Tom's Newsletter

JULY 2010 GREEN NEWS, EVENING FLOATS

Hello friends, I can't believe we are already in the month of July. The summer here in North Creek has been dry and hot like the ones you would have down south. Temperatures have been in the 80s and 90s for most of the month of June and July has almost been the same. We have had little rain, but at least the rain we have received, has been timely. It has arrived just in the week prior to July 4th and it really helped the fishing and rafting. The water level increased by a foot and set the tone for a great holiday.

Here at the Streamside fly shop we've had a small inconvenience, our flies have been selling out quickly and we're having difficulty keeping them in stock. Myself and two expert tiers custom tie all of the flies for the store, they are well constructed and can not be mass produced. So I will focus on keeping a full selection available at all times. I will make sure during the off season that the fly shop will tie the largest selection of flies to date. As for next year we'll make sure that the fly shop won't run out of flies.

Also our flies are tied for the northern region of the Northeast. There are subtle differences in some of the Mayflies that are present in the Adirondack's of New York, Northern Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine. These same flies will work well in Southern Canada. Some research has been done on tying flies for this area of the Northeast. Changes in color and size, for example bright red thread on the Ausable Wulff create more styles of one fly. Other flies we tweek and change the size. I have found that large flies work well late in the season due to the early arrival of Autumn. So again please be patient, we will make sure that the fly shop won't run out of flies for next year.

The official start of summer, July 4th weekend has been a great one. My float trip on Friday, July 2nd with my new friend from New Jersey was successful as I mentioned in the June newsletter. Then on Sunday, July 4th fishing buddies "Lou","Cole" and myself, decided to take the fourteen foot raft with fishing frame to see if it could be used for evening floats on Alligator pond. Well as it turned out it makes a great vessel in which to have evening floats in, like fishing in a Cadillac. Plus it gives you a standing platform in which to cast from, enabling the fishermen to keep the fly rod out of the way when casting. That also means I don't have to feel the breeze of the fly as it whizzes past my ears at a hundred miles an hour. So being able to stand up and fly cast is always a plus.

So as it turned out the fishing on Alligator pond that evening was great, off the charts as they say. The bass were slamming and the Crappie began hitting later on. After an hour of fishing we lost count on the amount of fish landed. At one point the three of us just looked at each other and shook our heads and laughed. But the truth is Alligator pond is way over loaded with Bass. It keeps the fish on the small side, but the action if you catch a warm day or evening is non stop. A float on Alligator Pond and you'll feel like your in a Bayou some where in Louisiana. Old tree stumps and floating islands are dotted all over the pond with dead standing trees,Lilly pads and submerged vegetation that you cast into, giving you a feeling that a strike will hit your fly in an instant. Oh, remember the nesting pair of Osprey's? Well the pair of chicks are flying now and it's hard to tell them from their parents except for their size. If you fish the pond this time of the summer you'll want to use any kind of dry fly or Hopper patterns, also poppers made for the fly rod are all a sure bet. We also caught many Black Crappie, which I might add are also great table fare. The Bass, all though on the small side, were so aggressive that they put up a fight worthy of much larger fish. We were finally driven off the pond because the bugs were getting the best of us.

Changing directions, I had the good fortune to participate in the Lakeside Living Show at the Gunstock Ski Mountain in Guilford, New Hampshire the weekend of July 18th- 20th. It is the second year in a row I was there as an exhibitor. I had a great time and the show has grown into a major attraction in the last three years. As owners and promoters, Blair and Suzette Anthony go out of their way to put on a great event. The quality and number of exhibitors was evident again. Everything from Log Home builders, Timber framers, Rustic Furnishings, Art, Docks, Boats, Interior Designers and so many more items related to Lakeside living and the outdoors, made the show home for the weekend. And the beauty of Gunstock made the perfect venue for the show. The ski area is 30 minutes from Concord and an hour north of Manchester N.H, with Boston close to a three hour drive from the show. If you plan right you can make the drive from the Albany area in about 4 hours.

The lake community of central and northern New Hampshire are beginning to look similar to the architecture of the Adirondacks. The people of the region are very familiar with Rustic Furniture and I believe that the lake region north and east to Maine will be the next area to go Rustic. I was also pleasantly surprised to find out that many of the people knew of the Gore Mountain region. When talking with them, I often asked them if they would consider driving the four or so hours from the Boston,New Hampshire and the Providence areas. Most people said that the drive was not an issue and they would explore the Adirondacks but wanted to know if there was a lake community that of N.H and Maine. Also was there more to see other than Lake Placid. So I thought the conversations were positive and informative.

I think if we can promote the Adirondacks, North Creek, and the Gore region on a one to one level, or better yet as collective businesses,then we must think outside of the box. Maybe some day in the near future, retail, lodging and eating establishments here in the Gore area can exhibit at some of the trade shows at a discounted group rate. Promoters are also feeling the pinch of the economic down turn of the last 2 years. I have had conversations with them and there is room to be creative. Remember it is thinking outside of the box that will set us apart here in North Creek and the Gore Region.

Speaking of outside of the box, years ago I had the good fortune to learn the trade of hand hewn log cabin restoration in western North Carolina. Now the log cabin as we know it here in the North Country did not settle the frontier. But the hewn (squared on four sides) Log home was the standard from the South to the mid West. Logs were squared with the use of a two sided ax, a broad ax left or right handed and finally an adze. The corners were diamond notched,square notched and the strongest and most common the half dovetailed. I happen to think the half dovetail is also the best looking corner. There was a level of craftsmen ship with the hewn cabin that allowed it to survive well over 150 years in age. I've been thinking on a green level (real green not political green) for some time now. I soon hope to bring this kind of structure up here to the Adirondacks. The advances in insulation, coupled with the small size of what will be offered 12 x 12 and 14 x14 ft will enable them to be four season cabins. The Rustic Homestead hopes to have one here with in the next year. Complete with rustic furnishings, antler lighting and front porch over looking the babbling waters of North Creek. The Rustic Homestead also offers green constructed gazebos with 100 year old plus barn boards and timbers here on the grounds. We can also design and costruct one for your own needs. It's a step away from the traditional rustic gazebo made from native materials here in the Adirondacks. The design of the green structures can be fashioned with rustic elements, birch bark,twig motif can be used in gable's and trim around doors and windows. So this combined look on the gazebo and the hewn cabin would truly make them unique.

So as I've said, thinking and applying new and different ideas to your business is sometimes a necessity here in the Adirondacks. One might think that the summers are short and the winters are long here and this is true. But I see through eyes that view each season as an opportunity to take the best each has to offer. Spring has rafting, fishing, new construction, gardening. Summer has so much to offer, tourists, farmers markets, second homes, craft fairs, landscaping and so on. Fall has harvest festivals, hunting, hiking. Finally Winter, with skiing, snowmobiling, snow shoeing, the holidays, ice fishing. If a business can take the strengths of each season, offer a taste and market it to the public then it doesn't mater what your business is you'll prosper. This concept I believe will stay the same but the ideas can and should change. If we think outside of the box, complacency won't enter the picture. Some thoughts for us all to consider.

Now back to fishing. July has been a very warm month, with little rain. But the Bass fishing has been great the second half of the month. Also Thirteenth Lake in North River has fished very well in the evenings for Trout and Salmon. Largely due to the Hexagenia(giant mayfly) hatch. But for now back to bass fishing. My evening floats on Alligator pond in Minerva has yielded some great numbers of Bass, Crappie, and Bluegills. So on July 22nd I again met with a family of four to fish the pond. We met at the Streamside Fly Shop at 4:30pm and made it to the pond by 5pm and were fishing with in fifteen minutes. When Alligator pond is on all species of fish, hit any thing that is top water. Dry flies,hoppers and poppers when fly fishing and Rapalas and Yo-zuri pin minnows when spin fishing. We were spin fishing that night and the color of choice was chartreus. The two brothers that were fishing took some time to get used to the spinning rods but once they got it they were casting like professionals. Soon it was as though someone turned the light switch on, the fish were biting and it became organized chaos. In an instant I had the parents and the kids all casting. Now picture this, I'm sitting in the middle of the raft, I'm hearing and I can feel the whizzing of lures with treble hooks flying past my head all the while I'm trying to steady the raft and keep it in position so every one can cast with ease. But we just know that wasn't going to work because with the four of them someone always wanted the raft to be in a different position. Also Mom and Dad wanted to take pictures of every fish. Oh and I almost forgot, the line would always get tangled. Then someone would yell, " hey Tom should we try the blaze orange Rapalas". When the evening ended the two brothers had caught many with mom and dad adding to the numbers. As best as I can remember they caught well over 40 fish that evening.

I also think the parents had the best time of all, with both of them going crazy trying to get a snap shot of every fish caught by their children. When I guide a float trip I try to photograph the kids with their catch. Maybe the largest fish, then the different fish caught. I come away with maybe six pictures and of those I might use one or two on Facebook or my website. So the parents, totally in panic mode with camera in hand, found that it was nearly impossible to capture a shot of every fish. Simply because the kids in their excitement were on to the next fish. The fishing was that good. Sort of reminds me of christmas time when we were growing up. Ripping open gifts under the tree. Way to excited to enjoy the toy, football or board game, because the only thing on our minds was to get to the next gift. That drove our parents nuts, but that's what kids do. It was our job!

Speaking of kids,this summer I've had a great time taking family's out on evening floats. The kids are so full of vigor and ready to learn. I thank the parents for allowing me the freedom to teach the children the right ways to view wildlife and to appreciate that there is a bigger picture than the arcades and amusement parks. Nothing wrong with them, but I believe the family experience in nature will last longer in their memories.

Also remember Thursdays 3pm-8pm Main Street has the Farmers Market,Cruise nights,and on the third Thursdays the Art walk. So take a stroll down town and visit the businesses that stay open after hours. Or grab a bite to eat or a drink and take in the activities or the shops. Also don't forget the local music playing.

So for the time being, I will sign off and return next month. So please take a kid hiking, fishing,rafting, canoeing. Or maybe an afternoon at the Adirondack Museum, or the Newcomb Interpretive center. If you spend the time to nurture their curiosity do so in the best classroom possible the wonderful Adirondacks. Tight Lines.... Tom......