THE NEXT MEETING WILL BE HELD ON: July 21st (see inside for details)

Well, we made through the heavy water. The 1999 conclave is now secure in the annals of Salty Flyrodder legend and lore. The weekend went off without a hitch (I think). Many, many, thanks are bestowed upon our weekend guest, Mr. Nick Curcione. Even though his body may have not been working 100%, (hip surgery in December) he gave 110% of his energy and talent and we thank him for that. Nick, you are always welcome.

I am also very happy to have initiated a new tradition for the Salty's, the annual Hall of Fame induction, for service and sacrifice for the benefit of all members. This event serves two purposes. The first, is to recognize and honor the individual and the second serves to motivate others to be more active in club affairs, to let members know that service to the club will be acknowledged. I want to thank Mr. Lou Rossi and Mr. Don Avondolio for their participation in the nights events. All members elected to the Hall of Fame will no longer be required to pay annual dues to remain as members. They become members for life.

Next years conclave will be a special priority for me as President of the Salty's. Having the honor of being the first president of the new century, I want our next conclave weekend to be a real celebration of our club and our sport. Plans for that end begin now!

We have also designated the July meeting, Wednesday July 21, 1999 to hold our annual Flea Market. This is open to all members in good standing. So NOW's the time to get out all that gear you don't want anymore and bring it in to swap or sell. Let's have fun with this.

I am also very happy to announce the formation of a Biannual Photo contest. The rules are simple; members will be asked to send in photos of their fly fishing experiences, taken as active members of the Salty's. They will be judged by the five officers of the Salty's and the winner will get a 1/2 day Charter with a club endorsed guide of their choice. The particulars of the contest will be given at the July meeting and posted in the next newsletter. So dust off those lenses and start going through your photo album's.

If you have a favorite pattern that you like to tie, please submit it to us for consideration in the fly of the

month column. Remember that you don't have to be an artist. It doesn't have to be pretty. If you catch fish with it, we want it.

Thanx, Frank

When I first took over as president of the Salties in January of this year, one of the first things I sought to remedy was the lack of recognition we gave to those who took the lead and gave direction to this club. Members who repeatedly stepped up and gave of themselves, without complaint, year after year. Sometimes it's a lot easier to complain about those who don't rather than honor those who do.

I am very proud and privileged to initiate the first annual award of the Salty Flyrodders of New York

This year we selected two long standing active members. The first is one of the founding fathers of the Salty Flyrodders of NY, Mr. Lou Rossi. In 1970 Lou took over as President of the Salties and remained in that position for six unprecedented years. He also served as

Corresponding Secretary from 1967 to 1973. Three of those years while holding the position of President. In his last year as President in 1976, he again became Corresponding Secretary until 1978. If this wasn't enough, his service to the Salties also included three years as Vice President from 1967-1969.

Lou has continually spread the gospel of the Salties even though he moved from NY some years ago. From his home in Connecticut to his winter dwelling in Florida, he has always been a Salty Flyrodder. His name is also being added to the club plaque which will be displayed at all club meetings and official functions, so that his name may be known to all for as long as the Salty Flyrodders exist.

By Jack Denny

I have an old faded pink hat that is very lucky. Yes, I'm superstitious about fishing but just about fishing. I've broken mirrors and walked under many a ladder. My neighbor had a black cat that crossed my path countless times over the years and nothing ever came of it. But not wearing a specific hat or shirt or item can spell disaster even before the fishing begins. The pink hat has been around along time and is a very serious fishing tool. It doesn't have a long brim like the swordfish hat worn by Cape Codders. It doesn't have the Lefty up and down look. It is a baseball style hat that was part of package for joining the Martha's Vineyard Striped Bass and Bluefish Derby. I was able to choose the color, at the time a bright fluorescent pink, from a large selection. That year I lead the false albacore shore fly rod division for a couple weeks before being blown off The Board (a chalkboard with the winners located at Derby Headquarters) in the last week but I could care less at that point. I had found my lucky hat. The fishing that year had been just great and I associate it with this hat.

Other items of clothing have made their way into my ritual of getting ready to go fishing. A shirt my daughter gave me some how has been on my back during some great moments in fly fishing. I'm sure most Saltys have a favorite shirt or hat or jacket that they feel comfortable in and wear it with confidence. Well I've taken things a little further than just feeling confident, these things are a must for success. It was the last week in October, my two friends and I had been really into the bass (this is when I was still using other methods of fishing along with the fly rod). We had concluded after the first night that the clothes were part of the magic, so nothing changed for the next four days (now underwear is never lucky, it just has to be clean and changed often, socks are another story).

Flys are tyed with thoughts of only catching fish, if a fly does not catch a fish after three attempts I consider it a jinx and the hook is recycled. I test all my flys in the water before casting them to see if they swim correctly, have good action and if I like them. Some flys never see a cast, just the bottom of my pocket and trip to the operating table for material removal. There is some strange "mojo" going on at the vise, I feel more confident using my flys than any store bought fly. I have fished flys by certain people if the are given to me. Perry Lisser's "Mr. Bighead", a Glen Mikkelson fly or one of Bob Woolley's tube flys have brought me luck. Some flys that are given to me make it to the fly tying table only to be displayed and then copied.

Rods are lucky only after they have had the luck built into them, let me explain. First of all I choose a rod by the type of fishing I plan to do. You know, an eight weight rod for school bass and blues, small tunas, casting small flys, etc. you get the picture. Then I cast a selection of rods at shows or at the local tackle shop and then make my decision. No luck here, common sense and feel are what counts. Price is a consideration but hey, you only live once so what the heck. Then using the rod enough to catch fish builds the luck into it. Does this make sense? It may seem a little strange but that's just the way things go.

I use to own a boat but there was never any superstitions that were associated with being on the boat. Some captains have some strange rituals and rules about being on a boat like not Pepsi only Coke. Not wearing my $24 Timex watch could spell disaster though. A couple weeks ago I decided to head down to the Jersey shore where the bluefish should have been in the back bay pounding the bunker. It's been that way for years. As I approached the last toll booth on the Garden State Parkway I noticed something, no wedding ring and no watch. My heart sunk, my trip was doomed. But since I was almost there and I had the pink hat it just didn't matter. As I parked my truck a local guy I have known for years came out of his house and greeted me with a big smile. We talked about the family, his garden, a mutual friend and then the fishing. Things were slow according to him but there were fish around. Good news at last. As I walked out on to the beach I spotted a big bluefish laying on the shore drying in the sun with its sides filleted . Another good sign. Three hours later I was walking off the beach with some great casting experience. Even the pink hat couldn't save the day, too many other things were out of alignment.

The pink hat is faded though some bright spots can be seen under the brim. I have other hats that have become part of the dress code. They were broken in slowly and during days when I knew there were fish around so it (the hat) could get use to what I expect it to do while on my head. I know I am not alone with these strange ideas, there are others out there with some ideas of your own on what is lucky. Just keep things quiet, you don't want others knowing the secrets to your success.

Glenn Mikkelson champion fly tier and guide also makes the shadow boxes that the Saltys present as the trophy for our conclave tournament. Every year he contributes his time and craft for an individual trophy. If any member has a requirement for a special gift please call Glenn at 516-878-0883

By Tom Baumann

Most of us have a favorite or "go to" fly. Sometimes our favorite fly changes from month to month or much more frequently. For the first three months of this year I and two local fishing friends have had great success with Glen Mikkleson’s Epoxy Baitfish fly. It has caught fish for us around Long Island and for me at Martha’s Vineyard where I also happened to overhear a local guide talk about "hammering em" on a Yellow Mikkleson. On many days, it’s been the only fly we’ve used. This fly catches all our local gamefish, can be tied in various color combinations and profiles to match local bait, and is castable and very durable. In Bob Veverka’s book, Innovative Saltwater Flies, Glen modestly traces the origin of this fly to the legendary Joe Brooks and his Blonde series. In any case, I can assure you this is a proven fishcatcher. The fly below is green over white and tied sparse to imitate a sand eel.

Hook 1/0-8 standard SW

Thread White size A

Tail White bucktail

Flash Green and pearl krystal flash

Body Silver braid

Wing Green bucktail

Rib One strand of compatible flashabou

Eyes Small silver and black stick on

1 Tie in the tail, krystal flash and one strand of the compatible flashabou. Bind down along entire shank to the bend.

2 Wrap the entire shank with the braid.

3 Tie in the wing at the head and while holding the wing down at the bend, spiral the flashabou forward.

4 Tie off and add the eyes.

5 Glen, the consummate professional, finishes the fly with 3 coats of two ton epoxy and after the first coat adds red gills underneath.

A tip you should keep in mind when picking up those small schoolies is to watch to see if there are other Bass following behind as you retrieve it. Smaller ones might be following, and you can have your partner hook up, but more importantly there may be a big Bass trying to make a meal out of your catch. Just this week we had that happen on the boat. As one of my guys was retrieving a small Bass, we saw a nice big Bass following. At first my charter thought it was protecting the smaller Bass, but I quickly informed him that the Bass was intending to make breakfast out of it, and had

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no intention of protecting the small Bass. I instructed him to keep the Bass in the water and work it like a teaser as the other guy on the boat tried to seduce the larger Bass with a Bucktail. He didn't have much luck so he gave me the rod to see if I would have better success, after making a couple of casts! I was hooked up to a 33" Bass on an Ultralight with 6 lb. test. This fish was around the boat for a good three minutes before he took the offering, so you can have some time to work the fish. Don't panic and make a lot of noise so as to not spook the following fish. If by chance you do, let the smaller fish swim away from the boat and try to entice the other fish back up. On your next trip remember to pay attention at all times because opportunities present themselves in the strangest ways.

Gardiner's Bay has opened up with lots of stripers and bluefish. Bass have been pretty spooky on the flats; remember you are fishing in 9" to 24" of water. Move around slow and steady. Tiny crab patterns as well as sand eels and shrimp flies will do the trick. Last week a 15 pound (35") bass was taken (and released).

Hello to all! The first Bonito have shown up in the fishtraps at Gardiners' Bay, also one Spanish Mackerel. It's still too early to target these fish, but as the water warms, the likelihood of seeing a school of these fish will increase. Bass fishing remains good on the bay side and has really picked up. In Long Island Sound sandeels are the dominant bait. Bluefish are just about everywhere. Best time from beach is dusk.

By Alan J Evelyn, Conservation Chair

JULY'S CONSERVATION NEWS

PUBLIC MEETING NOTICE!

The U.S Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) has scheduled two meetings to take place on Tuesday, June 29th and Wednesday, June 30th in the Borough of Queens to discuss the filling of Pits in Jamaica Bay with toxic dredge material from the Newark Bay "Dredge Material Management Plan" (DMMP). This highly toxic material will be dumped in areas of Jamaica Bay in areas that are essential spawning grounds for Winter Flounder, and support a large variety of marine finfish, crab and mollusk. This material is deemed "too toxic" by the federal government to be dump at sea, but yet the USACE wants to dump it in our waters!

The Natural Resources Protective Association urges all concerned Citizens, Fishermen, Boaters, and Environmentalist to attend one or more of these Public Hearings and voice your opinion on this plan to put toxic materials into the Bay!

June 29th, 1999 - P.S. 146 Q, 98-01 159th Avenue, Howard Beach, Queens

2:00 - 5:00 PM and 7:00 - 10:00 PM

Subway: A-Train/Howard Beach

June 30th, 1999 - Beach Channel High School, 100-00 Beach Channel Drive,

Rockaway Park, Queens: 2:00 - 5:00 PM and 7:00 - 10:00 PM

Subway: A- Train/Broad Channel/Shuttle/Playland Beach

Any Salty who cannot make either hearing can send their comments to:

Robert Will

U.S. Army Corp of Engineers

NY District

26 Federal Plaza

NY 10278-0090

To learn more about the DMMP visit the NRPA website at http://www.nrpa.com

COMMERCIAL BAG LIMIT FOR BLACKFISH UPDATE

Thanks to the work of the Coastal Conservation Association of New York (CCA NY) and the efforts of Assemblyman Robert Sweeny and Thomas DiNapoli, the legislature appears poised to extend the DEC's regulatory authority over blackfish without eliminating the commercial bag limit. A big thank you to all the Salty's who voiced their opposition to the elimination of the blackfish commerical bag limit.

Remember, if you want other conservation issues brought to the Salty's

attention, please talk to me at the monthly meeting or contact me at: home

(516) 256-0726, work: (718) 951 6522, work fax: (718) 951-4744 or by email:

aevelyn@brooklyn.cuny.edu.

The next club trip will be July 10 at West Meadow Beach. Everyone meets at 9pm at the Beach Association parking lot halfway down Trustees Road. Directions are as follows: Take L.I.E. to exit 62 North on Nichols Road to the very End ( go past Stony Brook campus). At the end of Nichols Road make a Left. Two lights to Quaker Path Road make Right, continue straight until you get to Trustees Road (there's a tennis court/country club on your left). Turn Left and continue on Trustees Road past the Town parking to the second smaller Beach Association parking lot.