Bring It Green

Bring on the salmon! Fishing has been great over the past 2 weeks, with river conditions ideal for the pools directly outside the lodge. A mix of salmon and grilse have been caught over the last week, and our scouts have been giving great reports of fish being landed from Doaktown to Blackville and on down the Miramichi River. July looks promising! 

Are you traveling in July? If so, where are you going? If you’re coming to Miramichi Black Rapids Lodge, we’re eagerly anticipating your arrival but, even if you’re not, we thought we’d share some travel tips for “Traveling Green” we found online at About.com.

Green Tips: Preparing for Green Travel

• Purchase electronic-tickets for airline travel whenever possible. Less waste. If paper tickets are lost, they may cost $75-100 to have replaced.
• Enjoy walking tours. Walk where sensible.
• Use public transportation when available.
• Use the hotel van instead of renting a car. Use the bus or local transit system. Share taxis. Less pollution, and you can leave the driving to others.
• If you're driving, turn your motor off when idling. Encourage tour/bus drivers to turn the motor off when idling.  Don't allow anything to be thrown out of your car windows--ever.

What You Can Do to Travel Green

• Book flights with airlines that recycle the waste created when serving food and beverages to passengers. British Airways, for instance, has a very strong environmental agenda. Southwest Airlines recycles all cabin waste, and was the first to offer electronic ticketing systemwide.
• Use the hotel van instead of renting a car. Use public transportation in your destination city.

Green Tips: Before You Leave Home

• Turn water heater to "Vacation" or lowest setting.
• Turn off AC/heat or adjust the thermostat to protect plants, etc.
• Turn water off at outside connection (to prevent flooding should a pipe break while you're gone). When you return, turn on the water slowly and check for problems.
• Lower the temperature of waterbed heaters at least ten degrees.
• Stop your newspaper. You may be able to donate it to a school.

We hope you’re enjoying your summer, and look forward to hearing about your travels. Leave us a comment here, or on our Facebook page!

Summer Flies

The word is out … fish are in the river and more and more people are catching and releasing Atlantic salmon at Miramichi Black Rapids Lodge. Our pools look better than they have over the past three years, and this is exciting – especially when fish weighing 12 pounds, like the one last Sunday, are landed!

What flies are “making it work?” Green machines, black bear green butts, undertakers, shady ladies and, of course, classic bombers are the best bet for the fly box.

Want to learn how to tie these flies? Check out noted angler Marc Madore’s videos.

What’s Happening In New Brunswick?

July 11-14, 2010 The MSA Salmon Classic

Please note we are centrally located and can accommodate for this event. It’s a killer deal!

August 22-25, 2010 First-Cast Program For Youth

Bugs Are Out!

Bugs. They’re in the air now, so bring on the salmon … its time to fish!

Today is a cloudy day and we are hoping it will rain. The river looks in May like it normally does in July. A good rain will help fish to move into the system; the challenge is keeping optimal water levels for fishing. Ideally the river stays moderately low, as our pools fish well in this condition. As long as the air temperatures aren’t too hot, and rain over the next few weeks brings fish into the system, we’ll have prime conditions for a summer full of wonderful memories.

Don’t forget you can follow the river conditions this summer on our website. View the river report here.

There are other links listed on the site as well. Once returns start hitting the river system they’re great fun to follow.

Don’t forget about the events going on around the lodge:

The MBR Tourism Package, offered all summer for anyone passing through.

May 29 - the Miramichi Salmon Museum’s Spring Fling (and other events).

August 22nd -25th (First session): First Cast - Youth Fishing School

Weight-Forward Floating: Summer's Right Around The Corner!

One thing we love about fly-fishing is the gear and gadgets that come along with the sport. "Which one works?" "When do I or should I use ___ ?" Anglers ask these questions before hitting the water, when the hopes of hooking into a big one are high. As spring fishing is coming to a close on the Miramichi, the all-sink lines we used at the beginning of the season have changed to sinking-line-floating-tip and now find us with almost all weight-forward floating lines (WFF).

Since half the fun of fly fishing is figuring out what to use in certain conditions, having the right line and loading it properly is essential if you want to be successful once you start casting. We had the pleasure of a visit from Marc and Line Madore one day last week, who demonstrated different lines, rods and casting techniques. Line even took the time to show me how to cast her two-handed road, focusing on establishing a smooth rhythm. She saw the smile on my face after the first cast and said, “It's nice isn’t it?” and boy was she right: I have to get one!  A valuable resource they left was a DVD by Mel Krieger, The Essence of Fly Casting which reminded me to never stop learning. We want to thank them for their time, and we hope to fish together soon.

Where flies are concerned, everyone has their theories and preferences. But if you don't have a fly in the water you're not going to land a fish so it's really a matter of trying as many as possible until you find what works on the day. We're now starting to use (and see others using) the Green Machine and butterfly patterns, along with the infamous Black Bear Green Butt, which is really fun to say! If you are interested in seeing some very well-tied flies, check out some of Marc Madore’s videos here.

This summer is looking promising at MBR and we hope you'll get the chance to be part of it. Here are some things going on in New Brunswick:

The MBR Tourism Package, offered all summer for anyone passing through.

Miramichi Salmon Association Moncton Dinner.

May 29 - the Miramichi Salmon Museum’s Spring Fling (and other events).

August 22nd -25th (First session): First Cast - Youth Fishing School

Tell us about your favorite fly. Leave a comment here, or post it on our Facebook Fan Page!

Breaking The Ice

The Miramichi Salmon Association (MSA) Ice Breaker, held on Saturday, was a sellout event. It was great fun, and it’s always nice to spend time with our clients and friends away from the river. (But make no mistake, it's more exciting when we’re casting!) If you would like to catch up on the latest news from MSA, please read their newsletter online.

You’ll see on page 6 of the newsletter, MBR is mentioned as part of the MSA First Cast Program, spearheaded by MSA board member Paul Valeri. The MBR event is just one of several being held this summer to help introduce younger generations to the river and fly-fishing. Our event is scheduled August 22-25, 2010.

One of the sessions we will be offering, fly-casting techniques, will feature Joan Wulff, a local and experienced Atlantic salmon guide. We believe this is the best way to help youth learn more about fly-fishing and the Miramichi River: from someone who knows it like the back of her hand!

We need your help to keep the tradition of Atlantic salmon fly-fishing going for future generations. Spots are available but they are going quickly. Please call if you’d like to be part this special event. If you're not interested in booking, please share the link with friends, family, or even media contacts who might help highlight such a unique opportunity.

Meanwhile, Down Under

We’re pleased to link you to an article that has just run in Forbes Magazine online. Poronui, owned by our parent company, has been listed as one of their Top-10 Best Fly Fishing Lodges in the world. Congratulations Poronui!

Catching and Releasing - It Feels Great!

The 2010 Atlantic Salmon season is off to a great start! A client who has been fishing with us for several years caught and released a nice grilse and a 15-pound salmon this morning using traditional spring flies. We wanted to capture it in a picture but he said it was bad luck! 

We’ve been at the other end of the river for the last several days and had a nice 23 pound salmon on within an hour of hitting the water. She was down deep and did not want to come up; she was very close to being landed then back out she went again. The sun was shining just right that day so we got a really good look at her. She looked like a torpedo! We realized we couldn’t land her within the proper time limit so we gave her some slack and sent her on her way down the river. Almost immediately we had a grilse right back on.

The salmon are really tightening our lines this week.

NOTE:

See how to properly catch and release your salmon on the Atlantic Salmon Federation’s website.

Smelt In The River

When the Atlantic salmon fishing season opened on April 15, the smelt had already made it up river, meaning the hungry salmon can’t be far behind! We’re back in Canada and excited to be hitting the river.

The light rain predicted over the next day or so will keep the river up, which is good for fishing from the boat. There are still some beauties up river waiting to come down right past us in the rapids, and we’re eagerly waiting to hook and release them back into the Miramichi River.

Doug Underhill had some good pointers on how to get ready for spring fishing in his fishing report on April 8. Doug writes a nice report every few days. You can read more about him on his website.

Over the winter we lost a dear friend of ours, Anne Pearson. She fished with us for many years and enjoyed both spring and fall fishing. Last year she caught and released a really nice 46-inch salmon she was very proud of, as were we. This spring will be dedicated in her honor, and her traditional fishing week will now and forever be Pearson’s Peak Week! Tight Lines for Anne!