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The American Fly Fisher Journal of the American Museum of Fly Fishing SUMMER 2000 VOLUME 26 NUMBER 3

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Page 1: Fly Fisher

The American Fly Fisher

Journal of the American Museum of Fly Fishing S U M M E R 2000 V O L U M E 26 N U M B E R 3

Page 2: Fly Fisher

Summer Time

Sketch bv Charles DeFeo. From the collcct~on of Pamela Bates Rlchards

I COULD HEAR COMMON YELLOWTHROATS, but I never got a look at one. The spotted sandpipers were back, and the ori- oles were still making nest additions. The cedar waxwings

were actively feeding on the hatch, abruptly turning and hov- ering. A red-winged blackbird, no doubt defending its nest, was becoming as fierce as two of the fiercer animals, all but attacking me. My husband had just caught the biggest rainbow trout either of us had personally seen come out of this river, but that was the only fish action of the night. (What action it was though . . .)

It was the end of May and only my second time out. How could that be? (Actually, I know the answer to that.)

Last summer, John Mundt dropped by to pitch his idea for an article about summers in Belgrade, Maine, back in the days when the upper class would come to sporting destinations and stay for the entire season. We talked about articles like this being a form of time voyeurism. Many of us have indeed become time voyeurs.

And now that article is ready for publication. "Gilded Summers in Belgrade, Maine" gives us a history of the place and shares some vacation ephemera-postcards, brochures-of the time. So pull up your Adirondack chair and open to page 2.

We are thrilled to be offering fishing stories far from the Northeast as well. "Angling in the Pecos River Headwaters: The Development of Fly Fishing in Northern New Mexico" pre-

sents a history of fly fishing in that area of the country. Merideth A. Hmura and G. William Fowler then elaborate to tell the more specific story of Mountain View Ranch (the old- est and largest of the ranches of the area) and the cast of char- acters associated with it, focusing primarily on the early 1900s. The photos are from the collection of Matie Viles: more than 2,006 photographs that Hmura is scanning, sorting, and archiving. This article begins on page 12.

I was recently viewing a film performance of Othello, when something Iago said made me think of fly fishing. How this could happen to me will be made clear when you read Gordon M. Wickstrom's "The Tups Indispensable: Dubbing Dilemma" on page 18.

Our Festival Weekend has come and gone. It is always an exciting time for us here at the Museum. Staff gets to meet trustees (and welcome author John Mundt to the board). I get to meet writers and experts I've only spoken with on the phone. I get to cast one of Fred Kretchman's bamboo fly rods and dream of the day I have one of my own-which should be next season. Despite a camera glitch, we do have a few photos from the event, beginning on page 20.

May you be able to give time more than a passing glance this summer.

Page 3: Fly Fisher

Preserving the Heritage of Fly Fishing T R U S T E E S

E. M. Bakwin John Mundt Michael Bakwin Wayne Nordberg

Foster Bam Michael B. Osborne Paul Bofinger Leigh H. Perkins

Donn Byrne Sr. M a n K. Poole James H. Carey Robert D. Priest

Roy D. Chapin Jr. John Rano Peter Corbin Roger Riccardi

Thomas N. Davidson Pamela B. Richards William J. Dreyer Ernest Schwiebert

Charles Ferree Robert G. Scott Duncan Grant James A. Spendiff

Gardner L. Grant John Swan Arthur Kaemmer Richard G. Tisch

Woods King 111 David H. Walsh Walter T. Matia Richard J. Warren

James C. Woods

T R U S T E E S E M E R I T I G. Dick Finlay David B. Ledlie

W. Michael Fitzgerald Leon L. Martuch William Herrick Keith C. Russell

Robert N. Johnson Paul Schullery Stephen Sloan

O F F I C E R S President Robert G. Scott

Vice Presidents Pamela B. Richards James A. Spendiff David H. Walsh

Treasurer James H. Carey Secretary James C. Woods

S T A F F Executive Director Gary Tanner

Events t5 Membership Paula M. Welch Art Director John Price

Special Projects Sara Wilcox Admin./Advertising Toney Pozek

T H E A M E R I C A N FLY F I S H E R Editor Kathleen Achor

Design Q Production John Price Copy Editor Sarah May Clarkson

F~TY Fisher Journal of dthe American Museum of Fly Fishing S U M M E R 2 0 0 0 V O L U M E 2 6 N U M B E R 3

. . . . . . . . . . . . . Gilded Summers in Belgrade, Maine 2 John Mundt

Angling in the Pecos River Headwaters: The Development of Fly Fishing in Northern New Mexico . . . . . . . . . . 12

Merideth A. Hmura and G. William Fowler

Notes & Comments: The Tups Indispensable: A Dubbing Dilemma . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

Gordon M, Wickstrom

Festival Weekend 2000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

Museum News . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Contributors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

o N T H E c O V E R: This man is just south of Mountain View Ranch (see 'Xngling in the Pecos River Headwaters," page 12). Ponds such as this one were dug and stocked for the fishing pleasure of the ranch guests. Photograph from the Matie Viles collection.

The Americnn Fly Fisher is published four times a year by the Museum at P.O. Box 42, Manchester. Vermont 05254.

Publication dates are winter, spring, summer, and fall. Membership dues include the cost of the journal ($30) and are tax deductible as provided for by law. Membership rates are listed in the hack of each issue. All letters, manuscripts, photographs, and materials intended for publication in the journal should be sent to the Museum. The Museum and journal are 1101 responsible for unsolicited manuscripts, dr~wings, photographic mdterial, or memorabilia. The Museum cannot accept responslblllty for statements and ~nterpretations that are wholly the author's. Unsolicited manuscripts cannot be returned unless postage is provided. Contributions to The Americnn Fly Fisher are to be considered gratuitous and the property of the Museum unless athenvise requested by the contributor. Artides appearing in this journal are abstracted and indexed in Historical Abstracts and America: History and Life. Copyright 0 zooo, the American Museum of Fly Fishing, Manchester, Vermont 05254. Original material appearing may not be reprinted without prior permission. Second Class Permit postage paid at Manchester, Vermont 05254 and additional ofiices (USPS 057410). The American Fly Fisher (ISSN 0884-3562)

POSTMASTER: Send address changes to The American Fly Fisher, PO. Box 42, Manchester, Vermont 05254, EMAIL: [email protected] WEBSITE: www.amff.com

S U M M E R 2000 1

Page 4: Fly Fisher

Gilded Summers in Belgrade, Maine by John Mundt

I N T H I S E R A of cellular phones, e-mail, voice mail, and personal digi- tal assistants, many of today's sports-

men visiting Maine's Belgrade Lakes region find themselves spending long weekends-instead of vacations-at a place where the whine of a screaming jet ski frequently muffles the song of a melodious loon. But the scene at the beginning of the twentieth century was markedly different.

Fortunate anglers of a hundred years ago would often spend the entire sum- mer at one of Belgrade, Maine's lakeside resorts. From as far away as California, s~ortsmen and their families would arrive by rail, stage, and Stanley Steamer to enjoy the clean air and trophy fishing that made Maine famous as a sporting destination.

Sadly, those days of Belgrade are gone forever, but a glimpse of those glorious summer moments is available to us through the photographs, writings, and ephemera that have survived. Although dwarfed by the historical records of the fabled Rangeley, Sebago, and Moosehead regions, the Belgrades have a rich and colorful sporting history that is certainly worth exploring. It was these very Maine

The Belgrade Hotel from an early postcard.

waters that inspired Ernest Thompson to write O n Golden Pond while residing at his cottage on the banks of Great Pond, the largest of the seven Belgrade Lakes.

According to a 1917 Maine Central Railroad tourist pamphlet about the region:

This was the hunting and trading country of the Indians of the Kennebec, and there may be seen up and down the valley numerous round stone hearths where these Indians had their council fires.

The Pilgrim Fathers carried on an extensive trade with these Indians. History records that they were in debt to the London adventures to the extent of 1,800 pounds, and that under the leadership of Governor Bradford, Myles Standish, John Alden, and William Brewster this debt was paid off through the success of their fur trade with these Indians of the Kennebec.'

The area's land titles originated under charter grants from the British monar- chy, and in 1753, a group of Boston busi- nessmen incorporated as "The Propri- etors of the Kennebec Purchase from the

late Colony of New Plymouth." The first settlers began arriving in 1774, and by 1790 the population had grown to 159. The town was incorporated as the town of Belgrade from Washington Plantation of Lincoln County, Commonwealth of Massachusetts, 3 February 1796, and the name is credited to John V. Davis, who had traveled through eastern Europe as a young man.

For early fishing references, we are fortunate that a local angler, known only by the initials J.R.P., from Augusta saw fit to send a letter to the American Turf Register and Sporting Magazine, dated 20 April 1831, in which he describes the tackle and methods used to fish the area.2 He writes in part:

Trout fishing has already commenced in this part of the country: in fact, I consider April (taking into view that the trout are far better than those taken in the autumn) as the better season for this sport. It has been asserted, by some writers, that this fish, after leaving their spawn, in the autumn, pass the winter in deep waters, grow sick, lean, and oftentimes lousy. It is true they pass the winter months in the deepest holes; but it is in those places that they receive that peculiar appearance and flavor which delights the eye and gratifies

2 T H E A M E R I C A N F L Y F I S H E R

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the palate of the gourmand. Everyone who is acquainted with the peculiar habits of the trout knows that they are in season during the months of spring and summer, and that as the season advances they lose many of their good qualities. During the months of autumn, when they may be taken in great numbers, they are hardly worth the trouble. For the benefit of the angler who may visit this part of the coun- try, on a fishing excursion, I will merely suggest, that, from the middle of May to the latter part of June he will find good sport. He should be well prepared with strong tackle (our trout here are not small ones) and a supply of flies, spare hooks and lines. These latter cannot be procured here. The minnow and river smelts are the best bait during the earlier part of the sea- son-grasshoppers in June and August, and brandlings, or almost any type of worm or fly, are as sure bait for autumn fishing. The oak-worm in April, and the bob-worm, or red-head, in May and June, are, I think, preferable baits.

Accompanied by a brother angler, I left here on the 8th instant, for Belgrade bridge, about ten miles distant. We were prepared with every thing requisite for killing trout. The roads being very bad, owing to recent violent storms, we were unable to arrive in season to fish. We found the stream much higher than usual, and much discolored from the rains and

breaking up of ice in the pond. My com- panion predicted but poor sport. At day light, next morning, we commenced fish- ing, with, I must confess, but small appearance of success. The atmosphere was thick and hazy, with every indication of rain. The ill omens were, however, soon dispelled by my companion's landing a fine trout. I immediately opened the fish, and found a number of smelts, which we used as bait, and found them preferable to oak-worm, with which we had com- menced fishing. I would here recommend to those who wish good sport, to follow this example, and use the same, or nearly similar bait as that which is found in the fish. After spending the day very pleasant- ly, we returned to Augusta with twenty- three fine trout, weighing from 2): to 4 lbs. each, and of an admirable quality.

I left Augusta yesterday, at 1 P.M. in com- pany with a gentleman who has, indeed, no pretensions to a knowledge of the "noble art." We arrived at Belgrade at half past z P.M. My companion preferred fish- ing for perch. There were four or five trout fishers at the bridge at the time of my arrival. To show the fickleness in the taste or appetite of the trout, I will merely say that I caught five trout, which were all that the company caught, which was owing to my using oak-worm for bait. The others used minnows, worms &c. My companion caught fifty-eight perch, large and small.

The trout weighed, on an average, 2% pounds. We left Belgrade (after a fine sup- per at the tavern), at 7 P.M. for Augusta.

I shall continue to visit the trout streams, which abound in this state, from time to time, and will communicate to you the result of my excursions and the condi- tion of the spotted finny tribe. The seven Belgrade Lakes-Long,

Great, Messalonskee, North, East, McGraw, and Ellis-lay south of the Moosehead group and offered early anglers great sport for bass, trout, and salmon. This bountiful fishery would eventually spur the growth of several great lakeside resorts that provided "every natural advantage to give the truest zest to svort and to arouse in the fisherman the $ever of fascination."3

Messalonskee Beach Camps are cred- ited with being the first tourist camps built to attract summer visitors to the area near the turn of the century. The original camp was a single cabin con- structed by Cornelius Kelliher under the name Winona Beach Camp. It was this camp that brought visitors by trolley

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From the 1908 Belgrade hotel brochure: "Trout caught in the Great Lake, May 1903. Weight of two largest: 8.2 and 7.12 02."

from nearby Waterville to board the These three features make a combina- Mary Pickford for a short trip up the lake tion that cannot be found elsewhere.5 to a picnic area on the beach. Mr. Kelliher later sold the camp to Albert Other "Special Features" included: Clifford, who changed the name to Splendid golf links. Messalonskee Beach Camps. First-class orchestra.

Former Belgrade town historian Carol ' Fine and pool Nye was quoted in a 4 September 1995 Veranda 350 feet long, affording

panoramic view of lake and mountain Morning Sentinel article about the resort scenerv. era. Celebrated Beaver Spring water used It was just about 1900 that many of the exclusively for drinking Purposes. hotels were being built. People came for ' Tennis, boating, bathing, dancing, driv- the fishing and would stay for three ing, etc.3 etc. months in the summer. The Belgrade ' Dainty lunches furnished by the man- Hotel ran their own stage to meet the agement for fishing and picnic parties trains and pick up the people with their without extra charge." suitcases and trunks. At the time, the West Road was the main road to Belgrade - Lakes, and it was all sand.

They would bring their families and stay at the hotels. The people who came and stayed at the hotels were well-to-do. Guests at the Belgrade Hotel were so inter- ested in the stock market that they brought down a telegraph operator from Farmington, so they could keep track of the stocks. That's the kind of people they were. They stayed right there at the hotel; they didn't travel like they do today.4

The Belgrade Hotel was built in 1899 by Charles A. Hill on the banks of Long Lake (now known as Long Pond). A 1908 Belgrade Hotel promotional brochure listed the following "Special Features" available for prospective sportsmen and their guests:

Best black bass fishing in the world. Best trout fishing to be had in Maine. Thoroughly modern hotel with all its

conveniences. Cuisine unexcelled.

The brochure offered the reassurance that "the Belgrade is a place where the sportsman can share his outing with his family and not sacrifice a single fishing tradition"7

In addition to the Belgrade, visitors could stay at the other major hotels: the Red Oaks Lodge on Great Lake, Salmon Lake House on Salmon Lake, and the Central House, with its recreation annex known as Liars Paradise. There were also several smaller inns and camps scattered throughout the area.

The waters of the Belgrade Lakes are known for their clarity and rocky bot- toms that provided ideal habitat for bass. The genus Micropterus was first intro- duced to Maine waters in 1869 and has thrived ever since.8 The 1917 Maine Central Railroad pamphlet describes the waters as follows.

A few islands are scattered here and there, and there are many beautiful coves and bays, some of which are in themselves good-sized ponds-and very attractive. The shores are mostly wooded to the water's edge, and an occasional farm clear- ing-cabin, cottage, or little summer colony-gives a delightful touch of civi- lization to the scene.9 To ensure that there would be a suffi-

cient quantity of fish to inhabit such favorable conditions, the state of Maine

'2 Mid-Day Lunch" as depicted in the 1908 Uelgrude hotel brochure. 4 T H E A M E R I C A N FLY F I S H E R

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A 1917 brochure cover photo for the Belgrade Lakes region from the Passenger Traffic Department of the Maine Central Railroad.

acted commendably in their early con- servation efforts. In 1895, legislation was enacted that prohibited fishing in all of the tributary streams that led into the Belgrade Lakes. This action, along with the construction of a state hatchery that produced one million trout and salmon annually, ensured a thriving lake fishery. A screen was also placed between Long and Great Lakes to prevent salmon from making their way to the Kennebec River. These activities helped explain why the waters of Long and Great Lakes yielded more fish in 1907 than the three previ- ous seasons combined. The Belgrade Hotel brochure boldly predicted that the 1908 season "promises to excel, as it

did last season, that of any other Maine lakes."l'J The hotel also claimed that:

To the fisherman seeking the greatest reward for his patience and skill, the waters of Long and Great Lakes will reveal the most fascinating fishing possibilities of all Maine waters, and will enable him to gratify his fondest ambitions of big bass, lots of bass, and gamey bass-the black fellows here are past masters in the art of strategy."

The Red Oaks Lodge opened in 1910 and advertised that "other game fish abound, but clearly it is to catch the wary and gamey black bass that most fishermen are enticed hither."12

A veritable army of guides was avail-

able to convey eager sports by double- ended boat out onto the large, open bodies of water. In 1930, there were sev- enty-four guides working the area.l3 Included in this group was former Dodge City Marshall Ed Austin, who had a reputation for being one of the tougher lawmen to hail from that slight- ly more volatile region of the country. John McGaffy was credited with run- ning the first gasoline boat on Great Pond, while a man named Linnie Morrill, for some forgotten reason, had his leg shot off on Great Pond's Hoyt Island.l4

Another guide, Captain Bert Curtis, would take parties out to a secluded island in Great Pond on his steamboat, Belgrade. Once the island was reached, Captain Curtis would pull curtains around his boat to allow the women to change into their swimming attire while he disembarked to serve his signature fish chowder by use of a revolving table.

Dana S. Lamb mentions these experi- ences in his 1963 book, O n Trout Streams and Salmon Rivers.

First thing I guess was 1906; as a little boy, I went out in Davie's motor boat with Father and Henry bass fishing. There was a trout-which was out of season-was caught, liberated, caught again in the net as it floated past and kept, and the kick in the shins I got from Henry when, after Davie had told the warden how we'd caught and released the trout, I shrilly piped up, "and then we caught him again." There was fish chowder at noon, on an island, which was good except for the accidental bone, and there was a nip and tuck battle between me and the three- pound bass which was later displayed on the desk of the Hotel Belgrade surround- ed by watercress and labeled "Caught by Dana Lamb, age six."l5 Mechele Cooper interviewed former

guide David Webster in 1995 and pub- lished his reminiscences in the Morning Sentinel newspaper.

I remember when there was at least fifty of them (guides), but they tell me it was more like a hundred. When I was a kid they usually got seven dollars a day. They would come to the hotel after the guests had their breakfast, around nine or ten in the morning and take them out.16

David's father, Harold, was born in 1895 and guided the Belgrade Lakes area dur- ing the prime years of the resort era. David Webster eventually followed in his father's footsteps and had the oppor- tunity to meet several interesting people during his time on the water.

A party with three or four guides would sit and talk or play cards while the meal

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was being prepared. There was this colonel who afterward sat in the boat with his head down. His wife asked did he lose much and he said, "Yea, I lost fifteen." I thought he meant fifteen dollars but found out later it was fifteen hundred??

At the start of his guiding career, Webster was given parties made up entirely of women while the men would go out with the more experienced

I remember one time I was guiding and I had this woman, she was a heiress of Smirnoff vodka, and she had her niece with her. I smoked cigars at the time and she told me that the cigar smelled nice. I thanked her and asked her if she'd like one, but she said no, she could~l't have any up here. She f i n e said just give me a drag off yours, but I said, "No, it's all wet." She finally took a new cigar, propped her heels up on the side of the boat and had a grand old time. I later asked her niece if she real- ly did smoke cigars back home and she said she did.

The season used to be, back when the fishing was good, from ice out through the end of September. The double-ended boats they used were generally twenty-two feet long with an inboard engine. Those boats were pretty much contained here because they were so heavy and cumber- some. the trailers and eq&pment we have now they usually moved them across the pond once in the summer from Long Pond to Great Pond, depending on where the fishing was good,18

Another person who left us with com- mentary about the scene at that time was Alta Poland, who was the Western Union

telegraph operator at the Belgrade Hotel from 1910 to 1914. She was quoted as say- ing that "fishermen returned everyday with three- to six-pound s b u n and trout. The fish were placed on large plat- ters surro,unded by ferns."lg There was no local account found to describe the preferred methods of sewing the catch of the day at that time.

These idyllic days were suddenly darkened after the stock market crash of 1929. Former Belgrade town historian Carol Nye remarked that after the depression "tourists went more into building their own camps and didn't come to the hotels and stay by the month anymore.*20 David Webster attempted to revive his guiding career when he returned from military siervice in 1946, but found the work to be too sporadic for earning a steady living.

The final bell of the age was rung when the Belgrade Hotel was consumed by a raging fire on the evening of 3 October 1955. The hotel had been closed for the season, and there was a team of painting cantractors on site performing renovation work. It is believed that spontaneous combustion occurred in a dirty rag pile, and in less than an hour, this historic building became a blazing inferno. Only a few tables were rescued before the flames took over.

One of the lone reminders of those glorious years is the Village Inn, which was knoyn at the time as the L ~ u s t

The Belgrade as pictured in Bnnett Miklmd's

Dictionary of Trout Patterns.

House. It is situated on the stream con- necting Great Pond to Long Pond and enjoys a widespread reputation for serv- ing the best roast duckling the area has to offer.

The only early pattern uncovered thus far with the dame "Belgrade* w& found in the Dietimay of Tratrr Patterns, writ- ten by Bennett Millard in 1950. In it there is a traditional wet-fly pattern simply tided "Belgrade." The pattern is as fol- low.21

Body: Y e h Ribbing None Tag: Her1 and gold Tajl: Scarlet and white Hackle: Claret palmer Wing Red and white with jungle cock

The color plate of the Belgrade Fly b w n above was found in Dr. George Parker Holden's Streamcraft: An Angling Mfunuzl(ig3z edition). It was taken from a W. M. Mills & Son tackle supply cata- log with the description, "Extra Quality

6 T H E A M E R I C A N FLY F I S H E R

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Maine Trout or Bass Flies." This example was tied on an O'Shaughnessy no. 2 hook.

One solid contribution that definitely emanated from the Belgrade Lakes region was the tandem fly. Gene Letourneau of Waterville, Maine, was a syndicated outdoor columnist for Gannet newspapers who wrote a column called "Sportsmen Say" for more than fifty years (see sidebar, page lo). In 1949, Mr. Letourneau also published an extremely informative booklet titled Secrets of Streamer Fly Fishing, which paid particular attention to trolling with tandem streamer flies. Sadly, this booklet is often overlooked in the historical record because it only had a small, regional print run.

The Belgrade's Messalonskee Lake is recorded as the birthplace of tandem fly fishing. Letourneau writes:

When I finally attained maturity I found that Dad's stories about Messalonskee Lake trout were true indeed. For during the first Spring that I forsook bait for streamer flies I hooked and landed eleven beauties, nine of them over five pounds. There had been no material change in Messalonskee Lake down through the years. In fact, the fishing for trout, espe- cially, had grown poorer each season.

No other factor sold me so thoroughly on tandem streamer fly trolling than the experiences on this lake, which was but a

Area map fiom a 1906 brochure for the North Pond Camps, situated on one of the Belgrade Lakes.

stone's throw from my home.22

As for the origin of this type of fly, we can be relatively certain that it originat- ed and evolved from the minds of two men: Dr. 7. Herbert Sanborn and Emile Letourneau (brother of Gene Letour- neau), both of Watervue, Maine. Dr. Sanborn was searching for a fly that would eliminate short strikes during trolling. He believed that two hooks would be better than one and devised a tying method in which he took two long-shank no. 8 hooks, filed the eye off of one, and lashed the shanks together with tinsel. This original pattern consist- ed of white bucktail, light green feathers tied flat on top, over which black feath- ers were placed in traditional streamer fashion. When wet, the fly was intended to resemble a smelt.

This pattern, when first trolled in Messalonskee Lake behind an outboard motor, helped land a 4%-pound brook trout. The following day Dr. Sanborn hooked and landed a 9-pound, 3-ounce landlocked salmon, and thus the fly would be forever known as the Nine- Three. The original Nine-Three stream- er was unusual in that it used two hooks in a fashion similar to a double salmon hook, but it also had a revolutionary wing configuration that differed from traditional streamers. The lower wing of

The Nine-Three as seen on the cover of Secrets of Streamer Fly Fishing

by Gene L. Letourneau.

light green hackles was tied flat on top of the hook shank. Then above that there were black hackles tied in upright tradi- tional streamer fashion.

Joseph D. Bates, in Streamers and Bucktails, refers to the Nine-Three as a streamer "that stood the test of timel'23 Bates quotes Dr. Sanborn as saying:

I designed the Nine-Three to imitate a smelt as it looks in the water, with dark back, lighter below, and with silver belly and jungle cock eyes. The fly looks rough, but when wet it forms together evenly. The green feathers are tied on flat instead of edgewise, which gives the fly a motion in the water that the others don't have. I have told many commercial tyers about this but

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A period postcard captioned: "Long Lake from Elizahetl~ Arden Home-Belgrade Lakes, Mai~ze."

nobody will tie it this way because it looks rough. We believe it the best fly year-round for trout, togue, salmon, perch, and bass. I have also caught Atlantic salmon on k 2 4

The pattern description recorded by Bates is as follows.

Head: Black Body: Medium flat silver tinsel Wing: A small bunch of white bucktail

extending beyond the bend of the hook (or hooks, if in tandem), over which are three medium green saddle hackles tied on flat, over which are two natural black hackles tied on upright. All hackles and the bucktail are of the same length.

Cheeks: Jungle cock

This fly was certainly effective, but it failed to alleviate the frustrations associ- ated with short strikes, which Gene Letourneau estimated to occur four out of five times. This desire to eliminate short strikes led to the tandem style that is so popular today. Letourneau wrote:

The trouble lay in the fact that the bucktail and feathers extended beyond the barbs of the fly. It was my brother Emile who con- ceived the tandem, subsequently identi-

fied in other sections of the country as the "booby trap" fly.

By using two short shank hooks, tied together with gut or wire, preferably gut, the entire fly could be dressed on the front hook with feathers extending no farther than the barb of the tandem hook. It did not entirely eliminate short strikes, but it reduced the percentage by 80.~5

When Graydon R. Hilyard was con- ducting exhaustive research for his recently released book, Carrie Stevens: Maker of Rangeley Favorite Trout and Salmon Flies, he uncovered a wealth of streamer fly information that was not directly related to his admirable work about the renowned Rangeley t ~ e r . ~ ~ Through his efforts, we have a statement from Gene Letourneau that "Dr. J. Herbert Sanborn had the idea that two hooks were better than one. Within days, Emile came to my house with the first tandem fly which he called Sportsmen Sa~."~7 The Letourneau brothers were so - , convinced of the tandem's effectiveness that thev even attemuted to secure a patent on the design. They were subse- quently turned down by the U.S. Patent Office on grounds that fishing flies were

too varied an item for singling out a specific type.

Gene Letourneau's tying instructions called for hooks in sizes 4, 6, or 8, with the chosen pair of hooks being connect- ed in line with suitable strength wire or gut.

Before the thread is coiled, the gut should be notched slightly so that the thread will hold firmly. After the hooks are tied, the dressing, bucktail, and feathers are applied to the lead hook. Additional dressing can be, and frequently is, applied to the rear hook.

The basic rule for the successful tan- dem streamer is to have all the dressing tied so that it will ride evenly in the water, without revolving, even at fast trolling speeds.28

When it came to fishing with a tan- dem fly, Gene Letourneau recommend- ed a double-tapered HDH line, which is a 6-weight by today's standards, at a length of go feet with loo feet of silk backing. The fly would be connected to a leader of fine braided wire with a small clasp. He stressed in no uncertain terms that "under no circumstances should you use or attach a swivel, or any other

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From a period postcard: a record salmon caught at Belgrade Lake in May 1913, weight 14Zpounds.

device to the line1'29 His trolling method followed simple

but calculated logic. A boat would be set up with three trolling lines. Two rods would be set in rod holders hanging over both sides of the boat with 50-foot lines, while the third line went straight off the back at a length of 30 feet. The strategy anticipated that the propeller wash would draw attention to the center fly, and if for some reason that fly was refused, the fish, by turning away to the left or right, would have an opportunity to strike one of the outer flies as they passed by on the longer lines.

To hook a fish, Letourneau adds that: In trolling streamer flies I have yet to see one angler with a better percentage than the rod holder. As the fish strikes the fly, the rod tip bends backward, then recoils quickly as the boat moves on. This action is mechanical but perfectly timed. Nine out of ten fish will be hooked solidly by the tension of the reel. If the wallop is extra heavy, the reel will pay out the neces- sary amount of line.

Following the strike, the angler can remove the rod from the holder and he's on his own from then on, always with a securely hooked fish.

Had he been holding the rod he invari- ably would have automatically hauled back, either tearing out the hook from the fish or breaking the line or rod or both.30

Letourneau was often asked what was the best time to troll with streamers and he modestly responded "to that I must admit defeatl'3l He did go on to state that his most productive hours in the early spring were from 1i:oo A.M. to i:30 P.M. He also believed that bright-colored flies (red, white, yellow, and orange shades) were better in cold water than in warm.

There is a final reflective summary toward the end of his booklet.

During the past twenty years I can look back to record catches made in many waters with streamer flies. I have seen land- locked salmon up to 12 pounds, brook trout up to 8, many bass over 5, and t o p e up to 15 pounds caught on these lures.

I personally have taken more large fish with streamers than with other types of bait or lures. And that in the face of a shorter period of fishing with streamers than with other tackle, and during a span when fishermen increased and fish de- creased.

In preparing this effort, I asked ten of

the oldest streamer fly fishermen in Maine for a list of their favorite flies. From the different patterns, and those I selected, I found that the following had the most votes: Nine-Three, Gray Ghost, Liggett Special, Green King, Mickey Finn, Black Ghost, Sportsmen Say, Charlie McCarthy, Lady Ghost, and Queen Bee.

There are hundreds of other patterns which are as effective but these cover most of the color combinations. Each should have its place in the trolling streamer fly fisherman's fly book.32

Of these aforementioned "favorite flies," fifty percent-the Nine-Three (Sanborn), Queen Bee (Sanborn), Charlie McCarthy (E. Letourneau), Sportsmen Say (E. Letourneau), and Liggett Special (E. Letourneau)-hailed from the Belgrade Lakes region.

To conclude, it is clear that the Belgrade Lakes made worthwhile contri- butions to America's angling heritage. The natural beauty of the area and tradi- tions that were developed on the shores of these waters attract visitors to this day. -

S U M M E R 2000 9

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Gene Letourneau: The Dean of Maine Outdoor Writers Beth Gagnon

Eugene L. Letourneau was an accomplished angler and journalist whose encylopedic knowledge of streamers and how to fish them proved to be a major resource for later writ- ers on the subject. He was born on 12 September 1907 into a life that led to countless hours afield and a following of sport- ing faithful who eagerly thumbed through their morning newspapers to read his "Sportsmen Say" column for a span that exceeded fifty years. His dual passion for the outdoors and writing provided him with a livelihood and contentment that carried him into his nineties.

Letourneau's father introduced him to the Maine outdoors as a child, and when reflecting on some of his fondest memo- ries later in life, he recalled how one day, as a five-year-old, his sister rowed him around Salmon Lake in the Belgrade chain so he could catch humpback perch. In a special eighty-fifth birthday tribute section contained in the Central Maine Newspapers of 12 September 1992, Letourneau reminisced about several other memorable events in his sporting life:

Netting three brook trout, all weighing 7X pounds, for compan- ions at Messalonskee Lake in the 1967 fishing season.

Watching Ray Camp, outdoor editor of the New York Times, win a two-hour-plus battle with a 550-pound bluefin tuna on a 38- pound test line off the Maine Coast.

Raising, hooking, and releasing loo grayling while f l~-~as t ing at offered me a proposition I could not turn down. It called for writ- Otter Stream near Dawson, Yukon Territory, with Joe Brooks. ing five columns weekly for his papers, Monday through Friday,

watching him raise salmon in a period of slow fishing at [and offered an] unlimited expense account and a choice of bases ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ h ~ ~ d ~~k~ and playing one of at least pounds which he in Portland, Augusta, and Waterville. I chose the latter, where I was released with a flip of the wrist.33 born and raised and given an outdoors foundation by my father,

Streamer flies were originated and developed. The second most who was an avid sports fisherman and wildlife enthusiast3 popular pattern was tied by a good friend and companion, Dr. AS testimony to Mr. Gannet's respect for Letourneau as a Herbert Sanborn, a native of Vinalhaven. His Nine-Three contin- newspaperman, daughter said, ago the ues as runner-up to the Gray Ghost.34 one person my father reflected upon often was Gene Before becoming a reporter, Letourneau served a stint as a Letourneau. He said on more than one occasion 'I wanted

professional drummer in Art Landry's Victor Recording Gene to run my newspapers.' Gene declined because he was Orchestra and performed live throughout the New York met- dedicated to becoming a great outdoor writer."36 ropolitan area. In the fall of 1929, he was on break outside a The column quickly grew in popularity and took on a life New Jersey club when the sound of a baying beagle drew his of its own. Letourneau had an established network of admin- thoughts back to his hometown of Waterville, Maine. The istrators, wardens, trappers, and guides who made up what he next morning he boarded a northbound bus and shortly referred to as "my backwoods eyes and ears."37 thereafter landed a job as a regional correspondent for the By his eighty-fifth birthday, Letourneau had written 17,773 Portland Press Herald. columns and received more than 65,000 letters. One of his

His territory covered the vast area between Augusta, Maine, more famous angling correspondents was Joseph D. Bates Jr., and Quebec. In his first week, he was sent to cover a murder who wrote to Letourneau requesting information about local in nearby Oakland, and later provided a sheriff with the clue fly patterns and trolling speeds. In a letter dated 3 November that helped track down a strangler who had used a 1949, Letourneau responded by recommending that "keeping three-strand rope (Letourneau knew that this was not as com- them on top and traveling right along will produce the best mon as one of two or four strands). When he had spare time, results. The general rule is to travel faster as the water warms he wrote a hunting and fishing column for his hometown up."38 paper, the Morning Sentinel. In addition to "Sportsmen Say,"Letourneau wrote a column

In 1945, Guy P. Gannet, owner of the Gannet Newspapers of for Down East magazine called "Outdoor Maine" for nearly a Maine, asked Letourneau to begin writing his outdoor col- quarter century. A number of his most memorable stories umn for all of the Gannet papers. That same year, Letourneau were later published in a 1975 book, aptly titled Sportsmen Say. won the Associated Press national news photo prize for his Two years later, he received outdoorsman of the year honors coverage of a train wreck. from the New England Outdoor Writers Association.

In Letourneau's words: His daughter, Julie Letourneau DuPont, sent me a letter -Sportsmen the column responsible for my longevity of ser- explaining that her father wrote seven days a week until about vice, is nearly as old as the years I have been a Gannet employee. '995, when he pared his twice a week. Written more as a hobby at first, it became a permanently assigned 1997, he was down to once a week. After leading an epic out- task shortly after World War 11. door life, Letourneau passed away on a summer Sunday, 5 July

Guy P. Gannet, the head and publisher of these newspapers, 1998, at age ninety. - 10 T H E A M E R I C A N FLY F I S H E R

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"On the Great Meadows Stream," as depicted in a 1906 brochure for the North Pond Camps, situated on one of the Belgrade Lakes.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

The author would like to thank the fol- lowing individuals who made their pri- vate collections available for research and reproduction purposes: Julie Letourneau Dupont of Waterville, Maine; David Foley of West Hartford, Connecticut; Graydon R. Hilyard of Askland, Massachusetts; and Sandra Leibfried of Point Pleasant, New Jersey. Without their assistance, this article would not have been possible.

E N D N O T E S

1. The Belgrade Lakes and Maine's Pastoral Fields, 1917. Brochure issued by Passenger Traffic Department, Maine Central Railroad, Portland, Maine.

2. Letter excerpted from The American Turf Register and Sporting Magazine, dated zo April 1831, reprinted in The American Fly Fisher, vol. 12, no. 1

(Winter 1985), p. 3. 3. The Belgrade, The Belgrade Hotel, Belgrade

Lakes, Maine; 1908 promotional brochure. 4. Mechele Cooper, "Town Was Mecca for the

Rich During Turn-of-the-Century Heyday," Morning Sentinel (Waterville, Maine), 4 September 1995, p- 16.

5. The Belgrade. 6. Ibid.

7. Ibid. 8. David B. Ledlie, "The Black Bass in Maine."

The American Fly Fisher, vol. 9, no. 3 (Summer 1984, P. 7.

9. Belgrade Lakes and Maine's Pastoral Fields. lo. The Belgrade. 11. Ibid. 12. Robert A. Guptil, Carol F. Nye, H. Pauline

Plourde, eds., Past and Present: Pictures and People of Belgrade, Maine, 1774-1976 (Belgrade, Maine: Heritage Committee of Belgrade Bicentennial Observance, 1976), p. 49.

13. Ibid., p. 38. 14. Ibid. 15. Dana S. Lamb, O n Trout Streams and

Salmon Rivers (Far Hills, N. J.: Meadow Run Press, 1996 edition), p. 32.

16. Mechele Cooper, "Anglers Thronged the Lakes," Morning Sentinel (Waterville, Maine), 4 September 1995, p. 16.

17. Ibid. 18. Ibid., p. 16. The word pond was eventually

substituted for the word lake when referring to individual bodies of water in the Belgrade chain.

19. Past and Present, p. 53. 20. "Town Was Mecca," p. 16. 21. Bennett Millard, Dictionary of Trout

Patterns (Deposit, N.Y.: 1950), p. 8. 22. Gene Letourneau, Secrets of Streamer Fly

Fishing for All the Angling Family (Waterville, Maine: Letourneau-Nichols, 1949), p. 1.

23. Joseph D. Bates Jr., Streamers and Bucktails: The Big Fish Flies (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1979)> P. 74.

24. Bates, Streamers and Bucktails, p. 347. 25. Letourneau, Secrets of Streamer Fly Fishing,

p. 4. 26. Graydon R. Hilyard and Leslie K. Hilyard,

Carrie Stevens: Maker of Rangeley Favorite Trout and Salmon Flies (Mechanicsburg, Penn.: Stackpole Books, 2000).

27. Undated letter from Julie Letourneau DuPont to Robert Hilyard, personal correspon- dence.

28. Letourneau, Secrets of Streamer Fly Fishing, P. 5 .

29. Ibid., p. 8. 30. Ibid., p. 11. 31. Ibid., p. 16. 32. Ibid., p. 17. 33. Gene Letourneau,"Gene Takes Glance Back

at His Favorite Moments," Central Maine Newspapers (Waterville, Maine), 12 September 1992, P. 7.

34. Terri H. Sanborn, "Gene Letourneau: Outdoors Writer Turns 85 and rust Keeps Going and Going . . .," Central Maine Newspapers (Waterville, Maine), 12 September 1992, p. 6.

35. Ibid., p. 6. 36. Ibid., p. 2. 37. Michael T. Kinnicut, "Opening Day with

Gene Letourneau," Down East (April 19831, p. 24. 38. Letter from Gene Letourneau to Joseph D.

Bates Jr., 3 November 1949.

S U M M E R 2000 11

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Angling in the Pecos River Headwaters: The Development of Fly Fishing in

Northern New Mexico by Merideth A. Hmura and G. William Fowler

T HE DEVELOPMENT of fly fishing in the Pecos wilderness area of northern New Mexico is represen-

tative of the history of angling in the western United States. The Pecos River headwaters were fished for centuries by Native American Indians.' With the advent of European exploration in 1540 and subsequent colonization, the first Anglos had the opportunity to fish the area. Additional fishermen appeared in the 1800s because of American military expansion and colonists settling in the west. When the Santa Fe Railroad was

George "Skipper" Vilesflyfishing in the Pecos River near Cowles, New Mexico. The

beaver cowboy hat, point up, was his signature.

completed in the 1880s, Easterners came to experience the mountain lifestyle of

the dude ranch. They brought with them the fly-fishing heritage of Europe that was evolving in America.

The Pecos River begins in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains of northern New Mexico in the Pecos wilderness. It is a high-gradient river with several snowfed streams and creeks. Tributaries in the high country include Panchuela Creek, Jack's Creek, Winsor Creek, and the Mora River. As it flows south out of the high mountains, it passes through deep, narrow box canyons, open meadows

covered in wildflowers, and down the only waterfall on the river. Magnificent views of mountain peaks can be seen from everv turn in the river. It travels almost fiftLen miles through the wilder- ness before it is first touched bv civiliza- tion: a forest road to ~ a c k s Creek Campground. The Santa Fe Trail passes just to the east of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. The mountains were thought to be impassable-therefore, the Santa Fe Trail went around them. More than 175 years later, there are still no roads across the high country, and the

Photographs from the Mattie Viles collection

12 T H E A M E R I C A N FLY F I S H E R

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Pecos Indian Pueblo, about 1915.

Fishing at the base of Pecos Falls, about 1920.

mountain summits are preserved as they were. When the Pecos River leaves the wilderness near Cowles, New Mexico, there are cabins and campgrounds along its banks. Once the river passes the Pecos National Historic Park, home of the Pecos Pueblo ruins, it continues for another 750 miles before it reaches the Rio Grande River in Texas.

The Pecos River valley was inhabited for hundreds of years by Native

Americans, but it wasn't until the anthropological timeframe of the Rio Grande classic period (1325-1600) that large populations began living in pueb- los. Primarily farmers and hunters, the pueblo inhabitants apparently left no physical evidence of fishing a~tivities.~ European contact was made in 1540 by Spanish explorer Francisco Vasquez de Coronado. Pedro de Castaneda, traveling with Coronado, reported "there were very good trout in the upper Pecos."3 The Rio Grande cutthroat (Oncor- hynchus clarki virginalis) is native to the Pecos River.4 With the conquest of Mexico, the king of Spain granted large tracts of land to Spaniards who traveled to this new world. The Spanish began to populate the lands, choosing sites for their communities near the rivers. While the United States Constitution was being drafted in 1776 in Philadelphia, a Franciscan monk was making a detailed report to the Spanish government on the spiritual and economic status of New Mexico missions. Fray Francisco Domin- quez reported on the Pecos River: "Along the small plain between the Sierra and the Pueblo a very good river of good water and many delicious trout runs from North to South."5

Civil War brought American settlers into the wilds of the southwest. In 1880, the Santa Fe Railroad crossed New Mexico, further opening the state for settlement. Early visitors to the Sangre de Cristo Mountains were prospectors hoping to find gold, silver, and copper. The high, dry mountain climate was also believed to be beneficial for those who had tuber- culosis. By 1890, there were tent cities erected for "lungers" who wanted to improve their health. Many of these peo- ple regained their health and stayed to make the mountains their home. Homestead acts opened vast areas of New Mexico to people willing to pioneer remote lands. Homes were built and improvements made on 160-acre tracts, and Anglo families began to populate the upper Pecos valley.

Among the early settlers in the upper Pecos were the families of Henry M. Winsor and Charles A. Viles. Joined by marriage, these families lived in the upper Pecos for more than fifty years. Winsor had nine children, five of whom lived near the small community of Cowles. He worked for the Sante Fe Railroad as it headed west from Kansas to New Mexico. Winsor and two of his sons. Martin and Isaac. were earlv

During this time, the southwest was prospectors and homesteaders. His under Spanish rule. In 1848, with the daughter Carrie married Viles, who set- Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, Mexico tled at Cowles because he had tuberculo- ceded New Mexico to the United States. ~ i s . ~ Military forts, wagon trains, and the Cowles is located on the Pecos River

S U M M E R 2000 13

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Main Lodge at Mountain View Ranch, about 1925.

An unknown Mountain View Ranch guest and his dog.

about twenty miles north of the town of Pecos. Cowles had one general store and post office; no main street, governing body, or hospital; but there were three resorts: Mountain View Ranch, Los Pinos Guest Ranch, and the Winsor Cabins. In the early 19oos, each catered to wealthy eastern guests who came to hunt and fish. Long before air condi- tioning, city residents fled the heat of summer for mountain lodges. One con- tribution the west has made to America's fly-fishing heritage is the dude ranch. It

Largest and oldest of the ranches in the Upper Pecos was Mountain View Ranch. Charles A. Viles filed a home- stead application in 1887 for 160 acres at the junction of the Pecos River and Winsor Creek. He built the main house out of local pine logs, and it had a large stone fireplace. Viles had left his wife and children in Kansas while he built their home. He traveled back to Kansas to move his family to New Mexico, but did not return to Cowles until 1895, so he did not fulfill the homestead requirements. Unfortunately, Viles died of tuberculosis in 1896.

Charles A. Viles's brother-in-law, Henry D. Winsor, took over the home- stead and began a boardinghouse that he called Winsor Ranch. In 1915, the president of the Rock Island Railroad, Henry U. Mudge, bought the boarding- house. It was renamed Mountain View Ranch. Mudge hired Viles's son, George "Skipper" Viles, to manage the ranch and to guide guests-called dudes-on hunting and fishing trips.

In 1930, Skipper Viles purchased Mountain View Ranch from the Mudge family. Through the years, as the ranch became more popular, new cabins were built, and the main lodge was remod- eled. The road up the canyon from the town of Pecos was almost nonexistent until the Works Progress Adminis- tration improved it in 1934. Cars trav-

Gas the Lwboy"version of the eastern eled the ritted dirt path-at their own fishing camp. risk. Modern inventions like electricity,

indoor plumbing, and telephones were slow to arrive in the high New Mexico mountains. Kerosene l a m ~ s . wood-

A .

burning stoves, and outhouses were accepted as a part of dude ranch life. Skipper Viles sold Mountain View Ranch in 1945, and it was purchased in 1976 by the National Forest Service. It is the policy of the agency to return land to its original status. In this case, all of the ranch buildings were torn down, and the site is now an open meadow. New building sites along the river's edge are not permitted, and camping is limited to specified areas.

The meals at Mountain View Ranch were provided from local gardens and game harvested nearby through hunt- ing and fishing. Dandelion leaves made excellent salads, fish caught during the

Skipper Viles displaying a string of trout caught in 1915.

14 T H E A M E R I C A N FLY F I S H E R

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day was pan fried, and dessert might have been wild berries in season. If the fish weren't biting, there were steaks from cattle or wild game. On Sunday, Skipper's wife, Matie, fried ranch-raised chicken. Staples such as flour, sugar, and lard were brought in by buckboard from town. Occasionally a peddler and his donkeys would pass through piled high with boxes of fruits and vegeta- " V

bles, pots and pans, and other house- hold goods.

~ h g dudes who came to Mountain View Ranch for the summer loved to spend part of their vacation camping under the open skies. Horseback and fishing trips lasting from several days to several weeks were a popular activity. The territorial game warden in 1910 was Thomas P. Gable. He said:

There is something awry in the construc- tion of a man to whom there does not sometimes come a longing for the camp fire by the rippling brook, within the shaded wood, with a frying pan over the glowing coals, from which steals out of the soft summer air, that alluring odor of specWed trout, fresh from the stream, growing both crisp and tender as they sputter in the bacon grease until they reach just the perfect turn.7

Little documentation has come to light about early fly fishing in the Pecos wilderness. After 1900, fishing stories began to circulate. One of the better fly fishermen of the Pecos Valley was Skipper Viles. Apart from his other interests, Skipper was an avid fly fisher- man in his early days, and his exploits were well known by his guests and

A picnic lunch oftrout in the 1930s.

Skipper Viles fishing from his horse in the Pecos River. Being a colorful character was part of his job as the proprietor of the dude ranch. He did have certain obligations to his guests and a reputation to uphold!

An unknown Mountain View Ranch guest displays his trophy trout.

friends. In fact, part of the romance and mystique of staying at Mountain View Ranch was the opportunity to interact with him in this role. Raised in the mountains surrounding Mountain View Ranch, Skipper Viles was very familiar with each stream and lake in the area. His expertise is illustrated in the follow- ing story told by Milton C. Nahm.

One day I had been sitting on the porch of Skipper Viles's ranch at Cowles. Viles was the owner of a magic wand which stood at my side, a Hardy Special (fishing rod), length nine and a half feet and weight about five and three-quarter ounces. Viles's ranch was at the top of the road up the Pecos Canyon and provided plain cab- ins and fine country-style food to guests such as those coming in off the river. But these guests gave every evidence of frus- tration. All had had a long and weary day

Page 18: Fly Fisher

of fruitless fishing. Viles listened to their complaints without saying a word. He picked up the rod which at the end of the oiled silk line had a six-foot leader and tied to that a No. 8 Royal Coachman fly. He walked seventy feet from the porch to a ledge overlooking a deep pond. It had been fished all day by every stray searcher for trout. The children at the lodge had paddled in it. The saddle horses and cows had gone to drink in it. Viles leaned over the ledge, made one cast, and landed a fourteen-inch trout.

I remarked that evening to Viles that fishing in the Pecos was good if you know how to do it. Viles denied this. In the old days, he said, there was real fishing but it was all gone now, what with the Texans and Oklahomans so crowded on the stream that they caught each other's ears on the backcast. Course, he made his liv- ing out of them, but he'd rather have the old days back, even if he had to make a dollar the hard way. He minded the day when he and a fellow by the name of Llewellyn had supplied Elk's parties in Vegas with barrels of trout. The pair used, in fact, to stage trout races-see how many each would catch in half an hour or with- in a quarter of mile of stream, which, either way, meant a lot of scrambling around. Llewellyn always won, Viles said. "Fewest I ever caught:' said Viles, "was 110 but Llewellyn caught 126 that day. No fish- ing like that now. Too many Texans and Oklahomans." I suggested that with a cou- ple of fishermen like Viles and Llewellyn there was no need to blame it on the out- landers. Viles denied this.8

Whether fishing in a stream or a lake, the popular sport offyfishing lives on in New Mexico.

Skipper Viles kept a personal diary for

almost forty years.9 In addition to rele- vant information about his ranching operations, the weather, and wildlife sightings, he reported some of the trout fishing activities of the region.

July 6,1913: Went to Mora Creek with Ranger Tom Stewart.l0 T. S. and I caught 150 trout.

June 7, 1914: Went fishing with Tom Stewart on Mora. No good.-14 between US.

August 9, 1915: Went to Mora with Terrell and Levin. Got loo trout.

June 14,1917: Went to Spirit Lake with Glazer. Caught 7 rainbow trout with naked hooks.

July 15, 1918: Caught gj/, pound below house in p.m. Light shower.

June 18,1923: Trout rising to fly good. October 1,1926: Tony got lo trout with

coach before noon. May 15, 1944: 7X pound trout taken at

hatchery.

Skipper Viles was a man of very few words, as reflected in his diary entries. The descriptions in his diary will not compare with those of the many elo- quent fly-fishing writers or even Nahm's recollection of an afternoon spent with him. How can the story of catching a gX- pound trout on 15 July 1918 be left to a mere description of size and location?

Conservationist H. D. Walter was with a group of men surveying the upper Pecos watershed about 1945. While fish-

ing in a small lake named for Ranger John W. Johnson-Johnson Lake-Mr. Walter reported, "We fished with wooly worms for less than an hour and the count showed we had taken seventy-one fish averaging over eight and a half inch- es long."ll This, in a lake that wasn't dis- covered until 1 ~ 4 % and was stocked once , .+

with 5,000 fingerlings by Ranger Johnson.

As more people began to populate the remote mountain valley, gaming laws and wildlife management became neces- sary. Copies of game laws were distrib- uted in English and Spanish. The Forest Service had been active, with rangers sta- tioned at Panchuela Ranger Station by 1903. In igio, Warden Gable recom- mended making a detailed study of game and fish conditions and setting aside a game reserve in the Pecos forest. Before New Mexico statehood, the terri- torial governor appointed game wardens to enforce game and fish regulations from 1897 until 1912. These wardens were similar to sheriffs, but enforcement was not a top priority. New Mexico's Department of Game and Fish was cre- ated in 1912.

By the turn of the century, travel writ- ers had extolled the virtues of the Pecos wilderness, and fishermen were coming in increasing numbers.12 This pressure

16 T H E A M E R I C A N FLY F I S H E R

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Fly fishing was, and still is, a popular pastime on the many rivers, streams, and lakes of the upper Pecos. There are many deep pools where the fisherman can cast his line and reel in a native trout.

almost devleted the native fish vo~ula - I I

tion in the river. Stocking became an accevted vractice to satisfv the demand. ~ish'for siocking were shibped by rail to Rowe, a town about thirty miles from Cowles. The fish fry were then trans- vorted to the streams and lakes on horseback in clean milk cans or barrels. Rangers and ranchers alike volunteered c.

to plant fish in local streams and lakes. Forest Ranger Johnson reported packing 50,000 fry per trip into the wilderness in 1922.~3 The New Mexico Game Protec- tive Association helped distribute 1.1 million fish in the state at a cost of $80 in 1918.~4 In 1922, the first state fish hatch- ery at Lisboa Springs was built between the town of Pecos and Cowles. The hatchery was initially funded with $30,000 from a state gasoline tax. The first year it planted two million fish eggs.l5 Volunteers could not keep up with the increased number of anglers who continued to deplete the fish popu- lation in the rivers and lakes in the upper Pecos.

By today's catch-and-release stan- dards, early twentieth-century fishing exploits might seem abusive. Keep in mind, however, that at the time, fish caught in mountain streams and lakes was a primary food source for residents of the area and tourists alike. For many mountain residents, fishing during spec- ified seasons was a hardship because they depended on daily catches for their meal.

Trout fishing in the upper Pecos is still a popular pastime. The anglers of today can enjoy the area knowing that the upper Pecos has a long proud history with colorful characters such as Skipper Viles. A long hike to a remote lake or a small cold stream in the wilderness, though, can bring back memories of fishing in days gone by. The days of catching large numbers of fish may be over, but the pristine beauty of the Pecos River remains. One can still sit on the river's edge and envision Skipper Viles and his friends casting their lines into a deep pool and pulling out that elusive 9- pounder! a

E N D N O T E S

1. Pecos is possibly a Towa Indian word, pre- dating the Spanish word pecos that means "place where there is water."

2. "No fish bones came to light here or else- where at Pecos, although tront were abundant in - the nearby river and as far as 1 know there is no taboo against eating fish at any Pueblo." From Alford Vincent Kidder, Pecos, New Mexico: Archaeological Notes, vol. 5 (Andover, Mass.: Phillips Academy, 1958), p. 123. The Native American's contribution to our American fishing heritage is more important than physical archeo- logical remains. Their attitudes toward fish as prey and the environment have contributed greatly to our present activities. See Mark Browning, "Upstream: The American Fork:' in Haunted by Waters: Fly Fishing in North American Literature (Athens, Ohio: Ohio University Press, 1998), pp. 41-57.

3. The narrative of the expedition of Coronado is found in Pedro de Castaneda, Spanish Explorers

in the Southern United States, 1526-1543 (F, W. Hodge, ed., New York: 1907). Erhard Rostland reports Castaneda's statement is presumably "the earliest reference to western trout by a European." From Erhard Rostland, Freshwater Fish and Fishing in Native North America (Berkeley: University of California Press, i952), p. 357.

4. James E. Sublette, Michael D. Hatch, and Mary Sublette, The Fishes of New Mexico (Albuquerque, N . Mex.: University of New Mexico Press, 1990).

5. Francesco Antanaso Dominquez, The Missions of New Mexico, 1776, translated and anno- tated by Eleanor B. Adams and Fray Angeleco Chavez (Albuquerque, N. Mex.: University of New Mexico Press, 1952), p. 213.

6. Merideth A. Hmura, Mountain View Ranch: 1915-1945 (Loclzport, 111.: Leaning Pine Publishing Co., 19961, p. 5.

7. Jeff Pederson, A Look at 75 Years of Game & Fish History (Santa Fe, N. Mex.: New Mexico Department of Game and Fish, 1987), p. 25.

8. Milton C. Nahm, Las Vegas and Uncle ]oe: The New Mexico I Remember (Norman, Okla.: University of Oklahoma Press, 1964), pp. 273-74.

9. George A. "Skipper" Viles, personal diaries, 1912-1950, in the possession of Merideth A. Hmura.

lo. Tom Stewart was the forest supervisor and an avid and excellent fly fisherman. From Elliott S. Barker, Eighty Years with Rod and Rifle (Santa Fe, N. Mex.: Sunstone Press, 1976).

11. John W. Johnson, Reminiscences of a Forest Ranger: 1914-1944 (Dayton, Ohio: Brown & Kroger Publishing, 1976), p. 122.

12. John Carnifex, "Fishing Along the Pecos," New Mexico Outing Magazine, July 1891, reprinted in Fishing North America 187661910, compiled by Frank Oppel, Castle Publishing, 1986.

13. Iohn W. Johnson, personal diaries, 1914-1943, in possession of Merideth A. Hmura.

14. Pederson, A Look at 75 Years, p. 26. 15. Ibid.

S U M M E R 2000 17

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N O T E S & C O M M E N T

The Tups Indispensable: A Dubbing Dilemma by Gordon M. Wickstrom

Cook Neilson

The Tups Indispensable, dry and nymph, a creature of the great G. E. M. Skues. The Tups is one of the earliest and most interesting

of nymphs and is highly effective yet today. Tied by the author.

S O M E W H E R E , at this moment, some nameless but responsible fly tyer of good conscience is fretting

over the near impossibility of finding exactly the correct dubbing for the tho- rax of a Tups Indispensable dry fly or nymph.

In the face of its compelling lore, many of us fret over it.

In that fount of all knowledge in English, the Oxford English Dictionary, we learn that tup is cant for a ram or male sheep, and that the verb to tup denotes his dastardly act of covering (compelling) a gentle and innocent ewe.

In the drama, in Shakespeare's Othello, the villain Iago seeks to poison Othello's mind against his beautiful and innocent wife Desdemona by telling him that Cassio is "tupping your bright ewe."

In fly tying, Tups denotes a delicate blend, an illusive shade of dubbing based on a peculiar tint of urine-stained wool from around the genitals of an old ram.

Few fly tyers, if any, have seen the real tups wool. Resorting to frustrating guesswork, tyers have for a century sought to mix a dubbing that will satisfy for a Tups Indispensable fly, dry or nymph. Texts tell us to blend claret (or pink) and yellow wool or fur to simulate the desired shade.l Some stipulate cream for yellow. All agree that it must be a del- icate, subtle tint. But there is no visual standard by which to judge our blends. The Tups dressing is not widely available in shops. And if it were, what tyer would dare to claim authority? Who is there to boast of having approached an old ram

close enough for examination, let alone to invite him to give up a sample?

Of course. if we could find such a weathered old beast, and they are few, we could wait around for him simply to die or go to mutton, and then, in the spirit of the infamous Iago, snatch at his pri- vates. But that surely speaks of a mean- ness of spirit and imagination. So, we go on guessing, hunting materials, clipping, mixing, blending, and stirring about in order "correctly" to tie this lovely and useful dry fly or nymph. .

There lies here on my desk a small packet of dyed "tups" wool from the redoubtable John Veniard's of London, dated 1965. It is pinker than some would think correct, but then who are we to argue with John Veniard? He speaks with an authority as close to the great tradi- tion and to the pasture as we shall get.

G. E. M. Skues. England's heroic father of the nymph, was ;he first to use the Tups in 1900, and with stunning success-himself "dubbing" it "Indis- pensable." He kept the complex formula of the dub a secret for several years before revealing it as too important to deny to other anglers.2

The Tups Nymph was also a major player in James E. Leisenring's fly book. He tells us how to tie it in his great The Art of Tying the Wet Fly (1941). We know that Leisenring enjoyed an extensive and important correspondence with Skues, that they exchanged flies across the Atlantic,' and each much admired the other. We may fairly suspect that Big Jim got his enthusiasm for the Tups from

Skues and then made it his own basic American nymph.

The body of the fly appears in texts with optional proportions. More com- mon to the dry fly, we see a tag of prim- rose yellow floss and a body of tups dub- bing. The nymph, however, ought to be tied with a yellow floss abdomen and a pronounced bump of a thorax of tups dubbing just behind the hackle. We are told that the fly, both dry and nymph, may be tied with either a pale honey dun or equally pale blue dun hackle. Hackle for the nymph must be soft, quite short, and sparse. The dry is, of course, wing- less.

Leisenring calls for two of the tiniest dun hackle points for tails on the nymph. They ought to extend beyond the bend of the hook by no more than an eighth of an inch on a size 14 dressing. Tails for the dry are the more conven- tional bunched matching hackle bar- bules. Yellow tying silk is preferred. And, of course, the correct dubbing.

E N D N O T E S

1. The best source of the finest lamb's wool, from which the lanolin has been removed and so is ready to be dyed any color, is the special bat of it used by ballet dancers who place it between their toes to lessen the terrible pain of dancing. A good dancelperformance supply shop will provide it.

z. The Skues formula: Wool "from the indis- pensable part of a tup," the fine pinkish fur from the poll of a hare's ear, cream-colored seal, the lemon-yellow combings from a spaniel, and a bit of red mohair or seal.

18 T H E A M E R I C A N FLY F I S H E R

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Page 22: Fly Fisher

(Left to right) Trustee Leigh Perkins, Laine and Yoshi Akiyama, and Romi Perkins at the Manchester dinner/auction,which was the climax of the Festival Weekend.

Rodbuilder Fred Kretchnza rod during I1

Photos by John Price

Leslie Hilyard [left) and Graydon Hilyard signed copies of their book, Carrie Stevens: Maker of Rangeley Favorite Trout and Salmon Flies.

Leslie demonstrated the tying of the Stevens patterns as well.

Festival Weekend 2000

T he Museum's annual Festival Weekend was held May 19 and 20, beginning with a welcoming cocktail reception at the Museum. The galleries featured fresh exhibits,

including displays about Joe Brooks and Maxine Atherton, as well as a vitrine full of recently discovered antique Irish and Scottish flies from as early as the late 1700s.

Saturday featured demonstrations by bamboo rodbuilder Fred Kretchman (who spent a month last summer performing his craft at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C.);

classic angling bookseller Ken Andersen; fly tyers Mike Walsh, Peter Burton, and Bob Warren; and bronze sculptor Mark Miramontes. Under the tent in front of the Museum, the boat builders from "these are not canoes"Adirondack Guide Boat of Charlotte, Vermont, displayed their classic crafts.

Authors Graydon and Leslie Hilyard were available in the Museum gift shop to sign their book about Maine's fly-tying phenomenon, Carrie Stevens: Maker of Rangeley Favorite Trout and Salmon Flies. Leslie also set up his fly-tying vise to fashion

20 T H E A M E R I C A N FLY F I S H E R

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describes the action of a fine cane demonstration.

Michael Osborne, Allan Poole, and David Walsh placing bids during the silent auction.

"These are not canoes" read the sign posted a t the entrance to the tent housing the fine boats built by Adirondack Guide Boat.

copies of Stevens's streamer patterns for visitors. That evening, the Museum held its annual dinner and

sporting auction in the Garden Lounge at the Equinox Hotel. Cocktail hour featured a silent auction and raffle, with the grand raffle prize of five rods from Orvis, Sage, Hexagraph, and Thomas & Thomas rodmakers.

During dessert, Executive Director Gary Tanner announced the Museum's annual awards (see related story in Museum News, page 24.) The 1999 Joe A. Pisarro Volunteer of the Year Award went to Jim Brown, Buzz Eichel, and Bob O'Shaugh-

nessy, and the 1999 Austin Hogan Award went to Pamela Bates Richards.

Veteran sporting auctioneer Lyman Foss then auctioned off the live auction items-from a day trip mushroom hunting with Orvis's Jim Lepage to a trip down the Amazon fishing for peacock bass on a loo-foot yacht owned by the secretary of state of Brazil.

After these presentations and the live auction-with Museum staff members John Price and Toney Pozek serving as the evening's "Vanna Whitesn-raffle prizes were given

S U M M E R 2 0 0 0 21

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Sculptor Mark hliraurzotztes at work.

Mike Walsh demonstrates the art offly tying.

more Festival Weekend 2000

away, with the clear winner being member Steve Millard of Peterborough, New Hampshire, who had to make several trips to his hotel room to stash his raffle winnings!

Thanks to the hard work of the entire Museum staff and the generous time and effort of the weekend exhibitors and craftsmen, the weekend was a huge success. Special thanks also to dinner co-chairs Jim Lepage and Tom Rosenbauer, vol- unteers Peter Castagnetti and Bob Warren, and the following

auction donors: Rick Eck of Orvis-endorsed River Essentials; artists George Van Hook, Peter Corbin, Brett James Smith, Chet Reneson, and Luther K. Hall; Trustee Allan Poole; Russ Johnson of Wet-A-Line Tours; Orvis-endorsed Captain Tony Biski; local guide Tom Goodman; the Orvis Company; and the King & Bartlett Fish & Game Club of Eustis, Maine.

The staff and trustees hope to see all of our regional mem- bers and guests at Festival Weekend 2001. Be there! -

2 2 T H E A M E R I C A N FLY F I S H E R

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Visit your nearestT&T retailer or write for a copy of our full-color catalogue Thomas and Thomas PO Box 32 Turners Falls. MA 0 1376 (4 13) 863-9727 www.thomasandthomas.com

S U M M E R 2 0 0 0 23

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lohn Price

Executive Director Gary Tanner presents the Volunteer of tlze Year Award to Jim Brown, one of three recipients ofthis annual award.

Awards Presented The 1999 Austin Hogan Award was

announced during the Manchester din- nerlauction on May 20. This year's hon- oree was Pamela Bates Richards of Newburyport, Massachusetts, who was unable to accept the award in person. The award was established in 1985 to honor the memory of Austin Hogan, who founded the Museum's journal, The American Fly Fisher, in 1974. It is given to the person who makes the most signifi- cant original contribution to the journal that year.

Richards, who is a Museum trustee and the daughter of the late Joseph D. Bates Jr., received the award for "Joseph D. Bates Jr.: Collection of a Lifetime," which appeared in the Spring 1999 issue. The article featured, in part, the collec- tion of classic Atlantic salmon fly pat- terns that is now part of the Museum's permanent collection.

The 1999 Joe A. Pisarro Volunteer of the Year Award was presented to three volunteers who were instrumental in helping to launch the Museum's travel- ing exhibit, "Anglers All: Humanity in Midstream." Jim Brown, author of the recently rereleased A Treasury of Reels, identified which reels should be part of the exhibit. Charles "Buzz" Eichel loaned the Museum space to stage the design of

the exhibit. Bob O'Shaughnessy pho- tographed the exhibit for future promo- tional materials. Both Brown and Eichel were on hand at the dinnerlauction and honored in person. These three men played a real part in bringing to fruition one of the Museum's greatest accom- plishments to date.

Heritage Award Nathaniel Pryor Reed, former assis-

tant secretary of the interior, was the Museum's 2000 Heritage Award hon- oree. Established in 1997, the Heritage Award is presented to an individual whose "commitment to the Museum, the sport of fly fishing, and natural resources conservation sets standards to which we all should aspire." Prior recipi- ents include Leigh H. Perkins Sr., Gardner L. Grant, and Bud Lilly.

Reed, a lifelong Florida resident, has served that state in official capacities such as chairman of the Department of Air and Water Pollution Control. He helped to form the Department of Environmental Protection in that state and has worked for thirty years to solve continuing problems of Everglades National Park.

"If any of us enjoy a good day of fish- ing in the Florida Keys, we might well say a quiet thank you to Nat Reed," said

previous award recipient Gardner L. Grant, who presented the award.

Reed was appointed assistant secre- atry of the Department of the Interior for fish, wildlife, and parks in 1971. During his tenure, he and Yellowstone Park Superintendent Jack Anderson converted Yellowstone Park fisheries to catch-and-release only, which prompted the widespread adoption of this princi- ple on many of the nation's waters.

Reed's board resume includes organi- zations such as the Nature Conservancy, the National Audubon Society, 1,000 Friends of Florida, the National Geo- graphic Society, the Natural Resources Defense Council, Trout Unlimited, the Federation of Fly Fishers, and the Atlantic Salmon Federation.

This year's annual award dinner was held April 26 at the Sky Club atop the MetLife Building in New York City. Filled to capacity with family, friends, and associates to honor Reed, the Sky Club proved to be a stunning venue. Our thanks to Manager Frank O'Reilly for orchestrating an enchanting evening for all. Everything was simply impeccable.

After cocktails and hors d'oeuvres, guests were treated to a sumptuous din- ner of smoked trout, tornedos of beef with bearnaise sauce, topped off by torte framboise for dessert. Table centerpieces featured magnums of select Napa Valley wines that had been etched with the Museum logo and a leaping trout, and guests were invited to bid on them as part of the evening's deluxe silent auc- tion.

The Heritage Award was presented to Reed after dinner. Reed then proceeded to enthrall the guests with a delightful anthology of his personal "fish stories," which was met by a standing ovation.

After the speeches, Museum Director Gary Tanner auctioned off a handful of select items, including a limited-edition bamboo rod handcrafted and engraved by master rodmaker J. C. Wagner of Ohio; original art from Peter Corbin, Thomas Aquinas Daly, Henry McDaniel. and John Swan; a fabulous trip to mem- bers Earl and Margit Worsham's six-bed-

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AMFF Trustee President Robert Scott (left) and Trustee Gardner Grant (right) present the 2000 Heritage Award to Nathaniel Reed (center).

room "cottage" on 3,300 acres in the Smoky Mountains of Tennessee; and an exotic trip to Boca Paila, Mexico, offered by Trustee Mike Fitzgerald at Fish & Game Frontiers in Pennsylvania. The guests were delighted with the evening and at departure were presented with a travel bag with the Museum logo as a thank-you gift.

Our special thanks to dinner co-chairs Leigh H. Perkins Sr. and Janet Mavec, and to committee members E. M. Bakwin, Michael Bakwin, James Carey, Tristram Colket Jr., Joseph Cullman 111, Arthur Kaemmer, W. Thorpe McKenzie, Ned and Linda Morgens, Dona1 and Katie O'Brien, Samuel P. Reed, Peter Solomon, and David and Jade Walsh. Additional thanks to Trustee Roger Riccardi for providing the magnum cen- terpieces. Thanks also to Chas Miller and the staff at Forward & Miller for their assistance in coordinating this event.

Cleveland DinnerIAuction "Cleveland rocks!" With Woods King

111 again serving as dinner chairman, the Museum hosted its annual Cleveland dinner and sporting auction at the Country Club in Pepper Pike on April 13. As always, Woods commandeered a full house with the continuing support of area businesses-Buckley, King & Bluso; Baker & Hostetler, LLP; Grant Thornton; and Deacon Chryslerl Plymouth-who each fill a table every year. Special thanks to Jim Lesinski,

James S. Reid Jr., Hewitt and Paula Shaw, and Dick and Ann Whitney, who served as sponsors for this event. Further thanks to Bill Biggar who hosted the Museum at the Country Club.

There was very active participation in both the silent auction and the raffle. The venue and fare were once again first class, and we would like to thank staff members Julie and Roe for their contri- butions to the evening's success.

The American Museum of Fly Fishing Box 42, Manchester,Vermont 05254 Tel: 802-362-3300. Fax: 802-362-3308 EMAIL: [email protected] - -

J O I N ! Membership Dues (per annum)

I N D I V I D U A L Associate $35 Sustaining $60 Benefactor $125 Patron $250

G R O U P Club $50 Trade $50

Membership dues include four issues of The American Fly Fisher. Please send your payment to the Membership Director and include your mailing address. The Museum is a member of the American Association of Museums, the American Association of State and Local History, the New England Association of Museums, the Vermont Museum and Gallery Alliance, and the International Association of Sports Museums and Halls of Fame. We are a nationally accredited, nonprofit, edu- cational institution chartered under the laws of the state of Vermont.

S U P P O R T ! As an independent, nonprofit institution, the American Museum of Fly Fishing relies on the generosity of public-spirited individuals for substantial support. We ask that you give our museum serious consideration when planning for gifts and bequests.

V I S I T ! Hours are lo AM to 4 PM. We are closed on major holidays.

Available at $4 per copy: Volume 6, Numbers 1, 2,3,4 Volume 7, Number 3 Volume 8, Number 3 Volume 9, Numbers 1, 2,3 Volume lo, Number 2 Volume 11, Numbers 1, 2, 3, 4 Volume 13, Number 3 Volume 15, Number 2 Volume 16, Numbers 1, 2,3 Volume 17, Numbers 1, 2,3 Volume 18, Numbers 1, 2, 4 Volume 19, Numbers 1, 2,3, 4 Volume 20, Numbers 1, 2,3, 4 Volume 21, Numbers 1, 2,3, 4 Volume 22, Numbers 1,2,3,4 Volume 23, Numbers 1, 2,3, 4 Volume 24, Numbers 1,2,4 Volume 25, Numbers 1, 2, 3, 4 Volume 26, Number 1,2

S U M M E R 2000 25

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C O N T R I B U T O R S

G. William Fowler is married and has five children. He has been practicing law for twenty-eight years in Texas, primarily serving natural gas, energy, and transportation companies. He is a member of Trout Unlimited and the Mesilla Valley Fly Fishers of New Mexico. Fowler is a lifelong fisherman and became interested with the history of fishing after reading Paul Schullery's American Fly Fishing: A History. He is a grad- uate of the University of Texas of El Paso and St. Mary's University School of Law. Fowler is also the author of "Early American Fishing: Mimbres Classic Period, 1050-1200 A.D.," which appeared in the Summer 1999 issue.

Merideth A. Hmura was born in New Mexico and lived in Albuqerque for many years. She graduated from the College of Artesia in New Mexico and now lives in Illinois with her husband David. Hmura wrote Mountain View Ranch: 1915-1945, a biography of George and Matie Viles, owners of a dude ranch in northern New Mexico. She has found that the unwritten history of the area is worth pre- serving and continues to research the upper Pecos area, including the early homesteaders of the Cowles area. She is also gathering more information about the ranch.

Marilyn Dalla Valle

"Gilded Summers in Belgrade, Maine" is John Mundt's third contribution to The American Fly Fisher. "Silk Fly Line Manufacturing: A Brief History" appeared in the Fall 1991 issue, and the Summer 1996 issue featured "The Historic Penobscot: America's Atlantic Salmon Fishing Legacy," for which he received the Museum's Austin M. Hogan Award.

John currently serves on the Museum's board of trustees and has been an active member of the Hartford dinnerlauc- tion committee since 1991. He enjoys studying the history of fly fishing and is a member of the library committee of the Anglers' Club of New York. John is a partner with Sterling Elevator Consultants, LLC and resides in Simsbury, Connecticut, with his wife Joyce and toddler son Jack. They are expecting the birth of their second child this September.

Gordon M. Wickstrom is professor of drama emeritus and was longtime chair of that department at Franklin and Marshall College in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. He is now retired to his native Boulder, Colorado, where he fishes, writes, edits, politics on behalf of trout and their waters, produces a theater group, and generally enjoys his old hometown. His last contribution to the journal was "Vince Marinaro: On Point of Balance," which appeared in the Spring 2000 issue.

26 T H E A M E R I C A N F L Y F I S H E R

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S U M M E R 2000

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Anything Out There? Marcot Pdae

D uring the early morning hours that Paul Schullery and I sat glassing tens of thousands of acres of Yellowstone's wildness, SUV load

after SUV load of probably well-meaning tourists shouted to us from their vehicles, "Anything out there?" Those of you who know either or both of us can probably imagine the response we formulated to that question as we contemplated the glories of mountains and meadows, rivers and streams, and between sightings of bears, bison, elk, antelope, coy- otes, foxes, eagles, ducks, geese, cranes, songbirds, and, well, you get the idea. "Anything out there?" indeed.

Fishing the Firehole (in some surprising soli- tude!) later that day, I realized the similarity between the morning's vignette and the American

Museum of Fly Fishing. That is, no matter how much I might wish it were otherwise, the concept of a museum dedicated to celebrating the history of fly fishing eludes the vast majority of people-just like Yellowstone's magic fell on apparently blind (or at best, lazy) eyes earlier that day.

So what do we do-mutter "Oh well, we're just a little niche" and hope that a dedicated few who found "the way" all by themselves will carry on as "keepers" of fly fishing's treasures and legends? I don't think so.

The reason I was in Montana was to participate in the opening ceremonies for our "Anglers All" exhi- bition at the Museum of the Rockies. That evening I was thrilled to see hundreds of people-perhaps as many as one-quarter of our total annual visitation in Vermont-delight in the exhibition.

Wandering through the crowd of fishers and nonfishers, adults and children, the excitement and interest in fly-fishing history we created was clearly evident. Just like Yellowstone's interpreters work to bring nature alive for visitors who don't know coy- otes from wolves or ducks from geese, we are bring- ing all that has been fly fishing alive for an entirely new audience-giving us an entirely new future!

I try very hard to keep the "I" and "me" words out of this little column, but the Museum of the Rockies event was one of the proudest moments of my life, and I wanted to celebrate it with you-all of you made it possible. Thank you again.

GARY TANNER EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

Note: In Paul Schullery's book, Mountain Time: A Yellowstone Memoir, there is a chapter titled "Is There Anything Here to See?" It focused my thoughts for this piece, and I thank Paul for sharing it.

28 S U M M E R 2000

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HE AMERICAN MUSEUM OF FLY FISHING nationally accredited, nonprofit, education- institution dedicated to preserving the rich

eritage of fly fishing, was founded ir Ianchester, Vermont, in 1968. The Museun .rves as a repository for, and conservator to le world's largest collection of angling an( ~gling-related objects. The Museum's wl ctions and exhibits provide the public wit1 lorough documentation of the evolution o y fishing as a sport, art form, craft, and in ustry in the United States and abroad from Le sixteenth century to the present. Rods.

reels, and flies, as well as tackle, art, books -~anuscripts, and photographs form the ma

,r components of the Museum's collections The Museum has gained recognition as a

nique educational institution. It supports P ublications program through which its na onal quarterly journal, The American Fly isher, and books, art prints, and catalogs are bgularly offered to the public. The Museum' aveling exhibits program has made it possi le for educational exhibits to be viewec :ross the United States and abroad. Thc [useum also provides in-house exhibits, dated interpretive programming, and search services for members, visiting schol s , authors, and students. The Museum is an active, member-orient

1 nonprofit institution. For informatior. lease contact: The American Museum of Fly

Fishing, P. 0. Box 42, Manchester, Vermont 05254.802-162-1100.