For the first time in the 2-Fly contest history there was a tie at the top for the biggest fish caught during the 7 hour fly-fishing competition held on the Upper Androscoggin River on Saturday, September 17. Both Rex Cummings of Bethel, Maine and Jim Bernstein of Cape Neddick, Maine caught a 15 ½ inch rainbow trout. The fishermen drew straws to see who would have first choice of the many prizes donated by LL Bean, Orvis, Patagonia, the Kittery Trading Post, Sun Valley Sports and Carter’s Farm and Outdoor Center. Cummings won the draw and chose an Orvis Helios fly rod. Bernstein chose an insulated gear bag from Patagonia. Second place went to Emily Cote of Monmouth, Maine, who caught a 14 inch rainbow. Emily received a fishing kayak from LL Bean. Third place with a 13 ½ inch rainbow went to Dan Harrison of Kennebunk, Me . The First Place trophy for the largest catch of the day went to Peter Smith of Wilton, Me with 11 trout, 2nd place to Todd Richard of Farmington, Me. with 10 trout and 3rd place to Kevin McKay of Winterport, Me. with 8 trout. The Rocky Freda Turtle Water Trophy for the Team who caught the most fish was presented to Scott Stone, the oarsman for the team of Northern Lights/Schiavi Homes, who brought 21 trout to net . A wooden, hand-carved trophy donated by Maineflyfish.com was presented to the angler who caught the smallest chub. This year’s chub trophy went to Chandler Woodcock of Farmington, Maine.

A total of 90 brown, rainbow and brook trout were caught by the twelve teams fishing from drift boats and rafts along the Androscoggin River between Shelburne, NH and Bethel, Maine. Anglers were allowed to use only two flies during the catch and release tournament. Said, angler Hope Eagleson from Hillsborough, NH, a member of the Fish-n-Chicks team, “ I lost both my flies within one hour. I’m glad it was a sunny day to just sit and watch the wildlife and see the other contestants casting their rods. I’m hoping for better luck next year.”

A drift boat competition was held Friday afternoon to test the skills of the oarsmen in the 2-fly competition. The ¼ mile course features a series of buoys to maneuver and a downriver sprint from Bethel Outdoor Adventures launch to the take-out at Davis Park in Bethel. First place went to Team Patagonia and oarsman Brett Trefethen of Mt. Vernon, Maine with a time of 7 minutes 15 seconds. Second place just 4 seconds behind went to the Fish-n-Chicks team and oarswoman Kate Farnham of Bath, Maine and third place to Scott Stone of Norway, Maine with a time of 7 minutes and 28 seconds. Fourth place went to Chandler Simpkins of Chandler Boatworks in Newry, Maine who rowed his custom built drift boat. Simpkins missed the first buoy and lost over 4 minutes maneuvering back up stream in a fierce current.

Photo Courtesy of Kevin McKay

Photo Courtesy of Kevin McKay

Photo Courtesy of Kevin McKay

Co-Winners of 2011 Upper Andro Two-Fly – Rex Cummings (left), Jim Bernstein (right)
Photo Courtesy of Kevin McKay

Photo Courtesy of Mike Mayo

Photo Courtesy of Mike Mayo

Photo Courtesy of Mike Mayo

Chandler Woodcock receives trophy for smallest chub caught from Kevin McKay founder of the trophy.
Photo Courtesy of Mike Mayo

The Teams

Fish-n-Chicks
Anglers Hope Eagleson, Mary McCauley Oarswoman Kate Farnham

Northern Lights/Schiavi Homes
Anglers Peter Smith, Todd Richard oarsman Scott Stone

Café DiCocoa
Anglers Ed Cellupica, Tom Roberti oarsman Laurin Parker

Skinny Moose Media/Western Maine Drifters
Anglers Dan Harrison, Larry Fiori oarsman Brian Reader

Patagonia
Anglers Amy Grant-Trefethen, Emily Cote oarsman Brett Trefethen

The Bethel Inn Resort
Anglers Brad Jerome, Stoo Mason oarsman Will Gilson

Young Guns/Eldredge Fly Shop
Angler Jax McKay, oarsman and angler Jim Bernstein

Grant’s Kennebago Camps
Anglers Mike Arsenault, John Blunt oarsman Bob Blunt

Trout Safari
Anglers Marc DesRuisseaux, Steve Marsters oarsman Rick Estes

Maine Tourism Association
Anglers Don Kleiner, Chandler Woodcock oarsman Mike Gawtry

All Points Insurance
Anglers Kevin McKay, Mike Fitzpatrick oarsman Tom Gagnon

Four Seasons Realty/Roosters Roadhouse
Anglers Luke Gray, Rex Cummings oarsman Eric Melanson

The Upper Andro Two Fly Contest and Northeast Drift Boat Championship are scheduled for Friday and Saturday, September 16 and 17, 2011, 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 1:00 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 a drift boat. All fish must be released live. The contest is limited to 18 teams.

Prizes including rods and fishing gear supplied by Kittery Trading Post, L.L. Bean, Patagonia, Sun Valley Sports, House of Hardy 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 Upper Andro Anglers Alliance will be offering fly tying and fly casting instruction on Saturday from its Harvest Fest booth on the town common. A tally of trout caught during the contest will be updated and posted at the booth during the day.

The Third Annual Northeast Drift Boat Championship will be held Friday, September 16 at 3 pm. 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.

Official contest rules and a registration form are available on line at www.upperandro.com or by phoning 207-824-3694..

Please follow this link for a PDF copy of contest rules and a printable registration form.

A graduate of Seton Hall University, Mr. DeVito studied extensively throughout the U.S. and Europe. Today, he is a successful artist and sculptor, as well as a dedicated conservationist. Seasonally, the DeVito family has traveled to their Norway, Maine home where Mr. DeVito has painted during the summer months for the past twenty-five years.

There are three international groups he is painting for currently: Ducks Unlimited (DU), Safari Club International, and The International Game Fish Association. DU has requested Mr. DeVito to create a new painting every year from 1994-2010. Recently, he completed his twelfth painting for DU, and his work is in demand among conservation, fishing and environmental organizations throughout the US.

He has collaborated with Master Printmaker and innovator of the Solarplate method of etching, Dan Welden since 2008. Rounding out the artist’s commissions list are requests for hunting and fishing scenes, nature-oriented and figurative bronze sculpture, and portrait work in all mediums.

Those attending the opening will also enjoy the musical talent of Maya Best. Maya plays guitar and harmonica with a blues-folk style, and sings with a voice that is both sultry and commanding. Her repertoire includes works from James Taylor and Bob Dylan to Van Morrison. Maya hails from Greenwood, and has been playing guitar most of her life.

The opening is free and open to the public. The exhibit and sale will continue at Frost Farm Gallery through Saturday, July 30. For more information call the gallery at 743-8041.

As part of National River Cleanup, members of the Upper Andro Anglers Alliance and students from the Telstar Challenge Course at Telstar High School in Bethel, Maine will clean up a section of the Androscoggin River from Newt’s Landing in West Bethel to Davis Park in Bethel on Thursday, May 19. Students, ages 16-18, will float down the river in rafts armed with garbage bags and towing garbage scow rafts to collect debris along the riverbanks. The clean-up flotilla will launch at 9 am from Newt’s Landing and take out at Davis Park. Community members are welcome to help clean-up this and other stretches of the river. The town of Bethel will provide trash collection at Davis Park and deliver to the town’s solid waste facility.

Northern Waters Outfitters of Errol, NH will provide rafts and garbage scows. Immediately following the clean-up, Bethel’s Best Pizza Grille & Dairy Bar will host a pizza party at Davis Park for all participants,.

Rivers and watersheds have been used as dumps for old appliances, shopping carts and other refuse. Litter, such as foam cups, plastic bottles and food wrappers float into waterways, build up along the shoreline and stay there for years. With landfill space at a premium, recycling efforts stymied by a lack of plant capacity and toxic waste expensive to control, a grassroots effort can help maintain a constituency for preserving and protecting waterways. In 2010, 2 million pounds of trash and debris were collected and 6,000 miles of rivers and streams cleaned across the nation. In years’ past the Upper Andro yielded over a ton of debris including bed springs, tires and tire rims, a boat motor and a 1950’s record player.

The Upper Andro Anglers Alliance sponsors the local clean up. Says Clean-up Co-ordinator and UAAA director Bruce Pierce, “There’s been a long-standing effort to improve the Androscoggin’s water quality and fishery-now we need to improve the shore land zone along this wonderful river.”

National River Cleanup was founded in 1992 by America Outdoors, the largest association of America’s outfitters and guides, to assist local groups in keeping waterways clean. In 2007 American Rivers assumed administration of the river clean up. American Rivers, founded in 1973, is the nation’s leading river advocacy organization. NRC Information is published on line at www.nationalrivercleanup.org.

Local Maine guides and members of the Mollyockett Chapter of Trout Unlimited will teach the workshops. Instruction will include both spin casting and fly casting for older youth and parents. Maine’s Hooked on Fishing-Not on Drugs Program will supply complimentary rods and reels for use at the festival.

Families can practice newly learned casting skills in the one acre pond and are welcome to take home their catch. The pond will be stocked with trout courtesy of the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife. Each young angler will receive a mini-tackle box complete with bobber, sinkers and hook courtesy of the Upper Andro Anglers Alliance.

Kids can learn how to tie flies with materials provided by local outfitters and fly shops. Children will be able to take home their hand-tied flies.

Families participating in the event will be eligible for door prizes from local outfitters and businesses as well as L.L. Bean and Kittery Trading Post. The Bethel Fire Dept. will host a barbecue of hotdogs and hamburgers, chips, and drinks and families are welcome to bring a pack lunch.

The weekend of June 4 and 5 is a free fishing weekend in Maine. Resident and Non-resident freshwater fishing licenses are waived each day.

The Family Fishing Festival is one of many nationwide events that provide families with an opportunity to have fun on the water. The events are promoted by the Recreational Boating and Fishing Foundation (www.rbff.org). For those families wishing to stay overnight and fish or canoe the Androscoggin River on Sunday, special family packages are available for the weekend at local lodging establishments.

For information on the Family Fishing Festival, contact the Upper Andro Anglers Alliance at 207-824-3694, fish@upperandro.com or www.upperandro.com.

The largest catch of the day went to Pete Smith of Farmington with a catch of 13 trout. Second place went to Todd Richard of Farmington with 12 trout and third place to John Schoen of Farmington with 9 trout.

The Rocky Freda Turtle Water Team Trophy for most fish caught went to oarsman Scott Stone of the Schiavi Homes/Northern Lights Team who caught 25 fish. In total over 100 fish were caught during the 8 hour tournament. Thirteen teams entered the competition.

A special Chub Club Trophy for the largest chub caught was presented by donor Kevin McKay to Rick Dow who caught a 17 ½ inch chub.

Along with trophies, winners received merchandise prizes including a Helios Rod from Sun Valley Sports and the Orvis Company, a fly rod from LL Bean, outerwear from Patagonia, a fly reel from the House of Hardy and gift certificates from Kittery Trading Post.

A video of the event produced by Paul Fuller’s Bird Dog Productions is available on You Tube and at www.upperandro.com.

Entries:
Hammerick Dental Clinic
Walter Hammerick and John Schoen, Oarsman Michael Jones

Gray Ghost Productions
Rik Dow and Mark Hiebert, Oarsman Brian Pinard

The Bethel Inn
Brad Jerome and Stu Mason, Oarsman Will Gilson

House of Hardy
Jennifer Strout and Emily Cote, Oarswoman Amy Grant-Trefethen

Sunday River Ski Resort/Williams Broadcasting
Tyler Gammon and John Williams, Oarsman Laurin Parker

Llewellin/Setters Point
Duane Jellison and Mark Foster, Oarsman Dennis Jellison

Northern Lights/Schiavi Homes
Todd Richard and Pete Smith, Oarsman Scott Stone

Skinny Moose Media/Bethel Outdoor Adventure
Doug Webster and Mike Piveronis, Oarsman Dan Emidy

Maine Tourism Association
Don Kleiner and Eric Melanson, Oarsman Luke Gray

CB Kenworth
Anne Cutler and Stephanie Percival, Oarsman, Nate Hicks

Striking Gold Jewelers
Kevin McKay and Eric Lippman, Oarsman Tom Gagnon

Eldredge Bros. Fly Shop
Taite and Jax McKay, Oarsman Jim Bernstein

Patagonia
Tyler Cote and Mike May , Oarsman Scott OVerbey

Please follow this link to Maine Fly Fish to view the photos.

The Upper Andro Anglers Alliance in conjunction with the Bethel Inn Resort and Bethel Area Chamber of Commerce graciously hosted the New England Outdoor Writers Association annual (NEOWA) Spring Safari. The three day event included a whole host of activities including turkey hunting, fly fishing, kayaking, golfing, hiking, sporting clays and just about any outdoor activity one could expect in the picturesque area of Bethel, Maine.

Opening day of my safari adventures started with an early morning turkey hunt along the scenic Sunday River. Local guide Dan Thrall who owns and operates Antlers & Anglers Guide Service (www.antlernanglers.com) got us into the woods at 3:30 am and once day break hit the action was unlimited. We spent two mornings in the woods and even though I did not connect, Dan put plenty of opportunities before me. Part two of opening day included a float stocking trip with the Upper Andro Anglers Alliance (www.upperandro.com) from Gilead to Bethel. Since 1998 the UAAA has stocked 40,000 brown trout throughout the Androscoggin River and the organization is committed to the sustenance of the Upper Andro. Please visit their website for plenty of helpful information including maps, events and membership.<<<Read More>>>

Magic Falls Rafting Company of West Forks, Maine will provide rafts and garbage scows. Immediately following the clean-up, Pleasant River Campground in West Bethel is hosting a barbecue for all participants.

Rivers and watersheds have been used as dumps for old appliances, shopping carts and other refuse. Litter, such as foam cups, plastic bottles and food wrappers float into waterways, build up along the shoreline and stay there for years. With landfill space at a premium, recycling efforts stymied by a lack of plant capacity and toxic waste expensive to control, a grassroots effort can help maintain a constituency for preserving and protecting waterways. In 2009, 600 tons of trash and debris was collected and 7,500 miles of rivers cleaned across the nation. Last year the Upper Andro yielded over a ton of debris including bed springs, tires and tire rims and a 1950’s record player.

The Upper Andro Anglers Alliance is co-ordinating the local clean up. Says Clean-up Co-ordinator and UAAA director Bruce Pierce, “There’s been a long-standing effort to improve the Androscoggin’s water quality and fishery-now we need to improve the shore land zone along this wonderful river.”

National River Cleanup was founded in 1992 by America Outdoors, the largest association of America’s outfitters and guides, to assist local groups in keeping waterways clean. In 2007 American Rivers assumed administration of the river clean up. American Rivers, founded in 1973, is the nation’s leading river advocacy organization. NRC Information is published on line at www.nationalrivercleanup.org.