The Everlasting Mud Puddle

mud puddle
Logan Loves His Mud Puddles
Eric Weissleder

When our dog, Logan does something that, to me, seems incredibly dumb, I take a step back, look a little closer, and eventually discover that it’s all part of a master plan. Case in point: the mud puddle.

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Action Alert: Fight Higher Quotas for Striped Bass

Stripers Forever

As the results from the this year’s Martha’s Vineyard Striped Bass & Bluefish Derby showed, striper populations are not as healthy as some would have us believe. The total number of striped bass entered in the Derby was 384 fish—the lowest number since bass were reintroduced to the Derby in 1997 and eight fish less than the previous low set in 2008. But the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) is about to vote on a proposal to increase the number of bass commercial fishermen can harvest. The conservation organization Stripers Forever sent out this call to action:

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The Original “One Fly”

Russ Blessing
The late Russell Blessing with his most famous creation, the Woolly Bugger.
Photo courtesy of Fly Rod & Reel

If you’ve ever wondered about the origins of the world’s most popular fly, Fly Rod & Reel has a great interview with Fred Blessing, son of the late Russell Blessing, the man who first tied a Woolly Bugger way back in 1967.

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In the Loop 10.21.10

Kasatochi Eruption
The 2008 eruption of the Kasatochi volcano in the Aleutian Islands.
Photo by Chris Waythomas, courtesy of the Alaska Volcano
Observatory / U.S. Geological Survey

Scientists searching for an explanation for the record-breaking number of sockeye salmon returning to Canada’s Frasier River have come up with an explosive theory. A 2008 eruption of a volcano in the Aleutian Islands may have created just the right conditions for a massive bloom of Phytoplankton, the sockeye’s favorite dish.

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First Pheasant

Jenna's First Pheasant
First Pheasant

Photo – Tim Daughton

I’m new to this, painfully new. I just completed my Hunters’ Safety course this past summer and had only aimed a shotgun at clays. I had no plans of coming home with a ringneck, but the possibility had me excited on the dark drive to our meeting spot before dawn. When I pulled my truck to the parking area on the side of the road, I was greeted by what I would learn would be the classic pre-hunt scene. My friends Steve, Tim, and Tim’s son Holden were outside their trucks, talking with coffee in their hands and Steve’s dog, Cayenne, lunging at the end of her leash. I was an emotional concoction of excited and nervous. I kept it to myself that I hadn’t felt this way since Prom Night. This was a whole different dance though, and the borrowed 20 gauge would’ve looked awkward with my teal dress from high school.

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Au Sable Opportunity

1230_AuSableMain
A matching grant offers a great chance to double your contribution to conservation efforts.
photo courtesy Anglers of the Au Sable

The Anglers of the Au Sable have been given a wonderful opportunity. The Charlevoix County Community Foundation has stepped forward and offered to the Anglers a “Challenge Matching Grant” of $20,000. That means that the Anglers of the Au Sable must raise $20,000 in order to receive this matching grant of $20,000.00. The challenge is raising $20,000 by January 1, 2011.

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Exploring New Zealand’s South Island

Fly Fishing New Zealand….South Island Revisited Volume 1 from flydogsdownunder on Vimeo.

A great amateur video by two Australian fly fishermen who venture deep into the backcountry of New Zealand’s South Island. They land several trout that would be “fish of a lifetime” for most of us on this side of the Pacific. If you watch the second volume of their series, you’ll get a sense for just how spooky these trout can be, as one of the anglers struggles to get a fish to bite.

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