President's Newsletter.

Let me see. Where did I leave off? Oh yeah, I joined the Saltys, and went on the fishing trips.  But, one of the best things I did was to sign up for the beginner’s fly tying classes offered by the club. Being an incurable do-it-yourselfer (not to mention a little frugal), this was right up my alley. For a nominal fee the club supplied all the tools and materials and a couple of great instructors.  John and Tom showed us how to tie clousers, deceivers, blondes, jiggies, whistlers, half and halves and a half dozen other flys I can’t recall.  There were imitations of sand eels, peanut bunker, herring, crabs, shrimp and squid that looked so good it might have qualified for a dish of fried calamari. Over the years I took the intermediate sessions when they were offered and bought my own equipment. I now have more flys than I could ever use and enough tying materials to stock a small fly shop. But, I keep coming back for more. There are always new techniques and new materials to learn about, but the best thing about it is the people you meet along the way.

For instance, the other night, at the first tying session for this year our guest tier was Don Kim.  Don is a neighbor and fishing buddy of Jose Colon who, as you know, is coordinating the classes this year.  Don showed us how to tie the DDK sand eel and the DDK deceiver which are his variations on two popular patterns. I especially liked the sand eel because of its simplicity, durability and realism. But the real hit of the evening was to see Don’s enthusiasm when he taught us how to tie the DDK Loop Knot and a new simple way to join two different size mono lines which can be used to make leaders. I have been practicing so I should be able to demonstrate them at the next meeting.

There are still openings for both beginner sessions, so encourage your friends to sign up.

The cost for the five beginner lessons, thirty dollars. For a useable vice and the required tools and materials you might pay about $100. The thrill of catching a striper, on a fly you tied yourself……. priceless. 

I am looking forward to seeing you all on February 5^th and hearing about “Fishing the Waters of Maine” from Kevin Tracewski.

Keep 'em tight!

Bill