Trout Unlimited has named Chris Wood, currently TU's chief operating officer, to fill the chief executive officer's position held by Charles Gauvin since 1991.  Wood will take over February 1.

Since Gauvin took the helm of TU at the age of 34, the organization's development has been nothing short of extraordinary.  According to a TU press announcement, back then,

"TU’s budget was $2.5 million and it had approximately 50,000 members. There was just one staff person who worked on conservation issues. Under Gauvin’s leadership, the organization has grown to 140,000 members with an operating budget in excess of $26 million and a professional staff of over 130."

TU is now, without question, one of the most influential conservation organizations in America, and the lead entity in protecting rivers vital to fly fishing.  Gauvin will remain on the organizations board of trustees.

Wood arrived at TU in 2001 after working as a senior policy and communications advisor to Mike Dombeck, chief of the U.S. Forest Service during the Clinton administration. His work in TU has helped the organization earn several important environmental wins for anglers.

"From a western perspective, I can tell you Chris is largely responsible for the conservation footprint TU is leaving throughout our region—his vision and leadership have resulted in the creation of TU’s Sportsmen’s Conservation Project, and he continues to support the excellent work of the Western Water Project," said Chris Hunt, of TU's Sportsmen's Conservation Project.

Trout anglers have a lot to thank Gauvin for, and a good reason to be optimistic that Wood will advance the TU cause even further.  Whether you are an avid angler or just a fly fishing dabbler, you should take a moment to learn more about Trout Unlimited and its mission, and consider joining if you are not among the 140,000 TU members already.

Deeter

Do you want to fish on twelve miles of private, world class trout water in the pristine Wyoming wilderness for three days with a guide? How about a $1000 shopping spree at the one of the best fly shops in Denver before you go? Do you enjoy lavish gourmet meals? What about flying there in a private jet?

If you answered yes to any of these questions - do yourself, Trout Unlimited and Colorado Youth Outdoors a favor. Purchase a $20 raffle ticket and help get kids re-interested in outdoor recreation and help Trout Unlimited raise a pile of money. It's a joint fundraiser that's helping raise money for National TU, their chapters and Colorado Youth Outdoors.

Oh, and did I forget to mention you get to bring three additional people with you if you win.

Just remember where you heard it first. Deeter and I just love flying in private jets to our trout water.

TR
 

I love sight fishing.  There is nothing better than picking out a  fish camouflaged among the weeds or against a gravel river bottom, then making that cast and earning the bite.

My young son is getting into it also.  He has his first pair of little polarized glasses now, and we like to walk along the river, sometimes without a rod or flies, just looking for fish. He summed up the game of spotting fish perfectly last summer when he said, "Hey Dad, this is just like playing Where's Waldo!"  Indeed... while fish don't wear little red and white striped shirts and beanie hats... the approach with spotting fish is the same as it is when you are playing the game in the children's book.  What you ultimately want to key on with your eyes is the slight inconsistency that gives your subject away amid a jumbled pattern around it.

Here are five tips to help you spot fish better (especially when they don't pop out like these rainbows).

1.  The secret to spotting fish is knowing where to look.  Sounds like a Yogi Berra-ism, I know, but if you know where trout hang out... on current seams, in tailouts of pools, on cushions in front of rocks, and fix your gaze in those spots, you'll see fish.  Think of looking through a 3-foot by 3-foot window pane that moves with your eyes from one fishy spot to another.

2.  Put the sun behind you, without putting your shadow in front of you. Do that, and the river lights up so you can see better.

3.  Look through the water column, not only at the bottom or the surface of the river. Looking through the water allows you to pick up motions that reveal a fish's presence.

4.  You're looking for a star, not the whole night sky. In other words, focus your gaze, and realize that what you are really looking for is a fin, or a shadow, or a glint reflecting off scales.  You don't see a whole fish (usually) until you learn how to spot part of a fish.

5.  Learn to recognize what is NOT a trout. If you teach yourself what wagging weeds and sticks on the bottom and so forth look like, you hone in on finding the trout through the process of eliminating distractions.

Do you have any sight fishing secrets?  I'm all ears (er... eyes)...

Deeter

Hows this for a fly fisherman's life goal? Be able to cast your age well after you turn 70 years old.

For all of you golfers, you know that shooting a score that matches your age is an objective that not many old duffers can achieve. I can shoot my age now... on the front nine. I'm not holding out hope that I can break chronological par over 18 holes unless I live to be 123, and medical and golf technologies really improve in the next 80 years.

Granted, most of us fly fishers under 50 can cast our age in feet. At least we should be able to. Maybe we should make the challenge being able to cast your age in yards, at least for the AARP- ineligible crowd.

Here are a couple of my casting heroes... Frank Moore, age 86, whom I watched easily boom 90-and 100-foot casts with a sinking tip line off a 9-weight a few weeks ago on the North Umpqua in Oregon... and Tyler Palmerton, who can cast his age (early 30s) in yards, with a 5-weight rod.

There is, of course, a lesson in all of this. Your brain is what powers that cast. It's all about, timing, tempo, and feel. It's never about muscle. Practice enough... watch your loops... always focus on form before you attempt distance... and you'll make the physics of great casting second nature. And that, my friends, is the foundation that can carry you through a lifetime of great fly fishing.

Deeter