Fresno Fly Fishers For Conservation
Sixty Five Years and Counting...
| | Fly Dope Volume 65 Issue 05 | | | Editor's Note:
Welcome to the May 2026 FFFC Newsletter!
I had some technical issues with my computer so this month is light on additional content. I'm sorry about that.
Please Note:
Downloadable files of the newsletter will be available in our club's Document Library within a few days of the newsletter's release. Here is a link: Fly Dope Newsletters
Tight Lines!
Mark
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May 2026
Most Educated Fresno Fly Fishers for Conservation,
Do you remember the first time you held a fly rod and had a mentor demonstrate the correct casting technique? Do you remember the first time someone taught you to tie a size 16 Parachute Adams? What about that time someone brought you to a river, suggested you stand there and watch the water, and you wondered why you weren't fishing yet, until that someone pointed out where a fish was rising on a caddis hatch? Or when someone taught you how to tie a blood knot and explained the difference between line, leader, and tippet? Do you remember?
Regardless of your experience and skill level, I bet that at some point you had a mentor who helped you become a better fly fisher. I know that I have. While I've fly fished for nearly fifty years, I learn something new every time I fish with a guide or an experienced club member. And I'd never have experienced this sport without an uncle who shared his love of fly fishing with me.
We are proud to hold the annual Roger Miller Youth Academy on May 16th. As with previous years, experienced, talented, and patient club mentors will teach youth aged 11 through 15 how to tie key knots, learn to cast, tie two types of flies, and then go fishing in the afternoon. Honestly, the Youth Academy is our favorite event. It is tremendously rewarding to watch these young anglers learn to cast, tie knots, and flies and then use those basic and important skills to catch Bluegill and Bass later that day. There's something so magical about catching a fish, and we never tire of it, as proven by our own fly fishing arsenal of rods, reels, tying equipment, etc.
If you have a child or grandchild who deserves to experience the joys and wonders of fly fishing, we invite you to participate. We have a few openings remaining and want to ensure club members with kids and grandkids participate. It's too much fun to pass up. If you are interested, please register on the website. But do it quickly as we must confirm registration by May 8th.
Tight Lines!
Christopher Robbins
President
|  | Thursday May 7th 7:00 - 9:00 PM
Provost & Pritchard Office Building
Topic: Creeks in our Sequoias and How to Fish Them
Presented By Scott McDonald! |  |
Scott will be sharing information on fishing the local creeks found in Sequoia. Scott has years of experience guiding these waters and will generously share what he has learned at our May meeting. It’s rare to find a guide who is willing to communicate so freely what most guides cautiously guard but that’s what makes Scott so special.
Scott took up fly fishing at eight years old. He still has his first LL Bean fly rod. To quote Scott, “I love fly fishing and do it all the time. I love teaching and sharing our sport with as many people as I can!” Scott’s business is Kings River Fly Guide. He has been guiding since 2013 and is a graduate of the Clearwater Guide School in Northern California. Scott and his family have lived at Hume Lake for the past 26 years. He and his wife will celebrate their 40th wedding anniversary this year. They have 3 kids.
See You At The Meeting!
| Beginner Plus Fly Tying Class, Bob Scheidt | Fly tying is starting again with a beginners plus fly tying class!
Class will be on Saturday mornings from 10 to noon beginning June 6th for seven consecutive Saturday mornings.
Class will be held at Bob's house in central Fresno, near Millbrook and Bullard.
This class is geared towards those that have some basic experience tying flies and want to expand their skills.
Different flies will be tied at each class. Patterns may include Stimulators, Humpies, Yellow Sallys, PMD’s, nymphs and flies other than trout flies. All will be patterns that are fished around here.
There will be a material fee of $10 payable when you register on the club's website. Bob will supply all the materials and hooks. Bob would like you to have your own vise and tools. He can help a few people the first session to give you a chance to ask Bob questions about what you need.
The minimum class size is six people - sign up if you are interested so we know if we have enough participants to start on June 6th. Sadly, Bob will have to cancel the class if we don't get six people to participate. It's important to make sure you can make the sessions if you sign-up.
Please call Bob at 559 288 5276 if you have any questions and to get his address.
It’s a no pressure class, fun and easy going. Bob's not a coffee drinker but you are welcome to bring your own. He does have some sodas and Gatorade drinks.
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Hume Lake May 9, 2026
It has been a few years since we have done this trip. It's a beautiful lake and a very fun area to spend the day. Stay tuned as put the finishing details together.
Roger Miller Youth Academy May 16, 2026
The Academy is designed for young people ages 11 to 15. Instruction will include casting, fly tying, conservation and a host of other skills offered by regional experts. The course includes education in fly fishing as well as fishing in local waters.
More Information Here
Small Creeks on the San Joaquin May 23-24
More information coming soon.
Marble Fork of the Kaweah June 27, 2026
The Marble Fork of the Kaweah River near Lodgepole in Sequoia National Park has proven to be a great spring fishery in recent years. Depending on conditions, we have see great dry fly, as well as nymphing success. This is a beautiful area and a great place to gather as a club and enjoy a day of fishing together.
Kern River Heritage Trout Challenge July 23-25
There are three of the Heritage Trout species in the Kern River Basin and Golden Trout Wilderness area. The Little Kern Golden west of the Kern River, the Kern River Rainbow in both branches of the Kern River and the California Golden Trout on the east side. We are planning a 3-4 day trip to pursue each of these three species. Stay tuned for more details.
Go Here to see our full Event Calendar and to register for events
| | At some point most fly anglers will find themselves in need of a guide. Maybe you’re visiting a new river and need help figuring it out, or perhaps wading a river is not feasible and you need someone with a drift boat to take you out, or maybe you’re just ready for someone to instruct you on techniques you’ve been struggling with. These are all good reasons to hire a professional. Here’s another one: you and your buddy bid on a guided trip at your fly club’s annual banquet and won! That describes how Brian Loven and myself found ourselves floating the Lower Sacramento River with none other than local legend Tim Fox of Mr. Fox Outfitters. | | Brian and I had timed our trip to maximize our chances of doing well. Water flows were around 4000 CFS and the weather was warming up. It was March and spring had arrived early, as evidenced by the PMD mayflies and caddis that had the attention of the river’s trout. Our plan was to wade fish in the afternoon of our arrival to Redding, and then connect with Tim the next morning. Given the river access that the low flows provided, Euro Nymphing was what we decided to try. We both did well and landed some nice fish the Sacramento River is famous for. With Keswick Dam controlling flows and keeping the water temperature a constant 48-52 degrees, aquatic bugs and rainbow trout thrive in this tailwater. | | | Neither one of us broke down our Euro rods after fishing and we left our flies tied on. We hoped to bring them on Tim’s boat and maybe have the chance to get out of the boat and wade fish if we found promising water. The next morning when we met Tim, he was more than willing to let us try Euro nymphing, but he wanted us to try it while drifting from the boat! That was something neither Brian and I had ever tried and I think it was a first for Tim as well. Keep in mind that 99% of fly anglers that drift the Lower Sacramento will be using an indicator rig with 2 or 3 flies underneath, usually with a split shot to help get the flies down in the “zone”. Time had his indicator rods ready for us to use as well. I think Tim planned for us to primarily use his rods and maybe get the Euro rods out for those occasional runs that set up nicely for tight-lining. As it turned out, use used the "bobber" rigs only one time and then for just a few minutes. | |
We fished the whole day with our own rods and often with our own flies. Since Tim was new to Euro rigging, we also tied up our own leaders whenever we got snagged and broke off. We all had a blast and caught plenty of fish. It was fun to not have to stare at a bobber all day. The grabs were not subtle, as these fish knew what they wanted and grabbed our flies with gusto. When we were between fish, Tim kept us entertained with his non-stop patter and numerous bird calls. He kept Brian and I focused and in the game with his willing of the fish to “strike it down”, (his catch phrase).
Fishing guides can’t control things like water conditions, bug hatches, or the weather. Those guides that do the best job are those that work hard to control those things that they can manage: equipment, flies, good lunches and snacks. That’s where Tim really shone.
| | | He had us on the water fishing until almost dark. Although Tim has been guiding for many years and is not a young man, he still takes great pride in making sure his clients have the best experience he can provide. Had Brian and I not thought to ask Tim about trying something new, we would have been doing what we had always done on drift trips: fished under an indicator. Remember, you are paying for your guide trip and should communicate your expectations to ensure your guide knows what you want out of the trip. We were lucky that our guide was open to trying something that is not often done on that river from a drift boat.
| Back of Beyond Stephen Neal
In Wildness is the Preservation of the World - “Henry David Thoreau."
| This article originally appeared in the August 2011 newsletters of the Fly Fishers for Conservation (Fresno CA) and the Kaweah Fly Fishers (Visalia CA.). Several factors have combined to prevent me from another original article this month, so I am sending an updated version of the original article. One factor in this decision is an upcoming three-week trip to the North Cascades and the Channeled Scablands of Eastern Washington. My plan is to use that trip as a subject of a future article.
May water always sing for you.
Stephen |
Back of Beyond by Wm. Stephen Neal 8/15/11
"No angler watches nature in a passive way. He enters into its very existence." John Bailey
Water Songs
2011's late spring and early summer in central California had been a high-water season. Our mild (for us) spring and early summer slowed down the high Sierra Nevada snowmelt, causing our rivers and streams to run high and turbulent for a longer than normal period. For fishermen that meant fewer fishable waters, but was also a time of stunning, magnificent water flows. Fishing was not an option, but that didn’t mean that I wasn’t drawn to the water. I made several trips to Yosemite and the Central Coast to immerse myself in the flow of the water and to listen to its music.
| | My birth and rearing in the central San Joaquin Valley makes me a desert person. Like the Navajo Indian children whom I observed during my many Arizona sojourns, I also gravitated to water. We all ran to watch the flash-floods fill the dry washes and canyons when the summer monsoons boomed across the canyonlands. Years later, when those same first summer rain hit, I watched Tucson's office workers leave their cubicles to stand in the street and let the falling rain refresh them, and to be touched by the waters of life. Mankind is pulled to flowing | | | Yosemite Falls, Yosemite NP, California
water; it's as if our very pores wish to be bathed in the essence of this moisture-laden effervescence of life. As fishermen and desert dwellers the force of water pulls at our souls with extraordinary force, and most of us answer the call.
I surely do. I walked the banks of the Merced River and Tenaya Creek and stood in the watery mist of Bridalveil, Yosemite and Vernal Falls. Dogwood flowers hung over the waters, meadow grass became seasonal lake bottoms, and trees became temporary islands in the midst of the water’s downward journey to the sea. I soaked it all in and when my daughter and grandsons came to town I brought them to the mountains to walk in my same path. I needed to share with them the power and renewal of the flowing waters.
But I did not go for the sights and smells only; I was pulled to the music as well. Water sings, and its tunes change with the seasons and throughout the hours of dark and light. In the spring its song is youthful, boisterous, exuberant, playful, and mindless in its pursuit of freedom as it rushes headlong downstream in its race to the open sea. It reaches its peak song in midday as the sun's warmth releases it from its frozen confinement. Then its voice is given its full breadth and volume. At night its tone is subdued and hushed yet still heard in its undertone, revealing the power that it still holds. The song calms in the height of summer. It almost becomes lazy, but hidden in the seeming calm is this deep drum of hidden energy which is ready to explode like a high mountain summer thunderstorm. Come autumn it burbles and bubbles, warbling contentment before the hush of winter when its tune is a whisper of gentle sleep and rest before the coming spring crescendo.
| | I followed the waters and the song to the ocean and found that the creeks had pushed the sand out before them, cutting deep channels into the beach as they rushed to join their water with the Pacific. New off-shore water buckets formed, creating feeding grounds for sand- and striped perch. I planned to return in September to try my luck in landing a few of these toothsome fish. I walked the shore in the early morning light and in the gloaming of sunset. Like millions before me, I became a beachcomber and followed the waves’ ebb and flow while | | | Estro Bay fog bank, California
searching for treasures that the waves had left behind. As I walked beside the Merced River, I listened to the water and was renewed by the crash of the waves. I took with me its music that filled my soul and refreshed my spirit. I left behind only footprints in the sand, and they disappeared with the rising of the tide.
The wet winter season of 2010 and 2011 resulted in high river levels which sated the thirsty earth. But it also spelt doom to those who incorrectly interpreted the siren song of turbulent water. What they imagined were sounds of playfulness and laughter were actually warnings of danger, despair, and sorrow. The melodies of running water vary. We need to recognize its deathly dirges as well as its spritely lilts. Please listen carefully to the water’s sounds so that you can interpret them correctly.
Unfortunately, heavy snowfall on our coastal mountains is no longer the norm. Most winters of the past decade have experienced below average snowpack. Our current winter of 2025-26 is no exception. Too much or too little water has always been an issue in the western United States, but too little water is far more common than too much. The history of water is writ large upon our land and shapes our lives in ways we are not even aware of. The San Joaquin Valley is an ancient lake bed. The Table Mountains north of Fresno are the uneroded bed of the ancient San Joaquin River. Puget Sound/Salish Sea was formed by ancient glacial fingers that shaped the land.
Water songs are ancient and continuous. Old and new songs join forces to nurture us. They give us life and room to live and prosper. Our very existence is tied to water. Listen to the many songs of water, from the lullaby of a bubbling brook in summer to the crashing of waves of an angry and tumultuous winter storm. They are the songs of our earth in her many moods. There is love and danger in every song. The wise will listen, because there is a lesson in every verse. | | wrapped around the trunks and limbs. They resembled green lambswool insulation. A misstep and a brief brush with the lichen would result in soaked clothing.
At the trail junction to Marymere Falls we encountered a gathering of fair-weather hikers sussing out the prudence of continuing the steep climb to the falls. Their voices overrode the silence of the forest and the quiet trickle of creek water. We wove our footsteps through the indecisive gathering and soon left the press of humanity behind, thus regaining the silence of the old growth rainforest.
Shortly beyond the Marymere Falls trail divergence we began to gain elevation as the creek gradient increased. Our views of the creek took on a game of peek-a-boo as we ducked under and climbed over fallen trees. The trail steepened dramatically and Sean, astutely gauging my strength, recommended we husband our resources for the climb up to | | | |
A Big Thank You, to Tennis Terrance for his editing suggestions.
“The world is out there, the journey starts the minute you leave the door, go outside and truly live.” – S. Neal
“When given the choice between being right or being kind, choose kind – Dr. Wayne W. Dyer
“Many go fishing all their lives, without knowing that it is not fish they are after” - Henry David Thoreau
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Marymere Falls, Olympic NP, Washington | | |
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|  | ABOUT US
We are a Fly Fishers International affiliated club, a national organization whose goal, like ours, is to promote the wonderful sport of fly-fishing as well as protect our natural resources. We promote catch and release, education, conservation, and above all, encourage and help those who desire to learn more about all aspects of fly-fishing.
Fly Fishers for Conservation (FFFC) was organized in 1961 by a group of devoted fly fishers deeply concerned with the preservation of trout and all game fish, their environment, and the quality of fishing. Our club has maintained two goals since that time: To foster and promote the sport of angling with artificial flies. To protect, conserve and increase our angling resources.
Go Here if you would like to join our club!
Fly Fishers for Conservation is a 501(c)3 tax-exempt non-profit organization. This means you can use your contribution as a tax deduction. The club gets revenue from member-ship dues and the annual fundraiser dinner. We try to contribute to conservation issues in the area and to our youth with our Trout in the Classroom program, the No Child Left Inside program and by holding a Youth Fly-Fishing Academy annually. The club is al-ways in need of funds. Please consider donating. You may send a check to Fly Fishers for Conservation at PO Box 1192, Clovis, CA 93613. Your donations will be greatly appreciated and they will help the club fulfill its obligations.
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