Sunday  12/18 will be Ridge & Valley TU’s fishing outing to the Ken
Lockwood Gorge in Lebanon Township, NJ. We welcome all our members to join
us for some trout action on the fly. If you are new to fly fishing and are
in need for some tips, tricks, and/or just need help we will be glad to
assist.

We will be meeting at the lower parking lot off of Rarirtan River Rd at
9:00AM.

Here is a link with directions: http://g.co/maps/qg33w
Afterwards we will be going to the Long Valley Brew Pub for lunch.
http://www.restaurantvillageatlongvalley.com/rest_home.php?restid=1
If you have any questions feel free to call me or email me, I will be glad
to help.

Tight Lines,

Fredy De Leon
fdeleon@killersurf.com
973-945-8161 cell

Pat is the state’s coldwater fisheries biologist as well as the regional fisheries manager for the Upper Delaware and Wallkill River watersheds. She has surveyed many trout streams in northern NJ over the past 30 years and has also studied the genetics of New Jersey’s wild brook trout.

Pat will touch on several topics during her presentation including:

• The Eastern Brook Trout Joint Venture – the ongoing range wide
  effort to conserve and restore wild brook in the eastern U.S.
• New Jersey’s wild trout populations – their distribution, current
  status, and threats
• Findings of the genetics study on NJ’s wild brook trout populations.
• How we can preserve & protect our wild trout resources.

We meet at the Pequest Natural Resource Education Center and Hatchery at 7:30PM. All are welcome; you do not need to be a member to attend. Light refreshments will be served.

(Click on the logos above for more info!)

Brian will be updating us on the current status of restoration, including the recent removal of three dams in the lower watershed. He will detail the progress and future of TU’s Musconetcong Home Rivers Initiative where efforts to remove obsolete dams and impassable culverts as well as restoring degraded river channels and riparian forests continue to improve native brook trout habitat in this important New Jersey watershed.

Brian Cowden is on TU’s Eastern Conservation staff serving as the Coordinator for the Musconetcong Home Rivers Initiative. The Musconetcong Home Rivers Initiative is designed to work closely with landowners and non-profit, local, state and federal agencies, as well as performing public outreach and education to protect and restore the beautiful Musconetcong River and its tributaries in this 158 square mile watershed that drains into the Delaware River. 

We will also be holding elections for Chapter Officers on this date.

Don’t forget about our fly raffle! We are asking all members to show thier support by tying (or buying) 2 dozen of your most productive NJ trout stream flies. All flies will be raffled to help generate much needed funds for stream restoration.

Tentative speakers  for upcoming meetings:

• -Pat Hamilton from the NJ Fish & Game on October 20th
• -Fly tying with Matt Grobert, John Collins, Lenny Ruggia, Chris DelPlato and friends…(bring a camera and notepad)…November 17th.
• -Pot Luck Dinner and rod raffle drawing December 15!

Thanks again to all who turned out for our Pequest TCA clean-up.

On Saturday August 20th members and supporters of the Ridge & Valley Chapter of Trout Unlimited will be meeting at the Pequest TCA for a stream cleanup.  We invite all to come and join us.  This will be a family event.

Please try to help, if only for an hour.

This section of river extends for roughly 1.5 miles in front of the Pequest Trout Hatchery and Natural Resource Education Center.

We will meet at 8:30am in the fisherman’s parking lot at the Rt46 entrance to the hatchery.  See marker B on the map below, and click for directions.

Please bring gloves and eye protection, as we will be working in some brushy areas.  I suspect wet wading will provide a necessary break from August heat.  Wading boots or hiking boots are a good idea; flipflops and sandals simply will not provide the protection required while working in and around this rocky stream.   Be prepared to keep hydrated with lots of water.

After the cleanup we will go to Hotdog Johnny’s for lunch.

Bring along a 5-6-7 weight or spinning rod.   After lunch we’ll be hunting down a few smallmouth bass spots (as the water will be too warm for trout fishing)…

View Larger Map

We will NOT have a regular membership meeting for August.

This month’s guest speaker will be one of R&VTU’s members Allan Johnson.  Allan will demonstrate some of the techniques and tricks that produced four All Around National Championships as a professional caster, including accuracy and distance.  He was a member of the Professional Casters All American Team for four consecutive years and is an American Casting Association Certified Casting Instructor.  More information on Allan Johnson’s School of Fly Casting can be found at: http://www.ajflycasting.com/index.html .

We will be diverting from our normal schedule, and hope to get Allan’s demo off as close to 7:30 as possible to take advantage of the evening light.  Please be on time! 

All are welcome at our 3rd Thursday meetings; you do not need to be a member. Please bring a friend! Light refreshments will be served.

Directions: http://www.ridgeandvalleytu.org/meeting-location

Please join the members of Ridge & Valley TU and Bob Romano at the Pequest Natural Resource Education Center and Hatchery on Thursday, June 16th at 7:30PM.

Bob will be presenting on fly fishing rivers and streams of the Rangeley Lakes area…he’ll concentrate on the Magalloway, Cupsuptic, Kennebago and Rapid Rivers as well as Upper and Middle Dams.

Bob Romano is the author of three books. Fishing with Faeries, was published in 2002.  It is a diary account of fishing a wild trout stream in the State of New Jersey.  Published in 2005 and already in its third printing, Shadows in the Stream, is a book of essays about the lakes, rivers and streams of the Rangeley Lakes Region. His first novel, North of Easie, about a middle-aged fly-fishing guide, is also set in western Maine.

Bob is a frequent contributor to New Jersey Federated Sportsmen News and Skylands Visitor Magazine. He lives in the northwest corner of New Jersey with his wife, Trish, and their Labrador retriever, Moose. Their camp is located in the Rangeley Lakes Region of western Maine where they spend much of their time.

Please visit his website for more info: forgottentrout.com

All are welcome at our 3rd thursday meetings; you do not need to be a member.  Please bring a friend!  Light refreshments will be served.

Chris Del Plato is a streamer fly specialist. He has spent the better part of 20 years studying the history of the long fly, the styles, patterns and  originators like Carrie Stevens, Lew Oatman, Keith Fulsher and Herb Welch, among others.

Chris is a member of the Whiting Farms Pro Team, the Catskill Fly Tyers Guild, American Museum of Fly Fishing and the Ridge & Valley Chapter of Trout Unlimited.   His articles have appeared in Hatches Magazine and as staff contributor for the Global Fly Fisher (http://globalflyfisher.com).  Additionally, Chris oversees the website and is moderator of The Streamer List (http://www.streamerlist.com) – the internet’s longest-running  group devoted to tying, fishing and history of streamer flies.  Some of his own flies can be seen on his web page   (http://streamertyer.com).

Chris will present on classic streamer flies, covering some history, tiers, styles and resources, as well as thoughts about recreating the classic patterns.

Our meetings start at 7:30pm on the third Thursday of each month (May 19th).   All are welcome; you do not need to be a member.

Light refreshments will be served.

Please bring a friend!

Members and guests will sweep the ponds, stream, and surrounding trails for trash, and we may attempt some minor trail clearing if any downed trees are encountered. Bring gloves and wear sturdy boots. Many areas of this park are quite rocky. Hip boots will probably not be necessary, as this stream is quite small. You may also wish to bring eye protection as we will be working in some brushy undergrowth in places.

Several local lakes and streams (Brass Castle Creek, Pohatcong Creek, Musconetcong River, Merrill Creek Reservoir, Pequest River) will provide for good fishing after we’re done.

THANKS TO EVERYONE WHO CAME OUT IN THE RAIN!

(Rick and Bernard are taking pictures…)

…and still smiling after 3+ hours in the rain picking up after …criminals…

(whomever can measure and quantify the attraction of used tires to streams and rivers will rule the world)

This month’s guest speaker will be Dr. Roger M Locandro.  Dr. Locandro currently holds the position of Professor Emeritus in the Department of Ecology, Evolution and Natural Resources at Rutgers School of Environmental and Biological Sciences (Cook College). Dr. Locandro served as chairman and member of the New Jersey State Fish and Game Council, was Co-author of a study of Hunter Education in New Jersey which impacted over 300,000 people and authored the First National Marine Fisheries Habitat Policy. He is also well-traveled fly fishing enthusiast.

Dr. Locandro will touch on several topics during his presentation including:

• The history of the Ridge and Valley geological region and the history of our natural resources in Northeast US.
• Firsthand family history and stories of the South Branch of the Raritan and its’ watershed.
• Comments on Alaska, Newfoundland, and Labrador salmon fisheries. Bring a map with you if your really are interested in touring and fishing in these super places.
• How important is volunteerism? Do you really make a difference?

Light refreshments will be served.  You do not need to be a member to attend.  Please bring a friend.

DIRECTIONS

Wes Boyce (friends with, but no relation to John Boyce) in March of 2008 and January of 2010 visited Picacho Lodge in Patagonia Chile.  Please join us as Wes presents a brief video and slide presentation about his trips to Chile and his fishing experiences there.

Our meeting starts at 7:30PM on Thursday March 17th at the Pequest Hatchery.   All are welcome; you do not need to be a member. Light refreshment will be served.  DIRECTIONS