UCCTU Newsline August 2018 : Chapter #436

Why Are My Chapter Voluntary Dues Important  I was thinking the other day about all of the great work our chapter does for the environment through our conservation programs, stream rebuilding projects and educational platforms for youth and women in our community. We do a lot and should be proud of that fact. But, you might not be aware of the groups we support with generous financial contributions derived from our various chapter fundraisers and from voluntary chapter dues. Here’s a snapshot of the fine organizations we support with annual checks of $1,000 each: UGA Warnell School of Forestry – We support their scholarship program with a donation that goes to a deserving student to help pay for part of their tuition. Casting for Recovery – Our check helps this group to offset expenses incurred in holding their annual overnight fishing retreat. Chattahoochee Riverkeeper – As a long-time supporter of this organization our check goes into their operating fund to help pay for a myriad of river-oriented programs undertaken during the year. Chattahoochee Parks Conservancy – Last year we entered into a sponsor relationship with this group that works closely with the National Parks Service on projects designed to enhance parks along the Chattahoochee River. Project Healing Waters Fly Fishing – Our contribution helps to fund this very important group who give of their time and resources to assist our veterans. Without your generous voluntary chapter donations, we couldn’t continue our yearly support of these organizations. Thank you. I hope you’ll join us at our August 28th chapter meeting where Bill Cox, Superintendent of the National Parks Service Atlanta Region will speak on the past, present and future of the Parks Service in Atlanta. Ken Mock Chapter President " Take care of the fish, and the fishing will take care of itself." ~ Art Neuman

Here are the latest news items and updates to stories and events happening now or in the near future. Get out-get involved-get the most out of UCCTU.

August Speaker: Bill Cox

On Tuesday, August 28th, our special guest speaker will be Bill Cox, Superintendent of the Atlanta Region of the National Parks Service. Bill began his current role in October 2013. Prior experience with the NPS includes serving as assistant superintendent at Zion National Park in Utah where he provided leadership in environmental stewardship, sustainability and resource management. He’s also served at Biscayne National Park in Florida and as a park ranger at Sunset Crater and Wupatki National Monuments in Arizona. He’s also worked for the Environmental Protection Agency in a variety of water resource programs including the wetlands, and coastal and ocean programs in the Southeast. Come hear Bill discuss what's happening at our parks and plans for the future.

Meetings are held on the 4th Tuesday of every month (except Nov and Dec) at 6pm at I ppolitos Italian Restauran t , 2270 Holcomb Bridge Road, in Roswell (east of GA 400).

Upcoming Speakers Schedule Annual Chapter Meeting Announcement Next month we’ll be holding our annual chapter meeting. At the meeting a slate of candidates will be announced and voted on. If you’d like to serve on the Board of the Chapter, you will have an opportunity to enter your name at that time. Please come to this very important meeting as we elect those members who’ll lead the chapter over the next few years. September: Chris Scalley and Guides, River Through Atlanta Guide Service, Bugs on the Hooch and Special Fishing Tactics October: Autumn on the River Annual Chapter Fundraiser

Wilkes Creek…Were You There Helping Out? If not, you missed out on a productive and fun morning on the water. Over 50 volunteers from various TU chapters (even a guy from Macon drove up!) met north of Helen to help build new structures on the creek for improved water flow and management. Some people lugged big logs down to the stream, others hammered rebar to secure the logs to the creek bed. And, some of us picked up trash and moved rocks to increase stream flow. If you have never been to a stream restoration project in North Georgia you’re missing out. It’s a lot of work and sweat, but also a lot of fun and very rewarding. Join one of the projects as they become available next year.

A Dollar a Beer – You Can’t Beat That! What we mean to say is UCCTU will receive $1 for every glass of beer sold during our special “Beneficial Brews” night hosted by Sweetwater Brewing at their beautiful facility and brewery in Atlanta on Sunday, September 2 from 12:30pm to 7pm. Come join hundreds of area residents (Lots of potential New Members) at this event in our honor. We’ll have a UCCTU table and need some volunteers to ‘work the crowd’ and hand out our new chapter brochure. Plus, enjoy a fresh cold brew (or two). Here are directions to the Sweetwater Brewery . Follow signs or other directions for parking.

FLY OF THE MONTH: Arrick's Parachue Ant Trout love ants and I have had big trout move a considerable distance to take an ant from the surface. Arrick’s Fly Shop is in West Yellowstone and this is Arrick's recipe for a parachute ant pattern that can be tied in with...... Click on the fly for the recipe .

It's Time to fish! Don't Forget to Turn Trash into Prizes! As described in last month’s President’s Message, we’re rapidly moving along with our new #cleanmywater @ucctu campaign and the trash-collecting all around the country is impressive (check out the interactive map on ucctu.tu.org and all of the great photographs that have been posted. You are encouraged to use your smartphone camera and enter photos of collected trash tagged with #cleanmywater found in the Instagram app. You can upload photos on either Instagram or Facebook since these sites are sharing the entries. Remember to collect trash while out fishing and hiking back to your car. Take a photo or two and post them with the #cleanmywater hashtag. You’ll be joining fishers from all over our local area and some as far as Colorado and Alaska. And what makes our campaign even better, after uploading pictures of collected trash, you’ll be in the running to win prizes such as a new Walter’s Fly Rod or other great gear donated by our growing list of partners including Smith and The Fish Pond. See below for full details. Click HERE to read more

Call for Chapter Leaders If you have interest in serving our chapter in a leadership role, please contact Ken Mock, chapter president. Board positions including Officer and Director roles will be voted on during the Annual Chapter Meeting to be held in September. At that meeting all positions will be presented along with those chapter members who have volunteered to serve those roles. Names will also be accepted from the floor during the meeting...before the vote.

Help Us Clean Up at Unicoi – BBQ to Follow Join other chapter members as we gather at Unicoi Outfitters in Helen, GA on Saturday, September 22 for a river clean-up and hosted BBQ event. We’ve decided to help Unicoi Outfitters (great supporters of TU and our chapter) clean up parts of their private river section. In return, UO will turn out a BBQ feast for us at noon. We’ll be meeting up at UO at 10 am. Come up and help out our friends keep one of Georgia’s river gems clean and beautiful.

OR Kid’s Fishing Day Needs You If you’d rather stay near home, we’re also needing some help at our UCCTU chapter tent during Saturday’s, September 22 Gwinnett County Kid’s Fishing Days event at the Jones Bridge Park on the Gwinnett side of the river. We’ll set up at 8am (meet in the parking lot). The event begins at 9am and will run till about noon. Afterward, everyone is invited to hit the Hooch and catch all of the stockers put in a few hours earlier. Should be a lot of fun. Come out and help. If you can assist, contact Jim Owen, Membership Chair at 678-643-6274 for more details and assignments.

Autumn on the River Coming Soon! We’re only two months out from our annual fundraiser – Autumn on the River. We need volunteers! Can you help by soliciting a few auction items? Can you help by working on the day of the event? Can you help send out ‘thank you’s to all our sponsors? You know you can. Please lend a hand and start by contacting Denny Desmond at 678-620-4262 or see Denny at the August chapter meeting. This is our BIGGEST event of the year – raising over $12,000 in October of last year. Help the chapter surpass that amount so we can expand our efforts throughout the area in 2019.

New Mini Contest Announced Our #cleanmywater mini contests continue with a prize pack donated by Smith Optics. The most unique #cleanmywater post will win polarized Smith sunglasses and a Smith hat. Entry is easy: do some trash cleanup and post the pictures to Instagram or Facebook with the #CLEANMYWATER tag. Be sure to like @UCCTU to follow along and see if you qualify for the prize pack at the end of the August. Finalists will be announced for the public to vote on Aug 28th.

Have You Made Your 2018 Voluntary Donation?

If you have---THANKS! If not, you can do it now via several avenues: On our chapter website at www.ucctu.tu.org On our Facebook page – just search for Upper Chattahoochee Chapter Trout Unlimited At any of our monthly chapter meetings. See Mark Romzick, Chapter Treasurer at the treasurer’s table.

2nd annual Womens Fly Fishing Clinic Do You Know Someone Who’d Like to Learn Our Sport?  Another fast-approaching event is our second annual Women’s Fly Fishing Clinic. An afternoon of fly casting instruction, knot tying, bug identification and stream conservation and river safety will be held again at the Chattahoochee Nature Center on Sunday, October 28 from 1-4 pm. Jim Owen will be leading the event and is hoping you can help out. Give him a call at 678-643-6274 for more details and assignments.

UCCTU Donates to Chattahoochee Parks Conservancy Ken Mock, chapter president presents Sally Bethea, president of the Chattahoochee Parks Conservancy a check for $1,000 in support of CPC programs to help clean, maintain and improve miles of trails in the national parks lining the Chattahoochee River.

Get Out and Fish: Hire a River Guide Our good friends, and sponsors, at River Through Atlanta and Alpharetta Outfitters remind everyone to consider hiring a guide especially if you do not know the Chattahoochee River well or are concerned about rapidly changing conditions on the river. Same holds true for other area streams and rivers. Check out their websites and give them a call to book your next float trip. Who knows…you just might hook into a monster brown lurking in the depths of the Hooch. Alpharetta Outfitters River Through Atlanta

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Check out the photo gallery on our website ucctu.tu.org . Click HERE to view our chapter sponsors . For quick links visit our Website . Have pictures or a story you want featured in the UCCTU Newsline? Email the Editor .

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