AUGUSTA – The Maine Warden Service continues to warn people about thin ice conditions on many of the state’s waterways.

Above-average temperatures, along with recent storms, are creating conditions that are weakening ice throughout the state. Rivers and streams still are high, causing substantial amounts of water to flow into lakes, opening up inlets and outlets and creating dangerous conditions. Also, power companies recently have performed routine draw-downs of water that changed ice conditions, especially along shorelines.

The state’s larger lakes have substantial swatches of open water, and in southern Maine many of the smaller lakes and ponds are opening up.

Because of insufficient ice in parts of the state, promoters of the 10th Maine Chevrolet Derby, a statewide ice fishing derby, decided Tuesday night to cancel the event, which was scheduled for March 6-7.

According to derby promoter Tom Noonan, only six of the 25 fish weigh stations reported having two feet of ice or more. For more information, visit www.icefishingderby.com.

The Maine Warden Service is advising that people to be cautious. Do not drive heavy vehicles, such as cars or trucks, onto lakes or ponds. Any snowfall, such as that forecasted for tonight in parts of Maine, may blanket any open water. Persons unfamiliar with a lake or pond are advised not to go on them, particularly at night.

Some parts of the state, primarily ponds in northern Maine, have ice. But Game Wardens are advising that its thickness should be checked before venturing onto its surface.

The Maine Warden Service offers these tips for ice safety:

· Never guess the thickness of the ice – Check it! Check the ice in several different places using an auger or some other means to make a test hole and determine the thickness. Make several, beginning at the shore, and continuing as you go out.

· Check the ice with a partner, so if something does happen, someone is there to help you. If you are doing it alone, wear a lifejacket.

· If ice at the shoreline is cracked or squishy, stay off! Watch out for thin, clear or honeycombed ice. Dark snow and dark ice are other signs of weak spots.

· Avoid areas with currents, around bridges and pressure ridges. Wind and currents can break ice.

· Parents should alert children of unsafe ice in their area, and make sure that they stay off the ice.

If you break through the ice, remember:

· Don’t panic.

· Don’t try to climb out immediately – you will probably break the ice again. Reach for solid ice.

· Lay both arms on the unbroken ice and kick hard. This will help lift your body onto the ice. Once on the ice, roll, DON’T WALK, to safety.

· To help someone who has fallen through the ice, lie down flat and reach with a branch, plank or rope or form a human chain. Don’t stand. After securing the victim, wiggle backwards to the solid ice.

George Smith, Executive Director for the Sportsman’s Alliance of Maine, has announced a group effort plan to help fund the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife with a portion of the general taxation. SAM is teaming up with The Nature Conservancy and the Maine Audubon seeking 1/8% of sales tax revenue to fund MDIFW.

Smith writes of how nearly one million Maine residents enjoy the benefits of the hard work done by MDIFW and yet do not pay a nickel for it. He’s correct. MDIFW is funded through license fees and federal money kicked back via the Pittman-Robertson Act. And yet, MDIFW is overburdened with non fish and game programs all funded on the backs of hunters, trappers and fishers.

Changing the funding to come from general taxation is a bad idea and I’ll explain why. First let me briefly lay out my plan for how to ease the financial burden along with the stretching thin of MDIFW personnel. Remove a majority of the non game programs that have been dumped in the lap of MDIFW and place them at the Department of Conservation or other departments where they belong. Then fund those programs with general tax dollars. This would include but not be limited to management of all non game wildlife, including plants and vegetation. Add to that endangered species protection, wildlife viewing platforms, etc. and let’s put search and rescue and snowmobile/atv law compliance into law enforcement. When the Warden Service is needed, they can bill out their services to the appropriate department.

Keeping general tax dollars out of MDIFW is essential. If Maine should opt to allow this money for funding, I guarantee, environmentalists, anti-hunting and animal rights groups will begin pounding the drum and demanding that they have representation on the MDIFW commission. Just about every state in America that has buckled to the financial pressures to find ways of funding and chose tax dollar funding, has run up against this very problem.

Here’s one state in which I’ll give you an example. New Jersey began funding it’s fish and wildlife division, which by the way was morphed into a larger Department of Environmental Protection, with tax dollars. Almost immediately animal rights and anti hunting groups demanded representation. This was a petition that was circulated there last year.

I support Assembly bill A3275 and Senate bill S2041 – legislation that will democratize, modernize and remove the corrupting influence of profit from the hunter-dominated New Jersey Fish and Game Council, the state body that has power over our wildlife.

Declaration for an Independent and Democratic Wildlife Council

We, the people of New Jersey, stand united against the NJ Fish and Game Council, for it has abused its power, has broken the law, and benefits from millions of our tax-dollars every year without giving one voice to the common man.
We seek nothing but reasonable reforms that will prepare our state for managing wildlife in the twenty-first century. We aspire to nothing more than bringing democracy to a state body that now has none.
We act for the environment, for wildlife, for the people of New Jersey and the ideal of good government, for when one special interest holds tyranny over all, only arrogance and corruption can follow.
In this cause we are unanimous and resolute: The NJ Fish and Game Council must be dramatically reformed, so that it will at last serve the interests of the many instead of the recreational hunting desires of the few.

Notice the demonizing of hunters through “profit” when their goals is to put an end to all hunting and fishing. They describe it as “modernizing” and “democratizing” wildlife management. Is this what Maine wants?

In Smith’s article he points out that $2.4 billion is raked in each season through benefits directly related to work by the MDIFW. If you want to see that amount of money shrink in a hurry, then allow the animal rights groups to get a foot in the door to limit hunting and fishing opportunities. MDIFW spends enough time now wasting valued wildlife management dollars defending senseless lawsuits brought on the state by the same groups that will be demanding representation.

I appreciate George Smith’s eagerness to find funding for MDIFW but not at the expense of the hunting, trapping and fishing heritage Maine has enjoyed for decades. I contend that we can actually grow the economic contributions to the state of Maine by shrinking MDIFW back to a fish and game department, while moving all non game programs into other departments, including Conservation and better funding those programs with the tax dollars they deserve.

The money that MDIFW generates now from license sales can then be put toward game management, which is suffering badly. With improved hunting, trapping and fishing opportunities, license sales will go up and non resident sportsmen will return to Maine to spend their valuable sports dollars.

Maine voters should seriously get all the answers and completely understand what an amendment to the Constitution would do to their hunting and fishing heritage. The quick fix to a money problem might look appealing but in the long run it may not be in the best economic interest for Maine to do this.

Tom Remington

Our friends at Gray Ghost Productions are at it again. Hang on for the March 27, 2010 release dates followed by screening scheduled for April. The Good Life is fishing from Florida to Labrador and stops in between.

The Sportsman’s Alliance of Maine submitted a Freedom of Information Act request to the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife in order to obtain around 100,000 email addresses of those who bought hunting and fishing licenses online. As a result, it has set off a firestorm across certain channels of the hunting and fishing outdoor world in Maine. At issue is privacy and unwanted SPAM from SAM as well as the ability of any other individual or group to obtain the same list. Potentially, this could open a can of worms.

According to WMTW-TV website, SAM obtained the emails to send out information about coyotes. SAM has become very active of late in working to get all hunters involved in doing what they can to stop the further decline of the whitetail deer herd in Maine, which is suffering greatly due to many factors; poor management, severe winters, loss of habitat, overblown populations of predators, among other things. One aspect is to encourage and promote the hunting of coyotes.

One would have to recognize and appreciate SAM being all agog to fire up the licensed hunters and get them involved but I have to seriously question the decision to mount an email campaign using emails obtained, 1). through FOIA request, and; 2). using emails from fellow hunters without their approval. These are the guys you want help from. It’s an odd way to go about it.

We all hate SPAM and some are obsessed with it. It think it safe to say that most hunters are not very thrilled with the prospects of what can come from this move by SAM. First, it immediately creates bad public relations. Second, it forms distrust. Many hunters are asking whether SAM will resell the list to other agencies. This all comes at a time when hunters need to unite in an effort. I think SAM is attempting to do this but they failed to grasp what would happen. Third, if SAM, which had to go through the Maine Attorney Generals Office, can obtain this list, anyone else can. That fact in and of itself, has angered a lot of people.

In my opinion, here is what SAM needs to do. Immediately issue a public apology. Promise the list will not be used and that they will work with the Attorney General and MDIFW in order to get the law changed to protect those emails. I don’t believe this was the intent of FOIA. This only makes sense. MDIFW has promoted their MOSES online license purchasing program for quite some time. It is time and money saving for MDIFW. If perspective license buyers can’t be confident their email information and perhaps other personal information, cannot be safeguarded, it will seriously detract from the program. This has to be done immediately.

Once SAM has done what it can to minimize the damage they have caused, then they can choose other routes to get their message out. SAM has a website that needs updating to become more user friendly and interactive. They can wage an opt in/opt out email campaign for sending out newsletters, etc. and seeking new members. They can provide needed updates on their website along with providing RSS feeds so other websites, including blogs and forums, can post SAM’s feed so their readers have easy access.

Press releases can also be generated from the website and sent to all media outlets across the state. If SAM is wondering how well this might work, then just take a lot at how quickly and widespread the news traveled about them confiscating emails. I rest my case.

We live in an electronic age. With the rapid growth of the Internet, lack of knowledge can set businesses and organizations back in their progress as was the case for SAM. On the same token, knowledge can advance their cause. They now need to mend some fences and get with the times. The days of “stealing” email addresses to send unsolicited information is not only outdated but is extremely bad business. SAM needs to become cutting edge in this regard.

Tom Remington

A Waterboro man has caught a record-setting brook trout in York County, according to Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife regional fisheries biologists.

Patrick Coan of Waterboro landed the brook trout on January 8, 2010, while fishing at Mousam Lake.

The fish was weighed 9.02 pounds and was weighed on a certified scale at Limerick Supermarket. The record was confirmed by regional fisheries biologists based in IF&W’s Gray Regional Office.

Coan’s record-setting brook trout was a product of an IF&W hatchery, as evidenced by its fin clips. It is not known when this particular fish was stocked in Mousam Lake.

The previous state record was caught by James Foster of Howland on Big Black Pond in 1979. It weighed 8 pounds, 8 ounces

The Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife and the Maine Sportsman newspaper, which is edited by avid outdoorsman and TV personality Harry Vanderweide, jointly announce new records. The publication has maintained the state record book for more than 30 years.

Tom Remington

Ice fishing season is almost here!

Our regional fisheries biologists preview the upcoming season in their annual Ice Fishing Preview. This is an informative guide to what fish have been stocked and where, and biologists’ picks of great ice fishing hot spots!

To view the preview on our website, visit http://www.maine.gov/ifw/fishing/reports/weekly_biologist/index.htm

For a printable pdf version, select this link: http://www.maine.gov/ifw/fishing/reports/pdfs/2010icefishpreview.pdf

Happy Fishing!

Photo from fOTOGLIF

AUGUSTA – Maine 2010 hunting and fishing licenses now are available for purchase just in time for holiday gift giving.

Licenses are available using MOSES, the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife’s online licensing system, at https://www.informe.org/moses/. This system, too, is used at more than 300 licensing agents statewide.

With MOSES, hunters and anglers can purchase licenses at any time of the day or night and print their licenses from their home or office computer in just minutes. It’s also easier to print duplicate licenses, and by clicking on “express user” the system will maintain your information for future license purchases.

Any resident or non-resident sportsperson looking to hunt or fish in Maine can use MOSES. This online service in not available for individuals that need to obtain a complimentary, lifetime or military license, or for those interested individuals from countries other than the United States or Canada.

All hunters and anglers will notice an increase in license fees this year. For resident anglers and hunters, most licenses are increasing by $4. The price increase, approved by the Maine Legislature, helps the Department cover the costs of fish and wildlife resource management. When considering the license fees in other states, Maine’s rates are comparable or are a better bargain for outdoor enthusiasts. Plus, Maine offers wide open spaces and some of the best opportunities in the country! Ask any angler and you’ll hear that this year’s fishing was the best in years!

The best value for residents is a hunt-fish combo license, which increased by $4. If you hunt and fish, buying a combo license instead of each license separately saves $4.

The Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife primarily is funded from the sales of licenses and registrations. This year, the Department will receive little revenue from the state’s general fund.

All proceeds from the sale of licenses and registrations stay within the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife. None of the money is used to support other state agencies.

If you believe in the Department’s efforts to manage Maine’s natural resources, but may not be a hunter or angler, consider buying a license to support our programs. Outdoor recreation activities such as hunting, fishing, ATV riding, snowmobiling, boating and wildlife watching contribute $2.4 billion to Maine’s annual economy and support 15,790 outdoors-related jobs.

Using MOSES is simple. License buyers will need to have available their personal information, such as first and last name, address, date of birth, and other pertinent information. Also, they’ll need their previous hunting license number or safety course number (if you are purchasing a hunting authority), and a credit card number. Visa, Mastercard and Discover credit and debit cards are accepted.

By purchasing online, buyers are saving the department the direct costs associated with the expense of manual paper licensing. These savings then can be applied to the important management of our fish and wildlife resources.

A Dover-Foxcroft has pleaded guilty to four charges of possessing and selling fish over the legal limit and has been fined $2,960.

Mark Cox, 38, of Dover-Foxcroft plead guilty on December 7, 2009, in Dover-Foxcroft District Court on charges stemming from an illegal fishing investigation conducted in August 2009.

According to Maine Warden Service Captain Dan Scott, Mr. Cox plead guilty to two counts of Possessing Over the Legal Limit of Brook Trout. On one occasion during the investigation, Mr. Cox had 41 fish over his limit and on a second occasion he had 21 fish over his limit. Cox was assessed two fines — $920 for the first offense and $520 for the second offense.

Additionally, Mr. Cox plead guilty to the counts of selling 46 brook trout and possessing live fish. He was assessed fines of $1,020 for the first violation and $500 for the second violation.

In August 2009, approximately a dozen Maine Game Wardens executed a search warrant at Mr. Cox’s Dover-Foxcroft residence. The warrant was the result of a 7-day investigation into the illegal take and sale of fish in the Piscataquis County area.

Game Wardens conducted surveillance of Mr. Cox and his associates for multiple nights and days leading up to the warrant. During that time, numerous violations were documented, including the illegal take, possession and sale of brook trout.

Upon executing the warrant, Game Wardens seized fishing equipment, cameras, a computer, both live and frozen fish, drug paraphernalia, cash and a vehicle from Mr. Cox’s residence. Analysis of that evidence led to the execution of additional search warrants which are part of ongoing investigations. The Maine Warden Service cannot comment on those investigations.

MWS Captain Scott stated that Mr. Cox is facing license and permit suspensions once the final report and charge disposition is filed with Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife Commissioner Roland “Danny” Martin.

Captain Scott commended the continued positive working relationship between the Maine Warden Service and the Piscataquis County District Attorney’s Office. “The time and attention that District Attorney Chris Almy afforded to Maine Warden Service investigatiors are indicative of his continued support to our mission of protecting Maine’s fish and wildlife resources,” said Scott. “The substantial fines in this case demonstrate the high value that we and the people of Maine place upon our natural resources.”

The original complaint regarding this illegal take and sale of brook trout originated through the Maine Warden Service’s Operation Game Thief program. People with information regarding fish and wildlife violations are encouraged to call 1-800-ALERT-US or go to www.maineogt.org. Tipsters can remain anonymous.

By Bob Romano

Looking up at the hemlocks, you would never guess that they are dying. These trees, many over seventy feet tall, are plagued by the Hemlock Wooly Adelgid, an exotic pest infesting many stands throughout the northeast. I suppose one should be grateful that it has been a slow process, each season a few more trees falling to the forest floor, others losing their needles. The shade cast by this forest insures that the temperature of the little stream that runs through it remains cool.

The sound of the current grows louder as my wading boots leave indentations in the thick layer of moss that spreads across the bank of the brook. Even now, in early September, I can almost grab the humidity with my hand.

The last time these waters were stocked was in the nineteen-eighties. Since then, the descendants of those dull-witted, hatchery-bred fish have developed into a strain of cagey, wild brook trout, their sides a riot of blue-and-yellow circles, some with blood red dots in the center.

The fish of this little stream lack the lighter hues found in trout of other waters. Instead, their backs are uniformly black. I like to think that it is because they spend their hidden lives under the shadows of the hemlock forest. I know they are doomed to perish without the dense shade provided by the trees, that the stream will one day be unable to maintain the lower temperatures necessary for their survival. It’s just a matter of time.

Hemlock needles cushion my knee as I look down at a mayfly riding upon the current. The dun-colored insect holds its diaphanous wings upright, looking like a sailboat with translucent sails tacking against the breeze. A second mayfly hovers above the stream’s surface, momentarily hesitating before the delicate creature rises upward like a woodland faerie fluttering through the sun-streaked shadows.

The brook’s primary source is a small pond tucked into a ridge along the foothills of a minor range of mountains. The blueberry bushes that spread down to the water’s edge make it difficult to hike around the pond’s shoreline. Farther back, scrub oak, white pine and Norwegian spruce grow close together. Rumor has it that the snakes here are as big as your fear will allow, and although gnats, black flies and mosquitoes can be a bother, it’s the deer ticks that are the real worry.

Descending for a short distance from the pond, its depth no more than inches, the brook slides around boulders lush with lichen and moss until it passes under a single-lane macadam road. A few hundred yards downstream a second, smaller rill trickles down out of the east to join the main flow. A quarter-mile from the road, runoff from the hills that rise up along the brook’s western flank descends through a ravine, adding more volume whenever it rains. As the gradient increases, riffles are interspersed with plunge pools that are formed wherever the current slices around or over larger rocks, fallen limbs and other debris. The depth in some places is now two and even three feet. It is in this manner that the hidden brook falls for another seven miles until slipping unnoticed into a bigger river.

Standing here in the uncertain light, my calves resist the pull of the current. I flip a Gold-ribbed Hare’s Ear wet fly, its tinsel worn, body ragged, toward a small glide along the edge of the far bank. For a moment the fly bobs on the surface. A flash of jaw appears and I can feel hook bite sinew, but then the trout is gone, my line slack.

As an angler, a fly fisher to be more specific, I have a fondness for moving water, can’t help but look over each bridge, stop by every rivulet, gully or ditch. Most fishermen might not think to fling their lures at the secretive trout of this little stream, preferring the certainty of bigger fish in the many put-and-take rivers and lakes that are within a few minutes drive. But I have discovered a secret under the deep shade of the hemlocks, something more than bracken and bone. For it is here, in this dark forest, by this tiny brook that a man can lie suspended in place and time, however briefly, with yesterday forgotten, tomorrow of no concern. It is for this reason, that these woods, this water draws me back to present my flies to forgotten trout for as long as a dying forest will cast its shadows.

Climbing from the brook, I lean on a hemlock. The trunk is still strong although the tree’s needles have turned gray. A few feet downstream, a fingerling turns to capture a caddis larva dislodged by my wading boot.

Bob is the author of three books and numerous essays about fly fishing and the natural world. Shadows in the Stream, his book of essays about the Rangeley Lakes Region in Maine is in its third printing while his novel, North of Easie, was recently published. For more information check out Bob’s website: forgottentrout.com or go to his publisher’s website: birchbrookpress.info

Government basically screws up everything it touches its hand to and in addition to that it costs taxpayers bundles more than it ever should have. So what else is new? This is a success story, one that you won’t hear a lot about because it really only happened after the big and powerful government backed off.

It was only last March that I did a review on a brand new DVD production of Carter Davidson’s of Gray Ghost Productions, LLC called East by Northeast.

Davidson, through his generosity, took a section from his movie and made it into a short film, about 8 minutes in length. This film talks of the history of the Androscoggin River in Maine, once one of the 10 most polluted rivers in America. Not a title you really strive for. The films depicts some of what the river has become today.

The video can be viewed below but I thought I would share with readers my own personal knowledge about the river and the effort to clean it up.

In the video below, the narrator mentions the efforts of the federally mandated Clean Water Restoration Act, an act often tagged with the name of Senator Edmund Muskie, a resident of Rumford, Maine, located just a few miles downstream from my hometown of Bethel.

While the CWRA was responsible for cleaning up a lot of rivers and water bodies, it was not the end all solution to dirty water. Strong-arming the companies and municipalities along the river could only go so far. In attempts to keep the effort going to clean up the river, taxing and regulating could only go so far.

Essentially, the stiff arm of government forced paper companies and towns along the river to take care of the majority of their wastes and pollutants they were dumping in the river. That was the easy part. Taking care of the last 5-10% of the waste became very costly. Efforts stalled.

That was only part of the problem. What about all the private landowners and farmers along the river corridor? Was the government going to force them to stop spreading manure and fertilizers? Where they going to make landowners clean up old garbage dump sites, many of which the current landowner never participated in?

The effort to clean up the river seemed to come to a grinding halt. Opposition grew to the tactics being used by government and environmentalists. Let’s face it, you can only push Mainers so far before they balk.

Speaking specifically about the Upper Androscoggin River, the effort wasn’t quite dead yet. The actions taken so far were beginning to return life to the river. Ducks returned to some degree, fish were jumping and a few brave soles were paddling their canoes as well. Ospreys soon were seen overhead and occasionally a bald eagle.

I will give the Maine Environmental Protection Agency credit for one thing. Someone thought it might be worth the effort to try a different approach. Something other than force and bullying. I’ll have to go try to verify my history but if memory serves me, this effort might have been initiated, at least to some degree, by the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife’s director at the time, Bucky Owens. I do know that Bucky loved the Upper Andro and during his tenure at MDIFW he had a vision to turn the Upper Andro into a trophy fishing mecca.

I knock came at my door one day. Someone from the EPA was looking for a location to have a meeting and help getting volunteers to attend a meeting. I had the meeting space and drawing from a few members of the Friends of the Androscoggin, we rounded up a few volunteers.

Our newly formed group thought that if we could convince the locals, that included me, that the river was clean and stayed clean all the time, perhaps we could begin a process of deprogramming these people about the past and get the years and years of dirty, nasty images of the river out of their heads. This was a huge chore.

A friend, Walter Hatch, and I volunteered to do sampling of the water once a week for the summer. We had five sampling stations spread out from New Hampshire to just below the Bethel village and the confluence of the Androscoggin and Sunday Rivers. We were all surprised at how well the water tested and how consistent those tests were.

That was 15 years or so ago and as they say a lot of water under the bridge. What makes this story such a success and one that I wish others would model is that the real long lasting clean up effort never happened until after big government butted out and local residents took ownership.

Industry, along with careless and thoughtless use and abuse of the river snatched it away from the people. Government tried to take it back. Once we could convince the people that there really was something there of value, something they could own and participate in caring for, then we knew the river could be safely returned to the people.

Enjoy the video. In it are many of my friends. I recognize most of the spots that you will see along the river and I can personally attest to how dirty it was and how clean it is now. I also want to take a moment and pay special notice to my good friend Rocky Freda, who appears in this movie. Rocky passed away just this summer and I miss him. His name will be forever etched into the Upper Androscoggin River for his efforts and tireless dedication to keep the effort alive.

Tom Remington

Anglers from Team Patagonia/Wild River Angler Take Top Spots In Upper Andro 2-Fly Contest

Bethel, Me…..Tyler Cote of Monmouth was the first place winner in the Third Annual Upper Andro Two Fly Contest held Saturday, September 19th on the Upper Androscoggin River between New Hampshire and Rumford, Maine. Tyler tied for first place in the biggest fish category with Brad Jerome of Newry. Both anglers caught a 14” rainbow trout. There was a tie for second place between Kevin McKay of Brewer, Maine and Charlie Lowe of Twin Mountain, NH, with 13 ½” rainbows. Chad Hughes of Camden, Scott Overbey of Brunswick and Mitch Cummings of Bethel each caught a 13” rainbow for third place honors.

The largest catch was also won by Cote with 12 fish, ten rainbows, a brown and brook trout. Second place went to Overbey with a catch of 9 rainbows and third place to Lowe with 4 rainbows, a brook and brown trout.

The Rocky Freda Turtle Water Team Trophy was presented to the Patagonia/Wild River Angler team who caught 21 fish.

Thirteen teams entered the competition. Each team made up of two anglers and a drift boat oarsman, fished with the use of only two flies from 6 am to 2 pm. All fish were caught, recorded and released. Along with the trophies, merchandise prizes from Orvis, L.L. Bean, Kittery Trading Post and Patagonia were presented to the winners. Three anglers who were unable to catch any fish received a new set of flies from Selene Dumaine of Merrymeeting Fly Shop in Brunswick.

The annual event is a fundraiser for the Upper Andro Anglers Alliance. The non-profit group, based in Bethel, Maine, is dedicated to conserving, protecting, restoring and promoting the natural resources relating to the Upper Androscoggin River, its tributaries, watershed and environs.

Note: Skinny Moose Media will be sponsoring a “media” boat again this year. Our fishermen will be Doug Rafferty, WGME-TV13, Portland news anchor and Steve Minich, news reporter for WMTW-TV8, Portland.

Twelve teams will be competing in The Upper Andro Two Fly Contest and Northeast Drift Boat Championship scheduled for the weekend of September 19 and 20 in conjunction with Bethel’s Annual Harvest Fest. The competitions are the annual fund-raisers for the Upper Andro Anglers Alliance, a non-profit group dedicated to the conservation, protection, restoration and promotion of the natural fishing resource of the Upper Androscoggin River, its tributaries, watershed and environs.

The Two Fly contest will test the skills of anglers to fly fish, using only two flies, for the most and the largest of the three trout species, brown, rainbow and brook found in the Upper Androscoggin River from the New Hampshire border to Rumford Center. Teams of three including two anglers and a referee/oarsman must fish from an open drift boat or raft beginning at 6 am and concluding at 2 pm.

Prizes including rods and fishing gear supplied by Kittery Trading Post, L.L. Bean, Patagonia, and the Orvis Company will be awarded Saturday afternoon immediately following a parade of the drift boats up Main Street and around the Bethel Town Common. A perpetual trophy named after Rocky Freda, founder of Sun Valley Sports and the Upper Andro Anglers Alliance, will be presented to the team with the largest catch.

A tally of fishing catches will be updated throughout the day at the Upper Andro Anglers Alliance’s booth on the Bethel Town Common. The Alliance will offer fly tying and fly casting instruction and Robert Romano, author of “North of Easie”, a novel about fly fishing in the Rangeley region will be signing his new book.

The Second Annual Northeast Drift Boat Championship will be held Sunday, September 20 at 10:30 am. Designed as a spectator event, the competition will test oarsmen’s skills at navigating a course and rowing speed. Each drift boat must carry at least one angler, who must remain standing throughout the timed race. The launch will be from Bethel Outdoor Adventures on Route 2 and the finish line is at Davis Park in Bethel-a distance of a quarter mile.

Sponsors for teams registered to compete include The Bethel Inn Resort, Casco Bay Anglers Club, Eldredge Bros. Fly Shop, Fly Rod & Reel Magazine, Gray Ghost Productions, Maine Tourism Association, Moat Mountain Brewery, No Drip Painting and 3rd Generation Flooring, Patagonia and Wild River Angler, Schiavi Home Builders, Skinny Moose Media, Striking Gold Jewelers and Williams Broadcasting.

Information on the events is available on line at www.upperandro.com or by phoning 207-824-3694.