---

Sat, February 27, 2010 6:44:45 PM

From:	Clark Hall <chall2636@verizon.net>  Add to Contacts
To:	Paul Klivington <pklivdimar@gmail.com>
Cc:	FlyLehigh@yahoo.com; Gene Giza <flyfisher9304739@aol.com>

---

Paul,

 

Looks like Darwin "borrowed" more than the fly.

 

Certainly credit should have been given at least.

 

Thank you for calling this to my attention.

 

Clark

From: Paul Klivington

Sent: Saturday, February 27, 2010 1:59 PM

To: Clark Hall

Cc: FlyLehigh@yahoo.com ; Gene Giza

Subject: March "Fly of the Month"

Hi Clark,

 

Thanks  4  early publication of March "Tight Lines".  My comment on above

subject  is "Credit is given and due where credit has been  earned".

 

That featured Trico pattern is not a typical Trico with just the "tail cut off",

very far from it.

 

The "backwards" Trico was originated by  "Little Lehigh's"   Al Miller. 

"Al's Trico"   (tied with a rear hackle) was featured in an article

submitted by Rod Rohrbach to the "Fly Fishing Guide", August, 2001 edition.

Copy  of Rod's  article is attached.

For the record,  Al Miller  also createed  "Al's Rat',  another popular

fly  used successfully on the Little Lehigh waters.

I'm  looking forward to CVTU's March meeting and Rod's entertaining presentation.

His  LL Fly Shop  used to sponsor  an annual "Trico Brunch"  the last Saturday

in July.  I  attended several in the past, but not since 2006.

 

Cheers, Paul 
--
Paul G Klivington
160 W Park Street
Carlisle, PA - 17013 - U.S.A.
E-mail < pklivdimar@gmail.com >
Tel and Fax : ( 717 ) 241-4073

Picture by Lou Marasco

---

     
  Jake Laubachs
Dad circa 1938    


Guess Who?

If you have any old Little Lehigh pictures, send them in!

From:	Corey J. Schmoyer <cschmoy@ptd.net> Add to Contacts
To:	FlyLehigh@Yahoo.com

---

You  and Gary Borger have both lost your marbles Rod. Those prices to meet a mediocre fly fishermen are insane. Especially in this economy.

 

Corey

_____________

Actually, I'm thinking of this as an opportunity.  I figure I can rent myself out to cities wanting to avoid snowstorms because it seems every place I move the snow stops.  You wouldn't happen to have an "in" with the Mayor, would you?

I went to a meeting of the local TU the other evening.  This was a flytying session;  they tie every other Tuesday and have a meeting on the alternate Tuesdays.  This week was the finer points of marabou muddlers and a muddler variation on a Barnes Special.  Next week will be talking bamboo over dinner.  They're nice folks.

Most of the fishing around here right now is "hard water" fishing.  I've been holding off dropping the money for an auger but I may give in.  We'll see.  They have opened some trout waters to open-water fishing pretty much year round.  The outlet stream from Sebago is one of them.  It's about 15 miles from my place here.

I've been talking to a lot of people around here about the hunting - everyone seems pretty up-in-arms over the state of the deer herd.  The gist of it is that going to the great North Woods http://www.northmainewoods.org/index.asp - that empty part of the state north of Moosehead and west of I-95 all the way to Canada - to camp and hunt deer, as has been done for generations, is pretty well done, at least for many years.  North Maine Woods operates the road checkpoints into that backcountry and, during the deer season they checked in 5500 hunting parties.  They have deer checkpoints at those gatehouses, and they checked 98 deer coming out.  So, that's well over 10,000 hunters going in and less than a hundred deer coming out.  I was thinking of going up there last fall to hunt grouse and mentioned to the camp owner that I wanted to avoid the deer season because I assumed they'd be booked full.  The camp owner corrected me to advise that they had plenty of openings because no one was bothering to hunt deer up there.  There are plenty of grouse, bear, moose and hare.

The cause of the deer problem seems to be threefold.  There were two very bad winters in a row which led to a big winter kill.  There is also significant predation on the deer from an increasing population of coyotes and, to a smaller degree, bears on fawns.  The worst of it is that a lot of the deer wintering yards - swamps full of cedars where they could shelter from both the weather and the coyotes - were deliberately cut by the landowners.  The coyote problem is pretty obvious, which led a number of stores and associations in the towns up in that area to sponsor coyote hunting contests.  The Governor came out against that, publicly, but offered no solutions beyond that.

The wintering yards were cut, but not out of stupidity.  Rather, it seems that the landowners are gearing up to install a huge number of wind turbines across that whole part of the state.  You hear a lot of discussion about how "Maine can be a Saudi Arabia of wind power", to pitch both offshore and onshore windpower development.  One of the largest proponents of wind development is a former governor, who is with a wind power developer and just managed to have his son placed on the regulatory body that will determine permitting for wind turbines.  Nice.  All this windpower installation will involve - beyond the turbines and the noise and visual pollution - new roads, clearcutting (about 70-100 acres per turbine), drainage improvements (and consequential water pollution), levelling hilltops, and wires to take the power out.  A fair conclusion would be that the landowners feel if they can get the deer hunters out of the way, fewer people will notice what they're doing to the woods. 

So, if you want to enjoy the North Woods as it has been, there's a closing window in which to do so.  Similarly, if anyone is thinking of going to the deep woods of far northern Maine to hunt deer, they should think again if they want to do other than come home emptyhanded.  There is a good herd in the southern third of the state, they'll be more than welcome there, and they'll have a real chance of connecting. 

Anyway, other than that things are going pretty well here and I hope they continue to go well for you.

All the best.

Dave Sokasits

 

Rod:

 

Last year (April) you and some members of your fly shop helped with a Cub Scout Pack 72 Fogelsville meeting over by the trout hatchery. I would like to organize the same event this year for Tuesday April 27th at 6-8 PM. Could you assist in generating some interest within your organization.I would like to have a fly-fishing demo on the grass and fly-tying demo at a table. Open to any additional suggestions. Last year I believe Jake Laubach was my contact?

 

Thank you.

 

Ted Ledeboer

CP: 610-737-7947

------------------

Rod,

 

I am forwarding to you the information that was sent by Tim Callanan's wife, Teresa, regarding Tim's Memorial Service which is being held on Saturday January 30th in Holland, PA.  It is an attached file.

 

I know that Tim truly enjoyed fishing the Little Lehigh but I believe that he enjoyed even more the friends that he made there because of you and the Little Lehigh Fly Shop.

 

Regards

Ed Murtha 

 

A MEMORIAL SERVICE IN HONOR AND REMEMBRANCE

 

OF

 

TIM CALLANAN

 

WILL BE HELD
ON

 

SATURDAY, JANUARY 30, 2010
AT

2:00p.M.

 

LOCATION:

 

VILLA JOSEPH MARIE HIGH SCHOOL
1 1 80 HOLLAND ROAD
HOLLAND, PA 18966

 

PARKING AND ENTRANCE BEHIND THE SCHOOL
FOLLOW DRIVEWAY TO REAR OF BUILDING

 

FAMILY AND FRIENDS WILL GATHER TO CELEBRATE TIM'S LIFE
AND HOW HE TOUCHED OUR LIVES.

 

IF YOU NEED ADDITIONAL INFORMATION, THE FAMILY CAN BE
CONTACTED AT

 

TCALLANAN@AOL.COM

 

 

Hi,

 

Mike Cawthrey will send a check to the address provided. It wont be necessary to earmark it..

I would like to be involved in projects such as;

program on the Fish Nursery

Allentown watershed

 

Rod Rohrbach

---

From: "Roth, Capri" <rothc@allentowncity.org>
To: Rod Rohrbach <flylehigh@yahoo.com>
Cc: "Weitzel, Greg" <weitzel@allentowncity.org>
Sent: Sun, January 17, 2010 10:22:03 PM
Subject: RE: Friends of Allentown Parks

Rod,

You may send or drop off your check to Friends of the Allentown Parks, 3000 Parkway Blvd, Allentown PA 18104.  Would you like this contribution to be earmarked towards anything in particular?  If you do not have anything in mind, we will apply this contribution to support our educational programming.  In particular, we are planning an educational program on the Fish Nursery and Allentown watershed in April.  Please don't hesitate to call or email me if you have any questions or would like to discuss further.

Thanks,

Capri Roth
Director of Communications
Friends of the Allentown Parks
3000 Parkway Blvd
Allentown, PA 18104
610-437-7750
www.allentownparks.org

************************************************************

 

--------------------------------

Tim Callanan 's Memorial Service

Fri, January 15, 2010 12:12:49 PM

From:	Jerry Girard <jerry.girard1@yahoo.com>     View Contact
To:	Jerry Girard Jr <jerry.girard@yahoo.com>
	Callanan Service.pdf (305KB)

---

All,
A memorial gathering will be held on Saturday, Jan. 30. Details in the attachment.
Please RSVP

_________________________

 

Rod - enjoyed chatting with you the other day and hope you are able to gain something of value from my book.  I regret to inform you that the photos you took appear to be quite blurred - I think the camera was accidentally set to something other than an ideal exposure.  I had hopes what with the full moon in the background of a nice shot out of the bunch.  Guess I'll just have to make it back sometime.

Regards,

Joe K.

Joseph A. Kissane, P.G.
District Geologist / Geotechnical Engineer
Geotechnical and Survey Section
Chicago District U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
111 N. Canal St., Ste 600
Chicago, IL  60606

joseph.a.kissane@usace.army.mil
(312) 846-5453

**************************

Rod,

I hope this will suffice.  I have also attached a link to Tim's obituary     http://www.philly.com/philly/obituaries/20091230_Timothy_Callanan__56__stained-glass_artisan.html   in case you didn't get a chance to see it.  Thanks for your support.

Tim Rothrock 

Tim Callanan, the gentleman who introduced me to fly fishing passed away on December 27, 2009 after a long battle with melanoma.  I have fished the Little Lehigh numerous occassions with Tim and the stream and people who have dedicated their time and love of its water were a constant draw for Tim.  In an effort to pay tribute to both Tim and the stream he loved I am imploring the parks department to allow a bench overlooking the stream be donated in Tim's honor.  I can't think of a more fitting tribute to a great fisherman and friend than a bench that would allow fellow anglers and stream admirers to sit and ponder the correct fly to tie or to just listen to the streams gentle voice.  Thank you for your consideration.

Tim Rothrock

1320 N. Bradford Rd.

Newtown, PA 18940

rothrocktim@yahoo.com

215 499-1670

**************************

 Not sure if all of these actually happened but even if a few did it is something to be proud of. At a time when our president and other politicians tend to apologize
for our country's prior actions, here's a refresher on how some of our former patriots handled negative comments about our country..

These are good!

JFK'S Secretary of State, Dean Rusk, was in France in  the early 60's when DeGaulle decided to pull out of NATO.  De Gaulle said he wanted all US military out of France as soon as possible. Rusk responded, "Does that include those who are buried  here?"
De Gaulle did not respond.

You could have heard a pin drop..

When in England at a fairly large conference, Colin Powell was asked by the Archbishop
of Canterbury if our plans for Iraq were just an  example of 'empire building' by George Bush.
He answered by saying, "Over the years, the United States has sent  many of its fine young men  and women into great peril to fight for freedom  beyond our borders.
 The only amount of land we have ever asked for in  return is enough to
 bury those that did not return."

You could have heard a pin drop..

There was a conference in France where a number of international engineers were
 taking part, including French and American.  During a break,  one of the French engineers came back into the room saying, "Have you heard the latest dumb stunt Bush
has done? He has sent an aircraft carrier to Indonesia to help the tsunami victims.  What does he intend to do, bomb them?"

A Boeing engineer stood up and replied quietly:  "Our carriers have three
hospitals on board that can treat several hundred  people; they are nuclear powered and can supply emergency  electrical power to shore facilities; they have  three  cafeterias with the capacity to feed 3,000 people three meals a day, they can  produce several thousand gallons of fresh water from sea water each day,  and they carry half a
dozen helicopters for use in transporting victims  and injured to and from their flight deck.  We have eleven  such ships; how many does France have?"

You could have heard a pin drop..

A U.S. Navy Admiral was attending a naval conference that  included
 Admirals from the U.S. , English, Canadian,  Australian and French
 Navies.  At a cocktail reception, he  found himself standing with a large
 group of officers that included personnel from most of those countries.
Everyone was chatting away in English as they  sipped their drinks but a
 French admiral suddenly complained that, whereas  Europeans learn many
 languages, Americans learn only English. He then  asked, "Why is it that
 we always have to speak English in these  conferences rather than  speaking French?"
Without hesitating, the American Admiral replied, "Maybe  it's because the
Brit's, Canadians, Aussie's and Americans arranged it so you wouldn't have to speak German."

You could have heard a pin drop..

 Robert Whiting, an elderly gentleman of 83, arrived in Paris by plane. At French Customs, he took a few minutes to locate his passport in his carry on.
You have been to France before, monsieur?" the customs officer asked sarcastically. Mr. Whiting admitted that he had been to France previously.
Then you should know enough to have your passport ready."
The American said,
The last time I was here, I didn't have  to show it. .Impossible.
Americans always have to show their passports on  arrival in France !"
The American senior gave the Frenchman a long hard look..  Then he quietly explained, ''Well, when I came ashore at Omaha Beach on D-Day in
1944 to help liberate this country, I couldn't find a single Frenchmen to show a passport to.

You could have heard a pin drop..

If you are proud to be an American, pass this on! >

--------------------------------------------

Invasive Species Should be Your Issue!

Inspect, clean and dry, Inspect, clean and dry, Inspect, clean and dry, Inspect, clean and dry…got it yet?

“Leah Elwell, Federation of Fly Fishers, conserve@fedflyfishers.org

www.stopans.org

www.cleanangler.org

_____________________________

Dear ESCTU Members & Friends-

The Ernest Schwiebert Chapter of Trout Unlimited regrets to announce the passing of Tim Callanan at the all too young age of 56 following a long and courageous battle against malignant melanoma.   Tim passed away at home on Sunday morning, December 27^th. 

 im served as our chapter president from 2003 to 2005.  He was an avid fly fisherman, tier, rod builder and a wonderful ambassador for our sport. Tim was a friend to everyone he met and he will be sorely missed.

The funeral will be private.  A memorial service to honor Tim’s memory is being planned for Sunday, January 31, 2010.  Additional details will follow as they become available. 

Sincerely,Bill Hannisch

********************

To all of her freinds.
Kathleen Lewis after battling liver failure for about a year passed away on dec 5 2009.
Her memorial service is scheduled for saturyday Dec 12th, 2009 at 10:00 am at St Thomas More, 1040 Flexer Ave. Allentown, Pa. 18103
You may reach me, her husband, at customcomputerworks@hotmail.com  (Harold Lewis)
 
Harold Lewis

***********

Fw: Memory that fades with age.

Thursday, December 10, 2009 8:19 AM

From:

"Doug Andersen" <DougAndersen@si.rr.com>

View contact details

To:

Undisclosed-Recipient@yahoo.com



 

Subject: Memory that fades with age.



   
    This is just too familiar!

 

Copy and Paste URL to view video.
               

                    http://www.youtube.com/watch_popup?v=7lSliucgygc


                  

 

888888888888888

Hi, Rod.

I hope that you're well. I walked past the Cafe Luxembourg on 70th St. last night and thought of you.

If there is money left over from the Al Miller Memorial fund, you might consider giving it to this organization:

http://www.castingforrecovery.org/

My sister died of breast cancer four years ago. I, for one, would be happy to see whatever's left of my donation to the fund go to this group. Have you heard of them?

Stay dry. Torrential rain here in NYC.

Alan

---------------------

Rod:

 

  - Jack Gartside passed away last night.

 

   - Here is the link:

              http://www.jackgartside.com/wordpress/?p=279

 

John Coxey

 

************************

Rod,

Here is a history note on entomology.  I hope you find it interesting.

 

Majid

 

Majid Alsayegh 

 

Alta Management, LLC

Douglassville, PA 19518

(610) 689-8300

 

 

---

Collecting & sharing the stories of Pennsylvania   NEWSLETTER     1300 Locust Street Philadelphia , PA 19107   TEL 215-732-6200 FAX 215-732-2680 www.hsp.org         MEMBERSHIP     QUICK LINKS Hours & Holidays Research & Collections Education Publications   PUBLIC PROGRAMS View the Calendar of Events   HSP STAFF BLOGS Check these Blogs regularly for new discoveries and stories from our collections:  Fondly, Pennsylvania    HSP's Hidden Histories   PACSCL Consortial Survey Initiative   The Study of Insects in Pennsylvania   The science of entomology, or the study of insects, is a discipline that is frequently ignored by the general public, but one that has intrigued mankind for millennia, from Aristotle's investigations in his famed History of Animals to current investigations by biologist Edward O. Wilson in The Ants (1990) and Dr. Jeffrey A. Lockwood's Six-Legged Soldiers: Using Insects as Weapons of War (2009).    Perhaps Pennsylvania 's most famous entomologist was the Reverend Henry Christopher McCook. McCook was a world-renowned naturalist and a prolific writer, publisher, and speaker on a variety of topics dealing particularly with ants and arachnids.   Prior to his entomology research, McCook (pictured at left) served as a first lieutenant and chaplain in the 41st Illinois Infantry during the Civil War. By 1870 he had become the pastor of the Tabernacle Presbyterian Church in Philadelphia and served as the vice president of the American Entomological Society and the Academy of Natural Sciences . In 1895 McCook designed the Philadelphia city flag, and later served during the Spanish-American War as an army chaplain. But his greatest fame would come from his voluminous work on insects and related species.   McCook witnessed "battles" between ants on Broad Street and Penn Square in Philadelphia and became one of the first entomologists, or more appropriately, myrmecologists (one who studies ants), to recognize the existence of distinct odors (now known as pheromones) by which ants recognize friend from foe in such conflicts. He documented his findings in his 1878 publication The Mode of Recognition Among Ants. McCook earned a reputation for astute observation and the significance of gathering empirical evidence in scientific investigation, as is obvious in his Mound-Making Ants of the Alleghenies (1877) and his three-volume work American Spiders & Their Spinning Work (1889-1893).   McCook's research was not limited to the social behavior and anatomy of various ant species in Pennsylvania . His investigations also took him to the plains of Texas and into New Mexico , where he would continue to examine the architecture of ant nests.   While serving as vice president of the Academy of Natural Sciences in Philadelphia in 1897, McCook delivered a lecture on the subject of ants at "the Drexel Institute" where he spoke of the curious hills of pogonomyrmex, a species of ants that inhabited the Western states. These ants avidly collected precious stones, turquoise beads, fossils, and gold dust. Even today, their nests are frequented by archaeologists, paleontologists, gold prospectors, as well as entomologists.    Other entomologists with ties to Philadelphia include Samuel Stehman Haldeman (1812-1880), who was born appropriately enough at Locust Grove in Lancaster County and later became a professor of natural history at the University of Pennsylvania . Haldeman (pictured at right) published and edited several works on insects, including the long-horned beetle and Lepidoptera or moths. He was a true Renaissance man who was also one of the original founders of the Entomological Society of Pennsylvania.   George Murray, a native of Scotland , became a famous engraver and prominent member of the Philadelphia Society of Artists in 1810. Prior to his death in July of 1822, Murray produced an engraving titled, Entomology. Order Aptera, where he illustrated arachnids or spiders, scorpions, and other similar invertebrates. One of Murray 's drawings is pictured at the top of this article.   Even Benjamin Franklin dabbled in entomology. According to Peter Kalm, a Swedish naturalist who visited colonial America from 1748-1751, Franklin investigated ants in Philadelphia homes. Franklin believed that ants could "communicate their thoughts or desires to each other" and carried out experiments to prove his theory.   The above material is only a small portion of information about entomology available within the collections of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania. There are many other collections, both manuscript and graphic, that illustrate the rich material available for researchers relative to this intriguing field of scientific inquiry.   ______________________________________   Do you enjoy reading History Hits each month? Show your support by  making a year-end gift to HSP. Help us continue to preserve and share the stories of Pennsylvania . Your donation makes a difference!   Click here to donate online. Or call 215-732-6200 ext. 300.      Copyright (c) 2008 The Historical Society of Pennsylvania . All rights reserved.

 

__________________

Hi Rod,

Thanks for a great presentation to our Chapter, Perkiomen Valley TU.  I've received a lot of comments for folks who really enjoyed it.  We will be sure to have you as a 'regular' to speak about our local gem, the Little Lehigh.

I hope to see you soon on the stream.

Kind Regards,
Mike Lindenmuth

____________________

Hey Rod,

 

My name’s Jimmy Fee. I’m the assistant editor for On The Water Magazine, actually two magazines covering fishing in the Northeast. I recently received an e-newsletter from Central Jersey Trout Unlimited about fishing the “cushion” for trout. It sounds like a very interesting topic, and I wanted to ask if you’ve ever considered writing about it. We’re always looking for new writers, so let me know if you’re interested and I’ll send you a copy of our writer’s guidelines.

 

Thanks and I look forward to hearing back from you,

 

Jimmy Fee

_____________________

Rod, 

I picked up the plaque from Gebhardt's today and I'll bring it to the shop this Saturday to let you get a look at it.  At this point I believe we can start making planning for an event to have it installed on the wall of the shop. 

See you Saturday. 

Mike

_____________________

Stopped in yesterday with my dad and a buddy.  We fished the middle of the day.  No luck with the crayfish patterns we purchased.  However, I hooked up on two rainbows, one being quite nice. The first was dead drifing a black wooly bugger behind the shop.  The second was further upstream on one of your unweighted muddler minnows with a tungsten weight about a foot and 1/2 from the fly. This was my best fish in a while.   I also missed one on a peacock herl nymph. 

 

Thanks for the flies, weights, and the recommendations!

 

We will be back.

Regards,

Dan Haggerty

 ________________

The application for withdrawing water at Hancock for Oil shale extraction has been withdrawn by the applicant.  This may be a temporary victory, but it is good news.

http://www.nj.gov/drbc/dockets/D-2009-20-1.htm

Talk to you tomorrow. 

MICHAEL       JOHNSON

__________________

Rod,

 The plaque has been ordered through Gebhardts and a deposit of $600 has been put on the order.  I expect to receive it by the end of October.

 

On another matter, if you are going to be around tomorrow I'd like to stop in and do some tying.  I want to work on the zebra midge.  See you then.

 

Mike

 

*******************

Very sorry that I can' t make it this afternoon. FYI Got two emails thursday. One from TU asking for lobbying help throughout PA against opening up more public lands for gas extraction. ( The primary concern is the amount and quality of the waste water). The second from the DRBA. It notes the request for  Delaware river water at Hancock on the 9/23/09 docket has been delayed for at least 60 days.

I will be around later next week and drop off a copy of the draft docket for the Hancock issue.
Again, my apologies -Mike
Sent via BlackBerry by AT&T

********************

This is notice of a public meeting about gas exploration on the Upper
Delaware at Hancock, requiring 1M gallons a day of water. Surface water is
proposed to be withdrawn from the West Branch of the Delaware River at a
location known as the Cutrone Site in Buckingham Township, Wayne County,
Pennsylvania. This is 8 miles below Hales Eddy. 0.3 miles downstream of
Hancock gauge.

Not that I have any expertise, but it looks to me like they want to insure
that no less than  25% of the mean daily flow will pass by the intake site.
They calculate that as 235 cfs (page 9 of the revised docket). The USGS web
site for Hales eddy indicates a mean of 571 cfs.  Perhaps my interpretation
is off, but it looks not good to me at all. (Like half the mean water will
be taken out of the West Branch, unless there is a declared state water
emergency.)

Does Don know of this? Or who knows more about this than me? Distribute as
you feel fit.


MICHAEL       JOHNSON
Architect,             L L C
501    Silverside      Rd
Wilmington, DE 19809
Tel:       302.791.0213
Fax:      302.791.0386 

Rod & Mike:

Dad was born 11/1/23 and passed on 12/9/08. Thanks for invite to watch the Penn State games.For the next few weeks I'm in a poker tournament that starts Saturdays at high noon. Attendance counts. And with a little luck I hope to be there into the evening hours. Luckily most of the players are State fans so that will be on the TV's.

Again guys,, this thing your doing for my Dad really touches me and other family members beyond words. There is no higher honor or tribute that can be given to a person than being remembered by his many friends and acquaintances, to this degree. My Mom often told me how she was so amazed at how many of his "Fishing Buddies" showed up at the church service and the others that sent cards for Dad. My only regret to all this is, Mom won't be here to see it happen. She would be even more proud of him, if that's possible.

I appreciate you keeping me in the loop on the progress your making on this. Anything else I could help you with on this, please let me know.

Thanks

**********************

PLS SUPPLY THIS INFO.

THANX

--- On Mon, 9/14/09, Michael Cawthray <mkwc714@gmail.com> wrote:

From: Michael Cawthray <mkwc714@gmail.com>
Subject: Re: tying-football
To: "Rod Rohrbach" <flylehigh@yahoo.com>
Date: Monday, September 14, 2009, 12:57 PM

Rod,

That sounds like fun.  Unfortunately I am out of town this weekend and won't be able to participate. 

On another subject, Gebhardt's left me a voicemail while I was on vacation last week that the markup of Al's plaque is in at their store.  I want to go down and proof it.  What I need is the months and years for Al's birth and death.  Can you please send me that info?

Thanks,

Mike

******************

Rod, 

I went over to Gebhardts at lunch today and got the ball rolling on the plaque.  I still need to give them the verbiage for the plaque.  There are several versions on the LLFS web page.  Which version is the one I should send them?  They told me that if I got them the wording today they could have a proof back to me by the end of the week.  If I have the proof by Friday I'll swing by the shop on Saturday and let you take a look at it.  Between the two of us I think we can make an executive decision on whether the proof with the picture looks good or not.  That's it for now. 

Mike

********************

Rod, 

Michael has truly enjoyed learning about fly fishing with you.  Thank

you for being flexible with our schedules and for all that you taught him.

We look forward to seeing you down at Little Lehigh some time in the

future. 

Warm regards,

Alysia

************************

Excellent wording, Rod. A fine tribute to the man.

Alan

************************* 

Hi Rod,
I like the text on your website and have changed it a little just to add my 2 cents.
My thoughts are: We seldom call the Little Lehigh a river but rather a stream. Also, to say Al never missed a day in 45 years is streching it a little so I changed that a bit. In all the time I knew him, the focus was more on the insect life as opposed to the fauna so I changed that too.
I'll look through mi pictures to see what I have and will send any good ones to you
Dave

        The Al Miller Memorial Spring House                   

Al Miller fished the Little Lehigh and local waters for 45 years.   He acquired an unsurpassed knowledge of20the stream and its aquatic life.  Al was a master fly tier, fly fisher, and observer of the natural world.  His study of the lives of minute insects and respect of simplicity led him to design the well-known fly patterns “Al’s Rat” and “Al’s Trico”.  His calm and generous character was legendary and his profound stream knowledge was shared with generations of anglers along these banks.   

       The stream has had no greater friend

****************

Colorado fishing was excellent.  I think Dave and Mike had a good time.  The colorado River, in particular, fished better than ever.  We fished the Colorado in several places - fishing on the ranch was excellent - and hit the Yampa where everyone hooked some big fish and landed a few. 

Attached are a few pics.  Hope to see you soon

***************

Well, some things just can't be helped, but we were thinking of you.  That was easily the sole disappointment of the trip.

Exceeded expect ions doesn't  begin to describe how we felt.  Beyond belief... Astonishing,  the immense knowledge I learned reading waters, presentations, and most of all landing over 20 extremely vigorous wild, large fish in the top of their condition, ALL ON DRIES. (47 browns and 5 rainbows total and Dave pretty much the same). But the count in unimportant, the experiences will be treasured for the rest of my life.  I am pretty sure Dave feels the same.

Barry and Don feed off of each other. Complementary deep talents and experiences, their respect for each other bred unforgettable  observations on the river.

And the ranch water was alone outstanding, the homestead cabin perfect, Mike and Ann Luark are treasures as well.  True stewards of the land and river.

So I owe you my unending thanks for your help in getting this to happen and for giving float time experience on the upper Delaware before heading west  We are already talking about another trip. The best times of year are all July (this year the truly rains carried that into August), and late september into first week of october, before the elk hunters have dibs on the cabin.

Too many stories to tell...  You just can't make this stuff up.  You will probably here some from Don and dave before I see you.
Best-Mike

*************************************8

Hi Rod;

i'm  not sure if you guys decided on a picture yet. this is one i took off your website. i did some cropping and enhancing. its one i printed up and have it hanging here at the house. i'm gonna try and get to the up coming meeting just to say hi to some of you guys.

Al

********************* 

Re; Varivas hooks, if you want some see Rod @ the shop.

***************************************8

Rod,

Here is what I am looking for:

Varivas Ultra Midge Hooks
Style number 2300
4X Fine Micro barb Half Long taper point

I need size 22 and size 24

I want to get 4 boxes (30 hooks per box) in each size for a total of 8 boxes.

***************************
Chris,

Ron,

Hope all is well.  I am states-side right now.   I can probably get more hooks for you but I seem to recall a minimum order of 10 boxes per size.  There will obviously be other expenses involved such as shipping within Japan and then shipping overseas...not sure if it would be worth it for just 2 sizes.   

Let me know what you want to do. 

BR

Chris 

****************

With regards to prices I dont believe they have changed in Japan but the exchange rate is worse...probably 10 or 20% different than last year.  

BR

Chris

***********************

Chris,

I'll get enough orders to make it worthwhile.

Rod

*******************************

Re: the Miller Memorial

3 pics - one is of Al you and Gary Borger.

Dave

Hi Rod,
I like the text on your website and have changed it a little just to add my 2 cents.
My thoughts are: We seldom call the Little Lehigh a river but rather a stream. Also, to say Al never missed a day in 45 years is streching it a little so I changed that a bit. In all the time I knew him, the focus was more on the insect life as opposed to the fauna so I changed that too.
I'll look through mi pictures to see what I have and will send any good ones to you
Dave

        The Al Miller Memorial Spring House                   

Al Miller fished the Little Lehigh and local waters for 45 years.   He acquired an unsurpassed knowledge of20the stream and its aquatic life.  Al was a master fly tier, fly fisher, and observer of the natural world.  His study of the lives of minute insects and respect of simplicity led him to design the well-known fly patterns “Al’s Rat” and “Al’s Trico”.  His calm and generous character was legendary and his profound stream knowledge was shared with generations of anglers along these banks.   

       The stream has had no greater friend

********************

Hi all,

   Just wanted to send this out, the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) has orbiting the Moon now for a while. It has taken pictures of several of the Apollo mission landing sites. Pretty cool...

http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/LRO/multimedia/lroimages/apollosites.html

--
-Jon Rohrbach

*************************************

Hi, Rod.

I'm sitting here in Jerusalem, having spent the last week in the desert climate of the Judean Hills. I was just checking the stream report. The water looks good. Nothing but a dead sea around here. Looking forward to returning to PA to fish.

all the best,

Alan

************* 

Tricos on the L. Lehigh 7/13/2009 Gene Grove 

I think the wording is a little better with this one:, but please feel free to edit or scrap. 

                          Al Miller fished the Little Lehigh everyday for 45 years.   He acquired an unsurpassed knowledge of the river and its fauna.  Al was master fly tier, fly fisher, and observer of the natural world.  His study of the lives of minute insects and respect of simplicity led him to design the well-known fly patterns “Al’s Rat” and “Al’s Trico”.  His calm and generous character was as legendary as his profound stream knowledge among generations of anglers along these banks.   

       The river has had no greater friend.

********

Rod,

Last year I visited my grandfather's grave in Slovakia, he passed away 80 years ago and his picture in ceramic on the gravestone after all that time was still very sharp.  I contacted a headstone company and they mount pictures in stone or bronze ...  just send the picture.  I didn't get an estimate but perhaps you can contact your local establishments.  A picture is worth a thousand words..........Al's picture and a picture of the "Rat" !! 

Oz 

************

Schuylkill River American Shad

While native to the Schuylkill River and its tributaries, American shad have not ascended the Schuylkill since 1820, when the Fairmount Dam was constructed.

WHY RESTORE THIS LEGACY?

Restoring migratory fish to the Schuylkill is the right thing to do. In fact, it means more than just restoring an ecosystem or the natural balance of the fishery. Migratory fish are part of Pennsylvania’s natural, cultural and economic heritage. Restoration efforts since the late 1800s have been driven by this fact. Restoration efforts are simply aimed at reversing the effects of earlier human activity and regaining a lost legacy.

RESTORATION ON THE SCHUYLKILL

The initial effort in shad restoration began in Pennsylvania on the Susquehanna River shortly after the Civil War with the formation in 1866 of what is today the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission. In fact, shad restoration was the driving force behind the formation of the Commission. The modern day restoration efforts on the Schuylkill River began in earnest in the 1970s. During nighttime netting, Commission biologists were surprised to find that adult shad were moving up the Schuylkill River as far as Fairmount Dam despite little innate reason for them to do so. In 1979 a fish passage was opened at the Fairmont Dam. Although it was used extensively by resident fish populations, very few shad or herring utilized the passage.

With the lack of passage at Flat Rock Dam hindering the Schuylkill program and opportunities that presented themselves on the Lehigh River, the Commission changed its focus from the Schuylkill to the Lehigh.

Buoyed by successes on the Susquehanna and Lehigh Rivers and a series of events that made shad restoration on the Schuylkill more promising, the Commonwealth re-energized its efforts in the 1990s. In June 1999 the Commonwealth released $2.2 million to construct a passage at Flat Rock Dam.

SHAD PASSAGE ON THE SCHUYLKILL

A total of 10 dams on the river once blocked shad migrations.

Four have fishways in place:

• Fairmount Dam (mile 9) -- Fishway is being reconstructed in 2008. The work is a multi-million dollar project and includes major design upgrades that will improve:
  -1) the ability of American shad to find the entrance,
  -2) reduce the energy required for shad to ascend the fishway,
  -3) and reduce the amount of river debris that accumulates on the fishway screens, allowing better passage of fish and reducing maintenance requirements.
• Flat Rock Dam (mile 15) -- Fishway, located near Gladwyn, Montgomery County, was completed and became operational in 2006.
• Norristown Dam (mile 21) -- Fishway was completed by Exelon Energy in January 2008 and opened to fish passage. The dam/fishway is owned and will be operated by Montgomery County Parks Department.
• Black Rock Dam (mile 37) -- This fishway, which is near Phoenixville, Chester County, went into service on June 3, 2009. The owner/operator is Exelon Energy.

Three dams are now or will be breached/removed:

• Plymouth Dam (mile 18) -- West Conshohocken, Montgomery County. Necessary permits have been obtained, DEP plans to remove the dam by the end of the summer in 2009.
• Vincent Dam (mile 42) -- Remnants of the breached dam are to be removed in the future. It is likely that fish passage is occurring at present.
• Felix Dam (mile 79) -- Remnants of this breached dam and the smaller dam immediately upstream were removed in December 2007.

Three other dams (Kernsville, Auburn, Tamaqua) will remain in place as part of de-silting projects.

SHAD STOCKING ON THE SCHUYLKILL

Since 1999 the Commission has stocked nearly 4.5 million juvenile (fry) shad in the Schuylkill River. All hatchery-released fry are tagged for later study by immersing them in tetracycline antibiotics. The tetracycline bonds to calcium and is incorporated into the growing otolith or earstone. The tags are detected by extracting the otolith, grinding a thin section and exposing it to ultra-violet light under a microscope. The presence and pattern of tags helps researchers determine if stocking efforts are successful.

In 2003, for the 1st time in recent years, a large number of adult shad returned to the Schuylkill, indicating the 1999 and 2000 stockings had been successful. Large numbers continue to be seen and a shad fishery has been developed! From 2003 to 2007, a sample of 112 adult shad were collected at Fairmount Dam and analyzed - 106 of the 112 of the fish collected were marked (95%), indicating they originated from the Commission’s hatchery.

The PFBC continues to stock American shad fry annually in the vicinity of Reading. These stockings continue to be successful, based upon monitoring conducted thus far. An American shad fishery has developed on an annual basis in the tailrace of Fairmount Dam.

Anglers must learn the differences between American shad and hickory shad (view pictures and information for both from online version of PA Fishes book), as both are present. The harvest or injury of hickory shad could result in a substantial fine as the hickory shad is on PA's endangered species list.

The long-term goal is to decrease reliance on stocking by developing a self-sustaining population of shad. Spring runs averaging between 300,000 to 850,000 returning American shad will be considered a restored fishery.

In the future American shad will create a new, much anticipated fishery through this highly developed river corridor in southeastern Pennsylvania. The Commission believes that a restored fishery will support some 60,000 – 170,000 angler trips each and every year.

Rod-  I am sorry but I can’t make the 25^th.  But I am attaching a layout/text , just to through it out there to help discussion.

****Please correct the number of years he was on the river in the first line.****

Best-

MICHAEL       JOHNSON

Architect,             L L C

501    Silverside      Rd

Wilmington, DE 19809

Tel:       302.791.0213

Fax:      302.791.0386

 AL’S  RAT                                   1923-2008                                AL’S TRICO

 A L   M I L L E R 

Al Miller fished the Little Lehigh everyday for 45 years,   while acquiring an unsurpassed knowledge of the river and its fauna.  He was master fly tier, fly fisher, and observer of the natural world.  Al’s study of the lives of minute insects and respect of simplicity led him to design the well-known fly patterns “Al’s Rat” and “Al’s Trico”.  His calm and generous character was as legendary as his profound knowledge for generations of anglers along these banks. 

The river has had no greater friend.