May - Jun 2010 Trout Line Newsletter, Tualatin Valley Trout Unlimited

8/9/2019 May - Jun 2010 Trout Line Newsletter, Tualatin Valley Trout Unlimited

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PRESIDENTS COLUMN MIKE GENTRY

THE TROUT LINE VOLUME 10,ISSUE 3MAY/JUNE 2010

Meeting Schedule: Regular chapter meetings are held atthe LUCKYLABRADOR on the second Wednesday ofeach month at 6:30 PM with a social get-together and theformal meeting at 7:00 PM unless otherwise noted in thenewsletter or website. Lucky Labrador, Multnomah Village,7675 SW Capitol Hwy. Portland, (503) 244-2537. Foodand beverages available.

May 12 Jeff Gottfried will share his experiences with self-guided fishing trips to western Alaska.June 9: Jen Seamen from the S.W. Watershed ResourceCenter will be our presenter. Their mission is to inspire andsupport watershed stewardship at the neighborhood levelin SW Portland.

To tweak an old adage a bit, all work and no play makes TVTUJacks and Jills dull boys and girls. It is my goal to tempt youwith an overview of both.

The work. Our chapter is the largest in the state, with over 600members on the rolls. Weve been able in the last several years

to become involved in several ongoing projects that are slated formuch activity this year and next, and we hope to increase thechapters efforts with even more opportunities in the future. I say

opportunities because it is my hope that as we locate, obtain

approval for, and fund more projects around the state, more ofour members will find themselves moved to pitch in. Its good to

get your hands dirty in good efforts with good people.At present, were involved in the following:Neitzel Farm. This large off-channel wetland restoration on theNecanicum River provides sheltered wintering habitat for juve-nile Coho and coastal cutthroat. Much work has been done overthe last two years by our partners to reestablish the historic off-channel stratum and to place sheltering woody debris, somefunded with TU sources. Chapter members have put in manyhours of labor in planting native trees and vegetation, and morework parties will be assembled to continue that effort. The chap-ter also was successful recently in obtaining another TU EmbraceA Stream grant for further work on this project.Circle Creek. For years, a restrictive culvert at the confluence ofthis tributary at the Seaside Golf Course has impeded migrationof fish. TU representatives have worked tirelessly with other

interested parties to obtain the myriad governmental and regula-tory approvals to remove the existing earthwork and culvert andreplace it with a wooden bridge. Those efforts are finally comingto fruition, and this year the chapter will be able to provide hands-on help in assisting to install the new bridge, performing con-crete, carpentry and other tasks.Thompson Creek. This project reminded me why I went toschool and learned a trade OTHER THAN eradicating Himala-yan blackberries for a living. The creek (or crick, where I comefrom) is just outside Seaside and is a spawning stream, but waschoked with blackberry growth on both sides. The goal is toclear the growth on both sides and replant the riparian area.

Much progress has been made in thelast two seasons clearing the southside, and $10,000 in funds obtainedby TVTU from an Embrace AStream grant are sitting at the waitingto begin tackling the growth on thenorth side with the hopeful aid ofsome heavier equipment. The bea-vers seem to like the progress to date.

The play. The chapter has numerousactivities to lighten the heart, stimu-late the social being, and offer goodcamaraderie during the year.Monthly meetings. Meetings are held the second Wednesday ofeach month except two, at the Lucky Labrador Pub in Mult-nomah Village. Meeting announcements and information on themonthly programs are published in our newsletter and posted onour blogsite. Each meeting includes a speaker, sometimes pre-senting a program on fishing and sometimes enlightening on aproject or educating on other resource or conservation issues.And the microbrews and pizza available at the Lucky Lab arenotable.Summer picnic. Each July the chapter holds a picnic at CookPark in Tigard. Members, spouses/significant others, and friendsare invited. The chapter hosts the entrees and attendees bringsalads, desserts and the like along with their favorite beverage. A

silent auction draws interest and generates a little revenue for thechapters activities.Outings. Chapter fishing trips occur from April to October, atfavorite haunts and lesser known locales. Fish stories are toldwithout fear of the truth, skills and knowledge are shared withoutreservation, and the Road Kill Caf chef extraordinaire works hismagic, providing fabulous fare furnished by the chapter and sup-plemented by delectables brought by the group.

So as you can see, there are many reasons to become an activemember of this chapter. I hope to see you at numerous events.

Published bimonthly

Inside this issue

Presidents Column Page 1Are you a Beaver Believer? Page 2Circle Creek Work Party Page 3Project Healing Waters Outings Page 3Book Review: Bugwater Page 4Northwest Fly Tyers Rendezvous Page 5Kids Camp - Clackamas Chapter Page 5Fly of the Month Silver Hilton Page 6TVTU Outing Schedule Page 7Board of Directors Listing Page 7Meeting Schedule Page 8


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THE TROUT LINE

February 8, 2010, 11a.m.: Running late, I turnoff Lewis and ClarkRoad and park next toour property calledThompson Falls (80acres), located on thenortheast side of Sea-

side. Im meeting NCLC board member Doug Ray of CarexConsulting and Alan Moore from Trout Unlimited.A cacophony of sound surrounds me as I step out of thecar. It could only be one thing: the Pacific chorus frogs arebreeding. Although one of the smallest frogs in Oregon, thePacific chorus frog (Pseudacris regilla) has one of the loud-est calls. Male chorus frogs call throughout the lengtheningdaylight hours during warm rain showers when breeding istaking place and females are laying eggs. The calls are

produced by a dark gray inflatable throat patch that devel-ops on males during the breeding season, allowing them toserenade their female companions with loud ribbets andseductive, high-pitched trills. Studies have found that onemale frog will act as a chorus master by leading the othersmales to begin calling. My attention is fixed on this sea-sonal symphony when Doug drives up in his truck. Asusual, he greets me with a big smile, brimming with excite-ment over the project we are about to discuss.Before Seaside became a coastal settlement, ThompsonCreek used to flow down through the canyons of the CoastRange, meandering out into the flat, coastal terrace of theestuary. Today the floodplain is filled with reed canary

grass (an invasive introduced species) and resembles avacant lot. Were hoping to change that, which is the rea-son for our meeting. Alan soon catches up with us and webegin wading through the grass toward beaver territory.Beavers discovered Thompson Creek in 2005. One of thelargest beaver dams in the area is on a creek just south ofhere measuring over 100 feet in length. Because of thesedams, native plants are beginning to thrive and non-nativeplants are decreasing in abundance. The Thompson Fallsproperty is unique in that it is dissected by a housing devel-opment. The unusual property boundaries were determinedto maintain the sites ecological integrityin other words, tomake sure that the existing streams, tributaries, swales,

and ponds are all connected to each other.Alan walks a few paces behind Doug and me while wechatter back and forth. Our enthusiasm soon infects Alanas we share the information we learned at a recent confer-ence on beaver ecology. Research has repeatedly shownthat beavers are able to restore wetlands and juvenile fishhabitat in a way that far exceeds any human-engineeredprojectand at a fraction of the cost. The project currentlyunder way at Thompson Falls is a beaver habitat enhance-ment project. We had planned to install startup dams madeout of logs and stumps to entice beavers to colonize thelower meadow and thereby restore the Thompson Creek

Are you a Beaver Believer? by Celeste Coulter, Stewardship Director

floodplain, but to our surprise, the beavers beat us to it. Wereach the southern boundary of the property where a largedrainage ditch has been dug to divert water from the pas-ture (floodplain). Standing on the edge of the ditch, we viewsigns of beaver activity: carefully stripped stems of black-berry and Scotch broom, fallen red alder saplings, and, ofcourse, beaver dams. At Thompson Falls, beavers usewhat is available, and because blackberry is the most com-mon woody shrub, beavers are making good use of itscanes. The dams are packed with mud, blackberry, Scotchbroom, and what little red alder and willow the beavers canfind.Our excitement grows as we find two more dams. Dougand I discuss the possibilities. With the current beaver ac-tivity, the wood placement is sure to succeed. But it doesnttake long for all of us to be sobered by the abundance ofnon-native plants at the project site. Unless there is enough

food for the beavers to eat, they wont stick around andreproduce, which means they wont restore the floodplainback to a wetland meadow. To make this project work, wellneed to plant a lot of willowin fact, thousands of willows ifwere going to keep a colony of beavers happy. Thatswhere Alan can help. Unless we can protect the plants untilthey can become well established, the beavers will wipeout the entire planting effort. Trout Unlimited adoptedThompson Creek as a project site a few years ago whenthey discovered that one of the largest runs of Cohosalmon along the North Coast spawn in the upper reachesof the creek every year. Since then, our partnership withTrout Unlimited has brought volunteers from the Tualatin

Chapter out to the coast to remove blackberry and Scotchbroom and to plant native plants. Without their support,much of the work that has been accomplished at Thomp-son Creek would not have been possible.A herd of elk, flushed out of a nearby dune ridge, suddenlyinterrupts our conversation. At least 40 large animals stam-pede by us to get to safe ground. Our habitat developmentplans will not only help beavers and Coho, but other wildlifesuch as elk will thrive in the native shrub-scrub habitat andin the open meadow habitats we hope to establish. Thesudden rush of elk stills our movement as the afternoonsunlight warms our backs and chorus frogs sing in the dis-tance. Thompson Falls is only going to get better; signs of

beavers have sealed our fortitude. We are beaver believ-ers. Our conversation turns to the future of this floodplain,where native plantcommunities inter-twine with slowwinding channelsintercepted by bea-ver lodges and wil-low thickets, provid-ing a place wherepeople and wildlifealike can thrive.


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MAY/JUNE 2010

Tualatin Valley Trout Unlimited work party at Neitzel Farms

Tualatin Valley Trout Unlimited work party at Circle Creek undergoes metamorphosis

Due to ongoing problems with permits the work party originally slated for Circle Creek May 15 has been moved to Neit-

zel Farms. Instead of helping to replace culverts we will be engaging in habitat restoration by planting native species atNeitzel Farms, an award winning project we are involved with on the Necanicum River.

The work that was anticipated at Circle Creek that involves the removal of a culvert and replacement with a bridge on theSeaside Golf Course has been delayed by important technical reviews and construction planning. This very high impactproject is funded with money that Tualatin Valley TU received as a grant. It will open access for spawning fish on thisvery valuable tributary of the Necanicum. Updates will be provided and work parties will be planned when the schedulecan be set.

If you want to carpool from Portland, meet at the Sunset Fred Meyer, 22075 NW Imbrie Dr. Hillsboro, Oregon, by thecan return area, at 8:30 am May 15. You can also meet us at the Neitzel Farms site at 10 am. We would like to have anidea of how many people will attend, so, please respond by e mail to Michael Ellis ( [email protected] ) if youare interested.

Bring gloves, a lunch, and appropriate clothing (raingear).

Project Healing Waters - Outings

Project Healing Waters, a program that teaches fly fishingfundamentals to disabled veterans and military servicemembers, is sponsored by Tualatin Valley Trout Unlimited in

the Portland/Vancouver area.

We continue to conduct our once monthly workshops at thePortland VA Hospital and at the Vancouver VA Hospital. Asthe opportunity presents itself we schedule outings to localwaters for the veterans who participate in the program.

Here is the schedule for workshops and outings for the nextfew months.

Contact Jerry Lorang at (971) 404-5154 [email protected] for more information.

May 13 Hornings HideoutJune 30 Trillium Lake (need boats and owners

to help out.)

Portland VA Hospital

May 7 Monday

June 11 Friday

July 9 Friday

August 6 Friday

Vancouver VA Hospital

May 17 Monday

June 24 Thursday

July 19 Monday

August 23 Monday

Project Healing Waters - Workshops

Outings for Project Healing Waters

Put our Picnic on Your Calendar!

This is just an early reminder to mark Wednesday, July 13 late afternoon and eve-ning for the annual Chapter Picnic at Cook Park in Tualatin . Well put detailed infor-

mation in the next newsletter. We DO ask you to start looking in your closets, tackleboxes and garages for fishing-related or other suitable items to donate to the silent auc-

tion that day to raise funds for the chapter activities and projects.

Questions or donations of items can be communicated to Mike Gentry at(503) 636-0061 or [email protected].
mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]


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Page 4MAY/JUNE 2010

Bugwater by Arlen Thomason A book review by Michael Ellis

The first thing that attracted me to this book was the photography. The close up photos of the insects, shot from aboveand below the water, are some of the best I have seen. There are also sequence photos of various insects in the proc-ess of emerging. Mister Thomason has been generous with providing information on how he made these photos, includ-ing his use of a slant tank, and refrigeration to slow the little guys down. These photos should provide a lot of fodder forboth fly tying and general discussion of insect habits.

The second thing I noticed was the large amount of up to date entomological information. Mister Thomason has takenthe time to have specimens identified and to provide the current naming conventions. This is important information toknow if you want to be able to identify and talk about a certain bug with others. The common names just wont work toidentify an insect to the genus or species level, especially in different parts of the country.

The book is loosely arranged by season instead of insect family. The index and table of contents make it pretty easy tofind information on a particular insect though.

Starting in the Spring, MisterThomason takes us from theMarch brown hatch, throughGrannoms, PMDs, and Stone-flies, to October caddis and the

hatches of winter. Besides pro-viding information on the insectslife cycle and habits, he includesinformation on fly patterns andfishing technique.

As in most flyfishing books,there is an emphasis on theMayfly, but other insect familiesare included and there is somevery interesting information onwingless stoneflies as well asthe Skwala Stonefly. There is

good basic information on taxon-omy as well as the life cycles ofthe insects he discusses. Youwill find your stream or lake fa-vorites here as well as somenew acquaintances to make.

As if this wasnt enough informa-tion for one book, Mister Thoma-son also has included a prettyup to date and comprehensivelook at trout vision. This bookwill be an important addition to

my fly tying library and I recom-mend it to anyone interested inthe insects that we try to imitatewith our flies.

Arlen Thomasson lives, with hiswife Susie, along the McKenzieRiver.

Bugwaterby ArlenThomasonPublishedby Stack-


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MAY/JUNE 2010

The 2010NW Fly Tyers Rendezvous

WHEN & WHERE: July 22, 23, 24, 25 2010, Clackamas River Watershed, USFS CampgroundWHO: Kids 10-14 years of age with a passion for fishing. (Maximum of 12 children).Scholarships are available to low income families, please inquire.

SUBJECTS:Equipment basics, rods, reels, fly line, leaders, set-up and applications, safety equipmentCasting, presentation skills, line control, distance and accuracyFly line and leader knots, applications, artificial flies, matching the hatch, fly selection

Introduction to fly tying, materials, styles and aquatic insect entomologyTrout habitat and water types, reading the water, trout instincts, life cycle, food sourcesRiver ecology & dynamics, watershed diversity, history and conservation

COST: $200.00 (per child) parent / guardian may attend for a $75 service fee

To register for our 2010 camp, please contact:Terry Turner 503-656-3580-OR - Visit our website for more information & registration formswww.clackamasrivertu.orgThis event made possible by our generous sponsors.

Join Trout Unlimited chaperones & students for a 4-day camping & fishing ad-venture presented by: The Clackamas River Chapter of Trout Unlimited

Tualatin Valley Trout Unlimited has been an active supporterof this event for many years now. As a result of that supportTVTU was able to direct grants of $375.00 each to Reel Re-covery and Educational Recreational Adventures this yearfrom funds raised at the Rendezvous in 2008.

Circumstances beyond anyones control caused the Rendez-vous to be cancelled in 2009.

The Fly Fishing Arts and Conservation Society, a consortium

of Fly Fishing Clubs, has decided to step back in time andrestart the Rendezvous this year at the original location inGlen Otto Park. The Society is made up of 5 local fly fishingclubs, including TVTU. Together this group seeks to encour-age interaction within the fly fishing community, especially forthe many wonderful fly tyers who live in our area.

Funds raised at this event are shared among the clubs to bedistributed to charitable causes that are supported by the par-ticipating clubs. Scholarships, grants, and program supportare all benefactors of this unique effort.

The Pacific Northwest Fly Tyers Rendezvous will return toGlen Otto Park on Saturday, November 6th, 2010!

This year there is no admission fee! Tell all your friends!


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THE TROUT LINE

11960 SW Pacific Highway, Tigard, Oregon 97223Phone 503-639-6400 Fax 503-684-7025www.kman.com email [email protected]

Everything for the fly fisherTackle, Classes, Guided Trips & Worldwide Travel

Fly of the MonthSilver Hilton by Alex Barkume

This months fly is a concession to our mem-

bers who pursue larger fish. (Our usual

FOTM contributor abjures such pursuits.)

Stories about the origin of flies vary about as

much as the size of the fish caught a year

ago. Some credit the Silver Hilton as coming

from the Babine River in British Columbia.

Others claim it began on the Klamath in

Oregon. Another traces it to the Russian &

Trinity Rivers in California.

Regardless of the true origin, this fly was

developed in the late 1930's for steelhead

and is very effective today.

You can fish this on a dead drift, or a tradi-

tional wetfly swing. It is particularly useful in

low clear water.

Materials

Hook: Teimco 7989, Size 2

Tag: Couple of turns of silver flat tinsel

Tail: A few fibers of lemon wood-duck

Body: Black seal - over-wrapped with oval

French silver tinsel

Hackle: Large Partridge Soft-hackle feather

Wing: 2 matched Grizzly cock-hackle tips
http://www.kman.com/http://www.kman.com/mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]://www.kman.com/


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Board of Directors:

Outings Andy Andrews (971) [email protected]

Raffles: Ron Reinebach (503) [email protected]

Conservation: Michael Ellis (503) [email protected]

Newsletter : Jerry Lorang (971) [email protected]

Jerry Heppell (503) [email protected]

Jeff Gottfried (503) [email protected]

Officers

President: Mike Gentry (503) [email protected]

Vice Pres.: George Wilson (503)[email protected]

Treasurer: Erle Norman (503) [email protected]

Secretary/ Bill Schoen (503) 638-7748Membership: [email protected]

Ex-Officio: Hank Hosfield (503) 228-6553(Past Pres.) [email protected]

ONLINE: http://tvtroutunlimited.blogspot.com/

TUALATIN VALLEY TU OFFI CERS AND BOARD

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MAY/JUNE 2010

Scheduled Fly Fishing Outings for the Year.

April 30 - May 2 South Twin Lake

June 25 - 27 Timothy Lake on Mount Hood

July 11 Day trip to Goose Lake, Wash-ington

August 13 - 15 Miller Lake in Central Oregon

August 29 Lawrence Lake on Mount Hood

September 10 Day trip to Round Lake, Clacka-mas River area

September 23 - 28 Fall River near Sunriver Oregon

October (date TBD) Metrolius River in conjunction withthe State Project

All locations and dates are subject to change so check thelatest edition of the newsletter or call Andy to verify thedate and location of the next outing. Andy's cell number is(971)-409-6149

April 30, (Friday - Sunday) Weekend Trip to SouthTwin LakeLast year this was a great outing at ice-out. The RoadkillCaf was at its best and the fishing was terrific. Join us.

NEWS RELEASE

Lets Go Fishing - 2010June 25 - 27: (Friday - Sunday) Weekend trip to TimothyLakeThis large reservoir is located about 80 miles east of Port-land off of HWY 26 and Forest Rd 42.If you have never been to this lake you only need to ask afew friends who fish and they will regale you with stories of

big fish and plenty of them. The camping is very accessibleand the fishing is legendary.Pontoon boats and float tubes will be the order of the day aswe explore the home of three varieties of trout (brook, rain-bow, and cutthroat) who count kokanee as neighbors. Bringyour Stillwater fishing skills and a side dish for dinner onSaturday (if you can). The meat is provided by TVTUs ownRoadKill Caf.Directions to the North Arm Campground are availableon the TVTU blogsite, through mail, or through Andy An-drews.

July 11, (Sunday) Day Trip to Goose Lake, Washington.

From Highway 14 take the Wind River Highway, take road65 to Road 60. About 8 miles of gravel road to the camp-ground. An alternative way is taking Highway 141 fromWhite Salmon to Trout Lake, west on Forest Road 60. Abouteight miles of gravel road to campground.

This lake is stocked regularly throughout the season withrainbow/cutthroat. It is a popular spot with very good Still-water fishing conditions.

Bring your float tube or pontoon boat and enjoy a great dayof fishing with us.
mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]


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Conserving, protecting and restoring North Americas coldwater fisheries and their watersheds..

The Trout Line

Tualatin Valley Trout Unlimited Chapter

85 Tanglewood Drive

Lake Oswego, OR 97035-1415

Meeting Schedule: Regular chapter meetings are held at the LUCKYLABRADOR on the second Wednesday of eachmonth at 6:30 PM with a social get-together and the formal meeting at 7:00 PM unless otherwise noted in the newsletteror website. Lucky Labrador, Multnomah Village, 7675 SW Capitol Hwy. Portland, (503) 244-2537. Food and bever-ages available.

May 12: Jeff Gottfried will share his experiences with self-guided fishing trips to western Alaska. Jeff is the ExecutiveDirector/Lead Educator for Educational Recreational Adventures and a new member of the Board of TVTU. Expect talesof great adventure and insight into self-guided fishing trips.

June 9: Jen Seamen from the S.W. Watershed Resource Center will be our presenter. Their mission is to inspire andsupport watershed stewardship at the neighborhood level in SW Portland. Jen will present information on invasive plantremoval and native plant landscaping, stormwater management, natural gardening and other practices that enhance thehealth of local watersheds. She will cover some SW Portland stream conservation projects including Tryon Creek.

Inside this issue

Presidents Column Page 1Are you a Beaver Believer? Page 2Circle Creek Work Party Page 3Project Healing Waters Outings Page 3Book Review: Bugwater Page 4Northwest Fly Tyers Rendezvous Page 5

Kids Camp - Clackamas Chapter Page 5Fly of the Month Silver Hilton Page 6TVTU Outing Schedule Page 7Board of Directors Listing Page 7Meeting Schedule Page 8

Documents

May - Jun 2010 Trout Line Newsletter, Tualatin Valley Trout Unlimited