measure from 14” to more than 20” in length, will be stocked at a rate of up to 250 trout per mile, which is comparable to the numbers of fish of this size in Pennsylvania’s best wild trout waters. By contrast, the current stocking rate for 2- to 3-year-old-trout statewide in the catchable trout program is about 5-10 per mile.
The eight streams yet to be named will be distributed broadly across the state so that at least one water is located within a reasonable distance of all of Pennsylvania’s anglers.
Currently this program is unnamed, and PFBC is seeking the public’s help in naming the program. There are a number of names that have been considered by staff, but you may have other better ideas. The names proposed thus far are: Premium Stocked Trout, Trophy Stocked Trout, Lunker Stocked Trout and Blue Ribbon Trout. You can vote for one of these titles or write in your own nomination at http://fishandboat.com/stocking/large-trout.htm.
PFBC staff will review all of the proposals and a name will be selected prior to the next Commission meeting on September 28 and 29, 2015. Both the program name and the names of the selected waters will be released at the September meeting.

Brian Wagner: Fight to protect nation's waters isn't over

originally printed in the Morning Call July 31, 2015

Who among us was lucky enough as a child to have played with a toy boat in a little park brook or a neighborhood creek? We'd launch our craft and watch in wonder as the swirling currents washed it downstream. We'd chase along, pluck the toy from the water, run back upstream and set it adrift again.
Eventually, we might have let our boat keep going. As it disappeared we'd think, "It is going to a big river now." That is how our nation's waters work. They start small. And they grow. And what goes in upstream ends up downstream.
So when Congress passed the Clean Water Act in 1972, the intent was to implement protections for the entire system. That's how it went for three decades, and the effects were striking. Our nation's rivers became healthier, and the loss of important wetlands decreased dramatically. And that's how things can go again now that the Environmental Protection Agency and the Army Corp of Engineers have released a rule restoring protections of many of the wetlands and headwaters streams once covered by the Clean Water Act, but lost because of a pair of controversial Supreme Court rulings in the 2000s. The Waters of the United States rule, released on May 27, provides clear definitions of the waters protected by the Clean Water Act.

Irrigation systems, ponds and many ditches are specifically excluded, and the rule reaffirms existing exemptions for normal forestry, farming and ranching practices. This is great news for the 117 million Americans whose drinking water supplies are sourced from headwater streams, including some that run only intermittently or at certain times of the year.
And this is also great news for hunters and anglers, whose pursuits are inextricably tied to healthy woods and waters, and whose passions contribute mightily to our nation's economy. In Pennsylvania alone, recreational fishing results in annual trickle down economic impact of more than $850 million, according to an American Sportfishing Association analysis of data collected by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
Growing up in Northampton County, I had the opportunity to fish in and hunt along my home waters, the Bushkill Creek and its tributaries. The Clean Water Act and the conservation movement that spawned its bipartisan support in 1972 had much to do with the cleanup and revival of the Delaware and Lehigh rivers. Sportsmen like me can again fish for American shad in the Delaware and trout in the Lehigh River. Today, no matter where in the country I find myself, whether it's a large river like the Yellowstone or my home waters in the Lehigh Valley, the quality of my fishing experience is directly linked to the quality of the waters upstream.
More than a million Americans provided comments to the proposed clean water rule after its proposal in 2014, and more than 80 percent of the comments supported restoring the common sense protections to our nation's important headwaters and wetlands. This isn't simply a matter of opinions. During the process the EPA released a 400-page, peer-reviewed report summarizing the science supporting the connection between America's small headwaters and its larger rivers. While the release of this rule is encouraging, the fight to protect our nation's waters isn't over.
Some industry groups waged a campaign against the proposal, and they continue to try to strike fear into landowners with false claims that the rule will affect normal use of private property. They have even managed to convince some members of Congress to fight the rule. Fending off that assault will fall to conscientious elected officials such as Pennsylvania's Sen. Bob Casey, who long has been an ally to the state's hunters and anglers and who can make a difference by showing that this is not about politics, but about science.
And that science is not only indisputable, it is not complicated. Waters start small. And they grow. And what goes in upstream ends up downstream.
Brian Wagner, who lives in Nazareth, is president of the Pennsylvania Council of Trout Unlimited.
Copyright © 2015, The Morning Call

Summer Hoppers

 

 Summer is a great time for fishing terrestrial flies. Here a blog dedicated to just that.

https://hopperfishing.wordpress.com/

TU State of the Trout

State of the Trout from Trout Unlimited on Vimeo.

PBS 39 Focus segment feature TU and Fly Fishing on the Monocacy

originally posted on Broadhead TU
The PBS 39 series Focus featured a segment on fly-fishing in the Lehigh Valley with Erik Broesicke, President of the Monocacy Chapter of Trout Unlimited. Reporter Brittany Garzillo stepped onto the banks of the Monocacy Creek in Bethlehem for the Focus episode on outdoor activities.
The complete episode is embedded below.

New Conservation Area

From the National Lands Trust website:

Announcing the Archibald Johnston Preserve Conservation Teamwork Results in a New Nature Preserve in Northampton County.  Natural Lands Trust, a regional land conservation organization, and the Friends of Johnston, Inc., a non-profit organization formed to preserve the Johnston Estate, are pleased to announce the creation of the Archibald Johnston Preserve. The Archibald Johnston Preserve was established last month when Natural Lands Trust purchased 18 acres of land that was once the estate of Amanda J. Leckonby, granddaughter of Archibald Johnston who served as the first mayor of the City of Bethlehem. Friends of Johnston, Inc. purchased an adjacent 3.4 acres known as Camel’s Hump Farm, and Natural Lands Trust expects to acquire an additional 26-acre parcel—currently owned by the Central Moravian Church and under agreement of sale with the conservation organization—this summer. These lands, combined with the existing Archibald Johnston Conservation Area—owned by Northampton County—and Bethlehem Township’s Housenick Park, will offer more than 150 acres of contiguous conserved land for the community. The Friends of Johnston, Inc. will restore and manage the land with volunteer manpower and expert guidance from Natural Lands Trust. Over the next several years, they expect to convert the farm fields to native wildflower meadows, improve the forested buffer along Monocacy Creek, establish community gardens, and develop trails to link and unite the multiple parcels that make up the new Preserve. “The Archibald Johnston Preserve was established through determination, perseverance, and partnership,” said Molly Morrison, president of Natural Lands Trust. “The next chapter in this magnificent property is an exciting one as we support Friends of Johnston in their work to preserve 250 years of Bethlehem history. I would also like to thank Wildlands Conservancy for their agreement to partner with us as we develop the preserve into a public amenity.” “The Friends of Johnston is extremely thankful to all those who have worked so hard to preserve this important estate,” said Vicky Bastidas, President of Friends of Johnston, Inc. “We are eagerly looking forward to working with Natural Lands Trust and the community to restore the landscape, open the preserve to the public, and develop programs that will benefit everyone.” Key partners for this project include Northampton County—21st Century Open Space Initiative, PA Department of Conservation and Natural Resources—Keystone Recreation, Park, and Conservation Fund Act, and Wildlands Conservancy. - See more at: http://www.natlands.org/who-we-are/news/announcing-the-archibald-johnston-preserve/#sthash.zamEt4SY.dpuf

 

"Step Outdoors Lehigh Valley"

Step Outdoors Lehigh Valley Presented by Lehigh Valley Zoo May 30-31 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Sunday SteelStacks, Bethlehem, PA Experience this free family festival focused on all things outdoors. Step Outdoors will feature more than 30 different conservation, outdoors and wildlife groups coming together for two days filled with hands-on activities, presentations and outdoors experiences designed to introduce you to the region’s great outdoor pursuits and the natural world. Enjoy urban hikes, cycling, birding walks, trips to see peregrine falcons at Sands Bethlehem and live animal presentations, plus learn to cast a fly rod, try your hand at archery, sample creative cuisine made with insects, and so much more. For complete details, visit www.steelstacks.org/stepoutdoors.

Mayflies....

It's what's for dinner:

Schedule reminder

This Saturday ( April 25th) will be our annual Stream Clean up.  We will meet in the main parking lot of Illick's Mill park at 9am and work until about noon.  This is a great chance to get things looking nice after the long winter and two opening days.

On  Tuesday  April 28th we will be meeting at the Pavilion in Illick's Mill Park for our first "Bugs and Dogs" event, which will feature an intro to stream bug ID and Hot Dogs.  Join us and bring a small dish to pass if you like.  Meeting will start @ 6pm and will end at dusk at the latest.

Thanks, hope to see you there.

Film Tour a HUGE success

A gigantic "Thank you!" to everyone that came out and supported the Fly Fishing Film Tour Event this past Wednesday.  To say it was a success would be an understatement, as we SOLD OUT the 200 seat theater on our first try at having the Film Tour here.  I think this just goes to show that there is a ton of passion for fishing and fly fishing in the Lehigh Valley.  A special thanks to the good people at ArtsQuest, and to our guest fly tier Jerry Hadden. Without their help, this would not have been possible, and they did a great job of making the event run smoothly and professionally.  Thanks again for coming out and thanks to everyone who helped make this a huge success.

-Monocacy Chapter TU

Early Seaon Nymph/ Fly Sampler from Tightlines

Early Season Sampler March 2015 from Tightline Productions on Vimeo.

One DAY countdown!

Lehigh Valley Sportsman Show
www.lehighvalleysportsmanshow.com

Spring Event March 14th

February Meeting Featuring Jerry Hadden, Delaware River Guide

Our February 24th meeting will feature noted Delaware River Guide Jerry Hadden.  Jerry will be presenting "Insights of a Professional River Guide".

From Jerry's website http://www.delawareriverguide.net :

"Delaware River fly fishing guide Jerry Hadden. Fly fishing since 1970, 40 years of fly fishing experience, licensed guide since 1994.

Growing up in the surrounding area I never thought of fishing as a hobby, or sport. It was just something you did, more like a way of life. Spending summers at the family cottage on an area lake there wasn't much else to do except fish. Chucking hardware with my Zebco 202 most of the day produced a largemouth or two if I was lucky. This quickly became tiresome especially after watching the old timer from the cottage down on the corner go out in the evening and catch half a dozen bass in a couple of hours with his fly rod. Then there was uncle Bud. When I first saw him catch a large brown on a local stream with his bamboo rod so many years ago. I knew fly fishing was what I was meant to do."

Meeting time is 7pm, at the DAR House on 8th Ave in Bethlehem. (just past Nitschmann Middle School).  Free and open to the public.

Film Tour!

NEW Casting Class May 16th

Lehigh Valley Fly Fishing School’s Fly Casting Course  May 16th

This course is designed for beginners & intermediate fly casters who would like to learn the “Joan Wulff Fly Casting Methodology”. Joan, whose roots are the Catskills, is a professional Fly Casting Instructor and a Fly Casting Tournament Champion. Course is taught by Bob Saks & Bob Signorello.

Here’s the course content and what will be covered:

1. Proper Mechanics of the Basic Casts
•    Pickup / Laydown Basic Cast
•    Backward & Forward Casts with False Casting
•    Roll Cast (single direction cast)
•    Fly Cast Loop Control 
2. Solving Problems with the Basic Casts, including
•    Poor or inefficient Loops
•    Accuracy problems
•    Casting with Weighted Leaders &/or Flies
•    Dealing with Wind and Obstacles 
3. Line Management
•    Creating “Controlled” Slack (needed for Fly Fishing)
•    Mending Techniques, both during & after the Cast 
4. Specialty Casts for Accuracy
•    Used in Advanced Fishing Techniques
•    For Obstacles 
5. Special Techniques for Adding Distance
•    Concepts of Improved Line Speed thru Hauling 

This is an intense 6 hour course on Saturday, May 16th, followed by another optional 4 hour session on Wednesday or Thursday (May 20 or 21) to review what you have learned. The latter will allow us to further evaluate your techniques and things to help you improve.


The course costs in $60.00 per person and the class is limited to 8 adult students who are TU members. You must supply your own Fly Casting outfit and lunch. For safety, a hat and sunglasses are required.

If you are interested, please call Bob Saks at 610-838-2152 or, email him at LVFFS@AOL.COM.

January Meeting CANCELED

Due to the threat of bad weather coupled with some other unforeseen circumstances, we will be canceling tomorrows (Jan. 27th) monthly meeting.  We will make an effort to re-schedule the  program: 'Hendrickson Hatch on the Delaware' by chapter member Jose Dejesus. 

Just a reminder next month we will have Delaware river guide Jerry Hadden "Insights of a Professional River Guide", Feb 24th 7pm.

Film Tour Coming to Lehigh Valley 3/25

Incredible cinematography, hilarious comedy, poignant commentary and tons of amazing fishing experiences combine for one incredible evening when Trout Unlimited and ArtsQuest partner to present the region’s only appearance of the acclaimed Fly Fishing Film Tour (F3T) March 25, 7:30 p.m.

The original and preeminent exhibition of fly fishing cinema, The F3T is a one-of-a-kind experience that takes viewers around the globe via incredible short films focused on fly fishing and cold-water conservation efforts from Asia to North America. The 2015 tour features 11 story-driven films showcasing dynamic fly fishing locations, characters and pursuits from the Western U.S. to the wilds of Mongolia. Included in the festival are films highlighting Atlantic salmon fishing amid the stunning landscape of Iceland, sight fishing for tarpon and bonefish in Cuba, the conservation efforts to protect the endangered Taimen in Mongolia and the impact of climate change on the iconic trout waters of Montana.

Proceeds from the Fly Fishing Film Tour benefit the Monocacy Chapter of Trout Unlimited’s habitat improvement work and coldwater conservation efforts on streams throughout the Lehigh Valley, as well as the ArtsQuest Arts Education Programming Fund, which helps to support ArtsQuest’s free music, arts and education programming for the community.

Guests are invited to arrive starting at 6:30 p.m. to see fly tying demonstrations by Trout Unlimited members, talk with fellow anglers and enjoy beverages from the ArtsQuest Center’s Mike & Ike Bistro (beverages not included with ticket price).

Tickets are available directly from ArtsQuest :  HERE

Not Trout, but some good winter reading.

Southern Culture on the Fly

Click HERE

It's cold out. Tie some flies.

If you are looking to learn how to tie flies, the Hokendauqua Chapter is starting up it's Winter Fly Tying class. This is a great class, at a great price, put on by very knowledgeable and nice people. Here are the details from the Hokendauqua Chapter:

This Saturday, January 10, the Hokendauqua Chapter of Trout Unlimited will be starting its popular Fly Tying classes and you still have time to get a seat. Learn how to tie dry flies, wet flies, nymphs and streamers. There are plenty of instructors (virtually one-one-one help) to personally assist you. The classes run from this Saturday, January 10 through Feb. 28 and are held at Northampton Area Middle School from 9:30 a.m. to about 11:30. Registration and sign-in are at 9:00 a.m. The cost of the class for adults is $30 for the eight (8) Saturday sessions. Students through high school age and disabled veterans are FREE. We supply all the fly tying tools and materials you’ll need to tie the two different flies each week. Also, a 100 page color manual explaining how to tie each fly is yours to keep!
 For additional information call Dale Ott at 610-262-7598 or e-mail him at dwott@ptd.net.

The Northampton Area Middle School is located at 1617 Laubach Avenue, Northampton, PA 18067.. Take Route 329 to Northampton, turn south at Laubach Ave. (traffic light at Bennett car dealership), go about five blocks, turn left just beyond the high school sign and prior to the Northampton Public Library, follow the driveway to the left of the High School around back to the parking lot above the Football field and enter thru the side door. Look for the sign on the door.