FOOTNOTES
Newsletter of the Georgia Foothills Chapter of Trout Unlimited
Volume 5, No. 3
August 1996
AUGUST CHAPTER MEETING
Tuesday, August 6th at Smithgall Woods on Dukes Creek at 7:00 pm.
The President's Column
Due to a shortened deadline this month, Dale has the month off!
AUGUST MEETING LOOKS LIKE A KEEPER!
The meeting this month features a program by our own Mitchel Barrett who just returned from Wyoming
and an excellent trip to the "Miracle Mile" section of the North Platte River and the Encampment River. Not
to spoil Mitchel's program, but he suggests this may be a better fishing destination than West Yellowstone!
Now that sounds like something to hear about!
We'll be meeting at the newly finished classroom downstairs at the Smithgall Woods headquarters on
Duke's Creek; if you don't know how to get there, we've included a rough map over to the right.
Winkley Branch / Dover Creek Work Project
Dear Fellow TU members, Foothills Chapter,
I hope this letter finds all members having a good summer of fishing and feeling well.
I thought it might be good to send out a short letter of information pertaining to our up-and-coming Forest
Service/Trout Unlimited work day on August 24. Tentative plans are first, to have an enjoyable day
working on a beautiful Brook trout stream. Simultaneously, we hope to accomplish some "erosion control"
work by spreading some bark mulch around two camp sites on Winkley Branch and Dover Creek. There is
also a small area that drains from the road next to Dover that we need to "scratch up" with rakes and sow
some grass, fertilize, mulch and install a small piece of silt fence. If we have a good turnout of help, we
may install a couple of cover logs that are just laying on the bank of Dover waiting to be put in the creek.
Last but not least, is to "electrofish" or shock part of Dover to see how our stream structures are working
for the Brookies there.
So, try your best to plan to attend on August 24. Come out and see one of the prettiest and most serene
places on the Chattahoochee National Forest. It is located far off the main highway and accessed by dirt
road next to Raven Cliffs Wilderness Area, which is north of Helen on the Chattahoochee WMA. We plan
to meet at the small roadside picnic area next to Chattahoochee Bar-B-Que in Robertstown about 8:30 am
on Saturday August 24. This is just above Helen on Highway 75 at the junction of 356 that goes to Unicoi.
We will then drive on up to Winkley and Dover to start our day.
I hope to see you all on the 24th! Bring a lunch and don't miss it. We hope to finish early afternoon. If
you might like to fish later, Dukes and Bear Den Creeks and the Chattahoochee are close by. I'll see you
there!
Sincerely,
Doug Watson
Wildlife Biological Technician, Chattooga & Tallulah Ranger Districts
Been Catchin' Any?
by C. K. Nyms
A suspiciously large number of fly fishermen like to brag that the numbers of fish caught is irrelevant to
them. Now, I know a few old codgers about whom I would believe this statement; but, by and large, the
more fish we catch, the more anxious we are to tell someone about it. With this in mind, I'm going to let
you in on a secret as to how to increase the number of fish you catch.
First, a little background in ichthyology and physics. (This took a lot of stream observation time, but I was
there anyway. Just consider this info my gift to you; never mind the sacrifice.) Have you ever watched a
large mayfly dun come floating downstream, knowing that any second now it will disappear in a splash?
Mealtime on the ephemerella buffet. Have you also noticed how often the trout will miss the insect?
Frequently they will miss, strike again, and miss again. Meanwhile, the bug continues its float. Keep this
in mind, because it's the foundation of our enlightened outlook on numbers of fish caught.
Without going into more physics than I actually know, suffice it to say that there is an angle of attack which
must be estimated by the trout which compensates for the refraction of the light rays by the surface of the
water. Similar to when you try to reach down through two feet of water to retrieve the hemostats you just
dropped; the thing ain't where it appears to be! Same situation for the trout looking up. Therefore, the trout
is prone to just flat miss what seems to be an easy target. It comes very close, and, more often than not,
is successful. It's those near misses that we are going to reclassify.
Here's where we all have to make our own personal decision. Just what will we register as a caught fish?
Do I take the conservative stance and only add those fish which were foul hooked, or do I really impress
everyone by computing in the near misses? See, my point is this: you have obviously done your part
sufficiently well; this fish was fooled into mistaking your fly for dinner. It's not your fault that the fish
miscalculated its angle of vector (or whatever) and failed to make a solid hit on your fly! You did
everything right, the fish blew it! Can you name one other sport where you would be penalized for a
mistake on the part of your opponent? Why, no! When your opponent makes an error, you get more
points on your side of the scoreboard. It's time to bring trout fishing into the 21st century. If you're only
doing something because it's always been done that way, you're probably doing it for the wrong reason (I
read that somewhere).
And another thing, who decided that it would be "foul" hooked instead of "fowl" hooked? Mr. Webster says
that foul means "loathsome, indecent, wicked". While, on the other hand, fowl means "any of the domestic
birds used for food". Which definition seems most appropriate to fly fishing? We use the feathers of a
fowl to make our artificial food offerings. In the future I will refuse to refer to any of my catches as "foul
hooked". From now on, you will only hear me say that it was "fowl hooked". If we all start doing this, we'll
turn this whole thing back in the right direction.
So, on your next fishing trip you can now, in perfectly good conscience, add any fowl hooked fish to your
total. The near misses? Well... it's a personal thing.
EDITOR's NOTE: Apparently when we printed C.K.'s first article, we mis-spelled his last name and he took a small
amount of offense. We apologize for this error and hope that C.K. will continue to submit articles to FOOTNOTES in
the future; we look forward to seeing his views on a wide spectrum of fishing topics.
MONTANA SPRING CREEK FLOODING
Things have gone from bad to worse at Depuy's and Armstrong spring creeks. The Yellowstone River has receded
slowly but erosion near the creeks' source is causing more water than ever to pour onto some of Montana's most
hallowed ground. Earlier in the flood, Depuy's riverkeeper Bob Auger optimistically estimated the creeks would be
fishable by the end of July. But after struggling with sandbags, backhoes and muddy water for more than two weeks
and finding himself in a losing battle, he has reconsidered. "We are just bouncing from one catastrophe to another," he
said this morning. "I think the whole season is history."
The 5,000 rod days booked on the creeks every season contribute more than a million dollars to the local economy.
But the flood isn't just an economic disaster.
Yellowstone rainbows and cutthroats in the Livingston area spawn in the creeks and Auger fears a whole generation of
fry may be lost.
The Nature Conservancy is now handling the Armstrong/Depuy's spring creek recovery fund. Donations can be mailed
to the Nature Conservancy at 32 South Ewing, Helena, Montana, 59620.
Southern Appalachian Insect Hatches for August:
The heat of summer continues. Remember, in addition to fewer hatches, the heat affects
the trout in a negative way. Be especially careful not to over-stress any fish you may be
releasing. Land them quickly and release them carefully.
Isonychia Bicolor Sporadically - All Day 12 Adams
Golden Stone Fly Early Morning and 6-8 Stone Fly Nymph
Acroneuria at Dusk
Light Cahill Sporadically - Late 16-18 Light Cahill
Stenonema Ithaca Afternoon & Evening
Flying Ants All Day 20-24 Spentwing Ant
Terrestrials - All Summer - Inchworms, Black Ants, Beetles, Crickets