2nd Basic Fly Fish Clinic @ NCWRC Pechmann Center 1-21-12

Mother Nature and a lot of luck was on our side as we skirted all around the weatherman's predictions of 100% chance of rain on 1-21-12 at the NCWRC John E. Pechmann Fishing Education Center. We hosted a full house of novice fishermen who wanted to learn the basics of fly fishing. We had rain, so they were right with the 100% forecast, but we were inside for the initial short downpour. It then held off until 3:30 pm when it came down again in earnest. However, we did have some drizzle and a good breeze which made casting a challenge for those on the downwind side of the ponds. We try to spread that challenge out by rotating participants from one side to the other about half way through the afternoon.




Fayetteville's Lake Rim Park handles our pre-registration and the actual check in for each event.



We follow the airline procedure of "overbooking" because there are normally several "no shows". Everyone, including a couple of "walk in's",showed up today and we had to set up an extra row of chairs. We never turn anyone away at the door.



Jeanette, our world record holder (for line class), took the lead in the introductory or overview portion of the instruction today. She is a very accomplished fly fisherwomen and has a unique way of sharing her passion for the sport with others. I have been working along side her for several years and it is especially gratifying to watch her work one-on-one with someone until they cast fairly well and end up catching several fish.



We help set the tone with a demonstration of fly tying techniques out in the lobby during "check in". Our roster of volunteer instructors includes some very good fly tyers.



Break out sessions with small groups rotate through several hands-on teaching stations. Lots of times it is the little things that leave folks scratching their head to the point of thinking "this fly fishing stuff is too complicated for me".



"Ok, now put it through the loop twice and pull on the tag ends"



Healthy habitat and fishermen's ethics are important regardless of your method of fishing.



New crew today handling "Trout Rules & Regulations" - We rotate areas of responsibility from time to time to build "depth" in our roster of volunteer instructors.


Casting instruction starts with a short talk and demonstration



Followed by hands-on casting under the watchful eye of a volunteer instructor. It was very breezy today so several moved to the opposite side of the pond in an attempt to avoid the nemesis of all fly fishermen - wind in the face.



The afternoons are reserved for fishing and this always puts smiles on faces. We had a drizzle or two and breezes coming from all directions but luckily the real hard rain held off until the end.



Ya got to kiss the first one or it will also be the last one. Lot's of ladies out for our clinic again today.



Rain or shine, it don't get much better then this!



Our volunteers work for smiles and we were well paid today.



Once this young fellow saw the size of the catfish he said "To heck with them little trout - I'm going after something bigger!"

And so ends another great day of sharing our passion for fly fishing with others. We hope some of them are bitten by the bug and are now leafing through fly fishing catalogs or Googling fly fishing sites on the internet to learn more.

We have one more basic clinic scheduled for Feb 4th, an Advanced Clinic on Feb 18th, Boy Scouts on Mar 10th and Mar 24th. All dates are on a Saturday with a start time of 9:00am and end time of 3:30pm. Registration through Lake Rim Park (424-6134). The cost is $5. Pre-registration is required. The basic clinics fill very fast so pass this information along to all of your friends.

The NCWRC Pechmann Fishing Education Center also hosts Wounded Warriors, NC Handicapped Sportsmen and any military and their families on the 2nd Wednesday of each month from 1-5pm - (That's Febuary 8th next month). We offer fly tying and basic fly fishing instruction. The catfish ponds are also open for bait fishing. At least half of the afternoon will be spent fishing