T ro u t L i n e s

President’s Message Spring 2009

of trout the next morning. I rigged
In 1972 I was in eighth grade at Presidents Message............... 1
my rod and set it in a forked stick
Whiteman Junior High School in
ready for action. It was a glorious Annual Spring Outing ............ 2
Goshen Indiana and an avid trout
day. I was fourteen years old, on
fisherman. I was lucky, since my Arrington Presents................. 3
father loved trout fishing I was able my own and in my element. I
thought about my buddies stuck in Fishing Report ........................ 3
to tag along almost every weekend
school and waited for them to
in the spring and early summer to Feature Fly……………………..4
arrive that evening. All the mothers
the Little Elkhart River. Looking
of my buddies thought I was a bad Project Healing Waters………4
back at it now as an adult, I think
my mom permitted my dad to go influence!
LECTU Presents………………4
fishing provided he took me along
About sundown my companions
to give her a break. Adopt A Trout ......................... 5
started to show up. One of the
guys mother wanted to know LECTU Officers Directory...... 6
My school was having a “Field Day
where my dad was and when I told
Event” the last Friday in April, the
her that he was not staying with us
day prior to the greatest day on
she made her son go back home Warden. Now why don’t you show
earth, the opening of trout season.
with her. What a mommy’s boy, we me all these trout you been
All the classes split into teams for
a series of relay races and other never let him off the hook for that catching”. I was scared to death. I
contests, no classes were held. I one. About dark the last of my had to do some fast-talking. I
friends got dropped off. He stood included all the yes sirs and no sirs
was able to somehow convince my
on the bridge and yelled to the in as polite a way as I could to
dad that I needed to skip school
campsite to see if it was us. I convince him that I really did not
that day, go out to the Little Elkhart
yelled back “You had better get have any trout and had not caught
River and spend the entire day
setting up my camp site in down here quick I’m catching all any trout (yet) even though I had
the trout already”. Little did I know my line was in the water. He
anticipation of the midnight opener.
but my friend wasn’t the only one looked all around the camp
I was going to camp out with
listening. inspecting the stream where I
several of my buddies that night,
most of who were not fishermen might hide a stringer and looking
We had a fire going and roasted through every cooler. He chewed
but were up for a little adventure.
some hot dogs. I couldn’t stand it me out for fishing prior to the
any longer and rigged a fat night season opening and really dogged
My dad was pretty cool about the
whole thing and let me off school, crawler on my waiting rod and me for what seemed to be an
something he never did unless tossed it out into the stream. I told eternity. He wrote down my name
the guys that if I caught anything I and address and wanted to know
fishing was involved. I remember
would just throw it back since it who my parents were. I thought I
him telling my mom that if I wasn’t
was not yet midnight when legal was going to jail. He finally left
out there early someone else
fishing time starts. We were without carting me away in
might take the best spot. What a
“snow job” that was. My dad knew horsing around the fire and did not handcuffs.
it was not necessary to be out notice a man approaching our
camp. He walked right up to our It took an hour or so before we
there the entire day but played returned to being a bunch of kids.
fire holding a fishing rod and all
along on my behalf. Dad dropped We caught trout that night, after
decked out in trout fishing gear. He
me off on the County Road 43 midnight, and more the next day.
said hello and then proceeded to
Bridge at 6:30 in the morning “Son I am the game warden” was
before he went to work with a semi say he was going to toss his line
in. Being fourteen and somewhat repeated about every hour or so
huge pile of camping supplies. between us to roars of laughter.
of a smart-ass I told him he had
better not or the Game Warden What an opener that was!
I spent all day setting up the tent,
rolling out my sleeping bag, would get him. All my buddies got
a chuckle out of that. Michael L Beachy
arranging a fire pit and gathering
President LECTU
firewood. I waded up and down the
That’s when he reached into his
stream scouting the holes where I
would skillfully pluck my daily limit pocket and pulled out his badge
and said “Son I am the Game
Winter, 2009 Page1
 Our goal is to be as informative as
Annual Spring We are going to have a fly tier possible to our membership on
Outing present to show fly tying what our goals are and how we are
enthusiasts a variety of patterns attempting to make this a reality.
and techniques to create flies We want to get as many members
th
Saturday May 9 will mark the pertinent to the Little Elkhart River involved as possible and the best
fourth annual “Spring Outing” for system. We will be presenting a way to do this is by showing off our
the Little Elkhart Chapter of Trout computer slide show of some of biggest asset the Little Elkhart
Unlimited. The outing will be held our projects and photographs of River.
at Riverbend Park in Middlebury, the river and it’s trout. We will
Indiana on the banks of the Little entertain questions about the We encourage you to attend this
Elkhart River. Riverbend Park is chapter and our home waters. outing to learn about the Little
located on the north end of the Elkhart River and your chapter of
catch and release artificial lure Trout Unlimited. A social event like
only section of stream. A fly casting instructor will be
this is a great way to get to know
available to help you refine your
others with like interests. It is fine,
casting skills in the park’s
Back again this year will be the if you wish, to bring along a non-
fishpond. After a day surrounded
stream access tours and the member fishing buddy. We will
by fishermen and the Little Elkhart
guided fishing demonstrations. The have T.U. applications available
River it will be difficult to resist the
stream access tours will run at and perhaps once they see the
temptation of trying it out, so bring
9:00 am and again at 10:30, as will river and hear our goals we can
your fishing gear along and after
the guided fishing demonstrations encourage them to join us in our
the outing try out
allowing folks to take efforts.
your luck
part in both activities.
A lunch will be Tentative Schedule
During the “Stream served at noon for a
Access Tour” you will nominal $5 donation of Events
be chauffeured along followed by a pick of
the Little Elkhart River the table raffle. This 8:30 am
and shown the major years raffle will Registration & Welcome
access sites. Your include a custom Raffle ticket sales begin
driver will be available to answer made 7.5 foot 4 weight fly rod Lunch ticket sales begin
questions about the river and what coupled with an Orvis Battenkill Sign-up for River Access Tour
kind of water to expect in each mid-arbor reel, an L. L. Bean fly Sign-up for Fishing Technique,
section. This tour is a great way to fishing outfit, an ultra light rod and guided fishing
become familiar with the river and reel, several L.L. Bean fishing
the lay of the land especially for vests along with a selection of 9:00 am
someone from out of town and a other fine prizes. First River Access Tour
first timer to this area. First Guided Fishing Technique
We will be holding the Adopt-A-
Trout drawing for the custom made 10:00am
During the “Fishing Fly Tying Demonstration
Orvis Zero Gravity 9 foot 6 weight
Demonstrations” we will act as 2008 LECTU slide show question /
with an Orvis Battenkill mid-arbor
your guide to assist you, the answers
reel valued at over $700.
angler, in some of the techniques
that we use to catch trout on the 10:30 am
We will be on hand to accept
Little Elkhart River. This mini Second River Access Tour
orders for our new LECTU apparel
session is designed to provide you Second Guided Fishing Technique
line and will have samples
with information and answer any
available for you to look over to aid 11:30am
questions you may have on what
in your selection. We will have a
works. There is no substitute for Fly casting instructions begin
sampling of our LECTU hats for
experience and we would like to
sale in limited quantities on a first 12:00 noon
give the beginning angler a place
come first sold basis. Lunch
to start. This year we want to
include both spin fishermen and fly
The Little Elkhart Chapter of T.U. 1:00 pm
fishermen in on these
has opted for a Spring Outing as President’s Address
demonstrations. If you want to take
our yearly fund raising campaign Pick of the Table Raffle Drawing
part you will need to bring your
as opposed to the more Adopt-A-Trout Raffle Drawing
trout fishing gear with you.
conventional banquet. It is felt that
Waders, rod/reel and tackle along
this type of gathering is more in After Drawing
with an Indiana fishing license
tune with the membership and Fish the Little Elkhart River if you
including trout stamp are required.
what a true fisherman would enjoy. wish
Winter, 2009 Page2
 can be the coldest place on earth
Dave Arrington Ice Out this time of year. I like to check the
Presents to LECTU Lake Fishing wind direction then fish the lea side
of the lake so the wind is at my
May 13th For Trout back if possible.

Dave Arrington Ph. D. is the Fishing Report: by Mike Beachy

president of LGL Natural
Resources Associates and a Several of the LECTU members
senior wildlife ecologist. LGL have reported trout success on
Natural Resources has been Northern Indiana Lakes that have
contracted through La Grange recently de-iced.
County Soil and Water
Conservation District to formulate The trick to catching trout in early
and implement a Watershed ice off lakes is to wade shore lines
Management Plan for the Little where a drop off is within casting
Elkhart River drainage system. distance then slowly work your lure
along the edge of the drop off.
Dave’s study and focus is on water Trout in lakes are generally Spin fishermen generally float bait
quality. He and his team are now cruising along the drop off looking under a bobber or cast small
in the implementation stage of for minnows. It is a matter of being spoons and spinners. Corn and
“best management practices” in an at the right place at the right time wax worms seem to have the
effort to protect the river from to intercept one of these cruising highest success rate early on
contaminates such as siltation and trout. Being near a point is although as the lake water
pollution. Large amounts of grant sometimes better then a long temperatures rise small gold
monies have been utilized to straight area but it doesn’t always hammered finish spoons do well
protect the Little Elkhart River and hold true. too.
a lot of data has been gathered
and processed in this effort. For the fly fishermen this early
trout action can be trying due to
Point sources of contaminants windy spring conditions. I prefer to
have been identified and are being use streamers stripped in very
addressed. Correction of these slowly giving the fly time to sink
issues has lead to cleaner water in between strips. Trout seem to take
the Little Elkhart River and it’s the fly on the sink. An olive woolly
feeder streams. These bugger with a little flash has
improvements will equate to better become my standard go to fly
habitat for our trout. however at times small nymphs
Trout often times congregate and conventional hair streamers
Dave is going to address our around the mouth of creek inlets do very well.
th
chapter at our May 13 where a fresh supply of food is
Wednesday evening LECTU being washed into the lake. These The action is generally slow even
meeting. Dave will present his feeder streams are generally on the best days but it gets you out
latest findings and outline the warmer then the lake water just of the house and puts a rod in your
project’s future as they work their after ice out and attract the trout hand. The fish fight hard in these
way down stream from the similar to a warm water discharge lakes despite the cold water
headwaters. Dave’s presentation is in the Great Lakes on a smaller temperatures so make sure your
always interesting and informative. scale. The trout will cruise the knots are tied well and your
His work is crucial to our chapter’s shore line then hold in an area leaders are free of wind knots.
mission and goals. where a feeder creek enters for a About the time you get cold and
while before going back on the lax is when the big one takes and
This is a meeting you do not want prowl. I generally target these breaks you off.
to miss if you want to know what is areas as I work a shoreline. A
going on in the Little Elkhart River good lake map and a little Area lakes worthy of exploring are
and what improvements are being homework can be advantageous Oliver-Olin- Martin chain in
made in the water quality of our for this type of lake fishing. LaGrange County, Clear Lake and
home waters. The chapter meets Lake Gage in Steuben County and
at 7:00pm the second Wednesday Ice out trout fishing in lakes is not Cedar Lake in Whitley County.
of each month at the Middlebury for the faint at heart. The water is
Library. cold and so can be your feet,
hands and face. I generally figure
what I need to wear to stay warm
then put on another layer. Lakes

Winter, 2009 Page3

 spearhead a fly “tie-a-thon” where
Feature Fly members tie flies to be donated for
“Sparkle Dun” a worthy cause. This year Project
Healing Waters was the benefit
by Brandon Rasler recipient.

Project Healing Waters is

A Sparkle Dun imitates the dedicated to rehabilitation of
hatching mayfly. This fly is similar physical and emotional disabled,
to a Comparadun with a Zelon tail active duty military personnel and
to imitate the shuck from which a Stack the Wing hair and point the veterans through fly fishing outings
dun had just emerged. This can tips toward eye of the hook. Make and fly tying education.
be tied in any color to match the a couple wraps before tightening to
hatch. flair the wing. Hold the wing on top On March 15th several members
of the hook to keep the hair from of the Little Elkhart Chapter of
To fish this pattern, use a classic rolling around the hook. Make a Trout Unlimited took part in this
dry fly technique. Fish a dead drift few wraps in front of the wing to year’s event. The end result was a
with a floating line. Cast upstream help it stand up. Trim the butts of donation of 6,200 flies for our
and across the current. Make a the wing hair in a taper to help soldiers. This was a great event for
quick mend of your line and allow form the body of the fly. a very worthy cause.
the fly to float along with the
current. To learn more about Project
Healing Waters visit
www.projecthealingwaters.org.

Lightly dub a tapered body forward

to the wing. Make a few turns of
dubbing in front of the wing to 2009 Tie-a-thon Back to front: Lee
Troyer, Brandon Rasler, Scott Lehman
complete the head. Don’t crowd and Mike Beachy work on flies for
Hook: Dry Fly Hook Sizes 28 – 4
the eye. Finish the fly with a half Project Healing Waters
Thread: 50- 70 denier hitch tool.
Body: Dry Fly Dubbing
Tail: Zelon Fibers Little Elkhart
Wing: Deer or Elk Hair Chapter Presents
Attach thread and wrap to the hook On April 16th President Mike
barb. Beachy and Webmaster Brandon
Rasler will be presenting “Trout
Fishing the Little Elkhart” to Fort
Wayne’s Three Rivers Fly Fishers
at Turners Club at 7:00pm.

The presentation will highlight the

Little Elkhart River and LECTU’s
efforts to establish a year round
LECTU Contributes trout fishery. The slide show and
talk is aimed towards the first time
to Project Healing trout fishermen to these waters.
Waters Benefit Anyone interested in hearing this
Attach tail material from just
behind the hook eye. Cut the presentation is encouraged to visit
St. Joe River Valley Fly Fishers, a
length of tail equal to the length of the Three Rivers Fly Fishers web
South Bend based Federation of
the hook shank. site for details on meeting site and
Fly Fishers Chapter in cooperation
dates, www.3rff.org. Three Rivers
with Kalamazoo Valley Chapter of
Fly Fishers is affiliated with the
Trout Unlimited annually
Federation of Fly Fishers.
Winter, 2009 Page4
 Adopt-A-Trout
The Little Elkhart Chapter of Trout Unlimited has been working diligently to establish a year round trout fishery on the Little
Elkhart River. A late season fishery is dependent upon a resident population of brown trout. The Indiana Department of
Natural Resources does not stock brown trout in the Little Elkhart River therefore all brown trout have to be stocked from
private sources

The Elkhart Conservation Club has been stocking fingerling brown trout for years in the Little Elkhart River and we
appreciate their efforts. The results of their stockings have been evident however the river still needs more browns to
sustain a consistent brown trout fishery. Now, the Little Elkhart has an area of catch and release protected waters. This
protects these fingerling browns and allows then the chance to grow and if caught returned to the river.

The Little Elkhart Chapter of Trout Unlimited has begun to stock larger brown trout in an effort to jump- start a resident
population of brown trout within the catch and release area. Last year LECTU put in 500 browns 8 to 10 inches in size.
Our stocking proved to provide a start to the necessary brown trout required to realize our dream of a year round trout
fishery. The best part of this program is that those trout are still there protected by catch and release/ no bait.

Again this year LECTU is planning to stock another 500 brown trout into the catch and release protected stretch. We need
your help to establish this resident population of required brown trout. We are holding a raffle to raise the funds necessary
to purchase and transport these brown trout. The Adopt-A-Trout raffle tickets are 10 dollars each with an impressive grand
prize of a Custom Built Orvis Zero Gravity 9foot 6-weight fly rod coupled with an Orvis Battenkill mid Arbor fly reel. A prize
valued at over $700! As an added bonus for each person purchasing raffle tickets you will receive our newly revised
“Guide to Trout Fishing the Little Elkhart”. This guide highlights the river access points complete with color maps in a tri -
fold pamphlet (one per person).

The deadline for Adopt-A-Trout raffle ticket sales will be May 9th. The drawing for the fly rod will be held at our Spring
Outing on that day. Please allow mailing time when sending in raffle tickets to be eligible for the drawing or you can
purchase your raffle tickets at the outing prior to the drawing. We encourage pre- outing ticket sales so we know where we
stand with this fund-raiser.

We understand that in these tough economic times extra money is sometimes difficult to come up with. This program
shows great promise that will result in years of pleasure for all those involved and future generations of conservation
minded trout fishermen. The drawing and prize is the “icing on the cake” the real prize will be catching brown trout long
after the state stocked rainbows have vanished due to the warming waters of summer for years to come.

Instructions: Please complete the form below for each Trout you would like to “Adopt.” Photocopies are o.k. If you do not
provide an e-mail address, please enclose an S.A.S.E. so that we m ay send you the fishing guide. Mail the form and
SASE along with $10.00 for each trout to:

LECTU Adopt A Trout

17585 Ireland Road
South Bend, IN 46614

Adopt A Trout Fundraiser

Name
Phone
E-Mail
$10 for EACH trout you would like to adopt

Full sheets of Adopt a Trout forms available online at http://www.lectu.org/adopt.pdf.

Winter, 2009 Page5

 Little Elkhart Chapter Officers Directory
President ............................ Michael Beachy.......... [email protected] ................................574-534-1123
V. President........................ Leonard Gustin........... [email protected] ..................260-463-5020
Secretary............................ Lee Troyer.................. [email protected] .........................574-875-5432
Treasurer............................ Don Fiwek .................. [email protected]
Newsletter Editor ................ Brandon Rasler .......... [email protected] ..............................574-333-3349

Little Elkhart Chapter of Trout Unlimited Website

LECTU.org is the place to go to find out what is going on in the chapter. Brandon Rasler our Communication Chairman
and Web Master has been doing a fine job updating our LECTU web site. Find past newsletters, meeting minutes and
updates on projects on the web site. You can find order forms for LECTU apparel and fishing guides. There are contacts
listed for the chapter officers that you can contact if you have a question or want to get a fishing update or stream
conditions.

Little Elkhart Chapter of Trout Unlimited Annual Elections

To stay on top of all things going on in our chapter please attend any of our monthly meetings. Meetings are held at 7:00
pm on the second Wednesday of each month at the Middlebury Public Library.

Our Annual Meeting is slated for September 9th, Elections will be held at this time so please mark this important date on
your calendar.
Winter, 2009 Page6