Upper Andro Anglers Alliance

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.

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.

*Attention: Note change of date from Dec. 16 to the 17th*

Wednesday, December 17, 2009
6:00 – 10:00 P.M.
At the Matterhorn Ski Bar – Sunday River

Suggested donation at the door:
$10.00 individual adult
$5.00 for children under age 12
RSVP by Friday, December 11
Call 207-824-6836 (Leave message with # of people)

Food, beverage, music; Live and Silent auctions.
Organizers are soliciting help with donations of food, beverages and items for the auctions.

Call Roger at 207-824-6836 or email rb@matterhornskibar.com

You can print out the form at this link, and mail it to the address listed on the form.

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.

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.

There are so many cliches that are used when someone unexpectedly passes on. Nearly all of them are fitting for my good friend Rocky Freda. Rocky and his wife Lisa, were dedicated advocates for outdoor sportsmen all over the state of Maine and beyond. Rocky died suddenly last week and the news that came to me that morning left me in shock, speechless and deeply saddened.

I had spent two months this summer at our camp in Maine, only a few miles from Rocky’s home and business. I had spent a day with him and Lisa working on their web site, always having a good laugh. What great people.

The day before my wife and I headed back to Florida, I dropped in to Rocky’s to pick up a video he wanted added to his web site. When I arrived, Rocky was finishing up loading a van and trailer full of canoes and kayaks and was headed for the river. He yelled as he drove away, “I left that video with Lisa in the office!” Those will be the last words I remember and of course the big smile on his face.

As I sat here at my home in Florida, I struggled to find any focus. My mind drifted, overcome with sadness, concern for Lisa and the rest of the family. We can never prepare for these things and when they happen we can only seek the comfort of friends, family and God.

My mind traveled back to a day many years ago. My wife and I were managing the River View Resort on Rt. 2 in Bethel. Rocky came knocking at my door and introduced himself. He was real, warm, enthusiastic and a thinker. I doubt his mind ever stopped working, not only constructing for himself a better life, a better business, but it had to also fit into the grand scheme of things that included all of us. Rocky understood how things worked and that included everyone in his community.

“Only the good die young”, “Has anybody here seen my old friend Rocky? Can you tell me where he’s gone?”

I’ll miss you my good friend! You’ve left a void in my life.

Rocco R. Freda – 1949 – 2009

NORWAY —Rocco R. “Rocky” Freda, 60, husband of Lisa (Whitcomb) Freda, of Sunday River Road, Bethel, died unexpectedly Friday, Aug. 14, in Norway.

He was born in Leominster, Mass., on Jan. 27, 1949, the son of Rocco and Alberta (Leet) Freda, and graduated from Leominster High School, Leominster, Mass., in 1967.

Rocky came to Maine in the mid 70s to work for Agway, running a fertilizer plant in Auburn, and later trained as a dairy nutritionist and crop specialist working at Agway until 1994. He later guided caribou hunts in Canada for Lac Lucault for two years, then opened Sun Valley Sports & Guide Service in 1995 which he was running until his death.

Rocky was a master Maine Guide, a former member of the Bethel Planning Board, president of the Bethel Area Chamber of Commerce in 2005 and on the board of directors for seven years, current president of Trout Unlimited and also the Upper Andro Anglers Alliance. Lisa and Rocky received the Governor’s Conference on Tourism Award for Excellence in Tourism for commitment to innovation.

Rocky is survived by his wife of 15 years, Lisa (Whitcomb) Freda, of Bethel; his mother, of Norway; one son, Corey Freda and his wife, Jill, and their three children, Justin, Chelsea and Caleb, all of Leeds; as well as two nieces and five nephews.

Rocky was predeceased by his father; and one brother, Stephen.

Tom Remington

In Bethel, Maine Scheduled for September 19 & 20

The Upper Andro Two Fly Contest and Northeast Drift Boat Championship are scheduled for the weekend of September 19 and 20, 2009 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.

Contestants may use only two flies during the event, which starts at 6:00 am on Saturday. Teams may launch from public launch sites from the New Hampshire border at Shelburne to Rumford Center. The contest concludes at 2:00 pm.

The Two Fly contest will test the skills of anglers to fly fish 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. A fly is defined as made from natural or synthetic materials tied to a single pointed hook. No tandems or treble hooks are allowed. Teams of three including two anglers and a referee/oarsman must fish from an open boat-drift boat or raft. All fish must be released live.

Prizes including rods and fishing gear supplied by Kittery Trading Post, L.L. Bean, Sun Valley Sports and the Orvis Company will be awarded Saturday afternoon immediately following a parade of the drift boats up Main Street and around the Town Common.

The Second Annual Northeast Drift Boat Championship will be held Sunday, September 20 at 10 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.

Last year’s winner of the Two Fly Contest with a 19 1/2” brown trout was Tyler Gammon of Otisfield, Maine. Winner of the Drift Boat competition was Mike Jones of Harpswell, ME rowing a Clackacraft boat. Both outdoorsmen plan to defend their titles.

Official contest rules and a registration form are available on line at www.upperandro.com or by phoning 1-877-851-7533.

Last evening I made a trip from my camp here in Maine down the Androscoggin River for approximately 6 miles to the Moran’s Landing site. I recently provided you a story on efforts by local river supporters, etc. to build a boat launch ramp at the site. I returned last night to get photos of the nearly completed project so I could finish my story and get it published.

While I was there, I met a man from Connecticut who had been fishing portions of the Upper Androscoggin River that day and he had opted to conclude his fishing adventures by returning to Bear River Rips at Newry Corner along the Androscoggin River.

Photo by Tom Remington

An angler from Connecticut, casts his nymph onto the waters of the Upper Androscoggin River in Western Maine. At this site is the confluence of the Bear River and the Androscoggin. The Bear River is fed through several brooks and streams coming down out of Grafton Notch, high up in the Appalachian Mountain region near the Mahoosucs, noted as being some of the toughest terrain along the entire length of the Appalachian Trail.

The cool mountain waters of the Bear River provides a great resource for cold water species of fish such as trout. These much sought after fish lay quietly in water eddies waiting to strike at the opportunity for a meal.

Photo by Tom Remington

I stood at the completed boat ramp and snapped this shot looking upstream. To the right in the picture is where the Bear River enters the Androscoggin just below the bigger rips. The top of the smaller mountain to the right in the photo is Mt. Will, a great and relatively easy hiking trail that provides some spectacular scenery. Far up the river and what you can see over the top of the last visible part of the river, are mountains leading up to the Appalachian chain and the Mahoosucs. That one visible mountain may possibly be Locke Mountain.

Photo by Tom Remington

Standing on the same boat ramp looking downstream the views are just as stunning. The above angler told me a large trout lurked in the little ripples of water visible in the photo near to where I was standing.

Difficult to see and further down the river, is the head of Hemlock Island. I grew up on this river and as you view the photo, I lived on the right side of the river and Hemlock Island was directly behind our house. Hemlock Island is most noted in Indian lore as being the site that Indian Princess Mollyockett buried the treasures she had amassed over the years. As appealing as that might sound, don’t drop everything and head for the island to scavenge for treasure. People have flocked there for years looking. (My brothers and I found the treasure years ago and that’s why I am now independently wealthy!……. NOT!)

The sun was setting and the mosquitoes and black flies were feasting on my flesh, so I gathered myself and headed for camp, leaving the Connecticut angler in his quest to out-maneuver that pesky trout.

Author’s Note: If you would like to learn more about the history of this river and the transformation that has happened over the past few decades of taking this river from one of the ten most polluted rivers in America to a clean water, destination fishing location, you can read a story I wrote several years ago called, “From Blight to Beauty“.

Tom Remington

While many people simply complain about lack of access to the Upper Androscoggin River in Maine, at least one organization has been busy for nearly two years pulling all the right strings and coordinating an effort to get a drift boat/boat access at Moran’s Landing at Newry Corner – the confluence of the Androscoggin and Bear Rivers.

Wende Gray, of Gray Marketing and a spokesperson for the Upper Andro Anglers Alliance (UAAA) calls it “the ultimate in collaboration”.

Mostly organizations just talk about collaboration, have meetings and feel good about “working together” to produce nothing but Thursday the rubber will actually hit the road or gravel the shore.

According to Gray, the Mahoosuc Land Trust owns the landing and handled acquiring the necessary permits. The Androscoggin Watershed Council (AVCOG) has been helping to coordinate the effort and line up a construction company. Chadbourne Tree Farms donated the gravel and Cross Construction provided trucking to get the gravel to the site, while Steve Swazey donated a loader. Members of the UAAA have been providing volunteer work.

Gray said that with the new boat launch, the river will become “a truly multiple-use river” and it didn’t require a “multi-thousand dollar grant” to get it done.

Photo by Tom Remington

Once the location was determined for the ramp from the parking area to the river, Rocky Freda of Sun Valley Sports and a member of the UAAA, cleared the trees and brush. Excavation equipment then began roughing out the ramp and spreading gravel.

Photo by Tom Remington

After a few hours, the road to the ramp took shape.

Photo by Tom Remington

Concrete slabs were placed at the river’s edge to provide the actual ramp itself.

Tom Remington