The Trout Buddha's Wish List?

Hola Amigos -

Black Friday, Cyber Monday, Drunken Thursday (OK I made that one up!); no shortage of ways for even the most slothful among us to be proded along into the holiday consumer frenzy. I've been thinking long and hard about just what I would "want" this holiday season. Below are some lists - with some very important qualifiers. I hope you enjoy.

List No. 1:
This is my "do something nice for the cause list". Just send a donation in my name to the following good folks:

1. River Alliance of Wisconsin Clean water advocates in my own backyard!
2. Trout Unlimited Conserving, protecting and restoring North Americas coldwater fisheries and watersheds - the tag line sums it up.
3. Driftless Area Land Conservancy - protecting land from development in the Driftless area.

List No. 2:
This is my "Holy Crap" I just came into some money and need to spend fast list:

1. Original Oil Painting by Russell Chatam - Naturally my favorites are listed as "rare" so likely will run more than the $7,000.00 average.
2. One week at the Paws Up Outfitters in Montana - a cool $4700 not counting transportation and tips on the south fork of the Flathead.
3. A very large shopping spree at the On The Creek Fly Shop in Cross Plains Wisconsin. Anything to help keep this shop in business because it is a special place. Located on the banks of Black Earth creek - a great place to shop, hangout, and learn something - don't forget the shopping part!

List No. 3:
This is my stuff I can't really afford but maybe if I save my pennies it will happen list:

1. A nice bamboo fly rod from Paul Julius in Cross Plains Wisconsin A local gem.
2. Funding to spend a week in Phelps Wisconsin at the Jacobsson Rod Company one week bamboo rod building class. Build my own gem?
3. Money for a nice fiberglass rod from the McFarland Rod Company - just to see what the fuss is all about.
4. A back country trip to the Bob Marshall Wilderness. Cuts everywhere!

Oh well, enough dreaming. Guess by the end of the list I was doing the shopping! Oh well feel free to step in an make any of the above purchases.
Stay warm amigos,
Trout Buddha

See a Show and Support a Cause!

Two local movie opportunities will help raise funds for two groups close to the Buddha's heart.

On Tuesday February 10th, 2009 the River Alliance of Wisconsin will host the Wild and Scenic Environmental Film Festival On Tour, sponsored by Patagonia. Local sponsors include Home Savings Bank, Fontana Sports, and The Trek Bicycle Stores of Madison.

The event begins at 7pm and taking place at the Majestic Theatre in Madison. Tickets are $10 for the screening, and $25 for the screening and reception.

On Wednesday March 4 at the Orpheum Theatre, 216 State Street in Madison. There will be a SWTU sponsored screening of the Confluence Films movie Drift to raise funds for permanent easements on Wisconsin trout streams. Tickets are $25. Check out the trailer.

Grab the popcorn, head to the Mad City and support two great causes.

Tight lines,
Buddha

Hold That Tiger!

Thanks to Matt Howards for sharing the picture of the Tiger Trout he caught in southwestern Wisconsin recently. Very cool! Naturally it takes a guy who has only been fly fishing for trout less than a year to land the rare hybrid fish. The Trout Buddha has never had one on the end of the line. The photo prompted me to learn a bit more about the unique catch. After a few searches on the web and a call to a friend at the Wisconsin DNR here is some Tiger Trout info:

• The tiger trout is a sterile, hybrid of the brown trout (Salmo trutta) and the brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis). The name derives from the pronounced vermiculations, evoking the stripes of a tiger. It is a rare phenomenon in the wild, with the brook trout having 84 chromosomes and the brown trout 80.


• Stocking efforts in Wisconsin ended in the late 1970’s. A few private hatcheries advertise tiger trout.


• Hybrids show up naturally in the state's small streams. Water quality of small streams is good and the brook trout population has boomed in recent years. Thus, more wayward male brook trout have been found around brown trout redds, perhaps accounting for the hybrids. Naturally-occuring tiger trout generally appear only in streams that have higher brook trout than brown trout populations.


• Survival rates for Tiger trout are very low making it a rare catch.

Check out this article on Tiger Trout by Driftless Area Trout Adventures guide Len Harris in Field and Stream on-line.

Matt may be a new fly angler but he has caught on to one key element of the sport; he won’t tell me where he caught the fish! Very cool indeed.

Trout Buddha

Political Action:
Today’s action group is the River Alliance of Wisconsin; a wonderful outfit that is dedicated to saving rivers. Their mission is to advocate for the protection, enhancement and restoration of Wisconsin’s rivers and watersheds. Their membership is comprised of over 3,200 individual, organizational and business members. They are urban, rural and retired; anglers, paddlers and lovers of water. Visit them on the web, make a donation, and help clean up some water! Also, there is some interesting reading on their web site about the high price of hungry gas tanks, check it out.