April 2022
Hello CJTU Members and Friends!
Spring is here Trout season is opening, on April 9th, and the fun is beginning!
I imagine that we are all looking forward to getting outdoors more often and doing some fishing. Some of our Board members are intent on setting up fishing trips so that our members can get together, appropriately distanced, and renew relationships.
We are excited about some upcoming activities and hope than you will join and support the efforts of CJTU.
April 12th - General Meeting We will be having Brian Wimmer as our speaker with an interesting presentation on "Fishing the Provo River" in Utah. This is going to be a beautiful and interesting presentation.
April 16th - Annual Musconetcong River Clean-up On Saturday, April 16th, at 9:00am, CJTU will be gathering at Point Mountain for the Annual Musconetcong River Clean-up. Our Board member Dan Calligaro will be leading this effort. Please meet up with other CJTU members for the fun and worthwhile activity. We need Volunteers! Dan can be reached via email at dc8043@bmail.com.
April 23rd - NJ DEP's 52nd Anniversary and Earth Day Celebration CJTU has been invited to participate in the 52nd NJDEP Anniversary Celebration at Liberty Stae Park, from 10am to 3pm. We need Volunteers to staff our booth and do some light fly casting instruction, part of the day or the whole day. NJDEP is supplying the table and chairs. I will provide copies of the Council's Newsletter "Trout Watch', Council stickers and pens for giveaways. Please come volunteer and support CJTU and NJDEP.
50+2: 52nd Anniversary and Earth Day Celebration
Saturday, April 23, 2022
10a.m. to 3p.m., rain or shine
Liberty State Park
1 Audrey Zapp Drive, Jersey City, NJ
Reach out to Marsha Benovengo if you are willing to help out. She can be reached via email at casabeno@msn.com or (908) 216-4855-cell.
April 30th - Rutgers' Day CJTU will again be part of the Rutgers' Day! We will again be introducing the community to fly casting with some instruction. We will be set up across from the Environmental Sciences building, in our usual spot. We will also have our plush Trout ready to go home with a child or family for our Adopt A Trout program. The cost is nominal. Kids will also go home with a coloring book and crayons.
This activity needs some volunteers! So reach out to John Wester and sign-up to help out at johnnwester@gmail.com.
June 2022 - Annual CJTU Picnic Plans are underway for the Annual CJTU Picnic. There will lots of yummy food and beverages. Please keep your eyes out for more details and plan to join with other members, socially distant, for this fun activity!
June 4th and October 22nd - Free Fishing Days in New Jersey
Testified before NJ Senate Environmental Committee
On March 14th I had the honor of testifying before the Senate Environmental Committee in Trenton, in favor of Bill S438. This bill would give long term management of the New Jersey School of Conservation to the organization Friends of the NJ School of Conservation. This 501(c)3 organization has for many years provided programs of environmental education, conservation and recreation in a setting of 250 beautiful acres in Sussex county, in Stokes State Forest. After MSU relinguished themselves of the responsibility for the facility the responsibility went back to NJDEP.
The NJ Legislature gave the Friends organization, through the NJDEP, 1 million dollars that will be used for restoration and upkeep, programing and administrative tasks. Since the property had been neglected, with the Friends organization unable to get into the property, there has been some deterioration. And although the funds sound like alot of money, with the need to restore and sustain the SOC to its former glory the funds could go fast.
The NJ School of Conservation is like no other facility in the country with an amazing history and purpose in serving and educating the communities of the State. and must be preserved for future generations!
The NJ State Council has been in support of the School of Conservation, hence my testimony. Six of us from various organizations testified. I am pleased to say that the Senate Environmental Committee voted unanimously bipartisan, to pass Bill S438. It will now go to the Floor of the Senate.
This was a rare and amazing experience, to be more than a resident, to be an active citizen!
Awarded the George P Howard Conservation Award from by NJ State Federation of Sportsmen's Clubs
I have recently been informed that I am the winner of the George P. Howard Conservation Award from the NJ State Federation of Sportsmen's Clubs. This is an honor and a surprise! This is being given in recognition of my work with Trout Unlimited, Casting for Recovery and the NJ School of Conservation. "The George P. Howard Conservation Award is given to and individual who has shown by example, ways in which one has helped conserve the natural resources of New Jersey by promoting the wise use of those resources". I do this work because I believe in it and feel responsible for it. I am grateful for my involvement and honored by the recognition! Thank you to all who have made this possible!
Marsha Benovengo,
President,
CJTU
You can contact Marsha at
March 2022
Greetings CJTU Members and Friends!
As we move into Spring many of us are looking forward to getting out for some outdoor activities!
There are some events that the CJTU Leadership is hoping will restart active participation. There will be a few local trips put together and led by members.
On Saturday, April 16th, the Annual Musconetcong River Clean-up will take place.We will gather at Point Mountain, greet each other, get supplies and do our usual best to make a difference! Dan Calligaro, our Conservation Chair will lead this effort. Keep an eye on the website for specific details. We need Volunteers, so reach out to Dan (dc8043@gmail.com) at if you can help and join us!
On Saturday, April 30th, CJTU will again participate in Rutgers Day! This outdoor event is always a great day of Outreach for our Chapter. Again, we need Volunteers, for casting lessons and for our fun "Adopt A Trout" portion of the effort. John Wester will be leading this effort. Please reach out to John (johnnwester@gmail.com) and give some of your time for this fun day!
Our Directors, Nick Romanenko and John Wester have continued to attract great speakers and interesting presentations during recent times and we are grateful for their hard work! Thank you Gentlemen! Here are a few of the upcoming Speakers:
3/8 - Bill Anderson, Fishing the Little Juniata
4/12 - Bryan Weiner
5/10 - "Ozzy", Fishing the Salt
With Spring approaching and the weather warming up, the CJTU Board would like to know your feelings about CJTU resuming some in-person activities. It has always been our Chapter's priority to keep our members safe. Recently the Board has been considering what might be done to get CJTU active again. What would you be willing to participate in? Those things might include in-person and/or hybrid meetings, local trips, clean-ups, shows and our Annual picnic.
The reality of not holding any events or participating in shows presents a few challenges for the Chapter. Not having meetings establishes a kind of disconnect among members. It also creates a lack of necessary revenue, from the raffles, that helps to defray the cost for the Speakers that we are continuing to have. And, by not having meetings and/or going to shows we are not able to have our larger fundraiser raffles.
So, we are looking to you for help and advice. How do you think we should handle the situation? I will share with you that some of the other NJTU Chapters have carefully held in-person activities. Please feel free to reach out to any of the Board members with your input and ideas.
Thank you for your support and participation. We appreciate you!
Marsha Benovengo,
President,
CJTU
You can contact Marsha at
February 2022
Greetings CJTU Members and Friends!
Now that we have moved into to 2022 we are looking forward to some new plans. Again, thanks to Nick Romanenko and John Wester we have great Speakers and Presentations planned. We'll have Bill Kibler, from the Raritan Headwaters Association, speaking to us in February.
On Saturday, April 16th CJTU will be participating in the 30th Annual Musconetcong River Clean-up! We're looking for Volunteers!! Mark your calendars and plan to join us. We start at Point Mountain. It's always a fun event and we do so much good! So, bring a friend or a family member.
We are excited that the Rutgers' Day event is back! It will be held on Saturday, April 30th. More details will follow as soon as we receive them. We hope that you will join us and tell the CJTU story and help us do outreach in the community.
In the Spring, we will be going back to the Lopatcong Creek to finish the tree planting that we did in November. A tremendous amount was done by the chapters that collaborated on this project, Central Jersey TU, East Jersey TU, Hacklebarney TU, Ridge & Valley TU, representatives from MWA along with our own TU representative and organizer Keith Fritschie. As soon as we receive the dates and times we will let you know so that you can pitch in.
We will be holding our Chapter elections at our general meeting on February 8th. There is always room for nominations from the floor. Also, we invite you to consider how you might like to help the CJTU. Step up and speak up!
The NJ State Council will be holding its 2nd quarter Council meeting on April 24th. We need candidates for Treasurer and the NLC Representative, who is our liaison with TU national. If you would like to become more involved with the national organization, please consider this options.
Also, the NJ State Council is bringing back the Council's newsletter "Trout Watch". We're looking for contributions from all Chapters' members, an article on a fantastic trip, exciting species fished for, member profiles, a favorite fly that you've tied, a great conservation effort. Please contact Marsha Benovengo with something exciting!
TU is planning on holding the Annual Meeting this year in Portland, Maine from 7/20-24. More details will be coming soon.
Stay well and safe!
Marsha Benovengo,
Interim President,
CJTU
You can contact Marsha at
January 2022
A Message From A Past President
Marsha Benovengo, our chapter president, has been experiencing some technical issues and asked me to provide the chapter update in this month's newsletter. CJTU, like many other chapters, is navigating through all of the obstacles put in front of us by COVID-19. We were planning on resuming in-person meetings and other chapter activities this month, but the surge of new infections caused by the Omicron Variant of the virus has caused us to reconsider. We will continue to meet virtually and re-evaluate this decision every thirty days for the immediate future. We are anxious to resume in-person meetings but will only do so when it is safe, and members are comfortable resuming normal activities.
As a result of the changing conditions concerning COVID-19, there have been some changes to upcoming activities. The NJ Outdoor Sports, which would usually occur next week, has been postponed until summer 2022. Hopefully, we will attend the show if and when it returns. The Fly Fishing Show at the end of the month is still scheduled. The show dates are Friday, January 28 through January 30. Unfortunately, the chapter will not be attending the show as we have done for many years. At this point, many of our volunteers are unable to staff our booth due to health concerns. The fact is we do not have the staffing to man our table for all three days of the show. This decision was tough for us to make as we have attended this show since its inception.
Now for some good news! As some of you may have already heard, Shannons Fly & Tackle recently stocked the South Branch of the Raritan River in the area of Califon, NJ. Every December, the shop puts together this special stocking, including two trophy tagged trout worth a valuable prize to the lucky anglers that catch them. Unfortunately, the tagged fish have been captured and their prizes claimed, but they were both released to fight another day. However, there is still plenty of fish in the area to provide some excellent winter angling.
This year, several TU chapters donated funds to provide an additional holiday stocking on the Musky river. On Christmas Eve, Shannons Fly & Tackle and TU volunteers stocked 350 fish in the Point Mountain tract of the Musconetcong River. These fish will allow anglers to enjoy quality winter fishing on this special regulation water throughout the winter months. Shannon's provides each contributing chapter with a new Douglas fly rod to use for their fundraising efforts as an added benefit. The value of this rod far exceeds the $600 donation made to purchase the fish for the stocking. I recently picked up the donation from last year's stocking. We now have a fantastic Hardy/Greys Euro nymph outfit (rod and reel) to use as a raffle prize for one of this year's fundraising events. We want to thank Shannons Fly & Tackle for the fine work they do for the anglers of New Jersey, not only for their generosity and support of local Trout Unlimited chapters but for spearheading local conservation efforts as well.
The trout fishing during this early winter season has been excellent. Unseasonable mild weather has made for some very comfortable afternoons on the water. The fishing has been great, and I have recently experienced some dry fly midge fishing. If you plan on fishing during the winter months, there are a few things to consider. For safety, make sure you wade carefully and keep an extra set of warm, dry clothes in your vehicle in case you slip and get wet. Hypothermia is a real threat at this time of year. If you get wet and chilled, stop fishing and get into dry clothes and a warm environment immediately. Hypothermia is no joke and can creep up on you unexpectedly. If you're heading out, plan your trip during the warmest part of the day. Not only will you be more comfortable, but the fish are more active when the water temperature hits its peak for the day. Midges are an essential food source for trout at this time of year, so be sure to have all stages of this insect in your fly boxes. I like to fish what I call "winter water," the slower, deeper stream sections. If you are brave enough to endure winter weather, you may experience fantastic fishing. If nothing else, you are likely to have the river to yourself. Good luck!
We hope things will get back to normal soon as we look towards the future. We would typically be gearing up for our fly tying classes at this time of year. Unfortunately, until the current conditions change for the better, we will be postponing this activity. Other chapters are conducting weekly/monthly virtual tying nights. I am a guest tier at one such event run by another TU chapter. If successful, we may seek to implement a similar program to help ward off the cabin fever this winter will bring. Stay tuned for an update on this next month.
As a reminder, we will still be meeting virtually in the immediate future. Our virtual meeting takes place at 8:00 on the second Tuesday of the month. We will have a guest speaker and presentation at all virtual meetings. These meetings have been very successful, and the best part is you don't have to leave your home to attend. To entice you further, if you participate in our virtual meetings and stay with us until the end, you may win a $25 gift certificate to a local fly shop! You can join the meeting via Zoom by using the link below.
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86184198571?pwd=ZnNQTkVzMkRiR3djQm1xRUYrWm8vdz09s
Let me finish by wishing all of you a very Happy New Year. I hope we safely navigate the challenges the new year will undoubtedly bring. I have faith that we will. A happy and HEALTHY new year to you all.
Tight Lines, Bart Lombardo Past President CJTU
You can contact Marsha at