The Middle River Group, LLC

fly fishing, conservation and politics.

tenkara, conservation, communications, politics

Key grip and trout wrangler at the Middle River Group, LLC. Playing Doc Holliday to the Wyatt Earps of the fish and wildlife conservation world. Deputy Director, Marine Fish Conservation Network. Guide and instructor, Mossy Creek Fly Fishing. Freelance outdoor writer.

Speechless

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I was stunned. She wasn’t really going to do it was she? I mean why? Why subject your self to the agony.

Some things just need to be seen to be believed.

Eat More Brook Trout guest blogger Liza Raley, in her position as a Classy 97 radio DJ here in Idaho Falls, attended the Idaho Falls Police presentation at the Idaho Falls Rotary Club today, where she volunteered to help the police demonstrate the effectiveness of the taser.

About 50,000 volts later, Liza could be hear muttering, “I’d rather be fishing Warm River with my Tenkara rod…”

It is a stunning performance that you just have to see to believe it. Jump over to Guest Blogger Gets Tazed for a Good Cause and see for yourself.

Sportsmen’s Organizations Oppose Conservation Cuts

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A deliberate move away from America’s long conservation tradition…

Responding to the draconian cuts passed by the U.S. House of Representatives in HR 1, 42 of the country’s leading hunting, fishing and outdoor organizations sent a letter to the U. S. Senate today urging restoration of funding to conservation programs.

The key point for me:

While we fully acknowledge that conservation programs should shoulder a fair and proportional burden of reductions to the Federal budget as required to address the budget deficit, these provisions of HR 1, in our view, represent a deliberate move away from America’s long conservation tradition and, specifically with respect to the interests of the hunting, fishing and outdoor community. We are very disappointed that the House considered these actions without consultation with the hunting, fishing and conservation community, and appeal to you to please give significant and favorable consideration to our perspectives. These vital conservation programs with long-standing track records of success are foundational to fish, wildlife and habitat conservation, good for the economy in creating jobs particularly in rural communities, and critical to providing opportunities for access to and enjoyment of fish and wildlife resources by America’s sportsmen and sportswomen. [emphasis mine]

You can add your voice with this Action Alert from Trout Unlimited

Full letter after the jump.
[Read more…] about Sportsmen’s Organizations Oppose Conservation Cuts

Glass is not dead!

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To paraphrase my hero, the immortal Doc Holliday, my vanity knows no bounds….

Cameron Mortensen runs some fun contests over on The Fiberglass Manifesto. Because I am the proud owner of a T.F.M tee shirt I slung an entry into the pile for last month’s T. F. M. Spotting Photo Contest.

hard at work...

I thought Cameron’s write up was kinda clever. What do you think?

Oh by the way did I mention the prize was an awesome Scott F2 fiberglass rod.

Yeah that is a Scott hat I am wearing. I love the Scott Fly Rod Company folks and their rods outstanding. When I don’t fish tenkara, I fish a Scott.

Well the votes were tallied and guess what?!?

Looks like I have a shot at getting that F2!

Hey Cam you asked “How is that kitchen remodel coming along?”

Check it out!

the road to completion

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Guess the time on the remodeling job had a special reward!

A Conservation Nightmare

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We were warned

When Bob Marshal wrote, This will be the year that will test the commitment of the outdoors community, he gave us fair and early warning of the assault on conservation that was coming.

The conservation battles sportsmen fought to protect fish and wildlife habitat in the past may seem like speed bumps to the wall being raised in Washington this year.

Hal Herring took up the battle cry when he wrote Are There Any Politicians Who Really Understand Sportsmen’s Concerns?

What is disturbing is that we seem to have lost any conservative political leaders who understand sportsmen’s concerns, or, in the same vein, who recognize that there can be value in undisturbed land, or waters, or that intact ecosystems, with their healthy game and fish populations, also hold economic value in producing clean water, clean air, grazing, wildlife, flood or invasive weed control, all those elements that may not always add to the bottom line of corporate profit, but are the actual bottom line of life on this planet.

Not long after that Kirk Deeter added his voice in Should Conservation Be a Political Issue?

In my humble opinion, conservation shouldn’t be a political issue. It should be a cultural issue. And in that regard, I think those doing the real heavy lifting to protect wild places for fishing and hunting aren’t so much “green” as they are “camo.”

U.S. House takes an axe to conservation

Yesterday Deeter sounded the alarm loud and strong in his reaction to the US House of Representatives passage of HR1, Proposed Conservation Funding Cuts Could Devastate Fly Fishing Resources.

HR1 is a bill in Congress right now that would slash funding for a number of important conservation programs that impact fly fishing from coast to coast. I don’t care what your political persuasion is…if you’re a fly fisher, this should concern you, because any threat to habitat is a threat to opportunity. And in many cases, once a resource is gone, it’s gone.

He joins calls to action from Ducks Unlimited and Trout Unlimited!

Are you getting the message yet? If not, then you are not paying attention!

[Read more…] about A Conservation Nightmare

Indulge your curiosity, try tenkara!

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In Dylan Rose’s recent blog post on Skate the Fly, Dodging Icebergs and Rocking a Tenkara, he writes about watching Craig Mathews fishing tenkara on the Madison and being intrigued by the whole tenkara thing but not yet convinced.

I’ve yet to get excited about the Tenkara rage. I can’t really place my finger on why exactly. It may have something to do with the fact that it has been described to me as being the “purest form of fly fishing”. That kind of language always makes me vomit a little in my mouth.

Let’s see if I can convince him to indulge his curiosity and keep him from puking on his shoes.
[Read more…] about Indulge your curiosity, try tenkara!

Fear no plaid

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The jesters over at Moldy Chum are goading Tom Rosenbauer in their blog, Thurston! be a good man and fetch my kilt.

Since I know Mr. R is a good sport in every sense of the word I thought I would give him some support and encouragement by showing some tartan solidarity.

Any guesses where the tee shirt is from?
Yup, drinking a tilted kilt...

And as soon as it warms up I am going to add a photo of the latest fashion in tenkara fishing… stay tuned!

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