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Trout Unlimited Trains Young Anglers at Fly-Fishing Camp on the Kennebec

July 15, 2009 - SOLON — As dusk fell and rain poured on the Kennebec River, a dozen diminutive fishermen were still, save for the stripping of line and the occasional back cast.

This group, ages 13 to 17, wasn't bothered by the downpour. These fishermen knew what they were doing.

That, of course, is why they were at the sixth annual Maine Trout Unlimited Camp at Evergreen Campground, where young conservationists from across the country are brought each year.

The fishermen came from as far as Pennsylvania and Illinois, as well as from around Maine – from Caribou to Gorham.

The all-expense-paid, six-day camp is funded through the Kennebec Valley Chapter of Trout Unlimited and its sponsors. A dozen fishermen are chosen through an application process that involves a personal essay about fish ecology and conservation.

For most of those six days, that is what the camp is about. It's like a junior college for environmentalists.

And, remarkably, that's why these teenagers come.

"We learned the parts of the fish, the parts of the skeleton yesterday. That helps you learn where to find fish, how to read the water," said Kyle McLain, 14, of Fairfield. "We use nets (in the river) to dig down under rocks. You see how much life is in these things and where the bugs can be. You see what fish eat. It's pretty cool."

Greg Ponte, president of TU's Kennebec Valley Chapter, started the camp six years ago after attending the nation's first Trout Unlimited youth camp in Pennsylvania.

The Kennebec Valley Chapter has long been active in teaching youths and women how to fly fish. But the Pennsylvania trout camp goes further by teaching young fly fishermen what game fish need to survive and why. Ponte brought this approach to Maine.

"I want the best students who want to know what clean, cold water is – and that trout need clean, cold water," Ponte said.

Biologists and professors volunteer to teach fish ecology and conservation, as do the expert fly fishermen who guide for free.

The state's fish pathologist led a class in fish dissection. An entomologist spoke about what bugs fish eat. And a biologist with the Maine Atlantic Salmon Commission explained how and why some of the best game fish are not as prolific.

Boring classroom stuff on a beautiful spring day to some. To this group of ultra-devoted anglers, it's boot camp on how to fish.

"How many kids are up at 4:30 a.m. and to bed at 10 p.m. to be up to go fishing? All of them are," Ponte said. "Fly-fishing is the medium. Every morning, I ask them the same question: 'Do you want to be here?' They all say, 'Yes.' "

The campers study flies collected from the Kennebec River, then duplicate the patterns they see in nature at the fly-tying table. They test their work early in the morning when the fish are feeding – and practice catch-and-release when they get one on.

Andrew Chione, 16, of Illinois came to the camp specifically to catch brook trout. The lectures teach him how.

And Chione can appreciate Maine's precious little game fish.

"You learn about fisheries and the different kinds of conservation efforts for wild trout. This is the only state that has a lot of wild brook trout," he said.

Evergreen Campground owners Lorena and Joe Labuit look on and smile at the collegiate-like intensity at the TU trout camp.

"When they leave here, they are experts. In a week, they get 20 years of experience," Lorena Labuit said. "It still amazes us – if they get to dinner 10 minutes early, instead of waiting for food, they sit down and tie flies."

Dusk is a favorite time. While the participants lean over vices and fashion feathers into patterns, they watch for the clock to hit 6.

When it does, three boys fly out of the dining room to suit up in waders.

As the sun drops and fog rises off the river, dark profiles of fishermen line the Kennebec. Each student has a guide, but not everyone needs to be guided.

In half an hour, three fish are caught. But there's no hoopla; no trash talk here.

McLain of Fairfield has good luck for a second day, and the local is touted. But Ponte, ever determined to turn out future conservationists, pays the catch no mind.

"It's because he pays attention. I don't think any of these kids are naturals," Ponte said.

By DEIRDRE FLEMING, Staff Writer, Portland Press Herald, July 12, 2009


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