Nutmeg TU has published and is distributing “Your Healthy Backyard Stream,” a guide to help homeowners use natural, native methods to protect streams that flow through their property and the wildlife the water supports.
The PDF can be downloaded at https://www.nutmegtrout.org/stream-buffers/
It’s been a beautiful spring and we are lucky we have been able to get outdoors and enjoy our sport. DEEP has done a fantastic job stocking fish this year. To learn more about the states stocking program, John Kovach, our Communications Chair, has invited DEEP to discuss the program and answer all your questions at our May 18 member meeting at 7:00.
Because of Covid, we have had to postpone our conservation efforts and we need your help. Rivers need trash removed; the knotweed along the Mill River on Congress Street is coming back with a vengeance; trees need to be planted; temperature loggers need to be placed in the rivers; and we need to complete the third phase of our revetment project. Our Conservation Chair, Gian Morresi, has created, with the help of Linder Elder and Lindy Hennessy a new handout for riverside property owners detailing best practices to protect their river. If you would like a copy, let Gian know.
Anyone who wants to get more involved, should let any of the board members know to discuss your areas of interest. You can donate a couple of hours, lead a project, lead a fishing trip or join the board. Speaking of the board, we need to elect officers. Voting will take place virtually at our May 18th Zoom meeting. The current officers are:
President – Rich Rosen
Vice President – Jerry Goldstein
Treasurer – Ed Grzeda
Secretary – Rich Rosen
Nominations for new board members and officers are welcome.
As you might remember, last year we won an Embrace a Stream grant from Trout Unlimited and Orvis to improve the fish habitat of the Mill River along Congress Street. We hired TroutScapes to put together a plan. So far, the plan calls for 19 new/enhanced pools and riffles and one handicapped accessible spot. Once the plan is finalized, permits will be secured. Then we will need to raise money to complete the work. If you are interested in helping on this subcommittee, let me know. And speaking of fund raising, board member David Ader has done an outstanding job selling donated gear on eBay. If you have gear you would like to donate to the chapter for resale on eBay or chapter auctions, please let me know and we’ll have someone pick it up.
And finally, did you know that 2021 is the 50th anniversary of the Nutmeg Chapter of Trout Unlimited? A subcommittee, led by John Kovach and Alex Ziemkiewicz, has been established to help us celebrate. Again, we could use help to make this happen.
We have a lot to look forward to. As the state reopens, we will resume in person activities. Starting with outdoor conservation activities this summer and probably resuming in person meetings in September.
Until we meet again on a river or at a meeting, continue to stay safe and healthy.
Rich
Join Nutmeg TU to fish for spring Stripers and Blues at the mouth of the Housatonic River at Short Beach in Stratford Saturday, May 22. We will meet at 1 p.m. to fish the outgoing tide.
There is no cost for the outing, membership is not required, and both fly and spin anglers are welcome. Please click here to register.
This is a great spot for fly or spin fishers and a terrific opportunity to learn about the lower Housy (which is a Spring run hotspot).
We will meet in the parking area by the tennis courts and walk out to the river channel which is accessible from Stratford only around low tide (~12:35 PM on Oct. 24). We will fish up to the first hour or so of the incoming tide. Much later and the walk back to shore can be problematic as the rising water can create deep channels to cross.
For fly fishing we recommend an 8-10 weight rod. Most common is an intermediate or sink-tip line but if you tuned into our September Zoom meeting, guide Steve Culton described techniques that make floating lines very effective as well. Standard Clousers, Deceivers and other baitfish patterns are ideal.
Spin fishers can use a variety of swimming plugs or soft plastics. You will need full waders. Ed Grzeda will lead the outing.
Email Ed at ctfishcrow@gmail.com or contact at (224) 234-3381 with any questions.
We are now taking reservations for the 6th annual Nutmeg Trout Unlimited trip to the Limestone Trout Club located in Canaan, Connecticut.
You must use this link, https://limestonetroutclub.com/nutmeg-tu/, to register. The trip is limited to 15 anglers.
The trip is fly fishing only:
This is primarily shore fishing, with a few boats available.
Please arrive by 9 a.m. Fishing is permitted from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
For more information about the club visit limestonetroutclub.com.
There are 3 deep (70-plus feet) quarry ponds and 3 shallow ponds providing a variety of venues and conditions.
While most members practice catch and release, catch and kill is allowed for one fish 17 inches or smaller per person.
Fees:
The fee for TU members is $50 and includes lunch.
We welcome new TU members. To join TU, go to: Join Trout Unlimited Today | Trout Unlimited Donation Site
Payment is due upon arrival.
Lessons learned from previous years: bring some egg patterns, large flies, tiny flies and bug spray for the ticks.
Directions – Take route 8 north to Winsted and turn left onto Rte. 44 west.
Drive through Norfolk and past the Blackberry River Inn and Freunds Farm Market in North Canaan.
After passing the marker for East Canaan turn right onto Casey Hill Rd. (there is a sign on the right at the corner, set back from the road for O’Connor Sand & Gravel).
Drive a short distance to a stop sign, where Casey Hill Rd. becomes Allyndale Rd.
Continue straight on Allyndale Rd. about 100 yards. The unmarked driveway is on the left, across from a driving range.
The clubhouse phone is 860-249-9996.
If you like to teach children and improve habitat for trout, please consider becoming the Trout in the Classroom coordinator for Nutmeg TU.
Trout in the Classroom, offered nationally by TU, teaches children how to monitor water quality, protect the ecosystem and instills conservationism as they raise trout in a tank from eggs to fingerlings, then release the young into a river near their homes and schools. Information on the program and requirements an be found at troutintheclassroom.org.
Start off your weekend early by joining Nutmeg TU members for a little fishing after work on Friday, April 23.
We will start at 3 p.m. in The Cascades at Lake Mohegan, located north, or on the far end from the beach parking area. Drive to the bottom of the hill past the lake, park there. We will meet in the lot and walk upstream to the falls. Those who arrive late should walk upstream from the lake to meet us.
Fish from the shore, fish in the steam, fish in the pond or just render useless advice. It is all catch and release, so there are still plenty of fish to be caught. Click here to read regulations: Parts of the Mill River are trout management areas.
If you plan to join us, please RSVP to Rich Rosen at RHRosen@aol.com.
A development proposed on habitat crucial to sea-run brook trout was recently rejected, despite government approvals, in Massachusetts. Learn how this victory was won, how the fight will continue and what can be done to restore these native fish when Geoffrey Day talks on Zoom at 7 p.m. Tuesday, April 20, on Zoom.
Click here for the Zoom link. The meeting, open to all, is hosted by the Nutmeg Chapter of Trout Unlimited.
Geoffrey is a co-founder and Executive Director at Sea Run Brook Trout Coalition. He has a B.A. in Human Ecology from Connecticut College, and a background in aquaculture, recreational and commercial fisheries advocacy, fund-raising, management, technical and internet marketing consulting.
Geoffrey bought his first fly rod for five dollars from the bargain bin at LL Bean, and his first fly-caught striper was on an original streamer he created from a kit ordered from the Herter’s Catalog in the sixties. He has been working with sea-run trout monitoring and restoration since the early 1980s.
Geoffrey can be reached at gday@searunbrookie.org
State Senator Tony Hwang will moderate a forum on Aquarion’s proposal to divert water from the Bridgeport/Fairfield/Easton Reservoir system to meet needs in towns in southwestern Fairfield County.
The online forum will be held Thursday, April 8, at 7 p.m. on fb.com/senatorhwang.
Click here to read the proposal.
Hwang has invited representatives of the Mill River Wetlands Committee, Save the Sound, the Connecticut Public Utilities Regulatory Authority, the Rivers Alliance of Connecticut, the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, and Aquarion to serve as expert panelists.
Aquarion’s proposal would send 14.2 million gallons of water per day for the next 25 years to towns in lower Fairfield County.
Nutmeg TU and the Connecticut Council have already weighed in on the proposal and are prepared to do so again. Click here to read TU’s comments.
The Connecticut DEEP will hold a public hearing May 4.
The five survey questions will offer a variety of options related to the above considerations. If you have other thoughts about how to manage these fisheries should the traditional closed season be eliminated, please share them directly with me via my email.
Rather than its regular monthly meeting, Nutmeg TU will join Tie One On Tuesday, March 16, at 8 p.m. on Zoom.
Please notice the Zoom starts one hour later than Nutmeg’s regular monthly meetings.
Learn a new fly and enjoy an adult beverage from the safety of home when Tie One On is held Tuesday nights at 8, organized by Mianus TU and Candlewood Valley TU.
There is no charge, but those who wish to attend are asked to register for each night for Zoom login:
So tune in, even if you don’t tie flies, for some laughs, some wisdom and some socializing before the fishing season starts.