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I was in the Bonaventure area over the weekend, working with the team from Hooké on some material for the exciting ASFxHooké collaboration. Angling was slow, but a few fish were being convinced to take. One of the great things about salmon fishing is meeting new people and making connections. I met Jon Smith and Beth Cook from Sellersville, PA and enjoyed sharing a few fishing stories with Jon, a longtime salmon angler. Beth is new to fly fishing and it was her first time angling for salmon. Their hard work paid off with a grilse for Jon on Friday. When I headed home on Sunday morning I wished them luck on their last day of fishing. I was delighted a few days later to hear that persistence paid off for Beth too, who landed a beautiful salmon on the Petit Cascapédia. See the proof below. Congratulations Beth!
Salmon angling seems to be improving with some cooler weather; this week’s edition has some great images of salmon from throughout the region. We’ve also got an introduction to ASF’s new planned giving website, as well as a special report from Norway’s Alta River, where some truly spectacular Atlantic salmon were landed this season.
Finally, don’t forget that it’s Orvis’ Great Giveback Days and ASF is this month’s beneficiary. David Carlsen, Manager of the Orvis flagship store, writes:
“We are moving through September with increased focus on community and giving back. A big thank you to ASF for their thoughtful work and our customer’s generosity. Let’s keep the ball rolling through the rest of the month.”
This week, ASF proudly announced a new planned giving website. Bill Bullock, our Vice-President of Planned Giving, gives the following introduction:
Have you ever thought about how you might be able to support ASF ‘s mission to conserve and restore wild Atlantic salmon while at the same time taking advantage of tax saving incentives offered by the IRS? Many of our members and donors have already done so, becoming proud members of our Royal Wulff Society.
For example, ASF recently received a gift commitment from an ASF member who made their first gift thirty-one years ago. Motivated to make a difference today to support ASF’s mission, this donor consulted with their financial advisor to research what would be the best vehicle to help ASF today while at the same time taking advantage of tax saving incentives offered by the IRS. Their research found that transferring the ownership of their fully paid life insurance policy will produce an immediate income tax charitable deduction for the value of the policy for the donor. Furthermore, since this is a permanent life insurance policy with cash value, ASF can choose to surrender the policy immediately and receive the current cash value of the gift to apply towards critically important programs today. Importantly, this type of gift allowed this donor to make a gift almost 100 times larger than their previously largest gift to ASF.
To learn more about how you might support ASF through planned giving, please visit our new website to see the many ways you can support ASF, while at the same time earning valuable charitable income tax deductions from the IRS. You can also give Bill Bullock, ASF’s VP for Major Gifts and Planned Giving a call at (802) 375-3320 or email him at bbullock@asfmaine.org.
Anglers are having some luck on the Margaree River this week, with some great images coming in.
Quebec angler François Grimard has a great report on a 26-lb. salmon on the Cascapédia, as well as a 12-pounder on the Bonaventure. A great end to his angling season. François writes:
“Notre pêche de septembre nous a permis de racheter (un peu) cette saison difficile. Le 1er septembre sur la rivière Cascapédia Jean-Pierre Morin, mon partenaire de pêche, a pris une belle femelle de 26 lbs (sur un muddler blanc, quel horreur!). Trois jours plus tard sur la Bonaventure, ma fille Gabrielle capturait un beau saumon d’une dizaine de livres. Les rivières étaient belles, la météo l’était tout autant et les paysages magnifiques, comme toujours. Une belle fin de saison.”
Newfoundland and Labrador Program Director Kim Thompson has an update on the fall angling season in her region, plus a report from the Wild Salmon Watersheds networking event in Bathurst, NB.
“The fall catch and release salmon angling in Newfoundland has reports from the Humber and Gander rivers as being slow, with salmon being seen, in particular males, on the Exploits River. Fall angling continues until October 7th, and DFO reminds anglers to complete their Salmon Angling Log. Angling log data is an important tool in the stock assessment process.
The 2nd Annual Wild Salmon Watershed Network Meeting took place this week in Bathurst, New Brunswick with representation from across the Atlantic provinces. As a partner on this project, the Freshwater Alexander Bays Ecosystem Cooperation (FABEC) attended along with an extended NL team representing Salmonid Council of NL and Fisheries and Oceans. At networking events like this, we are reminded that the future of Atlantic salmon populations requires the dedication of multiple groups working together. Thank you to Pabineau First Nation and Nepisiguit Salmon Association for hosting us.”
Jason Valliere, Marine Scientist with the Maine Department of Marine Resources, offers an update from the Penobscot River. He writes:
“Still just a few salmon moving. River temperatures are slowly but steadily dropping, about 1C (≈2F) per week, over the past 3 weeks. Fall is here… cool nights, the leaves are turning color, the acorns are dropping, and it’s e-fishing season! See attached report for the latest numbers!”
This week brings a great story about a veteran’s event and a spectacular salmon from Kedgwick Lodge’s Danny Bird. Danny writes:
“Each year we donate a few days to a group of veterans through a program administered by my son Andrew. “Connecting Veterans through Atlantic Salmon” just completed its 10th year of operation. Over the years, this group has fished in June, August and September. Each year several of the attendees has been fortunate to catch and release some great salmon from the fabled waters of the Restigouche and Kedgwick rivers. To the best of my knowledge each participant has gone home with a new outlook on fishing salmon with a fly, and a great catch up session with old and new friends.
This year, my son Andrew fishing with his pal Billy Lovely got his fish of a lifetime. On Monday, September 9th, just before the morning fish was complete, he hooked a beauty of a fish in one of our pools. He figured from the take it was a big fish and after spooling his reel a few times, he managed to get the big fish to the net. His guide was Ronnie Martin and the bowman was the famous Herbie Martin. The two brothers have over 100 years service with Kedgwick Lodge. The big male weighed in at 44 lbs!”
Many rivers in Norway had historically low runs this year and were closed as a result. However, it’s not all doom and gloom. On the Alta River fishing may have been slow, but many salmon were observed and a few 50+ pounders were caught. ASF (U.S.) Director Chris Buckley offers the following report and image from the Alta:
“The season on the Alta River in Norway closed on August 31. The water was low for much of the summer, although perhaps not as low as in North America. That made the fishing more challenging than usual, notwithstanding that there seemed to be plenty of salmon in the river.”
