A fun and informal chapter meeting on November 12

The popular Fly Tying Jamboree is returning for our November meeting. Whether or not you tie flies, you’ll leave with some new ideas and ways to improve your fishing. If you do tie flies, please bring your vise, light and select hooks & materials to demonstrate tying your favorite fly, and include a few stories. There will be door prizes and someone will walk away with a fly box full of flies fresh from the tiers’ vises. Last held in 2018, the Fly Tying Jamboree will be a fun, relaxed, educational and conversational evening. Monthly chapter meetings typically start at 7 pm, but for the Fly Tying Jamboree arrive anytime after 5:30 for setting up your fly tying station, ordering food, drinks and socializing. As always, the meeting will be held at Schwoegler’s Lanes, 444 Grand Canyon Dr., Madison, WI 53719

We’ll hold a brief (we promise) business meeting about 7 and then back to fly tying.

For anyone who has wondered if fly tying is a) learnable, b) productive, and c) fun, please attend this meeting. You’ll see some great and fun fly tying and have the chance to tie a fly yourself. Yes indeed, you can leave the meeting with a fly you tied, guaranteed by SWTU to catch fish.

Schwoegler’s Lanes, 444 Grand Canyon Dr., Madison, WI 53719

At the October Meeting: The Interns Grabbed Our Attention

Emma Bailie and Jonah Hoeper, the interns SWTU and the Smallmouth Alliance funded this summer to work on DNR fish surveys, presented a fun and informative account of their summer experiences. Among the fish highlights were the large brown from Willow Creek and an even bigger walleye from the lower Kickapoo. Jonah stunned some of us with one report. He mentioned that he was on Tim Parks’ crew (Tim’s territory is Lafayette and Grant Counties) when they surveyed the Martin Branch. Several of us groaned expecting bad news.

You might remember SWTU’s report of 4 years ago. The Martin Branch with miles of public fishing had been a really good stream about 10 years. Fishing declined amid rumors of fish kills. The DNR survey of about 5 years ago showed the stream to be devoid of trout. The DNR raised the possibility of declassifying the stream. SWTU and the Nohr Chapter opened discussions with the DNR about the stream with little progress and then COVID stopped that process. Some of us had begun to think about re-starting the effort but we lacked any update on the creek.

Jonah noted that the first spot did not hold any trout but then they arrived at the next spot. Full of wild brown trout up to 15-16 inches. Other spots had Young of the Year browns. Holy Smokes!

We’ve since confirmed with two biologists that Martin Branch again has wild brown trout. The survey is part of the next watershed assessment for that part of Grant County. Until that report is complete with Tim’s analysis and recommendations, we should be cautious. Clearly, though, hope has sprang anew for the Martin Branch. It’s time for us to renew the effort with the DNR to help that creek recover fully.