Don't forget to sign up for the NFA picnic on July 21st.

Annual NFA Picnic  July 21st  

The Annual NFA Picnic will be held on Thursday, July 21st at the Good Shepherd Center/Meridian Play Field Park in Seattle. The NFA returns to the spacious and almost-private pavilion area on the southwest side of Seattle’s Good Shepherd Center just off of N 50th Street (between Sunnyside and Meridian Avenues N). Parking is on the east side of the property or along Meridian. The club provides burgers and hot dogs, members bring a potluck item.
If your last name begins with:

• A-H, bring appetizers
• I-Q, bring side dishes
• R-Z, bring desserts

There will be ice water, so bring a non-alcoholic drink if so desired. Food and fun begin at 6. There will be casting and lots of opportunity to socialize. BYOC (chairs). The picnic replaces the regular monthly membership meeting. Bring the whole family and friends.

Please be sure to register here so that the organizers will know how much food to bring.

To view pictures from previous picnic, click here.

Reports

Methow Valley, July 8 – 10

After cancelled outings in 2014 and 2015, NFA members were eager to return to the dry side of the mountains to try their luck at the myriad of fishy waters offered by the Methow River Valley area. A group of twenty-three members and guests converged on the Lightening Pines campground in Methow,Washington to enjoy good company, fine food, great weather, and fair to good fishing over the three-day outing.

Several members got early starts and floated the Methow River on Friday. Susan Lahti and Cynthia Hickey teamed up with a local guide and reported a successful day with several fish landed. JimHopper and Brian Boone also put in a long day of floating on Friday and reported good success. LarryBelmont caught some fish while floating with Matt and Leslie Moore. Matt was reportedly too focused on keeping his drift boat off the rocks to enjoy much fishing that day. Most other members arrived onFriday afternoon or evening, with many taking advantage of the long days to do some wade fishing near the campground.

After breakfast on Saturday, our big group headed out into a number of different directions. Some floated, some waded, and others enjoyed non-fishing pursuits. Dana and Helen Bottcher, Mike Olson,and Susanne Staats headed up to the town of Molson, Washington for some sightseeing andphotography. I spent most of the day unsuccessfully trying to keep my four-year- old son out of trouble.Sympathetic club members, such as Cynthia Hickey and Scott McCracken, provided backup parentingsupport. At the end of the day everyone returned for a feast planned by Master Camp Chef Kathy Watson, and crab appetizer provided by Matt and Leslie Moore. Jim Hopper and Brian Boone then took Seth Felker out for an evening bug-tossing session, which resulted in Seth catching his first fish on a fly. Congratulations Seth!

Everyone seemed a little less eager to get out and fish on Sunday morning. It may have been a result of all the scrambled eggs, sausage, and pancakes that were eaten that morning. Many folks headed for home, while others planned on a bit of fishing along the way.

In addition to being an all-around fun time for all involved, the Methow Valley outing also served as a milestone for members Kathy Watson and Susanne Staats who both enjoyed their first post-retirement outing with the club. Congratulations to Kathy and Susanne! We all look forward to seeing you both on more NFA outings in the future and appreciate all of the additional service that you will undoubtedly provide to the club with your newfound free time!

Many thanks to all who attended, but especially to my co-hosts, Jim and Kathy Watson, for all of their time and effort to make this such a successful outing, and to my parents, Lew and Ruth, for their willingness to come along and roll up their sleeves. See the video here.– Russ Shropshire

NW Youth Conservation and Fly Fishing Academy 2016, Lacey, WA

June 19 - 25

This year I again worked as a ‘staff’ member at the Academy in Lacey. What a great happening. Held in Lacy at a very nice church camp during last full week of June. We started with 20 students (ages 12 to 15) and they all graduated. All the kids were exposed to fly casting, fly tying, a study of insects and fish anatomy as well other conservation oriented programs. They also got several hours of on the water fishing experience both on the river and a small lake. This year there was a young lad from Georgia. His uncle lives up here and is a member of a south sound club.

The person sponsored this year by the NFA was Member Sasha Conner. Sasha was given an award for her efforts: “The NW Youth Conservation and Fly Fishing Academy is pleased to present the Alan Harger award to the individual who best exemplifies the fishing partner everyone treasures. Their amicable nature, their respect and ideas for others, their devotion to the environment and sport of fly fishing, their eagerness to develop skills, their readiness to share their skills and knowledge with others, distinguish them among their comrades at the camp and merit this recognition.”

I find this week to be well spent. The young people are a joy to be around. Meeting the parents is also a treat. At drop off it is nice to visit and explain what will happen and the efforts given to be watchful and mindful of their children. When the parents return at weeks end and are updated by their kids, it is nice to receive their appreciative remarks. Proud parents when each student is presented his/her diploma.

Depending on donations it is fulfilling to present each graduate with a complete fly fishing outfit. This has happened the last 3 years that I have participated.It is heartwarming when the graduates come and offer their very sincere appreciation for all they have learned during the week. Particularly when they say they want to come back next year because it was so much fun.

I am sure many of the kids will be diverted in future years into activities like sports and other teenage endeavors but hopefully what they learned will stick and eventually provide an entry into the wonderful world of fly fishing. - Bob Young

Cavanaugh Pond on the Cedar River Restoration, June 25th

On June 25^th NFA members Susanne Staats, Scott and Leslie Martini, Helen and Dana Bottcher, and Tom Beaulaurier spent several hours as part of a work party sponsored by King County Parks removing invasive species from Cavanaugh Ponds Natural Area on the Cedar River between Renton and Maple Valley. It was a great day for being outdoors, and we all felt we contributed to making the Cedar River a better place to fish. If you weren’t able to make it out this time, maybe you can make it the next time the club takes part in a conservation project. See the video here. - Dana Bottcher