President's Message
Late last week, I heard from TU National that our proposed name change from Madmen Chapter to the Mad River Chapter has been approved. We can now begin the dotting of i’s and crossing of t’s required to implement the change.
After years of going vacant, the Chapter has a new Secretary, Mark Beckdahl. Mark has fished the Mad for decades and has participated in our on-going stream restoration efforts over the past few years. Please welcome Mark to the Board.
Our webmaster, Mike Isovitch will be moving on to bluer waters in Florida in a few months. We’re seeking a volunteer to take over that position. We’ve been getting many new members as of late, including many younger (i.e. technically-proficient) members. Anybody out there want to try their hand at updating/maintaining our website? Now is the time to make your mark as we will be implementing the changes required by our name change.
In that same vein, we are still looking for a Public Relations Coordinator. That position is presently not well defined but essentially we need someone to ensure that our various means of communication work hand-in-hand. If we can find an enthusiastic volunteer, they will be able to develop this position into something that has a specific focus. Because we use our chapter’s membership roster, website, facebook page, newsletter, etc. for communication as well as the local newspapers to help spread the word, there is a lot of opportunity to improve how we get our message known.
We are also still looking for an Adopt-A-Bridge Coordinator to assist our volunteers in clean-up operations and to coordinate with other entities within the watershed with regard to our annual clean-up activities.
Discussions are underway about plans for our Annual Meeting and future quarterly meetings. We also intend to reschedule the Mad River Gala that was postponed in 2020 due to the pandemic. Stay tuned for future updates.
Lastly, don't forget to renew your Ohio fishing license. Your 2021 license expires at midnight 365 days after the date of purchase.
It won’t be long now before we will be ramping up our on-stream activities. Stream restoration and water quality monitoring efforts as well as just plain fishing will begin in earnest soon. Our first two monitoring events are scheduled for April 16 and June 25.
Tight Lines Everybody!
p.s. Articles Always Needed!! Pam could use your help with future newsletters. If you've been on a fishing trip, or have something else you'd like to share, like a fly recipe, we'd love to hear about it. Write an article and send pictures to her at pamallen@tumadmen.org; it's that easy :)
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New Organization Seeks River Enthusiasts
by Tom Butch, President, Ohio Scenic Rivers Association
The Ohio Scenic Rivers Association (OSRA) is reaching out to individuals who may have an interest in Ohio’s State Scenic Rivers and other waterways. OSRA is a relatively new organization, incorporated as a 501(c)(3) non-profit on November 7, 2019, with the goal of protecting and improving our state’s water resources. OSRA plans to accomplish this goal by working to support Ohio’s State Scenic River system; promoting Scenic River stewardship projects; facilitating public-private partnerships in support of Scenic Rivers; and developing non-partisan support of Ohio’s Scenic Rivers.
Currently, the OSRA Board of Directors is made up of fourteen conservation professionals and water quality advocates from all across Ohio. Recently OSRA has been active in providing testimony at the Statehouse on important water quality related legislation as well as co-sponsoring the second annual Ohio Rivers Symposium, hosted by the Department of Natural Resources, State Scenic River Program. In addition to supporting the existing system of state scenic rivers, OSRA also promotes the designation of additional, high-quality rivers.
Whether you are a conservation professional or simply an individual who enjoys water recreation, OSRA invites you to visit their website today and join them in this important work. All those who join (or renew their membership) in 2022 will be entered in a chance to win a high-quality inflatable kayak kit from Smithfly Designs.
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Studying Impacts of Cover Crops on Mad River Water Quality
by Spencer Reames, Benjamin Logan Schools
I have been teaching science for over 50 years and know that getting students out of the classroom can be the best way for them to learn. In addition to running the Trout in the Classroom program for Benjamin Logan Schools for 10 years, we've used several other hands-on programs to teach students about the aquatic ecosystem. Here you can learn about what our teachers have been doing to help local students develop ideas for ensuring trout can have a home in the Mad River for generations to come.
Our newest program will study the potential impacts of cover crops on the Mad River water quality. Over the next 3 years, Aquatic Biology students at Benjamin Logan High School will be carrying out this program sponsored by the Logan County Solid Waste Management District. A total of 500 acres of cropland will be put into cover crops. Students will conduct soil tests to determine if the carbon content of the soil increases. Other parameters of the soil content also will be tested. About 200 acres of the project are located along the Mad River. The cover crops should reduce sediment going into the river. In addition to the soil testing that will be done, water quality data will be collected on the Mad River at sites downstream from the cover crop fields. Students collected initial data last fall and will be collecting data over the next three years to determine if this project has any impact on the Mad River water quality. It may be that the acreage is too small to see much of an impact, but if there is an impact demonstrated, think about the impact cover crops would have if the majority of fields along the river had cover crops. The students ran tests to determine dissolved oxygen, ammonia, nitrate, alkalinity, detergent, turbidity and phosphates. Macroinvertebrates were collected and a diversity index and pollution tolerance index were determined. The pollution tolerance index put the Mad in an excellent range. However, the diversity index showed the Mad to have a good rating. Although there were a number of different macroinvertebrates, there was not a large number of most of them. The vast majority of organisms found were caddisflies and this accounts for the lower diversity index rating. Fish were also collected and identified with three being identified by DNA barcoding. More detailed information of their findings will be included in future newsletter issues.
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Conservation Corner
Take care of the stream and the fishing will take care of itself
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Conservation Work on the Mad Continues
Starting in January, we took advantage of frozen ground to move cobble that will be used for in-stream habitat work at Pimtown Rd. Also, logs have been placed on the banks and are ready to be cabled in as soon as we get lower stream flows.
Outside of the in-stream habitat work, we are making plans for trail clearing and honeysuckle removal, cleanups and water quality monitoring, which starts April 16th. The one activity we always try to address is down trees that are fully restricting flow leading to bank erosion. Unfortunately, we can't plan ahead for these. With warmer weather it means more people are on the river, which leads to more litter. If you are visiting the river, please help pick up litter and if you haven't done so, consider being part of the ADOPT-A-BRIDGE/STREAMWATCH Program.
In past newsletters, I have emphasized the need for mature riparian areas to protect the quality of the water and physical nature of the stream. The health of the riparian area, with mature native trees and plants, is also very important to a variety of animals. This includes song birds, woodpeckers, ducks, geese, mink, muskrats, racoons, deer, beaver, reptiles, insects and even bald eagles. Recently, I became aware there are river otters in the Mad River watershed. All of this is part of the ecological balance that defines the quality of the watershed and is worth protecting. If you take photos of wildlife, plants, trees etc., along Mad River or its tributaries, please consider submitting them for upcoming newsletters.
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A River Runs Through Us
by Scott Shane, Mad River Chapter member
Growing up in Northeast Ohio, one mile from the Pennsylvania border, and having both parents who grew up in PA, it’s no surprise I spent a lot of time recreating in the Keystone State. My Dad was an avid fisherman who introduced me and my four siblings to the sport; my older brother, Mike, and I seemed to enjoy it much more than our three sisters.
My first fishing memory was Dad taking me to an abandoned limestone quarry near our house to catch bluegill using worms and a bobber. I was so excited when I caught my eighth blue gill because the creel limit for trout back then was eight. I can say with certainty it was this day I became hooked.
My fishing experiences as a kid didn’t stop there, though. I quickly graduated to trout fishing. Overnight camping trips to several well-known streams in western PA, including Neshannock Creek, Oil Creek and the Tionesta River became a regular occurrence. It wasn’t until junior high that I got to join Mike and Dad on their annual weeklong trip to Kettle Creek in “God’s Country,” otherwise known as Potter County, Pennsylvania.
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This trip usually lined up with the first week of trout season in April, so not only was it a week of camping and fishing, but we also got a week off school. Does it get any better than that? However, Mom always made us take our books and complete the assigned homework in front of the fire after a long day on the water. Looking back, I completed my assignments, but I don’t remember Mike doing much school work.
During the first trips to Kettle Creek, we fished with live bait and salmon eggs. As the years went on, though, and we watched the fly anglers catch way more trout than us, we converted to fur and feathers and never looked back.
Like many anglers who pursue trout on the fly, we learned to tie our own flies shortly thereafter. Even more, Dad built our fly rods from blanks – and I’m still using it more than 45-years later. That man was skilled in so many ways! Over the years, we moved our trips to later in the spring, usually the middle of May, hoping for better weather and less people. We even moved it to June during my college years so I wouldn’t miss classes.
Who could have predicted that this annual trip would have lasted as long as it has? We are approaching what we believe is our 48th year while only missing two years during that time. The first year we missed was 1990 when Dad was diagnosed with cancer and my son, Rob, was born. The other year was 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
These weeklong trips to the mountains, where I learned to enjoy and appreciate the outdoors and respect nature, influenced me to pursue a career in the environmental/conservation field. I received degrees in biology and environmental studies and spent 33 years working for the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency, most of it investigating environmental crimes.
What makes me most happy though, is the fishing gene has been passed on to Rob. He learned to fish by catching bluegill in our small subdivision ponds. As he got older, we made camping and fishing an annual experience with weekend trips to Mad River for trout fishing. My daughter, Kelly, often joined us along with the kid’s friends. Back then, camping was allowed at the canoe livery which made it convenient for the canoe trip downstream. We made several stops during the journey so the boys could fish and the girls swim.
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Rob joined the annual Kettle Creek trip after graduating from high school and hasn’t missed it since. His fly-fishing expertise and fishing experiences have by far surpassed mine. Rob worked for Trout Unlimited (TU) for several years, holding two different positions. His job gave him the opportunity to fly fish with his colleagues and other TU chapter volunteers all over the country, including a few days steelheading at the 2016 Ohio TU Winter State Council Meeting.
While he no longer works for TU, he still has the passion for protecting and catching native and wild trout in Pennsylvania’s class A streams. Together, we have made numerous trips to different rivers, including the Lake Erie tributaries in OH, PA, and NY. There is nothing more exciting than catching a steelhead trout on a fly, except maybe the 20-pound King Salmon Rob caught in New York this past year. I’ve never experienced such enjoyment watching him fight that fish up and downstream multiple times before finally landing it (I also got a good laugh when he tripped over a rock and fell flat on his face).
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If I’m being honest, it isn’t all about the fly fishing. It is about the experiences that come along with these trips. We have been logging the “hot” flies used and number of fish caught from our trips for longer than I can remember. And there are always special memories we take from each trip. For example: someone taking a spill in the river, the hundreds of deer we saw each evening grazing in the fields, finding the motherload of ramps and fiddleheads, pushing the Volkswagen bus (converted to a camper) down the road to jump start it, numerous encounters with black bear entering our camp (especially the one that broke open the cooler and was sucking on the ice from the milk carton), having my brother-in-law’s sixteen year old nephew spend the night alone in the woods after getting lost, and we’ll never forget the natural gas line explosion 75 feet from our tent which killed two gas company employees. Thankfully, we were on the stream fishing at the time.
The best part of these fishing trips is the time spent with family and friends, sharing those memories, and continuing to make more of them. Actually that’s the second best part. The first is catching the most and the biggest and having a year’s worth of bragging rights (Just kidding). Can’t wait to take that next trip in May!
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Fly Recipe: March Brown Soft Hackle Spider
This is a wet fly that fishes well in PA. It fishes well on the Mad River too!
Hook: Size 14, wet/nymph, 3x heavy, 2x long
Thread: Hot orange
Body: Hare's ear dubbing
Rib: Gold oval tinsel
Legs: Brown Hungarian Partridge, larger size
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President's Message, Part 2
Recently, I’ve been reading articles and seeing reports that have really captured my attention. They all were about things that could drastically affect the quality of our fishing experiences, not to mention our access to clean water and the health of the planet in general.
Some folks out in Idaho are challenging the scope of the Clean Water Act. Seems they want to build adjacent to a protected wetland. It’s their opinion that including the protection of wetlands and ephemeral/intermittent streams is not within the scope of 1972 Clean Water Act law. The original law was reinforced and clarified by the “Clean Water Rule” in 2015. The act was then knee-capped by the “Navigable Waters Protection Rule” in 2020. Currently, the EPA is proposing the “Waters of the United States” rule to restore the protections. Conflicting opinions on the subject have resulted in the U.S. Supreme Court agreeing to hear the case in the fall of 2022. Considering the current make-up of the SCOTUS, how do you think that’s going to turn out? (Please see the following link for TU’s take on the Clean Water Act. https://www.tu.org/get-involved/take-action/stand-up-for-the-clean-water-act/)
Similarly, the State of Ohio’s HB 175 will serve to strip protection of Ohio’s wetlands and ephemeral/intermittent streams further than they already have been under the 2020 Ohio EPA Ephemeral Stream and Level One Isolated Wetland General Permit that is already in effect through June of 2025. There are an estimated 115,200 miles of headwater streams in Ohio of which an estimated 36,400 miles are ephemeral streams. This bill was rammed through the House Committee with little opportunity for public comment. There were indeed several hearings, but the dates for these were announced with little time for preparations to be made by the interested parties on the conservation side. Probably just a coincidence, but those representing the moneyed interests were well prepared and well represented. Weird right? Not that it would have mattered anyway. The legislators’ minds were made up before the first hearing was even scheduled because, you know…money. HB 175 has passed the House and is currently pending in the Senate while interested parties try to work through the varied interests.
There are those that think you only really need to protect lakes, rivers, navigable waters, etc., but not the sources of them. We shouldn’t expect our legislators and judges to be trained geologists or hydrologists and neither am I, but at least I understand gravity. Water (and other stuff) tends to flow downhill.
The current decades-long mega drought in the western US has been determined to be the most severe in over 1200 years. The major reservoirs are at their lowest levels since they were built. The aquifers are depleted due to agricultural overuse as well as lack of rainfall. Additionally, snow-pack has been trending below average levels. Maybe it’s not such a good idea to allow for unbridled development, building a bunch of golf courses and trying to grow food (requiring ridiculous quantities of water for irrigation) on lands that are naturally arid.
Ticks bearing a number of nasty diseases have been flourishing lately, probably due to climate change. Recent samples taken in north central Pennsylvania (one of my favorite places to fish) have indicated that 92% of ticks were infected. This formerly Northeast coast/Midwest issue has been spreading north, south and westward to the point where nearly every wilderness area has been affected.
I could go on and on, but it’s just kind of depressing. Consider this a “call to arms” (or at least a call to pen and/or computer). Write your State and US legislators, the Farm Bureau, County Commissioners, etc. Some people still read newspapers; how about sending letters to the editor? As I’ve stated before, we are primarily a conservation organization, not a fishing club. Trout Unlimited’s mission to Protect, Reconnect, Restore, Sustain coldwater fisheries gets more difficult seemingly every day. But most of us do fish and I for one want to be able to continue to fish and fish for trout in cold, clean water. Headwaters and ephemeral/intermittent streams are the sources of water for these places that we love to fish.(Note- The views stated above are solely those of the writer. If you have an issue with any of the above and wish to express it, please contact me at rhurni@columbus.rr.com)
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Northern Ohio Fly Fishing Expo
- 3/5/2022 -- 9:00a-3:00p, Lakeland Community College More Info
Ohio Rivers Symposium
- 3/25/2022 -- 9:15a-3:45p, Villa Milano, Columbus, OH Register Here
Water Quality Monitoring
- 4/16/2022 -- Meet at US 36 Bridge at 9:00 am. We need volunteers. Come learn about the food supply and stay to fish in the afternoon.
- 6/25/2022 -- Meet at US 36 Bridge at 9:00 am. We need volunteers. Come learn about the food supply and stay to fish in the afternoon.
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Articles Needed!! I could use your help with future newsletters. If you've been on a fishing trip, or have something else you'd like to share, like a fly recipe, we'd love to hear about it. Write an article and send pictures to me at pamallen@tumadmen.org; it's that easy :) |
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