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TRCP Honors Conservation Giants at Annual Awards Dinner

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On Wednesday night, September 30, I had the honor to be part of this event. It was a great chance to share more Jim Range stories with many of his good friends. He may be gone but events like this remind us that he is far from forgotten.

This TRCP press release captures the evening quite well.

TRCP Honors Conservation Giants at Annual Awards Dinner

At second annual Capital Conservation Honors, the TRCP pays tribute to Rep. John D. Dingell,
Bass Pro Shops founder Johnny Morris and TRCP co-founder Jim Range,
launching Jim Range Conservation Fund in his honor

WASHINGTON – At its second annual Capital Conservation Honors, held last night near the group’s headquarters in Washington, D.C., the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership recognized the achievements of some of the sportsmen-conservation world’s brightest stars and launched a fundraising effort honoring the legacy of former TRCP chairman and co-founder Jim Range. The two-year campaign for the TRCP Jim Range Conservation Fund begins with $150,000 in contributions already in hand and has a fundraising goal of $2 million.

The gala event featured a keynote address by Douglas Brinkley, professor of history at Rice University and best-selling author of The Wilderness Warrior: Theodore Roosevelt and the Crusade for America. Congressman John D. Dingell of Michigan was awarded the TRCP’s Sportsman’s Champion Award for his leadership in the U.S. House of Representatives on legislation to protect our nation’s waters and wetlands and to provide funding for fish and wildlife adaptation strategies in climate change legislation. Johnny Morris, founder of Bass Pro Shops and a lifelong conservationist who has donated millions of dollars to conservation and education groups, was presented with the TRCP’s Lifetime Conservation Achievement Award. Lead sponsors of the Sept. 30 event included Bass Pro Shops, Beretta, Frontiers Travel and Orvis.

“The TRCP’s Capital Conservation Honors recognizes the best of the past, present and future of conservation in America,” said George Cooper, TRCP president and CEO. “Reflecting on the lives of giants such as Theodore Roosevelt, John Dingell, Johnny Morris and Jim Range showcases the great achievements that sportsmen have made in the name of conservation – yet also lights a path forward by illustrating how much remains to be done to assure the future of our shared natural resources and our great sporting traditions.”

Throughout his success, Johnny Morris has remained an ardent conservationist and is the recipient of numerous honors, including the Sport Fishing Institute’s Fisherman of the Year award, the International Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies President’s Award, the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation Conservationist of the Year award, the Master Conservation award from the Missouri Department of Conservation and the National Wild Turkey Federation’s Hunting Heritage Award. He was inducted into the International Game Fish Association’s Hall of Fame in 2005 and has been named one of the 25 most influential people in hunting and fishing by Outdoor Life magazine.

“Conservation of our outdoor resources remains a cornerstone of our company,” said Morris. “I am humbled by this honor and pledge to continue carrying on the legacy of sportsmen-conservationists like Teddy Roosevelt and Jim Range.”

Jim Range, who passed away in January, was memorialized with the official launch of the Jim Range Conservation Fund. A hero of modern conservation, Range was instrumental in the crafting and passage of a string of landmark natural resource laws, including the Clean Water Act. Range served on the boards of directors for Trout Unlimited, Ducks Unlimited, the Wetlands America Trust, the Recreational Boating and Fishing Foundation, the American Sportfishing Association, the American Bird Conservancy, the Pacific Forest Trust, the Yellowstone Park Foundation and the Bonefish and Tarpon Trust. An original board member and chair of the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, Range also was a White House appointee to the Interstate Commission on the Potomac River Basin, the Sportfishing and Boating Partnership Council and the Valles Caldera Trust.

“When Jim Range co-founded the TRCP, I thought ‘no one better,’” said Theodore Roosevelt IV, a member of the JRCF Leadership Council. “He never removed conservation into ideology. For Jim, as for TR, conservation was about people as much as about place. He was a ‘real guy’ who could talk to absolutely anyone and keep them at the table: hunters, steamfitters, CEOs.”

Range’s dedication to the conservation of fish and wildlife in support of the nation’s sporting traditions remains entrenched in sportsmen’s lives through the TRCP. The TRCP’s establishment of the Jim Range Conservation Fund assures that Range’s conservation legacy as directed through the mission of the TRCP endures and will be perpetuated through the group’s ongoing efforts on behalf of American hunters and anglers.

“Range understood the great art of politics but never became so involved in ‘winning’ that he lost sight of the goal: service,” continued Roosevelt. “It is the hope of all of us that this fund will be the beginning of permanent financing to protect our hunting and fishing traditions.”

“The Jim Range Conservation Fund will assure that Jim Range’s voice continues to influence the way we as a nation use and enjoy our shared resources and fish and wildlife habitat,” said TRCP Board Chair Jim Martin, conservation director of the Berkley Conservation Institute, “and by recognizing and honoring the achievements of other great sportsmen-conservationists, the TRCP intends to perpetuate that benefaction. This is the foundation of the TRCP’s Capital Conservation Honors, and this is the legacy of our great friend Jim Range.”

The JRCF Leadership Council is led by Co-chairmen Hon. Howard H. Baker Jr. and Ted Turner. Council members are James A. Baker IV, Charles “Chip” H. Collins, Matthew B. Connolly Jr., George Cooper V, David Perkins, Charles S. Potter Jr., Theodore Roosevelt IV, John M. Seidl and R. Beau Turner. Additional support for the second annual Capital Conservation Honors was provided by the Range family, Dusan Smetana Photography and The Thomas Group.

Inspired by the legacy of Theodore Roosevelt, the TRCP is a coalition of organizations and grassroots partners working together to preserve the traditions
of hunting and fishing.

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Fishing in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park

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its not about the fishin, its about the friends...
it's not about the fishin, it's about the friends...

A couple of weeks ago I was in Tennessee on a fishing trip with three of my best friends. This was the second trip we have taken together as a group. Like last year, we spent four days fishing for trout in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

The park is only about a five and a half hour drive south of here and contains over 700 miles of wild trout streams. The terrain features and watershed are not that different than what you find here in the Valley in the George Washington National Forest or the Shenandoah National Park.

What is different is the variety of trout you can fish for. All the trout in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park are wild. They stopped stocking in the early 1970’s. You can fish for rainbows, browns and brookies there.

This year, like last, we started our trip at Little River Outfitters, Byron and Paula Begley’s shop in Townsend.

I have been in many shops over the years and this is one of the best. Not only do they have the gear you need, they have the local knowledge. Most importantly they share that knowledge willingly. If you decide to head down that way you really should check in with them.

What I really enjoy about the GSMNP is fishing for rainbow trout in the mountain streams. Rainbows, like brookies, are quick to take a well-presented dry fly. Catching these acrobatic fish in fast-moving mountain streams is a thrill.

According to the folks at Little River Outfitters “Rainbows are found at almost every elevation in the Smokies with the exception of some high elevation brook trout streams. Rainbow trout generally average in size from 4″ to 10″ and on rare occasions up to 14″”.

On this trip we spent a lot of time dodging the rain so most of the fish we caught were on nymphs tied behind a dry fly. Little yellow stoneflies, March Browns and light Cahill’s seemed to be the most prominent. We started to see a few sulfurs come off as well.

We stuck with pretty standard nymph patterns, pheasant tails, copper john’s and gold-ribbed hare’s ears. My “go to” nymph and all-around best producer was the shop-vac.

Last year we had a map marked with prime fishing spots. Our plan had been to fish the same areas again since they had lived up to our expectations last year.

The water levels this trip forced us to seek out new spots to fish. Waters levels were three times the normal flow, blowing out the larger rivers and making even the moderate sized mountain streams dangerous to wade.

Since many of the streams are easily accessible from the roads and trails we were able to look over the map and plan each day’s fishing based on the current or forecast water conditions.

This type of fishing is a bit more challenging than what we had wished for. Last year we had split up into pairs and fished different sections of the streams. With water conditions as treacherous as they were we opted to fish together as a group.

Needless to say this not only allowed us to scout around for potential fishing locations it also gave us a chance to offer each other some good natured “critiques” of each other’s fishing abilities.

Our evening destination was the Little River just up stream from Metcalf Bottoms. This section of the Little River boasts large pools, long runs and lots of pocket water. This is where the big brown trout hang out and we were hoping to find one or two.

Given the water conditions we opted to fish a long run near one of the picnic areas. For three of the four evenings of the trip we swung streamers and nymphs in the swift murky water.

Each evening we were rewarded with a good hatch of mayflies and stoneflies giving us some great fishing to rising browns and rainbows.

The Great Smoky Mountains National Park celebrates its 75th anniversary this year. Fishing is a great way to join in the celebration.

On the road

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First stop TU’s National Capital Angling Show, Saturday, March 14, from 10 a.m. until 5:30 p.m. at Georgetown Preparatory School, 10900 Rockville Pike, Bethesda, MD

This show is always fun with national known and local fly-fishing pros and celebs, casting classes and clinics, and great vendors.

More info!

Next week I will be at the North American Wildlife and Natural Resources Conference, March 16-21, Marriott Crystal Gateway, Arlington, Virginia.

This is the premier gathering of professionals from the hunting, fishing and natural resources community. Loaded with special sessions, workshops, meetings and great changes to socialize with friends and colleagues.

More info!

Sporting Clays in the Valley

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If you enjoy shooting a shotgun and want to get out and have some fun, here is some good news for you.

The Valley has a couple of great sporting clay courses where you can really enjoy yourself.

Sporting clays started in England, but really took off in the United States in the 1980s.

The targets are thrown by machines, called traps, and replicate the flight of game birds like pheasants, grouse and ducks. Good courses present these targets in natural surroundings. Each course is laid out in a series of shooting stations.

Each station offers the shooter a challenge similar to one you might find while out hunting and can test the limits of shooting ability. You might see targets crossing in front of you, going through openings in the trees, going over your head, coming toward you or running and bouncing along the ground.

This past weekend I had the chance to visit two operations, the Flying Rabbit in Mount Crawford and Quail Ridge in Lexington.

My good friend John Alexander and his partner Rick Hill took over the operation at the Flying Rabbit last year. The course is located on Route 11 about one-and-a-half miles north of Route 257.

Alexander and Hill started working on the improvements to the Flying Rabbit in November. They changed the layout, added new stations and modernized the course by adding all electronically controlled traps.

Unlike many courses using mechanical traps that require an operator to accompany the group, at Flying Rabbit each group of shooters is given an electronic device that allows them to throw the targets.

“We are most proud of our control box,” said Alexander. “You can throw your own targets and shoot at your own pace.”

They will be expanding the operation with plans for both a five-stand course and wobble trap setup. Alexander told me the five-stand should be ready by March.

Flying Rabbit is open on Saturdays and Sundays from 11 a.m. until dark. They are open by appointment, Wednesdays through Fridays, call 574-2529. A round of 50 targets costs $20, a round of 100 targets costs $35. You can buy ammunition on site or bring your own.

There is a shooting league in the works and they have plans for fun shoots and tournaments as well.

Quail Ridge, open for sixteen years, is located at 336 Murat Road in Lexington. The sixteen-station course winds along a half-mile path along a wooded hillside.

All shooting is by appointment only so you need to call 463-1800 before you go. They are open from 9 a.m. until dusk Thursdays through Saturdays and noon until dusk on Sunday.

A round of 50 targets costs $20 a round of 100 targets is $30. You can buy ammunition on site and they have some basic accessories like glasses and hearing protection as well.

Quail Ridge is open to shooters of all ages.

“I started shooting trap competitively when I was 10 years old,” said Chris Salb, the owner of Quail Ridge. “There is no reason to stop youngsters from shooting.”

Quail Ridge hosts corporate events, charity shoots and tournaments.

Both operations offer instruction. If you are a bird or small game hunter and haven’t tried sporting clays, give it a try. If you just shoot trap or skeet, you may find sporting clays a welcome change of pace.

Fishin’ the ‘Fork

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Finally got a chance to take advantage of the break in winter weather and get in a little fishing.

Beth (@phishurmom )and I went over to one of our favorite Brook trout streams last Sunday.

The water temps were still low, so we didn’t expect to see active fish. It was mostly just a chance to work out some preseason kinks and do some on-stream coaching.

If you really don’t expect to catch fish then you can work on your skills without being under a bunch of pressure to catch something.

Kind a nice to spend an afternoon with your favorite fishin buddy, too.

JimRange.com

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There is a wonderful Web site in memory of Jim Range. It has pages and pages of tributes, stories and pictures about this remarkable, irrepressible, and irreplaceable human being.