Please join us as we kick off the 2024 -2025 Chapter year. The last year resulted in many conservation and legislative successes, and the new year will offer another set of challenges. Come out and meet our Conservation Committee and find out what's in the works for the up coming year. Click the link above for more info.
8 vets and 1 vol arrived at Bozeman to begin their trip of a lifetime of 4 nights with 3 full days of fishing at the famed Freedom Ranch for Heroes in Wise River Montana. These vets from the Heartland states of Arkansas, Oklahoma, Missouri, and Nebraska came with high expectations and I am happy to report they were all exceeded. The weather was perfect, the fish cooperated, the food and accommodation were exceptional, and there are no words that can do justice to the views.
After a huge BQ lunch at a local establishment, we headed to the ranch, an hour and a half away. In the van, the bonding began. It turns out that Wes, a marine, and John, navy, both served on the same ship at the same time in the late 80’s. Although they do not recall meeting each other, they did recall stories of ship side events and ports of call. They did have one thing in common, they hated the food. We arrived at beautiful downtown Wise River, MT, population 38 but for the next few days it was up to 47.
After getting settled in, and before dinner, the vets took a walk to the casting pond to show us what they had. 10 minutes later a dark cloud came over the mountain and started dropping ½” hail on the crew. Now although we were only 150 yards from the shelter of the fly shop, no one bolted ahead, they all kept the same pace as the slowest member of the team.
Wednesday AM, the Big Hole was low and warm, so we headed up to Dillon, a scant 71 miles away for casting practice in the AM followed by wading the Red Rock. All vets were able to get fish to the net.
Thursday was a combination, a few waded the Beaverhead River, and 3 boats brought the Big Hole to its knees. Once again, all vets were on fish, but the numbers varied from a few to 2 boats pulling in some 40ish fish. In the evening, more talk and sharing of stories, most were on the upper deck or lower patio with a view of the mountains and sunsets. Discussions centered around shared and similar experiences from their time in the military and shared challenges that many faced. All who took part in these discussions took something away knowing they were not alone in their military experiences. Post military interests came up and there were a lot of commonalities there as well with multiple beekeepers and the raising of chickens and quail. Our own Santa John found himself sharing his experiences around his craft.
Friday was more of the same except we had four boats on the water and all overproduced with Chuck and his twenty-one” brown being the largest fish brought to the net. Once again, we had some 30 count boats on the water. Guides in all cases were outstanding and connected well with the vets. At the end of the day, we went back to the lodge for a farewell dinner of prime rib. The evening was capped off with a visit to the Wise River Club in the center of town where the group was well received and listed to Tom and his guitar playing favorites called out by the audience including Jimmy Buffet, the Eagles, Billy Joel, Elvis, and even Frank Sinatra. A few of the vets were asked by some of the local ladies to grace the dance floor and all had a great time.
Saturday morning started off great until the flight delay texts started to come in relating to broken aircraft and weather in Denver. 3 made it home on Saturday and the remaining 5 spent an extra night in Denver but all arrived safely home although in some cases it took 36 hours. I can say the time at the lodge was worth even this final challenge and all it did was to spice up the stories of that outstanding journey.
Revised 9/5/2023
September
Saturday, Sept 16, 2023
15th Annual Riverside Picnic
10 am to 2 pm
Location: Pavilion at Matthies Grove Recreation Area, Barkhamsted
Tuesday, Sept 19, 2023
7 p.m.
Board Meeting - Back Nine
Saturday, Sept 23, 2023
9 - 3 pm
Burlington Hatchery 100th Birthday
Location: Burlington Hatchery
October
Tuesday, Oct 17, 2023
7 p.m.
Board Meeting - Back Nine
Wednesday, Oct 18, 2023
5:30-9pm
Pint Night at Urban Lodge
Topic: Fishing, fly tying and tasting microbrewery products
Location: Urban Lodge Brewery, Manchester
Thursday, Oct 19, 2023
7 p.m.
Monthly Meeting - This is our annual business meeting
Guest Speakers: Captain Bob Salerno and Jim Buchok
Topic: Northeast Saltwater Fly Fishing
Location: Back Nine Tavern
November
Thursday, Nov 16, 2023
7 p.m.
Monthly Meeting
Guest Speaker: Gary Steinmiller
Topic: Northern Montana Fly Fishing Trips
Location: Back Nine Tavern
Tuesday, Nov 21, 2023
7 p.m.
Board Meeting - Back Nine
December
Thursday, Dec 14, 2023
7 p.m.
Holiday Meeting
Guest Speaker: DEEP representative(s)
Topic: Status of the Farmington River
Location: Back Nine Tavern
Tuesday, Dec 19, 2023
7 p.m.
Board Meeting - Via Zoom
January
Saturday, January 13, 2024
9:00 am - 1 pm
Angling Gear Tag Sale
Location: Farmington Senior Center
Snow Date: Saturday, January 20, 2023
Important Note: there will NOT be a meeting in January*
February
Friday, February 2, 2024
9:00 am - 3 pm
CFFA Expo
Location: Nomads Entertainment, Just off of Rt. 5 in South Windsor
Thursday, February 15, 2024
7:00pm
Monthly Meeting
Guest Speaker: TBD
Topic:
Location: Back Nine Tavern
Tuesday, February 20, 2024
7:00pm
Board Meeting - Back Nine
March
*Important Note: there will NOT be a meeting in March*
Saturday, March 16, 2024
6:00pm
24th Annual Banquet
Wednesday, March 20, 2024
7:00pm
Board Meeting - Back Nine
April
Saturday, April 6, 2024
9:00am
Invasives Removal
Location: TBD
Tuesday, April 16, 2024
7:00pm
Board Meeting - Back Nine
Thursday, April 18, 2024
7:00pm
Monthly Meeting
Guest Speaker: TBD
Topic:
Location: Back Nine Tavern
Back Nine Tavern meetings are located at Stanley Golf Course 245 Hartford Road, New Britain 06053
Food and Beverages Available for Purchase
Farmington Senior Center meetings are located at 321 New Britain Ave., Unionville 06085
Pizza and Soft drinks are served for any meetings held at the Senior and Community Center
Please check our website www.FVTU.org or Facebook www.facebook.com/FarmingtonValleyTU/
Board Meetings are held the 3rd Tuesday of each month, 7:00 PM
This scholarship is made available to any student that has participated in a Trout in the Classroom program between the grades 1 thru 12. This monetary award will be available to any ‘qualified’ student entering a 2- or 4-year college program in one of the environmental sciences listed below:
Conservation Ecology
Environmental Science Environmental Engineering
Fisheries Biology Forestry
Marine Science Natural Resource Management
Wildlife Biology
The full eligibility requirements and application are contained in the attached documentation. At the present time this award will have a value of one thousand dollars ($1000.00), with no limitations.
I. INFORMATION
Student Applicants Name (Please Print) ______________________________________________________________________
Home Address: __________________________________________________________________
Street & Number City State Zip Code
Student E-Mail______________________________
School(s) attended while participating in Trout in the Classroom:
___________________________________________________________
Years Attended: _________
High School: _________________________________________
Name of Guidance Counselor______________________ Phone________________
E-mail___________________________
Parent or Guardian Name: __________________________
Parents Phone: _______________________
Parents E-mail: _______________________
Print Name ________________________ Parent Signature _______________________
II. COLLEGE INFORMATION
I have applied to the following colleges. (Please include city and State)
COLLEGE
CITY
STATE
Intended Course of Study or Major
III. Essay: Please attach Essay, double spaced on a separate sheet, including applicants Name and High School.
I have read and understand the requirements of the Farmington Valley Chapter Trout Unlimited, Trout in the Classroom Scholarship Program, and declare that the information submitted herewith is true to the best of my knowledge and belief.
Student Name (Please Print) ________________________________________________________________
Signature of Student: ___________________________________________Date_____________
Project Healing Waters Fly Fishing
2023 Online Auction Fund Raiser
March 31, 2023 – April 8, 2023
Project Healing Waters Fly Fishing, Inc. (PHW) is dedicated to the physical, emotional, and social rehabilitation of disabled active military service personnel and disabled veterans through fly fishing and associated activities including education and outings.
FVTU has been a longtime supporter of PHW with many FVTU members volunteering their time and expertise to this worthwhile cause since the Newington CT program was established by FVTU members in 2012. In addition, FVTU has provided direct financial support which has allowed the program to expand its fly fishing experiences for the veteran participants.
In order to expand the number of quality fly-fishing experiences (both day and overnight fly-fishing outings), the Newington program will be conducting its first online auction from March 31 – April 8, 2023. They will be auctioning a wide range of fly-fishing rod/reel packages, rods custom built by veteran participants, fly tying equipment/accessories, float trip outing, non-fishing items and more. All proceeds raised will go directly to providing additional day and overnight outings for veteran participants that are part of the Newington program.
FVTU asks that our members consider supporting this auction.
The auction will start at 8:00 am EST on Friday, March 31, 2023 and will close at 11:59pm EST on Saturday, April 8, 2023 and can be accessed at the following Network for Good site
http://auctions.networkforgood.com/go/2023ProjectHealingWatersNewingtonOnlineAuction
The site is currently active if you would like to preview some of the items that we have listed.
Thank you all for your support of PHW.
For further information on PHW please contact
Don LaChance John Ferrantino
Program Lead Assistant Program Lead
PHWFF Newington, CT PHWFF Newington, CT
don.lachance@projecthealingwaters.org 860.930.0184 john.ferrantino@projecthealingwaters.org 203.915.8103
The Board of Directors, Farmington Valley Trout Unlimited, is pleased to announce that the Trout in The Classroom Annual Scholarship will be offered once again. The scholarship in the amount of one thousand dollars is offered to a 2023 graduating high school senior who is currently participating, or has participated in Trout In The Classroom.
Please help us to pass this information on to any students that meet the eligibility requirements. Any questions can be directed to any of the Scholarship committee members listed. Application can be found below.
Thank for your attention;
John DiVenere
President
Farmington Valley Chapter Trout Unlimited
Farmington Valley Chapter Scholarship Selection Committee members;
Robert Salerno – captainbob1717@gmail.com
Kathryn Robinson – kegrobinson@gmail.com
Carolyn Divenere – danandcarolyn@comcast.net
Carl Swanson – cswanson319@gmail.com
Application Link: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1VrXvhX915kT0u79Hb5BqZrDHrS0WgkI6mktR6q16lyU/edit?usp=sharing
Out of the utmost precaution, the FVTU Board has made the tough decision to cancel our annual in-person fundraising banquet scheduled for March 19, 2022, due to the most recent surge of COVID-19. In light of this information, we are asking you, our dedicated members, to consider a virtual donation so that we may be able to keep the important work FVTU does afloat for another year. Click here to read more…
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