December 2012

News & Events

General Meeting - Tuesday, December 11, 2012

Atlantic Salmon Fishing

Wendell 'Ozzie' Ozefovich

Atlantic Salmon Fishing is a video presentation on the life cycle of the Atlantic Salmon, and fishing the Matapedia, the Restigouche and the Miramichi rivers in Canada.  It also answers the question, "what should we look for in a guide?"  We'll look at good and not-so-good Canadian guides, a lot of laughs, and of course, underwater video of the salmon.

Ozzie will have all three volumes of dvds available to attendees for $10 each -- will make a great Christmas gift !

Pre Meeting Capsule Classroom

At the November meeting Bill Ninke showed members a new knot for attaching a fly to the tippet and compared it's strength to most commonly used knots.

As a new feature in our meetings, we will be holding short focused sessions right before our meetings (and repeated immediately after our meetings and maybe during the break depending upon circumstances). Each session will feature a presentation and demo by one of our Chapter members or Guest on a topic that will improve your skills in tackle management, fly tying, or casting. So show up at 7:30 to enjoy this pre-meeting feature.

2013 Fly Tying School

Enrollment is now open!
Sign up Today

Download the 2013 Fly Tying School brochure

Download the 2013 Workshop info

American Legion Hall
137 New Market Road
Dunellen, NJ

Meeting starts at 8 PM - Non Members are always welcome!

Garden State Outdoor Sportsmen’s Show

On January 10-13, 2013 CJTU will be participating in the 2013 Garden State Outdoor and Sportsmen’s Show. This show is 30 years old and we have been a factor in every one of them including the 2013 version. Now the parent organization of the show is the Outdoor Sports Group which now has several new shows. Check out their website, www.orgshows.com for more details of the new shows and www.gsoss.com for details of this show.

Because of the new show management and our desire to downsize our booth this year it will look quite different from that in the past. Gone will be the fish tank, extra booths for fly-tying, carpets, and the massive size. We have needed to downsize for a few years to save money which was spent on truck rentals, reduce the personnel requirements. and spare the booth managers the very stressful nights leading up to the show. However, we will now concentrate on the most important reasons for our participation such as increasing membership, raising funds and getting our message across to the public, especially the youth. To that end I urge anyone who has not been part of past shows and has a gift of selling to the public to think about participating this year. Just contact Dick Turse at .

New Jersey Fly Fisherman of the Year Competition

John Wester competing at the New Jersey Fly Fisherman of the Year Competition as CJTU's representative. More photos of the event from Nick Ramanenko can be found here.

President’s Letter

December 2012

Once again, another year is coming to an end. I hope this year everyone had the opportunity to spend a little more time than last year on their favorite trout stream. Many folks hang up the fishing rod and pick up the shotgun this time of year. If your one of those people your missing out on some great fishing. Hunt or fish, it's great to have that kind of decision to make!

Last month our own John Wester participated in the 3rd Annual Fly Fisherman of the Year Competition. John represented the chapter well, entering the finals with a respectful lead. As it turns out, victory slipped away in the final moments of the competition. This is the third year in a row where this has happened to competitors from our chapter. John wants a second shot at it and has asked to represent the chapter again next year. To sweeten the pot he is putting up a $400.00 donation if he can't pull off a victory! Now that's dedication! You can check out a video clip of the event on our website.

The holidays are not the only thing right around the corner, it's show season! Late last month, the Fly Tying Symposium took place in Somerset, NJ. In January, two shows will be coming to the area. The Garden State Outdoor Sport Show will be in Edison, New Jersey, January 10-14. You can get information on the show and even buy your tickets online by visiting CJTU's website (www.cjtu.org) and clicking on their banner. Next up will be the Fly Fishing Show in Somerset, NJ on January 25 - 27. Our chapter will have a presence at both shows so come out a say hello. While your at it support your chapter by picking up a raffle ticket or two. We will have some great prizes up for grabs.

Also in January CJTU members will be conducting fly tying demos on Saturdays at Efingers Sporting Goods in Boundbrook, NJ. This usually coincides with the some great sales on fly tying and fishing gear, so come on out and spend an afternoon with us. While we are on the subject of fly tying our fly tying classes will be starting up next month. You can find all the details in this month's Main Stream.

Our speaker this month is our very own Ozzy who will be giving a presentation on fishing for Atlantic Salmon. Ozzy always gives an excellent presentation this is one you will not want to miss. In addition, he will have his DVD's on sale for only $10.00 each. They would make a great gift for the fisherman on your Christmas list. Come out to the meeting a little early and take advantage of our Capsule Classroom. Bill Ninke will be covering a nail-less nail knot. This is turning out to be a very popular event, check it out. Finally, our meeting next month will be our annual fly tiers night out. Our chapter's most talented tiers will be on hand tying up their favorite flies and answering questions. Come out and join us and by all means bring your vise!

I would like to close by wishing every one a safe, happy and healthy holiday! Merry Christmas!

Fly of the Month

“Polish Pheasant Tail Nymph”
by Lou Digena

Not much more needs to be said about Pheasant Tail, other than it's one of the most used fibers for making nymphs. There are three fibers I can't do without: Pheasant Tail, Peacock Tail and Hungary Partridge.

This is my variation on Davie McPhail's "Polish Pheasant Tail Nymph"

What's nice about this pattern is it's simple, and it has all the elements of a great nymph.  The profile is tied in the round.  It presents the same profile when the nymph is tumbling downstream.  The pheasant tail fibers offer the iridescent brown/olive color found in most naturals.  It also has two triggers, the two hot spots and a gold bead.

If you're looking for the Glo-Brite and Jan Siman Dubbing, I'd recommend you go to  Kevin Compton's site http://www.performanceflies.com/. He has most of the materials you'll need for tying your euro-nymph patterns.