message from nunzio


The purpose of a guide is to teach how to better fish for a species of fish; how to make your presentation, hook the fish and properly play the fish until you have landed it.  In many cases this means not hooking the fish or landing the fish because of common mistakes made from getting excited or deciding “I’m doing it my way, not the guide’s way”!  Many different ways of presentation must be taught and practiced before you may catch and land your first trophy.  The main thing is to have fun and enjoy what Mother Nature gave us.  If we don’t take care of it, it won’t be there later.

Fly fishing has become extremely popular, and as such will take on the same problems of crowding rudeness, lack of etiquette and law breaking that we have often associated with other forms of fishing.  Fly fishermen cannot put themselves on a pedestal above others unless they can adhere to the standards they wish others to follow.

Crowding has become a problem that regulating agencies do not seem to want to tackle.  Peer pressure appears to be the only avenue to try.  Rotating pools and runs, or offering another angler a prime lie after hooking a few fish is a better alternative to over crowding.

Educating anglers on proper techniques so as to avoid foul hooking a fish is essential if we are to improve the quality of fishing on all our tributaries.  Anglers must become aware of the difference between a fish that has taken a fly, and one that has been foul hooked, and to break off foul hooked fish so as not to play them into exhaustion.  Those choosing to use weight to present their flies deep should have the sporting values to determine where to draw the line between what can still be put in the fly fishing category, and those that step into the boundary of being absurd and put you into the area of more than likely foul hooking fish.

Tolerance of another angler’s technique is essential.  We are all in this together, and should learn something from each other.  If everyone is fishing ethically and legally, there should be no problems of how to fish.

Finally, CPR (catch, photograph and release).  Our resources are being drastically scoured.  For example, for the period 1982-1993 the Salmon River had record catches of Steelhead, many 14-23 lbs.  Today, the fishing is mediocre, at best, with fish in the 2-8 lb. class.  No longer are there runs of thousands of Steelhead and 50-60 fish caught per day.  Now, only the best fishermen who persist may hook one fish in a day and land three fish in a week of 12 hour fishing days.  The once astounding run of trophy Brown Trout (15-20 lbs.) in the Oak Orchard River has been reduced from thousands to just about 100 fish.  Isn’t catch, photograph and release a better alternative to seeing the scouring and total depletion of trophy fish?

 

WE ALL NEED TO PRACTICE CONSERVATION AND PROTECT OUR FISH AND WILDLIFE WHEN WE ARE NOT ACTIVELY PURSUING THE SPORT.

REMEMBER, THEY CALL IT FISHING, NOT CATCHING!!!

Special Thanks to Fran Verdoliva for the use of this page.

Fran and I have been friends for many years and we both have seen first hand what can happen on the water for the sake of trying to get that fish in the run!  We have seen far too many people that have had unbelievable fights and almost drown from being thrown down into the river.  We have seen far too many people catch there limit of fish, go and unload them into the coolers in the car, and return to catch another limit.

This all has to STOP!  Let’s not teach our children the ways of the past. Let us teach them about conservation and releasing the fish that will be the breeders for our future fishing. Most of all, let us teach them how to have fun !

Nunzio J. Incremona
Licensed Certified Guide

Fran Verdoliva Jr.
Special Assistant NYSDEC
Region 7