We have Catskill style and snowshoe rabbit BWO’s from Mike Bachkosky, fresh lids from Patagonia and the Winter issue of The Drake on the front counter.
Archive for the 'news' Category
The shop will be closed Tuesday the 10th through Friday the 13th of this week.
The shop will be open Saturday the 14th, Sunday the 15th and Monday the 16th from 10 AM till 4 PM.
The shop will be closed on Tuesday the 17th of next week.
The shop will be open Wednesday the 18th from 10 AM till 4 PM and will resume normal hours on the 19th.
These lucky Hardy fly reels were just relined in anticipation of more fishing and more fish in 2012!
Last week I delivered eyed Kamloops Strain Rainbow eggs as part of Trout Unlimited’s TIC program to Bel Air High School. About 160 students will be exposed to the TIC program and the students will rear the fry, learn about basic water quality needs and release the fingerlings in the spring in regulated trout waters in the State of Maryland. The wall art adorning the halls was quite inspiring! Once the fertilized eggs hit 54 F, (approximately the same temperature as the receiving waters) they are ready to go into the brooding baskets in the TIC tanks and should hatch out in just a few days.
By now many of you have heard that I am now serving as the Gunpowder RIVERKEEPER®,(GRK). If you’ve visited the shop this season you’ve likely become familiar with some of the issues and resulting GRK project areas that we are focusing on along the 217 miles of tributaries and 53 miles of the mainstem that comprise the Gunpowder River Watershed. As a new nonprofit charged with protecting the Gunpowder River, we feel that the RIVERKEEPER®, model is an effective, grassroots advocacy tool which safeguards tributary and river health. GRK champions the compliance of existing environmental laws such as the Clean Water Act to protect downstream waters including the Chesapeake Bay and assures that public waterways in the Gunpowder Watershed remain swimmable, drinkable and fishable. For those Gunpowder River users interested in our work I’ve provided a year end wrap up:
In 2011, Gunpowder RIVERKEEPER®:
Filed formal complaints with Baltimore County, Maryland Department of the
Environment, (MDE) and the Office of the Attorney General related to alleged agricultural compliance violations of a conservation easement along a Brook Trout tributary of the Gunpowder.
Gave testimony before the Sport Fish Advisory Commission and asked the Maryland Park Service to regulate recreational tubing and enforce no alcohol laws throughout Gunpowder State Park to address community concerns about public safety and habit degradation.
Formally asked MDE to reopen a federal discharge permit and provided comments with the Environmental Integrity Project that asked for a reduction in the discharge of heavy metals from a coal fired power plant located along the Lower Gunpowder River.
Lead a panel discussion on Invasive Species at the Waterkeeper Alliance Annual
Conference at Northwestern University, near Chicago, IL and at Trout Unlimited’s
Coldwater Summit at the USFWS NCTC in Shepardstown, WV.
Commented on a Water Quality Assessment of the Lower Gunpowder River and asked MDE to include a compliance record of waste water treatment plants that discharge into the Lower Gunpowder River to better typify the water body prior to reclassification and removal from the 303(d) impaired waters list.
Attended Regional, (Baltimore, Harford and Carroll County) Watershed Implementation Plan and Total Maximum Daily Load meetings to discuss implementation of the EPA’s Chesapeake Bay Pollution Diet.
Gave testimony before MDE on Stormwater and Sediment and Erosion Control
Regulations and asked the Department to strengthen regulations to protect water quality in streams along and downstream of construction sites.
Supported three three fertilizer bills that resulted in a prohibition of quick release
phosphorous in residential lawn fertilizers sold in Maryland in 2012.
Sampled the watershed with 13 volunteers for MDDNR Stream Waders Program.
Hosted an American Rivers Gunpowder River wide cleanup. Recruited volunteers and took part in a stream planting project to stabilize the Little Falls, an important tributary of the River.
2011 Awards: Maryland Department of Natural Resources Conservation Award,
Baltimore County Executive Citation, Baltimore County Council Resolution, Mid
Atlantic Council Trout Unlimited’s Elliot Donnelly Award.
Gunpowder RIVERKEEPER® is recognized by the IRS as a 501 c(3) non-profit classified under natural resource conservation and protection and your charitable contribution is tax deductible to the fullest extent of the law.
If you feel that the work of Gunpowder RIVERKEEPER® described above has value, please consider an end of the year donation and become a member to further the cause of protecting the Gunpowder River for future generations.
Your continuing support is vital to our efforts,
Theaux M. Le Gardeur
Related Posts:
Spillover leads to another Gunpowder River Flood: From Unfishable to Unfathomable
Gunpowder RIVERKEEPER® call for Volunteers
Felt Sole Ban and a Membership to Gunpowder RIVERKEEPER®
The Deep Water Horizon Oil Spill One Year Later
Aldo Leopold’s Birthday and the Launch of the Gunpowder RIVERKEEPER Website
Theaux Le Gardeur Widely Quoted in an Acid Mine Remediation Economic Impact Study
Lefty Kreh with his namesake Deceiver is featured on the 2012 Maryland Fishing Guide. Get a copy of the guide when you pick up your 2012 Maryland Fishing License. Please be sure to bring your drivers license and check or cash for the license payment.
Note: The shop will be open this Saturday till 4:00 PM and will be closed on New Years day.
The miracle on 34th St in Hampden properly rings in the season.
Merry Christmas Hon!
Flyfishing over the holidays?
Our Christmas Weekend Hours are:
Open 10 till 2 on Christmas Eve
Closed on Christmas Day
Open 10 till 4 on Monday
Thanks to Roy for the stream report and photo;
In all my ten plus years fishing this gem I’ve never had a day like this! I worked my way up from the bridge at Falls Rd practicing my euro nymphing skills, I pulled a few fish out of the deeper seams as I fished up stream. I got up towards the big rock that blocks the river up from the bridge and started working the deep hole, I detected a strike and set the hook and the fight was on. My three wt was screeming and I saw the tail of the fish and realized I had a 20″ plus fish on. As I finally tired this brute out I noticed that it wasn’t a rainbow as I suspected but instead a walleye. Yes a walleye, I figure it had to get past the dam and get down here with all this rain we had! This 22″ fish decided to chow down on my egg pattern, I was totally amazed as were the staff of Backwater Angler!
Thanks Backwater for being my fly shop!
Your fellow angler!
Roy Greenway
Thanks to Don and Norma for dropping by Sunday with some fresh baked cookies and a Baltimore Sun article titled; Trail in Gunpowder Falls Park to be Named for Kreh. Today is the official ceremony in Annapolis! The Gunpowder South Trail, now marked with white blazes, will be posted as The Lefty Kreh Fishing Trail by the time the Sulphurs are hatching. In the article, Joe Evans, Maryland DNR’s Fisheries Spokesperson added;
This winding, tree-shaded trail-previously called the Gunpowder South Trail-Follows the Big Gunpowder Falls River, a blue ribbon trout stream that serves as a right of passage for anyone getting into fly fishing in Maryland.
Congrats Lefty, you’re an inspiration to us all!
Round up some holiday stationary, give us a call before noon on December 24th and print out our fly fishing gift certificate at home. We can also send one priority mail with delivery confirmation by December 20 or stop by the shop prior to Christmas and pick up one for your loved ones. Gift Certificates are available in any denomination and can be used for fly fishing gear, fly fishing schools or guide trips. Flies, while not included are great stocking stuffers! Point your gift givers with a Mastercard or VISA to the Backwater Angler Gift Certificates Page.
Gift Certificate Suggestions:
Pick up a certificate for Gear from $25 and up!
Certificates for Fly Fishing Schools are $100 per person.
Spend a half or full day Fly Fishing the Gunpowder with a Backwater Angler Guide $225 to $325.
Remember that Backwater Angler gift certificates can be mailed or emailed in a flash without subjecting your loved ones to beltway angst.
Thanks for shopping where you get your stream report!
